A Bit of This and That

Good Saturday morning. Isn't it nice that the weekend is here? I found this button of the little puppies with the umbrella and it fits perfectly. Friday was hot and humid - in the 90s. I can take the heat but not the humidity. About 8pm it started to rain, but a nice gentle rain, not the thunderstorms the weatherman predicted.

Friday morning I went upstairs and shoveled (literally) most of the plaster and lath out of the bathroom. It is completely gutted now. Hubby didn't go upstairs because the meds he is taking for gout is making him tired. I think that is the idea - to keep him off his feet. Anyway, after I shoveled that mess out of there I was tired too. LOL I came downstairs and took a break, then went up and tried to strip the wallpaper off the largest bedroom. Never, and I mean never, put stucco paint over wallpaper. A previous tenant did this and I am having a terrible time getting it off. It comes off an inch at a time, so it is quite time consuming. I did take an hour break and then went back up about 4pm. Hubby BBQd, so that was a big help. I didn't go back up after I ate. I was finished for the day.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. It is to be cooler today according to the weatherman and I hope he is right. Even with the AC, it was hot working up there. Take care and remember to take time to stop and smell the roses. ~Blessings, Mary~

What's New in My World

Well, this has been some week. Along with the problems with Brandon, there have been quite a few other set-backs. On Tuesday morning hubby woke up with gout in his big toe. This is the third time in a couple of years. I told him he should go to the doctor but of course he didn't think that was necessary. By Wednesday afternoon, he knew it was necessary. He got a prescription and today it is less painful but very red and swollen. However, the meds will clear it up.

There has been little work done in the upstairs apartment this week. Jack came on Tuesday and got some work done. All the plaster is off the walls and ceiling. The room has been cleaned out a little but the last two days neither hubby nor I have been upstairs. Between the gout and other medical problems, hubby just hasn't been up to it. And of course I have been busy phoning people about Brandon being bullied.

Brandon went for an appointment with the owner of the farm on Thursday. He talked to him and when we were on our way home, he told me it did help. The owner told him that it is his job to make sure his kids are safe and that he had worked for the Ontario government helping kids. That seemed to impress Brandon. He gave Brandon his business card and told him to call him if he wanted to talk again.

So, things have settled down. Brandon is going back to school this morning of his own free will. Hubby and I will be busy working in the apartment. I am stripping walls of old wallpaper and preparing them for painting. Once all the prep work is done, it should go together fairly well.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers for Brandon, your kind words, love and support. ~Blessings, Mary~

Update on Brandon

Posted on Wednesday night:

Thanks to everyone for your prayers for Brandon. I spent most of my day on the phone and finally got fed up and called the Chief of Police. I spoke to the secretary and she had a lady officer call me back. This is the safety officer that goes to the boys' school once a month. We have no police in our schools on a regular basis.

Anyway, the constable said that there is no way the boys have to put up with this. She wants to talk to the boys and says that charges can still be laid because the boy threw Jordan into the street. There is no statue of limitations on assault and she says it definitely was assault. She is going to get back to me and get this straightened out.

Thanks again for all your prayers. I am exhausted so am heading to bed early. ~Blessings, Mary~

Prayer Requests

Please pray for Brandon. He is having a difficult time at school again. It seems that he is being bullied by the same two boys that were bullying him and Jordan a while back.

Three weeks ago two boys confronted our boys a couple of doors down from their home. My regular readers may remember that Jordan was thrown up against a parked car, Brandon was punched in the face and then Jordan was thrown into the street. Their Dad saw part of the incident and went out and confronted the boys that had attacked them. He then called the father of the boy who had thrown Jordan.

The boy's father was glad that Barry called as his son is on probation. Things got very quiet for a couple of weeks but this week it's all started again.

We have been to the principal, vice principal, superintendent of the boys' school and the director of the Board of Education, all to no avail. Things get better for a bit and then they go back to the same old, same old.

Tonight Brandon was having a meltdown, something he hasn't had for some time. He was very upset, sad and depressed. I took him for animal therapy and he didn't even want to see the baby fawn. He allowed me to put my arms around him and hug him and pat his back right there in the driveway. This tells me that something was seriously wrong because he is old enough that he doesn't like demonstrations of affection in public.

Brandon talked to the lady who owns the farm and told her all his troubles. She recommended that he not return to the school for the remainder of the school year - approximately two weeks. She said he is at the "edge." Michelle and I talked about it and she is keeping him home tomorrow to see how he is doing. We don't want to learn Brandon he can run away from his problems, but it seems that no one cares about what he is going through. We are at our wits end.

After I came home, I was upset at all that has been going on. I called our police department and talked to the Desk Sargeant. He told me, "This is not our department." He went on to say that we had to go to the principal, the superintendent of schools and the school board. When I told him we had done this kazillions of times, he didn't know what to suggest.

Why isn't this a police problem? My grandson was assaulted, thrown up against a parked car and thrown into the street. Isn't this assault?

We do not know where to turn for help. Brandon is so depressed that I fear something terrible is going to happen. Bullycide is suicide that relates to bullying. The child is fearful of going to school or going out into his community. Things become so hopeless that he/she commits suicide. This has happened to way too many children and I don't want my grandson to become a statistic. Please pray for Brandon and our situation.

Another prayer request is for Grams at Talk to Grams. She is going through a tough time at present.

Be sure to remember Denise at Shortybear's Place. She is mourning the loss of her brother.

I'm sure there are many others who need prayer. If you would like to be added to my prayer list, please email me or leave a comment. I will be glad to pray for you and your family or any other request that you have. ~Blessings, Mary~

What's New on Tuesday

Good Tuesday morning, to all my friends and readers. I thought this graphic was so cute and a great way to say good day to all of you.

Well, the excitement from the storm has passed. I thought for a while today that we were in for another severe storm. Toronto did get it, but it passed us by.

It was HOT today. 33.3 degrees Celsius, which is 91.94 degrees Fahrenheit, but with the humidex it was 40 Celsius, which is 104 Fahrenheit. We surpassed a record that was set on the same day in 1959.

The neighbor lady and I spent a few hours stripping wallpaper in the biggest bedroom of the upstairs apartment. We quit about 3pm because it was just too warm, even with the air conditioning. Hubby wasn't feeling good, so we had him go and pick up a couple things for us but wouldn't let him do any work. I think part of his problem was the heat and the air quality was poor as well. I don't need him taking a heart attack because he's working too hard at that apartment. I told him it will get done when it gets done and he's not killing himself to do it. I expected an argument but I got none - another sign that he wasn't feeling well.

Jack is coming tomorrow, so he will get all the mess cleaned up and we will go from there. It will all get done in it's own time.


I would like to introduce you to a blogging friend of mine. His name is Paul and he is 93 years old. He is the father of Denise at Samaritan Women. He is a great poet and tells some great stories of his younger years. Please visit him at The Poet. I love visiting his blog, reading his poems and walking with him down Memory Lane. Be sure to stop by and say hello.

Please continue to pray for Denise at Shortybear's Place. She lost her brother on Sunday and she is going through a difficult time. If you would like to send her a card, please let me know. A card shower is a lovely way to express our sincere condolences in this time of sorrow.

Have a great week and remember to do a random act of kindness. Kindness brings hope where all hope has been lost. Blessings, Mary

Tornado Warning and Storm

Sunday night on the news, they issued a tornado warning for our area at about 5:30 pm. That is unusual here. We don't often get tornados and usually they are only small ones. Last summer a small tornado whipped through the center of town and took out a lot of old trees in a park.

Hubby called me outside to look at a oddly shaped cloud. It wasn't a funnel, but yet looked a little like one. I've seen tornado funnels. However within about five minutes, it began to thunder and then a ferocious wind picked up and torrential rains came down. We couldn't even see across the street. The sky was black.

I came back into the house not too concerned about the storm. The next thing I know hubby came into the house and told me that a large branch off the old tree at the end of our driveway was across the road. I went out and this is what I saw.

Yes, the branch was down and not far from our driveway either. It's a good thing it fell toward the street. Otherwise, we would have had two damaged vehicles.

This is the mess that was just on the other side of the van. In the top of the photo you can see the tree branch across the sidewalk. I'm glad no one was walking there when the branch fell.

The neighbor thought he was going to come out and move that tree branch. He broke a small branch off but of course he couldn't budge it. It probably weighs 500 pounds or more.

This is the area in the huge maple where the branch blew off. It was hollow and that is why it broke. As I looked up and focused my camera, I saw a little raccoon looking down at me. He is high up in the tree and can't be seen in this photo, but I bet he was wondering where his home went.

The photo above is zoomed. That is the top of my car that is in the foreground. I must say we were blessed that no one or anything was hurt or damaged. There are several trees down in the area.

Yes, a little excitement in this neck of the woods. Stay safe! ~Blessings, Mary~

PS. Please keep Denise at Shortybear's Place in your prayers. Her brother passed away suddenly and she is mourning his loss. Please drop by and leave her a message of condolence. It's just two years since she lost her dear mother. She is going through a difficult time.

Green Thumb Sunday and Apartment Update

It's Green Thumb Sunday, hosted by Tricia at As the Garden Grows. If you'd like to participate, just click on the link to find out how.

Deena at Can I Be Pretty in Pink is having a garden tour on June 15th. Please follow the link to join in and show us all the beautiful blooms in your garden. Deena is fighting breast cancer and is asking participants to add the button for free mammograms to their blogs. What a great cause.

This week I have some new blooms to show you. Many of my perennials have bloomed and though I haven't had time to work in the garden much this year, I will show you a few of my favorites.

Above you can see my mini carnations. I'm hoping by next week this garden has more flowers in it. It's pretty bare right now.
My neighbor gave me the flowers above about five years ago. I'm don't know what they are. She called them Hungarian geraniums. If anyone knows for sure, please let me know. They are pretty but each year they spread and I have to thin them. I give them away to anyone who wants them. Last year I gave some to my neighbor and this year she has them blooming in a big patch.
One of my very favorites. My red Oriental poppies. I wait for this each spring. They don't last long though and I'm always sad to see them go. These were a gift from a little bird. It dropped the seeds in a deposit about eight or nine years ago. That was a wonderful gift.

That is all the blooms I'm going to show you this week. I'm saving the rest for Deena's garden tour. Please join in. It's going to be wonderful seeing everyone's garden beauties.

In other news, the apartment is coming along. We took a break yesterday, as we were both exhausted and we needed to do other household chores. Since Sunday is a day of rest we aren't going to work on it today either. We will begin again on Monday.

This is what the bathroom looks like now. It is pretty much gutted down to the joists.



This is the small second bedroom in the apartment. I phoned for a bin and they told me it would be $400. I told my hubby that it would be but he didn't think so. Another score for me. LOL Anyway then I phoned 1-800-Got-J*unk and they told me to put it all in one room and they would send two men out to take it all down and haul it away. Approximate cost $215. That sounds good to me. I dreaded the thoughts of carrying this down the stairs. We will wait until we have all the garbage together and then phone them.

That's about it for now. I did take a relaxing walk with Meeko and I will post those photos and some of Griffyn later in the week.

Have a great Sunday and take time to enjoy the beauty of nature and spend some time with your family. ~Blessings, Mary~