WEEKEND TRAVEL - West Plains

Hi Everyone!

This was supposed to be last week's post but I've been down with my back for over a week. Before that, the weekend of this 'travel', I managed to drop a battery operated chain saw on my right foot and torqued my back taking out the garbage. That was the beginning of this more than a week-long aggravation.

While the swelling has subsided in my foot and most of the lovely purple tones are gone, the back is still being a pain - literally.  So bear with me, please as being at the desk isn't the most comfortable right now.

Okay.. off to my weekend travel.

West Plains is one of our go-to shopping spots. Our supercenter/ $ Tree/ ACE Hardware are our main stores to visit, though I've also been in Ramey's grocery for specific items. Last week I learned via the internet that our CashSaver is also the same as the 10box store in Poplar Bluff that I shop at frequently for our meat.

CashSaver bought one of our Ramey's locations several years ago. I checked out the store right after they opened and found it not very clean nor organized. I realize West Plains is in one of the top five poorest counties in Missouri but do our stores have to reflect that statistic?! I've never been back.

I've noticed that while the sign doesn't say 10Box, the Cashsaver sign is less predominate so I'll be checking the location out again soon. If I still see problems, I'll write to corporate.

Anyhow - while in West Plains a couple of weeks ago, I took a very hot stroll through the farmers market in the Endurance Church parking lot. There was a very nice variety of fresh meats/ seafoods as well as vegetables/ baked goods and hand-crafted items. 

The Church is located at 805 Worley Drive - West Plains MO  

Next to Hirsch Feed & Farm Supply

Here are a couple places for you to investigate.

My #1 choice is SGT. DAN'S REDNECK CATTLE CO.

Don't let the name fool you. Dan Crowder is a reallyl nice guy and a veteran. All Veteran's receive a 10% discount on purchases.

All meat is grown and raised in Oregon Co or just over the border into Randolph Co. AR, USDA inspected. 

He is currently working on a delivery route and will be happy to try and work a route close to you if you give him a shout. 

You'll find him on FB - Sgt. Dan's

Give him a call: 4179384834

Email: DanielCrowder7@gmail.com

Tell him you saw this on KellysCountry!

Next we have:

KELBY HUTSLER

Kelby is the seafood outlet.

Fresh from the gulf via SS J-BELK GULF SHRIMP AND CRAWFISH

Give him a call at 417-372-2015

He sells out quick so get there early!

I hope to be more mobile later in the week to take you along.  There is a cave near Van Buren I want to tour. 

Safe Travels & Country Blessings!

TUESDAY HISTORY - Cabool MO Part 2

I had some pictures I took of the Historical Society in Cabool last year but could never get  hold of anyone to let me inside. So I'm having to rely on everything from the internet so with that caviat, here we go.

Cabool (Missouri), located in Texas County, got it's name from Kabul Afghanistan in 1882. (Wikipedia)  Story goes that a construction engineer worked on the railroad there. He'd also worked on the railroad in Kabul and thought the area looked similar.

Another legend sites the name taken from Chief Kabul (Kay-Bull), who lived in the area. According to legend, Chief Kabul and his sweetheart dove off a cliff into the onyx pool because their parents did not approve of their union (Reminds me of a song) There was even a POEM written by Tug Wilson and Ben Durnell about the romantic legend.

Whatever the background of the name, Cabool is a quiet little town steeped in community.

Cabool Missouri is the only Cabool in the United States.

Here's a video of the song that came to mind.

ROAD TRIP - Cabool MO

Saturday, I took a drive to Cabool to the Dollar General. That location has the best selection of cold/ frozen food items I've seen at any of the other chain locations. They're prices are lower or comparable to Walmart.

Before shopping, drove downtown and found this Mexican restaurant. I can see why they have a 4.8 rating.  The food was excellent, the portions large and the price better than most places. The staff were friendly and accomodating. The restuarant also offered plenty of room for social distancing.

While they did not offer Wi-Fi, I was able to use my data and sit in on a two-hour business meeting. They were okay with that. 

After my trip to Dollar General, I had a taste for something sweet. DQ is just out the highway...

The small town also features a different food truck on Tuesday's. I hope to check them out soon. I hope you'll come back tomorrow for Part 2 of my trip to Cabool when I'll share more of the history.

In the mean time, take a drive down Hwy 60/63 West between Willow Springs and Mt. Grove. You'll love the charm of this small, inviting community.

Safe Travels!

CAN I COME IN?

Not the absolute best picture but imagine my surprise when I looked up from the computer this mornign to see this pretty head peeking in the screen.

This is probably Queenie or one of the second year black snakes that roam the property. I went out the back door and around to the front deck to check her out. She had come down off the screen and was just hangin' out on the deck railing. I encouraged her to go elsewhere.

This is my second snake sighting in the 'yard' in the past couple of weeks. King, my 8'+ monster who's lived on this property probably longer than we have, was stretched out in the wood trailer last week when I went to check the live trap. We've had a real timber rat problem of late. Bob didn't tell me how bad the trailer was until I went out to get something one day. Ugh! I won't say how many rats we've trapped but I will tell you I'm just glad they've stayed out there and not ventured into the house. I haven't caught any in a couple weeks. Maybe between the live trap and King, we are finally rid of them.

Next task is to totally clean out that wood trailer, pressure wash everything then start from scratch. with Bob's breathing issues, I'll be the one on the inside handing him the lengths of timber through the window to the outside. Fun times!

How's your summer kicking off?

GUARDING PRIVACY

Good morning!  

This is a quick post written (Monday) as today is all about phone calls to Social Security. I'm not sure what has happened, nor am I going to speculate. I just know something isn't right. The only thing I can do is figure out the issue then move forward.

 With that in mind, I'm not sure there will be any other posts this week. I'd planned to be back to work full force, though that  may not happen this week.

What I do want to point out is that I've done everything in my power to guardd my personal information. I don't do business on my phone, I don't bank on-line and I have one credit card to my name for business and hotel confirmations.

Sadly, the same precautions do not appear to have been take with the U. S. Government.

I have blog posts ready to roll... with a few changes in format for the remainder of the year. With the first half of the year winding down, this seemed like a good time to make those changes.

Hang with me - we'll get this straightened out!

Be Safe!

~Kelly

MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE

 TO THOSE WHO SERVE IN THE OUR ARMED FORCES

 AND

 THE FAMILIES WHO SACRIFICE SO MUCH

FOR OUR

FREEDOM

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

As you can see from the picture, my living room is a disaster. My dining room looks the same way – like someone just unloaded a large U-Haul. This is only one of 5 areas of the living room/ dining room:

When we moved me into the studio four years ago, nothing went as planned. Bob was anxious to turn my old office into his man cave. That meant nothing got put away in the studio the way I wanted… more dumped wherever it would fit.

Since then I’ve also added more things – mostly planner and Mixed Media items – that I’ve had to find room for. Instead, those items just got added to the already disorganized mess.

I’ve been trying since January to get my office/ studio in order – all while trying to carry on with my daily work routine, write a book and keep the house presentable. I finally came to the conclusion that plan of attack wasn’t working.

First off, I have OCD. I can’t work on something unless everything is in order. Just makes my life more complicated.

Last week, after writing all my blog posts for the week, I emptied the studio into those two rooms. I’ve worked all weekend with the cleaning part. Washing windows, shampooing carpet, detailing furniture… you know what a deep clean entails.

This week I HAVE to get stuff back in place so that office work can resume as usual. Bob comes home on Wednesday. He’d really like to be able to sit at the dining room table in the morning with coffee or sit in his recliner in the evening to watch TV. To add insult to injury, his best friend is planning a visit for the coming weekend. Kevin helped us move in thirteen years ago. He hasn’t seen the house with the addition of my studio. So yeah…. This room HAS TO GET DONE.

With that, I’m taking this week off of all of my blogs, no book writing and only the 1 crafting deadline I have for Wednesday.

Blog post should resume next week – Monday May 4th or Tuesday May 5th. If Kevin shows up, I’ll have all weekend to hide in the studio and get ahead of the week. Otherwise, that’s what I’ll be doing on Monday. I always devote Bob’s first weekend home to him. He’s been gone for twenty-one days, after all.

Thank you for your patience and I’ll see you next week!