April 30th, 2021 and we say "Good-bye" to the month!

 TERRY

Once again as I write Terry is in bed reading the Naples paper and the WJS.  The sports section is so so terrible in the Naples Paper I thought I would count the games and then how may scores there were.  In the MLB, NHL and NBA there were 25 games yesterday and there was ONE score.  All the rest said, "late"!  My goodness those professional teams must really play all their games at midnight or something.  Anyway back to Terry.  She had several days where she had stomach problems and things just did not work right.  Well things DID start to work yesterday which kept me busy with three loads of clothes in the washer!!!  Enough I think.

Here we are on the last day of April.  I wonder if we will see any May baskets at our front door?  Well never in my life have I gotten one so I am not expecting one today!  AND with the coming of May we see less and less tennis players on the courts.  As I looked at the courts this morning on the computer several courts were empty.  In February and March that would never be.  Darn, double darn today.  I intended to play tennis this morning but Karl suggested we hit the ball yesterday afternoon just to see how my foot was!  Ten minutes into hitting I planted my right foot and turned only to go down with pain in my foot!  End of hitting and end of playing today.  It may mean end of playing for several weeks.  I am limping around today and it seems that may be the case for a long time!!!

I have NOTHING planned today.  I will try to stay put in one place as this darn foot is painful.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Harold participated in the Senior Games and broke the world record in the 50 meter sprint (in the 90-95 age bracket).  He is not sure how long he will continue to compete.  "I'm running out of competition".

"Marie says, "I didn't comprehend what challenges I would face living on a farm---learning to cook, starting a family, or how to handle it all.  So guess what?  My best option was to call Mom, 1,200 miles away, collect.  Bless her, she never refused one phone call.  Marie found the calls  helpful when raising 13 children under one roof.  That was the only crop that ever came through jokes Marie."  WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME ANY OF US HAD TO MAKE A COLLECT PHONE CALL???  

"Reflecting on his mom, Raymond says, Growing up, my mother was a hard worker.  I mean she'd outwork any guy.  She pitched square bales on a skid behind the baler, they used to have a little plank that they would stand on and would stack these bales..One time she rode the bale skid in the morning and then left at noon.  When I came back home, I had another brother , and I didn't know she was even gonna have a baby".

"As mayor for some years, Paul says he isn't sure how old Lake Williams was, but supposed it to be about 100 years old.  Will there be a celebration?  "We were gonna have a parade go through town, but there was only three of us here, so it is kind of tough as two of them wanted to watch."

So here we are in mid morning and I have nothing to show for it except an empty coffee cup!  Time to say the last good bye to the FP and try to get something done even with this right foot that pains with every step.

I WILL END WITH A COUPLE OF PICTURE JUST TO PROVE TO MYSELF I HAVE DONE SOME WORK FROM TIME TO TIME

Here we are with two days left in April as we look at April 29, 2021

 TERRY

If you open my blog to see how Terry is it is same same.  I could say that there are tiny concerns in some areas.  Perhaps once a day she has a spell where she has dry heaves.  It does not last long and then it is back to normal so it should be OK.  Yesterday she did not go into the living room until late in the afternoon.  It is good if she goes 3 or 4 times a day as that does get her up and out of bed.  She continues to sleep well and for the most part she is awake all days.  Once in a while she may doze for a short time either in the morning or the afternoon.  As usual, as I write she has the Naples paper and the WSJ with her.  She did ask for a lettuce yesterday so I am thinking I need to go to the grocery store and get lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, some ham and maybe even croutons for a delicious lettuce today.  That is all for now.

I may go over to the courts for a short time this morning.  I have NOT been there for a long time as I sit home with a bum foot and a bum back.  I looked at the court schedule this morning.  Courts are at 7:30, 9:00 and 10:30.  Well there is play in the PM as well but usually not all the courts are busy then.  I see this morning there are 3 courts open at 7:30 and again 3 are open at 10:30. That means people are on the move going back up north.  As we get into mid May there will also be open courts at 9:00.  I think I mentioned yesterday that I will give play a try tomorrow so I will see how this foot is and back as well.

I did get some work done yesterday but of course it was not really work!  My go to place to buy golf clubs is a thrift store.  I had these two clubs that had grips on like the one on the left.  Each time I would use them my hands came off black!  I looked into getting them regripped and I just did not feel like spending $35 on a club that I had paid #3 for!  So my friend, Amazon.com, sent me three grips, glue etc so I was able to do them myself for about $12 a club.  Still one can question putting $12 into a $3 club BUT to buy a new driver can run you well into triple figures so I think I did OK.

No, I think I am going to ride my bike over to the courts at 9:00 and just watch for a while.  Sonia will be here at 9:00 so Terry should be OK. I may even ride around for a time as my exercise over the last two weeks has been NONE.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Now, living on the farm by himself, Jerry mingles with the folks in town.  I get to the bowling alley about 6:30 every morning and have coffee with a few people.  It's kind of a ritual.  You have to talk to somebody, you know so you won't have to talk to yourself."

"At least twice a week, you find Patricia and Reynold at the farm where she grew up.  On the homeplace.  I have three brothers, bachelors, and my second oldest sister that's living. We go down there after church and have dinner and play cards.  About 25 show up every Sunday.  Last time we took hamburgers and buns, so more or less all we have for dinner is hamburgers and buns and wieners.  My mother's brother's kids come down after church, too.  Some Sundays we don't have church, so then we somethings go over anyway.  This Sunday we got home at 10 at night, just in time to watch the news."

As one can see I am enjoying the book.  I guess it brings back a lot of memories and of course one chooses to remember the good times, right?  like:

• egg sandwiches and dill pickles Sunday after church
• Sunday school every other Sunday with a quiz boys against girls
• playing ball against the south wall of the barn
• hitting the three golf balls, Arnie, Jack and Gary with Arnie always winning
• hiking up to Lake Tewaukon with an old fishing pole and a can of worms
• biking up to the lake and back all the while never touching the handle bars
• going out to the barn on my pogo stick to shut off the water 
• drowning out gophers in the pasture
• catching snakes on snake rock in the pasture
• shooting black birds and feeding them to the cats
• spending most of the summer breaking up the pig barn foundation and making the yard look nice for Mom
• playing ball against the corn crib with Dave and Ricky
• jumping off the Ford tractor in the hay field to kill a mouse
• etc etc etc etc

My FP is down to the last drop

April 28, 2021

 TERRY

Terry is the same.  As I write she has the papers in bed with her and is reading up a storm.  She continues her treks to and from the living room doing it all on her own with the walker.  There are no doctor appointments in sight for now.  It would be so so nice if Dr. Vickers office would call and say he has a cancellation and could Terry come in but I do not know how often that happens.  So it is just wait and see AND take one day at a time.

Karl sent an email yesterday saying Rusty canceled on Friday and did I want to take his place.  I told him I would give it a try.  I am still trying to keep off my feet as much as possible as that right foot heals and it does feel much better so I will give it a shot.  IF I can play 90 minutes my game will be rusty so we will see how things come out.  

I actually did get some work done yesterday.  I talked to the pool person as he came over to look at the pool repair job.  He said he would order the material and the job should be on his schedule late this week or next week.  That will be nice.  Also Terry and I have some money in investments where you have to take out some each year after a certain age.  I took care of that and the letters are in the mail today.  I also got half of the items that I need to try and clean our travertine floors so when the other items come I can work on the floors.  Little by little some things are getting done.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Joe Simon has fond memories of teacher Gunhilda Crain.  "Good lady, just love the heck out of her.  Tougher than a drill sergeant.  She chewed my rear end out to the day she died---she used that ol' gnarled finger:You could have been valedictorian and whatever." She insisted you learn whether you wanted to or not.  And she taught you, and that's all there was to it.  And if she caught somebody out of line, she would come upside their head with a book.  But everybody that got rapped had it coming, and they didn't tell their folks.  I was quick enough to duck it, so she never did hit me."

"Joe and Pauline's first child was born July 19, 1950.  Their last child, number 21, was born September 23, 1971…….According to son, Joseph, they butchered four to five pigs and about three beef a year."

Here it is 8:20 and about time to sign off.  I still have most of a cup of FP left so will linger on the computer for a time before I try to find some work to do!

Here we are on a Tuesday, the last Tuesday of April 2021

 TERRY

Terry had her scan yesterday and it took all of 10 minutes or so!  Now it will be to wait and see what the results are and I do not know how long that will take.  Her daughter Kim was over for some time in the afternoon and today she will fly back to Atlanta so we may not see her for a few weeks.  With a husband who flies for Delta Kim can fly free which is a very nice perk for her.  As I write this morning Terry has not read the paper yet as she turned on the TV and is glued to a movie for the time.  

I am concerned that I may never learn.  I drove to Walmart yesterday afternoon and when I arrived home "no phone".  I drove back to the store and asked around and still "no phone".  I even walked through the parking lot to glance into the empty carts but no luck.  I went home and again used Terry's phone to call mine and of course there was NO ring whatsoever.  Just on a whim I called my phone a second time and presto I got an answer!  A woman about 3 miles from us saw the phone in the cart and rather than bring it into the store where she thought it may disappear forever she just took it home on the hope that she would get a call on it.  I drove over to get it and she and her daughter would not take anything for returning it.  So the question is have I learned my lesson?  I THINK I have.  I will never shop again with pants that have no pockets so then I can put my phone in my pocket instead of the cart!  I suppose I could also put a note on the dash of the car that reads, "phone?"  Somehow that makes me feel like I am getting old and of course I do know that I am not!!!  So pants with pockets it is from now on.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"I went to school in the morning.  I had an excuse to go to Grand Forks shopping.  I bought a hat, because I thought you should have a hat on when you got married.  And then we went to Crookston.  We got a license and got married that same afternoon.  I was 17 and lied about my age.  ………. We didn't tell anybody.  nobody knew til after graduation.  The superintendent called his daughter and me in the office and "wondered if it would be alright if we could be co-salutatorians.  Yep, he didn't know I was married then.  I don't think you'd be allowed to be married and be in school."

"When Richard and Mary Carlson opened the Carlson hardware Store in Gilby in 1995, little did they know that they were opening the "loafer Line"---a row of chairs the couple provides for anyone who stops in.   ……………. Some of the retired people in the  area have time to visit, or there's people that are busy but they're caught up or it's raining or snowing or whatever.  And they will sit and chit-chat.  And some people come in and they just get a load of yuck off their chest and then it's gone, it's over,  you know, and if nobody else heard it but that person and me, it's over.  It doesn't go anywhere.  You can't repeat stories and live long in a small town"

I think that is about all for the day.  Sonia should be here soon as she usually does a two hour shift Monday-Friday.  That makes life a bit easier for me.  My FP is waiting as I have a cup to enjoy before I get so somethings that need doing.

April 25th, we count down to Saturday, May 1st!

 TERRY

Terry has a 10:30 appointment at the doctor today.  I do not know how long it will be as she will have a scan.  After that I need to make an appointment with Dr. Vickers to talk about what the scan shows us IF anything.  As far as I know now, that is it for the week.  

Terry's daughter Kim came for a short visit yesterday and I think we will see her again today.  As far as I know she will fly back to Atlanta tomorrow.  Not sure if she will come here or if we will go out to eat.  Terry did talk about going out but we will wait and see what happens.

As for me it is kind of same old, same old.  I continue to try and be careful how much I walk around as I am trying to get that darn right foot well.  It seems a bit better but then there are times I step maybe a bit different and it hurts.  I would say that it is not fun getting older but then when I think of the alternative I have NO complaints.  Sometimes when I think of getting older, having aches and pains etc I think of John Mouw's dad Tracy.  The story goes like this.  From a young age Tracy had some kind of a horse accident I think and he had one stiff leg.  Well it did not seem to prevent him from living life and doing well but as all of us as he got older he had some health issues.  Well he decided that he would go deer hunting with John, Dad, Dave and I in the North Dakota Badlands in western ND.  From my version of the story his wife Edith did not want him to go as he did have a heart condition and "what would happen if he had a heart attack out in the hills?".  Well Tracy's response to that was he could not think of a better place to die than out in the hills with the deer!!!  Well I admit I may have some of the details wrong but I think I got the jest of the story!  In that same hunt I have another story.  

It was around noon and we had not shot or seen any deer all morning.  We were back at the truck eating lunch near the river.  The water was flowing fairly fast and a large log came floating down the river.  Tracy thought that would be a good target to see if he could hit it.  He shot and we could see he hit high and to the right.  He shot again and he hit in the same place.  I think he shot several times and each time he hit in the same area.  He then decided the gun did not shot straight!!!  We had a wonderful time on the hunt and Tracy was a great guy to be with.  I still can see the sparkle in his eyes and hear his laugh!

I have not done much work lately so I needed to convince myself that there have been times when I did get something done!  Here are pictures of the kitchen windows on Niles Ave before and after.  The top of course is a picture of the old windows where I needed to put screen/storm windows on each season. I think a person even may be able to see the glaze on the top windows where it is falling out etc.  On the new windows there is NO glaze and the storm/screen is one unit and needs not be painted.  The house has a total of 31 windows of which 26 can be opened and closed.  ALL 26 that can be opened are new and the other five are piano windows in the living room and den.  They have new storms but they do not open.  Enough history for this morning BUT I got my point across, I have not always been lazy!  I am thinking I probably should list the work that has been done on the house in the last 10 years but then I think I would have to list all that work that is not finished!  Enough

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"After his discharge, Duane returned to Kempton and the oil business.  He married Dolores Severtson in 1949.  They have three children.  The couple met at a dance in Larimore in a hall over the Red Owl store.  As she tells it, "There were eight of us single women teaching there in Northwood that year, and the whole bunch of us had gone that night.  Duane asked me to dance, and a year later we married."

We have about an hour before we leave for Terry's Dr. appointment so I will enjoy the last sip of FP and sign off for the day.

April 25, 2021--last Sunday of the month

 TERRY

No news about Terry today.  She does have a cat scan tomorrow so maybe in the coming week we will find out if there is any news.  As I blog Terry is deep into the Sunday paper.  

Kim came over for a short time yesterday and we will see her again today sometime.  She may stay in town until Tuesday, I am not sure.  She did say she would see us Sunday and Monday as well.  She is doing some workouts with some of her people AND having time with a friend Julie who used to live in GA but now is in Florida.  I am hoping she finds out what is wrong with the car she is driving as yesterday the right front wheel smelled like burned rubber.  I looked at it but could not see what what going on.

I made a HUGE purchase Friday.  I stopped into a thrift store and purchased a golf bag, a putter and a fairway wood/hybrid. (I am not sure of the difference in a fairway wood or hybrid club)  It cost me all of $10.18!!!  

So it is OUT with the red and gray vinyl bag!  It sounded like crepe paper when I walked

AND in with the fancy $5 bag!  The driver outside of the bag is in for a Lee repair!  The grip was making my hands black so when I receive a new grip from Amazon Tuesday it will be repaired.  On top of a new bag and some clubs when I was emptying out the red bag I found a dozen new balls that Joe H had given me years ago so I am thinking I may be good until at least the 5th water hazard!  Now I need to play golf a little more.  Twice in 8 or so years isn't the way to improve your game!

In taking these pictures I had forgotten any picture taking skills I ever had.  At first I stood inside the garage and took the picture out towards the street.  When I looked at the picture all I saw was a bright outside and a black bag!!!  Come on Carmen, you are not that old!  MAYBE!!!

I have mentioned in the past that Travis is doing the garden this year.  He said he will also take care of the raspberries and the rhubarb as well.  A friend, Leann, is helping him but then I am not sure who is helping who!  Well actually I am sure as I promise you Travis is NOT the lead on the garden.

This was perhaps June of last year

It looks like they pretty much have the bed ready for planting.  Of course it is way too early to plant as the temp this morning in St. Paul is 34 with a high of 45!  It does look to get into the upper 60s/low 70s in the coming week but still way to early to plant.  I always liked to get things in the ground by the third week in May so it will be interesting to see how things grow.  

At this point I am so so glad that there are NO storm windows/screens to put on the house.  Instead of taking a window off and putting another on now all one needs to do is OPEN the window up and presto you have fresh air.  I am so thankful that the days of climbing a ladder to the second story with a screen or storm-window in hand only exist in my mind.  In addition to that NO storing 20+ storms in the attic or in the garage where they just might break somehow or what about the glazing getting old and falling out!  Yikes, enough of the "good old days"!

Well inspire of actually having many good things done to the house there is still the old fashion AC units that go in and come out as the season changes.  I have not spoken to Travis to find out IF he will put a AC unit in the living room.  It is fairly easy to do but now if only I had a in wall AC unit like A/A have in Madison!  

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"I was raised on the farm out there.  Orville Moe recounts, until I left here in 1936.  When I graduated from Beach High School then I left on a freight train.  I caught the first freight train out of here as I wasn't going to stay here."

"Rick now owns and operates a gas station in Sentinel Butte.  You could also say a community center.  We have a potluck every single Friday.  I usually provide the meat and I grill and people just come on in, some will bring a hot dish, a salad, you name it.  You never know on any Friday what you are going to have here.  People just show up, and we have a good time."

So here it is 9:15 and perhaps time to sign off.  I do have one more thought to write about.  Last June John, Judi, Joan, Helen and I drove to Kulm from Jamestown as it was the day of Dave's funeral.  I had never visited Janet's grave site so for me that was special.  We drove around Kulm and John shared some things from the time he and Janet lived there.  At one time Ronald, Glorine and John taught at the school.  Well according to John there was a neighborhood cat that was making life miserable for Janet and John as they lived in a basement apartment and there was a window well that had become kind of like home to the cat!  Somehow the cat disappeared and that made John and Janet happy!  When the neighbor asked if anyone had seen the cat nobody knew what had happened!!! Not sure WHO was the culprit but when one thinks about Ronald or John, my mind says just flip a coin!   I think that story would fit right into the book I am reading!  For sure life in America would be so different if there had never been an Mouws or Lees!!!

Time to sign off for the day.  I do have a few sips of FP left but will warm it up after I sign off.

Here we are the last Saturday of April 2021

 TERRY

Terry is the same.  She continues to NOT use the commode or the walker at home.  Yes, for the most part she is in bed or on the couch BUT she does go back and forth from the bedroom to the couch several times a day.  I have made an appointment for her Monday to get a brain scan as the doctor encouraged.  I now have to make an appointment with her neurologist but that is NOT easy.  I called the office yesterday and Dr. Vickers is booked until the middle of May.  I am hoping that somehow they can fit her in way before that.  We also have blood work to get done but there is No appointment needed for that.  One just has to bring in the blood order and get it done.  Maybe later in the week for that.  So the "one day at a time' continues!  Terry's daughter Kim is in town and we are expecting to see her today and tomorrow.  That will be nice.  So that is it for Terry this morning as she reads the Naples paper and the WSJ!

Of course my tiny tiny health issues are nothing compared to many people but I am making progress.  The arch in my right foot does feel somewhat better as does my back.  Hopefully I will be able to get back on the tennis court by early May.  I need the exercise.  

I WILL POST SOME PICTURES OF FLOWERS IN OUR FRONT YARD AS I OFTEN DO NOT NOTICE THEM BUT REALLY THEY ARE VERY PRETTY.

When ever I post pictures of flowers I always think of Mom.  She loved her garden and her hollyhocks around the yard.  

I spent some time on Facebook this morning.  One of the things was 21 episodes of accidents, some crazy and some looked serious.  One was of a person running and a car was coming right at him.  As it hit he jumped into the air and sailed over the car.  It reminded me of my bike accident when I was at NDSU.  I was near an major highway and a car turned onto the side street that I was on.  It came right at me.  I had NO choice but to anticipate when it would hit me and then spring off the bike onto the hood of the car.  It stopped but I was not hurt.  I landed on my behind on the hood of the car and slide up the window and then back down.  My bike had a bent wheel but I was not hurt.  The driver gave me some money for the wheel, apologized and drove off!

I have no plans for the day.  I think Kim will be here maybe around noon or so but usually when she comes it is for an hour or so.  I think she is meeting a friend that is coming into town and I do not know if she is doing any work with her clients.  

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Alton is concerned about the withering away, over the years, of patriotic observances.  We used to have a Memorial Day program in Glenfield.  I directed the band, and we'd march up to the school, and there'd be hundreds of people in that gymnasium.  And now we have our program up in the senior center, and we have 20 people there."

With 58 years of marriage and a family that has grown---to a total of 25 kids, grandkids and great grandkids--Janice believes she knows what success is: Money and a fancy car and all of that has nothing to do with success.  Having a goal and working for that goal.  You need a home, you need friends, you need family, you need your church.  If you don't have a faith you won't have nothing.  In our case, we have all of it right around us.  I think being married and living together for that many years is quite a goal and a big success"

"He made whiskey during prohibition, sold that.  At that time most farmers threw the manure out of the door 'til spring when you would haul it away.  But he would take a 30 gallon barrel and fill it with whiskey, raw whiskey, put it I there and cover it with manure.  Anyway these revenue agents came out, and they could smell it but they couldn't find it and there was a hay mound at that time.  Some of the hay mounds came down right to the ground, and they literally moved the hay from one side to the other looking for it.  If they would have stuck the fork into the manure pile, they would have hit the barrel"

So here we are at 10:00+ AM and all I have to show for the day so far is writing and then reading some of the interesting stories too Terry.  Perhaps I need to get serious about the day and get some work done.  Not sure if this is an excuse or not but I do try to stay off my feet as much as possible as I feel that helps that right foot heal.  I did just take the last sip of FP so will sign off for the day.

April 22nd, 2021

 TERRY

Terry had her annual wellness visit yesterday and it went well.  Dr. Costello did give us several papers to have blood work done and a scan done so we will take care of that in the coming weeks.  Her BP was excellent and she has NOT been on meds for some time.  Did we get any answers?  Not really but then there were not many questions either.  So for now it is make some appointment for scans and blood work.

I will NOT say these will never be used again but for now they have found a home in the garage.  Yesterday was the proof as Terry went to her doctor appointment without the wheelchair, just using the walker.  That is the very first time we have gone out in over a year without the wheelchair.  So for now it is "doing what she wants" by using the walker and we are thinking that we may be able to put that in the garage also at some point! Now I need to get on the phone and make some appointment for things Dr. Costello ordered.

Well I would say that my arch and my back are somewhat better today.  I am still trying to stay off my feet as much as possible to give that arch a rest.  I did get arch supports for my court shoes but not sure when or if I will use them.

I enjoy reading the WSJ Monday-Saturday.  This morning there was an article about T-moble high up workers such as CEO etc.  

You may not be interested in reading it BUT the 4 people at the top AVERAGE a salary of 63+ million a year.  I wonder if they ever thought about lowering their rates and take a slight pay cut???  Well I think I know the answer.  I mean the top person only gets $137 M!

Karl, one of the guys I play tennis with stopped by last night with a book for me to read.  We talked about tennis etc and I did notice that he has lost a lot of weight.  It makes me determined to do the same.  I am wondering if a pot of FP and ONE beer a day for two weeks would do it???  Well if I did that the covid shot, arch injury and sore back may be nothing compared to that diet so will forgo it and just try to be a bit more reasonable in what I eat!  I am thinking I may be able to get back on the courts in 10 days or so.  MAYBE

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"But they grew up knowing Mom will use the spatula if she has too.  The kids know, it is one swat, they get the lesson.  Every swat after one is for your frustration.  Oh, yeah.  If you can't straighten out the tree before it gets too big, you might as well forget it when they are teenagers."

No here it is 9:45.  Sonia is here making a meal for the day and really I should get some work done.  First I need to call about the pool as it has been unused for a couple weeks.  I have come to the conclusion that a couple of the companies that came are not going to get back to me so I need to call.  My FP is gone so time to sign off.

April 21st and Terry has a doctor appt

 TERRY

Terry is the same I would say.  She does see the dr today for her wellness visit so will see if anything comes of that.  One of the questions I have is should she get the covid shot.  This will be the first time she has ventured out using the walker only so it will be interesting to see how she does.  I think she will do fine.  Appt is at 2:00.

I am kind of feeling back to normal after yesterdays covid feelings.  So now I am back to a sore back and and a hurt right foot only!  Actually I think both are somewhat better.

We did get rain this morning which was very much needed.  It has been very very dry here.  I have not been on the tennis courts for some time now but they had been DRY.

For some reason I have not been in the mood for writing much the last several days.  I will do a little from:

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"The Hollaar children either walked or ran to school.  Several came by ponies.  There was a little barn for the horses.  School began with students standing for the Pledge of Allegiance.  Recess, even on the coldest days, was outside, "as the teachers encouraged us to get a little fresh air. "Bible study was also part of the curriculum.  Carol tells a side story about early years in the church: "Sometimes ladies would have such big hats you couldn't see the preacher."

The FP is gone and time to do something for the day.  I do need to write some things down concerning Terry's appt today.

Another "ouch"

 TERRY

Terry is the same.  She is getting around the house by herself, with the aid of the walker, and feeling about the same.  She has that Dr. appt tomorrow so maybe we will find out somethings but I am Not counting on it.  So "one day at a time" is still the THING.

I am one sorry mess today.  No complaints, just facts!  My foot is somewhat better but not good.  My back is somewhat better but not good.  BUT now on day two after the second covid shot one feels the effects of it.  I have a left leg that is very sore and a back ache that feels not so good.  I should be fine tomorrow in terms of the shot effects.  So for today I may lie low and pretend that I am 95 as that is how I feel!!!

I should try to get some answers about our pool.  It has not been on for some time as there is a crack in one part of the sides.  Not a crack in the wall but rather a crack in the finish on the insides.  I have called three places and ONE has gotten back to me so I guess I need to do some time on the phone.  I miss being able to swim a couple times a day.

With no tennis and not much going out and about what to write about is limited so I will write a couple things about what is now my favorite book.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Thora and her sister, ages 12 and 14, were the cooks in a cook car that followed the threshing crewe at harvest time.  They fed 15 men five meals a day.  "We were very young.  We slept there, Thora explains, We would get up about four or five in the morning in order to serve breakfast at six.  A midmorning break was called forenoon lunch. Dinner was at noon, flowed by afternoon lunch and then supper.  When the crew would come in for supper, it was usually dark or about dark.  then you had to wash up the dishes."

"Skeeter" is a nickname given due to a mosquito bite that festered on Joseph Osvold's head when he was a baby.  He was one of 11 children.  Growing up, he says, "All my family lived in a one-bedroom house.  There was a bedroom, living room, dining room and a kitchen. Lots of foldout couches."

OK so here are at 9:30.  Terry needed some company so I spent the last 30 minutes with her and now am ready to sign off.  Sonia arrived so soon she will be cooking a meal.  I still have a cup of FP so life is good!

Happy Birthday Mike

 

Today Mike turns 40 and I agree this picture was taken some time ago BUT then Mike is ageless!  If you want to talk about a great dad, a great husband etc this is one guy you may want to talk about.  From a from he's job at school to home to projects to pretty much everything else Mike does a wonderful job.  May this coming year be one of great things for you Mike.  Happy birthday from Carmen and Terry

April 19, Monday of the last full week of April 2021

 TERRY

Once again as I woke up Terry was up and in the living room with the TV on.  She is becoming more and more noble as she feels stronger.  She has a dr appt Wednesday as it is time for her wellness visit.  So we start the week looking at one day at a time as usual!

Not sure what to say today as with my sore back and bad right foot there is NO tennis today or for the foreseeable future.  So I will once again try to get some things cleaned up and have the house look like bums do not live here!

 DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"Asked if he enjoyed life, he quotes his dad, "You know, short time living and a helluva long time dead, you might as well enjoy it".  John says his longevity is because of picking the right ancestors."

"Running 350 head of cattle makes calving exciting every year, but nerve-racking when their pastor accepted Betty's invitation to watch him deliver a calf.  That was a nightmare of a day, he recalled as the calf was not coming out right.  I worked myself to a frazzle but finally the calf came out and was alright.  While all this was going on, Betty says she was engaged in fervent prayer.  I asked if she was praying along with the pastor.  "Not exactly," she says.  "I was praying that you wouldn't cuss!"

Well here I am at 9:40 and it is time to stop.  I am on my last sip of FP so I should be good to go for the morning.  I have my alarm on so I don't miss my second shot today at 11:10.  Not looking forward to it but then I guess it is a good thing.

There is a change!!!

 TERRY

As I did some laundry yesterday I noticed the commode in the corner and it dawned on me, we are seeing success for Terry.  About a week ago I wheeled the wheelchair into a corner of the living room and there it has been since.  Yesterday I noticed the commode sitting in the laundry room and realized it had been there for several days with NO use.  Then it came to mind, Terry is getting better day by day and I am in the middle of it and often do not see it.  Yes, she has to have the walker to get around BUT get around she does.  She even ventured into the kitchen yesterday and opened the fridge.  I am guessing the last time that happened is a long long time ago.  I think I mentioned that she will see her primary doctor for her wellness visit next week and as of now she plans to forgo the wheelchair and use the walker.  So maybe, just maybe, there is light at the end of the tunnel.  This morning when I woke up she was in the living room with the TV on.  We have yet to use the walker outside but I am thinking that is coming!  Way to go Terry.

My lower back is hurting this morning.  I have no idea what I did if anything but I am walking like a cripple and I feel like that as well.  I am trying to be careful as I have had my back go out on me but that has not happened for a long time.  Maybe as the day goes on it will get better.

No plans for the day. 

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

Jerry remembers, "Mom never cried.  And I'd ask her, Mom, you never cry, how come?  She said, When your dad died, I ran out of tears.  He asked her, Mom how come you hated lilacs?  They're the best-smelling flower I think I've ever smelled.  And then she started to cry and said, That was the only flowers I had for your dad's casket.  Jerry and his siblings knew the only flower that was not to be planted at their mother's grave was a lilac.  One of his sisters said, Mom would hate you if you did that.  Jerry adds, No, Mom would never hate any of us.  She never did, either."

I do not know what happened last night but I woke up about 2:00 AM and could not get back to sleep.  For some strange reason my mind went back to high school during my senior year.  I could not get my mind to change gears so there I was awake with my mind on the past!

I thought about our district basketball tournament in March.  We had experienced a fairly successful season with a record of 11-9.  Several of the losses had been to much larger schools like Shanley, Wahpeton, Oaks and Lisbon.  We had finished in the top three in our conference but during the entire season had been plagued by injuries.  We also were following a team that had gotten 5th in the state the year before.  For the district tournament we were in a district east of us so most of the teams we had not played.  Our first game was against Wydmere and our starting center Dan was out with an arm injury.  We lost in the last few seconds of the game and it was tough.  The game was in the afternoon and our bus was not scheduled to leave for a couple of hours so Larry/Pat and Jo/I walked around the town of which there was very little!  It was a long afternoon.  Well basketball was not over as we, of course, were now playing in the consolation bracket.  The next day we won easily and the following afternoon we played Lidgerwood for 5th place.  We had beaten them early in the season 53-48 so we knew it was going to be a tough game.  Well it was one of those games where it seemed that every time I throw the ball towards the hoop it would go in.  We won, I scored something like 26 points and got a write up in the Lidgerwood paper the following week.  I found out a few years later that Dad cut out the article and kept it!  But back to school.  In the weeks that followed much went through my mind.  Basketball was pretty much the end of high school.  Yes we had classes for another two months but really my mind was on "what is next". I did train during study hall for track but that was kind of a none-issue.  What was ahead of me.  Was I going to college?  What about friends at school.  We lived 25 miles from school so once school was out friends were pretty much out of touch.  Well I did have a girl friend but that was in doubt as she was away for the summer at a camp and then we would be at different places after that.  I was at a place where I did not want to be at home in the fall and yes there was the military to think about as a non-student who was 18 would most likely be drafted and that I did not want.  So it had to be college and I settled on the University in Fargo, NDSU.  Perhaps I need go no farther than this.  Only to say I was a person who had many many thoughts and few answers.  I should say that Ronald, who was my hero, had died in the fall and that had also put a cloud over my life in many ways.  For sure it made the home front a place that was not very pleasant.  It made Dad more moody and Mom was often at the brink of tears as she sat and did needle work.  AND I really had NO money so!!!  So the summer came and I felt that this would be my last summer on a farm that was way way past its prime!  I had no idea that the next spring Mom and Dad would ask me to come home for the summer again as sister Janet had died in February and Mom and Dad were needing help.  The answer was ONLY if I had some wheels to get around so that brought into my life my Harley Sprint Cycle and the summer also saw Gail and I get back together after she had been in college for a year.   

It was only after many years that I realized that even though I felt I was a "loner" individual for some reason I needed to be close to people.  To this day it seems that I view myself as kind of a loner but yet find myself liking to be with people as well.  Does that mean I am mixed up?

We have been eating meatloaf for the past couple of days.  After the first meal I have been making meatloaf sandwiches and they have been delicious.  We are about finished with it so will have to find something else to eat today.  I would say my cooking skills in the last year or so have come up from a D- to maybe a C+, maybe!!!

Enough for this morning.  My FP is gone and I need to come up with something that makes my back better.

Saturday, April 17th, 2021

 TERRY

Really nothing new about Terry.  She has NOT used the wheelchair in the house for many days now.  She has a wellness doctor visit next week and she indicated that she will use the walker, not the wheelchair.  I would say that is a GOOD sign.  As I blog she is actually finished reading the paper and is watching some of her favorite TV which is on Saturday morning!  Well I guess I was wrong as she is watching the funeral of Prince Philip.

Well my life will be kind of same same for the next few weeks as this darn right foot heals.  I was kind of bummed out yesterday as I noticed that the entire foot is a bit swollen.  I am hoping to get that down today.  I continue to ice and take IB AND also stay off of it as much as possible. It may be a go the second week in May to play tennis---maybe!

I don't know how many people look at DAKOTA ABANDONED IMAGES ON Facebook but I spent some time on it this morning and came up with several images that are NOT from our farm BUT very very similar to some things we had way back then.

I am not certain this is the same as our "M" International tractor but it does look like it.  Well ours was a narrow front end but otherwise pretty much the same.

This is pretty much the same as our hay rake.  I am guessing rakes like this were fitted to be pulled by a tractor AFTER they were used as rakes behind horses.  I did take the seat off of ours and Aaron has it in his shop.

Pretty much like the manure spreader we had.  There was a track on the bottom that would move as you drove and that would bring the manure to the back where it would be spread by the tines.

This is pretty close to our truck, Big Red.  It even looks like the front window may be a crank out just as ours was.  

We had one like this on the farm.  Many a knife was sharpened on it as well as hatchets and axes.  I would always sharpen my knife before I practiced throwing it at a board from about 10 feet away.  

As one can tell our farm was NOT meant for a picture perfect farm magazine article!!!  Even in its' day, it was pretty outdated and was a haven for antiques.  There are times I question IF Dad had been a progressive farmer would any of us wanted to stay on the farm???

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"I've only ever been to one movie in my life: Gone with the Wind.  We didn't do a lot o'that kinda thing, because my husband's father had died when he was 14 years old, so he didn't have a lot of free time or a lot of money to spend.  We were poor.  I did a lot of field work and picking rocks.  We lived on the cream check. ……….We were poor, but we didn't know it……….. Now 91 years old, Eleanora says, "Before my husband died, he said, "I'm so sorry you had to work so hard.  But we did it together!  You know, we always just did it together.

"Dora reflects that a farm is a nice place to raise kids, but it has its drawbacks.  One farm we lived at she recalls, "the water was so terrible.  We had to haul it from the barn.  So I had the little tractor and a stone boat [a type of sled for moving large objects] with a water tank on it.  I'd haul water up to the house, carry it in, and heat it on the stove, and then put lye in it.  When you boil it, the lye brings all the rust up.  We'd skim off the rust, and then we'd do the wash.  We had a washing machine with a gas engine.  It worked, but it was noisy."

That is it for the day.  I suppose I should try to get some work done but maybe I should just keep this right foot elevated and sit around!  The FP is gone so I am good for the day.

April 16th of 2021 and we head down towards the end of the month

 TERRY

That darn Terry, I can not keep track of her anymore!!!  I woke up about 6:30 and the bed was empty!  She had gotten up about an hour earlier and walked into the living room to watch TV so as not to wake me.  I am wondering IF it may be time for us to have her try walking unaided somehow.  I know she can not just start out as there has to be something to hang on to IF she needs it.  Have not figured it out yet but need to do that in the future.  She says her legs seem strong BUT she is unsure of her balance so will see what happens as time goes on.  As I blog she has the Naples paper and the WSJ to keep her busy for a while.

Well today is day 1 of living without tennis for some time.  I am icing my arch twice a day and wrapping it during the day.  Also am taking IB pills three times a day.  It will be interesting to see how long it takes to heal.  I am betting the week after most of the tennis players leave it will be fine!!!

Sonia just arrived and I am going to make a short trip to Costco while she is here.  Other than that I will continue to clean up messes of paper etc.  I am thinking that by the end of the day all my papers will be cleared up and if needed they will be filed.  

So all I have today is some pictures and the some North Dakota again!

The year after putting 2 pickup loads of mature on the garden it grew things like crazy!  This was in Devils Lake.

When we moved into our home on Niles Ave in St. Paul ALL the floors in the house had 

indoor/outdoor carpet.  The kitchen had orange!!!  Looks like Aaron is about to make a move!

FROM DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"What makes Edward happy?  You make your own happiness.  Some people say, "Oh, I would be happy if I had a million dollars."  That is not happiness.  Happiness to me is knowing we are going to have corn on the cob tonight for supper along with fresh tomatoes"

"Edward and Doris Bodnar were married in 1949 and farmed near Dresden.  "Milking cows never made you a dime, but you sure saved a lot because you had to be home milking cows. "Edward asserts.  "You didn't have time to go out and spend money!"

Yesterday, I would kind of like to pretend never happened!

 TERRY

I think Terry is kind of on the mend.  Starting about 3:30 this morning I tossed and turned but did sleep some.  When I finally woke up I thought I heard something.  Then I looked over at Terry's bed and it was empty!  She had gotten up and walked to the living room.  She turned the TV on low so as not to wake me up.  So I guess she is getting kind of back to the Terry we all know.  Just to be sure she can NOT walk without the walker and is far from healthy again but each day she does something like that she is a tiny bit closer to BETTER.  As I write she is in bed again with the TV on and the Naples paper and WSJ to read.

I had tennis at 9:00 yesterday.  About 15 minutes into the match I turned to hit a ball and almost fell down from pain in my right foot.  END OF TENNIS FOR THE DAY.  In the afternoon I did go into Urgent Care to see if they could tell me what was wrong.  They took X rays and it looks like I have Plantar fasciitis in my right foot.  it actually is the wrong foot but on my right side. So the future looks like NO tennis for 2-4 weeks with IB, ice and rest to get it well.  So what am I to do with my time now?  I have a couple of ideas but will let them rest for now.  Of course I am disappointed but for some reason not down like I thought I would be.  The difficult part is by the time I can play again most of the people will be gone!  I guess I could be DOWN and so so disappointed BUT then of course there are many many many things that could be a lot worse than not playing tennis for 4 weeks.  Carmen, life goes on so live it to the fullest each day!!!

I actually did get something done yesterday.  I had paid for FEMA flood insurance not knowing that our new policy that covers all 42 villas includes flood insurance.  Of course one needs flood insurance just because we are about 3 miles from the gulf and in case a hurricane comes we could get flooded.  Well after two phone calls I was able to print out some forms and then drive to our State Farm office and we will get our refund in a few days.  I did not ask if the policy would have been in effect already would we have gotten a refund?  It was set to go into effect April 24th.  I was a bit nervous in working on it as the cost was $1000+.  It was nice to get that out of the way.

I also eased my mind about our tax returns.  I had sent them in to company headquarters in mid March and had heard nothing.  I realize we have until May 17th this year but still.  I called Melissia, the gal I talk with, and she did confirm they have them, they are working on them and will let me know if they need more info.  So that is kind of done as well.  I think we should get some kind of refund back.  Last year we had to pay big time because of the sale of Terry's home in MN but 2020 should be normal again so some kind of refund should be coming.  Again, nice to find out that they are being worked on.

I am not sure what I will do today but it does seem that there are ALWAYS papers to file and take care of AND they just seem to never go away!   Maybe it is because I don't work on them!!!

FROM DAKOTA ATTITUDES

"Warren Zakopyko is the fourth generation on a farm north of Kief.  This is where I was born in 1940.  And this is where I'm gonna die.  They operate Elaine's Garden and Guesthouse on their farmstead and have a fully restored schoolhouse there too."

ANOTHER

"Born in 1927, Esther grew up in a blended family of 13 in the Calvin area.  She remembers the hard times of the 1930s.  Her stepdad worked in a repair shop.  One night the storeowner gambled his business away.  So her stepdad started his own shop.  Everybody worked.  I had two brothers, nine and ten.  The greasier my brothers would get, the better they liked it.  So my stepdad set each one in a corner of the garage and gave them each a motor, told'em to tear it apart, clean it, and put it back together.  So they did, and it worked fine.  That was their start."

SOME PICTURES FROM LONG AGO

Not sure how Cynthia came out of this one!

At Devils Towers NW of the Black Hills

We worked hard for ALL those Pioneer Press jackets!

Spending time in CA after John's college graduation

So here it is almost 9:30 so I have managed to get to kind of mid morning without working!  I have finished my FP so I am thinking I should be good to go for some time!  Another day and it is good to have decent health and be above ground!!!

Important day it is LEO'S BIRTHDAY!!!

 

Leo Lee turns 14 today.  It is hard for me to believe this is Leo as he now looks the part of a handsome young man in his early teens.  It seems like it was not long ago and he was this young boy BUT.  Leo  is a great guy.  We are hoping he has a fun day as he turns the corner and heads towards 15.  Happy Birthday Leo from Grandpa Lee and Grandma Terry.

April 13, 2021

 TERRY

Terry continues to be wheelchair free at home.  I would say she is same same today as yesterday and the day before.  She usually spends time in bed in the AM reading the paper and then watching TV.  Most of the time she then goes back and forth from the bedroom to the living room several times in the afternoon.   So not much th write about today!

I came home after playing tennis for 30 minutes this morning.  The arch on my right foot is very sore and I have no idea why!  I am debating if I need to call guys I am to play with tomorrow and let them get a replacement.  Big decisions, right???

Sonia is here this morning so she has one of the meals made for lunch.  I went to the store this morning and purchased things for a meatloaf and baked potato dinner tonight.

We found out yesterday that our neighbor to the south will be moving to a different community maybe in late fall.  They are going to the Dunes and selling their place next to us to family.  They are leaving for the summer in 3 weeks but will be back and forth over the next few months as they renovate their new place which is rented at this time.  I think our neighbors to the north are going to be here until late in May.

 DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"SOME KIDS DROVE A MILE AND A HALF TO TOWN IN THE FALL AND SPRING ON AN ALLIS-CHALMERS TRACTOR.  THEY HAD EIGHT KIDS IN THE FAMILY, AND THEY'D ALL HANG ON THIS TRACTOR-----SOME ON THE HOOD, SOME IN THE SEAT, SOME ON THE FENDERS, SOME ON THE DRAWBAR, THE OLDEST DRIVING, AND THEY'D COME TO SCHOOL, PARK IT THERE AND DRIVE IT HOME IN THE EVENING."

I think that is about it for the day.  I do have a couple of things I need to do today so best get to them before the day is too long gone.  I do have one more cup of FP that I can heat up and enjoy.

Monday and a late time to blog

TERRY

Terry is doing the same. She now goes from the bedroom to the living room several times a day just to get a walk in with the walker.  That is good.  She has not been out of the house for several days now so the wheelchair stays parked in the corner.  Even tho it is one day at a time is seems that in ALL areas she is getting a tiny bit better each day.  Way to go Terry!

It is late in the day so I will not say a whole lot.  I did have a nice chat with sister Helen today as she called me.

Now that sisters Helen and Joan have gotten their books that I sent I will say the name of it.  The name of the book is DAKOTA ATTITUDE and the author interviewed someone from every town in ND.  Each story is a page long and it is a very interesting book to read.  Actually pretty funny what people lived like etc. as most of the people interviewed are in their 60s, 70s, 80s and beyond.  It does bring back a lot of memories as there are a lot of stories of small country schools and small town schools in general.  So for tonight here is some from the book again.

DAKOTA ATTITUDE

"I'm gonna keep working til I get old (he was 88).  I've been practicing welding for about 74 years, and I'm finally beginning to get the hang of it, Curtis jokes.  I've known a quite a few people in my lifetime that quit working as soon as they possible can, and then a lot of 'em didn't last very long.  Anyways, I get bored setting at home.  Nothing to do much, you know, but look at the wall and advertisements on TV.    Well, that's all they got on there.  But there isn't much on the radio anymore, either, really.  I don't care about listening to that advertising.  I don't need advertising.  If I want something I go to town and buy it.  I don't have to be told, you know."

I played tennis today and we did a round robin in which I lost both sets!😠. I did have my FP before tennis and that did not help at all!  Here it is 9:00 and time to shut down.

Here we are already in the second Sunday of April, April 11.

TERRY

Terry continues on her independent ways, kinda!  Yesterday as I sat in the den by the computer there she went right past me going from the bedroom to the living room.  On her own she has decided that she needs to walk more (with the walker at this point).  Yesterday at 7:30 PM she walked into the living room just to walk.  She sat watching TV for about a half hour and then headed back to the bedroom.  She now keeps the walker near the bed and feels safe in using it any time with no regard if I am close by or not.  Well there is one exception.  She has promised that she will not use the walker if I am gone.  I suspect that will change soon but we will see.  She has decided that she will not use the last 3 sessions of therapy now.  That means we, or she, need to be always thinking of ways she should get exercise.  This morning, as I write, she is reading the paper with the TV on while she stays in bed.

I need to get on the bike and get some exercise in this morning.  No tennis on the weekend so I need to do something.  It looks like 100% change of rain this afternoon.  

from the book

"Ivan describes his parents: They didn't throw no money away.  My mother would churn butter, as high as 30 pounds a week.  She had butter customers in town.  I would sell the buttermilk to the butter customers at 10 cents for half a gallon.  When I didn't get to town in the wintertime my dad didn't take my buttermilk money.  When I did get to town, I probably had $1.50 worth of buttermilk money.  And I had kids following me, a block long, because we were going to have candy.  But I was only allowed to spend five cents and take the rest home.  You can believe this or not, sir, but I still got some of the money."

Our way of doing things!

It is the middle of June in 1957 and the weather had not been kind to us.  Dad mowed our first crop of alfalfa on Monday with the mindset that we would be stacking hay by the end of the week.  Dad said the hay needed to dry out before we put it in rows so there was nothing to do except pick rocks on the land that we were summer fallowing.  Neither Dave nor I were crazy about haying time but it sure beat picking rocks.  Well there was a way of making rock picking OK.  I mean you could use the rocks for baseballs, or shot puts or see how far you could be away from the rock wagon and still get them to stay on the wagon bed.  I mean we could think of many ways to make the work not so much like work.  BUT here we get back to the hay.  Dad said we should rake the hay into rows on Wednesday and then on Thursday we were to drive over the rows and make them into bunches of hay that Dad would pick up with the Jayhawk stacker when we stacked the hay.  Well I say, "our way of doing things" because it was not like most farmers.  Other farmers actually had gone modern and had side delivery rakes.  Our way of doing things was actually with a rake that had actually been drawn by horses at one time.  The modern way was just to go around the field with the side delivery and rows appeared but with our machinery we needed someone to drive the tractor and someone to sit on the rake as well.  I should say that we were the only ones still stacking hay.  By the time Dave and I got to be in the middle grades everyone was baling their hay.  Rollof, Obert, Bert and everyone else had bales.  Some had round bales and some had square bales.  Us, no way were we into bales in our farm.  Anyway this time around we got caught in a week were mid week we had rain.  Now you can not stack hay that is wet so after we had some sunny days Dave and I had to go around the field again and each time we would drive across the windrow of hay we would just catch the edge of the row and then trip the rake just at the right time so the hay would be turned over.  Dad did mention that once the hay was rained on it still was good but not as good as if it had never been rained on.  I should add a funny story.  Dave never forgot the summer, maybe 1959 or so, when he had to stack hay on his birthday.  He always thought he should have had his birthday off!!  

Here it is 9:30 and time to sign off.  My FP is almost finished so a bike ride it is.

Saturday, April 10th, 2021

 TERRY

Terry is now pretty independent at home in terms of moving around the house.  The wheelchair has sat by the front door unused for several days.  She pretty much gets out of bed when ever she wants or needs to and uses the walker to get to where she wants.  I commented yesterday that she hardly needs me but she did say that was not true!!!  Now I feel we need to get outside more.  I am sure she is NOT ready to get outside and walk with the walker as she is not that steady on her feet nor is she that strong but I feel that is coming.  BUT as I do say in my mind still, it is one day at a time.

Yesterday I did something I had not done for some time.  In fact I think I had golfed twice in the last maybe 8 years or so.  Karl invited me to play with him and Scott at Spanish Wells Club which is about two miles from us.  It looks really nice and the price would make it seem REALLY nice but I would say it is a fun golf course but not upscale at all.  Well I take that back.  If I were to look back on my college days in Fargo and think about the courses Dave and I played I guess Spanish Wells is upscale.  Well again the Fargo days are LONG LONG ago so what can I say.  Anyway we teed off at 12:30 and finished the first 9 holes about two hours later.  Karl and Scott planned to play 18 holes but I felt I should not be away from Terry for 4+ hours so I parked my cart after 9 holes.  Now I would say in my YOUNGER days I was NOT an accomplished golf but I was above a duffer, I think!  Well yesterday it took me about the first 4 or 5 holes to remember SOME things about golf and at that point I was not embarrassed from then on.  I did NOT keep track of my score as I did not want to be depressed BUT I played hole #9, a 400 yard hole, in 4 strokes which was par.  A nice way to end things.  Maybe I should add that was my only par BUT I am guessing I played the last 4 or 5 holes in maybe one or two over on each hole.  I do know one thing I have to do IF I play again.  My driver grip made my hands black which says I need to regrip it IF I am to play again.  The 4th guy who played with us did mention that 15 of the 18 holes a person has to take water into consideration.  IF I remember correctly I had one shot in the water.  It was a fun outing and I am hoping to play again sooner than a few years from now!  I should add that one is required to rent a cart on that course so I had my own cart which in some ways brought back memories of Servant Camp where I always rented three golf carts.  Two for the directors and one for the runners.

So Terry and I are now into mid-morning of Saturday and we really have nothing planned for the weekend.  I do need to go to the store today and maybe this morning is the best time.  

Here is more from the book I have been reading.  A fun read for sure.

"It was a tournament at Hettinger, and at the end of the game it was all tied up.  Bud recalls.  We played two overtimes, and it was still tied up.  Nobody could make a bucket!  I guess the officials got sick of it, so they flipped a coin and we won!"

"Ione recalled attending rural school.  In my first, second, and third year we had a teacher who was pretty religious.  She read out of the Bible every morning.  We always prayed.  Every morning.  That only lasted for about three years."

THIS IS ABOUT RIDING THE FREIGHT TRAIN

Way back it was not uncommon for guys to grab onto the train and go wherever.

 

"One time we were riding on a load of telephone poles--logs, highline poles--on a flat car, and when he put on the brakes, or whatever happened, the logs shifted.  Almost pushed us off the front.  And the bums, they come sneaking around there to see if we were alive yet.  They said, That will teach you.  Don't ride in front of the logs"

Grandpa Saunders had stories of riding the rails.  

Wow here it is 11:15 as I had several interruptions this morning.  One was putting a screen back on over the pool as I looked out at the pool and there were two doves in the screened pool! I opened the side door, shut the shutter that separates the pool from the house and then walked around the house thinking this could take a long time to get those birds out.  When I got to the pool the doves were nowhere to be seen.  Maybe they knew they were in trouble!  I then took time to put the screen in place again.  I thought this could be a long process but 15 minutes later I had it in place!  Of course it should have been in place weeks ago but then time flies, right?

The FP is gone and I think I need to head to the store for a couple of things.