Monday, June 9, 2025

Yard Work, 3 Outings, & a Birthday...

Monday, June 2nd, Claude would mow and trim the yard...again. While he did that, I did laundry...again. I received the final items for the Relief Society newsletter and was able to complete it and send it out. Since Claude worked in the yard, we opted for 5 Guys for a burger dinner. 

I added my pictures and video of Bailey's graduation to Andie's Google Pictures file. Later in the day, I was happy to see Bailey using the video of her marching across stage and actually receiving her diploma on a social media site. That let's me know she saw it and liked having it. Nice.

As we sat in the evening, Claude shared something he read. It stated that the three works that women like to hear most are "I Love You". The two words men like to hear most are "Thank You". I reflected on that premise for a moment. Then I told Claude my feeling is those words are based on how men and women are in general. Men really like to fix things. Very difficult for them when they can't fix things for their family. Hence, "Thank You". Women are created to nurture. This applies to their families and others. For most women, nurturing is innate. Hence, "I Love You". It was a nice bit of conversation.

Tuesday, June 3rd, I would attack the cleaning of the white rocking chair on the patio. It had not been cleaned since 2003. With my very lame arm and recovery, nothing happened to the white furniture in the back yard. It sits outside all year round under that big trees. Birds, sap, pollen, rain, wind, snow, etc. all accumulate on those white surfaces. This day I would only tackle the white rocking chair. It is made of a vinyl material and is made to look like it has a wood grain that is painted white. All those little grainy patterns fill with stuff. Goodness. I opted for a Clorox-based bathroom cleaner to try and brighten this chair up and get rid of all the yuck. It was an all morning task. My right arm really got a workout. I had two size brushes to really scrub. In the end, it is not a absolute white as when Claude brought it home from Cracker Barrel but I will feel comfortable allowing a guest to sit on it. The two white Adirondack chairs and the little table between them will come next week. 

While I did this, Claude power washed the shed. Then I sprayed down part of the patio and scrubbed it and Claude hosed that off. Whew!! 

We did not get hamburgers this time. Instead, we did our Taco Bell box of tacos run. 

Wednesday, June 4th, I finally did some ironing. I used to have ironing after every laundry day. During my arm recuperation, I could not iron. Therefore, I learned to launder our t-shirts and then fold them and put them in the drawer without ironing. I may never iron them again. But I had some long-sleeved winter shirts that did need ironing, some handkerchief and a while linen table cloth that all needed to be ironed. 

When I finished ironing, I set to work on my Relief Society lesson I would teach in two weeks. Set up my PowerPoint and got the lesson to a point where I wanted to leave it for a bit before finishing it up. 

In the evening, we treated ourselves to a night a the Ya'lls Ballpark in Florence, Kentucky. It had been in the high 80's all afternoon. We expected to swelter. But the shade comes over the third base side quickly and we were just fine. The humidity was gone and it was a delightful evening at the park. Ball park food was eaten. Our team won. We have never seen so many home runs hit in one game but both teams. They started the game with the Little Leaguers being on the field the the Ya'lls. We were right on their path to get back up in the stands when they exited the field. Yike! A lot of them sat behind us. They spent a couple of innings practicing their trash talk to the players on the field. Boys must learn these skills to be real men! It was very humorous to Claude and me. 
This is the year of the big cicada infestation. We have not heard or seen them in our back yard. However, a friend who lived next to us in Sadieville posted a video from his back deck looking down to the creek. The noise of all the cicadas was deafening. My dear friend in Frankfort, Laura, said they are making quite a ruckus at her home also. This meme came across Facebook and it really fits this Year of the Cicada perfectly. Still laughing.
Thursday, June 5th, Claude was debating about planting tomatoes this year. Something inside of him feels like he needs to do this every year. A Gentleman Farmer, if you will. He headed to Lowes. When he returned home, I was at my laptop working. The bed he plants in is under the window. I looked out and saw he was bringing home four liriope plants. I guess we won't have homegrown tomatoes this summer. The liriope should be very happy in this spot.
I enjoyed a long call with Laura in the evening. It is truly good to have a very, very dear friend in your life.

Friday, June 6th, was Joel's 4th birthday. I posted this on our family Facebook page. "Fear the Potato!! Today is his birthday. Happy Birthday Joel!! He is an impish mass of muscle that will melt your heart. Love Ya Bunches and Happy Birthday!!"
This was also the last day of school for the Roper girls. Raelyn and Emelia. 
We went on a really fun adventure. We drove to Cincinnati to see Titanic: An Immersive Journey. What a treat this was. The exhibit in on two levels. It is actually in the same location as when we saw the Van Gogh Immersive Exhibit. 

We were each given a ticket. Each ticket has the same front. The back has the name and information about one of the passengers.
We opted out of the professional picture as you enter. It turned out there was a setup inside the beginning of the 1st floor portion. A couple came in after us. I asked if I could take their picture for them. Then I asked if they would take one of Claude and me. See how I did that? 
Then I took a great one of Claude. Bailey's comment about this picture I posted on Facebook was "This is beautiful." She loves her Grampa. 
The first floor has exhibits, artifacts and signage that tell you the story of the Titanic from conception to building to sailing to sinking. Very well laid out. If you take time to read a bit, you have a clear picture of how things went and what things went wrong. Having watched several documentaries about the Titanic, I found this very fascinating and well done. 

This are models of the Brittanic, the Titanic and the Olympiac. The ships were actually named after Greek gods. They were meant to be more luxurious than the Cunard passenger ships of the day. This period was a huge immigration time. Many people were headed to America to try for a better life. The Titanic had place for lots of 1st Class passengers. There were also 2nd and 3rd Class passengers on board. The Titanic is called the RMS Titanic. The RMS actually stands for Royal Mail Service. They carried lots of mail and were to spend the voyage sorting it for delivery when they reached America. 
This is an exact replica of the Heart of the Ocean necklace used in the James Cameron Titanic movie. 
A wax cup used in filming the James Cameron movie. It was used in the sinking scenes.
A diagram of the Titanic. When enlarged and you look closely, each room and level is labeled. You can clearly tell where each class of passenger stayed and dined, etc. 
Even the candy makers wanted to make some off the Titanic and Olympic. This was a card made by Cabury Chocolate makers. Hmmmm...Now I want chocolate!
These rules were for the 3rd Class passengers on the White Star Line. Remember, their rooms were well below deck. 
The Titanic was constructed by the Harland & Wolff shipbuilding company in Belfast, Ireland. In this room, 30 architects spent 2 years drawing detailed plans for the building of the Titanic.
They had an entry like you were going up the gangplank. That is Claude inside the Titanic.
One display held a copy of the Titanic Grocery List. I wondered what 40,000 eggs cost in that day. They are soooo expensive today. 
There were picture of several of the elegant rooms. 
The 1st Class dining room featured stained glass windows. These were made to cover the portholes! 
A postcard with a woven silk image of the Titanic. It was purchased in the barbershop on the ship. 
The Parisienne Cafe for 1st Class passengers who might not want to eat on the regular dining room schedule. 
That famous grand staircase. 
The Veranda Cafe. Another spot for 1st Class passengers to relax, have bit to nibble on and read a book. 
Chair from the 2nd Class dining room and the 2nd Class dining room. This 2nd Class dining room would have been as elegant as 1st Class on the Cunard line. 
We walked the stair case to the 2nd Floor. This was the immersive experience. There were a few life boats to sit in. Items that fell from the ship were placed around the floor. Projected on all four walls was video. Claude and I opted to sit in one of the life boats. These pictures were taken of the video. 
These three pictures are from the Titanic leaving the dock.
This would be the bow of the ship during the day. 
The boiler room was shown next. I should explain that the video was narrated by a crew member that worked in the boiler room. He was part of the entire building of the Titanic and knew every inch of her.
The narrator/fireman on the ship was working in the boiler room and saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen wandering through the ship. He would try to find her but she was very illusive. At one point they did meet up by the grand stair case. There was a modern dance scene with them that was the most out of place piece of the video to Claude and me. 
The two shipmates in the crow's nest spot the iceberg. They did not have binoculars. In a stranger series of events, a man was brought on to make this voyage as an assistant to Captain Smith. This meant other people were lowered a rank in the leadership of the ships officers. One was kicked off the ship and did not make the voyage. As he left, he inadvertently carried the key to the cabinet where the binoculars were stored. This meant these two lookouts were looking for icebergs without the benefit of binoculars. In addition, the sea was very calm making it even harder with a bit of haze to see the horizon to spot the icebergs. Ugh!
The Titanic hits the iceberg. It torn the hull and flooded part of the boiler room. Then the water crept up to the other decks. As we watched the video on the walls, the floor actually had ripples of water displayed on it. The moved like ripples of water. I tried to get that with the video but it simply shows dark. This is really an 'immersive experience'. 
There were not enough lifeboats. The standard for the number of lifeboats was based on old data before the built these huge passenger liners. Since it was believed the Titanic was unsinkable, this was really not a concern. The lifeboat drill that was scheduled for the beginning of the voyage was canceled as Captain Smith wanted to attend the church service at that time. This was to be his final voyage before retiring. Another ugh!!
Fireworks were set off to attract other ships to the Titanic's location. The writing across the top of the picture was the telegrams between the Titanic and other ships to get help. The next two picture are the sinking of the Titanic.
The Carpathia came to save as many passengers are were left alive. The Carpathia was also a passenger ship for the Cunard Line. 
We left this area and went back to the first floor. Before leaving, we opted to pay a little extra to use the VR headsets. Our journey would take us inside the Titanic and to the Bridge. Then we would experience the sinking. Amazing! I was able to get a quick shot of Claude as he finished his VR experience. 
We both felt this was really worth the cost and effort to go. This was our fourth Immersive Experience. Our first was the Van Gogh in this same location. We also saw Monet while visiting Phoenix. Last year we saw Khufu's Pyramid while in Atlanta. Now, the Titanic back in Cincinnati. You really learn a lot and they have all been very well laid out. Excellent adventure. 

Saturday, June 7th, we had the morning at home. We have a little bird that flies up to the top outside ledge of this window. For some odd reason, he will jump from the ledge, flutter his wings and tap on the window, then light on the window ledge again. I was trying to get a picture of him in the air. That obviously did not work. Interesting little bird. 
The Ropers took a family trip to Drew's hockey competition. Happy to see them take a little family vacation. The first picture of the Hockey team with their kids. I have put a red dot under Joel, Raelyn, Emelia and Drew holding Kennedi. The second picture is the Hockey Team. I put a red dot under Drew. The last is a great family picture in their hockey jerseys. Back Row: Kennedi, Drew, Joel and Katelyn. Front Row: Emelia and Raelyn.
In the evening, we drove to Renfro Valley to watch The Oak Ridge Boys 2025 American Made Farewell Tour. It seems we are saying 'farewell' to a lot of good musical groups. Ahh...the joys of aging gracefully. The lead vocalist has been with this band for 60 years. The youngest member is in his 20's. They said it brings their average age to the mid-70's. 
Video: My Baby is American Made
Video: It's Gonna Take a Lot of River
Video: You're Always in My Heart
The bass singer had a very booming bass voice. I love a men's chorus and I really love hearing the low notes. When Claude sings the low notes on a hymn at church, I always grin and he grins back. He knows I love those low notes. 

The Oak Ridge Boys had a man who played piano for them for 45 years. He retired. He happened to visit this night and they invited him out to play the piano while just the four of them sang. The rest of the band cleared the stage. It was such a moving moment. 
Their next to last number was Elvira. The lead singer said, "We would all of those who can stand, to please do so." This cracked me up. Yep, they and we are all getting a little older. Lots of walkers and a few wheel chairs. Lots of people holding on to each other for balance as they walked into the New Barn Theater.
Excellent show. I watched all this happening. Listening to old familiar songs from our past. It really dawned on me that we go to these things to hear the music live again. Face it, when you have sung for 60 years, your voice is not like it was when you were in your twenties. But we all love the music. That is why we can. To be with others that like that music. To sing along at time. The clap the rhythm. And to feel that good feeling you get from enjoying good music. It was a great evening for Claude and me. 

Sunday, June 8th, we enjoyed Sacrament Meeting. I was able to lead the congregational hymns. My arm was very sore when I finished that meeting. With the new set up of ball and socket, I arm doesn't really like lifting the way I like to do to lead the hymns. It was good to do that and get my arm to try a little more to learn old habits.

The second hour, I was asked to be the substitute pianist for Primary. I love Primary. What a delight to be there again and listen to the little ones sing. 

We had lunch from Jimmy John's. Claude took his Sunday afternoon nap, the best sleep he gets all week. I curled up in my recliner to get rid of a lot of stuff that has accumulated on our DVR. It turns out, I stayed there the rest of the day. I did enter the Trivial Pursuit questions on my phone for April and May. I did file my nails. I did do my Duolingo for learning Greek. Other than that, I enjoyed an afternoon and evening with my hubby in our snug little home. 

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