I’ve Moved!

Visit me at www.lifeatthehome20.com.

Marue

How I Spent My Saturday

This is what I did today.

Perfect day.  No breeze.  I got alot done.  GetAlong doesn’t get to enjoy these chores anymore since he is always on the road.  Lucky dog.  See the pile below?  It was almost 3 times that size when I started this morning.  Of course, GetAlong would have torched the entire pile all at once but I didn’t want to burn down the entire county so I kept my fire small, moving a bit at a time.

Not long after I took those photos, something in the pile moved.  It didn’t come out, it just moved.  Now I thought there may be a snake hiding in there so I was very careful about moving anything.  Just when I was secure in the belief that I was safe, something moved.  I don’t think it was a snake.  But what else would be living in there?  I’m thinking rabbit.  I’m hoping rabbit.  Whatever it may be, it has about 20 hours to vacate, because I’ll be finishing up this chore (that GetAlong has avoided for the last 2 years) tomorrow afternoon.

Oh and here’s guard dog No. 1, AKA Mona.  Notice she is alert and ready for action.

She guards the inner perimeter at all times.  Here’s guard dog No. 2, AKA Birddog.

She guards the outer perimeter.  Here she is lulling the enemy into a false sense of security.  But I assure you, she sleeps with one eye open.

Marue

 

 

The James Eiland Family

My great great grandfather, James Eiland, always sticks in my mind as one of my more interesting ancestors. He was the son of Frances Marion Eiland and Elmina Jones. Born in Alabama on 23 August 1840, James was the third of possibly eight children. James and his older brother, Absalom, both served in the 29th Alabama Infantry during the Civil War. James was captured by Union forces as Sherman marched toward Atlanta. I can only assume as a measure of self-preservation, James enlisted in the Union Navy and was stationed aboard the USS Susquehanna until the end of the war, becoming my “galvanized Yankee” ancestor.

When he returned to Alabama, he married Rebecca Hayes on 11 June 1865.  Their children were: William, John, Enoch, James, Basil, Arthur, Ed and Anna Rebecca.  All but the older two are pictured below with James,  Rebecca and their own families.  The photo was taken in October 1898.

James is of course in the center, seated next to Rebecca.  I love the way his hair is combed upward, just like the “younger dudes” today.

He died of a spider bite in 1908 in San Angelo, Texas.

Marue

Big Truck Repair Woes

GetAlong was home for a brief visit this weekend.  He was barely here long enough to get a load of laundry done and try to find the short in the big truck’s electrical system.  Seems it won’t quit running when he turns the key OFF.  Again.

The last time GetAlong was home the big truck was in the shop.  It went in for an A/C repair and came out with a brake job to boot.  To the tune of $1800.  “Ch-ching” for Larry, the independent mechanic.  It still needs a clutch repair and will soon need new tires.  And it’s just shy of 3 years old and 300,000 miles driven. 

But it’s his, to do with as he pleases or sees fit.  He doesn’t have to answer to a dispatcher.  He books his owns loads and comes home when he can or needs to for one reason or another.    He makes his own decisions, good or bad, profitable or not so much. 

All in all, I think he’s happy with the decision he made to go out on the road.  It’s something he’s always wanted to do but I wouldn’t have any part of it until 5 years ago.  A couple of not-so-good driving jobs and two trucks later, he’s still “just going down the road, holding this steering wheel”.

Marue

 

 

Name That Ancestor – McCoy Duke or Tom Adams?

I believe that my interest in my family tree has been sufficiently resurrected. After about 15 years of research I was forced to lay it aside about 5 years ago. I just did not have the time to concentrate on those brick walls that were plaguing me.

Anyway, on a recent visit to my dad’s house, he handed me a photograph that I had seen before but now he wanted me to keep it.  It’s an old photo of a young couple presumably on their wedding day, pre-1900.  We always thought it may be my father’s grandparents, Mack Duke and Mary Cannon who married in Waco, Texas about December 1900. 

Well now that I have my hands on the photo I have been able to study it much more closely.  There is a stamp at the bottom of the cardboard mounting that reads “Jackson’s – Waco, Tex.”  On the back there is some handwriting at the top.  The writing is large but has faded to a point that it is hard to make out.  Well, I’ll be.  It says “T. D. Adams, Bruceville, Texas”. 

Dad disagrees but I think it’s probably not Mack and Mary after all.  I’m sure it’s Mary’s stepfather, Tom Adams, but who is the woman?  It’s not likely Mary’s mother, Hettie.  Tom and Hettie were 40ish when they married in 1896 in Waco.  This couple is younger but it has to be Tom.  I can only assume it is Tom and his first wife who I have not identified.  Tom had 2 children that I know of from his first marriage, Bessie and Johnie.  Bessie was born about 1887, so I am putting the date on this photo at about 1885.  Now I just have to locate a marriage record to back up my theory.

Happy hunting!

Marue

 

Coupon Clipping

Twenty or more years ago I attempted to get on the coupon clipping bandwagon.  If I’m not mistaken I first heard about “power” coupon clipping on the Phil Donahue Show.  I ordered the transcript for an episode that featured a woman who saved all kinds of money with coupons.  I studied that transcript intently.  I followed it to the letter.  It was a total bust.  I swore it was impossible to do.  My store wouldn’t take coupons on sales items.  They doubled coupons once a week, Wednesday.  By the time I got there after work, stuff was gone.  And where were the coupons for items I really needed?  I always ended up with a ton of coupons for things I never purchased.

But now with the rising cost of fuel, which increases the cost of operating a truck, which increases the cost of freight from the manufacturer to the warehouse and then to the store, which increases the cost of groceries for our family, I have embarked on a new learning experience.  About 6 weeks ago, I started clipping coupons again. 

Things have changed in the last 20 years.   First stop, the internet.  I read numerous ideas on how to maximize my savings, find coupons worth clipping, and organize my loot.  I already had a frequent buyer and/or rewards card at my local grocery store.  I use it to accumulate earnings to be used towards a discount on my gas purchases.  And I was supposedly getting better pricing on my groceries.  This I was skeptical of because let’s face it, I did not do any comparison shopping whatsoever.  I work full time.  I need food, cleaning supplies and toiletries.  I was convinced it wasn’t worth the extra time and gas each week to make the rounds of all the stores in town to get the lowest prices.  Suddenly, I wasn’t so sure anymore.  So I have decided to give it another try.

Marue

 

College Trip II

Our darling daughter, Sweetpea, is a high school junior and is in the process of making that all important decision of where she will attempt to attend college – scholarships and financial aid permitting.  Last weekend, Sweetpea, my dad and I embarked on a small adventure – a real college road trip, as opposed to the movie currently showing, which I haven’t seen.  In fact, this was the second such trip for Sweetpea and me this year.  GetAlong was on the road this time, so I asked my dad if he was interested in joining us (and letting us spend a couple nights at his house so we wouldn’t have to leave 2 hours before the crack of dawn).  He said “Sure.”

This was one of those weekend recruiting events that colleges do every year to get your undecided teenager interested in applying to that particular institution.  We made the 45 minute drive from my dad’s house and arrived at the small university for the 8:15 registration.  They loaded Sweetpea up with a sack of goodies, free t-shirt and catalog.  Then we heard a informative presentation by the organizing group and a welcome speech by a college official.  Various deans were introduced and we broke up into sessions according to the prospective student’s interests. 

Sweetpea, who is considering vet school or some other animal related career, steered us to the animal science building where we met with a professor of agribusiness.  I can’t decide why they went for the one-on-one approach here but I was impressed with the eagerness and friendliness that the professor showed us, even if we were forced to wait a considerable amount of time. 

Then we sat through a “mock class”.  Not sure why it was called a “mock class” other than the fact that we were seated in a medium sized “teaching theater”.  We picked up some good information about the animal science department and the different courses of study available there.

We had some time to blow so we made our way back to the small gym to check out the clubs and organizations presentation.  Sweetpea’s not really interested in too much here although she did get some information on a sorority for animal science majors.  Who would have thought! 

Now back to the big gym for another presentation by the organizers.  The cheerleaders, school mascot and abbreviated band were there to pump up the spirit.  Some of us would get to eat first while some of us were to tour the campus first.  We were in the latter half, of course, but the tour leader was very informative and the group was small so I give it an A so far.  I just would like to say that it would be nice to allow parents to walk on the grass.  I know some schools don’t let you walk on SOME of the grass, but here you can’t walk on ANY of the grass.  Luckily this is not a large school.

Before long we were finally at the dining hall which totally impressed my dad, who up til now had been fairly quiet.  I have to admit that I find the new style cafeterias a bit hard to get used to.  I can’t imagine what it would be like at noon on a weekday.  It’s a bit like the food court at the mall with no cash registers, you just swipe your card when you enter the food court and help yourself to as much as you can get in your stomach.  If you want pizza with your taco salad, go right ahead!  They will definitely make money on my picky eater.   Sweetpea has visited a few college campuses for one reason or another over the last 2 years and she ranked this establishment 2nd overall.

Next on the agenda is a visit to the campus bookstore.  Sweetpea is not going to leave without purchasing a t-shirt of her choice.  The freebies are always too plain for her taste and with the 25% discount, that’s ok.

One last stop – a drive to the agricultural center or farm for another tour.  This is where all the animal science majors do their lab work.  We saw horses, pigs, calves, poultry, goats, cows and grass.  Yes, lots of grass.  It seems there is actually a major for golf course management.  I’m still trying to figure out how they cut the grass so short without scalping the ground.  Amazing.

And no, I don’t golf.

Marue

Trucker’s Payday

Thursday is payday for a lot of truckers.  GetAlong is paid electronically using 2 accounts setup by his lease company.  One is for the “truck” and one is for the “house”.  When GetAlong books a load, a certain amount of the pay for that load is put into his “truck” account.  This money is supposed to pay for his fuel and some other incidentals for the duration of the trip.  On the first Thursday following the completion of the load the remainder of the pay, less deductions for insurance, trailer lease, etc., is put into the “house” account, provided GetAlong has done his paperwork and submitted it to the lease company on time.  As soon as the funds hit the “house” account, I draw it out to deposit into the business checking account at our bank.  This is used to pay the truck note, cell phone bill and other business expenses that are not handled by the lease company.  Then he gets “paid” and the household expenses are taken care of.  Are you with me?

Now, GetAlong also has a Flying J discount card that is used like a debit card to purchase fuel at discount prices.  He transfers money from his “truck” account to the Flying J card by phone.  He also uses this for other business related purchases.  He can also pay for fuel using Comchecks that are written on the “truck” account.  Truck stops other than Flying J give discounts for cash purchases so sometimes he cashes a Comcheck and uses the cash to purchase fuel.   Comchecks are really drafts that are filled out and given to a clerk who must call it in and get an authorization number before accepting it.  This takes time folks.  Are you still with me? 

Now, I’m a bookkeeper by trade.  The trained accountant in me keeps all this in line.  If you’re up with me, we are talking about 4 business accounts to reconcile each month – for one truck driver.  To make matters worse, the statements I get for these accounts are cryptic to say the least.  The Flying J account, which by the way covers the 18th of the month through the 17th of the following month, only gives the address where the transaction occurred.  If GetAlong loses a receipt it becomes a memory game.  Were the executives at Flying J drinking when they set this up?  Did they not know they were creating this for a business that must track expenses and uses the calendar month to do its books?  The “truck” account weekly statement will usually say if the purchase was for fuel but it lists the street price less the discount.  The corresponding receipt will show only the net price.  No wonder I procrastinate with the books. 

My point is this – operating a truck is complicated business, not for the faint at heart.  So many think that it is easy work.  If you think you want to be an owner operator, think twice.  If you’re not a diligent record keeper, you better have a wife who is.

Marue

Hello world!

I keep asking myself – Do I really have anything worthwhile to say here? The answer is – yes, I do. I’ve got so much to say that I don’t know where to begin and I hope I never find out where I should end. So I’ll just start with an introduction.

My name is Marue. No that’s not my real name because I don’t feel right using my real name. Marue was my first grade teacher’s name. She was a somewhat older lady in 1967-68 so I’m sure she is no longer with us. I hope she had a long and fulfilling life because she was definitely the best first grade teacher a kid could ask for. She was short and plump and pulled her gray hair into a tight bun every day. She always had a smile and kissed every single one of us every day when we left to go home. I bet no one does that anymore and it’s a shame. There’s a special place in my heart for Mrs. Miller. I will never forget her.

My better half will be hereinafter referred to as GetAlong. That’s his CB handle on the road. He’s an owner operator, meaning he owns his own “big truck” as he calls it. He’s an over-the-road trucker. Long hauls, short hauls, as long as it pays good, he’ll do it. GetAlong is in North Carolina as I write. As you can imagine, we have quite a cell phone bill. I can’t imagine what it was like for trucking families 20 years ago.

We have one daughter who I will call Sweetpea. Sweetpea is 16. That in itself says a lot about my life. More later.

The three of us live on a bit of acreage in an area that is becoming less and less what I would call “country”. The big city is fast approaching. I haven’t figured out if that is good or bad, but we need the space for the big truck when it’s at home. Then there is the horse, Big Dog as we sometimes call her, who requires a good deal of grazing room. The dogs, Mona and Birddog, live here too. And the squirrels…..I thought dogs chased squirrels but I think our dogs have some sort of pact with the squirrels. They only chase them when we’re around and they tell the squirrels to make it look good. Treats are on the line and they do love their treats.

Marue