Christmas 2012

 
Merry Christmas to all who may read this!

It has been three weeks since I wrote in my blog. I'm
not sure I have a good reason for that.

Suzanne and I had lunch at the Thai restaurant in
Louisville.  I still wasn't driving so she picked me up
and drove us there.  We had a good gabfest and
enjoyable lunch.

Jeanne and Jay were here from the 6th through the 10th.
We had a quiet time with them, for the most part.
Jeanne and I went to Parker to have lunch with Connie
and Meara. Meara didn't feel up to it, so it was just
the three of us. It was a lovely day for me.  Jeanne
did the driving which allowed me to just relax and
enjoy the day.  On the 8th, Carl and Martha and Gabby
came over about noon so I enticed them into staying for
lunch.  Later everyone met here for hors d'oeuvres.
Connie, Greg and Meara coming from Parker; Carl, Martha
and Gabby, from Eire. We all went to Spice China, in
Louisville, for a lovely dinner.  After dinner we all
returned here for apple pie and ice cream.  I had made
the pie earlier that day.  A busy day, but very
enjoyable.

Jeanne and Jay left on the 10th

On the 12th I hosted the Salina book club.  Since some
of the members work in town, instead of having them
drive home and back, I provided a buffet supper from
5:30 - 7:30 for the group and included their spouses,
any who chose to come.  Paul and Cy came with Aubra. 
Cy is 2 and a very busy little boy.  Paul is working on
his PhD in Physics so he and Robert got together after
supper.  At 7:30 Aubra left with Paul and Cy; the rest
of us discussed the latest book club read which was
Margaret Atwood's "A Handmaid's Tale."  It seemed we
all liked it although it was a dark novel.  The ending
left me wishing she had "finished" the story.

On the following Saturday we had dinner with the
Mosburgs at their home.  Shirley always fixes a
delicious and exotic meal.  This one was Japanese.  As
always it was especial.

On the 21st we went to Viki's for a Lawrence gift
exchange and a Solstice dinner and party.  We had
dinner with just the Lawrences.  After dinner Viki's
friends showed up for a party.  We stayed until about
9:30, then excused ourselves and left.  We enjoyed
ourselves because Keegan and Ellery joined us for much
of the time.  Keegan has a job he loves so is not sure
about graduate school.

Jo and Alf are coming to join us for Christmas Dinner.
I decided to have a typical Christmas dinner even if it
was just the two of us.  I invited Maureen from next
door, but she had plans.  I didn't want her to be there
alone, if she didn't want to be.  Jo called to invite
us for dinner and was happy to come here instead of
there.  Cooking is not something Jo enjoys and I do.

Aside from doctor visits and a couple trips to the
dentist the month flew by.  I'm seeing a Cornea
specialist, but he clearly hasn't a clue as to why my
vision is blurry.  He recommended I see a retina
specialist saying that perhaps I had fluid behind the
retina which was causing the problem. I asked what
would happen if that were the case and I didn't do
anything about it.  Would my eye be further damaged and
he assured me that it wouldn't.  I said that I felt
that in time the situation would resolve itself.  I
also said, that, Of course I was speaking out of
complete ignorance.  He said that perhaps it would. 
I'll continue with the drops he recommend which
increase the moisture in the eye and will see him in
March.  Keeping my fingers crossed that the eye would
cure itself.  In the meantime, I find I can wear my
glasses again and have started driving again.

Not being able to drive was really hard.  I love to just
gad around sometimes.  Stop and look at new shops or
just wander around the super market to see what's new
or the World Market, etc.  Unfortunately, it still
tires my eye if I try to books; the Kindle works. 
Thank goodness for the Kindle!

Happy days to all and may the 2013 be a saner year than
2012 has been.
 

How Time Does Fly.

Grannie, Alyssum and Aspen

Grannie and Aspen

We had a lovely Thanksgiving party here on the day after Thanksgiving  Day.Dana and Alyssum flew in on Thanksgiving day so we held off a day for the celebration.  The family showed up at 1 PM and we ate at 2 PM. There were 15 of us: Dana and Alyssum (Robin's daughter and husband) and their baby, Aspen Ann; Connie, Greg, Meara and Alan; Carl, Martha and Gabby; Viky and Ed; Keegan; Vernon and Robert and me.We managed, by using both tables that are in the kitchen to seat all of us.  The food was served buffet style.


After we all stuffed ourselves most everyone went for a walk while Connie and I cleaned up.  Meara, who is still suffering from some un-named malady kept us company.

Dana had to leave to get back to work, but he an Alyssum toured around the area quite a bit and discovered the Gold Hill Store.  They are dreaming of buying it, but it does seem like an un-likely fantasy.  Raising the money is the problem.  The owner is willing to carry the mortgage, but...I don't even dare think about it.  It would be soooooooooooo wonderful to have them move to Boulder County.

James with Raggedy Andy and still in the UK

Is Winter Really Coming?

Grandma Robyn, Aspen and Mom Alyssum

                                              

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Robyn and Jan are visiting Alyssum and Dana.In the meantime:
 The laundry room closet is finished except for the special
order door from Home Depot which is taking forever!
In the meantime John  has removed the knick knack shelf
and the flag stone thing sitting in the living room.
We are debated what to do, if anything in its place.
Probably a small book case facing the front door entry and low
enough to use as a hand rail for the other step.

We have purchased LED lights to light all the steps into the
"sunken" linving room. I have a fear of someone wandering around
in the dark and falling from one of those steps, especially it it
were someone carring a baby!  That's not likely to happen because
young people have better night vision.  Admittedly I have a fear
of falling and breaking a hip or someother big bone...It was hard
enough to get my strength back after the shingles, I am afraid I
might not after a bad fall.

Yesterday we went to Salina. Allison and I cleaned out the
computer room.  The downstairs is now completely cleaned out.
YEA!  But, the worse is yet to come.

After we finished that I didn't want to start upstairs so we went
out to the barn.  Vernon and Robert were going to put the log
spliter into the trailer, but it was too heavy. Vernon said he
could do it with his bobcat.  That meant clearing the way to the
splitter.  Consequently, when we got out their they were buily
splinter te logs that were in the way. Allison left to meet the
Gold Hill bus at the junction which Wren rides to/from school. I
started stacking the split wood into the triler.  They were way
ahead of me, but I had almost caught up when they quit.  Vernon
helped me load the rest.

The next project was to load all the leftovers from the solar
racks. Some, despite paint had started to rot already and some
were quite badkly burned from the fire of two years ago.  Robert
was shocked he hadn't remembered that they had been burned, but
we were both in shock back then.

This morning we have unloaded the triler, stacked the fire wood,
carried the other stuff into the garage to be sorted. The wood
pile is above my waist now; quite impressive.

It had just started to snow when we were putting covers over all
the outdoor faucets.  Robert isn't sure they are freeze-proof
fuacets since the house is vintage 1961.  In any case, better safe
than sorry.

We are ready for winter which is supposed to come this afternoon
or this evening.

My big project for the weekend is draw-up another plan for where
the flagstone edifice was.  This will be the third go at it.  I
draw it and then Robert tells me what he thinks it should be; we
discuss and I draw another one.  Too bad I don't know how to use
one of the computer systems.  It seems so archaic to have to keep
starting over; I have found some see-trhough graph paper though
so maybe I can trace some of the things that can't change.

November already?

Aspen Ann Revallo

James Denison Garth

J

We are planning to vote on the 6th; our polling
station is just down the road.  We, like most,
have know for quite a while for whom we'd vote
in the National.  We didn't get the Colorado
Blue Book this year are dependent on the net
to get our information on the State affairs.

Regarding my left eye I'll be seeing a Cornea
specialist in two weeks.  I think I just have
to be patient until the swelling, from the
Shingles, of my eyelid goes down.

John, our newly found carpenter who is also
the brother of my hair dresser, Nancy is
turning our nook in the laundry room into
a real closet. It is almost done except
for the door he special ordered so it would
match the furnace-room door which is also
in the laundry room.

He has also replace our back storm/screen
door with a lovely full-glass, roll-up
storm/screen door.  It took a lot of work
to fit it to our back door.  We have
given up replacing the front one.  It is
an unusual height.  It is old and dirty,
but I think if I clean it up it'll look
alright.  We seldom use the front door
and it still works as either storm or
screen door.

After these projects are completed he'll
start on tearing down the flagstone
protuberance that is in the living room.
It'll be replace with a back-to-back
book case.  The knick-knack shelves
above the protuberance will just go
away.  I had thought of having the
bookcases go floor to ceiling, but
decided that would be too much for
our small living room and make the
dark hall even darker.

When we first moved in an I saw the
'60s cook stove, I announced that
would be top on my priority list
to replace.  Now that I have used
it for a few months, I realize it
would be a shame replace it.  It's
one of the first Jenn-Air and
I have come to appreciate its
unique features.  The fan between
the burners is wonderful.  It
works much better than any over-
head fan I have ever used.  It
really sucks the smells right
out of the kitchen.  The refrigerator
is HUGE and well designed, too. I
have never had a refrigerator that
seems to be able to hold everything.
No matter whether it looks to be
full, there is always room for more!
The dishwasher is also well designed.
It'll hold a days dishes and pots
and one large frying pan!  I have
to give it to the former owners.
The house is quite modest, but they
didn't stint on appliances.  Lucky
me!

We continue to make trips to Salina.
Robert works on rescuing things from
the barn while I clean out the house
room by room.  The downstairs is
done except for the computer room.
The upstairs is not.  I shudder
every time I go up there because
there is still so much to do.  I
don't think Robert has been in the
house since the movers left.  I
think it'll be really hard for him
to see it empty and even worse, to
see it trashed as it currently is
upstairs.

We plan to have the whole inside
painted; I'm encouraging Robert
to think about having the wood
floors re-done.  They would look
so much better and make a statement
when you walk in the front door.

So, life goes on, not an exciting
life, but very comfortable one.

Two weeks have gone by?

It has been at least 2 weeks since my last entry.
Since then summer was here again and now gone. We've
had our first snow; about 4 inches all together.  I
love the first snow and I'm not sure why.  I don't
love winter so why should I love the first snow?

We managed to rake up all the leaves.  The first
raking I used Connie's little cart to move them
to the "back 40" where we were hoping to use them
as mulch for the new grass.  The wind came up and
they were all gone by morning.  The tree had shed
it's final batch of leaves so that the yard was
full again.  This time Robert helped and we load
them into the trailer; I drove and he scattered
them around the "back 40."  It took 2 full trailer
loads to move them all.  This time the snow came
and the leaves stayed put.

We also brought a trailer load of fire wood from
Salina.  We had loaded it into the trailer the
week before, but we left the trailer and the jeep
up there so that Vernon could replace the starter.
Now, the trailer starts every time.

My granddaughter, Meara, is still ill with some
un-diagnosed problem.  All the bad things have
been ruled out, but she is still uncomfortable.
She has a stiff and sometimes achy neck and a
head that aches sometimes and feels swollen other
times.  When she stands for any length of time
at all she starts to shake all over.  It is a
mystery. Please send her your positive thoughts.

Robyn is packing up to leave RMBL for the last
time.  She likes working at RMBL, but the living
conditions are horrible.  Crested Butte has
small apartments for ski workers and large
mansions for the ones who ski and in town there
are no reasonable houses for rent.  She is
taking her Social Security starting in January
and declares herself "retired."

Amazing to have a daughter old enough to be on
Social Security!

 James Denison Garth and
below  Aspen Ann Revallo

 

My two beautiful great-grandchildren!

I guess the best news of the week is that
we went to the VA and the report is Robert is
doing very well.  All the things that should
go down, have gone down and all the things
that should go up, have gone up!  The best
of that is that he feels good.  Perhaps not
as well as he did at 80, but certainly
better than he has felt for some time.

Robyn was here last weekend.  We had a
family get-together which is always fun.
It was good to have her here, if only
for a couple of days.

Our road is still closed at South
Boulder Road and is now also closed at
the other, Baseline end.  We are boxed
in.  WE do, fortunately have a back way
out.  The county has paved all the pot
holes of that exit which meant they
re-paved 90% of it.

The leaves are going rapidly from our
ash trees and the back lawn is a yellow
bed of leaves.  We have yet to start the
clearing up process.

Today  we are headed for Greeley, CO to
an opening of the "first electric
charge station for electric autos, east
of I-25." There are charging stations
in Boulder and I assume in Denver also.
We are going in the Van and I shall
probably stay in the Van.  Depending
on what the parking situation is, I may
be able to sit out in a lawn chair
under our awning.  Robert is to be a
host and answer questions and drive
people around in the electric cars.
Just his cup of Tea!  It's a lovely
day and it'll be fun to "play house"
in the Van again.

I checked with our Health Insurance
provider and found that they cover
folks over 60 years-old 100% of the
cost of the shingles shot.  Now I
find out.  In any case I have now
had a shingles shot in hopes that
when the shingles re-occur, as I'm
told they will, they at least will
be somewhat modified or not happen
at all, I hope.  In any case since
getting the shot the pain has
increased so I guess it is doing
something, but I'm not sure that
is good.

 

 

Visiting great-grandchild

Keating and Lee and baby James Denison Garth
have gone on their way.  Keating and James
will be with Keating's mother for three weeks.
Lee has about 10 more days of leave and then
he'll be returning.  This means Keats will be 
on her own for the trip back across the pond.
That'll be hard because she has so much baby
stuff to deal with, but she'll ask for help
and I'm sure folks will help her.

It was great having them here although I did
get very tired.  It annoys me because we
either did carry-out or went out for most
meals.  I slept well, but still feel 
wiped out.  I think it is the pain, probably,
more than the company.  They were very
easy guests and helped as much as they
could.

James has a lovely smile and smiles a lot.
He came down with a cold while he was here
so the second day he was a very unhappy
baby, but the rest of the visit the did
fine despite a rather stuffy nose.

Our road is closed at South Boulder Rd.
Apparently drivers are not informed of
that at the Baseline end because they
drive past the road closed signs
and get to South Boulder Road and
discover it is closed; a few do a U-
turn at Brockwy where there is a huge
"No THRU TRAFFIC" sign.

The chick-a-dees and house finches are
very busy at the feeder just a few
feet away.  It is lovely; I shall look
forward to what the winter weather
brings.

Meara has some sort of illness not yet
diagnosed, but she has tremors and
her legs are wobbly.  She was to see
a neurologist, but I haven't yet
heard the results.  But, it is very
concerning.

Our two huge ash trees are turning 
yellow and their leaves are flying
in the wind.  It looks pretty, but
the result is a yellow lawn of
leaves. Looks like a lot of work,
but we are waiting until most
of the leaves have fallen before
we start to rake.

Robert has injured his shoulder
so finds it difficult to sleep.
He isn't sure how or when he did
it and we hope it'll mend itself
soon!  He also, when he isn't
thinking about it drags one foot
which is the result of the 
shingles.  If he concentrates
on picking up his foot he can
do it, but it means he has to 
concentrate on walking.  He
does not have pain left over
from the shingles, thank goodness.

I find I get really discouraged
from time to time because of the
pain I am still experiencing from
the shingles.  My forehead burns
and gets spikes of pain from time
to time and my scalp stings and
itches, all very unpleasant.
I wake in the morning and
wonder how I can deal with it
another day.  Then, I talk to
myself and say, "deal with it!" and
I do.  The meds I'm taking help
a lot, but don't smother it
completely.  I have upped the 
dosage once and may up it another
300mg.  I am taking 1200mg of
Gabapentin and the maximum
dose is 1800 mgs.  I started at
900mgs.  I feel very lethargic
and I think that is from the
meds.  I sleep really soundly
at night and I don't feel
sleepy during the day, just
lazy.  The most annoying
thing for me is that I can't
read very well.  My left 
eye is very blurry and if
I wear my old glasses the
bad eye soon begins to hurt
from the strain.  I can
read using my Kindle and
making the characters very
large...but I have real books
I'd like to read and I can't.
I go back to the eye doctor in 
two weeks and he expects to
give me a new Rx for glasses.
I assume I'll be able to 
read after that.

We do try and walk most days
and on our last walk we 
discovered an area of County
Open Space.  When we got home
Robert looked at the open
space maps and discovered
there is a finger of Open
Space that touches 76th
St. right across the street
from us!  We're anxious to
explore further.

A Flag is flying to celebrate.

Another week has passed and our health is
improving.  Robert feels much, much better.
We are both convinced that his total lack
of energy was due to the shingles.

I am now taking gabapentin for my nerve
pain on my head.  It doesn't make all the
pain go away, but it does make it more
tolerable.

Robert and Selena (the daughter of my
house cleaner) came Friday and she and
Robert went up to Salina and brought
back a car and trailer load of stuff.
This morning Robert and I unloaded it
all and brought much of it into the
house to go into the cellar.  I never
realized what a hoarded I had become.
I have enough rice to feed all of a
Salina for a week, at lest.  I admit
I was and am that the electric grid
will go out and food will become in
short supply very quickly.

I am anxious, for that reason and
others, to get the solar system up and
running again.

We have a handyman coming on Wednesday
to see about building a closet door
for us in the laundry room.  I'm hoping
he might be able to help get the panels
up in the back "40."

The weather has cooled off which helps
in many ways!  We can work outside
without melting.

I found a flag in our stuff and we now
are flying the good ole stars and stripes.
I also bought a large geranium in a pot
and planted Jared's political sign in it.
When I take down the flag I also move
the pot into the yard and out of sight
of the street.  I'm hoping to get an
Obama sign soon and then I'll buy
another geranium!

We watched both conventions; sometimes
it was hard to watch the Republicans.
I missed some of the best speeches, but
did watch all of Obama's.

Recycled moving boxes

This morning we took a trailer load of flattened
boxes to the recycle place.  It's good to have
them gone.  We saved some because we still have
things to pack, mostly books of Robert's, in
Salina.  It was amazing because there was no one
there.

Today is Stage 6 of the Pro-champion bike race and
many streets in Boulder are closed.  I assume folks
decided this was not the day to go to recycle.
From where we live it was easy and little traffic.

Viki and Ed have been supplying us with fresh eggs.
Viki, with duck eggs and Ed, with colored chicken
eggs.  In both cases the yolks are really deep
yellow and taste great.  There really is a difference
between "eggs" and really fresh eggs!

Robert was told by his oncologist this week that his
CLL was in remission and that his shingles should
just about be over.  Both are good news, but Robert
still doesn't feel good.  He feels good in the
morning.  By lunch time he is beginning to drag and
has problems eating lunch. After lunch he just wants
to sleep, but the doctor advised against that because
it would make sleeping at night more difficult.

This week he has a CT scan scheduled for Wednesday,
of his torso.  The following week he has an X-Ray
of his esophagus scheduled.  In both cases trying
to determine why he can't eat.  He eats so little it
is no wonder he has no energy!

I have energy, but I'm starting the 10th week of
shingles and the pain is still with me.  It is
certainly better than it was a few weeks ago, but
it is difficult.  I would say, on the scale of
1 to 10, the constant pain is about a 3, with
occasional sharp spikes of 8 or 9.  It's tolerable,
but I'm hoping relief will eventually come.

Moving on.........

Things are moving on at 76th Street.

This week the landscapers who had placed sod
on dead/dying grass and the ares dug up by the
septic installers, dug up a garden by the front
porch that had died, due to lack of water.  They
added new topsoil, planted new plants and then
cover with mulch.  It looks lovely.  I'm hand
watering it until Robert and I feel well enough
to figure out why the irrigation system isn't
watering that area.

It is clear the economy is still struggling.
When I called the landscaper he was here within
the day and has been working most days since
then getting us in ship shape.  He'll be
back Wednesday to mow the law.

I called the arborist and he sent a representative
the same day to determine what we wanted and to
give an estimate and they were here the following
day to do the work.

Likewise, when we had a plumbing problem the
plumber was here the next day and worked all
day to solve the immediate problem and back
at the start of the week to fix the less
immediate problems.  And so it goes.

At least, in the flats, it is easy to get help.

Robert has been really miserable this week and
we are both scared.  We were going to the VA
on Monday, just to do lab work, but now we
are going to see the oncologist, too.  We'll
be at the VA for the lab and see the doctor
sometime after 9:30 AM.  I think we'll get
up at 5:30, leave at 6, arrive at 7 and get
the lab work done as soon as possible; then
go get breakfast.  Fortunately, although I'm
still in pain, I feel well enough to drive
us to the VA and back!  Actually, I feel
very well.  I'm just damn sick of hurting.
My forehead and skull are still bright red.

I did get my hair cut this week.  What a
relief that was.

I'm distressed at the on-going nasty
campaign!  I can't imagine a President
Ryan!  What a disaster that would be,
but maybe not as bad as a President
Palin?

I'm looking forward to visits from Robyn,
Alyssum and family and Keating and
family sometime between now and October
first!  Lovely!

Starting week 8...

It's been 7 weeks since I came down with the shingles.
Today, for the first time I feel almost human.  I still
have pain, especially, my left eye, but I think there is
hope that eventually I'll overcome this dreadful disease.

Fortunately, Robert got the anti-viral right away when
he came down with it!  He is doing well with it, although
he does have a few really nasty pustules.

My grandson, Ryan and his significant other, Elizabeth
are visiting from SF.  They are both working on their
PhD degrees; he at UCSF and she at Stanford.  A lively,
intelligent pair, great fun to have around.  Also, very
thoughtful.  They have done all the cooking and clean
up since they have been here.  That has been great. I
have so little stamina that having company is a challenge.
They made if a pleasure!

I have hired caregivers to help.  They come twice a
week.  I think we'll not need them very long, but
at this time we have to go to Denver twice a month
and dealing with the VA AND the driving is more than
either of us can do at this time.  Martha took us
once and that was wonderful.  Our kids have been
great in helping us.  However, we made the choice
to come here instead of a retirement home where
we would have care when/if we needed it.  I feel
we are fortunate that we can afford to hire help.
All the kids have really been great, but they have
their own lives and are busy; we'll call on them
when/if we need to, but hope we won't have to do
that too often.

The required, by the county, new septic system
was installed and in the process most of the
"back 40" is now dirt instead of grass and the
lawn in the smaller part of the back yard was
torn up, too.  We've hired Tony who has sodded
the back yard and part of the front yard where
the lawn sprinklers didn't work.  The grass
had died and weeds had taken over.  He is seeding
the "back 40" with prairie grass.  He has also
planted six lilac bushes along the northern
fence.  We hope that will screen our view
of the neighbor's barn in the not too distant
future.  He'll be back Tuesday to do some
more work, but will also come weekly to keep
the place looking good.

Shingles go on and on and on.........

I'm into my sixth week of Shingles and it has been
very difficult.  The pain continues and although it
is much, much better it is still a constant which
I find drains all my strength.  I can't wear my
glasses so reading is a problem.  Thank goodness
for Kindle.  I can make the letters large enough
to read easily.

Friday last, Robert broke out with Chicken Pox.
He was able to get medical help and is on anti-
viral meds which has helped a lot.  He feels pretty
good at this point, but still has spots all over
his body.  He doesn't seem to be getting any
new ones, thanks to the anti-viral.  He's
supposed  to go to the VA on Tuesday, but I'm
not sure they'll want him to come.  We'll
check tomorrow.

Tomorrow, finally, the Septic people are supposed
to come a redo the septic system.  All of which
is very silly because the current one is just
fine, but the county has a rule that when a
house is sold a new licenced septic must be
installed!  We have a big pile of dirt in
the far back yard which will be nice to be
rid of.  Also, until the septic is done we
can't install the Solar panels which are
going to be set up back there.

This has been a tough move.  Moving at our
age, especially for Robert is difficult
enough without me being out of it for so
long.  Hopefully, things will be looking
up soon.

Unpacking goes on and on and .....

Jeanne has been here for most of the past week and what a
relief that is.  I've had Shingles for almost two weeks
now and I think, hope, I'm over the worst of it.

Both eyes were swollen shut for a while so that I could
not see and, of course, was afraid of losing my vision.
Dr. Roberts has seen me twice and prescribed prednisone
and an anti-viral.  The anti-viral may/may not do any
good, but it can't hurt and the prednisone has helped
a lot, I think.  In any case, I can now see out of both
eyes.

The pain has switched from a headache to many shooting
pains, needles of pain that jump from one area of the
left side of my skull to another.  Sleeping has been
very difficult, but Tylenol PM seems to work the best.
I suppose the benedryl in it helps inhibit the itch.

Connie, Meara and Alan were here sometime in the
last week or so.  I have been so out of it, much of
the time, I'm not sure when they were here.  But,
Alan worked with Robert on the TV system and
Meara and Connie unpacked all of my clothes.

Jeanne has totally organized my kitchen!  It is better
organized than it ever has been and certainly better
than had I done it myself.

Robyn and Janis were here over the weekend and Janis
did the book and bathroom unpack.  We had a cupboard
in the pantry which was stuffed with first aid products and
multiple other pharmaceuticals.  Janis unpacked and
stowed all that stuff.  She also unpacked all my books!
Robyn and Robert did the detective work necessary to 
finish installing our cable phone, Internet and TV.  No 
longer do we have a greenwire running from the guest 
room to my office.

Connie is coming tomorrow.  She and Jeanne will make
a map of where all my kitchen "stuff" is now located.

Robert is taking me to see a dermatologist, Dr. Steinhauer,
in the morning.  Ironically, my dermatologist whose
office was in Louisville, has left the practice.  For
years I have driven to Louisville to see him; now that
we are 5 minutes away from that office I shall be going
to the Boulder office in north Boulder.

Shingles, argh...

So, we have moved.  The movers moved most of our stuff
last Wednesday, the 26th.  

Since then, Viki has been here to help unpack as has Jo.
They both did a fantastic job of getting stuff unpacked
and put away!

We are still in a terrible mess and shall be for some
time.  On top of everything else...Robert is on chemo
and I have Shingles.  The chemo robs Robert of
what little energy he still had.  That depresses and
discourages him.  The Shingles presented on my face so I
look pretty awful..swollen purple eyelid and angry
blisters.  Sadly, I didn't get to the doctor on time
to get an antiviral...so shall just suffer along.  Most
of the time it's bearable, but once in a while I 
get a shooting pain that  knocks me for a loop and
totally incapacitates me until it passes.

I'm hoping I shall be fortuante enough to have it
gone in a couple of weeks, although the doctor
predicted 6 weeks.

The "Move" goes on.

A little bragging is in order.

A few weeks back Viki and Vernon came by to talk
with us.  They felt it was too much for us to try
to move and sell the house at the same time.
Implying, of course, that we are too old for such.
They assured us they would take care of the
house even through the winter, if need be, so
that we could move and get settled and then
worry about getting the house ready to sell
and putting it on the market.

What a relief.  Immediately the pressure
was off.  Moving is hard and painful
enough.
 
Jeanne and Rochelle met here a few weeks
ago.  Jeanne totally organized us for the 
move as well as making multiple trips to
both ecocycle our re-cycling center and
to Good Will to drop off tons of books and
other items for wish we have nor further use.

Connie drives the ~140 mile round trip to
lend a hand about once a week. 

This weekend Carl, Martha, Gabby, Robyn
and Vernon showed up early Saturday
morning to "move the solar system."
While Martha and Gabby packed all the
file cabinets on the main floor plus
several other boxes of stuff as well, the 
others took apart the solar system and loaded
it all. Batteries in Vernon's truck;
16 batteries at 160 pounds each!  The 15
solar panels were loaded into the trailer.
Writing this is easy, the taking apart, 
moving, and loading, was not!

After lunch we all went to the 76St. house
and Martha, Robyn, Vernon and Carl unloaded
all that stuff!  What a tremendous amount of
work was accomplished!  Another big hurdle
overcome.

We all returned for dinner..both lunch
and dinner were buffets.  The dining
room  is crowded with boxes such
that only 4 chairs are left to sit at
the table.  We all ate in the living
room.

I served lasagna, Caesar salad, and
fresh-baked French bread for dinner.
All disappeared except a very small
amount of lasagna.  And, no wonder,
considering all the work that was
done.

Martha handed out Ibuprofen after
dessert.

Robyn announced this morning that she
slept very well, thanks to Martha's distribution
of  Ibuprofen to each of the workers!




We are fortunate to have such great support
from our families!

The move goes on.

Of course the big news of the week is that
Alyssum had her baby on June 5th.  She is
a hefty 9+pounds, but mom and baby are
doing fine.  She has been named Aspen Ann
Revallo and is a cutie!

The house news is an on-going story.
The painters will be finished tomorrow.  We had
the whole of the inside of the "new" painted. It
looks really nice.

The carpets have been removed and according to
the carpet removers they were really, really
dirty..what to expect.  I assumed they had been
there since the house was built in 1961!  The
new floors are to be laid next week.

The moving contract moved from June 25 to the
27th.  It is a busy time of year.  Also they
had expected to spend two days, but only had
one day of schedule.  Robert told them to
skip the barn. Also, he is hoping he, Carl and
Robyn can move the solar panels this weekend.
In the meantime, whenever we go to the house
we take a load of fragile and/or partially
packed stuff.

My washer, just a couple of months out of
warranty has decided to quit.  It washes
pretty well, but it doesn't spin the water
out of the clothes.  I shall have the
movers move it and then buy new washer and
dryer and have the washer carted away at
that time.

The smoke from the fire just west of Ft.
Collins contiues to be think.  Memories
are renewed.  I feel for those folks and
know the stress they are feeling!  I am
glad we are moving out of the mountains.
Everything is parched.  We water, but not
enough so that the grass is brown in
many places.  My xeroscape garden is
doing fine!!  I'm delighted.





 

We have bought a house...and are packing..

Since I entered anything here much has happened!

We purchased a home on an acre of land in east
Boulder.  The house is a modest concrete house
built on a slab.  The address is 239 76 St.,
Boulder, 80303.
 
The primary building on the acre is the barn-like 
structure which consists of room for 4 cars, the 
van and a shop.  The  latter area is heated and 
since they all have adjoining doors I assume all 
could be  heated, if the need arose.  When I saw 
the barn I knew it was the place for us.

The house has 3 bedrooms and a den, 2
bathrooms, a laundry room, kitchen and
living room.  The dining area is in the
middle of the kitchen.  That will take
come getting used to.

We close on the house on Thursday, May 31.

In the meantime I have been shopping for
flooring and meet with the floor person and
the paint person on Friday, June 1st.
Hopefully, the painter can start right
away.  The flooring has to be ordered and
it'll take a couple of weeks before it
will arrive.  By that time, if all goes as
hoped the painting will be done.  As soon
as the flooring is scheduled I'll be able
to arrange for the movers.

Jeanne has been here and moved mountains of
books to GoodWill and more mountains to
be recycled.  The living room book shelves
are empty; the book shelves in my office
are empty, but there are three rows of boxes
in the dining room which are full of books.

Today we picked up banker boxes to put the
contents of our file cabinets in.  I gradually
pack stuff, one box at a time..we have lots
of Nick knacks all of which must be packed.
I've made a good start on those, but still
have more to go.

And so it goes.

Exciting news

What a busy week we have had!

On Monday Robert came running down the stairs,
in his usual manner, waving a piece of the newspaper
in his hand.  He said, "I have a fantasy. Just
suppose this property has a four-car garage that
would hold all our vehicles and a one-story house
that would meet our needs.  I would like to look
at it."  I immediately got on the phone and called
Tom.   He is the Realtor that sold my townhouse and
helped us buy Longmont.

He was delighted to hear from me and did remember
the two transactions and made arrangements for
us to see the house on Wednesday.  We had to go
to the VA on Tuesday.

We checked out the house and garages and it is a
perfect fit for us.  A few hitches, but none that
we can't work around.  The garage space has room
for all our vehicles, including the Van and a
heated shop space for Robert, too.

Our offer was made and eventually accepted
with the caveat that all the inspections go smoothly
and that the price of re-doing the septic isn't
out of line.  In Boulder County it is required that
any home that is sold MUST HAVE a licensed septic
system.  That, of course, means we have to do ours
in Salina, too.

The Closing is set for May 31st.  We'll probably
put this house on the market June 1st.

New temp home for the Van

I mentioned, in my last blog that we went to
Benton Sculpture Park for our 25th Anniversary.
I neglected to mention that we went to Bene Hana
for Gabby's 13th birthday. I can't say I care
much for the place, but it was perfect for a
13-year birthday girl.

The helicopters are back dropping mulch on
the steep, burned areas.

We had a thunderstorm several nights ago and it
brought back all the stress of the flood.  We have now
removed the van from the barnyard and have it stored in
covered storage in Longmont.  The jeep is on a ramp that
Robert and Vernon built to get it above flood level.  It is
down the road from the house and where the "Horse barn" used
to be.  It's out in the sun, but at least it won't get
washed away, unless the flood is a whole lot worse than the
last one.  The Prius is in the front yard when there is any
sign of rain and the snow blower and electric lawn mower are
both on high ground in the yard.  These moves have relieved
a lot of the stress of worry about flooding.

This was the week of the Conference on World Affairs.
We both looked over the schedule and were rather dismayed
at the lack of attention to the many very important
current affairs.  That among other things decided us to
pass this year.  Not the least of which is Robert's
immune system or lack thereof.

On Tuesday Robert drove the antique cars and made
arrangements for us to bring the VAN to Longmont to
Anderson's storage place.

Marti came over to have a glass of wine.  She has
used the foundation of an earlier era house to
build herself a green house.  We went over to see
that.  She has down a tremendous amount of hard
labor, digging and rock moving to get it ready.
It'll soon have a reinforced structure, glass and
a door.  She said she has been so depressed she
decided that made coming home from work and doing
physical hard labor might help.  Perhaps it has,
a little.

On Wednesday we checked out the contents of the
Van in preparation for taking it to Longmont. A
few things were removed that we thought we might
need at home.  Then we took it over to the
storage yard.  We have a covered unit that is
open on the front.  The sides have other RVs
parked.  Troy Anderson has put a lot of thought
and money into the place.  He said with 120
mile per hour winds being a possibility he
had to build it with that in mind.  In any
case it is there and not here.  One less thing
to worry about in flood season.

Thursday Connie and I met a Zolo's for lunch.
A poor choice on my part.  It's hard to not
east dairy and eat Mexican.  After lunch
we went to Pensky's Spice shop.  I wanted to
pick up spices for some Indian recipes I
have found in a book Jeanne gave me quite
a while ago.  We also window shopped in
the various art shops and a mineral shop.

Our bank has given us fits.  They announced
last fall that the Boulder Branch had been
bought by a large Denver Bank.  The Loveland
and Longmont branches were not sold.  Have
you ever heard of such a thing?  In any
case we were told, not to worry we would
be given plenty of time to prepare for the
change and would receive a letter of
explanation.  The letter finally arrived
stating that we would soon receive another
letter around April 20th giving us more
information and that on April 21st the
routing number of the bank would change
and any credit/debit cards we had would
no longer be valid.  Thank you very much!

We had earlier talked of moving to
another bank and this put us in action.
We checked out several of the non-chain
banks in the area and picked Flatiron's
Bank.

Friday we went to the bank and opened
new accounts and a safe deposit box.
At least we tried to open accounts.
Robert was able to open an account and
deposit money in it.  I could not. It
turned out my drivers license had
expired and was unacceptable as a photo
id.  We did all the paper work, but
I couldn't deposit money and I couldn't
activate the account until I took care
of the ID situation.

Off to the DMV we went.  There was no
line, to speak of.  I was able to get
the license in about 30 minutes.
Fortunate I was to discover my delinquency
because if I had not, in ten days I
would have been passed the grace period.
That would have required me to go through
the whole thing of taking the exam and
driving test.  The waiting period for
the driving test is 2 or 3 weeks so I
should have been grounded for that time.
Yikes!

We did go back to the bank and finish
the business.  We now have new accounts
his, hers and ours.

Friday evening Eva and Troy Anderson
came for dinner.  They are the Andersons
of the RV storage company.  They are
quite a pair; he a talker and she very
quiet.  He had lots of tales to tell and
kept us entertained all evening.

A visit to Benson Sculpture Park

Loveland, Colorado http://www.sculptureinthepark.org/benson-sculpture-garden.html



Click on the link to read more about the Benson Sculpture
Park. Click on the top right hand picture "collection" to
see a slide show of the sculptures.

Robert and I celebrated our wedding anniversary by visiting
the park. We went in the Van and stopped at a quiet reservoir
for lunch.  We had been there before, but I cannot recall
the name.  In any case, we had a quiet picnic in the Van
watching the fisher-folk and kyakers.

After lunch we went to the sculpture park.  Amazingly for
April first, it was almost too hot to really enjoy the park. 
However, we did walk through and admire, laugh at and
question the sculptures.  When we thought we'd covered
the whole park, we noticed that on the other side of the
street was another park, at least as big as the one we had
just been through.  It had a few sculptures, but obviously
will eventually fill up.

In any case, there are many really fantastic sculptures and
some weird ones, too.  We both were very impressed
and it was a lovely way to celebrate 25 years together!

Today, happily, it is raining.  We had no rain the whole
month of March.  We are very, very dry.  Although there
is always the fear of flood if it rains too  much; the fear
of fire when it is this dry is even worse.

Watch out for large snakes!

 Photo courtesy of
the DMNS.









We almost lost Gabby, but at the last minute Connie
grabbed her while I just wept.....duh!

Gabby and I met Connie at the museum this morning.
We were happy we had decided to meet at 9 AM.
By the time we left at 2:30PM the place was a 
mad house.  Even Gabby commented that she was
glad we'd missed the mob in the morning.

Gabby will be 13 on Saturday.  She and I are 
going shopping for her birthday tomorrow.  And
then Robert and I are meeting Gabby and her
folks for birthday lunch on Saturday.

Robert and I went the VA on Tuesday.  Robert has
an infection on/in one finger and the doctor was 
very concerned about that because of Robert's 
lack of an immune system.  Penicillin was prescribed
and soaking three times a day.  Robert reports it is
doing better.  We return in 3 weeks, sooner if the
infection flares or gets worse.  At that time the
doctor is planning to prescribed another dose of
chemo.


Last Saturday Robert and I drove to the Western
Disposal Company organic site.  We were pulling
a trailer and hoping to pick up compost.  We
hit the timing perfectly; we pulled in, followed
directions around a pile of compost and met
a front-end-loader.  He dropped his load into
the trailer and away we went.


Since then I spend an hour or so each day racking
off the mulch and spreading the compost on a 
section of garden and then laying the mulch back
over the compost.


Martha and Gabby planted lots of bulbs last
fall and I have been amazed to see them popping
up in my flower garden and lawn.  I had thought
the rodents had dug them all up, but I guess they
planted enough so the rodent could have some,
but left many behind. I'm anxious to see what
they will look like when they bloom.

Fantasay Orchids and an RV show

Connie and I met on Thursday, had lunch in Lousiville and then
went to a place called Fantasy Orchids.  The green house must
have been at least 50x50 and filled with orchids.  Two or three
tiers of which were in blossom.  It was fun.  The fellow who owns
the place started growing orchids and enjoyed it so built a
little green house in his back yard.  Soon, he was selling them
to his neighbors...and then further and further a field.  He
built a bigger green house and quit his job.  Now he sells all
over the world!  The average price was $30.00 and there were at
least 100,000 in his green house! I said I hoped he had good
insurance.

Connie grows orchids, but she waits until she finds one in
KingSoopers which is beyond its time and on sale for $5.00.  She
says the pots are usually worth more than that, but in any case,
she brings them around and in a few months they are blossoming
again.  She didn't buy any at the $30.00 price.

Robert and I just went to an RV show in Longmont.  On our trip I
saw a VAN, like ours, at an RV dealership as we drove by.  It had
a "popout" so we were hoping to see how they had done it.  We did
see a VAN with a popout, but it wasn't like ours.

We picked up a brochure for an RV storage place in Longmont.
Robert pointed out that we'll need such a place when we move to
Longmont.  He knows that I have not been happy here since the
fire and flood...

We went to the RV storage place and met Mr. Anderson who owns
the place.  He is a very interesting person.  He is building
his own RV van from a dump truck chassis.  He has interesting
innovations in it.

Robert got to sharing stories with him.  He is a native of
Boulder and his father owned the little grocery store at the
corner of 9th and College.  It's now called "A pretty good
little store."  When Mr. A. was 11 he was driving his father's
truck to deliver groceries and he backed into a ladies car.
The police were called and he had to go to court.  He KNEW
he was going to jail!  The judge was very stern and asked
many questions about how it had happened and whether he had
learned anything and would he be more careful in the future,
and on and on.  The kid was still sure he was going to jail
and waiting for the axe to fall.  Finally, the judge banged
his gavel and said, "pay $25.00, case dismissed."  He allowed
he was really careful after that!  But he had to keep driving
because his dad had to run the store and he was the oldest of
4 boys.

Later, at lunch, Robert said that he wasn't ready to
move, but he was ready to start considering it in the not too
distant future.  We'll not move right away, for sure, unless we
have another terrible flood.  If that happens I think we'll both
be ready to move!

Home again

We have returned home and back to winter.  The yard
still has piles of snow.  My perennial bed that I'm supposed
to trim in March is covered with two feet of snow.  But,
today it was quite warm, 60 in the sun.  The wind, however,
has not been welcoming.  We rocked out way across
Kansas and passed through Joplin shortly after they 
were hit again by a tornado.  Fortunately, not as bad
as the big one they had a few years ago.  

Last evening and most all night it sounded like a train
was roaring overhead.  I do not like wind.  It is better
today.

We were gone a month, from Feb 4 to March 4..and that
is quite a long time to live in our tiny little house.
Of course we spent a week in much larger quarters in
Cocoa Beach.

The place we stayed in Cocoa Beach is called
Beach Place Guest Houses and their web site is those
four words without spaces.  The pictures on the site
show the places we rented; Jocks, Alice, La Virgina and
2 smaller units, #2 and #10.  I didn't take any
pictures while we were there because I was too concerned
about Robert.  Actually that week is kind of a blur.
The significant things, sadly, that stand out are the
trip to the walk-in clinic.  Thank you Jeanne.  And
the trip to the ER.  Thank you Carl and Martha.

Robert was cured of all his aches and pains, finally, by
the time it was time to leave the beach.  That made
the rest of the trip much more pleasant.

We had some interesting experiences finding RV parks.
We stayed one night in a County Park by the sea.  We
were the only ones there and it was just a parking lot.
We were still in Florida, I think.

Another night, in Jacksonville, FL we stayed in a city
park.  This was just on the edge of Jacksonville on the
John River.  I think that is the name of the river. The
park had a few people camping and was very reasonable.
We soon found out, however that it wasn't very pleasant.
Three helicopters were flying over the park, the river
and the port such that there was a helicopter overhead
almost constantly.  They did stop for the night, but
were at it again in the morning.  It reminded me of the
lovely time in Fourmile when the helicopters were dropping
straw on the burn areas.  That went on for days.  This
time, at least, we could and did leave.

We spent two nights in parks in Arkansas.  In each case
they were lovely parks, lots of woods and I expected to
see violets peeking through the leaves.  The days and
nights were warm.  The staff at the parks were really
considerate and we had the unique experience of being
told, in both the parks...find the place you like, with
or without hook-ups and come by in the morning to pay.
We were encouraged to look all over the campgrounds and
find the spot that pleased us the most.  They knew we
would pay in the morning and pay for whatever site we
did stay in.  The second park we opted for no utilities
which turned out to be a bad mistake.  We darn near
froze..we had been using an electric blanket at night
if it looked like it was going to be cold.  Of course,
the previous night we had been too hot...

We stayed our last night on the road at Scott Lake
State Park in Kansas.  We have stayed there a couple
of times before.  It is almost half way between
Wichita and home.  It, too, is a very pleasant park.
Again, it was totally on the honor system.  We never
saw anyone who worked there.  But, the price was
reasonable and we were grateful for the electricity.

We arrived home yesterday afternoon.  I cleaned out
anything that might be damaged by freezing, from the
VAN.  Today was catch up on the bills and start doing
laundry.  The living room has a pile of pots and pans
and a huge bag of laundry waiting.

Crystal Bridges in Bentonville, AR

We visited the new art museum financed by the Walmart family.
It is a fantastic museum.  The building itself is a work of art and
quite unique.

The collection is all of American artists.  I have never seen so
many famous original works of very well known American
artists, in one place, before.  I loved every minute of it and
only wish I had more stamina to spend more time there.

After we left the museum we drove through Joplin, MO and
saw the devastation from the tornado of two years ago, not
knowing of the one two days ago.

We are currently in a State Park just east of Wichita, KS.

Home by Saturday, if we are not snowed out.

On the edge of the Smokeys

We are now in Tennessee, on the edge of the Smokey
Mountains.

The last few days we've been visiting Robert's
sister, Patricia.  Pat has Parkinson's and is
in kind of tough shape.  She shakes and she
can't finish sentences, loses her train of
thought mid-way.

We took her out to lunch, but that was only
possible because, at the lunch place, one of
the staff, a strong young man lifted her out
of the van and after lunch hefted her back in.
She's not fat, but is totally incapable of doing
stairs.  The Assisted Living place she has lived
for the past few years has a physical fitness
room right near her unit, but she has never set
foot in it and she has no stairs to climb
anywhere.  She is terribly out of shape.

Her husband is in the Memory unit because of his
Alzheimer's...a sad state of affairs all around.

The bright spot of the weekend was that we met
Erin and David and went out to dinner with them.
The restaurant they picked, the Four Square, is
fabulous.  What a delicious meal we had and lovely
conversation.  It was a great treat and very enjoyable
evening.

We are headed for Crystal Bridges, the Art Museum the
Walmart has endowed in Bentonville, AR.  Robyn was
there a few days ago and she recommends it highly.
We'll go as my 81st b-day treat.

South Carolina

So..here we are in South Carolina at Lee State Park.
This is the place my friend Alice would love.  They
have miles of equestrian paths and corrals for horses.
We talked with one couple and they said, If we'd known
you was comin' we'd a brought two more horses.  I said
we are little shy of riding at our age.  He said, You
can't be much older than me.  I'm 68.  When we said
we were in our 80s he was startled and allowed as how
if he lived that long he'd not be ridin' horses either.

Last night we were in Georgia at Ft. McAllister State
Historic Park.  That was lovely.  Deep woods and very
quiet.

Between now and then we "did Savannah, Ga.  At least
the historic district.  It was buzzing with tourists
and we were just two among many.

We have visited Jekyll Island, in Georgia.  There we itoured
the turtle hospital and listened to the spiel.  One turtle,
Gracias, is an amazing little turtle.  She was rescued
after being hit by a boat.  She was very young, but healed
and was ready to be released.  They took her out to the
beach and let her go in the sand, assuming she'd head
for the ocean.  She did not she headed back to the
hosiptal as fast as she could.  They waited a few days
and took her back out to the ocean and let her go in
the water.  Soon she was back at the hospital, again.
Finally, they took her way out to sea in a boat and let
her go once more.  Within a week she was back at the
hospital again.  No way was she giving up a clean
and large tub of water, no predators and regular
meals.  She knew what the real world was like and
she'd prefer the hospital...so there she is until
some aquarium is willing to take a logger head turtle
who may grow to be 5-600pounds.

Jekyll Island is a bit like Newport, RI.  Lovely cottages
which we'd call mansions!  It was fun to visit.

We don't move fast...a couple of hundred miles/day seems
to be our speed.  There are lots of things to look at
and the weather is fantastic.  We sleep with a sheet
and light cotton blanket.

The emergency room

We now have a good picture of the US medical system.
The ER cannot turn anyone away so this is the medical
system for many. We went there last night because
Robert was very ill. He had been given meds for his
gout and had taken too many, as it turned out. He
was following instructions. He was scared and I
was, too.

The ER was very crowded and we were not given
much hope of seeing a doctor for at least 2 hours.
We waited.

What drama...people came in and most were just
left to sit; an occasional one got lucky. I assume
they were sick enough to be danger of death! One
guy had a snake bite and was in absolute agony.
No help for him. An ambulance finallly came and
took him away..after he had been begging for
help for an hour.

After that, I felt we were wasting our time. Robert
was feeling a little better and clearly if we wanted
to see a doctor this was not the way to do it. One
lady informed us that you never walked into the
ER if you had an emergency. You call 911 and they
come get you and fly past all these folks and see
a doctor right away. I figured we'd go home and
if Robert got worse again I'd call 911.

He is still miserable, but better. Hopefully, he'll
be better still tomorrow. I have made arrangements
so that we can stay here, although in a different
room through Monday if need be. That is very
comforting.

The weather has been great and everyone has
been having a good time, except Robert.
I've walked on the beach a little, but stayed
close to R. most of the time. He has had a
rotten time.

Arrived at Cocoa Beach

We arrived here on Saturday and the rest of the family except for Connie, Greg
and Ryan arrived then, too.

The weather is cool and windy, not conducive to walking
on the beach. We're enjoying the opportunity to rest
and enjoy catching up on each others lives.

Robert is doing better with the chance to relax
and put his feet up!

I hope to post some pictures later when it is
warmer.

Manatees

We camped, last night in Tate's Hell State Park, really that is what it
is called. There was a gentle layer of smoke throughout because they
burn sections to clear the brush. It made me anxious to leave in the
morning. Were these the sections to be burned next? Clearly, they
had not yet be burned, or at least not recently. But, all went well
and we found our way back out of the forest in the morning.

We headed for Homossasa State Park. We understood we could
see manatees there. We talked to Robyn while she was there
and she confirmed sightings, but said that it was really crowded.
We soldiered on and after stopping for a late lunch arrived at
the park about 3 PM. By that time the crowds had diminished.
We opted to ride the tram; the last boat had left and Robert
has great difficulty walking very far. Even so it was probably
more of a walk than he should have taken, but we did see
4 or 5 manatees feasting a cabbages. We had hoped to see
them from an underwater area, but there were no manatees
in there when we were there. We watched for quite a while,
but manatees aren't about adventure. They just slowly moved
around and ate cabbage. The park is quite extensive and has
many different animals, including a great number of alligators,
one hypo, lots of birds and some deer. Probably others, but that
required more walking than we were willing to do.

We are now about 125 miles from our destination in Cocoa Beach.
Our van is empty of waste and filled with water. We are anxious
to get off the road and let Robert sit with his feet, or at least, foot
up for a week.

It was almost 80 when we were in the park; it is 70F right now
at 8:30 Eastern Time.

Ill try and post pictures soon.

FLORIDA PANHANDLE

Wow..it's almost 70 F out there.  We had a fantasy of parking by the Gulf
and spending the night.  We could do that at $75 + tax...we opted to spend
the night in a Florida Sate Forest.  The first thing we saw after arriving here
was a small cemenetary...five graves and clearly of very loved animals.


We are near the Gulf, but can't see it, but this site is free..we just came
in here and there are no signs to say NO, NO, NO as are everywhere
else.

Talked to Robyn and her car broke down.  She is in Chatanooga, Tn
I've probably mispelled it...hopefully she'll be on her way tomorrow.
It's such a pain when things like that happen!
Robert's gout is giving him fits, but the medicine makes him feel
awful so he has quit taking it.


Talked with the caterer today, that is on course for Thursday.

Hattiesburg, MS

It's Tuesday evening and we are settled in at an RV park south
of Hattiesburg, MS.  Finally, is is warm enough to stash the
electric blanket, although we still have the heater, just in case.

The trip has gone well, so far.  Robert isn't feeling great, but
pushes on..He still does the driving while I do the navigating,
locating RV parks and do all the housekeeping.  I wish he
felt better.  It's a drag to be enroute to a fun vacation and
feel lousy.

Robyn is making better time than we, but then she is
supposed to be in Orlando by Friday; we won't get there
until Saturday.


Our first night after leaving Salina, CO was spent in
Eads, CO.  It was cold, but we kept warm because
Robert got up in the middle of the night and brought
in the electric blanket from the storage box in the
back of the Van.

Night 2 we were in Bowie, still in Texas and night
three we were close to the LA and MS border.


Now...heading for Alabama tomorrow.

On the road again

The Van is loaded; the snow has almost stopped.  
We have at least 2 feet on the ground.  I'm happy
to be leaving.


I-70 is open so I guess we'll head east instead
of I-25 south...


More later

17 inches of snow

Seventeen inches of snow overnight and still snowing.
Robert has been out and, using the snow blower, cleared
a path to the barn and a path out for the VAN.  We still
hope to be on our way in the morning.  Florida is looking
better and better.

We are very disappointed that Keating is trapped in the
UK and won't be joining us.  She is terribly disappointed,
too.  The bureaucracy moves too slowly.  She'd assumed
six weeks would be enough to get her new visa and passport.
Not to be...the aim of the bureaucracy is to have those
things done in six months.  She may leave the country, but
then she may not return.

I'll try and update this regularly on our trip.  All for
now.

A new year

It's been a month since I made an entry to this
blog. The Holidays have come and gone and that
is always a good feeling.

Robert has been on chemotherapy for a month or
more. He has had no overt symptoms, but he is
still anemic and that means his energy level is
very low and the chemo has exacerbated that.

Currently he is also struggling with gout. Because
of the chemo, his loss of weight and stamina, the
original prescription was too strong and caused
him to be very dizzy. He spent most of three hours
lying on the couch, too dizzy to do anything.

Connie and I have gotten together several times.
It is fun having her so close. 70 miles is not
really close, but a heck of a lot closer than
Wichita or Folsom...Last week I went to Parker
to wait with her for her new loom to arrive.
By the time I got there it had been delivered
FOB and she had managed to get the packing off
and somehow gotten it into her weaving room!

Robert and I leave soon for Florida and Cocoa
Beach where the mini family reunion is to be
held. I'm happy to be leaving.

The snow we had a month ago is still around
in patches and very, very black from soot. The
side walk has new soot stains. This is all
from the fire in 2010.