WEEKEND TRAVEL

No weekend travel post this week.

I spent yesterday getting some things tidied up around the house before Bob came home. He arrived late afternoon after being on the boat for 31 days.

He pulled into the drive to be greeted by this pretty girl.

Who wouldn't love that face?! 

Bob put her picture on FB in hopes of finding her owner. We did, but according to the man's mom (who identified her) it's more of a 'good riddance' attitude. As she said, if it's up to him we can keep her. I'm thinking there is family involved that might not be as willing to see her gone.

At first we thought she might be a Silver Lab. Folks on FB told us we had a Weimaraner . We've since found out she will be 1 year old in March. Her name is Zoey.  She is 1/2 pitbull, 1/4 Aussie and 1/4 Neo-Mastiff. If she'd been a Weimer, we could not have kept her. 

She is soooo loving and sweet. Gets along with HoneyB - whom she'll be sharing the run with and even the 2 female cats. Spirit wants no part of her. And she's okay with Tabby as long as Tabby doesn't run. Then Zoey thinks the game is on and I'm afraid she'd be too rough on Tabby, just based on the size difference. She is very gentle. 

If we get the all clear by tomorrow, Zoey will make a trip to the vet to get complete determination, see if there are medical records/ shots on file. We'll bring her up to date on shots and get her fixed. 

While I said I didn't want any more dogs, HoneyB does need a playmate, though even he gets tired of her antics after awhile and we bring one of them inside to catch a break. LOL  The girls are going to love her this summer. 

I hope to be traveling later in the week and have pictures to share. 

I'm also getting things back up to speed and will be starting the Emergency Prepper posts again in March so, stay tuned!

WEEKEND TRAVEL

Welcome to my backyard

As I type this on Sunday afternoon, the temperature is 35*F. 

Some ice is starting to drip but at 4 p.m. and the sun going down, that won't last long.

Nearly every branch is still coated in a frozen protection.

Like many places across the country, we have been drenched in freezing temperatures as well as a mix of snow, sleet, rain... you name it, Mother Nature has shared.

I keep telling myself this is nourishment the ground will need for spring planting.

I am blessed that I do not have to go out in this horrid weather.

Every time I hear of major accidents like the one  that occurred on I-70 on Friday, I have to ask 

"What were they doing on the road to begin with?"

Like the tragic duck boat accident in Branson last summer, these people were given 

AMPLE WARNING!

Even if by chance they missed the news/ weather reports, being out there should have given them just a moment to think - we better pull off at the next exit and wait this out. 

If you are an employer, I would hope you would have sense to tell your people

"Weather is going to be dicey, take a personal day. Be safe"

or

"Looks like the weatherman was right. Why don't you folks head out early today. Be safe"

Then there's the folks who can't afford to lose a day of work. They've gotten themselves so deep into the 'gotta have' mentality that they have to get a full check.

Well, folks. I'm here to tell you.. and something I've always believed.

NO Employer is going to pay you enough to be critically injured, lose your life or take someone else's in an accident. If you are hurt, chances are you're going to be off a lot more than ONE DAY!

While you are out, 

your employer is going to be looking for someone to fill your spot while you're off.

I think if roads are bad enough that schools are off or dismiss early, then businesses should at the very least, go down to a skeleton crew. No should be out shopping/ eating, anyway.

They should be home - SAFE - with their family. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Please comment below. 

In the meantime, BE SAFE - BE SMART - LIVE!

WEEKEND TRAVEL - Amazing Herd!

On a trip to Poplar Bluff on Saturday I spotted a field loaded with a herd of deer. I have never seen so many deer on private land... on  preserve, yes. But never in an open field. Between the ridge to the left out of camera, across the field to the far side of the pond out of camera on the right, I counted THIRTY!

This was as close as I could get. I pulled over and took a couple of shots then about a block up, I found the farmer's entrance to the field. The gate set back from the road a bit so I was able to get a bit closer. With cropping, this is the best view out of all of them.

With all the rains we've had, the fields are greening up and these beauties were enjoying the bounty.

As cars and trucks whizzed by, I had to wonder how many of them were missing this amazing site. I'm glad I was able to see them.

While we're talking deer (okay meat in general) I had dinner at my favorite restaurant in Poplar Bluff last night. Castello's is an Italian restaurant connected to the Holiday Inn. They offer Prime Rib on Friday and Saturday nights. Folks, if you want the BEST prime rib in the Ozarks, I suggest a drive to Poplar Bluff.

I'll leave you with these two pics.

The 20 oz. King Cut... medium rare. This is an end-cut.

The depth of the fork tines tell you the thickness of this juicy piece of meat .

WEEKEND TRAVEL - West Plains

Okay.. so this isn't really a travel type article but I had to make a trip to West Plains on Saturday. Never thought about taking pictures. Just doing what I needed to do and get home. I had things here to do before the sun went down. 

To get a better scope of West Plains, you can visit WestPlains.net

I love spending time in the Visitor's Center. I get turned around direction-wise when it comes to West Plains but you'll find the VC on your right as you're coming into town on Hwy 63 from the west (Springfield/ Willow Springs)  They have some great displays including a pants suit previously owned by hometown country girl, Jan Howard and a rhinestone suite by the late Porter Wagoner, also from West Plains. You'll see those HERE

I'll never forget the first time Bob and I went to West Plains. We'd not moved here yet but had purchased the house. We were looking for some building supplies. We stopped at the local fire station for information. Their directions to where we needed to go included Porter Wagoner Blvd and Jan Howard Ave.  You know you're in a small town when....

Finally, the 14th Annual Library Chili Cook-off was held at the West Plains Civic Center. This is a big fundraising event for the local library and the great programs they offer. Dr. Julie Hart of Hart Family Eyecare is the reigning Chili Queen! She's our optometrist and one of the sweetest ladies you'll ever meet... and I guess she makes a mean bowl of chili!


For the rest of this month I'll only be posting on Monday's and Friday's. I should be back up to speed and able to bring some Ozark history posts back in. Wednesday posts will only run if I have Ozark books to review and Thursdays... well, we'll see where my mind wanders.

Hang with me. You know we don't move real fast around here :-)