Ahem. We've been outside applying Forest Faces. Ahem.

You do know that this blog is named after this book.

If you're out there, Mr. McCammon, call me. I'm in the book.

No, not that book, sir -- the phone book.

Craig is right. That is springtime in Louisiana.

Learn something new everyday. Johnnie Cochran was from Shreveport.

Lyman is talking to women on the phone.

Big Daddy asked about sweet corn today.

Jason is coming to spend the night.

I need a nap.

We had another nasty weather scare here Saturday evening.

Clouds were low and dark. Severe thunderstorms threatening tornados stretched from here to Alabama.

About 5:20 the weather strip informed us that a tornado had been sighted 7 miles south of Ferriday, next town over, traveling this way at 30 miles an hour. The warning siren began to blare.

Lucy's cage went into the hall and I started sweating. I really stink when I become afraid.

Whatever. I don't know where it touched, or where it went, but it didn't come here. I haven't seen news that it did damage locally.

I spent nearly 30 years in Texas, and never came so near these godawful things as I have twice in the past six months.

I like a good heist. But as far from Vidalia as NYC is, do Fed-Ex workers really wear black there?

Silly sister.

Mo' crawfish.

Speaking of finding things in Dallas.

When I was a waitress, back in prehistory, there was an art deco medical arts building in downtown Dallas. It has since been replaced, by, I think, the keyhole building by I.M. Pei.

When the place was under destruction, I went by for a memento. The letters from the name, made of heavy cast aluminum, were available. I wanted something sculptural, like an "S", but had to settle for a "G".

I think I was 21. 20, maybe.

Some men buy fast cars, and some men build greenhouses. Lyman's has cool automatic louvers.

All right, that's it. I've had it with Gore boys.

Big Daddy came by this morning for a cup of coffee.

"Does Janis want some sweet corn this season?"

Do you have any idea how long it will be before corn is ready? Farmers haven't even planted here yet.

Arghhhhhhh!

"No, sir. By that time I intend to be living with blue-eyed, childless orphan Giancarlo in Siena."

I have some strong feelings against boys in the house:

1) I am too old for overhead lights. There are lamps in every room in this house. Use them.

2) Do not put a sweating glass next to the coaster in your bedroom.

3) Do not invite your grandparents to dinner and disappear until after the food is cooked and your grandparents are gone.

4) Do not wad up shirts and leave them on the end table in the living room.

5) Do not, under any circumstance except emergency, have the TV on when I wake up in the morning.

LATER: And what the $%#% is on the bathroom mirror?

If you don't read Indigo Insights, and I encourage you to, you might miss this and a bunch of other funny stuff:

A man is at work one day when he notices that his co-worker is wearing an earring.

This man knows his co-worker to be a normally conservative fellow, and is curious about his sudden change in "fashion sense."

The man walks up to him and says, "I didn't know you were into earrings."

"Don't make such a big deal, it's only an earring," he replies sheepishly.

His friend falls silent for a few minutes, but then his curiosity prods him to say, "So, how long have you been wearing one?"

"Ever since my wife found it in my truck."

Thanks, Bob and Indigo.

Our neighbors, the grandparents, now have a huge pair of pink inflatable bunny ears visible above their enclosed patio.

These were sophisticated, dare I say sedate, people.

The stillness of these peregrines puts me in mind, by way of contrast, of a concert I attended in about 1984.

David Gilmour, guitarist for Pink Floyd, was touring solo, and took his act to Reunion Arena in Dallas.

The congas and light percussion were handled by a woman who was competent, lively and fit, wearing a stretchy pantsuit for comfort, and looked like she'd swallowed a beach ball.

She might be the only obviously pregnant performer I've ever seen on stage.

As smug a jerk as Sean Penn comes across on stage at the Academy Awards, I'm told he is quite nice in real life.

He has been filming in Baton Rouge recently. A young waitress who is a friend of our boys, and who has overnighted with us occasionally, waited on him at the restaurant where she works the other day.

She told Michael that she was a little nervous serving him and not at her best. Mr. Penn was gentle and undemanding, just as he should have been.

I didn't think to ask about the tip.

UPDATE: Johnny Depp is floating around Baton Rouge, too.

I'm posting this site for personal reference regarding peregrines.

Lyman is making fun of me for watching these boring birds, but I am checking their behavior against Lucy's.

Ordinarily, peregrines stretch, yawn and sleep much as Lucy does. From what I can make out from descriptions, they tuck their heads forward under their wings rather than back over their shoulders as Lucy does when they sleep. I still haven't observed a yawn, but maybe the birdies aren't as bored as I would be. I haven't seen any sort of stretching apart from a brief double-wing stretch when one is about to fly from the roost.

One of the things I forget is that San Francisco can be pretty chilly, worse at 33 stories. Those eggs can't take much neglect. The transfer I watched happened in about 30 seconds.

When Lucy is awake, she likes for me to be awake, too. (I told you she is like a baby.)

So if I lie down to nap, she often resorts to ear-piercing screams to keep me alert.

In the interest of teaching the little girl the Golden Rule, I'm considering investing in something along this line.

Since I have absolutely nothing to offer in the way of music on my own in response to O'Possum's Thursday Three, I'll direct you to attorney Stuart Buck, who is an accomplished classical guitarist.

I've been wanting to work him in here for days.

He had a light stroke several months ago, but he's all better now.

UPDATE: Much as I like Mr. Buck, there is nothing on his site that indicates he does plumbing. A good recording of a classical guitarist is considerably cheaper than an hour with a plumber.

My attorney does plumbing.