I suppose we are living on the edge, the best of both worlds. Currently we are hovering just above the freezing point, and it has rained ALL night. Twenty miles to the North and less than forty miles West the weather computer shows the freeze line.

We are bunkered down. Krl is sickly. Sore throat, ear ache and her tooth is probably in the mix somewhere. The big hounds are sick as well. I think whatever stomach flu we have battled has finally turned on them. You can hear their tummies flipping. Black dog is lethargic. Just standing and staring. Prissy is content to lay under her blanket. Krl has taken their food and water up in order to limit their intake. She has been hand dispensing gingerale to them with a syringe and that seems to be making them feel some better, but they are drawn and gaunt.

I'd bet Krl could write a book on nursing her hounds with home remedies. I know of one instance that a vet told her to put one dog to sleep and she nursed him back to a good and healthy life of several more years. I have seen her hand feed cottage cheese, I have seen her sustain one dog on sweet and tart "smarties" when he wouldn't eat anything else. I really don't think it would matter what she feeds them. I think more than anything she "wills" them to live and get better.

Krl gave me a grocery list each of the last two days. When Krl feels poorly she cooks. And not any of her normal staples. I suppose it sounds good to her (I know it does to me), but these lists have taken me through parts of the grocery stores that I usually don't frequent. Her latest request included pie crusts. I read her list wrong and was looking for sixteen inch pie crusts. I made two stores and came home with six pie crusts of three different varieties, none of which is sixteen inches. Turns out her recipe called for nine inch, sixteen ounce pie crusts. Turned out those were the deep crusts I picked up at my first stop. Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good but personally I try to be right.

Krl had her pot of red beans gently rolling all day, when I returned from the store we gave them additional time before I started pan fried taters and some ground beef with just a touch of barbecue sauce. We had left over cornbread, so that was supper! A country boy's dream! Beef, beans, taters and cornbread!

I'm going to have to put jalapeno relish on my grocery list as some of it even found its way into the red bean pot! Krl's as taken with it as I am!

I would direct your attention to the West Texas Rehab's on-line auction at www.rehabauction.org . They have some interesting items. At the present there are some items definitely worth the money and it is for a good cause. I've been watching the Indianapolis Colt items, a Peyton Manning autographed football along with the Abilene connections stuff, jerseys of Justin Snow and Dominic Rhodes along with a football they both autographed. They have a broad range of items ranging from boats to travel to a picnic pack for fifty to a splurge at a meat packing facility. They even have some hunting trips and a live bull elk! Auction ends at midnight! Have a little fun and help the cause.

We recently had a tragedy at our house. We have had one of those blue roaster pans with the lid for as long as we can remember. In fact we aren't sure if one of us had it before we were married or not, but it has been with us twenty years. This pan has cooked tons of beef, a roast at a time and more potatoes than Idaho can produce along with a volume of carrots that only Bugs Bunny could appreciate! Recently I had gotten the pan out to fix a large batch of Chex mix trash. I happened to notice a small chip on the bottom edge and closer scrutiny revealed a pin hole. A guy couldn't have asked for a better pan.

Yesterday I looked for a replacement but couldn't bring myself to buy one. I just can't imagine training another pan to cook.

I visited with Pat briefly. She was telling me that Pepa has an appointment at the Cancer Center in Lubbock February 5th. This facility has ties to M.D. Anderson in Houston and the doctor he is seeing is Dr. Anderson. Turns out their search criteria was who could get him in the quickest. Pat said that the oncologist they saw in Abilene seemed to try to talk them out of the treatment they had chosen and he painted a picture that wasn't near as attractive as the urologist's. The oncologist even mentioned the time lapse since the biopsies. I think the time frame has been dictated by the time required to get in and see the doctors. Anyhow, a plan is coming together.

FYI, Pepa turns 78 tomorrow. Happy Birthday! (Just in case technology is down tomorrow!)

Whatever side of the freeze line you're on, stay warm.

FATHER, thank YOU for YOUR blessing of rain.