September 17, 2025
If ever there was a time for someone to ask me that
once almost-hip question, “how’s it shakin’?” that time is now.
As I bear down to find my focus and compose these words
to you, my friends, my house is “shakin’” a bit too much and a bit too well,
thank you.
Yesterday, the temporary dirt road in front of my
house had an enormous and deep hole in it. The work crew was laying the new
water pipe, which is the entire reason behind this particular part of the town’s
infrastructure project for 2025.
The first time I felt this kind of shaking was a few
years ago, when they replaced the narrow road on the south side of our house.
It’s a compactor machine, and it rolls slowly over the newly refilled holes in the
road base, to pack that soil in good and tight.
Back then, the vibrations that traveled not only
through the earth between the machine’s position and where I was sitting, but
through my house as well, made my stomach feel nauseous. That isn’t the case
this time. But I still don’t like the sensations. Worse, I do worry about the
effect of the vibrations on the house itself.
Don’t believe in miracles? I surely do. My house is
still standing. And I have faith that it will continue to stand. I truly do.
But I wouldn’t say no—in fact would be very grateful for—whatever prayers y’all
would like to send our way.
Speaking of miracles, we have an addition to our family.
David and I have a beautiful new great-granddaughter, Sophia, born last Wednesday
afternoon to our wonderful grandson and his wife, who became our beloved
granddaughter a couple of years ago when they wed. We’re overjoyed for them,
and hope to go visit, but only after the new family has time to enjoy each other
first.
It’s mid-September and I think that after all the rain
we had not so long ago, it’s odd that we appear to be in a bit of a drought
right now. And thanks to our current mid-construction environment, the state of
the weather, while it is great for the construction crew and their timetable, creates
a minor problem for me.
Pre-construction, we had a garden hose connected and
at the ready, and if I wanted to go outside and water our garden, well, that
was doable for me. Go outside, bring the hose off it’s reel, go over to the
garden, depress the button on the nozzle to turn on the hose and apply the
water.
Well, to ensure we have water during this time of
water-main replacement, the construction crew laid a temporary watermain. This
main which is on top of the ground allows for a hose to run from it to each
house. That hose is then connected to where our watering hose was connected.
Where possible, the crew uses the homeowner’s own hose. They connected, they
turned it on at the source, and we have water. It’s ingenious! If the water can
run out of the house via that spigot for the hose, it can run it that way, too.
Ah, you see the issue. When I realized this was going
to be the case, that our garden hose would be unavailable for watering the
garden, I ordered and received a new garden hose. One of those flex hoses that
apparently will contract and be easy to store. It can be connected to our
kitchen tap and can be run out the window which is only a foot and a half from
the back door. And once connected, and out the window, that hose may be used to
water the garden which is also only a couple of feet from the door.
It needs but one person capable of doing the work of removing
the nozzle end on the faucet, connecting and then running the hose out the
window.
It pains me more than I can say that that person is
not me.
Friends, I am sure you are thinking right about now, “Morgan
it’s a good thing that you’re not an elderly woman living all alone, isn’t it?”
I will never disagree with that sentiment. In fact, I give thanks every single
day that I am not an elderly woman living all alone.
Now if only someone would be kind enough to do more
than agree in theory with me that the tomatoes need to be watered and see to
it.
Then, I would be even more grateful.
Love,
Morgan
http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury
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