We had a heavy thunderstorm and some rain in the night, but it did not last very long although it was very bright and very noisy. I dropped back off to sleep and awoke around the usual time crawling out of bed and dragging myself out for that first walk. We wandered around as we usually do saying “Good Morning” to whoever we ran into and making a fuss of their dogs. 

Both Daniel and Malinda were working on their new Jeep installing canoe racks on the top so they could carry them ready to hit the water. I canoed a bit in my younger days but am not interested anymore. For some reason, even though I am a good swimmer, I have developed an inherent fear of water and prefer Terra Ferma. 

I noticed a couple of large storage bins they had in front of their RV and enquired as to what they planned on doing with them. Daniels response was, “Make me an offer” which I did, and Malinda wheeled it over to my RV on her two-wheel dolly. She is one tough and energetic lady. I gave her a check and thanked her profusely. 

As I was already out there, I loaded the bin with the outdoor things that I had sitting outside or under the RV to tidy the place up. Now, all I need is to get the deck built and we will have it made. 

On my trip into town yesterday, I visited the Wild Bird Store in the hope of finding a replacement water holder, but they did not have anything like I needed. Guess I will just have to find one online. Incidentally, changing the Hummers feed to sugar and water and the location of the feeders into a shady area has really paid off. I was sitting outside and just watching and at one time, counted eight of the tiny birds all congregated around the feeders. They are constantly coming and going. 
 
I hung the new set of wind chimes using some twine that Daniel had given me and now we can listen to the cheerful tinkling as they sway in the wind. 

Back inside, I fixed breakfast and then settled down to read the world news and then work on the blog posting the last couple of days after playing catch up with the writing.  

Daniel stopped by on his buggy and said he was going to work on his Jeep and could I come over to give him a hand. I was about to take the dogs out anyway and we headed in the direction of Daniel’s shop. I tied the dogs up and went to work, not that I did much except hold things and hand Daniel different tools as he asked for them. Some of what I had to do involved laying on the concrete to hold the part as Daniel bolted it back to the Jeep. 

On one of these occasions as I was getting back up off the concrete floor, I felt the Glute muscles tear in my left leg and although keeping it to myself, I carried on as Daniels helper.  

Malinda stopped by and showed her adaptability as she lay down on the concrete floor alongside Daniel wielding wrenches and such as she tightened up nuts and bolts on her side of the Jeep. She is one tough lady. All I did was hand them parts which was a good thing as I was almost incapacitated. 

A couple of hours later, they had done as much as they could as the electrical part will be done by a shop that specializes in that sort of thing, tomorrow. We cleaned everything up and I was invited to join them at my neighbors, BJ and Peggy’s RV for beer.  

I took the dogs out for a short walk and then prepared their food before wandering two RV’s away to the ladies RV. There were five of us, Peggy and BJ, Daniel and Malinda and me. We sat and talked and learned a bit of each other’s history as we sat and drank. I restricted myself to just a couple of cans of beer which was a good thing as I had not eaten since breakfast. Besides, I wanted to stay sober and in control of my conversation and actions. This coincided with some of the conversation which was of much drinking on different occassions and what happened because of it. 

Luckily for me and a couple of the others, BJ and Peggy, whose RV we were sitting outside allowed me to use their restroom inside their RV otherwise, I would have left the party early. By then, my glute muscles had stiffened up and I was really sore and when I got up, gave the appearance of being drunk until I told them of the problem. 

We chatted for a long time until someone asked what time it was. It was almost midnight and we sat and talked for almost 3 hours. At that point, the party broke up and both Daniel and Malinda walked with me back to The Caboose because I was limping so bad. Thanking them and then saying goodnight, I went inside realizing that I had fed the dogs but not myself. I put together a plate and then sat and watched a whole episode of Yellowstone, Season 5 before going to bed around 1:30 am. 

Quite a busy but as it turned out, painful day. 

Written 04/27/2023 Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com