Casino Vistas by Day

Friday evening I took pictures from this same viewpoint. I was down to my last three cigs today when I pulled in at the 789 Casino site. It being close to noon and Senior Tuesday. I thought I would try the free lunch and free gambling voucher the Northern Arapaho tribe offers us Senior Citizens. It was packed- every seat had a senior butt in it and people were chatting away and enjoying themselves immensely. So I scooted to the new Casino site which is much larger. The Cafe area and a larger meeting room were pretty full. I saw a number of people I hadn't seen in years. It was great fun. We were all chowing down on Chicken Penne Pasta with Alfredo Sauce, a salad (Newman's Own Salad dressing), a roll and a beverage -there is such a thing as a free lunch. I cashed in my gambling chit and gave it to Charlie, Lynda's dad. In fact I ate with Lynda and Charlie. Lynda and Polly paid the vet $200.00 to take Honey's sibling off their hands and adopt it out. Wouldn't stop chasing stock. ("Uhoh," says I.) But they have had a good summer. Their new horses are doing fine. Charlie built a shelter for them at their place on the Sweetwater. He is a going concern. He takes two days off-Monday he gambles at the Shoshone Rose Casino near Lander and he comes to Wind River on Tuesdays. Lynda might have been being a companionable daughter or she might have been chaperoning. She is warmhearted.

Clicking will embiggen these pictures nicely.

The Wind River and the back of one of the St. Stephen's Mission buildings. Speaking of the Mission, I ran across a trove of History of St.Stephens as kept by the nun s who lived and worked there since 1892. As I knew many of the them who were there over the last 35 years, I found it a fascinating read. Some dynamic, some devout, some sweet, some peppery, women in the lot. And the legend of the nunnery having to be abandoned because of snakes is the Gospel Truth! Here is the link: http://www.dioceseofcheyenne.org/history/WY_OSF_1892_ST_STEPHENS.html

Some good leaf color along the river. These pictures taken by the 18X Olympus from the bluff at the casino.

Lori called. She caught something flu-like at the wedding in Texas. She is still coughing a little. They are in a quandary about the new business and the uncertain economic times. May do it, may not. We had a good long chat. For their anniversary they are taking a Northeast cruise to Nova Scotia to see fall colors. Several days they leave the ship for bus tours of forests. Sounds fabyoolous. So good to have a conversation with her.

Peachy Keen Day

I received a nice email note from Janet this morning and I got nervy and asked her pick us both up some of those peaches from Mr. D's on her way home from work. Bless her heart, she got 'er done and that sent me up the road to their house where we gabbed and watched Guy hook his baler up to the John Deere. We discussed the bailout a bit. His agricultural view of economics is very interesting to me. Globalization is sticking it to farmers/ranchers just like it is sending good paying jobs to places where labor is cheap. I'm sure right smack dab in the middle of Wyoming is not the only place in the country where the words "700 billion, crooks, assholes, richly deserved, greedy bastards," and "it is going to get worse," were uttered today. Gave them a copy of Babette's Feast to have and to watch.

Hollis came back from work and the better I get to know that dude, the more I see to like. He is so good with animals. His old dog, Tubby, is the same type of dog as Buster only the blue heeler variety instead of the red. Hollis is so sweet with the old, nearly blind, nearly deaf, boy and he put him through the paces with his little tricks and the dog was eating it up. Another hound that was totally unformed is now so responsive to commands you almost think he is human. Some people have the gift with animals. Hollis is one of those. Since I always show up with treats, the dogs like to see me visit too. Little Lily is my buddy. She stands like a meerkat and grins at me.

Gave me hope for Honey. I blew $15 on "ask an expert" website about Honey not coming when called. I got some things to try and she seems to be responding. It is the "nothing is free" program in which the dog gets nothing without doing a compliant thing or a trick. Honey was having a great time. Lots of treats and one on one. We will see.

The powers that be at John Prince Park-clear to the head shed, really like the John Prince Campers website and said go forth. So I am going forth. That was reinforcing-pleasing. I got one of the linked blogs going and Adsense is operational on it.

I was really hungry for homemade spaghetti so I had that going when Janet asked me to stay for stuffed green peppers. I was sorely tempted because I love them but I am weird-once I have my "mouth set on a taste" that is what is going to happen.

In Search of Some Color

Extraordinarily, we have not yet had a hard freeze which by this time of year has normally sent the leaves into riots of color. We are having some golds here in the valley. I thought higher up will surely be more color. And there was but not much more. Click on these pictures to see them enlarged. The excursion was pretty much an impulse. I had enough of purposeful activity and just needed a field trip- I had already declared a holiday but had not acknowledged it. The dogs loaded and seemed to enjoy the outing. Buster saw too many horses and big dogs in the canyon and asked to just take a nice nap in the van. So he got to do that. Honey was at the end of a taut leash the whole time which made taking pictures kind of difficult but we managed to have a nice walk. She slept in the van on the way home. That was good.

We had lunch on the way to the Canyon. Cheesewheels, which are a local specialty of an independent drive-in, The Dairy Dee-Lite, in Lander are a rare treat. They are essentially all cholesterol and salt but very tasty. A good hamburger pattie, a piece of cheese, a dip in a batter, and a swim in a deep fat fryer yields a cheesewheel. I had a lemonade. Mr. D's grocery store has quality produce of some kind most of the time. I bought four tree-ripened Utah peaches and was on my way home when
I bit into the first one. It was so good it brought tears to my eyes. A nice Sunday treat of a day.

Air biscuit attack! Cops charge man for passing gas - Salt Lake Tribune

Air biscuit attack! Cops charge man for passing gas - Salt Lake Tribune

The Salt Lake Tribune carried the wire story from West Virginia. It is pretty funny on its own merits but the reader comments, once agan, are choice.

Dinner and a Movie

This was a happy day that just happened. First, I got a decent sleep. I was just tinkering with stuff. Came a knock at the door and it was my good Jehovahs. We talked and laughed for 30 minutes easily. The "lad" Witness looks young for his age. He said he was a senior-I would have guessed freshman on the outside. Honey must have very sensitive antennae because she did not harrass these missionaries at all.

It was just a laid back day. Reading on the deck, being with the pups, beautiful fall weather and a certain stillness about the landscape.

I have been collecting some Foreign movies on DVD. Some are my favorites, a couple of new ones-surprisingly inexpensive. If I can arrange equipment, perhaps there will be an outdoor Foreign Film Festival at John Prince Park this winter. Curiously, a lot of them revolve around food-old person porn. I-re-watched Babette's Feast, winner of the 1987 Oscar for Best Foreign Fim. It is a Danish film thought-provoking and a stunner. While I was watching the preparation and consumption of Babette's feast, I enjoyed my own. A nice little pork loin, applesauce, Janet's new potatoes, and her corn, oven roasted in the shucks. Mighty tasty. A really nice time.

Memory Hook: Paul Newman died at age 83 of Cancer. Nothing to be sad about after a long and rich life but a whole lot to be grateful for. I'm glad we walked the planet together. He, charmingly discounted his beauty-he just didn't see it, and didn't take credit for his genetic or Providential gifts. There are probably a lot of men like me who wondered what it would have been like to be inside his skin looking out. Not really envy but admiration and a keen sense of the power of those looks. He was a prince of a fellow in later life.

No Reservations

No reservations and we still got in. I had been wanting to take Guy and Janet and Hollis for some beef-to spend my Honorarium for judging photos at the Fremont County Fair. Inclination, schedules and opportunity coincided and we "got 'er done." We went to the casino "Red Willow Room." and dined rather well: Prime rib, filet, lobster tail, shrimp scampi, spinach with raspberry vinaigrette, potato of choice,the delicious mixed grill vegetables, and the over-the-top (mistake) Mexican chocolate mousse and chocolate sundae. The good company and fine food raised our spirits. Fortunately, we overshot the honorarium budget so I bought and we now have an excuse to try again. Janet brought me a sack of homegrown veggies from her garden-just enough so I can eat things fresh-potatoes, corn, green pepper, turnip. This is a treat.

The vistas from the Casino site appeal to me so I paused after dinner to take a few snaps (no cameras in the Casino so you will just have to imagine.) Had the night not sneaked up on us the views might have been different. The pups got some good scraps and were patient waiters. I had parked them in the shade of an RV and noted that the Casino provides plug-ins for RV's. Nice touch.

We didn't gamble a dime but I did pick up some Casino pens as souvenirs. They are great pens. It is fun to see who is gambling. Friday night, the place was booming and they were still streaming in as we streamed out.

Going to the Mat With the Brat

Early on today I heard Honey barking at a distance and went looking. She was having a fine time harrassing Fegler's just returned cattle in the corral. I yelled at her but she seemed to take that as encouragement to do even more. I finally got her out and back to the house. Less than thirty minutes later she was at it again. The quickest way to doggie heaven is tormenting cows in this neck of the woods so I was in high dudgeon. I would get close and she would duck under the fence and smile at me. This went on for awhile and she was starting to realize there was a problem. I got her back to the yard without calling her and did a takedown-flat on her back, scolding all the while. She did not like it one bit, nor did I. She has been good as gold all the rest of the day. As I was working in the van I felt her squirm past and get in, beating Buster who was all upset she might get his spot. I have no illusion it is done but the reminder seems to have been salutary.

Some days I take my diuretic and wonder if it is working. Today there was no doubt. It was wearying. Twice in twenty minutes at Wal-Mart.Blood sugar is high but just borderline. I was going to go to town tomorrow but since the dogs were in...I had to replace the jumpstart/backup power supply. The old one is several years old and it seemed weak when I charged it up recently-it worked but faded fast. It finally faded period. I will re-jigger some wiring too, as a wall socket is not going to be available lots of days. Charge it on the go. There are lots of gadgets to light up but they all draw in the milliamp range.

The John Prince Campers website is coming along. Lots of trial and error and more do-overs than I anticipated. It should get easier as I learn more. A long way to go but there is enough to share: http://sites.google.com/site/jppcampers/

Of course putting the swamp cooler away produced a roasty toasty day after the morning chill left.

End of the Season

The Swamp cooler was drained, oiled and put to bed for the year. It hasn't run for weeks and the air leaks around it were providing a good draft as the temperatures dip into the low 30's at night. I caulked a window that seemed a little loose and filled a gap between wood and glass on another. "This old house," is 5 years older than I am. There is a storm window to install for that window- all the rest are self storing so I am getting buttoned up.

The crisp morning put me in the mood to cook so I made a pot of "chicken sink zuppa." My own recipe with an Italian accent and all members of the basic food groups, except for dairy and chocolate. Buster loves it and begs for more, Honey thought it was fine. She has been on an eating jag- the vet warned me the prednisone might do that but she has also done this before as she has a growth spurt. We took an after dark trip to town as the bottled water was gone. Honey got in without a leash-but she had to discover Buster was already ensconced. I did price checks between Wal-Mart and Dollar Tree. Dollar Tree wins most of the time but Wally matches some.

I paid my property taxes and am pleased to report that I am within a month or two of being dang near debt free. I vowed when I got on Medicare, the heart attack fund would be raided to pay off credit card debt. I was preserving that lump by using the credit cards. And I was trying to live off my Social Security alone. My pension goes to another bank to provide a ready reserve. Without the credit card payments I can almost exist on the Social Security check in a basic way-property taxes, car insurance premiums, license plates, etc, are examples of budget busters. The pension fund buys my fun, gifts, travel and Florida stay. My mom had a great attitude about her bills, large and small: "I'm just glad I have the money to pay them." Ditto. Which leads me to...

I found this satirical web site on the Paulson bailout plan of Wall Street. It fantasizes that we citizens might be accorded the same favor:

http://www.buymyshitpile.com/

It makes its point- the bailout as presently structured buys securities that are worthless or of unknown value. Congress was stampeded into an invasion of Iraq. I hope they will think this one through. I was shocked, shocked! I say, to see Wyoming's Senior Senator Mike Enzi among the skeptics for once.

And I do want to know who was supposed to be minding the store all along and why we should trust them, of all people, to formulate a solution. I guess it makes me cranky to have us "little folks" have to live by one standard while the big money people seem to live by no standards and get to walk. I want to see some perp walks. Lehman brothers set aside $2.5 billion for executive bonuses before declaring bankruptcy. Now there is shock and awe. I hate to say it but I remember Grover Norquist who is to conservative financial policy what William Kristol is to neo-con foreign policy, saying the only way to curb federal spending , "Is to starve the beast to death." Consider it starved. Was it on purpose? Did we truly "misunderestimate" George W Bush? I am still trying to figure out the compassionate part of "Compassionate Conservative."

Webbing

I worked intensely on the Web today, creating a website for John Prince Park Campers. There is a strong likelihood that the park will have WiFi web connectivity this year. I am a bit skeptical of the effectiveness of the setup as described but I thought a web page for the campers might be a good thing. Besides, it may actually generate some Google cash for me. Wouldn't that be amazing?

We did stir our stumps and go to town. Honey was a little reluctant but I feigned crying and she ponied right up. Had good treats and no long stays so I hope this was a plus. Buster is always ready to go.

Jason sent a long email from the airplane he was traveling on from Texas to Florida. He and Lori went to the wedding of her nephew Blake and his bride Kalen. It turned out to be a big wedding and Lori was delighted to see practically everybody on her family and friend list. They were really up from doing that. But he was really pumped-his offer was accepted on a new business. He and Lori will be owning a Charter Boat business in Naples, FL. The opposite coast but about the same distance as from my house to Casper. Lori is going to decamp to Naples for awhile-there is a lot to do in a short period of time. He is going to stay with Campus Management so this will be in addition to. They are going to be so busy I may just have to drive over there to see them this winter (tough duty). This is the link for the present business:

http://www.tincityboats.com/

Looks pretty exciting to me too.

Amusements

Brother Rich's grandson Tristan is a happy baby and a handsome guy. His grandpappy always has nice things to say about him and is looking forward to Sunday brunch with him tomorrow. Tristan has doting parents. Tom is over the moon with his son. Had a good long chat with Rich tonight. Val was at the office catching up the books. They spent the morning as part of a group that rejuvenates Casper's riverwalk- picking up trash, beautifying, and planting 92 trees. Rich is going to have a hip replacement in October-long overdue. He has confidence in his doctor and has done his research.

I had quite a bit to chat about too. Miss Honey had a rush to the Vet yesterday. She had been playing chicken with the coyote yesterday-he was within sixty feet of the house when I went out to see what the barking was all about. Wily took right off. Then about thirty minutes later Honey came in and plopped right at my feet with her head on my foot. This happens at night sometimes but not in the morning. I looked at her and her head was swelling like a pumpkin. She and Buster loaded right up and I called the vet on the way. "Either a bee sting or a rattlesnake bite." I was surprised to learn the treatment is exactly the same for either. Getting the swelling down is the big thing. Dogs don't usually die from rattlesnake bites unless their breathing is stopped by the swelling. There can be lingering effects of the venom that can show up anytime later and can damage the heart. She looked like a Shar-pei by the time we got treatment. She got an intravenous cortisone shot and is on a course of Cipro and prednisone. By this morning she was nearly normal and is fine tonight. I have checked her carefully and have seen bees and yellowjackets out and about the last couple of days so I am thinking bee sting. I want to think bee sting.

I took both dogs to a party tonight at Halls. Some friends were up from Casper and Delores made delicious tortilla soup and grilled ham and swiss sandwiches and a fruit platter. Corona and Amber Bock beer (I paid off my contest winner). We had some good laughs. We searched a DVD movie of Bait Shop-starring Bill Engvall, shot in Florida and featuring our friend Jayne as an extra. We had to look quickly but we found her. What a hoot- Jayne's debut at age 68. Now she is a hanger on at the studios in Orlando in the snow bird season. This movie went straight to DVD but her other one is in theaters. The dogs did well- played nice with a cute little terrier named Arnie but Honey needs a lot of socialization. A very pleasant evening. Nice to be with nice people and hear of their adventures.

A True Wyoming Obituary

Casper Star-Tribune Online - Obituaries

Worth Reading for the Entertainment Value.

Epiphany

My Grandpa Mason, the only one I really knew because he lived to a ripe old age of 96, used to drive me nuts. He was a great man , well read, gifted as an artist, musician and craftsman: unusual traits for a banker. When he would approach a task, in the years I knew him best, he seemed so slow, plodding, that I would roll my eyes, tap my toes, and before long, escape. In the midst of my current projects it suddenly hit me- I am becoming Grandpa Roy. Now I am driving myself nuts. What I would have done in an afternoon fifteen years ago gets so major and the effort, with the hands that drop things, the eyes that are not so sharp, the dexterity not so nimble, makes me want to swear. Not Grandpa's "pshaw," "For Cat's Sake, or "fiddlesticks," but real nasty swear words that we thought he didn't know until he had a stroke one day. He knew them all right.

Nonetheless, progress is being made. The van's equipage going to be unique if I can persevere. When it rolled around to supper time, I did not have much to work with so I stopped the organizing and put things in a pile, loaded up the hounds and we had a pleasant sojourn to McDonald's for some health food. Honey gets better with every time and is picking her spot so she can watch the scenery now. I thought it might be all right to leave them in the van while I made a quick foray into Wally World so we would have a choice on Friday. She had started to chew on a roll of paper towels but I was grateful it wasn't upholstery.

I called the Oregon kids to suss out if a visit would be welcome and when. Audrey was getting ready to camp out in the back yard. She has done this before with a little friend. They make it through the night. The new puppy was going along. They are in love with their puppy. He is a snuggler. Matt says he is like Gumby. You can position him and he stays-just likes to be close.
Early October for a visit. Jason is treating Matt to a Tony Robbins workshop in Orlando in late October.

Progress

The Ford Van project is coming together. I now can get horizontal if I am careful which way I position the bulk. The electrical systems are nearly complete. One 12 volt system for running down the road. One 12 volt system when stopped, one 120 volt system when parked or attached to my Yamaha generator. The latter system is a hybrid which can run 12 volt appliances. Emergency heat and light is in place. Refrigerator (Koolatron) is ready. Storage potentially has rhyme and reason. Dogs have places to be and can move a little. Aside from long transits, two additional people can ride. Buster moved right in and spent the day while I worked. I found Honey settled in comfortably on her own, after I came back from break. We took a little spin to get dinner and after a little coaxing she loaded! As they shared Crab Rangoon bits on the way home and seemed to have a fine time, we may be over the hump. We will take frequent enjoyable trips from now until the time we head for Oregon next month. That will be the real shakedown cruise.

The camper chair is complete: space blanket enhanced mattress pad, space blanket enhanced blanket, padding, pillow, mosquito netting, rainfly, reading light, radio/lantern, ashtray, cupholder. And...it folds up, fits in its storage pouch ( large Hefty bag) and fits between the bike rack and back of the Van!

It is tempting to do a little vagabonding.

God Bless Google!

The Honey-Bear was droopy today. She came in last night and coaxed Buster to go out guarding. He enjoyed that for awhile-there was something out there. Honey was howling in a sort of amateur way. Then Buster came in and shortly thereafter Honey came in and acted very much as if she had bitten off more than she could chew. She sallied forth a couple of more times with a similar result so I just shut the door and we were all safe in our log house. She did not object and in fact was ready to snuggle. They seemed fine this morning but she was draggy-off her chow after their early run and I was wondering what she might have eaten or what had happened. She is fine tonight and full of beans. This picture was snapped with the Cell phone when she was being all moody.

The Cell phone picture is what prompts kudos to Google. Verizon offers no service without charge. You take a cell phone picture, it costs you 20 cents to send it or do anything with it and cell phone pictures aren't, as a rule, all that great. Enter Google: They have a new service (FREE) where you can email to a private mailbox and it gets posted to your Web Album in a "drop box." From there on it is yours to do with as you please. Now I can post or email pictures as I please, no additional charge. Were I to share a picture from my phone it would be 20 cents per recipient. That is 20 cents for me to send and 20 cents for you to receive. Thanks to Google, no charge. With the Q9c I can get a picture off the phone when I tether it but with regular cell phones they just stay on the phone until you delete them. Very limiting. Good on Google.

These days are starting pretty chilly, then warming nicely. All critters, including me, are busy prepping for winter. The Sandhill cranes are forming little squadrons and buzzing the house. The Wild Canaries have been a stitch. They have discovered my nice fat currants. The bushes are alive with them and they dart straight up flashing their golden bellies. They are so excited. Maybe they are getting looped. Sunday morning a local Eagle was scouting the 80- seemed to be sizing up Honey who was busily patrolling the ground. I think she is too big now but some damage could be done.

One of these first days I am going to bust out of here and go take pictures of something new.

I try to avoid politics in this Blog but with the extraordinary events in the economy, I find it fascinating that the great banking institutions are so eager to embrace socialism when it comes to themselves and saving their own asses. Not one nickel for unwed mothers but trillions for Wall street. What a difference 8 years has made in this country. Now all we need is for China to call in its notes, or simply decide the Euro is a better deal than the dollar (and it is) and we will be happy to be making Nikes for 30 cents an hour. Buh Bye, Lehman Brothers- 158 years young. Hang on AIG, I don't know how much of my retirement is dependent on you. Might be time to resurrect the garden.

Plugging Along

It was right nippy last night but a NOAA weather check says things will get warmer. I was busy and productive yesterday and part of today. Partly to keep moving to keep the blood sugar down, though a little common sense tweaking of the Metformin seems to have helped that the most, but mostly to get stuff done. Today provided a little revelation-I ate two bites of Tony's Pizza-from the leftover meat half I got for the hounds, and I had a pounding heart almost immediately- nitrates? allergy? MSG? Something made me feel lousy. Also it appears the naps may be a result of low blood pressure. I cannot draw enough blood to get a glucose test after a nap. I turn into a turnip.

While it is too early to assess mortality from hurricane Ike, I can see why some folks elect to stay. It is the Chicken Little syndrome. Ike was supposed to the biggest, baddest storm since 1900. It turned out to be no such thing. But officialdom has to prepare for the worst- I can see their side too. Media hype gets in there also.

I finally took Buster on a long awaited ride in the car. Honey was a pill and wouldn't go. Then when we got back from the store she was a complete pill-just naughty and on a tear. We had to have a little chat and a nap together.

My Republic of Tea order came yesterday. Having finally gotten off anything carbonated in a can, I was burning through the flavored tea bags like crazy. I looked locally but nothing really compares. At that, some flavors are better than others. Some I will drink for health but Blackberry Sage is my favorite for taste, and it is healthful too.

You can probably tell my blogger friend in Casper and I razz each other a little.
He recounted the lost $60 tale on his blog and in passing let on he is a little worried about my frugality being a necessity. For some of us "beating the man" at his own game is the game. My friend Marilu exults in 13 cent wardrobes from the thrift store while paying big money for their Florida winter rent and wining and dining damn well. For me, whatever you don't spend, you get to keep-until something with batteries comes along.

Hafta Day

I spent the day, not grudgingly because I enjoyed accomplishing things, doing some of the have- to-do's. I did some maintenance on the storage/trailer house. Pruned a few branches, cleaned up a few messes. I gathered the necessary stuff to go to the Courthouse in Lander and licensed the fleet. I bought a Tony's BBQ chicken pizza and ate a slice, taking the long way home-I have to keep an eye on the neighborhood. A few improvements out there but not many. We are starting to get some fall color- I will go for pictures soon. If it is changing here, the mountains are already in progress. When I got home, I was foggy in the head and moving slowly. I broke out the glucometer and had a nasty surprise. I suspected I was low. I was way high. I can't really say a total surprise because I have been wondering. My vision has been variable, the naps, though much fewer, still occur, and a few other things have been warnings but I have been taking my Metformin and not worrying too much. Also, I note from the Blog, I am missing a lot of typos. I find some later and wonder how I didn't see them. Back to multiple stabs and testing/charting before I go see the Doctor.

After his morning romp, which was a little later due to the rains last night, Buster has been reluctant to go out. He might be hearing thunder but he bears watching. Maybe Honey is getting too overbearing. She starts up with me sometimes. We had a leash session today and she does pretty well. They seemed happy when I went to fetch them this morning for brunch.

Only In Wyoming?

Back to town to get the Dodge worked on. I say worked on because the parting words of the Service Manager were not encouraging. We are going to the mat.

But before the discouraging words I went to the Trailhead-I had lunch today. I no sooner got settled when my yesterday waitress started to visit and I reviewed my yesterday breakfast choices for her-then she said I would be happy and I said "You found my $60." They had. I had been two more places when I made the discovery yesterday and thought it no use to call. Cash is usually gone in a New York minute. But the two waitesses found it, preserved it, refused a reward. I am a good tipper but I outdid myself today. Pretty refreshing and I like to think a "Wyoming" thing.

A gray day that finally bore rain and chilliness but not before I got some outdoor chores done. I feel like it could snow any day now.

A nice bonus of Richard being married is I no longer get a nightly phone call. I figured out a long time ago they were not for my benefit. Richard can't stand to be alone. Now we have a weekly or twice weekly call and we have things to talk about. A real conversation about events. Much nicer-quality over quantity- less is more- yada, yada.

Something dangerous this way came. Last night was warm and sultry so the curtain dog door was open. Honey was out but pretty quiet. Suddenly she was on the bed and panting-excited, she wanted me to go out and I did. Buster all of a sudden erupted. I could see nothing. They stayed out and Buster's alarm bark was in full voice. The neighbor dogs were also agitated in every direction. We occasionally get a bear or mountain lion coming down the river. I suspect but do not know that something along that line made a traversal of our property. I stayed up for awhile and folded. The Honey bear crept in the bed sometime in the night-a stealth snuggler.

BUT, I am not like my friends who spent some time in Story, Wyoming a few weeks ago and found animal scat so impressive in the yard where they stayed, that they took it back to Casper, contacted the Game and Fish Department, who called in their head Turd Inspector who pronounced its origin as a large deer albeit one who had been dining on tall grass and flowers. I didn't even know you could do that. Would have loved to hear the phone call. That is another thing that is good about Wyoming, to twist Will Rogers' famous aphorism "We are all quirky except on different topics."

("Everybody is ignorant, except on different subjects." W. Rogers)

New Grandpuppy

Eve was kind enough to send snaps of our new Grandpuppy, Dmitri. I think the bonding is coming along beautifully.

I arrived early for my appointment to have the Dodge Van air conditioning re-re-fixed. I strolled downtown, had breakfast, and came back 1 .5 hours later and it was still sitting. I am starting to feel like they are playing with my head. I'll try again tomorrow. After that, I lawyer up.

I took the Kindle to breakfast at the Trailhead and was reading the Annie Proulx Wyoming stories. It was a surreal experience. I could raise my eyes and see about a half dozen people who could populate her stories. Even more noteworthy, I didn't get any syrup on the Kindle. Ain't I a big boy?

I worked on the "camp chair." I used a hobby fixative and safety pins to put a shiny space blanket on a plush throw- those cheap ones they sell in truck stops and Wal-Mart. Folded in half and used as a mattress pad to stop the air from getting through the mesh on the chair, it gives the sensation of being an electric blanket- heat builds. Pretty cool, er warm. Caused a little doze on this cool fall day.

Are You Still Here?

After many years in a pretty public position, and more than several retired and spending several months a year in Florida, I get the question about once a week from somebody long unseen: "Are you still here?" I ran into a newbie retiree this morning in Wal-Mart. Well, we retirees shop during the day. Our schedules and patterns change and we see different people but we are still here. It was very nice to run into Cheryl. She and her husband Chuck and I go way back. We came the same year and he was head for the local counselling Center and I was the head of Special Education. They have always been very kind to me-because that is who they are. We were just about to sit down for dinner at their house one evening and Cheryl said I will be right back. She always cooked more and took dinner to an an elderly couple who lived at least a mile away. She is a Catholic in the best sense of the word, Chuck is more like me- wary of organized religion but open to the spiritual. Anyway we had a great visit between the soap and toilet paper aisles in Wal-Mart. Their son Steve is divorced, lives in Montana and has a good job. Daughter Katie is back from her appointment at the Max Planck institute in Germany with a German husband. Katie had two weddings this summer. They are settled in Boston. Life does happen to the offspring. Very interesting to watch.

I installed a little program I had on the old Motorola Q phone on the new one. Had to purchase the upgrade. Verizon is no longer a gatekeeper to the Internet on the phone modem. I pay for the "unlimted" plan that they tried to limit so it is all aboveboard.

I have a new Grandpuppy! I will meet him in Oregon soon. A pound puppy that Audrey was certain she wanted. Likely half Lab and half Rottweiler. Pretty mellow at this point. Matt took him to Eugene for his checkup. Matt got a "sorta release" for work. The doc says light duty. The county says no light duty here. The work is not physically taxing so we will just see how this sorts out.

I had to call Poison Control. Miss Honey chewed the child-proof cap off my diuretic. There were just a few in the bottle. They said if she hadn't had a seizure by now she wasn't going to. It reaches full strength in two hours-don't I know it. She is fine- full of it.

Sunday Musings

I went to the church of "Sit On The Deck and Admire Creation" this morning. It put my mind in a better place than it was yesterday when I was cranky with two people. They can't help being stupid. Ooops, I'm backsliding again.

I fiddled with my gadgets. Last night I downloaded some Grieg from my European site. It really is a good deal-the music is owned outright and it yours to do with as you please. It was a massive download-280 MB in a zip file. I had heard the ending of a Grieg piece on a radio station from Seattle (KING) I get on my phone and I wanted this music. Late Romantic early 20th century- lush and harmonious. So I put it on the phone, and two computers and listened to it as I read and did laundry and prepared meals for the critters. I'm on another food fad: the meal must be prepared using the Popcorn setting on the microwave. That is 2 minutes and thirty seconds on high. Perfect for ground turkey, omelets, chili dogs, etc. and about the amount of time I want to spend cooking.

My Florida Finlander friend forwarded this link the other day-it was pretty good and not too dirty to share for once:

http://thefiftiesandsixties.com/CarsWeDrove.htm

I found it to be a nice walk down memory lane.

It is getting too cold to leave the door open all night so I have been trying to outwit Honey and have her stay in. She usually settles down and will come snuggle on the bed in the night. Buster always distances himself after the petting stops but Honey wants to stretch out next to, and I like the warmth. The downside is she is ready to romp about 4 or 5 in the morning. I keep fast forwarding to Florida where her life will be much more constrained. I am a little worried. Buster knows and likes his routines down there but he is an older dog. Honey has to go about 50 yards away to take a dump. They don't make leashes that long. Buster was pretty private too and we got through that.

The hummingbirds vamoosed last week sometime and the bugs have been vastly reduced by the cold...... Yippee.

Puttering and Tinkering

Fall is in the air. The dogs are too frisky and I have that fall "getting ready for winter" restlessness. My camping chair project is working out in a Rube Goldberg/Red Green way. A sturdy wire frame makes an upper-body canopy for mosquito netting and rain fly (show me $1.00 shower curtain liners, and I'll find a use for them.) I believe the dogs will find adequate shelter beneath the chair. A bit dorky, yes. Do I give a darn? No.

The new phone replacement/upgrade has spawned a spurt of gadget mania-with mixed emotions. The new model has some improvements but I have both resented and enjoyed getting it up to speed. I would much rather have just continued on with the old one. Re-downloading and installing paid-for software and literature after a year's forgetting has been a little frustrating. But I think I am close to being up to to speed. I was dreading keyboarding 168 phone book/contact entries and called Radio Shack. They have a machine! I put the sunroof back on the VW and took advantage of the opportunity. Unfortunately it put them in last name first- an adjustment. Verizon decided that using this phone for a tethered modem would merit a $15.00 a month premium. I snottily declined. The old phone worked with this and it is clear that Verizon wants the standard fee to be for email only-so cleverly they have hidden their web software. I have developed very satisfactory workarounds. I didn't want the old phone to crap out on me- I don't see why my loss should be compounded. So there!

Matt called and we had a good long gab. His company has a security job guarding the migrant pear-pickers. So he was being Check-point Charlie in the middle of a pear orchard tonight. Time to talk. It was great. Sounds like Audrey is keeping him on his toes. They are working on "no whining." The other day Matt asked her, "Do I hear whining?' "No, I was speaking Spanish!" Hard to be a disciplinarian when you are rolling on the floor, laughing.

Nice We're Having Weather

Chilly and windy and wet though it may be. I needed a shower curtain liner to act as a wind break for the curtain doggy door. I shopped Wal-Mart first. $8.99. Then I had to stop at Dollar Tree to pick up more salad olives...tried some the other day and liked them. Found the same shower curtain liners, different label, for $1.00. Oy Vey! Wal-Mart is going to get a return. I browsed Dollar Tree pretty deeply getting stuff located. Lots of food-canned, etc, for less than a buck. New shopping pattern: Make the List, Dollar Tree, then K-Mart and then Wal-Mart. K-Mart had some bodacious Big-Tall and Fat men's clothes (the only game in town for us outsized types)at 30% off. Did you know,despite their carefully contrived advertising, Wal-Mart's prices are only cheaper on about 20% of their stock? K-Mart is cheaper on many items and has a wider "good, better, best," selection. Ace Hardware frequently beats Wally-world too. Shopping is much more pleasant at K-Mart and at Ace they actually ask if they can help you. But it is still Caveat Emptor-they all have their tricks.

I spent a lot of time on the phone with Verizon. My Motorola Q went south the other day. "Did you know the Native American phrase is "went East?")I had reluctantly bought the insurance for the handset. Asurion responded with a replacement that wouldn't sync with my computer. I had a really good Verizon techie from Arizona who is also a dog lover and who recently had a tree fall on her house during a big storm. AZ has also had a lot of rain this year. We tried everything and she cleared the path to call Asurion again. Since the Q is now out of stock, I will get the newer model-tomorrow. I wish I felt like rejoicing but I had a lot extras installed and liked my Q. I just wish it worked. I asked the Asurion tech which smartphone is most reliable. He said the Palm Treo. He was also a peach- a nice Tennessee boy with a lot of yessirs who nonetheless appreciated my sense of humor.

The doggies had a good run this morning and since Honey barked all night long last night, she is taking this night off and is sleeping contentedly at my side. Buster is under the table. And with this picture of cozy domesticity, rain on the roof, dogs at hand, basking in the warmth of a glowing computer screen I will bid you adieu.

Booked!

For purposes of Homestead Security my dates in Florida are not going online but I will tell friends and family who request to know. I had been contemplating asking for the site I was assigned (offered) but I didn't want to press my luck. Through the magic of Google maps the blue balloon marks exactly where I will be. If you zoom way in at the right time you might catch a glimpse of me in my skivvies. Stop by for a beverage if you are in the neighborhood.


View Larger Map

No Labor on this Labor Day

Big winds and rain and thunderstorms since last night. My house is mostly open air through the summer and not easily closed up with coolers and fans in the windows. I got chilled and my ankles got huge over the past few days so flat time under the covers featured largely in the day. The bedroom TV still works and I watched some tennis. Delores sent a massive piece of ham in a care package after her party. I made a big crockpot of pea soup-almost more ham than peas. So cozying up was the order of the day. The dogs like my pea soup too.

Janet called and offered an extra ticket to the Clint Black Concert but I gave it a pass to lie abed. As I was regretting that a big fast moving thunderstorm passed through and made me feel better about being home and warm. The water is leaving the pedal extremities. I made the mistake of showing them to Don Hall and he almost convinced me I was terminal-but I have been dealing with this for years. Besides we are all terminal-some sooner some later.

Hollis, Guy and Janet's son, was probably born 100 years too late. He is a great young man. He has a friendship with Jake Korell-a man (character) cut of mountain man cloth. Jake at age 93 runs a 90 mile trapline. Hollis knows because he has run it for Jake. Hollis has a trapline over by Lysite. They get together and build lures and snares, and visit. Jake was nursing a sore hand Friday and Hollis asked him about it. It seems Jake was coming out of the grocery store in Lander and a carload of drunken Indians tried to beg some money. He unloaded: "I'm 93 years old and I work for my money. I've never asked anybody for a dime. I don't owe you anything. etc." This prompted one of them to say "Let's jump him." He no sooner got his feet out of the car and on the ground when Jake hauled back and knocked him out. A grocery clerk had noticed the deal coming down and called the cops but the other Indians had jumped out, stuffed their buddy in the car, and peeled out before the police arrived. They asked Jake what happened. "Oh, they wanted some money so we had a little discussion."

Lest you think this sounds too prejudiced, Guy and Hollis are of Native American descent. Indian is one thing, drunken Indian is another. Moral of the story, don't mess with Wyoming senior citizens, especially Jake Korell.

Jake Korell:


More about Jake, Mountain Men and our 1838 Rendezvous Celebration here:

http://greyhavenarms.com/default.aspx