David Day wasn’t surprised when his dad Robert called him about how to use the computer he had installed at his folks’ house.
David is an LSU electrical engineering graduate, but says his dad is somewhat technically challenged.
It was during Hurricane Isaac when David got the call from his dad’s landline phone.
He says, “I proceeded to dutifully walk him through the simple steps in the instruction manual to get connected to the Internet.
“After 20 minutes of trying, I gather by his voice he is having trouble reading the manual.
“Then I hear over the phone in the faint background: ‘Peggy (my mom), I can’t see the instructions. Can you stop doing whatever you are doing and shine the flashlight for me?’
“I say, ‘Dad, is the power out?’
“He replies, ‘Well yes, it has been for the last few hours. Why do you think I am bored enough to resort to computing?’ ”
David’s final words to his dad were: “It ain’t gonna work today. Perhaps Mom and you should play Scrabble by candlelight.”
Gail Stephenson says, “Your recent stories about wasps reminded me of my brother, John.
“Even though he knew he wasn’t supposed to run from red wasps, he was so afraid of them that he ran anyway — and was so intent on evading the wasps that he ran full tilt into the wheelbarrow, causing pain worse than any wasp sting.
“John also was afraid of snakes. One day he went to the chicken coop and saw a 6-foot chicken snake stretched across the rafters.
“Anyone who grew up on a farm knows that chicken snakes won’t harm humans — they are constrictors that swallow baby chicks and eggs whole.
“The protocol for disposing of one is to use a crook-necked hoe to pull the snake from the rafters and then chop off its head with the hoe.
“But John didn’t want to get that close and personal with any snake.
“He used his shotgun to kill the snake — and also ventilated the tin roof of the chicken coop.”
Nonie Banks tells of some great old sayings:
“Daddy would always say about someone getting angry: ‘He came down on him like a duck on a June bug!’
“Mother would say, when a child would resist wearing a dress with a spot on it: ‘It’ll never be seen on a galloping mare.’
“And Mom’s grandmother, an antebellum grande dame, would insist: ‘Horses sweat; men perspire; but women merely glow!’ ”
Raymond and Brandy, of Cutrer’s Meat Market & Slaughterhouse in Kentwood, asks those who received a Disaster Assistance card after Hurricane Isaac to use it at farmers’ markets:
“A few of our farmers at the Red Stick Farmers Markets were hit hard by Hurricane Isaac. They do not qualify for federal assistance with damaged crops.”
A Metairie reader says the lady who has a problem with a wandering dog might consider an electric fence.
She tells of a dog owner who did this, and says the dog “learned quickly where her boundaries are, and evidently adjusted well, with only minimal and brief ‘discomfort.’
“It’s likely that the pup will need the attention of a behaviorist or trainer, but at least it will be safe until something like that is available.”
Jane Honeycutt says, “I wish pharmacies had drop boxes for prescriptions that need to be refilled.
“The pharmacy itself is rarely open when I go, making a second trip necessary. It would be so much easier to drop the bottle into a box and pick up the refill later. I would still have to make two trips, but not three.”
If you go to the Raising Cane’s on Perkins Road on Sunday between noon and 7 p.m., a portion of the sale will be donated to the Shepherd’s Market Food Pantry, a new pantry serving south Baton Rouge families.
Just mention Shepherd’s Market when placing your order.
Call Theresa Sandifer at (225) 337-1306.
Ray Brown, of Central, celebrates quite a milestone — his 102nd birthday — Friday.
Jennifer Johnson, of French Settlement, says, “About four or so days before Isaac, I finally mowed our ‘much in need of it’ lawn.
“I was beginning to call it my ‘jungle lawn,’ the grass was so high.
“When I was through, I was left with something comparable to a field of hay ready to bale.
“My husband tells me later the next day (before I got to raking), ‘I hope when Isaac comes it clears some of this grass out of the yard.’
“I laughed so hard and said, ‘Honey, you are a true redneck! You know you are when you hope your yard looks better AFTER a hurricane!’”
Write Smiley at Smiley@theadvocate.com. He can also be reached by fax at (225) 388-0351 or mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.
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