Dec 7, 2012 Pets & Grandchildren



Sunset colors to the east on Thursday


It was a very lazy Wednesday morning after a very windy and sleepless night. The heavy, metal cover of the riser on our cistern was flipped over on the ground. Hard to believe the wind did that, but the highest wind gust Down There was clocked at 63mph, so it probably did. Once again the sun only lasted til mid afternoon when it clouded over. Talked to Sandy for an hour after blogging. My phone seems to be working better the more I use it.

I wrapped and packed my last package. It’s for Sandy and I can’t send it early because she opens it as soon as she receives it! I may just wait until the 20^th to send it to her. . .

And speaking of Sandy, she gave us a year’s subscription to "Cowboys and Indians" for Christmas. We had received our first issue when I checked the mail on Tuesday. We love the magazine, but all the advertising is extreme upscale. I have to be careful not to drool on the pages. Would love to have just one piece of the jewelry that is shown and a pair of one those cowboy boots. But the western motif articles are well written and the photos are amazing. The January issue has an extensive article about the new Quentin Tarantino western, "Django Unchained." Definitely a must-see.

It started lightly snowing about noon on Thursday. Tiny flakes that were buffeted by a slight breeze. By the end of the day everything was white again, but just barely. Just beneath the thin layer of snow, all the slush had turned to ice, which made walking a bit dicey.  We are in the middle of quite a snow storm as I blog this morning.

I spent time on the computer and reading my books. JB changed the oil in the generator. Baked onion bread. Made lasagna which has to stand overnight and will be baked tonight for dinner. Then he grilled turkey burgers for dinner last night.

With the snow has come a cold front (or maybe visa versa). Regardless, it is cold outside. And whenever I walk from the warmth of the house out into such cold, I can feel the pores in my face instantaneously close up like sea anemones. Fwump!! And then when I come back in, by glasses steam up.

I bought some bones for the dogs from the butcher on Tuesday and they each got to have one yesterday. Kept them busy for a few hours. I don’t think either of Jesse’s two previous owners ever bought toys or bones for him, or even threw sticks for him. He wasn’t interested in bones to begin with, but now he attacks them with relish. He has learned all his play from watching Dinga, and now he always needs a stick, as she does, whenever we go on even a short walk. He acts like an excited little puppy with a new toy, jumping and prancing with his stick. Watching his delight with such simple things is a joy in itself. And one of life’s little lessons.

Life is good Up Here but the biggest price we pay is being so far away from our son and his family. We had the option of retiring in Alabama but knew that we simply could not tolerate the weather or lack of mountains. Our son’s jobs, both civilian and military, along with his wife’s job and the children’s school, make it very difficult for them to get away, and we simply cannot afford to travel that far. Excuses, excuses, but also a fact of life.  We talk to him at least once a week, if not two or three times, and there is a chance that I can go to Maryland next summer for the ceremony when he becomes a Commander.  I am certainly looking forward to that. Meanwhile, I go on our daughter-in-law’s Facebook page to look at all the photographs of our grandchildren who are growing up without us.

Thought for the day: There is only one basic human right: the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences. P.J. O’Rourke