Looking Back

The end of July brought an end to the massive amounts of company we enjoyed.  So I crashed.  So did Layne.  We mostly rested and looked at each other for a week or two.  But a girl can only do so much resting.  A couple of Mondays ago I packed my bag and drove to Utah to see my sister, Maryanne, and her hub, Bob.  Layne decided to stay home so my buddy Pat Green traveled with me.  We talked and talked all during the 6 hour drive.  Can you believe we still had things to say by the time we arrived at her son's home?  When you find a kindred spirit, there is no end of conversation.  It made the drive fly by.

Maryanne and I explored the boxes she brought home from Mom's storage in Cedaredge.  What fun that was.  It was a bit like going on a treasure hunt.  We found documents, pictures, letters and a fair amount of trash.  Trash to us anyhow.  I came home with a pile of duplicate photos and took pictures of the rest.  It was a happy journey into our past for three pleasant days.  In between our exploring, I spent a bit of time in Bob's beautiful yard.  He has turned their back patch into a lovely place that fills the eyes with pleasure, especially during the morning hours.  It was then that I found a comfy chair in their pergola and read scriptures.

Here's one of the pictures we found of Maryanne and me, taken when we lived in Hawaii.

I so enjoyed my Monday through Thursday with Bob and Maryanne.  Friday morning I picked Pat up and we drove home, again, chatting all the way.  What a great way to travel; stimulating conversation makes time fly.

There have been lots of wild fires here.  The skies are filled with smoke much of the time, giving our sunrises and sunsets a very dramatic red hue.  This picture doesn't quite capture the dramatic look, but gives some idea.

Here is the pergola in Bob and Maryanne's yard.  So nice to sit under in the early morning light.

Maryanne didn't want her picture taken but I think this is cute of her and Bob.  He protects and cares for her in every way needed.

Since being home, I've been working on the 1935 Tappan stove we brought back from the Kiser Ranch.  It has been stored there since our early marriage so was in great need of cleaning.  I cleaned it all and painted all the parts and it looks so great!  Now we just have to figure out how to reassemble it.  Layne is confident he can get it to work.  It sits on our back patio, near the gas pipe we are hoping will feed it.  I think it will make a great outdoor stove as it works with gas and also has a wood burning side.  I'm so excited about it and now it looks like we will soon find out if it will actually work!

Here's a look at the Tappan stove, unassembled.  Parts are in the box and underneath the stove.  Here's hoping we can figure out how to put it all together properly.

When we lived in the house with the Tappan stove,  many years ago, Layne built a simple, sturdy table, to mount his stock charting tablet on.  Once he stopped doing that, the table served all sorts of other functions over the years, the last of which was as a gathering spot for the Tappan stove supplies.  Now that they are all cleaned, painted and ready for installation, the table needed another purpose.  I decided that it would make a great table for my art supplies.  So I cleaned it, sanded it, and painted it to match my art room, adding a few artistic flourishes, just for fun.  It is a bit wild, but wild is good in the right place.  Like an art room.

Here's a look at the art table.  It's a bit crazy, but I like crazy things so it should fit right in.

Our garden is exploding with tomatoes.  I picked all the ripe ones and had two big buckets full.  Layne wanted me to try make vegetable juice.  Like V8.  So I cooked up a pot of tomatoes and added
 all sorts of vegies.  Trouble was I couldn't then process them in a hot water bath like I do fruit because the mix wasn't acidic enough.  The batch needed to be pressure cooked.  I've never done that before but my neighbor said I could use her pressure cooker and she'd help me.  But then Layne offered to buy me one!  I was so excited.  And a little nervous about using it.  But it all turned out OK.  The juice pressure cooked.  Nothing exploded.  Layne likes the juice.  Sweet success.  But it took all day.

There has been much talk in the community and Church about potential economic and moral trouble ahead.  It seems to be in the air. So lately Layne and I have been discussing preparing ourselves for possible future challenges.   I suppose we cannot expect that things will always be pleasant.  But I so enjoy the pleasures of now.