Ya load sixteen tons what do you get?

I got home last night to find the three gringos hard at work hand raking the ex-dog pen area where the Nephew had busted the sod up with the roto tiller. I hate working too hard and it tired me out just to look at them. Two were raking the sod off and one was shovelin it into the wheelbarrow to dump.

I got them reorganized to make a "customized" drag made of old fence and 4" x 4" posts and a couple tires for weight. It was fun to watch them problem solving together. And it worked pretty well! I jumped right into moving some more plants out of the poison ivy area and into a nice, new shade garden under the "grove". I seeded columbine for color in two spots, put two spider worts and four hostas in two varieties in and tucked them all in with fresh mulch. It's looking very nice.

I seeded some Delphiniums and a mix of blue flowers around the glads patch and the iris spot. I was debating on watering them but the weather finally broke and watered for me just as the guys were almost done with the drag. It had only broken twice and got stuck about 4 times. The new yard tractor did well. They got it all under cover just before the rain got good and heavy.

No one was hungry yet. We were going to play some cards but I worked on the laptop I was giving to the Grand's friend and finally got it running right. I may have to reinstall the CD driver tonight, but it's up and boots. THEN we got to play some spades. That was fun! I love to play cards but have done so much of it online that using real cards is a challenge.

We managed to get two games with one partner swap in before midnight. It only took two more hours to shut them down. The teens want to stay up till morning and sleep all day. I need them crashed so I can sleep and working days. It's a conflict. I got pretty cranky when the nephew's phone rang at one in the morning, too. Then I blew up at the teens for not getting shut down when I was ready to crash two hours earlier. They minded but they did as I asked. (screamed)

Conflicts. Roommate conflicts, employer/employee conflicts, guest/host conflicts. We have several of each of them. So far we have avoided relationship conflicts but I expect a few of them with the new boy before we are 100% comfy with each other. Most of the time I just explain what I need to stay the same in the house and they are good with it, minus the normal forgetfulness of humans and the pre-ingrained habits from other homes.

And I am spoiled. The mate and I had a long time to work our our preferences for roommate stuff so I have habits of my own to change. It's not easy for us to all be crowded in together at night. They like head banger music, I like country and old rock and roll plus a bunch of other types that make them gag. The nephew says he gets a headache from their stuff. We rotate it but we are never all happy at once...LOL!

The standard male/female problem of the toilet seat has been a point of contention. I want it in what I call the 'always ready' position. One of them is fung-suay correct and one is not putting anything down, causing me to imagine the cherry picker being brought in to pry me loose and sending me screeching after them about the possible problem.

But these are good guys, even the new one who fancies himself a self-sufficient island of loner in a world of cliques. They have worked hard, if not always knowledgeably, at whatever I have pointed them at. It's hard to remember when I could not see dirt or didn't know that mowing the lawn meant weed whacking the post and tree areas, too, without being told. I try, but it was a long time ago. To train a real beginner takes an eye for the obvious that I have lost over the years. It's different. It's been fun and stressful at the same time for all of us. It keeps me on my toes and I am looking forward to the card game after dinner tonight even if I am dreading the music that I may have to hear.

Two of them are learning guitar from me and a chart. That I teach a little better. I enjoy hearing them get a riff right. And I get to see Pirates of the Caribbean tonight, too. No, I didn't know the name of the guy who has the lead role. No, I don't know who the lead singer for Metallica is. But I can fix a laptop running Win95 and gift it to you. Yes, I can get the tabs to a Johnny Cash song and one by Nirvana and teach you to read them from instructions on the web. No, you are not going out to take phone calls at two in the morning, don't care who it is - no blood, no call. Sure you can play the harmonica, here, keep this one. BBQ or Plain on your chicken tonight?

Learning - about each other, to trust, to behave politely, to cope with kids, to play spades, to accommodate each other's needs and preferences. We are learning. I am BEAT!

Today they finished dragging the pen area and cleaning the basement so they are off to the lake to girl watch. I offered to reimburse for soda or pop and such for the outing and hope they have fun. I will be putting the grass seed in tonight and watering my plants and seeds for about two hours. I need to get a sprinkler. I need some strapping and tomorrow they start taking the furnace out of the basement. I need to call the scrap guy and get him over.

And I need to call the #2Grand. Come to find out he CAN get poison ivy. Poor kid! Both arms from glove wrist to t-shirt sleeve are covered in it! I feel really badly for him and will be trying to get the rest of it dug out on my own.

What I wanted to get out here today is that we have to be able to compromise and get along over the generational divide as well as across the race barrier, the money barrier, the belief barrier and the gender differences to survive together. With a little give and give on each side it can be done.

The home I am the current user of is becoming something I will be proud to pass on to a family with children in the future and I am getting to know my grand and nephew better and make a new friend at the same time. It's win-win and I like it like that.