Tanglewood Mansion

It’s not uncommon when we’re traveling for me to see something and think “That would make a cool photo.” It’s not always possible to stop and take a picture, especially when towing a travel trailer. Other times, it’s just a matter of not taking the time to stop even when there’s no reason not too. Proof in point are the intriguing columns I’ve seen every time we go to South Carolina to visit our kids. During one of our trips earlier this year, I mentioned to Kenn my plans to eventually stop and take a photo. Being the good man that he is, the next time we were out Kenn whipped into the parking lot, we got out, and I actually took. the. pictures!

The columns that always caught my attention

We couldn’t have stopped at a better time; the lighting was perfect. The photo above is one of my absolute favorites. There was actually more to the site than I thought. The columns are what is left of Tanglewood Mansion. According to the sign, Tanglewood burned down twice: the first time in 1908 and again in 1970. (Yikes.) The Tanglewood property was eventually purchased for use as the location for a new branch of the Anderson County Library System; groundbreaking took place in 2004.

I love old architecture and I’m a big fan of older buildings being repurposed while allowing the age and history of the building to shine through. In that vein, I’m glad that the site for the library wasn’t razed to remove all traces of the mansion. I enjoyed looking at the remains of the structure and trying to figure out what was where. We were able to determine the location of multiple fireplaces; each chimney had at least three fireplaces associated with it.

The back view of the columns shows that they were actually brick and not wood which is one of those things that I think is really cool.

I’m also a big fan of stairs to nowhere.

Going forward, I plan to do better about stopping to take the photo or smell the roses or whatever. How about you? Do you make the time to do the things that are important to you – even when they just nourish your soul and not your wallet? (Our success driven culture can make those decisions difficult.)

Friday Funnies

Kenn has gotten in the habit of buying random stickers and googly eyes, putting them on the tractors at work, and waiting to see how long it takes someone to notice. Once they do, he denies all knowledge of where they came from.😂 As proof that you can find pretty much anything on Amazon, the pictured sign now graces the gate to our back yard. We just need to add an extra “N” since Kenn spells his name with two.

So, What Exactly Do You Do?

I’ve been working at my part-time job for almost a year now and the most-oft asked question I get is “So, what exactly do you do?” The duties of my pre-retirement job were much easier to describe; even though I worked several different jobs during my career, they could all be lumped under the heading of IT Customer Support. (Except for the miserable 3.5 years I spent in Contracting.) The duties of my current job can’t be as easily defined.

I work at an agricultural research center as a Biological Science Aid. My boss is an entomologist so everything we do ultimately revolves around insects even though it may not appear to on the surface. There are two, soon to be three, full-time lab technicians above me. My job is to support everyone however I can with whatever needs to be done. I rarely know from day-to-day what I will be doing and even if I do, it may change at any time. I generally work two days a week but have the flexibility to work more if necessary. Earlier this year there were several weeks I worked three days per week because all of the things had to be done at the same time and even with four of us working, we were scrambling to get everything done.

I’ve spent the last two weeks fertilizing peach trees which is a much more time-consuming process than you might think. The timing was good though; after a long dry spell we’ve had several days of rain so the fertilizer got rained in so that it can do its job. One of the next things I will need to do will be to hunt down some pruning shears and trim the suckers (the shoots growing from the roots or base of the tree) off the same trees I just fertilized. This will also be a time-consuming process, but hey, that’s what I’m there for and – I get paid!

All dressed for work

The next couple of months will be rough. I no longer deal well with the oppressive heat and humidity of the South so the summer is hard. At least this year our summer has been mild, relatively speaking. Still, 82℉ with 80% plus humidity is pretty miserable. Since I’m fair-skinned, the heat is made a little worse by the fact that I am dressed in long pants, long-sleeves, and a big sun hat to protect my skin. However, one of the best things about my job is how laid back it is. Everyone makes sure to tell me to take as many breaks as I need to in order to stay cool – and one of them is always encouraging me to take the time to just relax and enjoy the beauty surrounding us. Yes, staying cool is important but this relaxed attitude is new to me; I rarely got to take breaks at my old jobs. Some days I was doing good just to get to go to the bathroom.🙄 So, you know what I do? I take breaks when I’m hot and occasionally I putter around in my utility vehicle and enjoy the scenery and take photos. Several of my Wordless Wednesday photos have been taken on the agricultural center.

The next time I work, I’ll probably be helping a coworker with a pulley system that will be used to raise potted pecan saplings to various heights in a pecan grove. (Don’t ask me why. I have no idea.) I’ll also need to water the plants in the greenhouse. After that, I’ll do whatever needs to be done starting with pruning the suckers I mentioned earlier. Later this year I’ll be collecting and counting weevils as I mentioned in a previous post. Along the way, there is no telling what else will be needed. So, what exactly do I do? Whatever needs to be done!

So, what exactly do you do?

In Memoriam

Last week was one of those weeks. It started with our oldest son having a health scare which entailed us making a quick trip to South Carolina. Fortunately, our son is fine. After we got home, our over-the-range microwave died. While we were dealing with the replacement of the microwave, which was much more time-consuming than it should have been, it became obvious that it was time to say goodbye to one of our cats.

When we moved into our home almost 6 years ago, Stumpie was a feral cat. It didn’t take him long to learn that we had a steady supply of food and water for our outside cats and any other critters that wanted to partake. Stumpie became a regular fixture in our yard. He didn’t trust us and would run off if we got too close. Over time, he wouldn’t run as far. Then, he began trying to befriend our cats and was rewarded when Roscoe took him under his wing (leg?) and they became besties.

All this time, he was watching Kenn and I and saw us interact with the other cats. After 3 years, he decided to take a chance on trust and love and gave me the honor of selecting me as his person. He decided that he enjoyed being petted but didn’t want to see my hand during the process. So, when Stumpie would come to me for attention, he would turn his back to me so he could enjoy pets without seeing my hand.

Over the past couple of months, Stumpie had developed a problem that I knew would eventually lead to his demise. Last week, it was time to let him go. As I have done with all of my furbabies, I held him and told him how much I loved him as he left this world.

It’s hard going to a home that no longer has Stumpie in it. He’s no longer be there to greet me with his gravelly voice and weave between my ankles as I shower him with attention. He’s no longer there to escort me to the food dish and to carefully turn his back on me so I can pet him.

All pets leave a hole in our hearts when they pass, but for some that hole is a little bit larger. I miss you Stumpie. Home just isn’t the same without you.