Fall is coming on fast this last day of August. When we turn the calendar to September we here in Minnesota consider that Fall. We are leaving Summer behind. I mowed the lawn yesterday...mostly the parts that grow more than others. Leaves are falling out of the trees. School starts the day after Labor Day.
Masks are encouraged in Minnesota both inside and outside. If you are vaccinated...thank you! You may have saved a life.
Far Side
Saturday I took Baxter's one year old photo.
He is very focused on his people, although sometimes he is happy to see me. He is pretty much a two person dog. He can take or leave the rest of us. He does listen to me...which is a good thing. He is a center console hog when he is in my vehicle...and then he leans into my shoulder....mostly he is a good co-pilot. He visits us often...one thing that calms him down is scratching his back..it relaxes him. He heels off lead for my brother...which is a good thing.
Far Guy is feeling much better. He says it is wonderful to breathe again after feeling like he couldn't breathe for three months....he says it felt like he was dying. He is working on getting back in shape again...walking and using his weights. He is back to cooking again and can do all the dishes without sitting down to rest. Yesterday he even worked on his new/old car. We hope he continues to improve and get to the point where he was before May 10 2021and the valves. Many people can breathe much easier with the valves... BUT they are not for everyone. It was worth a try.
My left thumb is slightly improved....it doesn't have a constant ache.
We have a busy week coming up; a couple of appointments, bookclub and one last day of a garage sale at my parents.
Far Side
I have a Bucket List and a Photo Bucket List.
I revised my Bucket List. The old list only had one thing crossed off!
Old List
1. Ride in a convertible...I did this twice.
2. Beach Boys or Moody Blues Concert...Bee Gee's would have been on the list but only Barry is left.
3. Play in the World Series of Poker
4. Go on a Cruise in the Caribbean
5. Go to Finland for a sauna
New List
1. Visit Morden Manitoba Canada Display Gardens some year when it rains.
2. Visit the Peace Gardens
3. Learn to spin
4. Visit the church in Annandale Minnesota that my Great Grandfather helped to build
5. Spend two months in Hawaii during the winter.
This is the old church I longed to see in person. On one of the recent trips to Minneapolis we did a slight detour...went early and visited the church and then went on to stay overnight in a hotel near the clinic.
The church was originally built in French Lake Minnesota in 1896 -1897 and it was donated and moved to Annandale Pioneer Park in 1975. My Great Grandfather Isaac Yliniemi was one of the founding members.
I was thrilled to see the church in person!
If you have a bucket list...are you revising your list..or are you managing to cross some things off?
Far Side
Chance and Miss Miney were good buddies...they kinda grew up together, each visiting the other...having a safe spot to visit if someone had to be gone from home.
Both lived a good long life...but they are still missed. I am convinced that you never "get over" the loss.
I put Miss Miney's memorial necklace next to Chance's battery operated candle...somehow it seems right. I will return the necklace to Jen soon...but until then...
Far Side
We were gone yesterday for 13 hours. It was a very long day. We are home and tired. I have to keep one eye on Far Guy for 24 hours.
This was my waiting around view...it was better than in the waiting room...a storm moved in it got dark like at night enough for the lights to come on outside...it blew a bit and rained and then it was daylight again. The sculptures are aluminum...and called "Dialogue." Believe it or not there was a Bunny running around in the gardens surrounding the sculptures.
Far Guy had his procedure...each team of Doctors have different requirements for surgery. Of course Far Guy met all his Surgeons requirements...but not the Surgeon that was doing the surgery...go figure. They wanted us to go home, stop a medication for five days and come back...surgery was too risky and he may drown in his own blood. Far Guy told them to call his Surgeon...they had a conference and decided to go ahead. ( If his surgeon had been doing surgery it would have gone ahead as scheduled) All four valves were removed. The consensus was " Your lungs are not compatible with the valves so they did not work as they were supposed to...it happens to a few patients." Luckily there was no bleeding to speak of and Far Guy did just fine. Far Guy says he feels less short of breath already...and we hope that continues.
We got home just before dark. In the morning we saw five deer, three turkeys and a cow in a ditch. In the evening we saw just one deer.
It was smoky all the way home...from the fires in Northern Minnesota. Far Guy took a photo for me.
Today will be a quiet day. Maybe a lazy nap day.
Far Side
My Mother keeps many things. Imagine my surprise when I opened up a tote and found a fake fur coat I wore back in the early 1970's.
It had great pockets...but it was very short...it had to be dry cleaned until the day I threw it in the washing machine and it didn't fall apart.
I marked it a quarter and a young lady was thrilled to have it! I think my Mom was going to use the fur to make something and never got around to it.
Far Side
We got some rain again as a storm moved through early Tuesday morning. 1/2 inch of rain...at this point it all helps...although the fires in Northern Minnesota are still burning.
The sunny happy flowers are now heavy with seeds. When they are in bloom I call them happy fields.
It seems they were happy fields for a very short time this year.
Yesterday I found time to rummage through my half of the closet.
Boo hoo I threw two very worn shirts away...the elbows had holes...two of my fav shirts too...well worn. (I have several more that will go soon...threadbare things that are comfy and hard to part with, after all I still need my lawn mowing shirt who cares what I look like on the lawn mower...it is not exactly a fashionista activity) I am keeping a sweater that hangs near the front door... it has holes too...but washes like a dream...everyone gives me a bad time about that sweater...I have to keep one eye on it as several people have said it should be thrown away.
I made some decisions and will donate a few things that have been hanging in my closet and not worn recently...they have no holes. I will drop them off today. Nice to have a bit of room in the closet again. All the hangers are facing the right way...all the shirts are lined up in colors....and face the same way. Don't laugh ...it was something I could control.
Far Side
Somewhere in our woods a pair of Robins raised some young and brought them into the yard. At first we didn't know what kind of strange birds we had.
Kinda different looking. Yes that Oak tree is a bit dead...it is one of several "bird trees" in our yard...not many leaves and straggly looking but a good landing place for birds.
We had a busy Monday...Far Guy had an appointment for part of his pre op. I saw my orthopedist, I have a water filled cyst on the pulley at the base of my left thumb. He said ''we can schedule you for surgery or give you another injection." Well you can guess what I chose...there is time enough for surgery next winter. I am pretty good at knowing what irritates it...and will try to pay more attention. I hate the injections...hopefully it will work!
Far Side
It rained on Friday afternoon and evening we got 2 1/2 inches. Sunday afternoon it rained again...not much yet but things are wet.
I picked tomatoes in the rain....I laid them on a towel to dry.
It was a good year for tomatoes...and we have enjoyed them everyday...especially the yellow pear tomatoes.
We had a quiet day on Sunday, I did some housekeeping and laundry because I was behind on both, in the afternoon I watched a movie on Netflix called Flipped and I highly recommend it...I give it a 10 Plus plus....totally my kind of movie.
Far Guy woodcarved and had a nap.
I visited my baby brother for a bit, he is very sore after his bad fall. Baxter was happy to see me and stole my shoe...but brought it back to me.
Far Side
Busy days at my parents garage sale. They got rid of lots of "stuff." There were only two garage sales in town on Saturday just one block apart so we had lots of business.
My baby brother was there yesterday afternoon, Mom asked him to change a light bulb in the garage....the ceilings are very high. Long story short he fell off the ladder onto the concrete hitting his back and head. He fell a long ways down; the ladder it is a five foot ladder and my brother is over six feet tall. I did a quick assessment...he could move everything and didn't want an ambulance called. His bride took him to Urgent Care where he was x-rayed and nothing is broken...just lots of muscle pain. Thank goodness it could have been much worse but he will be pretty miserable for a few days.
Baxter came home with me for awhile...after we closed up the garage sale for Mom and Dad.
I am way TOO OLD to have that big adrenalin rush...when I was younger and an EMT it was just an everyday occurrence. Not so much anymore.
My other baby brother says "It is a polite bear" because he doesn't strew garbage all over. The other night he moved the huge garbage dumpster off of the cement pad.
Yesterday Far Guy looked at our trail camera photos.
da bear at our house...note there are no bird feeders out only the Hummingbird feeder....so he just moved along. He was in between the house and my small flower garden.
We are still bringing in our bird feeders every night. When we were gone, my baby brother brought them in at night and back out in the morning.
We finally got some rain! Some really good hard rain showers moved in and out through our area all yesterday afternoon and evening. So thankful for rain.
Far Side
Not the 3 R's you would imagine. Replace, Readjust or Remove.
Far Guy had appointments at the University of Minnesota this past week. He had a bunch of tests. He is going downhill. Losing weight, extreme shortness of breath and feeling rotten. The Surgeon says it is the valves that were placed on May 10 2021. They are not working. They must be replaced, readjusted or removed and soon. Far Guy now weighs less than he did in high school, suspenders hold up his pants...and his lung function has dropped from a high of 28 % on May 10 to 19 % August 18. His oxygen sats drop into the low 80's with the smallest exertion, he doesn't turn blue yet but gasps for breath.
So that is the scoop. One day at a time...the Surgeon put him back on Prednisone to make his breathing easier until the procedure can be scheduled.
Not many people in the waiting rooms.
We left on Tuesday and got back home late on Wednesday...we are both tired.
We hope the procedure will happen in the next week. The surgeon says that if the valves are removed in time some lung function will be restored.
Far Side
The deer are thirsty. They come in to drink from the bird baths. I took these photos out the kitchen window...they came into the yard as I was making supper.
We have not see her and her twins for a couple of weeks. Mama looks a bit skinny.
The twins still have their spots.
Far Side
Some of you may be old enough to remember when Dinah Shore sang the rest of that jingle.
My parents didn't get a TV until 1960...but I am still familiar with the song. Far Guy said his parents got a TV in about 1955.
Far Side
Sara a long time blogging friend asked about the rear view mirror in the 1959 Desoto Firesweep.
The mirror is mounted on the dash.
Not much room for the fuzzy dice.
The heat is on for a few days. I trimmed the tomatoes today...they are keeping us and a few others in fresh oh so good tomatoes.
Far Side
I finished setting up for Mom's Garage Sale, she who sees Robins first showed up and with her help we made quick work of what was left to set out. It got real warm before I headed home. My Dad was having a really good day...he knew who I was and knew my brother too!
I have a cousin who is going to be a Grandpa for the very first time as both of his daughters are expecting babies. We dropped off gifts for the upcoming baby showers and had a good visit with him and his wife.
The sky was very orange when we headed home.
My other baby brother and she who sees Robins first stopped by just before dark.
Far Side
Of a car. This old Cadillac is about six inches longer that Far Guys new old car.
Sign of the times a hat on the seat and a mask on the shifter. Note the fuzzy dice.
Far Guy could have fuzzy dice but no one would see them because the rear view mirror is on the dash.
We had a quiet Saturday, there was another car show we were invited to but it started early in the morning and it was forecast to be a very warm day. So we stayed home. Far Guy woodcarved and I worked on lots of misc stuff...
A few nights ago my baby brother, his wife and Baxter were headed out on the prairie to watch the Perseids...I was invited along. We were lucky enough to see a number of fine looking meteors. No mosquitoes because it is so dry. I attempted one photo...I probably need a refresher course in night camera settings:)
Far Side
It was a sad week, we missed a funeral on Wednesday...it was a longer drive and we thought about going to the closer cemetery on Wednesday but did not go. I sent off a card to his wife Judy after I messaged her on facebook. Ernie was a great guy, he just turned 65, he was a local kid...he was on the fire Department with Far Guy and I. He woke up one morning sat down at the breakfast table and died. No extended hospital stays and more importantly no nursing home stay. He would have probably laughed and said "Now thats the way to go."
We attended Mary Ann's funeral yesterday, she was 76 years old. We sat in the back of the church behind my parents, we did not stay for the lunch as soon as the service was over we left. The service was lovely...I probably liked it because for once they did not read the entire obituary. ( Some ministers read the whole obit as part of their sermon...like we cannot read for ourselves.)
Another old friend (Brian) that we have known since about 1978 has been through chemo for pancreatic cancer, is now on hospice. Far Guy worked with him for 20 plus years.
One of my cousin's had a heart attack, then bypass surgery and after a week in the hospital has finally come home to recoup. He just turned 60 years old this spring. His father died at home of a heart attack when he was 59 years old.
Seems like many people are getting cancer diagnosis lately... a blogger with bladder cancer/liver cancer and another with pancreatic cancer. My prayers for comfort and healing go out to them all.
As we get older the losses/ bad news become more frequent, not easier.
Far Side
Today we say until we meet again to a long time friend and wife of my cousin Chuckie. His wife Mary Ann died last Friday. I have known her for over 50 years...Chuckie brought her by my parents home to meet us when they were dating.
Mary Ann was a good friend, she volunteered for me at the Museum for several years....it was a day out for her. Mary Ann had bronchiectasis and she fought frequent infections.
She will be remembered fondly and missed by many especially her husband, daughter and her twin grandchildren.
Far Side
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16-18Yesterday afternoon we washed up Tilly and took her to her very first car show 33 miles away. It was an adventure on her longest trip so far. She did great!
There were many cars there but we heard from people walking through that she was the only Desoto there. Many people knew exactly what she was and all about her push button drive. One lady said she learned to drive one that was the family car...a baby blue color and she could get lots of friends in the backseat!
We packed a picnic lunch and took some chairs. The parking spot we got was not great but it was an easy get away when we wanted to leave. Neighbors had their car there so we got on the road before they did...comforting to know someone was behind us ...just incase.
Newer cars, older cars...all kinds of pretty cars.
It was such a fun afternoon/evening. We visited with lots of different people and saw a number of people that we knew. We got home before dark...time enough to water/pick tomatoes!
Far Side
A day full of odds and ends, some cleaning, some dusting, some laundry and then time for a few episodes of Virgin River and some crochet time. I even put my feet up for a bit.
Far Guy and I made supper together; Impossible Italian Sausage Pie and tomatoes.
After supper I picked and watered tomatoes and watered flowers. I made a tomato delivery to my other baby brother.
There are twenty squares in this project, I have 12 done, they will all get borders...and it will be winter before I am done with this project! Each patchwork square has a different design. Mosaic crochet is interesting I am so glad I took the time to learn it. It looks difficult but it isn't.
Impossible Italian Sausage Pie
9x9 baking dish
Brown one pound of Italian Sausage (we like mild)
Blend together 2 eggs and a cup of milk, add 1/2 cup of Bisquick pour mixture over sausage
Top with cheese ...we like Cojack
Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes give or take
It freezes well. You can add onions etc...but we don't.
Far Side
It was a busy day and I am tired.
I spent most of the day at my parents. Dad was so excited to see me! He was having a good day...he remembered I was the oldest "kid" and my name! He even recalled where he was when I was born and how when he came home from Korea it was like I knew him as I held my arms out so he could take me. He said that I was what got him through the tough times in Korea.
Mom and I worked on sorting and marking things in her garage for a garage sale later in the month.
When I got home I had a nap...then helped Far Guy with supper...ham, sweet corn and fresh peaches. After supper I went out to the garage and cleaned up another corner and organized some stuff, filled bird feeders, picked and watered tomatoes. Felt like I needed to kill something so I grabbed the roundup and went to my other baby brothers shop and killed weeds, and filled my mower with gas. Straightened up the patio...cause we may get a rain storm...probably not but you never know.
The next County over from us (where my parents live) is a new hot spot for Covid according to the CDC. A little church in the nearest town...the Pastor and his Wife got Covid and exposed the whole congregation.
Minnesota is offering $100 dollar Visa cards for people who are newly vaccinated. Apparently they are not being overrun with people to vaccinate. The anti vaxers are digging in their heels...so sad that they cannot bring themselves to help protect young children who cannot get the vaccine. Not sure why they think the way they do...I think it is selfish. We cannot get herd immunity unless it is a good effort...the virus will keep mutating and soon it will be a super virus that there will be no vaccination for. Well enough of a rant for today.
Thank you to those of you that got the vaccination...you did your part!
Far Side
Give your camera to your husband. I am surprised that he knew how to take a photo...will wonders ever cease.
Old Woman Picking/Watering Tomatoes
Proof I do exist..if all else fails you can tell by the well worn crocs...that happen to be my favorite pair...and they have a small hole in the sole...I may have to get out the duck tape.
The small wind vane stand works real well to hold tomatoes. One was too big for my bowl.
We had a quiet day. Far Guy worked on his new/old car a bit. I got some stuff in my old garage ready to recycle. Odds and ends filled the rest of the day and a nap...after supper we delivered some tomatoes to my other baby brother and then we went for a drive.
Straw bales
The smoke is supposed to return this week...it was humid and hazy last night.
Be safe out there, it is a crazy world we live in.
Far Side
I recall when we lived in Florida sand was a problem...you always seemed to carry half the beach home with you.
Our Granddaughter Maddie and her husband went to Idaho to the sand dunes for a week.
Can you imagine...they had a great time...this is an annual trip for them.
Fun to see them vacation as a family! From what I saw they did dunes, more dunes, a water park and hiked to water falls.
Photos shamelessly stolen from Maddie's Facebook page.
Far Side
Far Guy held down the fort and cooked while I went into town to help my parents clean up their garage a bit and get some things ready for a garage sale.
We heard of a new to us recipe. Jena from Maryland made it for the Lake House Group. Crack chicken. Strange name. Far Guy put boneless chicken thighs in the crock pot for about 2 hours, he shredded the chicken. Then he put a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch and a package of Philly Cream Cheese in the crock pot and mixed it up. When I got home he fried some bacon for a topping. I made some rice, add the rice to your plate, scoop on some of the chicken mixture, top with co jack cheese and bacon...it was delicious. We will make it again sometime. No idea how it will freeze as my baby brother and his bride came by just as we were finishing up supper and they had not eaten and were headed home for cereal...so I made them each a plate minus the bacon...my baby brother said it is better with bacon. ( All their kids and Grands are on their way back home again.)
Baxter knows which drawer the treat ball is in...:)
It was smoky again ...Far Guy stayed in all day.
The small garden has finally mostly recovered from the deer munching.
Far Side
We read The Book Lovers Cookbook. I wasn't thrilled with it...and I like reading cookbooks. We had our first in person meet...some of us brought a prepared recipe from the book.
I chose Carrot - Raisin Pineapple Salad; 4 cups shredded carrots, 1 cup of raisins, a can of crushed pineapple, a dash of lemon juice and a bit of cinnamon. It was okay...I give it a 7 out of 10. It is from Midwives. I also made punch...well I took small bottles of Welches Grape Juice and small cans of 7-UP and slices of lime. You mix it equal parts...it is called Merry Punch ...I give it a 10...it is from the book Pride and Prejudice.
Onto the next book. We also had a book swap...that was fun....I came home with three new to me books.
Infusion Day and grocery pickup went just fine. I wore a mask in the one grocery store I went into to purchase cherries and peaches. Far Guy napped all the while I was gone to book club. Cases of Covid are exploding in this area. I skipped Bingo. We still have wildfire smoke...it is supposed to clear out on Friday and then come back. We had 1/4 inch of rain in our rain gauge.
Far Side
My Cousin Leann gave me a Bible that she found when going through her Mom's belongings... it belonged to my Uncle Hugo.
Uncle Hugo's name is in the front cover and his Honorable Discharge Papers are inside along with an Itasca Mantrap membership paper. I scanned the discharge papers and put them up at Find A Grave.
I also showed the Bible and papers to my Dad.
My Uncle had no children of his own. However he and my Aunt Mia (she was married before) raised a grandson. It was a really sad situation...there was a tragic death in the family from which the parents never recovered enough to care for a baby. So he was raised by his Grandparents who he viewed as his Mother and Father. They loved him very much.
Since the grandson has an unusual name I was able to locate him. I found his email and his home address. When the email went unanswered I sent a letter. Soon after that we were able to connect.
The Bible is in Finnish.
As it turns out he is a very successful Law Enforcement Officer, has four children and two grandchildren.
So it all has a good ending...the Bible was mailed on Monday.
For some reason the Bible sitting on my desk really bothered me...I was so happy to mail it...it was like something was telling me to hurry along!
Far Side
We have our first tomatoes. We are anxiously awaiting the yellow pear tomatoes as they are our favorite.
Here you can see nothing but green yellow pear tomatoes. I suppose they will all ripen at once.
They have gone wild...flopping over...not very orderly. It has been a hard growing season...some wind and so very warm.
We had a bunch of small ones for supper. Rutgers...was their name...they are very juicy and have lots of seeds. The larger tomato is some kind of Potato Leafed Tomato of Heritage variety.
It was another smoky day. I went out to get the mail...I wore an N95 mask...I ordered them after we had the first bout of wildfire smoke. I went out in the evening when the smoke was less and watered the tomatoes, flowers and cleaned out the bird baths.
We have given up on growing lettuce...some honey bees invaded the wagon...and a Chipmunk ate all the lettuce.
We had a quiet day...I cleaned the bathroom, washed towels and rugs, had a nap and saw the end of a movie not the beginning or the middle.
Far Guy worked on Christmas Ornament woodcarvings...I have been no help to him this year woodcarving.
Far Side
We stayed inside most of yesterday. The air was smoky again. We made a trip to the post office to mail a package. We did normal things in the house...laundry, dishes...Far Guy runs his robotic vacuum every day.
In the afternoon our Dyson Pure Cool arrived. Far Guy got it set up and going...none too soon as the wildfire smoke is supposed to be hanging around for a while. Between it and the air conditioner filter it should help with the air quality inside the house.
It moves a lot of air....I am not sure how it works but it does...the design is very futuristic.
In the afternoon I watched Mother's Day on Netflix and enjoyed it very much I give it a nine out of ten. Then I had a nap until it was time to join Far Guy in the kitchen making a pan of lasagna for supper.
I edited some of the photos I took on Sunday. Ten kids are a challenge to photograph!
In the evening Beth, Lindsay, Collins, Otto, Lulu and Baxter visited. Lulu made faces at Far Guy and she acted like she could cry but didn't.
Far Side
