Content:

I'd say that Lucy, April and Klaus are adjusting very well...
 

Red Clay:

 I have been gone from the South so long I had totally forgotten about "red clay". That clay when it is wet is like ice {very slippery} and sticks to your shoes forming a concrete consistency attachment. 

"The composition of the rock determines the color of the clay. In the case of the red clay found here, iron oxides provide the deep red hue. Iron oxide is a fancy term for rust. The more iron in the clay, the redder it is". 

I suddenly remembered red clay when I went down to the basement following a rain storm. I suddenly grew another 1/2 inch collecting red clay on the bottom of my shoes and had to hold onto things to keep my feet from slipping out from under me. 

Pygmy Owl:

Carol went out last night to allow the dogs a final potty break and saw this tiny clump of feathers on the ground. She came and got me and it was about the size of a grapefruit just sitting there. That is the second one I have seen since living here. We left it alone and it finally flew off. Interesting little bird.  

The Great Smoky Mountains

It's not smoke but why these mountains are called the Great Smoky Mountains. It's beautiful no matter how you look at it. 89% humidity and it's not raining............

Happy Thanksgiving:

 

Winter 2022

The photo was used by our daughter and son-in-law on their Christmas cards last year. Maybe we will use it this year since we now live here! 

Post Sepsis Syndrome:

A month ago I was in the hospital to be cured of sepsis.  Apparently I had a bladder infection which went into my bloodstream.  I did not know I had a bladder infection due to the catheter that I had for a prostrate issue. Suddenly I started to shake violently without warning. My doctor told me to go straight to the emergency room. From there I was admitted where I remained for 4 days getting intravenous antibiotics pumped into my veins. The many doctors that treated me said I was fortunate to get to the hospital in time as most people die with sepsis. 

I was declared free and took several days more of oral antibiotics.  I was discharged and felt weak but normal until about 10-12 days post cure. Then I noticed I was tired, my joints ached more and I seemed to be slow in thinking and had episodes where I would lose focus. I could not figure out what was going on but thought it probably had something to do with the sepsis or septic blood. 

Post sepsis is a collection of long term physical and psychological symptoms that develop in 59% of survivors. Sepsis is life threatening and a medical emergency. The symptoms occur within 90 days and consist of fatigue, joint pain and panic attacks to name a few. The symptoms last from 6 months to 18 months. 

Other symptoms are sleep disorders, lethargy, muscle and joint pain so severe that it is debilitating, loss of appetite, loss of organ function that effects the heart, liver and kidneys. The psychological symptoms include hallucinations, panic attacks, anxiety, nightmares, poor cognition that affects, learning, memory, thinking and concentration, depression and mood swings. 

Fortunately they do not occur all at the same time but my joint pain is so severe that at times I can barely walk. My mind is fuzzy and I will go from alert to lethargy. It seems that one or more of these happen regularly. 

I was unaware of this condition and was not advised it could be a situation but the symptoms are such that they can not be overlooked as they are so obvious. The death rate of people who have had sepsis and recovered is high and the deaths of people two years after hospitalization ranges 33% to 70%.

The reason I posted this is because this syndrome is not very well known and my hope is by posting it others will be made aware of sepsis and the after affects it carries with it. 

Whether Colorado Or North Carolina -

 

Whether we are in Colorado or North Carolina we will make our donuts. The Rx I take says take with food so long ago I chose donuts as the food of choice. In Colorado the grocery store stopped making them so we decided to make our own. We have been making our own for several years and honestly I like them better than store bought.  We now have a Dunkin Donuts only about 10 -15 minutes from us where we could buy them but to me there is no better donut than those made here at home. So today is donut day. 

Besides, the fur family will get a couple donut holes and they love donut day.

North Carolina Is Different Than Colorado:

 

The above photo depicts Lucy and Klaus relaxing and clearly they are settled in now. In Colorado we lived at 9,800' elevation. Here we are somewhere at 1,700' elevation.  The property here is more steep that where we were in S. Colorado but manageable. There are more rocks here but the biggest thing that I have noticed are the roads. They will run right up next to a huge cliff and they wind around with many curves. 

Those who are familiar with the roads drive pretty fast but for us it will take a lot to get comfortable on the narrow and winding roads through these mountains. The neighbors are all so friendly and our nearest neighbor actually came over and blew the leaf's off our driveway. another neighbor brought us a 6 pack of home made beer. Folks all talk to each other and are friendly. This may be a small community but it clearly a friendly one. 

I did not know communities like this existed any more but we have felt very welcome. 

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Fur Family Status:

 

 

Our doggies are adjusting well as can be seen in the above photo, April (mom) and Klaus (son) laying together watching the birds as they come in to feed. Lucy was laying on the loveseat chilling out. They all like the fenced in back yard. It is tiered and larger than the cabin in Colorado so they have plenty of individual room to sniff and find just the right place to do their business. Last night April slept with me and Klaus and Lucy both slept with Carol. 

They are adjusting to the new house well and clearly they like it here so it is only a matter of time and they will accept it as their new forever home. From what I see they are adjusting very well. Since we left everything at our Colorado cabin we are getting many deliveries and they accept the newcomers and neighbors very well.  

The Orange Jeep Went Back:

 

We really liked the orange Jeep but when our son-in-law (Rick) was driving it home the engine light came on. The dealer said they would fix it. After three tries they still could not fix it so our son-in-law convinced them to take it back and we traded up on a very good deal (thanks to Rick) for a new left over 2023. 

 These new Jeeps are an engineering marvel. This new Jeep does everything but drive itself and maybe I just have not found the setting for it to do that. They have the 2018 jeep back so they can take all the time they need to diagnose the engine light problem. We now have a new Jeep that hopefully has no problems. 

Some Things Stay The Same:

 I believe that our terrain here is actually steeper than our cabin in Colorado. Not only that but we has as many or more rocks. The rocks are not as big as the Rockies but there are as many or more. Fortunately the fenced in yard is terraced so we and the dogs can walk on it easier. I have looked for a place to plant a garden but have yet to find a spot either level or with fewer rocks. 

If we are to plant a garden it will most likely have to be earth boxes on the deck. We do have bears here and have already been visited a couple times. I have not seen any chipmunks or ground squirrels so we won't have the critters to contend with when we do plant a garden. That will be a pleasant change. 

Sign For Clarification:

 We have noticed that deliveries are going to the road in front of our new home. There used to be a driveway  in front of the house but it has been long abandoned and no longer useable. The drive was moved to the side road that goes past our house. Delivery people sometimes fail to notice it and so we made the attached sign to direct delivery people to our driveway.  

The old post with numbers is the GPS location where those following GPS end up. Hopefully this will facilitate deliveries to our new residence. Now  I just need to get it on a stake and in the ground. 

Back to the earth - lifestyle change

Our Colorado mountain home is for sale. Check out the great description and photos at https://www.zillow.com/homes/2009-Strauss-Dr-Fort-Garland,-CO-81133_rb/194161221_zpid/ This is the back of the cabin!!

Post Sepsis Syndrom:

 Just found out that this is actually real. Joints ache, muscle's are weak, lethargic, and a host of other things that cause weakness. Also, it has Cognitive problems which makes typing this a real challenge. Generally appears within 90  days after being cured of sepsis. Not much  can be done for it except wait it out for 9 - 18 months. Not 100% of the time but most of the time. Sleep disorder is maybe the worst.  Most aggravating set of symptoms.  

Change - Adapting:

We tried several different types of television programs and they were confusing and hard to navigate. We finally called Dish to see if we could get our program back after cancelling. Yes we did and even at a lower cost. The installer is outside now getting us set up. Even though we are in the trees he managed to get a strong signal. 

I just could not get used to Roku and its programming system so at least we can use something we are familiar with. We don't watch much TV but it is nice to have in the evenings. For a while it did not look like we could get a signal for all the trees but he did find one on the very corner of the house. 

I miss so many things from Colorado but in the 26 years we lived there it was very good. Now they are regulating everything and people are demanding more and more. It was a good time for us to leave. Here we have services that are something we did miss living in Colorado. People do drive fast here and speed signs don't seem to mean much. It is nice for Carol to be able to shop at Walmart and come home in the same time it took her to just drive to the one in Alamosa. 

There are challenges here but they are good challenges and it is much more convenient with access to services. We did order a new refrigerator today from Lowe's as the one here is about on its last leg. All in all I think this move will work out for the best for us. I always loved this area and now to live here is a real pleasure. I hope I can continue to say that down the road. 

In Colorado we were up to our waist in snow and here we are equally inundated in leaves. We hear leaf blowers going all day long. Different substance - same physical effort. I will keep this blog posted on our progress.

New Vehicle:

 

 Well, new to us as the 2019, Ford Fusion with its rear wheel drive just couldn't get up the drive and make the sharp turn to park next to the house. Our son-in-law negotiated for this 2018 Jeep and we got money back on the sale. At least now we can get up the steep drive with its sharp turn. The van just could not do it and was therefore not being used. 

It only made sense that we have a vehicle that we can use and not have it set idle. Loved that van but it just could not handle the steep driveway. 

Time For Adjustment:

It is going to take time for me to adjust. Going from remote living to an area where we have neighbors who we can hear talking and leaf blowers going most of the day is so much different that silence we have known for the past 26 years. I have been hearing a siren going for the past 10 minutes and have no idea why it is going so long.  City folk are used to these things but it is going to take some time for me to adjust to this noise. 

Well it is not a siren after all - it is a leaf blower that just has a siren sound noise to it. 

Unpacking:

 We brought very little with us and we are still unpacking. It looks like we will be unpacking for a while yet. This is a mountain cabin and we are rearranging to make it a home. Putting up shelves for storage and getting the cabin where we feel comfortable. The fenced in back yard is a bonus which the dogs love. Due to the steepness of the property it is like living in a tree house. We have met two of the neighbors and they seem very nice. 

Time to get myself in gear and get going as there is to much left to do and little time to get it done. It seems the days are much shorter here than in Colorado.

Arrived Safely:

We drove straight through and arrived safely. It was a long grueling drive but we arrived safely and intact. We are in the far western part of the state - Cherokee County. We love the house and it is like the one we left -  on the side of a mountain. Most of all the doggo's love it. 

Last Time Off The Mountain:

 I'm going to pack up my computer and this will be the last time off our mountain. I will resume the blog when we get to our destination in N. Carolina. Daughter and Son in law left this morning to help us load up what we are taking with us and driving our truck to our destination. Pray for a safe journey and enjoyable road adventure. Will pick up the blog when we arrive at our destination so keep watching. 

Taylor:

Two years ago today Taylor crossed that rainbow bridge.  He was 11 1/2 years old and we had only had the privilege of his company for 6 weeks.  He had been rescued from a bad situation where he was living in a hole in the ground that he dug. His life  prior to rescue was pretty miserable. He came to our attention when he was in rescue where he had been for quite a while. He was kept in a small room where he would not be in a kennel and he was let out twice a day. 

Taylor had arthritis in his hips and couldn't function well with his back legs.. The shelter brought him to our home to see if he could handle the stairs. He could not and when we realized he couldn't get into the house and he was to big for us to carry him he had to go back to the shelter. My heart was broken when I saw him go. I couldn't shake the loss and how he deserved a home where he could be pampered and loved. 

It occurred to me if we could put a door where the window in the back of the house was he could live with us. We got going immediately on installing a door where it would be level. Once installed we went immediately to adopt Taylor. Wild horses could not have held him back - arthritis and all - to keep from getting in the van. I had ordered a load of road base and built  a ramp where he could get into the back yard and into the house having no steps to deal with. 

What we didn't know was that he had a large tumor on his spleen and nothing could be done for him. One day he refused food and water and the vet had warned us this would happen. Taylor was ready to go and he went peacefully having experienced 6 weeks of the good life. It seemed very unfair to me to weigh 6 weeks against 11 1/2 years of a hard and difficult life but we were glad to at least give him those 6 weeks. For having lived such a difficult life Taylor was the perfect family member and his greatest love was to lay next to me in the grass and let the sun warm his bones. 

During those 6 weeks Taylor made a huge impact on our lives and I know we did on his. At least he had the good life for 6 weeks. He deserved much more than just 6 weeks.  

Today:

 I sure hope N. Carolina has sunrises like here in the mountains. 

This Is The Realtor Handling Our House:

The Time Has Arrived:

We have bought a cabin in N. Carolina and will soon be moving to that cabin. We are selling this cabin as we don't need two 1,400 miles apart. This cabin comes with two 5 1/2 acres or 11 acres total. It has a green belt behind our property that goes to the top of the mountain. It has two springs that run year around and probably is what attracts the deer, elk and bears. 

The views are breathtaking as the photo above shows. We have 900 sf. and the house has a sleeping loft, one bathroom, a pantry that was originally designed to be a second bedroom. The A-Frame design was chosen to make sure snow came off the roof. It has a large deck that you can see two mountains from. It is at 9,800' elevation. It has a large living room with a compact and fully functional kitchen and office space. It has a basement and the house is fully enclosed to keep it dry under the back of the house where it is dirt floor and has a laundry room. 

We chose a small house so we wouldn't have so much to clean and it is easy to heat with our Yotul wood stove. We have two ETF heaters, one in the front and one in the back to keep the house warm. We have a small area where we have rhubarb plants, raspberry, gooseberry and current plants. We are leaving the tools, furniture and equipment to live all year long comfortably. We have high speed internet but the real benefit of the house is the lifestyle. We left the big city life  and went back to the earth which is a stress free lifestyle. Our 215 foot  well provides us with the best water which is very tasty and  the fresh air and cutting firewood is a healthy lifestyle. This is a different lifestyle which is basic and leaves time to interact with the wildlife and fully appreciate our surroundings.  We have electricity and so can enjoy the ease of living without all the maintenance. The house has native rock exterior and is most likely why, when we had the wildfire, our home and property were the only home on our 6 miles of road that was unscathed and survived. It has 3 shed's to help store equipment. We have decided to sell the house, contents and property for $359,000.00, after doing extensive research on values. 

Catch Up:

That time in the hospital has really put us behind in getting rid of 'stuff' and packing, making final doctor visits for us and the dogs. We are like the one armed paper hanger and feel really pressed for time to get everything done so we can leave after my Urologist visit on the 19th. 

I will post on this blog site as time allows and when we get to our destination I will keep the blog up to date. 

Hospital Stay:

 

I have not posted for a few days due to being in the hospital with sepsis in my blood. They put antibiotics in via IV's and I'm all clear now. I'm home and resting and hoping to get my strength back for the move to N. Carolina. 

Parting With Memories:

 

I am going through my tools and separating the ones I plan to take with me. Many of the tools were handed down to me by my grandpa. It is hard to surrender them but at age I will no longer have a need for them and will give them to friends who will cherish and use them. Parting with them brings back a flood of memories. 

New Horizons:

 

Sometimes in life things don't always work out as planned. This move to NC is one of those times. I will continue this blog from NC and it will just be from another mountain. When I realistically looked at our situation it reluctantly became clear that there was no other choice but to move where we would be closer to family and medical care. I have gone to the Emergency Room twice over the past 6 weeks and that long drive was a brutal one. 

It is time to trade that 1 hour 20 minute ride for 10 minutes. The second trip to the ER really laid me low and the pain was terrible. I look around here and see all we have accomplished in the past 26+ years and I will miss it. The animals and birds have come to know us and trust us and I will miss them. Everything here is familiar to me and I will have to learn in my new surroundings all over again. 

We will forge on and do what is necessary but whoever buys our home in the woods will actually be buying a more healthy and peaceful lifestyle. Our home is comfortable but the real purchase will be the lifestyle. That is something that you can't simply put a price on because it is priceless.   

Moving Companies:

 
 I had done some research on moving companies and filled out an inquiry for one that I was interested in for a free quote. Before I even got the quote our phone started ringing and continued for days. I was never able to get back to the original company I was interested in and follow up with them. I got a host of emails  warning me of moving frauds and how they offer honest moves for cheap prices. I did follow up and check some out and they had ratings and a host of complaints a mile long. Very convincing over the phone.

The reason for this follow up is if all you want to do is get telephone calls all day long and emails that fill your inbox. It would have been best to just call the company in the first place. What a week of aggravation and I suspect it is not over yet.   I write this second post on the same topic to warn folks not to fill out requests on Facebook if you don't want a deluge of calls and email. Then be sure to check out the companies that are giving you very low quotes as most have poor ratings and multiple complaints. 

Pain:

 

Went in Tuesday morning to get the catheter out. Things seemed like they were back to normal until 8:00 PM.  Then the ordeal started - the one hour twenty minute drive back to the emergency room in pain. EXTREME pain. They wanted to show me self catheter techniques in case we had a repeat episode and were snowed in or couldn't get out. After three attempts by the nurse it took the physician assistant to get the job done. 

What I found out at the ER was that all those attempts caused extreme bleeding and blood clots were blocking the flow of urine. The clots were many and when they finally flushed them out we had been in the ER for and on route for 5 hours.  My problem is not unique and many men are faced with it. I write this  so anyone who has urinary retention will be aware that if they make attempts to use a catheter it could cause bleeding inside you and clots will make the situation worse.  If you know what can happen maybe you won't end up with the massive pain I went through. 

I am not prone to sharing my medical problems publicly but being aware of this if you ever have this issue (and many men do) it could save you some grief. 

Deluge Of Phone Calls:

 

As we move towards closing on the cabin in N. Carolina the list of things that need doing seems to grow plus we are currently on the brink of snow season. We can get upwards of 250-300" of snow so getting a moving company up to 9,800' elevation can be tricky.  I don't know how so many moving companies knew we would be moving at some point but my Facebook page is loaded with posts about moving. 

I thought I would check into what we might expect if we hired a moving company and filled out one of those sites on Facebook. Within seconds the phone started to go off with calls. It has been ringing all day and I had no clue there were so many moving companies. I will never make that mistake again. 

Survival In The Atlantic Ocean:

When I was in the US Air Force I got extremely lucky and pulled an assignment to Kindley AFB in Bermuda. When I arrived I found that I was replacing another airman that had gone crazy and checked out a .45 caliber machine gun and started shooting people. I was told that he went crazy due to the airman being in the center of the ocean on a small island. I also heard that the speculation was that the island was on three piers under the ocean and could sink at any time. That must have gotten to him and he went nuts and killed a couple people and injured others. I did not believe that but apparently he did. 

After I had been there for a few months I met a retired master sgt. who had a house on a small bay and his enclosed  front porch had been turned into a small restaurant. His wife made one of the best burgers I had ever had. I went there when I could just for the hamburgers. I was talking to the retired sgt. one day and fishing came up. He said he had a row boat that myself and one of my buddies could use in the enclosed bay to hand line fish. 

I was telling one of the cooks at the chow hall about the offer and we arranged a fishing trip to fish in the bay. There was an inlet from the ocean that allowed the tide to come in and go out that was maybe 8' wide. The day came and the two of us pushed the boat out which was wooden but seemed worthy. We were drifting around in the bay each fishing over the edge of the boat. The water was so clear we could see down to the bottom with the fish swimming around. Suddenly we realized we were at the opening leading out to the ocean. 

We couldn't stop being drawn out into the ocean and while the cook tried to stop us with the one ore it broke in two and we realized we were out in the ocean. We drifted and bailed using our tee shirts and soon the waves were 8 feet plus and we could only see the island when we topped out on a wave. We saw this stove pipe channel marker that had 17 painted on it. I later found out that meant 17 miles. As we drifted into the shipping channel a ship came past and this guy had flags that he was waving around. 

We had no idea what he was signaling but we were waving out tee shirts madly. The ship went by and next we saw a coast guard cutter heading our way. As it got closer the sgt. came up on us with a long boat and we tossed him our anchor rope and he towed us back to his place on the bay and safety. 

I was so sun burned on my back that my roommates had to change my shirts. My back was completely raw. But for my buddies I would have been discovered and court martialed. They kept it from being discovered and I never missed any work. I earned myself a nickname of 'Popeye'. There were several comments that if I liked the ocean that much I should have joined the Navy instead of the Air Force. 

I still feel blessed to be here today as we were adrift in the Atlantic literally without a paddle. That was a serious situation which could have proven deadly. 

Stereotypes:

I spent several years of my life living in the south. Where 'bless your heart ' is not always meant as an endearing phrase. And "its just down yonder" are sometimes the best directions you will get. People from the south are often viewed by some people in other regions differently. The following is a true story that happened to me. 

When I moved from many years of living in the south to Pennsylvania as a senior  supervisor the treatment I got  up north was different than I was used to. I was supervisor for Workers Compensation in four states and when I was a home office supervisor for the entire country among other lines of business. When I got to Pennsylvania (my request) I had made a simple routine decision on a case and my manager was upset. The fact that I was co-chairman for the committee that re-wrote the WC law for Fla. was ignored coupled with other accomplishments. 

My secretaries all spoke loudly to me and tended to talk slower and repeat their conversations twice. I finally figured out that they assumed because I talked differently and had a slight accent that I was slower in thought and speech because I was from the 'south'. I finally called my office staff together and explained that because I was from the south I was not hard of hearing or slow in thought. Things changed after that meeting and they spoke to me with less volume and more naturally. Sometimes you can be a stereotype and wonder why you are being treated differently. Sadly it is just human nature and not fully understanding. 

It is not just a south/north thing it encompasses many different area's. Maybe it would be wise to learn a little more about the person and treat them with honesty and respect. stereotyping people is never good and actually reflects on you and not the other person. When  you actually get to know the person you can make a better relationship and 26 years later I am still in touch with those secretaries and we have forged a lasting relationship that has endured over time.. 

When You Least Expect It:

We have lived here for 26+ years and even as we grew older we assumed that we would be able to stay here a few more years at least. Then things happen that made us re-evaluate that assumption. An unexpected medical situation and the hour/twenty minutes drive to the emergency room had us rethinking our future. 

It was not a life threating medical situation but the long drive to the ER got us to thinking about the wisdom of our future with medical care so far away coupled with our age.  My step-daughter who lives in GA with her husband had a cabin for sale  about 30 minutes from their home in NC, which was up for sale and they offered to sell it to us. After much thought we agreed to the deal.

It is still in the mountains, and medical care and their willingness to assist us is only a few minutes away, not an hour as presently exists. We will be closing on the house soon and when we can get arranged here we will be contacting a realtor to sell our house here and move to NC. That cabin is a single story and the terrain is not quite as steep as it is here. 

Two weeks and our circumstances and lifestyle totally change. So goes life and so goes ours. We have made that trip hundreds of times and this trip had us thinking differently. It will be hard to leave as we developed our homestead ourselves out of raw forest with our own hands and sweat. We will be leaving much of ourselves behind for a new adventure.  

Bear Safety:

This is the time of year when you live in bear country to take precautions. We have had a bear hanging around the same area for a few weeks now and we surmise that it may be fed. Unfortunately a fed bear is often a dead bear as they lose their caution of humans. We have lived full time in bear and mountain lion - and occasionally wolves - for over 26 years and have learned their traits and behavior. 

When they hang around a specific area they have a food source that is holding them to that area. I have known people who feed them and in spite of all the stories of people raising bears they are still a wild animal that weigh up to 500 pounds and are capable of doing harm to humans. We have people who come for the summer and will feed the bears. When they leave the bears will seek out other humans to get food and those folks have to deal with a troublesome bear. 

The best solution is don't feed the bears as you are just putting them into position to be killed.  

Fall Leaves:

While it is early the fall colors may not be so great this fall here. The ground is covered with dry brown leaves and they are falling off the aspen steadily. It has been very dry here and the leaves are curling and turning brown and falling off the trees. Not going to be a colorful fall from all indications. 

Can Not Take The Weather For Granted:

In the mountains here at 9,800' elevation the weather can't be assumed. Three years ago it went from 81 degrees to 31 degrees and snowing. It doesn't last long but it does snow in September right through June and we have to be ready for it. 

The weather can change really fast in the mountains so it is best to enjoy the nice days and know that they can turn bad suddenly. 

Carrot Harvest:

 I harvested the garden box of carrots today and we love home grown carrots for the suburb taste and crispness.  Next we will harvest the beets but they are not quite ready yet. We love both the beets and the beet greens. Many of the carrots did not make it into the house. Pulling them from the dirt, wiping them off and down the hatch.  Yummy

Signs To Exercise Caution:

 

When you see this while you are out for a walk you need to exercise caution and be aware of your surroundings. This is bear scat and from the size of it a rather large bear. Black bear scat has lots of seeds in it like this discovery has. 

Back In The Day:

Back in the day things were so much different than they are now. I grew up in a working class neighborhood where most of the residents worked at the local auto factory. We had a peach tree in our back yard and our neighbor had a pear tree, and across the street they had a cherry tree, and my best friend's grandparents who lived three doors down had an apple tree. We all had small gardens and we all shared with each other. 

We kids could go pick something off someone else's tree and no one would question or challenge us. Same with the garden, people shared with each other. We had neighborhood grocery stores where people would convert part of their house into a limited grocery where we could walk to get bread or hamburger, and some canned items. To my knowledge nothing like that exists today and if you pick an apple from someone's tree you would be arrested for trespassing. 

Our local grocery is one of three that will sell locally grown fruit. The others get fruit from other states or countries. It tastes pulpy and like cardboard. Local fruit is tasty and juicy - I know. I just had a peach that was heavenly. Also local sweet corn is far more tasty than imported corn which tastes like fodder. 

I grow carrots and to taste a home grown carrot and one from the store is a world's difference. I dream of "back in the day". Sadly nowadays people don't know the difference if they don't grow their own. 

Don't Procrastinate - Especially If You Live Remote.

 

One thing we have learned from living in the mountains is not to procrastinate. Not even one day - as things can change suddenly and what needs to be done often can't be carried through. This week was an example. I had a "todo" list that had 30 tasks on it and fortunately I had all of them done in preparation for winter.  Living in the mountains winter can sneak up on you very suddenly. With my task list completed that doesn't put un-necessary pressure on me in case an emergency occurs.

We had just such an emergency happen this week. I won't go into details but the hour twenty minute drive to the emergency room seemed like 10 hours coupled with intense pain. Fortunately I was successfully treated and could return home but follow up treatment is required. In the meantime I will not be cutting firewood or moving rocks etc. 

With mountain winter rapidly approaching if I had waited to do some of the necessary chores I would be under tremendous pressure now. Fortunately they are done and I can focus on recovery from a rather scary situation. I am so glad that one of the most important lessons we learned early was don't procrastinate. 

Little League:

 As 2023 Little League winds down I hope others are enjoying it as much as I have. Over the years I have played, coached, managed in Little League. When I played it was just beginning and in our city it lacked organization. When I managed it was much more organized and it was so rewarding to manage and coach these young boys.  From T ball to teams I think I got more out of it than anyone. 

The first time I managed a team I ended up with the kids that other managers didn't want on their team. They went through many gyrations to avoid them but I was glad to get them. Anyone who has managed a Little League team knows the most problems come from the parents. 

Before the first practice I called a meeting with the parents without the boys present. I explained that my goal was to make sure the boys learned the basics but most of all have fun playing baseball. I had 12 boys and if any parent wanted their son to play a certain position they might want to consider another team. I planned to get the boys to play any position and I wanted them to experience all positions. I planned to build them into a  TEAM and build their confidence and self esteem. 

Little League was not about winning games but having fun in playing. They would learn to be good respectful winners and good sports when losing. The parents all agreed and those boys had their parents full support and became good players. 

One example was a boy who totally lacked eye to hand coordination. He quickly became discouraged and failed to show up for practices. I contacted his mother and learned he felt he did not fit in.  She was a single mom and said she hoped he would come back as he needed other boys and a man influence. I talked him into coming back, and talked to the other boys to give his some support and help him become one of the team. He slowly came around with the other boys helping him.  As it turned out he caught a fly ball in the final game when we were ahead by one run to end the game. It took the entire season but he was finally and fully a TEAM player. 

Other managers would yell and demean players but never on our team. Sometimes a single word can destroy a young boy so we always looked ahead and any mistakes were left behind. I watched other managers teach their team to play dirty, cheat, and those boys were angry and learning things that would give them hardship in later life. Winning at all costs would not set them on the right path. 

Our team never pouted, cried or became angry. They played having learned the basics and at the end of the season were in first place. But most of all they had fun along the way. Little League is good to be involved in and it builds skills, character all the while when having fun. I am enjoying these games. 

Little League is good for young boys - It teaches them values.

Donut Day:

The story behind donut day is that one of my Rx I take says take with food. I used to buy cake donuts at the grocery store - but the manager of the bakery decided to stop making them. I remembered my mom used to make cake donuts so I looked up a recipe  so I started to make them myself so I could continue to have one when I took my Rx. 

The doggies get a couple donut holes when I make them so they watch pretty close as I make them.  

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Photo's above. "Are you making donuts?"  Bottom photo, "Are they ready yet?"

 

April's Adjustment:

 April has been with us now for almost two months. As she adjusted to our routine her personality started to show through and it is a delightful personality. When I stop to think that she has been with three different families, possibly having to learn two languages, it has been quite an adjustment for her.

 Her first family surrendered her because they were getting a divorce. The husband surrendered her and her son - Klaus, whom we adopted  - claiming that his wife was dying. That turned out to be a lie and we expect that the divorce was a very hostile one and was done to spite the woman. The family who adopted April later gave her up because the wife was afraid that she might  cause her double amputee husband to fall. She is a couch potato here and from her behavior i don't see how she could cause anyone to fall. 

Being rejected two prior times I am surprised she is so well balanced. Being rejected twice before can be devastating on a dog (or person) and in spite of that she is doing very well. When we adopted her she had not had a vet visit in over three years so she had to be brought up to date on her vaccinations. We take our fur family in at least once a year for check-ups.

I can't imagine being rejected like she has and stuck in a shelter like she was. Nor for the long extended time Klaus was in the shelter on two different times. They are two very well adjusted and loving fur family members now. Both being black dogs, large dogs worked against them for adoption. We are glad they are now an important part of our family.

Little League:

 One of my favorite times of the year is the Little League World Series. When I was young we had to organize our own teams but that was just after WW-2.  We had a neighborhood team but we didn't have any parent or adult to manage us and it is no wonder we lost every game we played. Maybe that was just in our city but back then parents weren't involved in our games. 

Seeing how far it has evolved with teams from all over the world is exciting to me. Back then when I was a child it would never have occurred to me we would be playing teams from other cities or even have a world series. All we knew is we loved the sport and loved to play the game. We followed our favorite team and knew the stats of every player on that team. We would debate (argue) our team and its stats vs our friends favorite team. 

Baseball was one of our topics of conversation when we got together. Baseball and comic books were 90% of the conversation back then. We didn't have adults to keep us organized or to guide us. None of us could even envision what it is today. Now I just take time out of my busy day to watch a game or two and it is definitely one of my favorite times of the year.