Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Happy Cabin Fever Day!!
A big ‘Hello’ to all my faithful readers on this Monday which is also ‘International Cabin Fever Day’!! Hard to believe it is here once again. Well, not too hard to believe, I guess. Especially since both Muffin and I have that terrible disease called CABIN FEVER! When it hits, it hits hard and doesn’t want to let go. Seems especially bad this year for some reason. But then, it seems to get worse every year. And I don’t even live in a cabin. That’s the worst part. Wouldn’t be so bad if I did. Would at least make sense then.
But that is where the term cabin fever came from. Way back…when people would get snowed in to their houses, which many times were not much more than a cabin. And that was it for the whole winter. No getting out to town. No shopping. No internet. Or TV, or phones, or other people. No wonder they got cabin fever. It’s all about being stuck inside. All alone. Though many had farms and things to do. But it was being cut off from the rest of the world that did it. But, hey, I live in an apartment, not a cabin. And in town. Sigh. And I still get it. Oh well. Muffin and I celebrated the day anyway. Games, popcorn, french fries, bird watching! It was a great day. Sort of. Muffin is worn out, curled up in her favorite chair. Sleeping. I feel like doing that too. Sigh.
Speaking of…
It was actually not too bad this morning when I went out to feed the birds. It was milder. Not mild. Just milder. There’s a difference. But it was noticeable after yesterday’s bitterly cold day. And there was some light snow. But that changed by noon. It cleared. And the wind really picked up. And the temp dropped. A lot. It was amazingly cold out there. Poor birds. Those little nuthatches seem to have a real hard time. Constantly having to warm their little feet. Then back to eating. And that shrike was around again. That means the birds must stop eating. And just stop. They are still. Quiet.
I looked around. Aha! Spotted the nasty critter. So I went outside and that scared him off. Good. I waited for a bit to make sure it didn’t come back. Took awhile, but the birds started to move and went back to eating. And I went back inside. I was frozen. Of course I wasn’t exactly dressed for staying out there so long. Sigh. I think I’m still cold from that!
Deciding to…
This time of year always gets me thinking. Of different kinds of projects to fill the long days of winter. Now, it’s not exactly easy. Thinking. At least for me. Gives me headaches. Plus I end up thinking of a lot of different projects I would like to do. Except, of course, I can’t. This apartment has it’s limitations. Definition= it’s very small. So that limits the types of projects. A lot. Sigh. Finding what I need in this town is another problem. We don’t have a lot of stores. The right kind, at least. I need a certain item. Checked 3 stores. They don’t have such a thing. It’s a certain kind of hand saw. One store had what I wanted. But it came with something else that I didn’t want. And because it’s 2 items, the price is higher. Naturally. Sigh. I only want the saw. The other item would end up in the garbage. Why buy something I am just going to throw out? Sigh. And people wonder why I have cabin fever.
This reminds me of…
This weather is very much like another winter. When snowshoeing was a favorite winter pastime of mine. I didn’t get cabin fever then. Strange. I even had a cabin. Sigh. I usually do things backward anyway. So I guess that fits. Sort of. I think. Now we’re back to thinking again. Terrible. I need to stop doing that. Gets me frustrated. Thinking. Sigh. But one day, much like today, I decided to head out snowshoeing. I wanted to make one of my trails longer, and then loop back to the beginning. I liked to make my trails loop around. Then I didn’t have to come back the same way. Was more enjoyable. To me anyway. And since I was the only one out there, it made sense. I think. AAAA, did it again. Sigh.
Next time…
Oh well. I really did want to get started on that. But I will. Next time. I hope you all will enjoy your week, think warm, and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2019 Steve McLeod
Steve`s Country 
Hi Steve, Interesting post. Buying tools can be frustrating. Coping with that can be tough. Am I right? Getting a lot of followers that I haven’t seen before on my site. Do you think that’s a good thing? It seems as though you are a half world away with the weather. You said it was extremely cold there yesterday. My home state is expecting very cold temps for the next couple of days.
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Hey, it’s always good when you get new followers, glad to hear that! Any shopping in this town can be frustrating. I like your use of the word coping, since that can also be used for a type of saw! Have a great evening!
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Oh, I have a new app for my phone. Whatsapp. Never seen it before but it seems pretty secure. You know me though, I don’t like texting as I always seem to get in trouble when I do. Never know when the right time is to send someone a message.
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With texting I thought any time is the right time. Seems like it anyway. Not that I know much about the subject since I don’t text. I know, I’m still in the dark ages. Sigh.
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What’s a Shrike?
Have you ever heard of the books The Mouse Mansion? They also have a YouTube channel. You can make a mouse mansion possibly. They have tutorials on how to make items for the house using things you already have our things that can be cheaply bought or reused. I started building one and it’s a lot of fun. 😊😊 🐁
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https://m.youtube.com/themousemansion?uid=mCxBIXE4ZnyVXMpVwjwlCA
Here’s their channel.
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A shrike is a blue jay size bird that eats small birds. Usually it can eat one chickadee per day. They can go longer without eating and if desperate will attack even the blue jays and gray jays. But only if they are alone. However, an alarm call from the jay will bring others from a long distance to help. Jays hate shrikes, which is one reason it’s good having them around. I will have to check on that mouse mansion, thanks for letting me know about it!
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Oh wow. Chickadees are one of my favorites.Thanks for explaining!
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They are one of my favorite birds as well, so I try to help them out whenever possible.
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Well Steve, I hope the Milder weather returns. I’m not sure if that’s the right context. But you’ll need to correct me if I’m wrong. I don’t really know for sure so sometimes I just try and Buffalo my way through it.
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Milder weather always returns, when is the question. We don’t have Buffalo here 😊.
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You know in my home state there was a town named Buffalo. I always thought that an odd name for a town. Do you agree that’s right?
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There is also a town by that name in the state I’m in now. Go figure.. Odd name for a town though.
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Not as bad as Rat Portage which was the original name of this town.
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I would imagine there are times that you want someone to stop by and check on you. You never know when accidents can happen. I would stop if I were there where you are. (Did that make sense?) Do you prefer people to stop in the morning or afternoon or are you not fussy. I am still very fuzzy brained tonight. Didn’t sleep well last night and was up very early.
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Accidents happen to me quite frequently, most small. But sometimes more seriously. Sigh. Morning is always best for me, except sometimes when it isn’t and then it isn’t best though it can still be best even when it isn’t. I think. Maybe you should try a bed instead of the sofa.
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Do you think I should still run my errand tonight or wait until morning?
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I was going to tonight, But I think someone wants me stop by. It would very late when I arrived. But they are a very special friend so I would still go if they needed me to.
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Well, it seems I need to go run an errand tonight. It may take me a while to get where I’m going so I hope I won’t be too late arriving.
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Do you think I should still run my errand tonight?
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Good Night Steve
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Thanks for visiting last night! It helped me sleep much better. As for my errand last night I decided I would postpone it until this afternoon after work. I am hoping that I may convince them to come stay for a while. They are suffering from Cabin Fever just as you are. It’s never good to be alone for very long when it get’s so cold…
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Good morning RJ! Good idea to wait until tomorrow to do your errand which of course is today since yesterday tomorrow is today and doing tomorrow yesterday is the best thing to do today. Sorry I didn’t answer your last question, but I was already gone, I think it had something to do with Muffin 🐈 curled up on my lap sleeping, made me tired. Enjoy your day!
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Thank Steve
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You should know that I missed my appointment with my attorney today because if all of this. Now I’ll probably need to get a new one! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
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I meant with the intruder into my conversation yesterday. I don’t consider helping a friend any kind of a problem. I would go through hell if I needed to to get to them. Just need to look out for that old devil. He’s always looking to cause trouble and get in the way. But he can’t get stop even if he did try to before. I will prevail!! I maybe not so bright but I can make up for it with endless effort! I sure hope you understand about yesterday? I was most dejected having thought I had been lead on a chase for someone else’s fun. I think I need to trust more… I am working on it..
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