Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #44 – Home Projects, Shopping and Dinner Out

Wednesday, March 28th, 2018……  I got up and showered and then headed off to my sister’s to walk Quincy.  She hadn’t been out around her neighborhood for two weeks so she was excited and tried to pull me at the start.  No happening, sister! I got her settled down and we had a nice walk. We did the canal route today.  Boy, the water is high in it right now!  After I got back to her house, I took a few measurements and came home, stopping by Starbucks for coffee and tea. Then I set out to Home Depot to get cedar boards to patch the fence next to her house.  They have recently moved and sold their house and the old owner said we could go into the back yard and change out the fence boards. She also wanted me to put a grab bar in her shower to assist her in and out. It is timely now with her still at 80% after surgery plus she is still battling a bad knee.  I found what I needed and returned and got to work. Penny took off and Lydia met her at Safeway.  They both needed to shop and Lydia was there to help with heavy items. By the time she got back, I had most of the boards replaced and only had a few to finish up. I went to work on the grab bar.  This was challenging! The contractor installed one of those tiny one-piece fiberglass showers and it looks ok – just too tight for my tastes – but the problem is they did not complete any hardboard backing behind it at all!  Nothing to screw the bar into.  I ended up using toggle bolts and they only catch the fiberglass shell.  It’s firm and it will be ok for now as long as it’s only used for stability and not much else. She’s hoping to do a remodel in the master bath sooner than later, providing she chooses to stay there and not sell and relocate later down the road. I got all my work done and that was it for me for the day. After shopping Lydia went out and got her mani/pedi. I came home and rested until I had to go cook the taco shells for dinner.  I don’t mind doing this – it’s one of my favorite meals! After we got our plates fixed, we sat down and watched a few taped episodes of Guys Grocery Games and later, after dinner, we cleaned out the fridge and got the stuff dumped and the trash taken out to the street for tomorrow. Oh yeah, I texted Dana earlier today, saying how nice of a dry day it was and we had no concrete and that this is getting old!  She texted back saying that she was going to call me later today to tell me we are next up on their list and since we have rain in the forecast for Thursday and Friday, they should be here on Monday.  I’m cautiously optimistic!         

Thursday, March 29th, 2018……  I will be on dog walking patrol for some time since sis can’t have Quincy out pulling her on a leash.  So, I went over early this morning and got my doggie duties completed and returned home where Lydia was making omelets for breakfast.  I did stop and get coffee and her tea. After that, I went out and worked on a couple of projects. First up was the barbeque. We definitely brought our nice big stainless Jenn-Air barbeque up with us.  I wasn’t about to leave that in Long Beach!  It has been in the garage since we got up here. Problem was, it was plumbed in to use city gas, not propane tanks (different pressures and different regulators). I would have to run a gas line out to the back yard - or so I thought.  A week or so ago, I discovered a nice plumbed in gas line, complete with a shutoff valve, in a concealed panel under the back porch.  So, I dug the grill out and muscled it up onto the porch and got it where I wanted it. I need to run a pipe from the valve, under and along the length of the porch and connect it up. I made a quick trip to Ace Hardware and found they do not stock the quick release valves I need. Plus, they were a little high on the black gas pipe and the flex line I need for the transition.  So, I will wait and make a run to the Home Depot or Lowes to get what I need.  But having that gas line already in place saves me a lot of time and money!  Second project was building more shelving units in the garage part of the shop.  When I bought the racks from Costco last year, I ran them down one side, using one upright to tie in the next load beams.  Same as you see in Costco or other warehouse stores. That left three uprights with no beams left.  So, I’m building my own load beams with wood and metal.  I got that design figured out and will get materials later. Third project was getting water out to the spigot just out by the driveway. I finally found the shutoff valve (behind where the bbq was stored!) and saw that one of the lines was disconnected.  I will need to get that fixed before I can proceed.  Later, we went to Albany and to Costco.  We needed a few things for Carol’s visit and Lydia waited until we could go there and make one trip. Turns out we only got a few things and will wait until the first of the month to go back.  My sister wants to take us out to dinner tonight so we went and picked her up and headed to the Pointe just out of Sweet Home.  We had been there years earlier when we were rving up by Foster Lake.  The meal was really good

and the view of the lake is hard to beat. After dinner, we went back and dropped Penny off and came home and kicked back for the evening.     

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #43 – Late Races and Going Back Home!

 

Monday, March 26th, 2018……  After walking the dog, I went out and got us breakfast, coffee and tea, and then checked my delayed Nascar races, to see if they were racing today. And they were!  I watched a few minutes. Lydia and my sister said they were going to go to check Penny’s house and then to Walmart. I went out and started the install of the sawdust collector hose I bought Saturday. I got it close, and later, I took a break and went back in the house and had a light lunch.  And then I went back out and finished up the job and cleaned up the shop.  I haven’t tried it yet (no projects to cut on the table saw at this time) but I’m thinking it should work well to suck up all of that sawdust into my collector. I cleaned off from the job and then came in and had a drink and then watched the races.  I was happy with the results.  My guy won! Lydia got dinner started and I took Quincy out to play with the chuck-it. We went out in the front yard to play so I grabbed a rake with me to rake up some of the big chunks of grass clippings.  I mow the yard in a circle outside to inside and 90% of the grass gets clumped in a long row down the center of the yard.  It’s usually easy to rake but I waited too long so the rains have pushed it down into the grass.  But I got most of it and it looks better than it did.  I also helped sis upload her photos from her phone to her laptop.   She’s looking to delete them from her phone so we needed to get this done beforehand.  We are watching the weather and planning our days this week. She’s also planning her month (April) of treatment, which she’ll be gone all day for so we will figure out the schedule with the dog.  Nothing much after dinner except relaxing and watching tv.   

Tuesday, March 27th, 2018…… Today started out as usual – I walked Quincy and we ate breakfast.  But later, Penny said she thought that she’d go home today.  She’s able to do everything medically by herself and can do that at her own home and sleep in her own bed.  Lydia went to do her new set of labs and stopped by Penny’s place to turn the heater back on to start to warm up the place. When she returned, we loaded everything up in the car and took her back to her place.   She gave me a few tasks to complete, which I will come back and do tomorrow. We got her set up at home and returned and rested.  She is coming back here for dinner so we left Quincy at our place for the afternoon. Later, I went out and finished raking up the excess clumps of grass out in the front yard and called it a day.  Sis came back over and we had spaghetti for dinner.  She loaded up Quincy and took her back home.  It’s quiet here now!  

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #42 – Eugene Outing and Buying a Discount Card

    

Saturday, March 24th, 2018……  Something different today…  Same ole walk and feed the dog routine, thou. This morning the weather was really nice (a little chilly but clear skies) so we got to do the full tour. I asked the girls if they wanted in on my road trip to Eugene this morning.  They both got their showers and off we went.  Since it was still pretty early when we left and none of us ate, we stopped in Eugene and had breakfast at Elmer’s.  I then found Woodcraft of Eugene (it’s actually in Springfield). This place was cool! I found what I needed but I looked around a bit and now I want more woodshop tools! We left there and cruised past Graveyard Carz, where the tv show is filmed.  They were closed today but a couple of the kids came out to walk their dog and we talked briefly. We also stopped at Fred Meyer on the way back home.  Just got a few things for the puppy.  We think we have everything we need except the transport crate and piddle pads, but those we can get at Walmart anytime.  We got back home and snacked and then rested and watched tv until dinnertime.  Lydia has been wanting to go to Skyline for prime rib, which is served Fri-Sun. Her and Penny split a twelve oz cut and ordered their own baked potatoes.  I just had soup and a French dip sandwich.  We came back and played with Quincy for a while and then settled in to watch our taped tv programs until bedtime.

Sunday, March 25th, 2018……  No plans today.  Weather is nice but still a chill in the air.  Both of my Nascar races in Virginia got snowed out both Saturday and today.  Both are rescheduled for tomorrow. I had other things to watch so that’s how I spent my day.  The NCAA basketball games are on today.  I’m not a fan but I watch each game for a few minutes.  I’ll watch the final four and the championship game though. We took Quincy out a couple of times to pee and play tug-of-war with one of Bailey’s old toys. My sister can’t play with her too much so I get to do it.  Did I mention she wears me out! Lydia and Penny did some laundry this afternoon and Lydia got ribs in the crockpot for dinner.  They were great! I caught up on some finances and then went online and purchased a promotional discount card from station KATU (ABC local tv).  It benefits Ronald McDonald House and gives the user 4 free admissions to ten different venues in Northwest Oregon, any time from Mar. 1^st to Sep. 30^th. 

Oregon Zoo
Pittock Mansion
Oregon Film Museum
Lan Su Chinese Garden
G6 Airpark
Columbia Gorge
Oregon Garden
The Rice Northwest Rock and Mineral Museum
The Washington County Museum of Hillsboro
Oregon Historical Society

It’s a $400. value for $79.00. We will definitely use it for Oregon Gardens and maybe a few others while Carol is here visiting. Penny can bring someone when they visit as well. It will pay for itself after just 1-2 venues. Plus, it will give us a chance to get out and see some new things too. After dinner, we watched taped shows until bedtime.     

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #41 – Doctors Visit, Fishing Spots, Elk Transfer, and Home Projects

Thursday, March 22nd, 2018……  Weather forecast calls for rain all day today.  Quince got me up and out even though it was coming down as a light shower.  We shortened the walk this morning.  I will take her out later if it lets up.  Today was a travel day - for the girls.  Penny has follow-up meetings with her doctors in Salem.  The rains have let up a bit.  I think we got the most of it last night.  So, the drive to Salem wasn’t too bad. I stayed home and took Quincy out later in the morning. She was happy.  I opted to work in the house today.  First up was bills. Then I did the floors, vacuuming and swiffering.  I got that done and the weather cleared. I needed to go over to Sweet Home and to the Elks Lodge to turn in my membership request. Might as well go now. It’s a transfer, really, from the Garden Grove Lodge to the Sweet Home Lodge.  GG released me and SH has the option to accept me as a transfer for membership.  I’m told there is a vote and I haven’t met too many people there.  I’m guessing it’s more of a formality since I’m already an Elk member, but we’ll see…. While I was out, I decided to take a drive to Foster Lake and Green Peter Lake (yeah, that’s the name!) to check out some fishing spots.  Tim had told me of a good shoreline place to fish on Foster and I found that with no problem. But there is a problem – the lake is way down, I’m guessing ten feet! They have been working on the dam for some time now so I’m guessing that’s why it’s so low.  There is still a channel with water in Tim’s spot so I’ll try that when I get my license. Green Peter is up the road about eight miles and feeds into Foster Lake. That lake looks full and the river between them is flowing plus all of the streams that feed into both lakes will probably fill them up by summer. Problem with Green Peter is access.  The road only has a few areas – mostly where there are launch ramps – to be able to get down to the shoreline. I found one spot there I will go try as well.  But I see a boat in my future, especially if the fishing is as good as they say it is!!!  I got back and rested for a bit then fed Quincy.  She’s a really skittish dog!  Any unusual or loud sounds freak her out.  Today, we had some serious wind gusts between and during the quickie showers.  She could hear the wind and was so nervous that she wouldn’t eat her dinner.  When she’s scared she goes into my room and hides behind my recliner!  Lots of things freak her out.  One example is when Lydia starts the oven.  It’s not our stove that’s the problem really, but Penny’s that makes her nuts.  So, she associates all stoves as freaky scary! Go figure!

The girls got back a little before 5:00pm and they started in making soup and grilled cheese sandwiches on sourdough for dinner.  It was tasty! Oh yeah, Lydia also got two more pics of the pups taken this morning.  This one shows only seven of eight.  ???   

This one shows the escapee! Probably our little girl! Looks like they’re getting more active now! 

After dinner, I went out and closed up the shop and the garage and let Quincy go for a short walk and then it was back in the house and tv until bedtime.

Friday, March 23rd, 2018……  Rain again today. I took Quincy out for a shorter walk than normal because neither of us wanted to be out in the rain.  She actually beat me back to the garage so I could wipe her down and let her in the house. After I fed her, I showered and went out and over to Penny’s to run her car for a bit.  Then I stopped and got us breakfast and coffee and tea. After eating, I went out to the shop to work on my sawdust vacuum system.  I headed out again and found most of the items I needed and spent most of the day figuring it out and cutting holes and routing tubing to make it all fit.  Still need one section of tubing which I have to go to a woodworking shop in Eugene to get. Road trip tomorrow! Meanwhile, Lydia has been working on a new quilt and spent some time today getting her pieces cut and her layout started on the craft room floor.  She still has to cut the border and figure out which pieces go in which row but hey, no hurry, we have the time!  

Penny is still recuperating with us but is doing more and more each day.  Today, they went out to the post office so she could get her taxes sent off. She even went outside and played a bit with Quincy. Each day she seems to gain a little more energy.  She helped Lydia make dinner tonight and offered to clean up afterward.  But I was already doing that (my job!).  I’m sure she misses her home and will want to go back to her own bed soon.  No rush though. We watched tv programs and double-checked movies we might want to tape on Showtime, which is free view (on DirecTV) starting today and running through this weekend.       

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #40 – Spring Time in Oregon and More Labs

Tuesday, March 20th, 2018……   FIRST DAY OF SPRING!  Yaaay! The weather today is supposed to be gorgeous.  But we are not exactly finished with winter weather.  The say we do have a large front coming in tomorrow though, with thunderstorms predicted.  They also expect snow in the mountains down to 1500 ft.  We are only at 340 ft. so we’ll just get the rain. But again, the bad weather just puts the concrete pour on hold yet another week! I got up and going early this morning.  Daylight is around 7:16am, and Quincy knows to come get me at 7:00am! It’s ok, though.  I don’t mind getting up and going early.  With her walk done, I fixed us both breakfast and then I went out and finally finished the steps. 

I had to custom cut the small pieces in between the 2x8’s but I have a table saw that made quick work of that! Once that was done, all I needed to do was get the steps level and I was done.  I rested a bit and took pictures

and then went back out to the shop and cleaned up.  Using the table saw reminded me that even though I have the vacuum system hooked up on the chop saw, I still need to run a line to suck the sawdust from the table saw. That project will be on my list of shop projects to work soon. My sister was feeling pretty good today so she decided to venture out and go to the store with Lydia.  She got an electric scooter and said she did fine.  They got back and I came in from the shop and unloaded the car and after they got things put away, they rested. They said they planned dinners for the next few days and got everything they needed for that. We ate lunch and since we are expecting rain for the rest of the week, I decided to get out the Honda mower and do the small patch of lawn next to the rv. It’s really too small for the tractor and the Honda has a catcher so it is a lot neater using that.  I first had to get the string trimmer out and gassed up and running so I could trim up under the coach so the mower could get the trimmings.  I ended up going over the grass twice just to get all of the grass cut and picked up.  It was really thick and green and tall! That wiped me out so once I got everything cleaned up and put away, I was done for the day. Since we all ate late lunches, we bypassed dinner.  But Lydia did fix some pistachio pudding and we had that as a snack later. We watched tv and relaxed after our day.         

  

Wednesday, March 21st, 2018……  Nothing on the list for today. I got Quincy walked. The rain wasn’t due in until later this evening so we were good to go. I decided to make a run to Albany and do another check at the Habitat for Humanity store there. I stopped on the way and got a chorizo and egg breakfast burrito from a place I had driven by several times and wanted to try.  I liked it better that the other place on the east end of town.  Nothing to be found at HFH so I drove back home. When I got back, Lydia said she received a call from her nephrology office that they wanted to cut back on some of her meds.  Her new doctor spoke with her old doctor in Calif. and they agreed that existing doses were changing her immune system a bit. She has to go in and do a series of lab draws and then to a hematologist for analysis and subsequent adjustments.  They think the upset stomach and nausea she experienced a few weeks ago may be a result of and/or sparked by her meds and the fact that she has been on the same dosage since the first year after her transplant (1998). She’s had no other issues and feels fine so we’re looking at this as a preventative measure.

Later in the afternoon, we got a few sprinkles, enough to wet the grass so I’m glad I got that done yesterday. After leftover pork, which Lydia made into pulled pork sandwiches, I cleaned up and we watched tv (Survivor tonight) and a few other shows before bedtime.  By then the rains started back up again.  They say we’ll have light rain for the next several days, probably through the weekend.    

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #39 – A Lazy Sunday and Tasks on Monday

  

Sunday, March 18th, 2018…… I’m finding my new ‘alarm clock’ comes in our room around 7:00am to check to see if I’m up yet! She’s pretty quiet but each trip she gets a little louder hoping I’ll get out of bed and get dressed and take her for her walk.  I managed a few more minutes today but I got up and got her out.  She knows the drill – we walk the property and she does her business once out there.  We stop at the trash can in the garage where I dump the doggie bag and then pick up her leash.  Once she sees that, she heads for the end of the driveway to get hooked up for her walk up the street. She finds another spot off the road there to drop another present (all of these always get picked up).  We get back and I throw the chuck-it tennis ball a few times, then we go in and she gets fed. After that, we can get showered and cleaned up and ready for the day. Not much to get ready for today. Lydia started a crockpot pork roast and carrots dish for dinner and that was about all any of us did.  I did get out to the shop for a few minutes to prep my stuff for more work tomorrow on the steps.  That was about it for me. Penny caught up on calls to her friends and we watched tv and took it easy for the rest of the day and evening.       

  

Monday, March 19th, 2018……  This morning I got up (same time, same alarm) and we did our morning routine. The weather has been great all weekend, just a few sprinkles, otherwise nice and sunny.  I keep hoping to get that call that the concrete truck is coming! Dana did call last night to let me know they are trying to expedite things but all they are told is ‘maybe this week’.  We’ll see….

Lydia and I decided to run over and check my sister’s house today.  Her neighbor is parking their vehicles in and out of her driveway so that’s good.  Her mailman knows Tina, our mail carrier, and he’s giving her Penny’s mail to add to my box.  Try having that happen in SoCal! The house was fine. We picked up a few items she asked for then we headed over to Ace to get the rest of the material for my steps. I worked on that and Lydia and Penny hung around the house.  My plan was to get my project done and then come in and vacuum the carpets and then swiffer the hardwood floors. Only problem was I discovered that my back was tightening up so I came in and took some Aleve and called it a day. We did go out to pick up Carl’s Jr for take-out for dinner.  Quick and easy. We finished up the evening watching tv until bedtime.

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #38 – Going Home and Taking Care of Our Patient!

 

Friday, March 16th, 2018…...  This morning we got to sleep in a bit. I did my morning walk with Quincy (this time in the morning light!) and we both ate our breakfasts.  Lydia and I gathered up a few things for sis and then we took off for Lydia’s labs and then on to Salem. We figured it would just be for a visit. But right before we went in to the Dr’s office, Penny called and said she was going to get to come home today and she should have all her meds out and it would probably be around noonish.  Good thing we weren’t driving the truck!  After the labs, we drove up to Salem and went to Sears to kill some time.  Red Robin was right next door so we stopped there and had lunch. Then we drove to the hospital and went up to her room.  She was one iv short of checkout so we waited around.  After that, she got dressed and was ready to go…

We got back home around 3:00pm and I walked Quincy while Lydia helped het her settled in. We all rested until dinner. About 8:00pm Lydia helped her with her drains and then she took some pain meds and turned in early. We stayed up and watched tv until bedtime.    

    

Saturday, March 17th, 2018……  We slept great last night. Penny said she did too but was in some pain. I woke up early and got Quincy out and walked.  Then I came in and showered and got ready for the day.  We had no plans today other than run to the store.  Lydia has become the nurse around the house and is taking good care of her patient. Penny is up for a while and does her steps around the house, then goes back to bed or the couch to rest. Later in the afternoon, we headed off to Walmart to get some more tape for her dressings plus a few things for dinner. We’ll eat early tonight and I’ll get Quincy fed as well (and then walked before dark) and then we’ll settle in for the night. The weather this week has been off and on rain, so the concrete trucks were only out and working 1-2 days this week.  Guess we weren’t that lucky that we would be on that list!  Also, we have been getting a few puppy pics from Beckie. This one shows mommy out for a break and all eight pups sawing logs. 

They are now just short of 4 weeks old.  We’re getting excited!  

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #37 – Taking Care of Quincy and Heading to the OR

 

Tuesday, March 13th, 2018…...  We had rain come in last night and it got the lawn really soggy.  I’m so glad I mowed yesterday!

We got up early this morning.  I think I’m adjusting to the time change now.  Sis came over with Quincy as I was heading out to get coffee/tea and breakfast.  Her taste buds are still not normal so she passed on all of it.  I got back and ate and then fed Quincy.  She left her here and went home to get things together for when she stays with us after her surgery.  We needed to go to Walmart so a bit later we went over to Penny’s and helped get her stuff together and I loaded the dog stuff in my car to bring back.  She had me shorten her kitchen blinds to fit her window while I was there. We decided that we would just keep Quince at our house since they will be there tomorrow anyway. We left and went and did our shopping at Walmart and came home.  The rains had stopped so I took Quincy out for a while.  She wears me out!  I sure hope I can still keep up with a puppy!  Afterward, I went out to the shop and got one more of the stanchions built.  One more to go! After a brief break, I let Quincy out for her potty and play time.  A few weeks ago, she had found Bailey’s toy box in the shop and pulled out a monkey tug-of-war toy - she thinks it’s her toybox - so she always goes for that when I’m in the shop. I shut down the shop and came in for dinner.  We fed Quincy and ate our meal while catching up on the latest two episodes of Guys Grocery Games. Lydia talked on the phone a bit with our friend Carol, who will be coming up the end of the month for a visit.  She wanted some updates on the weather so she can pack accordingly. We are looking forward to her time with us up here. 

    

Wednesday, March 14th, 2018……  We woke up early this morning. Quincy came in to check on us and to see if I was ready to take her out yet! I got dressed and we walked around the property for a bit – until it started to sprinkle. We came back in and I fed her her breakfast and then took my shower. It stopped raining and the skies turned nice and blue with white clouds so off we went again! This time we walked our street up to Main. Then we ate our breakfast and started our day.  Yesterday I spoke a while with our SoCal friend, Jim Wampler, to check in and see how he’s doing.  This morning I called longtime friends Bud & Linda, to see how they were doing.  We invited all of them up here to see our place and visit whenever they can. Then I sat down and wrote the check to the IRS (boooo!).  I wanted to get it done and mailed out so we can concentrate on the fun stuff - getting funds worked out so we can plan our 50^th anniversary trip to Hawaii.  We’re still waiting on the projected calendar for my sister after her surgeries.  They think she will be able to make the trip with no problems but we’re waiting to see how the surgery and healing goes after tomorrow. I got the check mailed off and then went out to the shop to finish up the steps.  I didn’t get them assembled but I got everything cut.  Next step is to assemble and fine tune to the porch.  It’s a bit wet out there right now for that but at least the hard part is done.  

Thursday, March 15th, 2018……  We woke up this morning at 0 dark hundred!  We had to check in at the surgery desk at the Salem Health Hospital by 7:40am. I walked her in the dark and then fed and watered Quincy and then we took off and made the trip with no problem.  Penny got checked in on time and we stayed with her through prep and until just before they wheeled her to the OR. The doctor told us the procedure would take 3-4 hours so we then left to go get a bite to eat and do some shopping.  We went to The Chair Store (just what the name implies), to check out bar stools for our place. We also looked at a recliner for Lydia’s craft/tv/fireplace room. We stopped at Fred Meyer (to get some soft drinks and water) and then at Big Lots, before going back home to let Quincy out for a bit.  Then we went back to Salem (about 40 miles) and went to the surgical waiting room.  We were there less than an hour before Dr. Dozier came out to talk with us so we timed it right.  He said her double mastectomy went extremely well.  Her petscan on Monday showed no visible signs of cancer so the chemo worked well.  He said the tissue looked good (but they will do a procedural biopsy on it).  We went up to her assigned room and waited for her to come up from recovery.  The hospital is very nice and she has her own room.  She got up after an hour and a half. She was awake and scratchy voiced from the tube they used down her throat, but she was pain free for the time being.  She was kind of groggy so we stayed just long enough to let her know we were texting the folks on her list letting them know she was ok. We’re going back tomorrow morning after Lydia does her labs.  We’ll know more about how she’s doing and maybe get an idea when she can be released. We drove back through sprinkles and made it back in time to let Quincy out again.  Poor puppy! Lydia fixed us a quick meal of fish sandwiches and tater tots and we settled in for the night. Busy day for everyone but a good day none the less!     

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #36 – Dinner Out and Finally Mowing the Lawn!

 

Sunday, March 11th, 2018…...  I slept in this morning, but Lydia got up early even with the time change.  The sun was out and shining brightly first thing this morning but it was still a chilly 45º out.  It is supposed to get up in the high 60’s this week with little rain in the forecast.  Keep your fingers crossed for us that we get a concrete pour this week! Lydia volunteered to fix breakfast but I beat her to it and already ate.  So, we just kicked back and leisurely spent the day, watching tv and straightening up a bit.  My sister called and asked if we wanted to go to dinner with her later.  So, we met with her at 5:00pm at Ixtapa and had a nice meal.  Thanks, sis! Then it home and tv until bedtime. I am watching the Paralympics but I haven’t gotten in to it as much as I thought I would.  

Monday, March 12th, 2018……  Another nice day!  The sun was shining again and we were ready to get to work!  But we slept in later than we wanted so neither of us got rolling until after 9:00am. Lydia fixed that breakfast she was going to make on Sunday.  I got my mushroom and swiss omelet. Yummy!

Sis was going to Clackamas today for her pet scan, prior to her surgery on Thursday.  They pick her up in a cab/uber for these tests up in the Portland area. We will go over later and let Quincy out to pee.  So, I went out to the shop and started in on layout for the steps.  Lydia wanted deeper, shallower steps for the pup to use to get back and forth from the back porch to the grass.  So, I started on the calculations for the rise and depth of each step. That done, I made a scale drawing on some butcher paper taped on my work bench. I needed lumber so Lydia and I took off around noon and got what we needed at the local Economy Ace Hardware.  We stopped by and let Quincy out and played with her for a while before heading back home.  Lydia went to work on laundry and cleaning up one of her areas in the closet, while I got one of the three stringer stanchions cut and assembled.  I have been keeping an eye on the grass, checking moisture to see if I could mow it.  I decided to put the step project on hold and give it a shot and got the tractor out.  I filled it up with gas and it ran fine so off I went.  I got the ‘lawn’ mowed with no problems, although I think I’ll take a rake out there tomorrow and get some of the clippings picked up.  The lawn was really thick! The ’field’ grass will have to wait for another day. Tomorrow I have some of the outer areas to mow plus the side next to the driveway where I have parked the motorhome.  For that I will use the power mower. Meanwhile, Lydia went out and sat in the flowerbed again and pulled more weeds. We got all of our work done and I closed up the shop and we called it a day. We went in and ate leftover soup for dinner and watched Master Chef Jr.  I am always impressed with the knowledge and talent of these 8-13 yr. old young chefs. They are amazing!       

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #35 – Another New TV and Seeing a Play

 

Friday, March 9th, 2018…...  The girls took off this morning to go to Salem to do some shopping, while I went to go look for tvs.  I hit Walmart, Fred Meyer, Kmart, and Bi Mart but didn’t see anything that I wanted. I had seen a few on Best Buy but only online.  I think we’ll go there tomorrow.  I put the last coat of poly on the bench and sat it outside to dry. I will leave it close to the jobsite for for now for Tim and Dana and then move it out to the back of the property after I prep that area. The girls got back and that was the extent of the day.  We finished up with dinner and tv until bedtime.   

Saturday, March 10th, 2018……  Lydia and I ate breakfast at home then took off to Eugene to go to Best Buy.  I found what I wanted, a 43” Sharp Smart TV for the guest room.  It’s the right size and we already have a Sharp tv in the motorhome and we like it plus it was on sale ($249.00). We shopped a bit in the store (didn’t buy anything else) and then left there to go eat someplace. We decided to go to Newman’s, one of our favorite seafood places in Eugene. I had the best scallops I’ve had since we moved up here!  Lydia had shrimp and we swapped some and they were good too! After lunch, we drove home and I set up the tv.  No problem with that.  We rested and watched tv until it was time to leave for our evening out.  We drove to Albany and went to Pop’s Branding Iron Restaurant for dinner (veal cutlet for me and fried chicken for Lydia – yummy!) before heading over to West Albany High School to see their play, 7 Brides for 7 Brothers.  The original hit musical was filmed in Oregon so we’re guessing it’s a popular base for plays up and around here.  They must do this annually because these kids did an excellent job!  The sets and direction were top notch and could match the local playhouses down in SoCal to the talent!  And the kids could sing and dance too! After our fun night we headed out. Driving home, we quickly realized that we hadn’t been out this late at night up here before – and soon discovered that driving in the country, going through the closed down (I mean really closed down!) town was surreal!       

Even Albany was deserted! We got back and wound down a bit before settling in for the night. Time changes in a few hours!

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #34 – Planning for the Puppy!

    

Wednesday, March 7th, 2018…...  This morning Penny was feeling well enough to walk Quincy but she wanted to do it over here in case I needed to take over. But she did fine and after the walk, she sat with us for a few minutes.  We had gotten up and got ready for the day well before she got here, which is unusual for Lydia. I told her I was going to take the remaining four bags of plastic bottles to the recycling station in Albany and asked her if she wanted to come.  I guess she was bored because she said she wanted to go.  We stopped at Original Breakfast in Albany. It was only our second time there and we realized why.  The prices are really high.  It’s right off the I5 exit so I guess they get away with that for the passing motorists, but we won’t go back again and we told them so. Plus, our server wasn’t very friendly. Afterwards, we stopped by the PetSmart in Corvallis and looked at a few things.  We need a transport cage, a small dog bed, and some new food and water dishes. Lydia couldn’t resist a larger doggie bed, which we will use down the road, when she’s bigger. We got back and rested for a while and had lunch then went to Walmart to do some grocery shopping.  I am also looking for a tv for the guest room and Walmart has really good prices.  I will probably buy on Walmart.com and pick up in the store. We got home and got everything put away and rested until dinner.  Then it was Survivor and then bed.        

Thursday, March 8th, 2018……  We got up early this morning and got going.  Penny came by and this time she asked me to walk Quincy, which I did.  After that, it started to rain a little.  I didn’t want to work on my next coat of poly for the bench so I took off and went to Habitat for Humanity, stopping for breakfast and coffee and gas for my truck on the way. I found a few tools but not much there today. On the way home, I stopped at Coastal Farm and Ranch, to look for some fencing material.  We plan on putting up a small fenced-in area off the back porch for potty training purposes, something on the grass but something I can easily move when I mow out there. Between Coastal and Wilco (another farm supply place) I found some interesting possibilities.  I need to also build some temporary steps coming off the back porch, which will lead down to the penned-in area.

We also have to think some more about what we want to do regarding future fencing the property.  Later in the day, I went back out to the shop with the intention of putting the next coat of poly on the bench. It will be outside and it’s oak so the more coatings I can put on it, the longer it will last out there. But it’s still raining and very windy and it was getting too close to dinner to start the task so I took some measurements for building those temporary steps before coming back in the house and calling it a day. We ate dinner while almost catching up on our taped episodes of Guys Grocery Games before splitting up and watching our own shows for the rest of the evening.         

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #33 – Walking Quincy and Work on the Garage Continues

  

Monday, March 5th, 2018…...  We both got up early and I got showered and left to go over to walk Quincy.  I always enjoy her energy.  She’s well behaved and walks great on a leash but has that enthusiasm when we first get going and pulls like a freight train!  It’s fun!  I usually take her in one of two directions. Yesterday we did the ‘river’ route, which takes us down to the shore of the Santiam River.  They have a small park there and plenty of room to explore. But I don’t let her off leash in case another dog happens by. This morning we walked the ‘canal’ route, which follows a diversion creek behind a bunch of houses.  This time I switched the route a bit on the way home, walking up and around the block before returning her home. After a few minutes I left and stopped by Jack in the Box and Starbucks and brought breakfast and coffee and tea back home.  After Lydia got dressed, she came out and we replanted some offshoot daffodils from the future rv parking pad over to the flower bed.  Once that was done I relocated my lawnmower and edger to the potting shed and then put the first coat of varnish on the bench. Turns out I had both varnish and tack cloths in my shop saving me a trip to the hardware store. After those tasks were done, we rested for the day.  Still no word from the contractors….        

Tuesday, March 6th, 2018……  I got a text this morning that my sister was coming here and would I walk Quincy.  I like that Quincy really likes it over here and gets a chance to run off leash.  They arrived and I was already outside waiting.  We did our tour around the west 40 and then the back of the yard, and I threw the ball for her for a while. Then I took her on the leash out on Oak Creek Way.  We always go up to Main St. and then back again.  Once we were done, I fed her breakfast and sat with Penny and Lydia for a while.  We had mentioned that we needed to go to Corvallis to the BofA there. I got my supply of the new checks I had ordered but the routing number had changed so I wanted to confirm that everything was ok (it was). Penny asked if she could ride along as she wanted to transfer her account and order new checks. That done, we went looking for the right office to get Quincy’s dog license. After two stops in Corvallis (wrong county) and two stops in Albany, we finally found the right office and got that task done and then headed back home. Tim and Dana texted me earlier saying they were coming by this afternoon to dig the trench and set the electrical rough in for the garage.  I helped Tim relocate the storage tank that Walt had left here. It was used to store his farm diesel fuel he used in his lawnmower.  Mine runs on gas and I don’t have any need for the tank.  It was sitting right at the front corner of the shop where the electrical will junction. We moved it behind the shop for now.  I will take pictures of it tomorrow and put it on Craig’s List.  Maybe I can sell it and make a few bucks.  We ate lunch and rested a bit and watched tv.  I went back out and talked to Tim & Dana as they were finishing up and then came in the house. 

Lydia didn’t get anything out for dinner and said she would buy if I could pick a place. Neither of us was really hungry and nothing sounded good so we settled on scrambled eggs with mushrooms and cheese.  It was easy to fix and easy to clean up.  Once that was done, we settled in and watched tv till bedtime.       

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #32 – Outside Tasks and the Watching the Oscars

Saturday, March 3rd, 2018…...  As promised, the weather this morning was spectacular! The temperature started out at 45º and got up above 62º before noon.  So, after breakfast, I went out and sanded down my bench.  I still need to go get tack cloth and varnish for the next steps, but I’m in no hurry. I ran the tractor again for a while.  It runs great when it’s primed with starting fluid but won’t start on its own.  I’ll try topping off the tank and we’ll see if that helps. Still, no hurry for this as the grass is still too wet to walk on much less run a tractor on.  I remember Walt saying some years he couldn’t get out to mow until late April. Now I understand!

Sunday, March 4th, 2018……  Today was a lazy Sunday.  No rain in the forecast for this morning, supposed to get a bit this evening though. I did get a text from my sister asking me if I could come over to walk Quincy, which I did do.  Afterward, I stayed a bit but left shortly to allow her to go get some rest. This was her last treatment before the scheduled March 15^th surgery, so even though she’ll still be feeling the effects for a few more days, she, at least for now move, can move forward for the next phase. She’s definitely ready! Once I got back home, it was a kick back day, doing nothing but lounging around the house and catching up on my taped races.  We watched the Academy Awards show and then we called it a night.   

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #31 – Last Chemo Before Surgery and a Trip to Eugene

  

Thursday, March 1st, 2018…...  Today was another busy day for us. We got up early and took our showers and got ready. My sister came over at 6:45am and I was ready to walk Quincy.  She and Lydia left by 7:00am to go to Salem for Penny’s last chemo treatment before her surgery.  She had another consult so she wanted Lydia there for that.  After our walk, I fed the dog then took off to get the oil changed in the Honda.  I had a coupon from the local dealer in Albany so I went there.  I didn’t have an appointment but they got me in with no problem.  After that was done I went over to Walmart and tried to buy the two filters (air and cabin) that Honda wanted to charge me big bucks ($106.) to install.  Walmart had one for $13.78 and the other one was $18.95.  They were out of the second one but I ordered in on Walmart.com and picked it up in Lebanon later that morning.  I got those installed only to discover that the one that was in the store didn’t have the right part number inside the box so I had to go exchange that one. I’m guessing someone switched boxes to save a few pennies!  It took some time to get it all done but I’m good to go now. The girls were gone all day and stopped at Taco Bell to get dinner so we didn’t have to go out again. The rains are back in that sunny/rainy cycle but I managed to get Quincy out a couple of times when it was dry. Later, we ate dinner, Penny and Quincy went home, and we settled in and relaxed from our day.    

Friday, March 2nd, 2018……  Nice weather today, but rain in the forecast so no concrete today.  We have some sunny days predicted for next week so we’ll see what happens.  I started out paying some first-of-the-month bills. The next task was to hang some more pictures in the master bath.  That room is about done but we still need more around the house, so we took off, this time to Eugene, to look around there. We found a few things but still need to look for more. We had made plans to stop by Costco and get a roasted chicken for dinner but we decided that we would rather go to Buffalo Wild Wings while we were in Eugene. It’s the closest one to us and we hadn’t been in a while. They just added a few new items to the menu so we tried the loaded potato wedges (minus the onions) along with our wings. The meal was really good and served as linner so no cooking tonight!  On the way out of the parking lot, Lydia spotted these

and handed me her phone, “ooohh take a picture of those!” We’re not sure what they all are but they are blooming up here now. We drove back home through a few sprinkles and when we got back we found that it was totally dry here and didn’t get any of the rains they said were happening.  I know the concrete guys don’t work the weekends – I sure wish they did – because we have no rain for the weekend. I went out to the shop and spent a few minutes getting my bench ready for sanding and then went in for the evening. We relaxed and watched tv until bedtime.

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #30 – Haircuts, License Plates,a Park Bench and Puppy Pics!

 

Tuesday, February 27th, 2018…...  For some reason I woke up early this morning.  I slept well but still I was wide awake and ready to get up. After I showered I checked the weather outside. The grass was all frosty.

We’re supposed to get cooler weather for the next couple of days.  Interestingly enough we have daffodils blooming now.

Bill and Treasa have them coming up at their home in Ohio too so I guess they like cold, cold weather! No calls today from Dana so the concrete pour saga continues. After breakfast, I decided to call USAA to get an update on my DMV process to get my motorhome registered in Oregon.  Last call to USAA I was told that they had petitioned the Calif. DMV to get the certificate of title sent to them.  They were instructed by the Oregon DMV to provide it to them so they could transfer it to an Oregon cert. of title.  Long story short, USAA showed that they received it back from the DMV and forwarded it to Oregon DMV on Jan 31^st. They said the Oregon DMV will process and send me the plates within 30 days. Later we headed into town to get our hair cut.  I have been going to a local barberess and Lydia found a $10 Tuesday salon (called Rumors) that she has been going to.  We both went there today.  It was ok. I’ll go back.  Once we got home, we rested for a bit and later Tina, our mail carrier, drove up to the house with a parcel (a part I ordered for my Acadia).  But guess what she also had? – yep – our Oregon plates! Talk about coincidence!  Later, I went out and put them on the motorhome.  Lydia checked and found they had finally cashed our DMV check.  So, everything is now cycled through and complete with the DMV for all of our vehicles.  Yaay! 

We decided to go to dinner tonight and Lydia wanted Chinese, so we drove to Albany and tried our local Panda Express.  It was ok but we found they add a lot of large pieces of onions to their chow mein, which neither of us cared for. Everything else was good, the same as SoCal.      

Wednesday, February 28th, 2018……  Lydia and Penny had a lunch date with Penny’s neighbor today so I was on my own.  The rains are supposed to start later today so I’m guessing we won’t have any work going on. So, I decided to go out and eat and then go to Philomath (just outside Corvallis) to the Habitat for Humanity store there. I am looking for a bench for the back of the property.  I want to set up a seating area out there and maybe a firepit or something.  Hey, I have the space!  Also, I’m looking for a mounting arm for the DirecTV dish I snagged from my sister’s house. I will put this dish on the rv garage wall so I can get a signal to the DirecTV receiver in the motorhome while it’s parked inside….

I got back with one find – the park bench!

$21.00 from Habitat for Humanity.  Not too bad and it’s all oak and very strong.

I’m going to clean it up a bit then move it out back.  I have to wait until it’s dry enough to drive the truck out there so I can clean up the area and prep it for the bench and logs.  But for now, the bench will work for use by the contractors next to the job site.  Lydia got back later and since we were both out for lunch, we decided to eat a lite meal instead of cooking dinner. We settled in and watched the premier of this season’s Survivor, one of our favorite shows.  Oh yeah, I didn't forget - here’s a pic of mom and her eight pups.  

They were born on Feb 20th.  Four boys and four girls.  Since the last litter (from another momma)  had parvo, which she thinks came from owners visiting in person to pick their pups, Beckie is going to do assigned picks down the road for all eight of the owners. We are pick number three.