Searcy, AR

Once again, with REO properties you never know what or who you'll find.

Walk softly and carry a big stick could be a good motto!

Look who greeted me today at this new foreclosure property. He was in the neighbor's yard doing a fine job of mowing the yard.

The neighbor said he'd borrowed him from HIS neighbor hoping some of the overgrown weeds and shrubs could be modified.

I think that if he is a loaner, we could use him on this yard because even though it is in town it is a big yard.

We really don't need this loaner to be a loner, however, and need to see if he has a few brothers and sisters to help him on this yard!!

I think he was friendly but I didn't test him too closely.

Last year I wrote a blog about Rainey, the broker's son who hangs around our office in the summer because it is boring at home.

Here he is again. He needs to borrow 30 cents again and reminds me

that his credit is good. He paid me back last year.>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Now here he is beaming at me

after he has paid me back the

30 cents WITH INTEREST this

year. He actually gave me

35 cents because he wants to

make sure his credit is really

really good with me.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

And then I suggested to Rainey that he could earn a few more cents

if he'd work around the office for us. He said that he'd already

straightened the magazines (he had) and he'd already loaded the

dishwasher several times (he had) and he ran errands for us. I

suggested that he clean out the dirty refrigerator and he gave me

this look after I showed him the condition of the refrigerator.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

He's our pet! And he's a sweetie! But don't tell him I said that!!

Regular readers will know that my husband is a golf lover. He played in another tournament this weekend and the highlight of the fun weekend was the dance held on Saturday night.

It was the 12th Annual Todd Alan Simpson Memorial Golf Tournament with proceeds going to endow scholarships annually to high school graduates.

Todd lost his life in a traffic accident and the family sponsors this tournament each year.

They brought the energetic band from Memphis, Dr. Zarr and the Amazing Funk Monster, this year. Their ad says this, "Grab your bell bottoms, climb aboard some platform shoes, and get ready to show off your best "Saturday Night Fever" moves -- when Dr. Zarr's Amazing Funk Monster is playing, there's no way you can resist the dance floor!"

This photo was taken before everyone crowded the dance floor and since my husband had played in 100 degree temp all afternoon, guess who had to go home before the crowd got merry?

I taught school for 12 years, way back there before cell phones. There were plenty of distractions even then.

In the "Dear Abby" column in the newspaper this morning a young girl was complaining about her fellow student's phones. They were supposed to be turned off in classes.

How'd the kids solve this problem? The kids have such high-pitched ring tones that the "older" teachers could not hear the ring tones because of the frequency!! Therefore the kids sit back there with innocent little faces getting text messages. This kid in the column was complaining about the "mosquito" tones that hurt her ears and the other student's ears and wondering what she should do.

Our kids today are SO smart if they'd just channel all this intelligence in the right way. And I'm glad I'm no longer in the teaching profession!

Right in the midst of downtown Searcy we have this little park that has been decorated. It is between two buildings in what was a little parking area. The city has come in and painted murals on the back wall. I have always loved murals. It fascinates me that they can be so accurate from a distance and then you walk up to them they're made up of broad strokes that are not so accurate at all.

How much the park is used may be questionable because right now the temperature would be too hot and in the winter it might be too cold and it is not right beside a restaurant so you could sit and have lunch outside. But nevertheless it has a charming mural that make me stare at it each time I drive by.