Year in Review

Welcome!

Welcome to all who might be looking at this page as a result of our Christmas card, which included the address of this web site and blog. Pam and I wish you the best of the season!

A year ago this blog did not exist. I started it last spring (February 23)  as a means of letting extended family and friends know what we’re doing and what’s going on with us. So, what happened in the last year? Plenty. Some good, some bad; the year was a real mixed bag.

My Dad died on December 27th, 2010. As that anniversary approaches he’s on my mind a lot. We also lost Pam’s Aunt Angela in the last year (and her husband Uncle John a year prior). They were among the few relatives who had visited us when we lived in Arizona and here in Colorado. These losses have been low points.  Additionally, Pam’s father is in the late stages of Alzheimer’s at a care facility in Wisconsin.  Adding to the list: A good friend for 30 years, Elinor, from our Nederland mountain living days, recently had a stroke.  We’re in that stage of life, I guess, where the previous generation is starting to leave us and it hurts to lose them.

On the up side, Pam’s sister Becky had both of her daughters, Caitlin and Lilly, graduate from their respective colleges. Way to go! My sister Kitt (Carolyn) visited us in early June for a few days. We enjoyed her visit and the opportunity to catch up with each other. Pam’s friend Sarah from our Madison, Wisconsin days, was able to meet with us while she was in Colorado; her home is in Rhode Island.  Sarah’s son was married this year, and she had a lot of photos to show us. It was good to see her again. My cousin Marcia became a grandmother, and is delighted to have a grandbaby. There is a whole new generation growing up from nieces and nephews who have married and started families.

Our kids, Felicity and Toby, did OK last year. Both are employed and making it on their own. I guess that counts for something in this economy!  Felicity is living in Portland, Oregon, and enjoys city life. Toby is living in Longmont, Colorado, which is north-west of Denver. Both are in good health and trying to make their way in the world – or at least live above the poverty line. Felicity is working part-time and trying to develop her web site design and maintenance company. Toby is working at a manufacturing plant that makes small metal parts for a variety of products. Neither is living high off the hog, but they seem to enjoy what they’re doing. That counts for something.

Most of you know I ride a motorcycle, and have since before I was married. (We celebrated our 37th anniversary this August.) I did ride to the California coast in June, and co-sponsored a rally in Durango, Colorado in July. We had people from many Western states attend, and a good time was had by all.

In a similar vein, I’ve been working on my ’76 Scout II 4×4, my 2001 Mountain Max snowmobile, and was able to purchase an ATV. I enjoy all 3 rides in addition to riding my motorcycle.

Pam continues her animal rescue work. We fostered kittens again this year, our 19th foster litter since 2004. The last 2 kittens were returned to their shelter about 2 weeks ago, where they were put up for adoption. Many get listed on-line at www.petfinders.com. If you are ever looking for a pet, this site is a good place to visit! We also acquired a 3rd rescue dog in November. Auburn Jo is mostly Spaniel, but has some Italian Greyhound and some unknown mix in her genetic make-up. She is settling in well. Between the fosters, our pets, and the outside cats that more-or-less call our place home, we often look like Pet Central. 140 pounds of cat litter per week, anyone?

Pam and I embarked on a quest in 2011 to find a piece of Colorado high country recreational land we could afford to purchase. Although the town we live in is not large, neither of us is particularly fond of living in it, and we feel the need to get out on a frequent basis. We thought we’d found our “dream land” but ran into issues of access. The parcel we wanted is reached by a road that runs through BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land, and the road is not considered public. So, the search continues.  Land purchase in the high country demands a long learning curve, and apparently we’re still learning.  Maybe we’ll find “it” in 2012?

We encourage you to look at the various pages on our site. There are separate pages that talk about most of the things I’ve mentioned so far. There are  Kids, Cats, Dogs, and Jer’s Toys pages, with pictures, that go into more detail.  You can get to them from the main page.  Get there by clicking the  “AppleAttic Home” tab at the top of this page, and from there visit the “specialty” pages by clicking on the tabs at the top of the page. (Here is a shortcut.)  Many of the photos can be clicked on to open a larger version. If you click on photos in the slide shows they will open into a larger version with captions and comments.

If you really have time to kill, you can go back through my previous posts on this blog! 🙂  Most of the posts have photos, so you can pick and choose what you care to read based on what looks interesting.

If you wish to leave a comment, or read comments left by others, click on the little blue dot at the bottom-right of each of these posts. A page will come up where you can enter your comments and send them to us. We would like to hear from you! I generally post a couple of times a month, so check in now and then in 2012 to see what’s new.

May this Christmas  be a good one for you and your families, wherever you all may be.

Home for Christmas

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