What does ‘tarrying’ even mean? - lingering, loitering, dawdling, dallying, pausing, waiting, etc. To tarry is to pause, to stay longer than expected, to not have an agenda. It can be either positive or negative, depending on the circumstances. Tarrying can imply wasting time or indicated a lack of commitment; procrastination. But it can also mean to slow down, abide in something, linger in the moment, etc.
I think of tarrying as waiting patiently, while actually lingering and immersed in anticipation. Waiting to close on our new farm property, Joe and I have been dreaming up ideas. Without specific expectations, we have been devising plans. While we tarry, we get more excited about what's to come.
It is good for us all to press pause and look at our life. And while we are all 'stuck' at home, we can live the tarrying life. We have to! So take a moment to tarry and identify all the good stuff. Take time out of one's busy schedule to enjoy or appreciate the beauty of life. Stop and smell the roses.
Tarrying before the Lord involves quieting our hearts, praying about our concerns, meditating on His Word, and listening for His voice. We tarry in prayer to encounter God's presence for an extended period of time. We stay in the moment, fully engaged and attuned to the presence of God. Tarrying creates a space by which God's presence slowly grows and manifests itself as we linger. I have to watch that I don't quickly toss a prayer skyward and then race off on my own agenda and ideas, without waiting on God.
Saturday 2/27 - It was a good day for tarrying. It rained (or misted) almost continually all day.
Mama Styx just couldn't sit still while watching this birdy video.
We had our family face time chat at noon. Stevie napped on my lap during part of our one hour conversation.
Then I had to make myself go to the gym. Thankfully, once there and moving, I got energized and actually had a rather good workout.
Late afternoon, Jean took Mama to get her first Covid shot and then rewarded her with a frosty, and Mom ate the whole thing!! We always love seeing and hearing from Mom and Jean.
Joe went to dinner with Brian, but I decided to abstain from eating out until a few weeks after my second vaccine and once our county Covid rate has dropped substantially. I watched three episodes of Heartland, with Joe joining me once he got home.
Do you see what I saw from my office window?
Also, between the raindrops on the window, you can see my ducky pair of Mallards. They came up to investigate what might have spilled from the bird feeder on our deck, but did not find much.
From my office chair, while I started this blog, I watched several little rain showers blow through. Was March going to come in like a lamb or a lion?
One of Joe's most used 'tools' from life on our Illinois
13 acre farm was a self propelled, gas driven, weed whacking mower. It was great for
trimming all the fence lines and around all of the outbuildings. We have decided to get Joe one for his birthday, so he ordered it.
The other tool/toy we wanted to get was a UTV/Side by Side with 4 wheel drive to serve as a work vehicle on the farm, for tootling around Fairfield Glade, and even for some off-road fun. I am hoping it will replace Joe's scooter. We had planned to wait for summer to get it as an anniversary gift to each other.
My favorite mindfulness meditation activity is sitting with and petting one of our cats while contemplating life. This type of tarrying can be so relaxing.
Joe, who has also spent a good deal of time tarrying, came up with a name for our new farm - 'Mountain View Ranch' so we don't confuse it with our Illinois farm. It is going to be difficult for me to remember to refer to it as 'the ranch.' These photos are from the 2015 real estate listing of the property, showing the view of the mountains. You really need to see it in person to take it all in though.
It was another do nothing, tarrying, laid back, lazy, kind of day.
Stevie watching Monita 'fight' the fish.
After reading and taking a nap on the couch in the sun room, which had no sun by the way, I checked in on Joe who was in his Mancave.
I needed to see my therapist, so I headed to the barn on a drizzly afternoon. Amiga came right up to me in the field and did not need too much brushing. And she was very good for me while I rode bareback. Horses really do sense when we are troubled.
I just sat on Amiga while she grazed, and I watched the livery horses and the geldings. This is Zorro in with his buddies. I took this (video) of Cash charging back from the waterer and then of some horsing around between Zorro and Rocky. I did end up talking on the phone with Britney for about ten minutes, and I also did do some actual riding. Twice I had to go back and ride in the barn when it started to rain.
Amiga looking at the two cats on the workbench, and Chester below wanting to go out on a real trail ride.
Joe and I ended the evening watching two episodes of Blue Bloods, finally learning how Danny's wife Linda had died.
Monday 3/1 - March has arrived! I didn't take any photos all day. These five Britney sent after she got to work and heard more details of the robbery that had occurred the day before. This one shows the fence the intruder had to climb over and the gate he had to break through to get to the building.
This photo shows the metal bars the intruder had pulled away
from the window using a crowbar before he could squeeze through to get into the building through the window he had broken.
Britney said Students International did have the FBI (oij) at their office after the break-in on Sunday. There had been other such cases in the area over the last few months, so they wanted to catch this crook. The intruder left blood and finger prints and the neighbor’s video security camera recorded him. He climbed over the electric fence, broke through the gate, and slid through the pried open metal bars he had pulled away from the window he broke.
Once inside, he did not break through any locked doors, but instead broke glass windows between rooms.
Britney's laptop was in the locked cabinet in the office, seen in her last photo. The intruder did not take the desktop computers or the projectors or anything else in the cabinet. Even the money was still in the safe, which had not been broken into. He was probably in a hurry because at some point the burglar alarm went off.
The day was cooler, and gloomy, and was to get colder by afternoon. After the gym, I went to town to run errands.
I was discouraged at Walmart because they were out of several things on my list I went specifically there to get. I dropped by the barn on my way home to pay my boarding bill, but was unable to accomplish that also.
Before bedtime, Joe and I watched a heart warming movie, "The Magic of Belle Isles" with Morgan Freeman.
Tuesday 3/2 - This is the page on my daily calendar for today. I love the quote.
The temperature had dropped even lower overnight and was going to stay rather cold. The dampness from all the rain along with the wind, were not very inviting to go outside.
I sat here at my computer a lot longer than warranted.
I had moved from my computer after lunch, to in front of the fire to read and nap. Still needing to pay board, I finally got dressed, and went to the barn. No one was there, so as planned, I went across the road to clear the trail through the woods to the winter pasture. The livery horses have been using this, but there were still rocks, branches, and briars that needed clearing. The creek crossing was in good shape, although wider and deeper than last time I had seen it in the fall.
Once I had the trail all cleared for riding, I went back to the barn, was able to pay my board, and then got Amiga tacked for riding.
We headed across the road, through the field, and down the woodland trail. Amiga went everywhere, without hesitation. Riding on the winter wheat, it was still quite muddy in spots, especially where it was shady.
We rode around some of the winter pasture and I took Amiga around the upper loop of the long trail. Here we are on the ridge, looking down the power line.
Jan was out in the front yard on Cash when I returned to the barnyard on Amiga. We chatted for awhile, but I was getting cold, so I took Amiga in for the night.
The barn is usually a flurry of activity at evening feeding time, and tonight was no exception. I enjoyed joking around and talking with several of the gals.
I got an up-date from sister Jean. Earlier today she had found the AA Air Cargo without problem, got through all the paperwork, paid the $372 fee, and they weighed the cat and carrier in. However, when they came to zip tie her crate they said, oh you can’t use a crate with a top door!!! Unbelievable! So they pulled an old filthy, large dog crate out of storage and Jean used about 20 Clorox wipes to clean the soot out of it. Jean had to carefully move Mae into the 'new' crate in a big noisy warehouse. The cat was pretty freaked out. And finally, her flight was off, with her on it, in her new, big crate.
I love these longer days, but it was after pet dinner time by the time I got home from the barn. After feeding them, doing my daily pet chores, and our dinner, Joe and I watched two episodes of Blue Bloods.
Reading in bed as usual, I was holding Stevie, trying to comfort her. She got her eye scratched again, sometime the night before. I’m using the same antibiotic cream the vet gave me the last time she had her eye scratched. Dang cats.
The night before, I moved everything out of the way from our back living room wall. Joe helped me with the heavy stuff. First thing this morning, I laid down the tarp, and brought in our tall ladder thinking it might be needed.
I got word that Mae was in transit for 15 hours yesterday, with a long layover in Texas, but made it safely to Jean's daughter Brianna (on Brianna's Birthday)... Hooray!
The Willow Window work crew arrived right on time at 8am. You can see that Joe and I had moved our cars onto the street out front. The crew got right to work setting up ladders and scaffolding.
I was very nervous about this whole process going well.
As the workers started removing windows, our house got colder and colder. I had closed myself and the cats into the sun room (with access to just our bedroom) and had the space heater going to keep it warm. We had also turned the house thermostat way down. 
The crew worked on the six side windows first, removing them and cleaning up the frames. At one point the floor was vibrating so much from the sanding or sawing or whatever they were doing... that the fish cat toy (that was sitting on the floor in the sun room) started flopping its tail without any cats around. Most of the cats were actually hiding under our bed. Thankfully, no rotten wood had been found on any of the framing of the windows on each side, and the job was moving along well.
I kept checking on the workers, getting updates and taking photos. I got this (video) of them removing the top window. They said it was very heavy. And thankfully, it's frame was also undamaged by water. He said the water damage we were seeing on the drywall was from the actual top window sweating and leaking some.
Going.... Going.... Gone!
They also took time to explain to me the different things they would be doing to make the new windows leak proof.
This is considered two separate windows. Well, actually there are no windows in here at the moment. This is just the frame. Two different windows go in this space, the bottom one opens. To have just one window made with the bottom one that opens, would have been more expensive.
Joe picked up lunch from Willow Catering (not related to Willow Windows) and we ate in the sun room because the kitchen/dinning/living room area was so cold. The meal sure was tasty and hit the spot.
I messed here at my computer most of the day while the window guys worked. I was tarrying in a non-productive kind of way. But I wanted to keep an eye on the work, to be sure the rotten wood was getting replaced as needed.
As the sun moved around to the backside of the house, the workers got warmer and our house temperature came up some.
I think one of the reasons these guys were so jovial,
was because it felt like spring. The past few weeks had been so rotten,
today's weather was extremely refreshing, even though the high was only 54°. Sunshine just does a lot for one's mood.
Before the crew could remove the last huge bottom window, they had to do the finishing touches on the top three windows and then take down the scaffolding to get it out of the way.
Not only was insulting foam, calking, molding, and putting a drip cap outside on the tops, part of the finishing work, they also had to get all of the glass sparkly clean.
Last window gone!
By 3pm, the last, and largest window came out. It was also the heaviest. And as we suspected, the bottom sill was fairly rotten.
All the work on the top three windows was finished inside and out, and the finishing work on the bottom side windows was tackled while the bottom sill was getting replaced. You can see the foam filling around this pair of windows. And below, the other side window pair was all finished.
The workers got the new window put in before I got a photo of the new sill. You can only see about an inch of it in this photo. It was a ten foot 1x6. One worker had showed me that all the rotten board was removed and what was left was solid. He assured me these windows would not leak and reminded me that they were guaranteed for life.
Finally, after nine hours, the job was finished.
The new windows are much clearer than most of the old ones because some of the old ones had lost their seal. They look different because they were framed windows set inside the already existing frames, so they are actually a little smaller. Their frames are also dark, matching the outside of the house. To have the inside of the frame built using a lighter colored vinyl would have cost a lot more.
Also, the molding they nailed around the inside of the frame is white and will have to be painted, probably along with the existing trim. I planned to paint anyway. I will have the inside wall (including the frames) painted a different color, as an accent wall.
Here are the after photos, inside and out.
Stevie napping in the afternoon while the noise and commotion was occurring in the next room. I even took a short nap on the couch in the sun room. I love how Stevie was bracing herself against the back of the cat tower, with all four feet on the wall.
The workers left a little after 5pm. It was nice to have
our space back with peace and quiet. The cats were also glad to come out
of their confinement.
After dinner Joe and I watched three episodes of Blue Bloods, with the fire going to warm the house back up. There was still the smell of drying caulk.
Thursday 3/4 - It was another beautiful sunny day, although still a tad cold out. This was vet day at the barn so I needed to get there by 10:00. Amiga was out enjoying the sun and grass that has just started to grow, and the mud. I decided I couldn't present her to the vet looking like this, so put quite a bit of effort into getting her cleaned up. No time to tarry.
Patty arrived to handle Zorro and I continued brushing Amiga.
Both of our horses needed their teeth floated (sharp points filed down so they don't cut the inside of the horses mouth). And Zorro got his sheath cleaned while he was lightly sedated.
Patty had to walk Zorro for almost an hour before he was 'awake' enough to let him go out on pasture to eat. Our Pasos are 'light weights' when it comes to drugs. LOL
It was Amiga's turn next. She gets so tense with shots, she actually bent the needle while getting the sedative. Then while getting set up for the teeth floating, the tip of her tongue got pinched in the clamp. Poor girl. At least the Coggin's test and spring shots went well because she was relaxed from the sedation. I walked Amiga for about 45 minutes before she was 'awake' enough to join the herd.
Sleepy Amiga.
Once home from the barn early afternoon, I was feeling a little like Amiga under sedation. I couldn't get motivated to go to the gym or go outside to do yard work. I had a late lunch, and then read and napped on the living room floor, in the sun coming through our new windows.
To help Amiga with her sore tongue, I ran back out to the barn at dinner time to give her a second Prevocox (Patty gave her and Zorro one the night before in preparation for the vet visit). I noticed Amiga was eating her hay rather slowly and carefully.
After a call from Courtney, two more episodes of Blue Bloods, with Joe, ended my day.
Friday 3/5 - It was 28° when walking Maggie at 5am. The sun was shining in the morning, but it was overcast all afternoon.
Monita playing with one of her favorite toys while I computerized. Maggie looking on, not quite sure what to think (video).
Joe had driven (for Residence Service) a lady to get a blood test and then left for Ashville NC once done chauffeuring. He went to look at, and ended up buying, this 2019 Cub Cadet Challenger MX 750 UTV. So much for waiting till summer. He couldn't pass it up because he got such a good deal.
I'd had two days off from the gym, so made it a point to get there today. I try to go at least three days a week.
I made a quick trip to Food City on the way home and then enjoyed a big salad for lunch.
I had changed into work clothes intending to rake sticks from the yard, but it never happened. I was too cold, and a tad tired, so I sat down in front of a fire, with a blanket and book. I did a lot of reading and a little napping and then Joe got home to tell me about the good deal he had made. Next he needs to decide how he is going to get our 'new' UTV home.
The dog and cats had joined me in front of the fire. Stevie here on my lap making reading a bit difficult.
It was two more Blue Bloods after dinner.
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