Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #90 – Family Time!

Thursday, November 26^th, 2020……  HAPPY THANKSGIVING!   The weather hasn’t changed. We had some sprinkles but for the most part it is just cloudy and cold!  I had Quincy here from yesterday so I got up and showered and then took her and Rylee out to the field to play. Then I came back in and fixed breakfast for Randy and me. We ate then hung around the house and rested for part of the day. We put the ladder section up for the Christmas village and got that finished.  

We watched football and then Cherrelyn came by to say hi. She was heading up to her son’s house in Longview for the weekend. Sis came by later with the Safeway food package. Teri came by too. But she was only dropping off a dip, some cranberry salad and a pie. She told me said she has decided to not stay for dinner, but rather go up to her daughter Jenny’s house where they are prepping for their Thanksgiving dinner. She said she always have a big group for dinner and Teri had always been there to help and supervise, and she was in over her head today by herself!  As for us, I got the oven going because we had to warm up our cooked turkey for a few hours. We also set out all of the sides on the stove ready to heat up when it was time. So, it was just the three of us here for dinner. We ate and we rested for a bit before Randy and Penny went in to rinse the dishes and clean the pots and pans. I only had the job of putting away the juice from the turkey pan and clean that. After that the three of us decorated the tree and Penny got this shot at the end.... 

It really went quickly and we settled back in again to rest. We were so full that we waited and waited on dessert and finally had some pie later in the evening. I heard from Krista and Jeff and a few others via text, wishing us a happy day. Later, after sis went home, Randy and I ended the day watching The Masked Singer. I had seen an article on Facebook suggesting that Paul Anka was The Broccoli and I knew by his voice that that was the correct answer, especially when his clue revealed that he was older than the first microwave!      

Friday, November 27^th, 2020……  Good Friday. But we really had no plans for shopping. Randy did see that they had Carhartt clothing at our Coastal Farm and Ranch store so we went out and got breakfast and ate in the car and then headed over there. I didn’t have anything I needed and he found his pants and a jacket that he wanted and we got those (with my military discount he saved $10.50!) and then we drove down to Junction City to Tractor Supply. They had finally gotten in my touch up paint for the zero turn. I was expecting a small vial like nail polish but they sent them a whole can of the matching color! They said it was $13.00 but they gave it to me for free, since I received the mower with those scratches. Now I can get that fixed before it rusts. Yaay! We got home and Randy tried on his pants. You can’t do any trying on in the stores these days. He decided that he could wear one size smaller so he took off and went back and exchanged them plus bought a new belt. I hung around watching some of the football games on tv. Later, the local college teams went at it. They used to call this game the Civil War but now they are not allowing that so it was just a ‘rivalry’ game. I enjoyed the game and I’m guessing the OSU folks over in Corvallis liked it. Not so much for the Oregon Duck fans down in Eugene! I made myself some turkey sandwiches and Randy ate when he got back home. We watched some other taped shows before calling it a night.   

Saturday, November 28^th, 2020……  Randy has decided to head back toward home today. The weather is supposed to change tomorrow and the pass looked really clear today and he wanted to get a head start on any returning traffic. But first up, we needed breakfast. I came up with a plan to take orders for Shari’s and then take it to Sis’s house so Randy could check out her front screen door. He wants to change his out and she has a really nice one.  Randy took his vehicle with his electric bike on it and we went to pick up the order. Teri met us at my sister’s where we ate. Penny’s neighbor, Jeremiah, wanted to check out an electric bike so that worked out. After we ate, Teri went home and we sat around and talked for a while. When we got back home, Randy loaded up his clothes and I put a few things in for them and we said our goodbyes and off he went. His plan is to drive as far today as he can (hopefully Bakersfield or Fresno) and have a shorter drive tomorrow. It was really nice to have him here, even though it was only for a short time. I came in and worked on my blog and watched more football and rested for the day.  More turkey for leftover dinner.    

Sunday, November 29^th, 2020……  Nothing on the agenda for today. I walked and fed Rylee and then went out and got breakfast from McDonalds and coffee from Starbucks. I ended up watching football for most of the day. Randy texted that he decided to drive all the way in and got home this morning around 3:00am.  He's tired but happy he's home. We got some rain in the morning but it dried up later in the day. I am looking for 5-6 days in a row with no rain so I can get in one more mowing before the rains really are here to stay. Later in the day, I got a text from Teri asking for some push pins for some decorations she was working on today. I was just finishing up an early dinner (more on that tomorrow) and headed over with the pins. We made quick work of that and I came back home for more tv. I got another text from Randy showing Maryanne putting up the Christmas tree and decorations I had given them. This was the tree we got many years ago from Treasa and Bill and Lydia had put it up in the family room and decorated it with all purple and lavender ornaments. She wasted no time in putting it up and it looks great! 

I was watching Sunday night football and I realized that I would need a little something to eat to keep sugar levels up. I had some cheddar crackers and later went to bed (more coming up on this in the next blog)..... 

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #89 – Getting Ready for the Holidays

Sunday, November 22^nd, 2020……  Brrrr!  We are definitely now in Winter!  The weather forecast for today is overcast in the morning and rain in the afternoon. It normally warms up whenever it rains (I know – doesn’t sound right huh?) so we went from a dry and cloudy 32º in the morning to 45º later when it started raining. Yes - I am still in shorts if you’re asking! But I think I might put on sweatpants before too long to go out on that first walk in the morning! Today there was nothing on in the way of races so I watched football most of the day. I wasn’t planning on going outside to work but I did go out and figure out the area that I want to clear for more rock. I will rope it off and then show it to Chuck this week to see what he would charge me to run his tractor over and scrape and clear the area for me. If he can do it cheaply and quickly, I may have him move the rock while he is here. We’ll see….

I spent some time on Facebook Marketplace looking for a rolling cart for the shop. It dawned on me when I was lugging those heavy rv batteries out of the garage! I found one that I liked and I was a bit too late and it sold. I did see a fairly new Rubbermaid cart that would be perfect. These guys are normally overpriced (usually $100.00-125.00) but she only wanted $50.00 for it. She said it was used in her recent move and was still almost new. Problem was it was up in Gladstone/Oregon City, which is 65 miles from me. But I wasn’t doing anything so I drove up and checked it out. Turns out she had two of them and asked me if I was interested in both. I wasn’t but I ended up buying both for $75.00 total!

I took my ‘score’ and headed home in time to be able to feed Rylee on time. I made a chick pot pie for dinner and settled in and watched football and Mecum Auction until bedtime.

Monday, November 23^rd, 2020……  Randy texted yesterday and we discussed his trip up here. He is leaving on Tuesday and will be here on Wednesday. I sent him a link to the weather at Siskiyou Pass and told him to keep track of it when he gets up this way because they will close the pass if the snow hits up there. It’s only 4,311 ft. at the summit but there are storms that will put enough snow on that pass to shut everything down it so he needs to keep watch. If it’s closed, no worries, he would need to go up the coast and cross over the Coastal Mtns which are only 600 ft or so. That just takes longer.

I was up and ready to get some tasks done today. The rains are here again but that means it warms the air. Here’s the reason: Heat is released when water vapor condenses to form rain. When the rain falls, it brings the warm air back down to the surface hence raising the temperature. I had to look it up but now I understand more.  It was something I never noticed being in SoCal and I’ve mentioned it before and it was confusing folks so there you go…

Three of my four tasks today involved being outside, so I stayed in for the morning hours and did laundry – job one.  Later, I made a few trips out to the rv garage with my patio furniture. It’s too cold to sit out there in the winter so I always wrap up the cushions and store everything inside, next to the motorhome. That was job two.  Job three and next up was dragging all of my Christmas stuff out and getting it all moved over and put up on the back porch. That took several trips but I took advantage of Lydia’s wheelchair ramps on the porch and that made it a little easier. Job four was moving rock – that didn’t happen. Hey, I have a kid coming up on Wednesday. He can help with that job! I hung around the house the rest of the day and made dinner and watched football and The Tyra Banks show, oops, I mean Dancing with the Stars. I was rooting for Nev but I was ok with Kaitlyn winning.     

Tuesday, November 24^th, 2020……  Randy left this morning and is on his way up!  The weather is ok. In the 40’s but that is better than in the 30s! I had Rylee out and walked and fed then went and got myself some breakfast. I went to the shop and got out my shovel but it was still too cold and damp to work on the rocks. But it warmed up a bit later and I went out and tried it again. Sis was coming but my phone was on the charger in the house so I started in by myself. Carter drove in a bit later and saw me moving rocks and said he knew what today’s job was. Bingo!  I decided then and there to let those guys do the hard work! Kirk came a few minutes later and they started hauling rock to different parts of the area where I raked it in to a flat surface. It took maybe 30 minutes of doing that and we had 4 cubic yards distributed. Kirk did a low skin-cut on one area of grass that I want out and rock in. Then he sprayed the remaining grass and we will be able to cover and lay more rock when I order the next round. But for now, I can get my truck and/or boat in and out from under the carport with no problems.  

Wednesday, November 25^th, 2020…… I did some final cleaning this morning prior to Randy getting here. I was glad to see that he made it up with no problems. He drove up yesterday all the way to Medford so he only had 210 miles to drive and got here about 10:30.  We sat and talked for a few hours then decided to go get something to eat. But it turned out that Penny was going to call in whatever we ordered. I chose Mexican and invited Teri over to eat with us. Penny picked up our meals and Teri met us here and we sat and had a nice meal. I had previously mentioned to Teri that I liked Baskin and Robbins ice cream cakes and she turned up with one from Dari Queen and we had that for dessert. Yummy! We made our plans for dinner tomorrow. We had decided not to cook and sis ordered our meals from Safeway. It had everything but dessert and green beans so we planned that too. The girls went home and Randy and I watched The Amazing race before calling it a night.

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #88 – Spending Money & Dealing With the Shutdown Again

 

Wednesday, November 18^th, 2020…… Sis came by this morning with Q and they stayed for a while. I asked her to help me look at Lydia’s jewelry and pick out a pair of earrings for me to send to my friend Sandie. I wanted her to have something from Lydia besides the material that Frances had taken down to her when she was last here. Sandie made potholders and clutch purses out of them and sent some back for me to give to my ‘girls’ up here. We found a couple of pairs of earrings and a matching bracelet that I think she’ll like. Lydia wore them a lot. We also found a sweater to send to our friend Lois in Albuquerque. I still have a few things to bring down to Lydia’s friends in SoCal whenever I can get down there for the celebration of life. Doesn’t look like it will happen this year and it may be that it won’t even happen until mid-2021!   Bummer – but there’s not much I can do about that! After that I went out and removed the two ‘starter’ batteries from the motorhome. I brushed them off and got the size and cca number that I needed when I go price shopping in a few days. I came in for the day and later, fixed some hot dogs for linner and then settled in and watched tv. Tonight, was two episodes of The Amazing Race and an hour Masked Singer. I didn’t guess either of the two that were unmasked tonight. I had only just heard about the singing doctor from YouTube (Dr. Elvis Francois) and wouldn’t have guessed him anyway. I have changed my guess on The Seahorse. I first thought it was Carrie Underwood but now I think it might be Patti Loveless. Of the nine revealed so far, I only have guessed two correctly. For the record – for the remaining seven, here are my guesses and my confidence levels – Sun (Leann Rhimes 90%), Popcorn (Tina Turner 50%), Crocodile (Nick Carter 50%), Seahorse (Patti Loveless 90%), Broccoli (Kevin Smith 50%), Mushroom (Jordan Fischer 65%), Jellyfish (no clue so far). Right now, I think that The Sun is my favorite to win, followed by The Crocodile and then The Jellyfish. But at 2/9, my chances aren’t all that good!  We’ll see….

Thursday, November 19^th, 2020…….  Today the weather is cooperating – at least for the time being! I got Rylee out, walked and fed. I have a few things to do today. One is to go looking for batteries for the rv. I started out with coffee at Starbucks and breakfast at Jack in the Box and then hit the post office to mail that package off to Sandie. Then I hit Napa, Advanced Auto, and O’Reilly Auto Parts. The best deal was at Napa because they will give you 20% off your order if you use their ‘bag sale’ and buy three or more items. I found shop gloves 3/$10.00 so I bought two of those and got my 20% discount! I came back home and got my old batteries loaded up and turned them in to save on the core charge. I used dollies and rolling seats to move them around because these batteries are huge and HEAVY!  I went ahead and installed them and got that buttoned up. I rested for a few minutes and then headed back out again. This time I went to Central Bark and placed an order for 4 cubic yards of ¾ stone to be delivered tomorrow. This is for the area adjacent to the rv pad, right in front of the carport, that is several inches lower than the concrete pad next to it. It is hard to back the truck or the boat into the carport down there while having to make that 4-5 inch transition to and from the concrete pad. I asked for, and got, my military discount so it made it cheaper ($130.00 delivered) for this as well. I set it up for delivery tomorrow.  I got back home and rested for a while and caught up on one of my new favorite game shows – Master Minds. Later, I went and got Teri and we went to a late lunch (linner for me), in between her customers for today. Since everything in the state is now take-out only, we chose Big Town Hero for sandwiches, to take back to her place and eat. I hung around until her next client showed up and then came back home. I fed Rylee and settled in for the evening. 

Friday, November 20^th, 2020…….  There is a slow-moving storm they say is coming in, but not until late Sunday, so we are looking at a few days of possible sunshine!  Yaay!  I doubt it will dry out enough for one more mowing before the season ends but I will be ready just in case. Randy is planning on coming up next week. I know all of the west coast is virtually in a shutdown now and under travel restrictions but he is driving by himself and will stop for gas and fast food and will drive probably half way and stop for the night (or maybe pull over and sleep for a few hours), so he shouldn’t have any problems. I hope he comes because it will sure be nice to see him!  This morning, I got up early and walked Rylee and then made myself some breakfast. I took off for a short drive just because the sun was out and it was a beautiful day! I needed to be back by 11:00am to be there when they made the rock delivery. I drove to Scio by the back roads. Nice. I got back in plenty of time for the delivery. Cody showed up on time and I asked him if he could split the drop in two places, which he easily did. I gave him a tip and he was on his way. I came in to warm up. It was sunny but nippy in the shade. I will wait until the sun hits that area before going out to move some rock…

Teri stopped by. She was out between customers to go pick up a clock she found on Marketplace and it was right around the corner from me!  She played with Rylee and we visited for a few minutes before she had to leave to go back to work. I went out and took pics of the rocks before I began my task.

I need to spread the stones out to make the transition from the cement slab to the carport a bit smoother. I think I got too much rock but I will make it work!  I spent an hour out there and got a small portion of it distributed and then came in for the day. I fixed myself dinner and caught up on some of my taped programs until bedtime. 

Saturday, November 21^st, 2020……  Cold again this morning!  It was 38º at 7:45am when I took butthead out for our walk! The sun is due out later this afternoon so I am not going out to work on the rocks until then. I spent some time getting my bill spreadsheet up to date then settled in and watched some college football games and also did some vacuuming of Rylee’s furballs which are all over the house!  Lois’s gift of my stick vac made pretty quick work of those. Sis came by on the way back from an errand. She was ready to help with the rocks but I think she was happy when I told her I wasn’t going to do any work out there today because it was still too cold. It turned out that it stayed in the mid-30s all day.

I knew that Teri had her daughter-in-law coming in this morning and she was doing a cut and color on her hair. She texted me later that they were done and Brandi was heading home. I asked if she had plans for dinner and she didn’t so I asked if she wanted to go to Arby’s in Albany. I hadn’t been in a while and take-out is about all we can do since everything is restricted at least that for the next two weeks.  We drove there and then got our dinner and went to a local park and ate.  I drove her home and came back and let Rylee out and then settled in to watch the night football games and then some taped shows. I had soda for dinner so I guess the caffeine gave me enough of a boost that I wasn’t sleepy until late into the evening. But eventually I went to bed and fell asleep.       

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #87 – A Nice Hike/Walk & A Couple of Nice Meals Out

Saturday, November 14^th, 2020…… Rains again today. So, no working on the truck and no working on the window sealing. Weather is supposed to be better tomorrow. Sis has asked for us all to get together for lunch today. Cherrelyn is really busy with work right now and is lucky to be able to leave her room during the week and most weekends. But today she is ready for whatever!  So, we all met at Dos Arbolitos where we all had a nice meal. Our upstanding governor (?) has closed the state, effective on Wednesday, and all restaurants will go back to pick up and take outs only, so we wanted to give this place some support. Plus, the food is excellent!  Cherrelyn left for a drive and the rest of us went back to our respective homes. I didn’t have anything to do today so I just hung around the house most of the day.      

Sunday, November 15^th, 2020…….  We’re getting a short break in the weather today. No rain. So, I decided to take Rylee out to Waterloo Park for a nice long walk. I asked Teri to go and she met me here and we drove the 5 miles to Waterloo and she showed me this really nice huge park and campground, tucked back in with just a tiny sign and driveway. I was shocked because I had driven by this place dozens of times and didn’t notice it before! We spend about an hour just walking and enjoying the quiet. There were several rver’s tucked back in here, most looking like they will be staying for a while.  After we got back, Teri headed back home. A while after that, she ended up going on her messenger on her computer to ask me if she had left her phone here. It was in my car so I drove it over to her. I ended up volunteering to put that cabinet together that she was going to return and now will use instead since the one she wants is not in stock. She will switch out the old one (which you can’t see in this picture)

but it will fit right in with the new setup. Aside from her chair and mat and the lighting (which she wants to change), everything else is brand new. The desk in the background will get the same drawer treatment as the one on the left, which came like that and is really pretty. She also will paint the drawers on the new piece and that should complete the makeover.  

We got that done and I headed back home for the day. I watched football and Formula 1 racing. F1 is the only series still running for their season.

Monday, November 16^th, 2020……  The rains are expected for today but not supposed to be bad, just light rain. I had Rylee out and walked and came back in and fed her before 8:00am. I texted Teri and asked her to breakfast and met her at Shari’s (similar to Denny’s) and we had a nice meal. It is her mom’s birthday today and Mom and niece Michaela were coming later to visit Teri and also would be picking up some furniture for Michaela. I said to let me know when and I would come load it for her. She texted a few hours later and I went over and helped load her old La-Z-Boy recliner, and a side table in Mom’s explorer.  I stayed and played with Grizzly and Misha for a few minutes then headed back home for the day. The skies were clear for a few hours so I got out the vacuum and cleaned out the truck and got the new floor mats in plus put in some new seat covers that I bought just because I thought I would like them. I got them on and they look nice so we’ll see… I was done for the day. I fixed au gratin potatoes with ham for dinner and later watched Dancing with the Stars. One more week to the finale. I like the show alright, but just wish that Tyra would not be brought back for next season! She is a piece of work and a terrible host!

Tuesday, November 17^th, 2020……  This morning was my acupuncture appointment. She had personal business on Monday so she scheduled me for today. I went in and got that done. I am trying different diet and exercise and, along with the acupuncture, although not gone completely, I am noticing less headaches and earaches lately.  Kirk and Carter came today and braved the winds and the sprinkles and worked on the weeding in the front yard. Teri was heading back from an appointment and suggested that we try the new food truck in town. It’s called Hangry Solutions. They have home cooking and specialize in poutine, which comes in many versions. I ordered the original Hangry.  It has hand cut fries, brown gravy, and cheese curds. It was a large order and a heart attack in a box!  I only ate half but it sure was tasty! They have salads, wraps, baked potatoes, burgers and sandwiches. We will be supporting them through this shutdown.  We ate in the car and fogged up the windows with all of the nice hot food while it was raining and getting colder outside. She left for home and I did the same and came back and settled in watched tv until bedtime.   

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #86 – Running More Errands

 Sorry, I thought I had already posted this blog….  Guess not!

Tuesday, November 10^th, 2020…… Another cold day. But here when it rains, the temps usually go up. Hey, don’t ask me – I’m not a weatherman!  So, it was in the high 40s most of the day. Just on and off rainshowers. We usually get light drizzly showers, but one or two times today it came down pretty hard for maybe as much as a minute or two!  Kirk had Carter here by himself and I watched as he called it quits and headed for my shop for cover for a few minutes. But today I only had him cleaning up the piles of leaves around the small trees out front. It looks good again, just bare. Here is a pic of the Oregon Ash tree that is next to the driveway, before and after the frost! 

Today, I had several things on my agenda. I had received a call yesterday that the replacement cord for my blind had come in. So, I took the time to go to get that plus while I was in town, I went to City Hall to pay my property taxes, then went to Costco to get a few things.  The last stop on the way back home was in Lebanon at Wilco to get another bag of dog food while it was on sale. I got back home and got things put away and started laundry. While that was going, I put the assembled blind back up. They couldn’t find a cord exactly the same length as the old one so I had to relocate the bottom bracket but that was only two small screws and I was done. I guess I should have ordered two cords because I’m expecting the other one to fail at any time. Oh well…. I got all of the laundry done and put away and settled in to work on this blog for a while, only to look up and find it was already dark outside! Poor Rylee. I completely passed up her feeding time!  It’s funny but dogs don’t have a time change in their habits, so she was really ready! No worries – she still loves me! I had leftover salmon and settled in to watch tv until bedtime.    

Wednesday, November 11^th, 2020…… Veterans Day!  Please take some time today to thank a veteran for his/her service!  

Another crappy day. Not a lot of rain but just cloudy and yucky. Sis brought Quincy over for a run/walk with Rylee. We brought them in and fed them and then headed off to Shirley May’s for breakfast.  Once we got home, I spent some time cleaning the house a bit, then went on  my phone and sent text messages out to my veteran friends. I also worked a little on Lydia’s picture file on my laptop. I have been having issues lately with my laptop. I have Microsoft edge and it seems to always wanting to be installing updates. Teri says she will take a look at it. She professes to be pretty good on computer systems and software.  I made spaghetti for dinner and watched The Amazing Race and The Masked Singer. I picked the Snow Owls correctly.  

Thursday, November 12^th, 2020……  Today, the weather was just ok. But after walking Rylee, I decided it was good enough to take a trip over to Albany. The other day, I had seen some floormats for my truck at Ross (I know – go figure!) and I wanted to go back and get them. I left but first headed south and went to Tractor Supply to check on my Cub Cadet touchup paint for the zero turn. Neither David nor Brian was there today, so I spoke to Jeff who took my name and number. Hopefully they will get that going. I made my way home via Albany and stopped and got the floormats and came home. It was raining so vacuuming the truck and installing the mats will have to wait…. I had leftover spaghetti for dinner and settled in and watched tv until bedtime.       

 

Friday, November 13^th, 2020…… I got up and going early this morning. I had Ryle walked and fed and then made my breakfast. Unfortunately, Teri texted me a little too late to ask me to breakfast but I went anyway and had coffee with her.  I got home and spent a little time on my computer issues. Well, I’ve had to move my operation over to Lydia’s computer because I’m still struggling with mine. The new shelf I made for her sewing desk, for the keyboard (which I prefer over the laptop), works well and I may move everything in here soon.

I worked on trying to get caught up on my blog word worksheet and then stopped for lunch. The weather is starting to turn again. There is another front heading in which has a ton of wind with it. I brought in the cushions on the back and front porches. The rains and wind did come and I was glad I moved everything. The wind was blowing sideways!  I found that the leak I had forgotten to fix last season is back again!  The window in my office has a leak at the very top and water drops all the way in to the stool, which is nice varnished wood. I did a quick fix with towels but I know I must get out there and fix it before it’s too late!      

 

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #85 – Dealing with the Cold and Getting Out When the Weather is Good!

 

Friday, November 6^th, 2020…… The weather is definitely turning here now. Turning cold I mean!  We’ve had a few days now when the morning temps are below freezing. It doesn’t take long to get up to the high 40s, and, if the sun is out, possibly up to the 50s, but that will soon change and the days will stay cooler all day. We predominately get our weather from the northwest (Alaska) and they are saying that those temps are rapidly getter lower. So, for me, I will be dressing in warm jackets, gloves and ear muffs! The cold doesn’t affect my legs as much so I am still in my shorts! I know – go figure!

I had Rylee out early and got her fed and I made my breakfast and my coffee and settled in to read my paper and then relax a bit. Rain is coming and the temps usually go up several degrees when that happens.  I hung around the house and checked my deposits and transfers because I want to go to the courthouse next week and pay my taxes. Still pending… One last Nascar race left for each division, the trucks beginning tonight. I have that being taped so I asked Teri to come join me for dinner. I am making crab-stuffed salmon and corn. I had that done with little issues and she and I had a nice meal. We settled in and relaxed and watched some of the election results still coming in before she needed to get back home in the dark to look after her puppies. Before she left, we made plans for a day trip to the coast this weekend (looks like Sunday for the best weather). A nice evening…. 

Saturday, November 7^th, 2020…… The rains are close today. But I wanted to get out and go to Albany to look at some wood at Lowes. I needed to pick up a formica shelf and the brackets to add to Lydia’s sewing table, which will turn it into another station for her computer (which I occasionally use). I got that done and was in for the day. The rains never really came but it was still a dark, cold, gloomy day. I watched the second of my Nascar races for the weekend and called it a night.  

Sunday, November 8^th, 2020……  This morning I was up early and ready to go. The forecast was for sunny skies and a pleasant day all over the valley and the coast. I walked and fed butthead, had a quick breakfast, then left and picked up Teri and we headed west. Each of us had breakfast so that we could eat lunch on the coast. The drive was very nice and the time goes by when you are talking and enjoying each other’s company! I reached Newport and headed north where the road gets close to the water at various times. Although it was a little chilly, the sun was out and that made it pleasant. We stopped at Depoe Bay and I got a good parking spot right down the street from Gracie’s Sea Hag and we walked there for lunch. We got seated quickly only to find out that they were still serving breakfast. They told us that they turn the menu over to lunch but only at 11:30am!  We both wanted lunch and we were 45 minutes early so we left and walked the main street and went into several shops to kill time. Teri bought a few things for Christmas gifts and we stowed those in the car and headed back to Gracie’s. But we stopped at the Chowder Bowl instead because she remembered the food being really good there! I think they got new cooks because neither of us totally liked our meals. I rarely leave any chowder but, even together, we just couldn’t eat even one cup.  She had fish and chips and I had scallops and chips. Her fish was just ok but my scallops didn’t make the cut for me. So, that’s a place not to go next time!  I guess we still have Gracie’s for another trip! After a walk on the costal side of the street to look at the tidepools, and a bit more shopping, we got back in the car and continued up the coast and then went inland at Lincoln City and headed back toward Salem. We stopped to visit a bit with Teri’s mom in Salem and then headed back home. The day was getting away from us so I had to call my sister to ask her to go feed Rylee and let her out for a bit. We made it back a little later and I dropped her off and came back home. It was a really nice day and we had a great time together!  We planned some more of these day trips so stay tuned….

Monday, November 9^th, 2020…… I woke up to frosted grass and 26º this morning!  It was super cold, but I still got Rylee out and walked - and then headed off to Corvallis for my acupuncture appointment.  I found out that Bonnie is quite the democrat!  She was sure happy to see the change in leaders upcoming. I try to stay neutral and respect all opinions and with someone who sticks needles in me, I am going to be extra quiet!  Just kidding! We get along great!  I got home and rested for a bit and later got a text asking for my muscles for a job. Remember that nice desk we have been working on and readjusting for Teri’s shop? Well, turns out it wasn’t working out. There were not enough drawers and the desk shelf kept falling off!  So, she had ordered another work table, this one a little smaller (that’s a good thing) but with several drawers. So, I was asked to come help with the demo and trashing of the old unit. Except for the top, which I will use for something, I broke the desk apart (with pleasure!) and we hauled the pieces out to the dumpster in her business complex. Then I took the top and put it in the truck and brought it home. Remember I said how cold it was this morning. Well, with the boat in the shop garage, the truck sits outside at night. And with the spray-in bedliner I have, the rainwater pools up in the bed.  When I first got to Teri’s, I showed her the solid sheet of ice still remaining even in the middle of the day, and then smashed it up. Here is what it looked like. The ice was probably ½ inch thick in places!          

But I managed to get the desk top on some cardboard so it stayed dry when I took the truck home. I unloaded everything and exchanged the truck for the Acadia and headed back. Now we were headed over to Hobby Lobby, where she had seen another piece she wanted. This one was a bureau with smaller drawers which will go nicely against another wall. That went easily in the back of the car. We stopped at a few other stores while we were in the mall, and then she took me to lunch next door, at Carino’s Italian. It was a tasty meal, so we will be going back again for dinner sometime. We got the piece in place and I left so she could get everything back in place and be ready for work tomorrow morning.  Later, I made a couple of cheese quesadillas for dinner because I wasn’t too hungry after that lunch. I watched a few shows and then started Dancing With the Stars but couldn’t stay awake for the whole thing and headed off to bed.

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #84 – Dealing With The Rain

Monday, November 2^nd, 2020…… I forgot to mention last Saturday’s expedition… I found an appliance dolly on OfferUp that I wanted to check out. The guy only wanted $20.00 for it because it was missing a wheel. So, I went up to Salem and bought it!  I stopped and checked out the wheels at Harbor Freight and bought one for $13.60 with my discount. I got it home and found that I needed to grind down the axle a bit but my grinder switch was history. Now I needed a new grinder.

Today was another acupuncture appointment so I headed off early for that. She asked me when I like coming and I said, “earlier the better” so these appointments are going to be on Mondays at 8:00am. I have to drive over to Corvallis (20 miles) but I would rather go early than later in the day. Afterwards, I stopped a got breakfast and then drove to Albany to a shop to get a new cord for one of my bedroom’s sliding door blinds. Since my sliders are super tall, they didn’t have a cord long enough in stock so I will be without one blind for a few days. No worries, that window faces out to total darkness!  I got back home and rested for the day. The weather started out cloudy and cool but once the sun came out, it was a glorious day. I wanted to go take a ride but Teri ran errands all day and was pooped out. So, I went out and trimmed one of my ‘shaggy’ trees. I think it is a sweetgum, at least that’s what Lydia’s PlantSnap app says. It had a bunch of suckers growing on the trunk plus some broken and droopy limbs that needed a little love. I got that done and all of the branches in the trash and then came in for the day. I fixed a light dinner and settled in and watched tv. Tonight, was Dancing With the Stars. Then it was time for bed.  

Tuesday, November 3^rd, 2020…… D-day today. Oops, I mean election day. Like the rest of the nation, I kept tabs on the voting results. Aside from the national races, we only had one or two county offices contested but there were a few state measures that I was interested in, so I kept checking in throughout the day. Sis came by and we decided to go to breakfast but also decided to run over to Albany to Pop’s Branding Iron (a new place for her). We also stopped by city hall so she could pay her taxes. I made another stop at Harbor Freight and I got that new grinder and another wheel. We got back home and I worked on the axles and got everything working and lubed up and now I have a fairly decent dolly for fridges and washers – not that I plan to move any of those anytime soon!  

 Later in the day, Teri had some time between clients, so she asked me to meet her at Big Town Hero (a local sub shop) for a quick lunch. I brought half of my sandwich home for dinner. I watched tv until bedtime. Looks like we’re in for some lawsuits and extra time for ballot counting!     

Wednesday, November 4^th, 2020……  I checked in early to see how the counting was going (slow - pretty much as I expected) and then went out to work on cleaning up the shop a bit. I still need to do a thorough vacuum everywhere (there are tons of dead flies in the window sills!) but I got things straightened out and put away for the most part. Teri was taking the kids out to dinner at Izzy’s and asked me to go. I picked her up and we drove over to Albany only to find Izzy’s was closed. The kids were there and followed us to Red Robin, where we had a nice meal. Afterwards, we stopped at Hobby Lobby and Target which were in the same center and then I took her home. I came back and played with Rylee and settled in and watched The Amazing Race and then The Masked Singer. I didn’t guess the Squiggly Monster but figured out that the guest judge this week was Wayne Brady. But that doesn’t count. I still don’t know who most of these singers are this year, but I think I figured out a few who are still in it.  We’ll see…        

Thursday, November 5^th, 2020…… Sprinkles are back in the forecast for today. Rain later. Today is my MRI. Turns out it was a CT scan. I got the reminder call a few days ago and got pre-screened and they took my out-of-pocket deductible over the phone. The test went quickly and I was out of there in less than 30 minutes. No worries. They will send to the ENT doc so he can see if there are any areas of concern as we continue to improve my nasal breathing and hopefully help with my sense of smell.   I had nothing else going today and since it was wet and gloomy, I ended up staying in most of the day. I finally remembered to take a picture of one of the 'lit' toilets! These really work well and are great for that nightlight.

 

Oregon Living 2020 – Blog #83 – Dealing With the Cold, Halloween, and Changing Clocks

Thursday, October 29^th, 2020…… This morning it was cold again! It was 33º so I was in a long sleeve shirt and a jacket plus gloves and earmuffs when I walked Rylee. I wanted to go out and get breakfast so I decided to just make one trip and took the truck to the mulch place and dumped the grass first. I got back home and relaxed for the day. I wanted to go out and work on the boat because it was supposed to get to 63º today, but the sun never came out so I just hung around inside for the day, watching tv and working on my bills. In Oregon, property taxes are collected in November and I got mine last week. So, I needed to move some money around because I want to pay with a check to avoid the 2.5% credit/debit card surcharge at he courthouse.       

Friday, October 30^th, 2020……  Still no sun this morning.  I decided to check in with Teri to see if she could cut my hair. She had time between appointments so I drove over and got that done. We talked a bit about driving over to the coast and taking the 2-hour Oregon Scenic Train ride and then going to lunch at Gracie’s Sea Hag in Depoe Bay. Nothing planned as yet. The weather was crappy – light rain and cold, so I came home and did absolutely nothing for the rest of the day except veg out and watch tv.  Later in the evening, Janie called and we talked for a bit. It is so nice to hear from friends.  

Saturday, October 31^st, 2020……  HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!  Cold again this morning. Foggy too. I was up around 6:00am and came in to work on my bill spreadsheet. That’ll wake you up! I got showered and took butthead out for our walk and fed her, then went to get coffee/breakfast. If the rain holds off today, I think I will go out and remove the rv batteries and clean and test them. These starter batteries are 8 years old so I won’t put too much time into them and will just get new ones. I got started but then came in to pee and never went back out. Maybe tomorrow. Hey, I’m retired right?  Later, I hung around the living room, waiting for the one trick or treater (Dylan, from down the street) to come by. I guess he didn’t go out this year because they didn’t come by.  I spent some time setting the clocks back. There are a few - like my thermostat and my digital thermometer - that will auto-set tonight but most of mine are old digital models that I have to do myself.  After getting the ones in the house done, I starting counting up the total in my head.  Not counting my 25+ watch collection (which I will do when next used), and counting the rv and shop and the cars, I think I counted 21 total!  I guess I just want to always know what time it is!  Anyway, once that was done, I rested and watched tv, trying to stay up knowing I would get that extra hour tonight.    

Sunday, November 1^st, 2020…… No luck on sleeping in!  Back in the old days when I was working, I always woke up at 5:00am, with - or mostly without an alarm. Over the years I have gradually gotten that time up to around 6:00am or so. I always try to go back to sleep, at least until 7:00am, but can’t manage that on most days. This morning the timer in my head woke me at 5:53am which was 4:53am with the time change!  I was up and awake for the day!  I showered, dressed and then walked monster puppy and then made breakfast. I noticed I needed to reset the new oven clock because evidently it is a ‘smart’ device and set itself, so it was wrong!

I didn’t have anything planned today, only to watch my races. Formula 1 is live around 4:30am because they are in Europe/Middle East/Asia, so I had something to watch before I got going for the day. Speaking of the day, it was pretty nice, but only later when the sun broke up the morning fog and the clouds and it warmed up really nicely.  I had Ryle out for a bit and went over to take this pic of the now frosted-over grapevines!  

Funny, all of the grapes are totally gone. Nothing on the vines and nothing on the ground. Amazing that there is nothing left!  Later, I texted Teri and we met for an early dinner downtown at the Bigfoot Grill. Afterwards we walked up and down Main street (nothing is open here on Sundays) and walked the meal off a bit.  We said our goodbyes and both went home for the night. I went to bed early and slept soundly after my early wake up this morning.  Oh yeah, forgot, here is a pic of my latest online purchase! 

 They came yesterday and I put one on each toilet. The light automatically changes colors or you can freeze it on one you like.  It is motion-activated and works for me as a great night light. It's cool and I really love it!