Ah... But don't breathe too deeply in Dad's house.

The citrus trees are blooming. Man, it smells great around here!

Paige got her braces off today! She be happy. Her teeth look great! Well, they'd better, after spending $3500.

Today Debbie and I snooped around Dad's house and gathered up as much as we could find of all the chemicals he's got stashed around there. Debbie and Bob have done a LOT in Dad's house this week. Bob's been doing repairs and today he changed the deadbolts so the house won't be a death trap. Debbie's been cleaning and organizing and getting the poisons out of the house.

That has been one thing that's been driving us all nuts. Dad has herbicides, pesticides, motor oil, fertilizers and other scary chemicals stashed around the house in all kinds of TOTALLY inappropriate places. He's got them in his dresser drawers, in his file cabinets, plant food in with his dishes, a big bottle of bleach in his bedroom closet, stuff mixed up in spray bottles and icky chemicals in containers that were originally intended for food.

They've got everything set on shelves in Dad's downstairs closet. At least now it's not in his living space.

Debbie and I also had a real good talk about some of our personal history. Dad and Bob had gone to the store so we had a lot of time alone. Good stuff, very productive. Juicy bits!

Later I drove Drew's truck and took them on a Riverside nostalgia tour. We cruised around downtown, the Mission Inn, Fairmount Park, Redwood ave., Mt. Rubidoux and finished up with the old neighborhood. When we got home Carlos came walking up with some creepy guy. Carlos and Rosa had been working in the field and stumbled across him. Scared Rosa to death. Carlos was questioning him when we drove up. He said he had done some work here some years back but he didn't know Dad. Something was way off about this guy. Carlos said the guy had been talking to himself. We all talked to him for a while and followed him down the driveway to make sure he left. Bob, Debbie and Dad got in the truck and drove up Central towards the airport to see where he went. They saw him sitting by the road, drinking. They called the cops but he was gone by the time they showed up.

So, was he like, camping in the Christmas trees? What was the nut job doing up there at dusk?

I reeeally hope he stays away.