Hot Stuff

Lookin' for some hot stuff baby this evenin'
I need some hot stuff baby tonight
I want some hot stuff baby this evenin'
gotta have some hot stuff…

Yeah baby, there’s some hot stuff out here! When it’s 86 degrees at 6:30am, you know it’s headed for another triple digit day! According to the news there have been 60+ days of triple digit temperatures in a row! It’s one of the hottest (and driest) summers on record. It’s been said that it’s so dry out here in Texas that the trees are signing up dogs!

When you turn the tap on to get a glass of cold water and you get water hot enough to steep tea, you know it’s hot. Seriously, we had some plumbing issues lately. The shower in the bathroom I use went wonky. Something was wrong when it was fixed and only the cold side of the water worked. Taking a shower in the cold water was warm enough to not notice a difference!

When it’s this hot your car becomes a weapon against yourself. You get sunburned through the car window! The best parking places are the spots in the shade instead of those closest to the door. If you aren’t lucky enough to get a shaded spot you’ll burn your hand opening the car door! And be careful with the seat belt. It makes a pretty good branding iron! Driving your car with two fingers is the norm. What if you don’t have air conditioning in the car? You probably just stay home.

Texas rain gauge...from an email...

A friend of mine did an experiment recently. She and her kids decided to see if they could bake cookies in the hot car. They put the dough on a cookie sheet in the back window. It took a while, around three hours, but the cookies actually baked! She said not only did they have fresh baked cookies, her car smelled great!

Hopefully this heat wave/drought will end soon. It’s just too hot to enjoy anything. Until then, I’ll stay in some air conditioned space, sipping on a cool drink and think of snow!

Hot, hot, hot, hot stuff
hot, hot, hot...

Knitting is slow in the heat. I have a scarf/shawlette that I’m working on, because it’s not too big. But the progress is slow. It’s funny how being hot makes you not want to do a thing. And if there’s one thing I’m good at? Doing nothing! The weather did say a cold front was coming through soon. Temperatures are only supposed to be in the high eighties. And everyone is excited about that news!

Lookin' for some hot stuff baby this evenin' …

Teacher, Teacher...

Can you teach me?

Can you tell me all I need to know?

Teacher, teacher, can you reach me?

Or will I fall when you let me go? Oh no. 

http://sweetsugarbelle.blogspot.com

Guess what? The week of May 2-6 is Teacher Appreciation Week! May 3 is Teacher Appreciation Day and to celebrate, the Texas House is proposing huge cuts to education! But in their infinite wisdom they approved a tax break for those who want to buy yachts costing $250,000.00 or more. I could almost guarantee that none of those people would be teachers. Isn’t there something wrong with this picture?

With the current budget proposal, approximately $7.8 billion will be cut from Texas public school budgets. Four community colleges will be closed and about 60,000 students will lose the financial aid that’s allowing them to further their education. As many as 97,000 teachers and school employees will lose their jobs. And there’s $9.4 billion in the rainy day fund. If this doesn’t qualify as a rainy day I don’t know what will!

To add insult to injury, substitute teaching could cost any laid-off teacher their unemployment compensation. The reason is a clause in the Labor Code designed to keep educators from seeking unemployment benefits in the summer or during holiday breaks when they have a guaranteed job waiting. School personnel can’t get benefits during a break if they were employed before the break. It carries over to substitute teaching. It makes sense for full time employed teachers. It doesn’t for substitutes.

It doesn’t matter that the substitute services are only part-time and on an as-needed basis. The commission ruled that if a district is using someone to substitute they could very well offer that substitute full time work in the fall or after a holiday. Therefore, the way the law reads it means they can’t be paid unemployment benefits during the breaks.  Thankfully the commission is supposed to be writing new benefit explanations that will warn teachers that substitute teaching isn’t worth it! I’m sure they’ll be a little more politically correct than I am and not tell them that if they substitute they’ll be screwed.

You're screwed.

In the meantime, if you can read this you need to thank a teacher. It doesn’t matter if you learned at home or at school, someone taught you and that makes them a teacher.  You should be grateful that they took their time to help you to become a better person. And when the next election comes around…remember to read the ballot carefully and express your appreciation to the powers that be this time…by not asking them back.

Just when I thought I finally learned my lesson well,
There was more to this than meets the eye.
And for all the things you taught me, only time will tell,
If I'll be able to survive. Oh yeah.

I’m fortunate that I had good teachers, (for the most part anyway), during my years in school. My first grade teacher gave me my love for school. If I’d had someone who wasn’t devoted and caring (even though she had a loud, gravelly voice that scared me!), I wouldn’t have done as well as I did because I was a terribly shy little girl. Thank you Mrs. Martha Roberston! 

http://sweetsugarbelle.blogspot.com/

One of my favorite high school teachers was my favorite because she thought I had potential. She encouraged me to explore different possibilities not only in art and craft type things but in other areas as well. She believed in me. There’s more to that story but maybe it can be in another blog post. Anyway, one time she spun some yarn and asked me to knit her a sweater. I even got to work on it at school, in classes besides hers! She did a lot for me and doesn’t even know it. Thank you Ms. Carol Klattenhoff!

http://sweetsugarbelle.blogspot.com/

Speaking of knitting, I made another ball. They are fun but this time I had a harder time getting it together for some reason. But I finally got it.

I also put the beads on the blue/green shawl. I had two on each fringe and it was too heavy. So I took one off each fringe. I still don’t like it. I think I’m going to take it completely apart and do it again on a smaller needle. I pulled out the telephone pole #17’s for this one but I think I’ll try again with a 15. I’ve got another ball going but that’s about all for now. I’m just in the mood for some no brain knitting. Oh yeah, I still haven’t blocked the crocheted shawl. I’m beginning to think I might have to hire it out!

This little guy is thankful for his teacher and so am I. Without teachers we don't have a future. And that's nothing to look forward to! 

Am I ready for the real world, will I pass the test?
You know it's a jungle out there.
Ain't nothin' gonna stop me, I won't be second best,
But the joke's on those who believe the system's fair, oh yeah.

Teacher, teacher, can you teach me?
Can you tell me if I'm right or wrong?

Singing In The Rain

I'm singing in the rain,
Just singing in the rain…

Raining off the deck

I love the rain. And because I live in the desert I seldom get the pleasure. But the past couple of weeks have been glorious with cloudy days, cool temperatures and rain! I know it won’t last but it’s amazing what just a little rain can do out here.

Rain Gauge

Rain on the deck

Rain in the back

Crane, Texas, is in Crane County. Crane County encompasses 795 square miles of what is best described as prairie. The Pecos River is on the south and west borders. There’s also a lake called Juan Cardona Lake. I know. If there’s a lake it can’t be all desert. But this is a salt lake. Years ago salt was mined in the lake by Peter Gallagher and Company. At one time it was one of the most important areas in the state. I remember getting one of those junk mail flyers in the mail once, about taking your boat out to Cardona Lake and the great recreation in Crane County. Ha! Obviously they have never been out there.

Juan Cardona Lake

The annual rainfall in Crane is about 13 inches. The past two weeks we got 11 and one half inches of rain at the house. That’s almost a year’s worth at once. Sometimes when it rains out here, even with a significant amount, it soaks into the ground and by the next day you couldn’t even tell it had rained. This time you can definitely tell! The rain has transformed the desert into a lush sea of green! Everywhere you look it’s a verdant patchwork of emerald, lime, and olive. I know it won’t last but for now I’m savoring the vision.


There’s a plant out here we call purple sage. I don’t know a lot about it except that it grows in the dry climate. My mother wanted a bush after seeing it in bloom out here. When she went to the nursery to ask she got a completely different plant. Anyway, it has beautiful purple flowers. When it rains, even just a bit, the bushes pop with purple. Just as suddenly all of the flowers go away. It’s interesting. There are plenty of these in the median between the highways and as landscape along the interstates. You most likely wouldn’t even notice them unless they were blooming. We have some in the back of the house. I took a picture yesterday and the bush was pretty well covered. I went out today and they are gone.

Purple Sage Flowers

Next day no flowers

It’s pretty sparse out here regarding population. There are not many people but a lot of open space. It’s always been that way. In 1890 only fifteen people lived in Crane County, according to census figures. As late as 1900, only fifty-one people lived here. Now, according to the 2000 census figures and the sign at the edge of town, there are 3191 people. The population has gone down since we first got here. The old families with their particular style of evil are starting to die off. But new evil or maybe just descendants who have finally learned the art take their place. Of course there are good people here too. The bad ones just have a bigger presence. I really don’t like it much here. It’s not a nice place. But I’ve been here so long I can’t imagine living somewhere else. I will probably never have the chance anyway so it really doesn’t matter.


There are a lot of people famous in their own minds from Crane. That seems to go with small towns. But there are a couple of ‘real’ famous people from Crane as well. Elmer Kelton, a famous western novelist, was from Crane. He wasn’t born here but his family moved him here when he was three years old. He authored over 40 novels, and published over more than 50 years. Another famous person from Crane is Kenny Walker. When he was two years old, Walker became profoundly deaf from a bout with meningitis. He is one of only two deaf players in the history of the National Football League. Now he works with the Iowa School for the Deaf as a counselor and a football coach.





The green is wonderful even though I know it won’t last. We have temperatures in the high 90s to 100s expected all next week. It won’t take long for the sun to bake the green into the brown it always is. In the meantime I’ll be waiting for the next rain, or at least a cloudy day. It could be a while because it doesn’t rain in hell.

Off the back deck

Knitayear is coming along nicely. I’m looking at the colors and not seeing a lot of brightness. But this too shall pass. Day 97 was a mellow day. Just floating along and relaxing. Packing up to head down the mountain but enjoying the peacefulness of the last day. I chose a yellow fur. I couldn’t get mellow yellow out of my head after I decided yellow was the color! Day 98 was a melancholy day. Coming back to reality when I wasn’t ready is what caused it. I chose light blue cotton for this day. As soon as I get back I pack for two more trips. Ah…the joy of working! Day 99 was July 8 and a day spent getting ready for the next two trips. I put the finishing touches on a presentation, washed, and packed…the same routine. I was diligent and got it all done. I picked a purple/green variegated yarn. I didn’t have a particular reason but when I started looking it called to me. Day 100 should have been a celebration except I didn’t realize it was day 100 already! July 9 was a day of dawdling. I had things ready but I just couldn’t get ready to go. We left late, around 4:00 instead of the morning like we planned. I drove as promised. I didn’t mind as it was relaxing. I chose a magenta/maroon color and worked it in seed stitch. It’s a pretty color and fit my mood. July 10, day 101 was a full day of work! I graded tests and it took us all day. It was a good day though and I stayed energetic because of the people I worked with. I had some big kind of ugly novelty yarn. It’s blue, green, yellow, pink and black. I chose it because it seemed to be full of energy with all of the little pieces of ribbon off the yarn. It looks likes it is going to quit raining now. I can just hope that it will not be too long before it rains again. In the meantime I’ll relish the memory. Until then…

Knitayear Summer

Let the stormy clouds chase
Everyone from the place.

One of the rainy days

Come on with the rain.
I've a smile on my face,
I'll walk down the lane
With a happy refrain.
Singing, singing in the rain.
In the rain.

The Eyes Of Texas Are Upon You

All the live long day…
Texas is an interesting state. It’s the second largest state in the United States, next to Alaska. With a width of 773 miles and a length of 790 miles, traveling from West Texas (Crane) to Central Texas (Austin) is like passing through different states.

The Permian Basin is what the region where I live is called. According to Wikipedia it is so named because it has one of the world's thickest deposits of rocks from the Permian geologic period. As far as looks, it’s pretty much a desert I suppose. Contrary to popular belief, there are trees out here. We call them trees but in most places they are called Mesquite bushes! It’s an oil and natural gas producing area, basically flat.


If you fly to Austin from here it’s about 291 miles. If you drive it’s about 350 miles and takes at least six hours. Sometimes, because of flight schedules, it takes the same amount of time to fly as drive!

Driving to Austin goes from flat brown desserts to lush green hills and trees. It’s funny how you can see the actual changes the further east you go. The wild flowers this time of year are amazing. I’ll just say again how beautiful they are! This time, instead of so many blue bonnets there are yellow, red, orange and little white flowers. There are still blue bonnets too, and all together they are amazing! The colors remind me of the trees changing in Vermont.




I got to start the day listening to kindergarten students sing the songs of Texas. There’s nothing as refreshing as hearing sweet little voices, singing loudly, on or off key! They put all they had into their program. Of course, I had my eye on my oldest DGS, E, as they were singing. He practiced and he knew all of the songs. He was on the front row! I had my camera but forgot it in the car so I had to use my phone to take a picture. It’s not a great picture and I caught him sideways but he did a “bery good job!”


After the program I headed to Odessa to pick up a friend for the journey to Austin. We were on the way to WHIBSIB! It was a long but good trip and we got a royal welcome when we arrived!

It only seemed fitting for my knitayear to be red, white and blue today, like the Texas flag. I was in a proud mood today, proud this was my first month of knitayear, proud of E for singing his songs, proud to be a Texan and proud to be an American where I can say I’m proud to be a Texan! And…


The eyes of Texas are upon you, you cannot get away.
Do not think you can escape them, at night, or early in the morn'.
The eyes of Texas are upon you, till Gabriel blows his horn!