Author: admin (Page 33 of 67)

This post will be a summary of our family-visiting and house-hunting trip to the Midwest. It contains lots of pictures and will be fairly long!

Leaving Colorado on May 5th, the trip would take us (and our three dogs) as far east as lower Michigan, where we planned to check out some areas in which Pam had seen some on-line house listings. On the way we stopped to visit our son Toby who lives in South Bend, Indiana. A jog north to the LaCrosse, Wisconsin territory would allow us to visit Pam’s sister and two brothers as well as her cousin and friends. We met up with daughter Felicity in Madison, who had flown in to visit a high school friend. Side trips into Iowa would let us explore more areas where interesting houses could be found. Here, in more-or-less chronological order, are a few details of the trip.

The trip across the Great Plains (Nebraska in particular) was uneventful but long. We stayed the first night in York, Nebraska. (After the Motel 6 found us a room — they had lost our reservation even though we had a confirmation number. It was the local high school graduation weekend to boot.)  The only outstanding feature of York is the water tower, which is painted to resemble a hot air balloon.

The Sunday night we stayed in Joliet, Illinois, a pretty much forgettable overnight stop. The next day, Monday, we moved on to South Bend where we stayed two nights outside the city in Nappannee at a property named Amish Acres. Amish Acres acted as our base of operations while we visited Toby and investigated southern Michigan.

As we had arrived early in the day and had not planned to see Toby until evening we took a jaunt up along Michigan’s western side to a town called Allegan to check out a home listing Pam had printed before departure. En route we stopped at the rest area in New Buffalo where Michigan has a tourist info center. Pam snapped this photo of me at the center’s lighthouse landmark (“Pure Michigan” sign in background):

In Allegan, the house we walked around needs a lot of work but is on the lower end of the price range, listed at $72,000.00. Interesting to see what that kind of budget would get in terms of housing. While the house has some attractive features it probably needs more work than we are willing to take on (plastic tarps on the roof — never a good sign). I hope someone does rescue this fine old place, though, as it bothers me to see this once-grand house falling into disrepair. This house fit the stereotype of “find the worst house on the best block” – it was surrounded by fairly well-kept mansions from back in the day.

We liked the town, and will keep an eye out for listings in this area.

Then it was back to South Bend and dinner with Toby and some of Toby’s friends. Toby had arranged a dinner reservation for a small group and we had a pleasant time meeting and speaking to Toby’s “homies.” Sadly we did not take a photo off this group; we should have done, but were having such a lively discussion we forgot photos. It appeared Toby’s friends and ourselves represented age groups 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s.  Quite a bit of diversity!

The next day we drove into eastern Michigan to meet a realtor and walk through a home located in Horton. On the upper end of our price range, at $149,900, this place had been upgraded with central air, new wiring, high-end appliances in the kitchen and other updates. Plus it had a carriage house that had been converted into a garage (with the original horse stalls and sliding barn door between garage sections – historic!).

Pam really liked the tasteful and period-specific home interior, larger-sized yard and small town atmosphere (church across the street). Major downside is it’s located on the corner of a very busy and noisy street. And, the listing price may be high for the area as the house next door is in poor repair, literally starting to fall apart. Still, it shows what’s available if we want to boost the budget upwards. The renovation projects would be do-able (add shower and laundry room to partial downstairs bathroom and expand both into a small eating nook, paint and/or update upstairs windows). Central air already installed is a big plus.

We spent several hours driving through the area and looking at small towns to see what services were available and just get a general feel of the area. In the late afternoon we headed back to South Bend to have a quiet dinner with Toby (carry-out pizza) before heading back to the hotel.

The next day (Wednesday, May 9th) we headed west; the plan was to meet daughter Felicity and her friends Kate and Ben in Madison. Fate had other plans, however.

On the way out of Indiana our Honda’s check engine light came on and the cruise control stopped working. We made a quick stop at a Honda shop and had a mechanic reset the light to get us on our way, but the light came on again several hours later as we were approaching Madison. Pam used her cell phone to locate and call a Honda dealership to schedule a service appointment, but it meant the car would not be available for our meeting with Felicity et al that evening.

I dropped Pam, our luggage, and the dogs off at our hotel and drove to the shop. One of their courtesy drivers drove me to a Red Robin as I had not had dinner yet. While there the shop called and said they would need to keep the car overnight, but they could fix me up with a no-charge loaner so I could get back to the hotel – several miles away in Baraboo. The loaner was  a Honda Fit, small but adequate.

We rescheduled with Felicity, planning to meet her late Thursday evening along with her friend Kate (Kate’s husband, Ben, would not be able to attend on the rescheduled date).

So Thursday, May 10, we took the morning off, basically (good opportunity to do laundry). I drove to the Honda shop around noon and ransomed the car ($475.00 bill) and drove back to Baraboo. We had lunch, packed up the dogs, and headed for Whitewater.

Pam had arranged to meet with friends John and Carol Holford in Whitewater for a short visit. Dinner with a few of Pam’s previous co-workers [from the Whitewater school system] was on the schedule for a bit later in the evening, also in Whitewater, so we did not have to drive between the two appointments.

Dinner (below) was attended by (left to right) Virgil Miller, Pam, Mike Van Eimeren, Sue Mealy, and Carol Holford.

The night was not over, though. After we finished dinner in Whitewater, we drove up to Madison to meet with Felicity and her high-school friend Kate. Meeting at a Culver’s restaurant for a late evening treat, we had a chance to see both girls for a quick update on what’s happening with them.

Felicity stays in constant touch with Pam but it had been a while since we had seen Kate. We have known her since Felicity’s high school days and we took the opportunity to catch up on her news – she and her husband are in the process of buying a new home.

Back to the hotel for the night and get ready for the busy Friday that was on tap.

The agenda called for staying in the La Crosse area and getting together with Pam’s brothers Larry and Craig (plus Craig’s wife Dianne) and cousin Cheri Nindorf and her husband Bob. Pam’s sister Becky attended as well, resulting in all four of the “Paroubek kids” being together for an evening. We packed up and headed for La Crosse.

As the gathering was scheduled for the evening we took a morning short loop through eastern Iowa after crossing the Mississippi River at Prairie Du Chien. (This is a pleasant area and could be an area of interest for properties that might come on the market.)

Heading north on Hwy 35 (the river road – Wisconsin side), we arrived at our motel in Holmen, unpacked for the night, and got ready for the evening’s fish fry and gathering. This event, held in Pam’s home town of Onalaska, turned out well with good conversation and an excellent fish dinner. Later we ended up at Larry’s apartment for additional catching-up.

Pictured is our dinner group. (Photo by our waiter.)

Left to right: (front) Bob Nindorf, Cheri Nindorf, Becky, Pam, Dianne, (back) Craig, Larry, Jerry.

At Larry’s apartment the four kids pose for a photo:

Full of good food and caught up with the latest family news, we headed back to our hotel for the  night.

Saturday morning had one more social event on the itinerary; meeting with another of Pam’s friends, this one from her high school days. Pam had met Sally Eglinton in high school; Sally was a librarian and had conducted Pam’s freshman orientation. Later Pam worked with Sally’s husband Ken on Prom arrangements. (Ken passed away about two years ago.) A bond was formed and Pam and Sally + Ken remained in contact over the years. (Sally attended our wedding then gave birth to her first child, Shannon, a week later.)

Meeting in a small cafe in Hokah, Minnesota, we ate a late breakfast and caught up with some of the news. Pam’s sister Becky was able to join us, which made the morning extra special.

As a side note, I really enjoy eating in these small town places. The food is good, prices reasonable, and the places reflect the working class nature of the towns they are in. Here are a couple of photos taken in the cafe:

This stop pretty much concluded the social part of our trip; from now on we would be looking at more homes and areas that might be potential retirement homes or areas.

After leaving Hokah we set out to drive an extended route in eastern Iowa. Traveling south we visited Keokuk (right on the Mississippi) along with Ft. Madison and other river towns. Ft. Madison contains some nice older homes and offers plenty of services but the houses are on steeper lots with narrow roads. Definitely an area to keep under consideration.

Now heading west toward home, one place we stopped to look at was in Keosauqua. Listed at $57,000.00, this place is on the edge of town and offers a bit larger-than-average lot. The property includes an older two car garage.

I walked around the place and then called the realtor but we were unable to view the inside as the owner required a 24 hours notice to set an appointment. We were told it does have a bed and bath on the main floor, two of our check-off items. The realtor said she will make a video tour of the inside and post it to You Tube and let us know when it was ready to view.

Like all houses in this price range, it needs repairs. As long as these are not structural we can deal with those types of projects. Older houses were built before building codes were in place; one of the biggest issues is finding out what you have to work with since each builder was left to do whatever they wanted to do. Project labor costs are generally higher for these homes than they would be for a more modern place.

Here are a couple photos of the property:

We will keep an eye one this one although its rural location would mean a drive to a larger town for most services. The low asking price is the main attraction.

After leaving Keosauqua we began the long drive home to Colorado. Arriving home early Tuesday afternoon we began unloading the car, doing laundry, going through accumulated mail, and taking care of other chores such as mowing the lawn. I had taken Wednesday off so we could do our grocery shopping and decompress after the long trip.

Finally, one property that I did not put in sequence: the church in Rossville. We had high hopes for this one but were disappointed.

Not with the church itself, but the surrounding neighborhood was just the pits. One side featured a burned-out house, another had abandoned trucks sitting on the lot. Other neighbors lived in old and run-down trailers. We just came to the conclusion that even if we liked the church, the neighborhood (unlikely to change in our lifetimes) would not be a place we would care to call home.

A few trip statistics:

Trip duration: 10 days. Miles driven: 4,543. Most expensive gasoline: $3.01. Cheapest: $2.33. Average price per gallon: $2.75. 132.8 gallons of gasoline were purchased for a total cost of $365.21. Average miles per gallon: 34.2. (Hundreds of miles with air conditioning running.)

One place of note: The Corn Crib restaurant in Shelby, Iowa. Good food, fast service, reasonable prices. We stopped there on the way east and liked it so much I made it a point to stop there again on our way home.

We brought our housing requirements into sharper focus this trip. A couple observations: 1. We are not flatlanders. Whatever we buy will have to be in an area of rolling hills with trees. 2. We will be on the edge of or very near a town, not out in the boonies. 3. Town character matters. We prefer something that offers some cultural opportunities such as concerts, theater, and other social events.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Five Cents Worth:

General observations must begin with the deterioration of the Motel 6 chain.  They accept pets (more than two) and have recently redecorated, which includes removing the carpet and changing to scrubbable flooring (goodbye in-carpet nasties).  But the poor general maintenance (ride ’em cowboy toilet seats) and lack of exterior upkeep (particularly no picking up of lawn garbage) of this low-cost chain shows it is heading downhill rapidly (in all states we visited).  Also, if one wants a fridge and microwave in the room, this must usually be requested in advance and merits an extra charge. (That the dog walking areas are filled with poop reflects more on the self-centered dog owning population than the Motel 6.)

Travel with three doggies in a Honda Accord is a bit of an adventure.  Once we all got into the rhythm of rest stops, night time routines, and morning routines, the trip was smoother. Having the three pups along was a trial run for future road trips and a test for the animals.  (Two of the animals tested at “B” grades, one was a [generous] “C-.”) However, when our room contained two beds, one of them was for the dogs:

The low point of the trip was certainly the automotive repair, but at least we didn’t break down in Chicagoland. Schedule adjustments were not that difficult and the cost of the repair would have been necessary whether on the road or if it had happened in Colorado. I started using my cell phone for texting, checking on house listings, and pulling up maps to the street level — this is new for me — and this skill was useful in dealing with the auto repair.

It was distressing to see all the road kill in the Midwest, but amazingly, on one southeastern Iowa side road a magnificent bald eagle was feasting on one such hapless road kill animal. Who would have thought we’d see an eagle up close, and in rural Iowa?

Regarding the house hunt, the semi-urban areas of southern Michigan had a better vibe for us than the seemingly-endless farm fields of Iowa.  Iowa properties around the Mississippi River might be the exception – I do enjoy my rivers. Overall, it struck me that the hunt is not just about the house.  It is also a search for a retirement lifestyle. Farm fields ain’t it. We need some “culture.”

Happy Trails.

This Saturday we undertook a project that was only marginally on the radar; getting our Cottonwood tree trimmed.

Already this Spring windy weather has caused several larger dead branches to launch out of the Cottonwood and onto the roof. So when a tree guy was working on our neighbor’s trees, Pam approached him to ask how much it would cost to remove a dead snag at the top of the Cottonwood and trim back some of the branches that extended over our roof. The guy, whose name is Charlie, came over and took a look and gave us a quote I thought was very competitive (factoring in we would handle the clean-up).

On Saturday morning I fired up the chipper to help with this effort. Other than having to repair one electrical connector the chipper appears to have wintered just fine. I had the battery in the garage and had put it on a charger from time to time. After the minor repair on the chipper the engine fired up OK.

Around 9:00 a.m. Charlie showed up with his truck and equipment and proceeded to start the trim work. Sadly the tree was in worse shape than we had suspected as it is suffering from a fungus unique to Cottonwood trees. Charlie cut the tree back pretty severely to find non-affected wood. We hope the tree can survive this surgery and come back with more green in the next few years. This hope is not merely aesthetic – that tree provides major shade for the front of the mobile home and without that shade our energy costs will soar.

The chips  became mulch for a corner of the property (near the Mary Lynn Memorial Garden) as well as a muddy area beside where the RV trailer is currently parked. Wood big enough to salvage as firewood was stacked near the back deck and will be added to the firewood total next fall.

While not a project we really had “on the books,” it’s satisfying to have this particular job done. We’ll miss the canopy and shade this summer for sure. (But repairing a tree-damaged roof would not have been fun either.) Charlie cut out the hollow part where birds had nested in the past so a few birds will miss the tree as well.

It was an energetic way to begin the weekend. Neither of us is used to hours of continuous clean-up activity so there were a few aches when we got up Sunday morning. Good thing there were no big plans for Sunday!

Note: Due to scheduling conflicts there will be no posts for the next few weeks.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Fields and the kids will all tell you I love to trim trees, sometimes drastically.  But the amount that had to be cut off that Cottonwood about made me sick.  Just as with any surgery, the “patient” will either survive or die.  Several other Cottonwoods that had been planted in the neighborhood at the same time as ours have already succumbed to the disease. Bummer.

A kitten died this week, a little orange and white male from the second litter born this month.  That leaves the first-time mother with only one kitten – baby Solette, a female black and white. Solette seems to be holding her own at present. All four kittens (and mom) from the first litter are doing fine.

Happy Trails.

With no major (or even minor) projects going on right now, this post will be a collection of updates and short notes about what happened this week. Family news will be front and center.

One of my aunts, Aunt Helen, died last Saturday, the 14th. I could not get back to her funeral but have great memories of her and my Uncle Al. (Uncle Al passed away years ago.) Many years ago, Al and Helen hosted our wedding shower. In my youth, I attended many family parties at their farm. Aunt Helen was a gentle soul who liked to cook and bake. She was a huge help in the family dairy operation.

Uncle Al was my mother’s brother and Aunt Helen my father’s sister; a brother and sister from one family married a brother and sister from another family. This double-bond meant my 4 cousins, myself and my 3 siblings had an unusual situation — all of us had the same family tree. One of the cousins, Sue, and I are the same age and we became good friends during high school.

In other family news, niece Caitlin’s Cake Plus Size Boutique earned a mention on a Minneapolis Reader’s Choice TV show. Caitlin is working hard to make this store a success and we wish her the best of luck in “year one” as a small businesswoman!

Daughter Felicity cut her hair short, the first time in a decade or more. She performs with the Northwest Harmony Sweet Adeline singing group and they are getting ready for the spring competition. The costuming calls for hair “off the neck.” In past years Felicity had put her hair up in a bun but this year decided it would be a lot easier to have the hair short and not have to fool with it. Felicity sent a photo; she is getting into her performance costume with the help of one of her friends:

Son Toby has been promoted to a Team Leader position at the casino loading dock. This means he had a bump up in income but has to commute to a new worksite. He recently bought a newer used car and seems to be happy with the new wheels. We plan to visit him during our swing into the Midwest next month.

Closer to home, my mother  and brother Jon are making arrangements to sell  a large parcel of land my mother owns, almost 40 acres. Proceeds from this sale should take care of some bills, cover the cost of a few home updates, and provide funds to help cover the cost of Mom’s in-house care. So far a verbal agreement has been reached but the paperwork still needs to be drawn up and processed.

Spring has arrived on the high desert, although we did see snow flurries last Friday. Temps today are in the low 70s. I mowed the lawn yesterday, and the cherry tree is humming with honeybees, more than I have ever seen before.

I recently took my ATV for a spin and came across an old-style pumping rig, now out of operation.

These old rigs were powered by natural gas driven engines; the engines ran off the natural gas coming out of the well. A few of these rigs (none in operation) can be found here and there on Wild Horse Mesa. However, at least one that I used to visit has been removed and one wonders how long these others will survive. Not far from this old well was a spot where a well had been capped and all equipment removed.

I’m going to include an odd-ball photo; this appears to be the way well output was measured in the past. The chart paper in this instrument recorded the output of a well on a 2-week graph:

I had never seen one of these so thought I would take a photo of it. I don’t know which is odder (more odd?) — the device itself or my wanting to take a picture of it. (?)

Both the water dispenser and new vacuum, both mentioned in a previous post, are working out well. The amount of gallon water jug plastic we recycle has dropped dramatically and it is convenient to have the water available. We purchased a 2nd 5-gallon jug so we can always have a full one on hand.

That about sums up the news I have for this week.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I interrupted a birth-in-progress in the garage on Wednesday.  Another one of the feral cats [who overwintered in the garage] decided to come “home” to have her litter.  This cat is a first-time mom and fairly clueless; I actually had to trap her, using her two newborn kittens as “bait,” to get her to stay with her babies. I was NOT about to hand feed kittens (every four hours for two weeks, then less frequently until six weeks). My neighbor agreed to take care of the now two feral litters — in addition to the other cats and the house — while we are on vacation.  Here’s hoping another pregnant feral does not show up.

Next week I assemble house listings in the Midwest and chart a course for the upcoming road trip vacation, a zig-zag course that includes family-and-friend visits plus house drive-bys. A few recently-listed homes/locations to consider:   601 South Main Street, Fairfield, Iowa (currently for sale by owner)   and  104 Main Street, Horton, Michigan.  I am more than a little bummed by the high price of property taxes on homes in or near small towns.  Rural area taxes seem a bit easier to take.

Happy Trails.

We have accumulated a few photos of pets and Pam’s “project.” This week I’ll look into a few topics related to these photos.

First up are a couple recent photos of our oldest dog, Blondie. She has always had a habit of sitting up on her hind legs:

We call this her “prairie dog” or “circus dog” stance and Blondie assumes it quite often.  I’ve only seen one other dog do this, but it must be more common than that. She can hold this pose for up to a minute.

And the other evening Blondie was taking a nap on the couch when I approached with my camera:

I don’t know if she was giving me the “evil eye” for disturbing her or exactly what that expression is supposed to mean. She went back to sleep a few minutes later.

Pam started working on cleaning the closet in the third bedroom, a room currently housing cats, cat pens and collected cat stuff. Photo albums that Pam had assembled for Felicity’s childhood-through-high-school-graduation years were unboxed after seventeen years of storage and relocated. The goal (at some point) is to permanently deliver these albums to Felicity in the Pacific Northwest.

Pam says she will be going through closets for the rest of the summer.

Yesterday we had snow flurries; last night ice formed on the back deck cat’s water dish. We hope the flowers and tree buds didn’t get whacked too hard by these cold temps. Today is bright but chilly. A few cold days – low of 24 is forecast for next Tuesday – are upcoming next week. That’s Spring in Colorado, last week we enjoyed several days in the 70s.

The town did turn on our irrigation water system but may shut it down again to avoid damage from  freezing. The ground is dry, even with some rain last week, and mountain snow levels  (which affect our summertime water supply) are down almost 20 percent from normal. It may be a hot and dry year for the high desert.

On tap for today: Swap the snow blade for the mower deck on the John Deere garden tractor. Grocery shopping later in the day. Weed-wacking around the edges of the lawn, garage, and house. Change oil and filter in the Honda. All pretty routine tasks.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

By request, included below are photos of Mary Lynn’s Memorial Garden.  At present, 90+ tulips have broken ground, about 25% are currently in bloom.  I did plant early, middle, and late bloomers to try to extend the color in that bed. Several iris plants overwintered in the same bed for variety.

Spring – the time of new growth and new birth. Mother Nature had another Spring surprise for me last weekend.  After a very stormy and windy night Saturday into Sunday, I checked feral cat feeders on Sunday morning for food supply levels. When I heard tiny mewing sounds, I knew the feeder area in the garage was now the home of newborn kittens – somewhere.  Four babies and Mom Scoobie were in one of the cat bedding crates.  Moving the little family from the garage — inside to the third bedroom — was a bit of a production number, but finally all was satisfactorily accomplished.  I wasn’t planning on foster litter #29 (or maybe any litters this summer – ha, ha on me) until after returning from our planned trip to the Midwest in early May. Luckily one of my neighbors, who feeds our cats and watches the house when we are on vacation, is comfortable feeding and cleaning up after a feral mom cat and litter.

Happy Trails.

I’m feeling better. Apparently the reaction I had to the new med (gemfibrozil) was a series of muscle spasms in my lower back. More than a week after discontinuing the med I still have a back ache; it’s not severe enough to keep me from going to work and is getting less and less noticeable as the days go by. Won’t go there again!

I was able to finish the shower faucet repair. I replaced the fitting that the shower head pipe fits into; I am not sure if the old fitting went bad or had just worked loose. At any rate, I replacing the fitting and tube that runs from the shower head to the faucet assembly. This  resulted in a non-leaking installation. We are glad to have the main shower back in operation!.

Here are a few photos of various plumbing bits and pieces involved with the repair.

When I removed the old line I had tied a cord to the fitting (from the shower side) and pulled the old line out the access hole. I then attached the new line and pulled the cord to get the fitting back up behind the shower and back through the shower head opening. This actually worked better than I expected.

This closes out the “shower from hell” episode; the new faucet does not drip and works smoother than the unit it replaced. Even with the expense of specialized tools and parts it was cheaper to do this myself as opposed to calling a plumber.

Today is wet and overcast; we are getting some much needed rain but it does put a bit of a crimp in outdoor activities. Several tulips are blooming and trees, including the cherry tree and lilacs, are budding out. I hope we don’t get a late freeze as we would like to see as many flowers as possible this spring.

Some strong winds did come through and I had to get on the roof to remove some dead branches that had blown down from one of our cottonwood trees. I’ll try to get those to the compost area today along with the first of the grass clippings from the lawn.

Pam has completed the first week of her “retirement” and worked on several projects both inside and outside the house. Inside she started going through closets and sorting out stuff  (like photo albums, some to be delivered to the kids) and it looks like closet organization + recycle will be an ongoing project for the summer. Outside jobs included working on the corner of our lawn near the new tulip bed. She installed some lawn edging and transplanted some hollyhock plants, while also continuing to remove mulch from beds around the house. Pam has a list of projects to keep her busy.

I’m getting used to commuting by myself. Some mornings I really don’t feel like getting out of bed when the house is dark and quiet, however.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Four Cents Worth:

The tulip bed is at about 90% bulbs germinated, but the tulips that have started to flower are pygmy-sized.  I’m holding off on photos of Mary Lynn’s Memorial Garden until the tulips fill in and grow taller. Hopefully, both will happen after this rain we’ve been enjoying.

Being OCD, I decided to make a weekly list of things to do to guide me through my first weeks and months of “unemployment.” I feel perfectly free to pick and choose what I want to do on this list; if something doesn’t get done then something moves to next week.  (This week, one outside project needed to be moved forward due to wind and weather.) I do believe the closet purge project will be ongoing, but no pressure.

I make sure to find opportunities to read, play the uke, and spend time outside with the dogs. Not to mention sleeping later in the morning.  Some transitions are funny, like realizing I can wear all my clothes now and not keep some of them “nice” for work.  I wonder if I will forget how to apply makeup in a few months?

While monitoring online houses for sale (the retirement house hunt continues), I found a stunning mansion along the Mississippi River at 11 Park Place Keokuk, Iowa.

More square footage and taxes than we would ever consider, but it ticks me off the price of this lovely historic property (with a view of Lock & Dam 19) is about the same as this dumpy trailer we now live in.  Gr-r-r-r-r.

Happy Trails.

 

This post includes news on health issues; it might get boring.

I am on medication for Type-2 diabetes and it was time for my annual check-up. The doctor decided to change my prescription a bit and added a triglyceride-reducing compound called gemfibrozil. I had a severe reaction to this addition; after three days of discontinuing any medication I can barely walk, even after taking a prescription pain medication that consists of Tylenol and codeine. Sitting is not too bad but getting up and down is difficult — and forget about bending over for anything. I am hurting and it shows. I’ve missed a couple days of work so far and may miss more.

The forced idleness is also hard to take as there is so much to be done this time of year. I have not finished “the shower from hell;” once I got the compression ring in place a leak developed behind the shower head and I have not had a chance to pull it out and complete the repair. For another week we are using the small “coffin” shower in the other bathroom.

The lawn is about ready for a first mowing; it gets “tufts” that are longer and makes the lawn look a bit ragged until I can get it mowed.

Last weekend I had moved the RV trailer, chipper, and utility trailer from our neighbor’s yard to ours and all items need attention to get them ready for summer use. The RV is sitting out on our driveway, partially blocking access to the garage so getting a car in and out is a bit of a challenge. I am frustrated that I can’t get out and work on these tasks!

The other big news is that Pam has (more or less) retired. Or, as she says, is now “unemployed” until she applies for her pension at the end of the year. Her final day of work at the community college was last Thursday. Over the course of her dozen-plus years she evaluated 17,029 incoming student transcripts. Her section took Pam out to lunch and presented her with a few small gifts. My guess is that Pam will be greatly missed in the next several weeks!

That’s it for now.  Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

It feels mighty strange realizing I don’t have to pack all my weekend activities into the weekends any more. I suspect having the luxury of time will be a learning curve for me.

Felicity has suggested I consider joining her in England this Fall for a vacation, to dovetail with a several-month house sit she has arranged.  This prospect is very attractive, but highly dependent on how the new budget I’ve figured out in theory actually works in fact. Still, I sometimes get caught up in “what ifs” and daydream about locations I might like to see on a return visit to the U.K.  On one of my internet searches, I came across a lovely high tea table (in Scotland!), complete with champagne.  Love it. Something to ponder.

Happy Trails.

 

I have several small items to report on this week, including a plumbing horror story and receiving two new household items.

Last time I noted I needed to change out the tub/shower faucet in our main bathroom. I knew this would be a nasty job, as the working area is very small and this place uses plastic plumbing (which requires specialized tools I do not own).

For starters, access to the back of the shower in the main bathroom is through a closet in the master bathroom:

In this photo you can see more of the plastic lines and fittings:

Note that in this photo the line running up to the shower head is disconnected. The reason:  I had to order a crimp tool and crimp rings to make the connection water-tight. I tried other methods, including small hose clamps, but could not keep the top fitting from leaking. The crimp tool and rings are on order from Amazon and should be here in a few days. Hopefully I will be able to finish this job once those items have arrived.

In the interim we have been using the shower in the master bathroom. This one we call “The Coffin” as it isn’t much more than an RV shower, very small. It needed some work (hasn’t been  used except for storage in years), particularly on the hot water side, but thankfully I’d accumulated enough small parts to make the repair. I hope in my next post I’ll be able to report a completion to this whole episode!

A few other upgrades were completed this week. We’ve been talking about getting a bulk water dispenser for awhile, to help save costs and reduce the amount of plastic we recycle. Pam uses bottled water for a variety of cooking purposes, plus as drinking water for the indoor cats and dogs. I drink bottled water while commuting and when I’m out on ATV and motorcycle trips. Bottled jug water runs about a dollar a gallon (and includes a lot of plastic recycle), refilled bulk water is thirty-nine cents a gallon locally.

Looking on-line, I found a unit that appeared to would fit our needs. Brand is Primo and the dispenser is available from a few different sources; Pam had a discount coupon from Bed, Bath, and Beyond so we ordered the Primo through them. Our local grocery store carries the empty jugs (5 gallon) so I bought one and filled it. Here is what the working dispenser looks like:

We calculate the savings in water cost will pay for the dispenser in 3 – 4 months.

Another household upgrade involved replacing our aging Hoover vacuum cleaner. While it still works, and we still have a few bags for it, the vac is definitely on the way out. Pam has commented — more than once! — that she would like to try a Dyson [animal hair] vac because of the amount of dog and cat hair that accumulates in our house. (3 dogs, 6 cats) Newegg Company, known for their lines of electronic and computer gear, put out a sales bulletin that featured  refurbished Dyson vacs so I ordered one. This is one of the “ball” vacuums (a bagless model) that Dyson is known for:

In its first use the Dyson picked up quite a bit of material and seems to be easy to maneuver around furniture. Here’s hoping this investment gives us good service for a long time.

A rain/snow mix is in the forecast for today along with several upcoming nights below freezing, but generally the weather is typical for this time of year and during the next week conditions will improve. Buds are beginning to appear on the lilac trees and I look forward to seeing those blossoms, providing a late freeze does not wipe them out (as it unfortunately did last year).

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Woo-hoo — the 100 tulip bed (AKA Mary Lynn’s Memorial Garden) now has about 60-65 bulbs total poking through. Much as I suspected, when I walk to that end of the lawn to check on bulb growth, it usually triggers a wave of sadness. I miss my friend and frequently ponder her loss.  Grieving is a tricky thing.

Happy Trails.

 

 

I’m going to start with something old, going back to the fall of 2009. Pam and I had stayed at a bed and Breakfast in Estes Park with the aim of spotting some of the area’s elk. I was able to get a 32 second clip (using my Flip recorder) of a bull elk calling for his harem. There is wind noise on the video but if you listen carefully you can hear the elk bugling.

[cincopa A4KACNuZi8HD]

Elk bugling is an annual event that draws many visitors to the Estes Park area every fall.

Moving ahead to now…

We have begun taking mulch off the flower beds as both iris plants and tulips are displaying a few inches of growth. While we expect more winter weather, the forecast is to have a 70 degree day this next Wednesday. Many nights are staying above freezing so it is time for the mulch to come off.

I drove up to Sanderling on Sunday just to check out the shed and utility trailer. I also wanted to see how much snow was left on the place. (Not much, soil appears fairly dry.) Temperature got up to 41 degrees but a chilly wind was blowing. I walked parts of The Lot and left some bread products [at different places] we’ve been saving for the chippies and squirrels. It was good to be back in the high country but it will be a while yet before spring reaches those elevations.

Our bath/shower faucet is giving us grief again. The last repair held for a few weeks but the faucet began leaking again. I am going to have to replace the faucet assembly, not a job I am looking forward to mainly due to the cramped quarters and age of the plumbing.

Good news: Pam’s niece Lilly is out of the hospital and beginning her recuperation. We hope this progresses OK but Lilly has been very ill and the healing will take an extended amount of time and effort.

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

The tulips are starting to burst through in the 100 tulip bed.  At about 40-45%  of tulips breaking ground so far, looks like it will be a lovely show.  Bittersweet – every day when I go to check on the progress of the tulips, I think of my friend and how she will be missing spring this year.

House hunt location:  I am currently keying in on Grinnell, Iowa.  Felicity and I did an overnight there when she was scouting college locations (she eventually decided on Beloit College in Wisconsin).  Fields and I are comfortable with the energy and activities (and politics) of college towns.  As luck would have it, there are some lovely older homes at reasonable prices in the Grinnell area. (Also looking at Montezuma, across the interstate and to the south of Grinnell.) We drive by on the interstate on our way to the Midwest in May, so why not stop and look around?  The list of towns to drive through becomes longer each week.

Happy Trails.

 

Wow. It has been a very quiet week for us. Here is a rundown on various items I’ve mentioned in previous posts.

Colds: Both of us are recovering (fewer coughs) but our energy levels are not yet back to 100 percent. After nearly 3 weeks of this, you would think we would be over it but we don’t recover as fast as we did 20 or 30 years ago.

Cats: One of the cats we had taken to the shelter, Fonzie, had to be euthanized as he was diagnosed with having feline leukemia, a fatal disease for cats and contagious. While not a “favorite cat” and just an occasional visitor to the feeding station, it was still sad to have his life end like that. The other cat, Cloudy Day, had a dental and is on a medical treatment plan for a urinary infection. She is not adapting well at the shelter, so is scheduled to return to us when her meds are completed. So much for that cat roundup.

Weather: We have had a few warm days (low 60s yesterday) but are looking at receiving 1 – 3 inches of snow by tomorrow (Sunday) morning. Wind has also been an issue with gusts hitting 40+ mph. On the other hand, a few tulips are beginning to show growth so Spring can’t be that far off.

House hunt: We are tentatively planning a trip to the Midwest in May. We want to check out some territories Pam has identified as potential retirement areas as well as visit family and friends. Pam is currently surveying Iowa along the Mississippi River, and found a house at 500 NW 1st Street  Elkader, IA, 

Another interesting town is Dyersville, Iowa, home to Ertl toys and the baseball field used in the movie “Field of Dreams.”  Although somewhat out of our current price range, we both liked the property at 604 9th Avenue SW in Dyersville.  The house hunt continues — southern Michigan is also on the current radar.

Work: I received a 3 percent pay increase and, while that does not sound like much, it was the maximum allowed by our County Commissioners (who control the County budget). At least it’s something; Pam is moving to part-time hours so we’ll have to see how the budgets work out under that arrangement. I finished the final tweaks on our intranet web page, a 70 hour project that turned out well and with which I am quite pleased. I am now configuring a new “ticket” system that will handle Help Desk requests as well as purchasing requests for the organization. It is a big project.

Speaking of projects: I am “older than dirt” it seems. A local lumber yard used to have a spring sale every year. Pam called them to find out when this year’s sale was scheduled, only to find it had been replaced by “Senior Tuesdays,” where I would qualify for a discount due to my age. Chagrin at being a senior citizen is offset by the savings but that doesn’t seem like an equitable trade-off. However, yard projects await, so I’ll take the 10%.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I’m looking forward to Spring, this year in particular, as I’m interested to see how the 100 tulips I planted in the “Mary Lynn Memorial Garden” will bloom. We always experience two Springs, one here on the high desert and then another in the high country when we open up Sanderling for the season.

Hey [Tabitha’s mother] Deb, wanna weigh in on what it’s like to live in Iowa? Property taxes seem a bit high (a common thread in the Midwest).  Politics seem a bit “red state” (another common thread in the Midwest, sadly…Fields and I are definitely “purple state” material).

Happy Trails.

On Monday I started feeling the effects of a cold; by Wednesday I left work early and stayed home both Thursday and Friday. Unfortunately I passed the cold along to Pam who is now suffering as well.

I am coming out of it, still coughing up crud, and Pam is getting better. Both of us had fever and chills in addition to the sinus draining and coughing.

This does not appear to be the flu that has been so common this year.

We don’t keep a lot of over-the-counter medications on hand to ease cold symptoms so a trip to the local market procured NyQuil, DayQuil, an anti-mucus product, and Tylenol Cold and Flu capsules. Pam had started taking Airborne Vitamin C tablets as soon as I started showing symptoms which may have helped; she seems to be recovering in a shorter time than I. It will be several days yet, I am sure, before we are both completely over this episode.

More winter-like weather has arrived with small amounts of snow every few days. The lawn is white but the streets are clear, although several accidents were observed going to and from work this past week.

Politics: Not a subject I like to address at length, so I’ll just include this bit as it pretty much sums up my point of view:

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Having the time to be sick is a luxury. Maybe retirement will be “luxurious” in this way?

Happy Trails.