SPEAKING OF LISTS...

**Some of you know my goal of downsizing and minimizing stuff so my family doesn't have to go through what I see at some garage and estate sales. I don't think of myself as a hoarder, but over the years I have accumulated a lot of things in the guise of or under the banner of stocking up, supplies I'll need someday, that's a neat item, or that's like a familiar item from my past, or a parent/grandparent kept some of those on hand, etc., etc.

**Without reviewing every strategy or making any serious claims of outstanding success, I have been slowly working at the project off and on. One of the best ways to get rid of good items which are not exactly suitable for eBay is to list them on Craig'slist with a clear description and a couple of good photographs. Items too heavy, too bulky, too difficult to wrap and mail, or in some other way just too awkward to deal with easily can be offered for sale at fair prices to a regional public hungry to find a bargain.

**In recent times I have sold surplus concrete blocks and deck piers, an apple grinder and cider press, vollyball standards, a transit & tripod, a Weber B-B-Q kettle, orchid cactus, a gas-powered edger, wrought-iron railing, building supplies, canning equipment, a pressure cooker/canner, and a bunch more. Tonight it was a fish poacher. All good items, but no longer needed/wanted here and thus available to other folk who had a greater use for them. In recent time much has been made of recycling and passing along useful things to others.

**Here's the best part of all about Craig'slist: folk seeking an item they desire at a price they feel is fair, will drive all the way across the county or from as far as the other side of Portland at their own expense to thrust money into my hand for the pleasure of making my treasures their own.

Isn't that just neat? Imagine!

I grin all the way to the bank!

WELCOME TO ELIJAH HUGH WYATT

ATTENTION WORLD !!!

Meet my Grandson, Eli

This fine young man, the first son of Geoffrey and Dana, was born July 13, 2008 at 10:23 PM. He is 6 lbs., 10 ozs., 19" tall, and very smart indeed. (Didn't he pick a wonderful set of parents? So, like I said, "Smart!") Like his Papa John, Eli came "C-Section" so we already have several experiences in common. His Mom and Pop Wyatt are doing well, all the grandparents are elated, and even Great-Grandpa Wyatt is pleased because his father bore the name Elijah too!! (William Elijah Wyatt 1869-1949). This boychild also carries the name of Memaw Betty's father: Hugh. (Loyal Hugh Ousley 1903-1990). Consequently, this set of grandparents relates well to the chosen name of our first grandson (although we realize they really picked his name for their own reasons, of course).

We have five wonderful, beautiful, brilliant granddaughters who are going to love their new cousin and are already looking forward to taking him camping, I bet. I hope they invite me to come along.

IT'S TIME TO MOVE THE SPRINKLERS

An acre and a quarter covers about 54,450 square feet. Our lot, a level 1.25 acre, is mostly lawn, even out back in the orchard area. The grassed portion which surrounds the house, except for over 100' of doublewide driveway, totals 26,000 sq.ft. and the rest adds approximately 24,000 sq.ft. of surface to mow. When summer comes, and it has, a few days are in the seventies, a few more are in the nineties, a handful across the summer reach triple digits, and the bulk of the rest are endless 80s. It has become time to water the lawn.

The names of some especially popular and successful products have become generic. I don't mind at all, 'cause those were usually the names I learned growing up. Kodak, Xerox, Kleenex, Coke, and even Saran Wrap. One of my favorites - because it is so descriptive - is Rainbird. Efficient, practical, and durable, the Rainbird is a well designed and trustworthy irrigator. Sure, the name itself is actually a brand, but the more mundane moniker for this device, the "impact sprinkler", is cumbersome and lacks pizzaz. I have a number of rainbirds, and currently the favorite three are hard at work - watering the lawn.

Fortunately, we have a well bored deep in perfect sand and gravel which produces wonderful, abundant water that originates in the Mt. Saint Helen's area to the north. A three quarters horsepower submersible pump provides plenty of pressure. Two faucets near the house are fitted with 200' of hose, a third has only 100' of hose but all three terminate in Rainbirds. Every week I water each portion of lawn for a couple of hours. With the three rainbirds it takes about six sets to water all the yard around the house. Orchard sets (3 usually) add six more hours to complete the entire job. I can do it a single day, but to avoid watering hot, sunbaked grass, I usually split it up into two half-days, one evening and the next morning.

The whole process requires a lot of dragging hoses and relocating the Rainbirds to get maximum coverage and even a little overlap. Over twenty-one years, however, it has become routine, and I know just exactly where to place each one to get the best effect. So, every two hours each week when the water is running, "It's Time To Move The Sprinklers." On a hot day like today I usually get a little wet myself, and that's a penalty I don't mind at all. The watering season is only three months long, and sometimes less, and when the rains return in the fall, they are extra welcome on this little acreage. You betcha!