Okay, I’ll just flat out say it – “I’m GRUMPY!” Most of the time I manage to roll with the punches, and, when I get annoyed, I can usually manage to shake myself out of it. But, you know what? There are days when you just need to “get your grump on!”
First off, I have a lovely landscaped shrubbery bed in which I have a little village of rock houses, with little wooden fences around each. Yesterday, the guy from the landscaping company our homes association uses, decided to trim a couple of my bushes which didn’t need trimmed and he stepped inside the bed, heedless of where he put his monstrous size 14 feet. In the process, he managed to totally decimate two complete fences! He didn’t just knock them to the ground. No, he ground them into the dirt! By the time I ran outside, it was too late. I pointed out what he had done and he got this clueless look on his face and murmured, “Oh yeah, sorry,” and moved on to the house next door. I’VE GOT YOUR SORRY RIGHT HERE, BUSTER!
Next, you know how my friend, Babs, and I had this whole hiking schedule set up for this summer? Well, that’s shot to hell! You wanna know why? Because her husband had to go and fall off a ladder and break his hip! Now I know that becoming an invalid was the last thing he ever wanted to do this summer. And I do sympathize with the awful pain and feelings of helplessness he has gone through. Let me be clear – I really like and respect her husband. BUT, and this is a big “but,” guess who has had to become his legs, his nurse and his driver? You guessed it – Babs. It doesn’t leave her much time for playing. We’ve managed to squeeze a couple of outings in since his accident, but too few for either one of us. Our summer is quickly slipping away and my buddy is tied to her house! All our big plans have been put on indefinite “hold” and it adds to my grumpiness. Yes, I’m being selfish! WANNA MAKE SOMETHING OF IT?
I could go on and on, but I’ll just add one final grump-inducer. Earlier in the year I wrote this post about a tooth my dentist has practically written off. He was starting to talk dental implants for that tooth and one adjoining it. The problem with that is that I found out my health insurance doesn’t cover dental implants, and we’re talking big money here – a thousand apiece for each implant and then almost another thousand each for the crowns. So, I’ve been being very careful with that tooth and all has been well. Unfortunately, this past week I noticed the gum above that tooth felt a little funny when I ran my tongue over it. There was no pain, mind you, but it seemed a bit puffy. When I checked it out with a dental mirror, it appeared that a little bit of the gum was actually “dripping” over the crown! It looked bizarre, like a little teardrop. I saw the dentist on Tuesday and he said it was a periodontal abscess and had the hygienist drain it and clean it. Then he started me on antibiotics. I have no idea if this will solve the problem, but it raised the whole “that tooth’s gonna go, sooner or later” discussion. So, that’s at the back of my brain…causing me worry and MAKING ME GRUMPY!
I know that in the whole scheme of the world, these are just mini-problems. The first one is a done deal. The second one will (hopefully!) become less of a problem as time goes by. And the third one is something I’ll deal with when it happens. I always do. They’re pretty much like the kind of problems everybody has. It’s just that today I’m not in my Pollyanna mood. I’m in my Grumpy mood. If you have any grumps you’d like to share, feel free to comment. Meanwhile, I think I’m going to go somewhere and have a good scowl!
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The other example is my leather recliner. Recliners, as a whole, are smarter than you think. They never resort to violence. They don’t have to. Instead, they’re very sly. Over the years they manage to embezzle coins, pens, M & M’s and all sorts of other things without your knowing it. Here’s how it happens. You’ll drop or lose a pen or something, but, when you check the seat cushion, nothing’s there. Consequently, you’ll start looking around on the floor. But, you won’t find it because your item has been swallowed by the recliner! Oh yes, my friend! Your item has been digested by that wily chair!
Today seemed to be a good day to do a few follow-ups and throw in the odd thought or two, so here goes:


If this electronic gismo hadn’t satisfied all my smoking yearnings, I would still be inhaling all those tars and carcinogens. Once I discovered all the many flavors of e-juice (that makes the vapor,) I knew that this was going to actually work for me. If you know someone who wants to quit or get away from tobacco cigarettes and plans to try e-cigs, you might suggest they order the e-juice. The first e-cig I ordered simply came with flavored cartridges and, for me, those just didn’t cut it for flavor. I almost gave up right then, but decided to try the juice. It made all the difference. So anyway, I guess I could say, “Hurray for me!” Right?



The only thing I could think was that they were mushrooms, but I’d never seen any which were shaped like that! They were firmly in the soil. I was about to reach down and feel them when they turned around! This is what I saw!
I know. I know. But don’t panic. They appear to be friendly enough. I took a closer look…

I think this car one is really a hoot!

Have you noticed how members of the media in America today are like a pack of voracious vampires who, given the slightest whiff of blood, attack a story and won’t let go of it for days or weeks, until they’ve sucked it so dry that there’s nothing left?
I like to think of myself as someone who is mentally competent in every way. I’m independent. I pay my bills and taxes. I have a good memory. I keep appointments – all the requirements of being a fully functional, productive member of society. But there’s one little thing that’s starting to worry me.










