Sandi Chats

I don't know if this is just a rural Nebraska thing or what, but everyone knows the value of the inauspicious bucket. I am talking about everything from a 5-quart ice cream bucket to a 5-gallon bucket. In days gone by, when we were first married and I began to realize what a valuable item the bucket was, the 5-gallon ones were usually metal. Various farm products came packaged in a 5-gallon bucket, oil, hydraulic fluid, and a whole lot of other farm fluids that I never knew what to do with. Once the bucket was empty it was used for all sorts of farm chores...carrying feed, holding used oil, carrying water here or there, or storing all sorts of shop items. No number of buckets was too many! Eventually metal buckets were replaced with plastic buckets. They retained their shape better but tended to crack more easily, especially when they were used to hit a bull over the head in cold weather! So now it seems that we need more buckets because they are pretty useless when they are ...

From a Facebook post dated July 20, 2013... There are a couple of indications that things have gotten out of control in this house. 1. An organization tip says I need to work from a list. I have looked high and low and can't find my "organizational" notebook. Just need to go to the store and buy one to get this project on the way so that maybe I can find it. 2. Need to can beans but need to clean the kitchen first. Every counter space and the sink are piled high. Need to clean out the dishwasher to clean off the cupboards. Dishwasher is full of clean canning jars that need to be sat on clean portion of counter which is loaded with dirty dishes that need to go in the dishwasher. So unloaded a place on the counter which shifted a bunch of junk to a pile in the living room. Now the living room is a mess! It's beginning to feel hopeless. This is not actually my kitchen but there are some similarities! This showed up in my Facebook memories a few days ago. I va...

I am not typically an astronomy watcher. I may have my head in the clouds sometimes, but what happens in outer space stays in outer space. However, last Sunday night I saw on a Facebook post that there was the possibility of seeing Northern Lights that night. And this is something I have never seen in person. It seems I just haven't been in the right place at the right time to take in this spectacular sight. According to reports there had been a CME (coronal mass ejection) which would be hitting earth's atmosphere on Sunday night. The reports were that this would cause a spectacular Northern Lights show.  So about dark we headed north of town and sat on a hill facing north...for quite a while. We saw planes fly over and we saw some falling stars. We picked out the Milky Way but no Northern Lights. We finally gave it up about 11:30, since Monday was a work day, and went home. The next morning I read that the light show was basically a disappointment most places in...

Photo courtesy of Laurie Olson For 10 days wildfires raged through the canyons of Keya Paha County This week marks the 5th anniversary of our infamous Niobrara Valley Wildfires of 2012, more officially known as the Region 24 Complex fires. Much has been written about the wildfires in both the local news and in the book "When Smoke Filled the Skies". And I understand that this week's edition of the Springview Herald is going to have a feature commemorating this event. I am looking forward to reading what Amy and Kelsi have put together. There isn't really much I can add to the story except my own perception and thanksgiving for the success of the firefighting operation and the safety of all who were in harm's way. And for that safekeeping I will be forever grateful. Photo courtesy of Laurie Olson Firefighters battling the flames at close range! When we heard the fire sirens ring on Friday morning, July 20th near noon, I didn't really give it much ...

I am a classic list maker. Nothing makes me happier than to have a blank note pad so that I can make a list. A list of ideas, or a to-do list or a grocery list or a Walmart shopping list. I love lists!  (I'm pretty sure that whoever invented the "sticky note" was a list maker who was frustrated by not being able to keep track of their lists.)  At the office I save paper which is blank on one side just so that I can afford to make lists, otherwise it would get expensive to make as many lists as I make. Lined lists are great because then they are neater lists, but just plain paper will suffice most times. And, if they are recycled lists, I don't feel bad about just tossing them in the trash when I am through with them. I have tried to convert my list-making to my cell phone, along with the calendar that was intended to keep me where I need to be when I needed to be there. Somehow I just can't quite convert myself to cell phone lists. I am a paper list maker. ...

It's nearly the 4th of July (might be by the time I get this finished and posted), and it's the big summer holiday. I really like it when it falls on a weekend because we always get three-day weekend, but this year, since it falls on a Tuesday, we only get Tuesday off. So to work Monday, Tuesday off, and back to work on Wednesday!  The 4th of July, or Independence Day, seems to mark the mid-point of summer so we are now on the downhill slope of summer. That means very little to us anymore since we don't have kids in school, but it still marks the fact that summer is flying by. It's also the big holiday for picnics and camping and fishing, and just generally all things summer. Since it's usually pretty hot by this time, and it certainly is this year, we usually opt to do as little as possible. I believe the plan for this year is to stay in the house near the air-conditioning and take a nap. I think we are all guilty of celebrating the 4th of July in whatever fa...