You know it has been a slow news week when your major blog topic is plumbing.

The shower faucet has had issues over the years; every couple it seems to start leaking. I had replaced the seals at the end of the stems with new ones but this time that fix did not work.

Nothing like a drip – drip – drip to irritate you. Putting a bucket under the faucet just replaced the dripping with a splash-splash-splash.

So, it was off to the hardware store to try and find replacement parts. The house is 24 years old and used generic fixtures; finding parts would be a long shot.

I pulled one of the faucet stems to take along. Here is what the old stems looked like:

Old faucet stems

I lucked out and found new stems but with one major difference: They operate backward.

The original stems opened by turning counter-clockwise. The new stems open clockwise. While replacing the stems stopped the dripping we had to get used to the reverse operation. During the week I cranked the faucets the wrong way and got a blast of hot or cold water for my trouble. You learn quickly after that.

In theory there are right-hand stems and a left-hand stems but the store had only the left-hand stems in stock. Beggars can’t be choosers, as the saying goes, so I bought a pair of left-hand stems. Price was about $10.00 each, well worth it to cure the dripping.

As for the rest of the week, well, we will just say the time went by. We had some light snow but temperatures remain mild for late January. Here is a photo of the yard taken this morning; note the snow is present only in the shady areas.

Our yard on January 27th

We are already looking forward to spring (even though it is still months away). TV commercials for John Deere lawn tractors and folks loading their SUVs with fresh plants have already hit the airways out here – can spring be far away?

The next big event will be when Pam gives her notice at work. We will have to adapt to a new level of income, but both of us are more than ready to retire. For me that will not be for a few years yet.

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

Pam’s Five Cents Worth:

February 1 is the day I submit my resignation at the community college.  You all know how it goes; plans are in place for your job to remain the same until you retire and then wham-o – the administration cancels part of your work contract (in my case, the remote work option) and everything changes. I’ve been using my annual leave benefits on Mondays and Fridays since the first of the year, to shorten my work week while still being paid at the full-time level.  Vacation time runs out in April, at which point I [perhaps] go part-time to train somebody, or I’m done.  Who knows?

I had one of those half awake/half asleep dreams this morning that took me back to the day Fields and I were married.  We were both returning to college after the wedding, and neither of us had jobs yet.  Things were kinda up in the air then – how were we going to live?  I think my brain is telling me I feel the same way now. Even though the financial circumstances are different, it’s about the unknown.

Married life for us has been a constant rotation of “enough money/not enough time” or “enough time/not enough money.” I don’t apply for my pension (such as it is) until the end of 2018 or early 2019, so semi-retirement will likely be the “enough time/not enough money” option.

The search for a retirement house will certainly be impacted by this development, as my reduced income introduces a monetary impact I was not planning on until next year at the earliest.  However, as Fields notes above, we are both more than ready to “retire.” For myself, after evaluating 16,750 (and counting) incoming student transcripts over a dozen years, definitely more than ready.

Happy Trails.

Every few days the dogs get together and have a howling session. We don’t know why but the result is entertaining. I managed to get a clip of one such session “performed” this past week:

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Take a listen!

This happens every few days, normally started by Bru but occasionally Blondie or JoJo will lead off. Songs of their fathers? Beagle+Terrier, Beagle+American Eskimo Dog, and Spaniel+Greyhound — not what I would consider primarily “hounds”  but obviously something in their genetic makeup links them. At any rate, the howling reminds me of their wild dog heritage.

It has been another mild week but that is supposed to change beginning tonight. A large storm is approaching that should give us more snow and usher in colder temperatures. High yesterday and today at about 50 degrees; after tonight highs will be in the low to-mid-30 degree range.  I have the John Deere tractor and blade staged for the event, and picked up some groceries after work last night to get us through the weekend.

Forecast for today and next week

In most other respects the week was routine except for some family news: Pam’s niece Lilly is having medical problems that required surgery. Lilly appears to have come through that OK but now begins a long recovery process. Positive vibes to her and her mom Becky.

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I have actually howled along with the dogs on occasion. Feels great to howl out frustrations and stresses. Wonder what the neighbors think when we are all in full howl mode?

Happy Trails.

While it has been a slow news week, the weather – continuing warm today – has been the major story locally.

We had a couple days of light snow that turned into fairly heavy rain(!) this past week. However, today felt more like spring than the middle of winter.

The moisture was welcome but it’s still very dry. In fact, today we raked the lawn, trying to reduce the level of dry grass the dogs and cats are carrying into the house. Both species love to get out and roll in the dead grass and some of it comes in with them.

Raking the lawn in January

Temperatures approached the 50 degree mark and the day was sunny with no wind, great conditions for spending some time outside!

Our pets continue to entertain us. The other night one of the cats, Cirrus, was playing with his tail. (Not the first time.) I tried to catch some of it on video and, of course, he quit just as I was starting to record him. Click on the link below to view a short clip:

Cirrus#1

Here are two of the cats, London (left) and Velvet (right) sharing a napping spot:

London and Velvet share a nap spot.

Of course they were cuter until I approached with the camera…

Both of us have been busy at work with the start of the new year. A new semester always means more work for Pam, and my fiscal budget kicks off for 2018. One of my projects, nearly complete, has been the re-coding of our company intranet site to change it from its .asp roots to straight html. I tried to find a vendor who would take on this project but no one wanted to touch it. I had to do it  myself and the resulting site has turned out well, but there are some minor tweaks still to be completed.

That sort of wraps it up; no other real news from the past week. Next week is likely to be similar but check in anyway!

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

(Pam has no additional comment this week.)

2018 is one week old. Here is what I have been doing since my last post.

Snow fell last night, a heavy, wet snow (1 – 2 inches) that packs down into slippery surfaces. Being Sunday, our little town has not plowed the roads. I did get out the John Deere and cleaned our driveway, sidewalks, and some of the neighbor’s sidewalks as well in hopes they will melt off quickly, as it is supposed to be in the low 40s later today.

Winter is the time for a few cleaning projects, particularly in the main bathroom. Light fixtures removed and cleaned, vent grill removed and cleaned, and tops of cabinets vacuumed. It is amazing how much lint accumulates in these areas. (And how long we can ignore the buildup!)

I took an ATV ride with my ATV group this past Saturday morning. With little snow in the high country, the ATV season has been extended. The area we rode in is not high in scenic quality but did traverse several forest zones from dry grasslands up through juniper and into aspen then into tall pine. It was refreshing to be out riding and we had a good group of 24 machines.

ATV group on 1-6-18 ride

My odometer indicated the loop was about 66 miles long and took us about 5 hours. All of us pack a lunch and rides include several breaks including a longer lunch break. For this trip I put on long johns under my snowmobile suit and had a sweatshirt on as well. The ATV has heated grips and heated throttle lever (a Christmas gift from Pam several years ago) so I was quite comfortable even though we were getting close to 9,000 foot in elevation. A few snowflakes made their appearance later in the ride but were welcomed, as the ongoing winter dry conditions are of concern to all of us.

Pam had to return to a work schedule without the remote work option, after enjoying two weeks off over Christmas and New Years. This only confirms that she is mentally ready to retire (me too!); getting back into the routine gets harder each time there is a vacation break more than a few days.

The kitten Pumpkin Pie was delivered to his new foster home and is reported to be fitting in very well, even though he squeezed into a small space between a built-in dishwasher and cabinet and had to be rescued. (Pam had specifically warned the foster family about small spaces around appliances!) We hope this works out well and the foster family ends up adopting Pumpkin.

The rest of the week was basically routine — going to work, watching some football, household chores. The next few months are likely to be more of the same while we wait for spring to make an appearance. Pam is looking forward to watching televised events she enjoys at the Winter Olympics in early February, particularly ice skating.

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

The outside cat colony (+ roaming ferals) is eating its way through a little more than 16 pounds of cat food per week. While feeding at this level is financially sustainable at the moment, when I segue into my semi-retirement period — not so much. An ongoing spay/neuter operation starting in February is scheduled, in cooperation with the animal shelter in nearby Rifle.  (I used to work with that shelter’s director, and she looks out for me.) I also have two ranch homes interested in some of the ferals for mousing. In times like this I always try to remind myself that the step from rescue to hoarding is a small one.

Happy Trails.

The past year – 2017 – offered us a mix of personal and professional highs and lows. Here are a few of the more important events that took place over the past year.

Craig and Dianne Paroubek visited us on our Sanderling lot over Memorial Day and we had a very enjoyable visit. (Craig is one of Pam’s two brothers.) This also marked the first use of the brush chipper I had purchased earlier in the year. After a few kinks were worked out, the chipper provided us with a large pile of chips which we spread on one of our footpaths. All in all it was an excellent weekend!

Craig (right) helping Jerry chip brush

Over the summer we semi-retired our 2001 Honda (414K miles) and purchased a 2007 Honda that would become our daily driver. After correcting a few minor problems the “new” Honda has proven to be an economical ride; we have driven it over 20,000 miles to date.

2007 Honda

August proved to be an emotional month. Pam’s best friend and previous classmate since kindergarten, Mary Hayes, succumbed to pancreatic cancer and passed away on August 15th. Mary had visited us in late 2013 and we had visited her (and husband Jeff ) during our Florida trip in 2014. Pam and Mary were very close, having attended public school together, then backpacked in Europe before both married and began families. Mary is greatly missed.

We visit Jeff and Mary Hayes at their Florida home in 2014

Professionally, 2017 had both ups and downs. Pam was notified the program allowing her the ability to work remotely a few days per week was being canceled by administration. As a result, Pam will be going to a part-time schedule at the community college beginning in January, prior to quitting entirely next year.

My work situation was somewhat better; my assistant position was filled and several major projects were completed as planned. While there are more projects in the pipeline for 2018, for the next couple months the work should be routine.

Retirement conversations are becoming more frequent. I signed up for Social Security this year! Since I am still employed I did not sign up for any benefits, just needed to get on the record for future Medicare coverage.

Other activities included attending another motorcycle rally in Colorado and a few trips to look at potential Colorado retirement properties.

Motorcycle group in Rocky Mtn Natl. Park. I am 3rd from right.

That about wraps up 2017; now we are preparing for 2018. Thanks to everyone who reads this blog and a Happy New Year to all!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Another high school friend visited Sanderling in June, plus my Aunt Doris also passed away this summer.  We have owned the Sanderling property five years, and been looking for a retirement house for two years. On the whole, my take on 2017 is — it has been a crappy year for me. (Better for Fields; he acquired expensive machinery and enjoyed his regular motorcycle trips as well as ATV outings.)

No resolutions this year; I will just be trying to figure out how to afford semi-retirement.  Although my workplace has forced the issue, maybe it’s really just The Universe telling me to “stop working already.”  I try to listen to The Universe when given a clear message. My friend Mary reinforced this same general idea in 2017 before she died – you may be only one terminal diagnosis away from the end (cheery thought), so do what makes you happy.

Happy Trails.

As I write this it is Christmas Eve day. Pam and I are at home relaxing, although Pam is going to bake a rhubarb pie later today. Yesterday she made a batch of oatmeal-raisin cookies using a new recipe and adding less sugar than specified. The cookies turned out great, possible the best batch ever.  After all, it would not be Christmas without fresh baked goodies! (Even with no sugar/medical issues, always moderation…)

Christmas will be quite low-key this year for us. We have no travel plans and what little shopping needing to be done has been done. There are the after-holiday sales, to see what we might want to add to our outdoor decorations for next year, but if we don’t go out it would not be a big loss. (Pam checks a few on-line vendors for sales now through January.) Mostly the season is a break from work, something we both need.

The main news about this Christmas is lack of snow in the high desert. We had around 1/2 inch this past Thursday morning but it has since mostly melted, giving us a snow-less Christmas for the first time in awhile. This helps with commuting and fewer icy sidewalks, but it doesn’t make the time seem very Christmas-y. Still, I enjoy coming home to our holiday lights (on timers) that we put up after Thanksgiving and not having to worry about sliding around on slick patches.

Some of my vacation time has been spent in finishing the re-coding of my web pages. All should now have the ’rounded corner’ navigation links at the top and bottom of each page and updated links that will allow the pages to load faster. Content has not changed much although there are a few new pages concerning the OC-3; these can be found on my OC-3 Repairs page and our 2017 Christmas E-card has been added to my E-cards page. During the process I re-coded pages going back to my UW-Whitewater days (which ended in 2001!) and had a chuckle looking at those early attempts to create web pages. Times and techniques have changed a lot since then.

My next post will probably be my “year in review” for my last post of 2017. Until then, Pam and I hope everyone who reads this has an enjoyable Christmas. I’ll close this post with a few around-the-house photos.

Our holiday welcome figures

Bare yard this Christmas, no snow.

Christmas tree detail

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Fields and I are having a “conversation” regarding what is a gift and what is a purchase. Buying oil and filter for a vehicle around Christmas does not make that a gift for Himself, just as buying a rug cleaning appliance around Christmas does not make that a gift for me. (I do believe this whole “need vs. want” dichotomy was muddied by “gifts” of socks and underwear during Midwest childhood Christmases past.)

In any case, we are of an age where items we need are purchased as required (and in Fields’ case — this year in particular — buying what he wants from on-line auctions).

Happy Trails.

Update: Surprise!

A fast moving storm that was supposed to affect only higher elevations dropped several inches of snow on our place giving us a white Christmas after all!

White Christmas Day, 2017, something of a surprise.

I have just a few updates to pass along this week including news on our latest foster kitten and the Oliver OC-3 tractor plus a few other small tidbits.

The kitten, Pumpkin Pie, is doing well and is exploring outside his pen. Here is a short video of him; Pam thinks he is about 8 – 9 weeks old.

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Kittens are always fun to watch at this age.

I’ve made a bit of progress with the Oliver OC-3; I had the starter cleaned, repaired, and tested and received my rebuilt magneto from the repair shop. Here are photos of these two components:

OC-3 starter

Wico brand magneto for the OC-3

I have reinstalled the starter and hope to get the magneto installed before the end of the month. Installing the magneto requires timing it with the engine and I need to find out if the engine will spin over first.

Moving on…

Our weather is gong to take a change for the worse later this week. Still no snow but the temps are going to drop below zero if the forecast is accurate. I’ll have to get the kerosene heater out and light it up to try and keep the garage above freezing for the outside feral cats’ comfort and to make sure the cars start OK. We have appreciated the above-normals we have had so far but everything is very dry; we are officially in a drought. When walking across our lawn you can feel the grass crunching under your feet. Pam is worried that without some ground moisture the 100+ bulbs she planted last fall will not bloom as they should. She’s thinking of putting together an indoor cistern arrangement for household water and doing some mid-winter flower bed “moisturizing.”

We may get some snow this Wednesday or Thursday, a 50 percent chance, but if we do it will be light and have little moisture in it. Not like Wisconsin; brother-in-law Craig posted a photo of their place under a fairly heavy coat of new snow. I guess we will just have to see what the next system bring us.

Weather forecast (Click for larger view.)

The other project completed was Christmas cards; all have been addressed, notes attached or included, and mailed. We don’t do a lot of Christmas shopping, as we tend to buy “stuff” as we need it. This makes Christmas less of an event (no gifts beneath the tree).

One financial advantage we have this year has to do with my payroll. Beginning  last January I was moved from a once-a-month paycheck to a check every two weeks. December is one of the two months out of the year where I receive a third check, most of which will end up in the savings account and be used to defray our tax bill come April.

Woo-hoo, the Denver Broncos have won two games in a row! They will still finish the season with a losing record but perhaps not the worst in the league. I have a feeling heads will roll within the Bronco organization after the first of the year.

We are looking forward to the Christmas break. The community college closes between Christmas and New Years, giving Pam almost two weeks off. I will be taking a few days of vacation as well. We might consider a day trip or two but don’t plan to do much except take it easy. That would be a pleasant change!

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Lovely to enjoy paid time off til the end of the year — only down side is getting back into the grind come January 2nd.  Maybe I’ll get a chance to pick up my uke more often.  It’s been sadly neglected of late.

Little Pumpkin Pie will be fostering with my boss starting the week after Christmas. If all goes well, it will be a foster-to-adoption arrangement.  He is one personable kitten, a total “orange” personality.

Happy Trails.

The weeks after Thanksgiving have been pretty routine. Work for both of us is a bit slower with the end of the year approaching but will pick up again after the first of the year. For Pam this means the start of a new semester and accompanying registration of students; for me, my 2018 budget will kick in and new projects will be initiated.

Weather is a constant issue this time of year. Temperatures have returned to seasonal normals, low to mid 40s for highs and low teens overnight. No snow; the weather service reports that November was the 2nd warmest and 3rd driest (0.1 inches) on record. I don’t miss the snow for commuting purposes but it would be unusual to have no snow for Christmas — a possibility this year. The upcoming forecast for the week of December 10 – 17 has no snow in it. Ski areas are not fully open; some slopes are operating with man-made snow but Aspen’s daytime highs are still in the 40 degree range and higher slopes, where snow making is not an option, are bare.

On to miscellaneous notes. Here is a screen shot of our ATV group in Cactus Park, taken by our group leader:

ATV group in Cactus Park (photo by Steve Canelle.)

I am in the front row just right of center and wearing a yellow vest.

Pam has a new kitten to care for; this one was stuck under our trailer skirting, meowing, and driving the dogs wild. Named Pumpkin Pie, this kitten is a real sweetie and purrs up a storm when petted:

7-week old Pumpkin Pie

Pam is making arrangements for first vaccinations, and then will explore kitten adoption in the new year. In fact, Pam’s supervisor is looking for a kitten and Pumpkin Pie may end up at her house. We hope for the best. Photo is a bit fuzzy; I may get a better one this weekend. (Getting a kitten to stay still for long enough to photograph can be a chore!)

Pam has completed the design of our Christmas cards; now it’is time to write notes in them and get them mailed. That is the project for the coming week. Our card list shrinks a bit every year and it seems like fewer people send cards by mail. We always include cards as part of our Christmas decor and display them throughout the Christmas season.

I have been making some stylistic changes to a few of my web pages, creating some “rounded corner” icons and playing with links. I don’t think these changes are significant but it does give me some opportunities to play with CSS style sheets and HTML coding which should make the pages more consistent and reduce the amount of code each page requires. Due to these changes and a few other underlying code changes the pages should load faster as well. If you notice these changes let me know what you think of them. (My E-cards page shows off the new ’rounded corner’ design.)

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

What would Christmas be without a kitten or two in the house? Some years I wish I knew! Looks like Pumpkin Pie might be one of a late-season litter of three; I see two tiny black fuzzballs (Butterball and Cranberry) coming to the back deck feeder on occasion.  One down, two to go.

Happy Trails.

Pam and I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving holiday. In case you missed it you can view our 2017 card here or on my E-card page.

Given that the weather was exceptionally good for this time of year with near-records being set (low to mid 60’s) the weekend was unusually active. Here are some of our activities:

I mowed our lawn and our sunbird neighbor’s lawn to clean up the last of the autumn leaves and level out the grass for the winter. I was surprised at the amount of grass that ended up in the bagger; the leaves I had expected, but there was a fair amount of grass as well. After that chore was done, I took the mower deck off the John Deere lawn tractor and put on the blade, weights, and cable chains to get the tractor ready for winter snow plowing.

The Friday after  Thanksgiving I rode with my ATV group in a place called Cactus Park. This area is south and west of Grand Junction and offers a lot of trails and some history; mostly homesteading and prospecting for uranium. The homestead we visited was old enough to have a log cabin house but new enough to have an old tractor from the ’50s on site.

Homestead log cabin in Cactus Park

Club members examine old tractor at Cactus Park homestead

We had a total of 22 machines in the group, giving me a chance to say hello to people I knew and introduce myself to some new club members. There was a mix of single seat “quads” as well as several side-by-side two-seaters and even a 4-seater that looked like a miniature Jeep. Two dogs and a couple of kids were along for the ride and it seems like everyone enjoyed the outing.

ATV group in Cactus Park the day after Thanksgiving

While I was out Pam took care of the grocery shopping and worked on making Christmas cards.

Pam working on Christmas cards

Saturday’s task was to get the outside Christmas decorations put up. We don’t have any new stuff this year but did some rearranging of a few items. “Stars” that were in our front windows last year ended up on the front of the garage, a move both of us think is an improvement. Here is a photo:

Garage lights

We don’t do a lot of indoor decorating due to the six cats and three dogs, but we generally have a small tree in the master bedroom (which is off limits to the animals) and a few other “up high” decorations that the cats and dogs can’t reach. Decorating brought our day to a close.

Sunday was a “down” day, no major projects planned. I did some minor work on the Oliver OC-3 crawler tractor and watched a little football. A walk took up some of the afternoon as I needed to work off some  Thanksgiving calories.

It was a pleasant holiday weekend. Food and weather were excellent, the ATV ride was interesting, outside decorations are up, the last of the lawn chores completed, and the John Deere LX176 garden tractor set up for the winter.  Both the Packers and the Broncos lost, the only bummer during the 4 days off.

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

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I’m hearing crying kittens in the neighborhood again.  Late Fall litters are not rare here, but those babies are in a struggle for their lives in cold weather. Kittens so small are very tricky to catch; they are usually not heavy enough to trip the trap.  It is always something.

Happy Trails.

Coal Canyon is located about 25 minutes west of our house off I-70 but I had never ridden the BLM trails in this area. Given that the BLM would be closing the gate by the end of the month I decided a Sunday morning ride would be a good way to spend the morning of November 19th.

Start of Coal Canyon

The area is not very scenic and very little remains of the coal mines that once dotted the area. The mine sites have been closed and bulldozed flat (these were pit mines, not shaft mines) so no structures remain. Still, it was a bright, if chilly, day and I looked forward to the ride.

Coal seams are present along the ATV trail and it is not hard to see why coal was mined in the area. Known as the Cameo Plant, for years a coal-fired electrical generating plant was located a couple miles away from the trailhead and used local coal as fuel. (The plant was dismantled and removed a  few years ago.)

Black coal seam along trail

The main trail offers two side trails to explore, one going up either side of the canyon. The western side trail terminates on a ridge that overlooks Grand Junction and offers interesting views of the Grand Valley.

Grand Valley, Colorado

The eastern trail just ends at a washed-out gully. Faint traces of the trail can be seen on the other side but I simply turned around and headed back to the main trail.

East trail ends at this point

The upper end of the main trail follows a wash that is passible when dry and shows signs of rock erosion from the seasonal stream that must flow through it in the spring or during times of heavy rain.

Rocks along wash show signs of erosion

Finally, after climbing out of the wash and heading uphill, the end of the main trail offered this view with Grand Mesa in the background:

Views from end of Coal Canyon trail

I would rate couple of places along this trail “difficult” but fun because of that. The western side trip involved getting up a rock-strewn trail where you had to keep your momentum going so it was taken a bit faster than my normal pace. A spot on the main trail involved going up a pretty steep slope that had rocks embedded in it; experience loading the ATV into the truck (45 degree angle on the ramps) helped me get up the slope and over the rocks. In these places you just have to go into 4-wheel drive, low range, and trust your tires to pull you up and over the obstacles.

The main trail is not long, less than 9 mile each way, but with the side trips I put on 28.8 miles during the two- hour ride. This will not be one of my favored routes — it does not have the scenic and historical significance I prefer — but it is a nice outing for a half-day ride close to home.

I was surprised to see how much traffic this trail was getting this day. I met a pair of dirt bike riders, several horse riders, a couple of mountain bikers, and an entire family on bicycles heading up the trail along with 3 other utility vehicles and two 4×4 rigs at different points. Most of the high country trails are closed now either from snow or seasonal closures and Coal Canyon was still open, making it a destination. This is a lot more traffic than I usually see on most of the trails I ride.

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

Pam’s Penny’s Worth:

At least it got him out of the house.

Happy Trails.