It’s been proven time and again that “laughter is the best medicine” and a smile is good for the soul. So, in that vein I’m offering some fun things on the blog today. The news is dreadful and depressing, so I’m not even going to comment on it, although my heart aches for the people of Ukraine.
So, first up is this picture of a succulent I planted as part of a little adult fun night at the local library the other day. We picked a plant, a planter, then ways to decorate it. I liked this little orange vessel, and the plant, but it might have been wiser to paint the flowers around the bowl before planting. And may I remind readers again that I’m a word artist, not a visual artist.
A friend sends me humorous memes and short essays and this one came in my inbox the other day. Of course it made me laugh, as I know the truth of it so well.
God’s Plan for Aging:
Most seniors never get enough exercise. In His wisdom God decreed that seniors become forgetful so they would have to search for their glasses, keys, and other things, thus doing more walking. And God looked down and saw that it was good.
Then God saw there was another need. In His wisdom He made seniors lose coordination so they would drop things, requiring them to bend, reach, and stretch. And God looked down and saw that it was good.
Then God considered the function of bladders and decided seniors would have additional calls of nature, requiring more trips to the bathroom, thus providing more exercise. God looked down and saw that it was good.
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Now a bit of humor from Slim Randles.
Steve, the cowboy on the board of directors of the Mule Barn truck stop’s philosophy counter and world dilemma think tank, swears on his coffee it happened.
“Tourist guy got off the train the other day when I was in the city picking up a friend,” Steve said. “He asked me if I was a real cowboy, and I allowed I probably was, because I wasn’t smart enough to get a real job.
So he asked if I minded if he asked me some questions.”
Steve sipped his coffee. “I said, ‘Shoot’ and the guy says he wondered why we wore these big ol’ hats with the wide brims. So I explained to him they give us shade in summer and keep the rain and snow off our faces, and told him we could give the horse a drink by putting water in them.
“Then he thanked me and asked why we wore chaps. So I explained how they protected our legs from cactus and thorns, you know.
“He asked about wild rags like this one,” he said, touching the blue silk scarf around his neck. “I told him it filtered dust and we could tie our hats down with it in a high wind.”
“Sounds reasonable,” Doc said, “but I thought everybody knew that. Television and Westerns and all that.”
“Well, yeah,” Steve said. “Me, too. But I think this guy was from a remote place somewhere and didn’t watch TV or eat anything that ever had a pulse. Looked kinda puny. But he was real friendly.
“So then he asked me about saddle horns. Wanted to know if they honk. This guy was really green, you know? He wanted to know about ropes and spurs, all kinds of questions like that. I did my best to answer him, too. Finally he says, ‘Tell me why you cowboys always wear tennis shoes.’
“So I told him we didn’t want anyone thinking we were truck drivers.”
Even the truck drivers laughed at that one. Then they threw cracker packets at Steve.
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Brought to you by the book A Cowboy’s Guide to Packing the Backyard Horse, enabling you and your own Ol’ Snort to have some camping fun in the back country, available on Amazon.com
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Check out all of Slim’s award-winning books at his Goodreads Page and in better bookstores and bunkhouses throughout the free world.
All of the posts here are from his syndicated column, Home Country that is read in hundreds of newspapers across the country. I am always happy to have him share his wit and wisdom here.
Slim Randles is a veteran newspaperman, hunting guide, cowboy and dog musher. He was a feature writer and columnist for The Anchorage Daily News for 10 years and guided hunters in the Alaska Range and the Talkeetna Mountains. A resident of New Mexico now for more than 30 years, Randles is the prize-winning author of a dozen books, and is host of two podcasts and a television program.
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That’s all from me for the rest of the week folks. I still have some old-age achy bones issues that curtail my time sitting at my desk as long as I used to. I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I’ll be doing some fun things, like working my jigsaw puzzle and doing some planting on Sunday with the help of one of my sons. Whatever you have planned, I hope it is enjoyable and with pleasant company. Be happy. Be safe.