Road trip

Time slips through my fingers like water through a sieve! My last blog entry was on the 29th and it seems that I went to sleep and woke up in August! So now we glance back and try to figure out what I did when and is it worth telling.

Aha! I remember with a bit of help from Butch. Gary was here from Monday through Thursday. Friday we didn't do much but Saturday we went to Marlene and Bernard's place in Terril Ia. I had picked up some meds for Marlene in Mexico and due mainly to the Covid-19 situation we had not taken them to her until Saturday. Yes, we were careful... Bernard said he had only been off the farm three times since March and those were for doctor appointments. Dwight and Carolyn were there and it was very pleasant getting caught up, enjoying a wonderful meal, and being treated to pies by Keri and many of you know what a treat that was. And then we also played cribbage! When Marlene and Bernard wintered in Harlingen TX we would see them several times throughout the season and eat and play cards so it has become a tradition with us. And we still miss them when we are in South Texas and remember them whenever we visit places we went to with them.

On our way home we stopped in Rockwell City to see my youngest sister Myrla. Myrla is the one who gifted us with her pool table and thus started our building something to house it. So we looked over the table again and got caught up on what was happening with "Mouse", that was her nickname as a child. She has always been a tiny thing.

You can see this hole in the trees as you approach Lohrville from the west. It accommodates the power lines which is perhaps why Butch always notices it 

Project update 7/29/2020

Busier than Normal-Gary, Golf, Etc.

It has been a busy week. Son Gary came on Monday from Missouri. He has more time off than normal and his RV is in our extra spot so he has his accommodations readily available. Butch and Rich had a golf outing set up but Butch had reinjured his leg/hip and was unable to make it so Rich and Gary played and Jason joined them. The three brothers have been enjoying their time together and it warms my heart to see it.

While Gary has been here he has helped out with this and that and in the evenings we have been playing CrossCrib, a cribbage board game. That game can get my blood to boil and I do not like my reaction to it. I remind myself it is always a good thing to be aware and to work on one's character flaws so it serves a purpose. 

On Thursday Gary and I went to Atlantic so he could play the Nishna Hills Golf Course as he, his brothers, and Butch are signed up for a tournament on the 15th. I went to see my good friend Sherri Clark because I had not seen or talked to her since her husband Randy's passing on April 25th. We played many, many rounds of golf with Randy and Sherri during our Cumberland IA years. 

Sherri and I followed along as Gary played the course and we talked while Gary played. Gary played VERY WELL and it was fun to watch him. Sherri and I enjoyed being outside and the conversation. It seems whenever Sherri and I are together there is always so much to say and we are never completely finished. Sherri shared her last minutes with Randy and it is a very moving and meaningful story. (The question always comes up, so I will say he did not die of Covid-19 but the complications of Covid being in all our lives in one way or another did play a part.)

Randy had 4 holes in one throughout his life. This bench commemorates three of them while the fourth took place on another golf course during a tournament. In case you do not notice the dates, his first and second holes-in-one took place on the same day, on the same hole exactly 5 years apart. This bench is on that hole, number 15.

Gary headed back to Missouri today and Butch and I are putzing around. I am trying to get caught up and a whole day away sends me into a bit of a tizzy.

Project update 7/28/2020

Things are happening even though it might not seem like it. My days seem to fill up quickly whether I am doing anything special or not.

The walls are up and sheeting has been applied. The rafters will be in next week, at least that is what they say at the lumberyard, the only one in town. Things have been moving along in a timely manner so far but those of you that have been through this kind of process in the past know how quickly that can change.

I ordered the sinks for the bathroom and the makeshift kitchen this morning.

Here are the latest pictures:

Electrical bill from 1967

Butch's dad was in the electrical business and a relative of one of his customers gave Leo a receipt/statement she found in the bottom of a box. It is now a very interesting family artifact.

Hurricane in Texas

Donna Gabbert is Mickey (Sanders) Starr's sister, and another Jefferson Iowa girl and she lives in Weslaco Texas. Many former Magnolia Park people follow Donna's blog as she keeps all of us updated on happenings in the Rio Grande Valley as well as the happenings in her own park. She lives there year-round and has for many years.

Here is what she had to say about Hurricane Hannah.

http://donnasramblingsatrve.blogspot.com/2020/07/july-26th.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DonnasRamblingsAtRve+%28Donna%27s+Ramblings+at+R.V.E.%29

Bike trail

This morning I walked the trail alone. I have Keri's company usually on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday but today Keri has two of her grandson's visiting. I must admit I have only been walking the trail on the days I have Keri's company so today was an exception. I listened to a book and took some pictures. It is very hot with a heat advisory so I pretty much had the trail to myself.

Mother Nature's artistic touch.

Some people avoid this canopied section just ahead. But I look forward to it.

Project update 7/25/2020

The wood part has begun. Butch helps Russ as much as he can but the truth of the matter is that he tends to do too much and then not only suffers but is unable to help and feels as though he is making no progress as far as his repaired femur is concerned. They told him at the git-go it would be at least 6 months before he could consider it healed and I am certain that meant if he behaved himself. I know it is hard for him to sit back and let others do stuff he was always able to do but he needs to learn or his old age is not going to be as much fun.

Our friend Russ is cut from the same cloth and does far more than he should as well. Hopefully, between the two of them and some help from others along the way, they will get this building built.

Here is the last series of pictures.

Project update 7/22/2020

Today was the day for the cement poor. The first big step has been taken. The first workers arrived shortly after 6:00 AM this morning. I knew Butch would want to know what was happening but I waited till 7:00AM to wake him.

Butch was focused and didn't have any idea I was taking his picture. That is his sparsely haired head in the center bottom of the picture

Pecan Bill

Our dear friend Bill Stilson, also known as Pecan Bill has passed away. Not from Covid which is always the question these days. Bill had a stroke many years ago and has dealt with the results of that the remainder of his life. And he dealt with that very well.

One of the ways he used his time was buying pecans in bulk and then picking and packing them to sell at the monthly garage sales in Magnolia Park in South Texas. Most days a walk by their patio would find him sitting at his table working on his pecans but he always took time to visit. Thus his nickname, Pecan Bill.

Bill was a happy person, always ready with a joke. He loved to hear them too. Always a fun and happy guy, never dwelling on the difficulties he endured that the rest of us never had to. He has been missed this past year especially, being the first year in twenty that he did not go to Texas. But he will be missed far into the future as well.

Getting a Haircut

34 deaths in one day!

This took place in Hidalgo County Texas which happens to be the county we are located in when we go south for the winter. The hospital Butch was in when he broke his leg is undoubtedly overwhelmed by the sheer numbers and the other hospitals as well.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/22/us/hidalgo-county-south-texas-covid-19/index.html

This and That

The construction company doing the cement work is owned by the nephew, Jerry Dean Dennhardt, of one of the awesome 4-some who I run around with in my youth, Jean B. There was me, Mickey (Sanders) Starr, Jean (Bartley) Wetzel, Valeta (McKinley) True and we had many adventures together. The Bartley clan was a large and boisterous family and attracted much attention for a variety of reasons. Fun is one of them.

I lost my brother to a fire on Christmas night of 1957. His name was Richard Francis Brock and we called him Ricky. He was 10 years old and Jerry Dean and Ricky were best buds. One of the pleasures of living in your hometown is the connections you have and the warm feelings you receive when running into your past.

Another note of the day came about because of our lot next door being "disturbed"  and revealing a surprise. My father lived with his parents on the lot until he was 12 years old. Jason happened to run across a marble and we choose to believe it was one of my fathers.  And it could have been!

We are in the middle of a heatwave and a drought. For a few years now we have noticed that rain seems to go around us. Carroll, a town 30 miles west of us, and Boone, a town 30 miles east of us both seem to get rain while we remain high and dry. We do not know why this trend is happening and I for one am reluctant to complain, for fear the rain gods will try and rectify the situation by too great a degree. Thank God I did not go overboard with too many flowers. It has kept my watering chores to a minimum.

Health update. We are both happy and healthy. I recovered from my 2nd Shingle shot, although that arm still seems to itch more. Butch is doing okay too despite overdoing it by a long shot yesterday. He skipped out on his last therapy session but is scheduled for a make-up session on Monday. He will supposedly be through with therapy then but his overdoing it may have altered that plan. He still has a hitch in his get-a-long that was not there previously but time will take care of it.

Project update 7/18

Things are moving along much faster than we ever dreamed. It seems the people we are dealing with are having a slow period work-wise so we are getting more attention than we have ever been used to when it comes to getting a project off the ground so to speak. 

Last week Butch told Russ that we were ready to get things going so Russ started lining up the appropriate people to start the process. Then Butch and Russ staked things out. The next step was getting ready to have the cement poured, figuring we had plenty of time. On the 16th the Dennhardt Construction Company came to look over the expectations and said they would most likely be ready to get it started on Monday, the 21st. Lo and behold they turned up yesterday and it became a frenzy of activity. This sent Butch into a tailspin because he needed to get plumbing and other things laid out. So he skipped PT and managed to get things done. But wow what a workout for him. Jason happened to call and ask him to play golf and then got sidetracked to help which was a blessing.

Here are the pictures to date: Looking over the job...

Butch and Jason working on the plumbing.

 

From my selected photo spot.

Taken on the southeast corner.

The plumbing located at the southwest corner.

Looking North- 24' x 30'.

Useful Tool Info

This would make an excellent wedding gift, graduation gift, first apartment gift, first RV gift, and many others. This article was gleaned from www.rvtravel.com but I knew the usefulness of it could go far beyond that. Enjoy!

Barb B.

This article is not for the accomplished do-it-yourselfer, who likely can give us all advice on tool kits. This tip is for the people who can’t remember the last time they picked up a screwdriver. The list which follows is meant to give you a small working tool kit, with only a small investment, which will allow you to fix a lot of simple problems that crop up on an RV. These tools’ usage is pretty much self-explanatory, and none require any advanced skill for their use.

All of these tools are sold in any hardware store — but be sure to buy “decent” tools. Stay away from the $2-special table, because the metal in cheap tools is soft and poorly formed. And don’t be tempted by one of those “all-in-one” tool kits because they have stuff you don’t need and poor-quality versions of what you do need. Shop carefully, buy quality, and get familiar with the tools before you tuck them away for later use.

• Screwdriver, multi-blade — Get one of those six-way screwdrivers. You will have large and small Phillips, large and small slot, and 1/4-inch and 5/16-inch nut drivers, all in one tool.

• Pliers, locking slip-joint — A really great plier with a grip range around 0-3 inches. Good for pipes, squeezing stuff together and tearing stuff apart.

• Pliers, needle-nose — Good for twisting wire or fetching tiny things from remote cracks and crannies.

• Hammer, ball-peen — Just a small hammer for tapping, not a big pounder.

• Wrench, adjustable, small and large — Get two of these, sometimes called “Crescent” wrenches — but that’s a brand name like Kleenex. They will fit any nut or bolt, but they often won’t fit into spaces where the bolts are. You would need a set of wrenches and sockets for such versatility, and that’s beyond this “super-basic” toolset.

• Duct tape — Another universal tool. The only tape I use any more is the Gorilla brand, far superior to anything else I’ve tried.

• Utility knife with a retractable blade, and spare blades — Universal tool with many uses.

• Voltmeter — A principal electrical diagnostic tool. This is the only tool that needs a tiny bit of education to use, but it is invaluable (maybe even just to let a helper use it). It will tell you everything from your battery’s state of charge to whether you have a bad switch or connector.

• Inspection mirror — There are a lot of places that this comes in handy to peek into.

Yes, there are thousands of tools that you could buy and carry (and I carry hundreds) — but if I think back on what I grab first and use the most, this list covers 95% of them.

So there you go. Put everything in a sturdy case or soft-sided bag for safekeeping. For less than $100 or so, you can stuff this in a drawer or the back of a storage compartment and drag it out when something breaks. You’ll be a hero to yourself and your traveling companions!

Paring Down Space

This is from www.rvtravel.com. We have been longtime subscribers. There is a wealth of info for everyone even if you do not have an RV.

Clearing out clutter has been a lifelong pursuit for me. I do live in a small space.

https://www.rvtravel.com/trim-rv-weight-increven ase-storage-space/

New Project Begins

Surprise, surprise! I had given up on it ever happening but it has begun! We are building a new free-standing garage on our north lot. To back up a bit, the former owners of our house built on a closet on the north side, and in so doing they built one foot of it on the property to the north. Now since they owned it too I am sure they did not give it much thought but it has caused a wrinkle or two for us. For one thing, we could never sell that lot, not that we ever intended for that to happen. And it really hadn't been an issue up to this point but now we are marrying the two lots together forever and ever. Done!

Butch is standing in the middle of the space that will hold the building and Russ is standing on the far north edge. If you enlarge the picture you can see a stake on the south edge of the proposed building.

I plan to take a picture from the same spot as things progress. It will measure 24 x 30 feet and its main purpose will be to house a pool table. You might also notice how brown our grass is. We have not had any rain for a long time. It happens to be "raining" as I write this but Butch checked the rain gauge and the bottom of it isn't wet yet.

We are excited about our new project and hope to see it progress in a timely manner. Butch asked me to call my sister Myrla because it is her pool table that will be finding a new home in our building and she assured me it is still ours for the taking. Now we need to find a couple of strong guys to help us move it when the time comes....Hmmm, Do you think we will have the same trouble as someone who tries to have a "Painting Party"?

RV Parks and WiFi

https://www.rvtravel.com/rv-park-wifi-bad-may-not-parks-fault/

Good News...and bad

One of our boys that were waiting for word on a contact that had been exposed received word that the person tested negative.

But then we received word that a couple who live in Trophy Gardens full time have both been infected with Covid-19 as well as someone in our neighbor park, Winter Ranch. 

Website of the day

Website of the day

Every Kid In A Park
Did you know that all fourth graders get themselves (and everyone in their vehicle) into thousands of state and national parks for free? Bring the kids or grandkids along and save some money! Get your passes at this site.

With the uptick

With the uptick in Covid-19 infections and deaths we are backing off and instead of doing more mingling, we are falling back on doing less. With two of our sons waiting for test results, not of them, but those that may have been too close to others who have it, we can see where this may not be getting better but getting worse. It seems as though it would not be a smart move to let our guard down now. It is so easy to get complacent. Just sayin'

Maisie

A few days ago we stopped by Marv and Judi's farm at Yale and found out they have a new colt. Maisie is a mere two months old.

Jerry McEnaney passed

It is sad to say that our Trophy Garden friend Jerry passed from Covid-19. For all of you who can say you have not been or affected very little by Covid-19 you are lucky and you never know when that might change. Take care.

Expectations = Disappointments

"Life's disappointments all center around expectations."-Barbara Brooker

Don't get your panties in a wad. It was just a thought I had that was worthy of writing down. I am not disappointed nor do I have expectations. I do my best to go with the flow and live in the moment and the older I get the more successful I am in doing just that!

On a more frivolous note, Butch and I have been binge-watching "Alone". There is one season on Netflix but there are 7 seasons on Amazon Prime. It is on the History Channel too, I see.

The Netflix one was very exciting! Alone. With zero human contact and limited means, hardcore survivalists embark on an intense mission to stay alive in the Arctic.

This is the one that prompted me to search for more.

As a general update, the two of us are doing well. Butch is going to physical therapy 3 days a week and has successfully given up the canes, playing some golf with a cart, getting the mowing done regularly, feeding the birds, and is walking less and less looking like a cartoon character.

I have a couple of projects going and will relate them to you once they are farther along.

We wear masks when out in public and we go out in public rarely. Grocery store and Costco and that is about it. We social distance as much as possible and wash our hands more than we have in our entire lives I do believe.

We received word yesterday that Pool playing friends Bev and Jerry are seriously ill with Covid-19 along with 6 other members of their family. Jerry is in Mayo, Rochester MN in ICU and not doing well. Bev is at home with it. They are very much in our thoughts right now.

Bev is in front, far-left and has her hand on my arm and Jerry is in back far-right.

 

A Word of Advice.

Several years ago Butch and I got a Shingles vaccine. Darn pricy but we sure did not want to get shingles. Move forward about 5 to 10 years and they decide that vaccine was not adequate and we needed to get a series of two vaccines at least two months apart. And again we did not want to get Shingles. We have seen quite a few friends and acquaintances suffer from Shingles and it certainly appeared that we should avoid it if at all possible. So last fall when we got our "before we go to Texas" medical exam we got the first of the two shots. September of 2019.  They told us there had to be a two-month space of time before we could get the second one so I asked if it could wait till we came back to Iowa in the Spring. No problem! And then a broken leg and Covid-19 happened. We tried to get it done when we first came back and were told they were not giving vaccines of any kind at that time. 

So as it would happen we got it on July 3rd. My advice is to never get a vaccine and particularly that one the day before a holiday. The first one last September was painful and created a large red patch on the arm that hurt like the devil for several days but in the scheme of things, it was not that big a deal. Now Butch did fine with the second one too but for me, it was a very different story. It hurt like the devil and I had the big red patch but then I suffered everything they listed as a reaction possibility, aches throughout my entire body, fatigue, fever, and nausea. So I spent the entire day sleeping, hurting, and popping Tylenol. Not fun!

Today is about 50% better. At least I am not shivering and aching with fever. Today I am still tired and feel like I am recovering but still far from normal. I hope for a better day tomorrow.

Till next time...

Thinking of Butch?

My friend Liz called to tell me that every time she takes a shower she thinks of Butch. We sure got a chuckle out of that thought! But as you might expect it was a safety issue. Since Butch's great fall last March we have implemented some safety features. The mats below now cover both the shower floor in the MoHo and the one in the house. They are very durable and can be thrown in the washer every week or so.

Bathtub mat. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073XC7DVJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

In addition to that, my friend Mickey shared with me some safety hand grips that she had purchased for her shower. I had purchased some in the past that had not worked for me but these are truly amazing! And very inexpensive if you have access to a Menards store.

https://www.menards.com/main/bath/bathroom-safety/ez-grip-white-suction-grab-bar/177/p-1444427969030.htm

So if you too are thinking of Butch while you are in the shower look at how you can make your shower safer.

Speaking of safety we just received word that a couple we know who also winter in Trophy Gardens are having to deal with being positive for Covid-19.

Missouri Kids

The Missouri kids have their RV here sitting beside ours. It is a strange year and summer and the usual camping excursions that have in the past been a part of their life are not happening this year so they leave it here and use our backyard as their campsite.

They were here this weekend. And for those who wonder how that works with Covid rules, it is a modified carefulness. It helps that they are sleeping in the RV, having most meals there and off doing other activities like walking, bike riding, swimming etc. Is it as safe as it could be? No. But they abide by the same rules we do when they are out and about so we are taking the chance. No hugs are happening.

The kids, Leo and Elise playing with Mickey's dog Bailey.

Keri brought us one of her prize-winning strawberry pies. It was a huge hit. That girl knows how to put a pie together and please the palate!

Good Grief!!!

Here it is Monday already and I haven't posted since last Wednesday. The time flies even when we aren't doing much. Perhaps the biggest news is that Butch has set aside his canes. Both of them. It has been about a week now that he hasn't used either of them. He still has a bit of a wobble in his walk but working on getting that out of his system as well. I am guessing by Fall it will be hard to tell he had suffered a broken femur in March.

I have a few projects I am working on. 

Last Spring, as we were awaiting the okay for Butch to drive I ran across a feature about having screens on the inside of the motorhome windshield as opposed to the outside. You can see out but people cannot see in. They can tell if you have lights on but cannot see details. The outside screens we have used for years require a ladder to install and Butch's 79-year-old self does not need to be anywhere near a ladder. He isn't completely convinced of that yet but I am. So I ordered some of these screens that install from the inside and we finally installed them this past week. Easy, Peasy install! I wish we had them sooner.

They sent me some referral coupons for us so if you are interested, let me know and we can get one to you. I ordered ours from Amazon. 

We paid $137 for ours. I do not know why these are now so much higher. 

Maybe if you contact them you could do some dickering.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06X6HSR5C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My front flower bed needs some updating so that is in my summer plans.  I want to put some new underlayment in and renew the rock placement while preserving my perennials. What this means is, it is a "Barb" project and not a "Butch" one and he is oh so happy about that. He would not know a perennial from a box of sox.

Another project I am working on is preserving stories for our Grands, Great-Grands, and beyond. It comes about because of this book I found. Now here again I ordered a used one from Amazon and it only cost me $5 and it came from a Goodwill store somewhere. Kansas City, if I remember correctly. I just wanted the questions inside the book with no intention of using it as a journal. I am using the Google Drives document along with the voice feature. I also use Grammarly, a correction program that is very useful and something I have used for years. My plan is to tell the story and not worry about grammar until I am finished and then go back and fine-tune it. 

So you can see that we are not standing still, nor are we bored.

In addition to this, we still have several books going. Our travel one right now is The Murmur of Bees

I just finished a Fanny Flagg book.

The one I am trying to read now is dragging me down a bit so I may give up on it.  I give a book 50 pages and if it hasn't grabbed me by then I move on to another. I usually like historical novels but the jury is still out on this one.

Eye appointment (Butch)

Butch's eye appointment was yesterday and he got good news. His eyes are perfect. He might want you to think the rest of him is too but perhaps a second opinion should be in place first.

So we made our way to Ames and the Wolfe Eye clinic and followed up his appointment with another visit to Hickory Park. They do the distancing and masks as well as I have seen anywhere. They have the old fashioned high-backed booths that many places had in our youth so you are in your own tiny room once you are seated. Hickory Park is our favorite eating place in Ames and there are oodles and scads of people who feel the same as we do.  We came directly home afterward. We have never been big shoppers anyway but now it is even more so. Also, we live in a tiny house so nowadays we have to discard something before we can buy another thing.

Butch is doing PT (physical therapy) 3 times a week and improving steadily. He is forgetting where he last put his cane more often. I have been calling him Stumpy because I got to the point where I could tell where he was by sound. He thinks he can be back to walking the golf course sans cane in two weeks' time.

I am thinking that is a bit too ambitious but if I say "no" you can bet he will make it happen. Stay tuned.

Still taking photos on occasion...

Funny?

We are staying home mostly yet feeling guilty for not connecting with our friends, yet knowing it is not the best of ideas to connect with our friends at least in person. Got all that?  So we feel somewhat between a rock and a hard spot.

We do not feel bad about being alone with ourselves and our thoughts, in fact, we are quite comfortable with it. Last night we watched "Win the Wilderness" on Netflix. It is about couples competing to win a home in the wilderness from a couple who have lived and built this home in the middle of Alaska and have reached the point where they know they cannot do it anymore. Interesting and thought-provoking on many levels. Our age alone puts us way past going to the wilderness to live and we are more than a little aware of it.

This pandemic and all the tentacles from it have made life far different from what it was a year ago at this time. I do not expect it to go back to what it was for more reasons than we can even list.  I see as much good to come from it as bad. So many people needed to come up short and analyze where they are and where they want to be. It made the whole world slow down and take a closer look. Too fast and too frantic has been one of the biggest stumbling blocks to life for far too long.

So please do not take it personally if you do not see us or hear from us. We are doing our best to stay healthy and we hope you are doing the same. There will be another end to this we just don't know when it will be evident.