A Lesson in Spatial Awareness

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Jerrie Cate

In case you’ve been looking for me, I apologize for not keeping things up to date. I’ve been in a coma.

It happened a couple of days ago when I was working in the basement on a cabinet that Diane requested I build to put above the refrigerator. There was one there before, the there was a tiny refrigerator under it so it fit nice. The refrigerator Diane wanted was much taller so the cabinet had to go. It’s been gone for 9 years and she wants it replaced. With something. With anything, actually.

So, we bought a door at the Restore Store that had glass in it and was just 3 inches shy of being wide enough and was spot on for the height. My task was to build a box on which to mount the door so it could be nailed to the wall.

While working up to this project things were getting shoved around in the shop and the new door fell over, breaking the glass. Thankfully, the Restore Store actually had two of the doors so I rushed right over and forked over another $2.75 for the second one.

Having both doors created an interesting situation because of the shape – one side was curved but the other one was square. Not curved on the outside, but curved on the inside in front of the glass. Diane asked if I could make both ends the same so I investigated the joinery and decided I actually could.

First thing I did was cut the straight section out of one door and the curved section out of the other one. I knew I could do it because the wood was not joined like normal cabinet doors, but with dowels. The goal was to make both ends square. It turned out to be a very simple process. I rejoined the severed pieces using a biscuit because they are move forgiving than dowels so I was able to line the pieces up just exactly right. If I remember, I’ll take a photo and show you.

After the door was glued up and started looking for 1/4″ plywood for the box I was going to make and discovered that it’s one items I didn’t have much of. While in the process of searching all the locations where I store wood, I found something that seemed like it would do the trick As luck would have it I had to bend over to extract it from the wood pieces that were trapping it against the wall where it was leaning. When I finally got it out I turned to my left and didn’t wake up until this morning.

I don’t recall what time of day it happened, but Diane said she got worried about me when I didn’t respond to her announcement that dinner was ready. Food gets my attention and I normally respond right away. She said she decided I was too busy to be bothered with food and went ahead and ate her portion while it was warm. I don’t blame her and probably would have done the same thing.

After eating, she said she went downstairs to see what I was up to and found me laying on the floor, blocking her path to her Girl Room. She noticed the dent in my head right away and dialed 911 for help. While waiting for the EMTs to arrive she said she moved me around a bit and discovered a small pool of blood under my head but, since head wounds typically bleed profusely, the small amount she found mad her think the injury probably wasn’t as bad as she first thought.

The EMTs confirmed her suspicion and she said they just shook me until I woke up. They said that was the best thing to do in a situation like this because giving any kind of stimulant could mask other injuries. A stimulant might also create a situation where the bleeding wound may increase in volume which was a bad thing.

I opened my eyes eventually, so it apparently works. Finally, she saw my eyes were open and quit shaking, loaded me up, and transported me to Portland for further review. I don’t remember any of this, of course. The doctors told me about it the next morning after taking some pictures of my head, looking into my eyes with those incredibly bright tactical flashlights, and conferring clandestinely in corners. Since they couldn’t find anything wrong mechanically, and I was responding to all their questions in a seemingly rational manner, they were on the verge of turning me loose. Then the hospital administrator rushed in and told the attending doctor that he was behind on his admission quota and admitting me for one more night would put him just over the line, salvaging the bonus he was counting on his new Mercedes.

So, they put me in a medically induced coma and told Diane that she should go home and come back the next day.

This morning they pulled out the IV, gave me back my blood-stained clothes and said I was free to go. Not knowing what else to do, I went to the waiting room, and there was my Bride. She gathered me into her arms and pampered me briefly as she asked me what it was I’d done. Not knowing, I couldn’t answer so she thought I couldn’t talk and started yelling for the doctor to explain why I was in the waiting room. Finding my voice, I explained that they said I was fine and could go home. So, home we went.

When we got home the first thing I did was eat the dinner that was still sitting in the microwave, keeping warm. After not eating for about 35 hours, I was hungry. Putting you in a coma does not stop you from getting hungry. It’s a myth.

Then I went downstairs to see if I could figure out what happened. Turns out the cabinet I removed from above that little refrigerator is the one I hung on my shop wall and is currently used to stow my routers. When I turned after the wood discovery, the side of my head ran smack into the sharpest corner on that cabinet, puncturing my head about 1/4″ deep, and causing considerable bleeding from the new hole about two inches above my left ear.

It’s 10:30 pm now and, except for a brief nap this afternoon, I’ve been awake for a long time. I’m tired, and I’m going to bed. First, I’ll admit that I embellished the events surrounding my injury just a bit but what you just read has to be far more entertaining than hearing that, because I wasn’t spatially aware of my surroundings, I whacked my head on a cabinet and it bled a little bit. Right?

Diane gave me ice and a sandwich and everything was good. There were no EMTs.

My Brain

Posted on January 23, 2017 by Jerrie Cate

I guess it’s time to come clean with the results of the CT Scan of my head. That was administered at 0945 on Friday the 13th. It took us an hour to drive to the hospital and took about 2 minutes for the tech to do the test. That meant we had lots of time to do ‘stuff’ in Portland. First up was breakfast at Elmer’s Pancake House. From there I don’t remember what we did. Shopped, I think.

Apparently that short CT scan worked because my doctor left a message on our home phone at 1110 requesting that I call so she could talk with me about what the scan revealed. Since we were roaming around Portland I didn’t listen to the message until we got home, after the doc’s office was closed. Then I had to wait until Monday because I didn’t want to talk with the office’s answering service over the weekend.

I have to say that I was a little concerned hearing from the doctor so soon after completing the test, and that allowed my little brain to go through all kinds of gyrations and permutations about the possible results. Seeing all that going on im my infected head put me into overdrive which just made it worse.

So, I had Diane take me to town and drop me off at the Pastime Tavern and told her I’d have the bartender call her if I didn’t think I could walk home. She was happy that I didn’t just take the truck, like I’ve done many times in the past. I quit doing that when they moved the jail from the old court-house to the Sheriff’s Office on Old Portland Road. The old location was better because it wasn’t such a far walk for her to come bail me out. So, she dropped me off and I’m sure she was hoping I’d just forget our home phone number. But, I fooled her because a long time ago I had the number tattooed just above my left knee so I can read it when I’m sitting in the bathroom.

The evening of Friday the 13th, however, didn’t result in an arrest. Nope. I just sat around talking with people, drinking beer, playing pool, and pushing away all the touchy-feely women who seemed to think they could make it all better. Well, I’m here to tell you that I don’t put up with that kind of undisciplined behavior and I told them so. The fellows to whom I was kabitzing thought for sure that CT Scan was going to turn up something really terrible because at least 4 of the hand on ladies were easily 2BB’s. That’s code for 2 Beer Beauty. It means that after only 2 beers she’s a keeper. Normally it takes 7 or 8. So I’m told.

Anyway, after talking with the guys for a while I just decided to walk home and save Diane another trip. I’m that kind of guy, always looking for ways to make things easier for my one and only Love. Yes sir. I’m that guy.

On the way home I stopped by Diane’s Mom’s (Jean’s) house to use the bathroom but it was late and she wasn’t up. Fortunately, her property borders Milton Creek and it’s dark back there so I decided to take advantage. I didn’t have a choice, really, because Mom’s house is about halfway between the Pastime and Home.

The creek was rolling along nicely, and lots higher than normal with all the melting snow and rain, so I was very careful when I approached the water and made my way to a flat cemented area. I went there because I figured the rocks along there would be slippery and I’d no doubt wind up falling into the water.

Falling in wouldn’t really be a problem because the creek really isn’t very deep. It was, however, flowing very fast so dealing with the current would have been a challenge I didn’t want to face. That, and I really didn’t want to get wet.

As I was relieving myself the lights went on in the house directly across from where I was exposing myself. Before I could put myself back together I saw this bright flash that caused me to lose my place in space. The result, of course, was that I fell in the water and was swept away on a fairly long winding journey to the Columbia River.

I did everything I could to stop my forward motion but nothing I grabbed would hold me. I just managed to rip things from the banks as I swirled and swiveled downstream. Giving up isn’t normally my nature, but I decided to just relax and enjoy the ride even though it was dark and I couldn’t see much. That really didn’t matter, though, because most of my relaxing was staying afloat so I could continue breathing. I’m a fairly good swimmer so it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. At this point, I have to admit, that it really scared me when I fell and I’m sure I wet my pants. By the time I made that realization, it was a moot point because I was wet all over.

After rushing downstream for 15-20 minutes, it kind of got to be routine so I was pretty sure I would make it to the Columbia, and calmer water in pretty good shape. I got so relaxed with all the bumping and such, that I pulled my iPhone 7 out of my hip pocket. I was surprised that it was still there, to be honest, and I was very happy to discover that it really is water proof. I turned it on and checked my email as I glided under Highway 30. Then I opened bejeweled which really relaxes me more. Currently I’m on level 221 and I have 6,055,170 points. That’s an absolute truthism.

Finally, just as I finished another level, the current took a brief turn for the worse as it intersected with the Columbia, and I made an abrupt left turn towards Astoria, 62 miles away. I closed up my phone and returned it to my hip pocket and planned my escape from the river at the St. Helens Marina down by the Old Court House, where the jail used to be.

Staying afloat on my back, to conserve energy, I made paddling motions that would aim me for the docks. Knowing that the current could easily suck me under the pilings, I remained very alert as I approached the first dock, but got sucked under it anyway. Luckily, that put me into calmer water, but I still banged my head on one of the boats that always seem to be parked there. By the time I came to my senses I’d been sucked under all the docks, and 11 of the 13 houseboats that populate the marina. At the 12th houseboat I became entangled in a net that halted my progress downstream.

Getting out of the water in that flimsy net was a real chore and I know I was making a horrible racket. My thought was that perhaps someone would hear me and come to my aid. They eventually did, but only after I made it all the way onto the deck of the houseboat.

The owner finally came out to see what was going on, saw me, and went right back inside to get his gun while I just lay there trying to catch my breath. I was pretty tuckered out so I wasn’t too concerned about the gun.

Standing there, pointing his pistol at me, the owner looked around and discovered the net that had saved my life. His eyes went wide and he yelled at me, “You ruint mah net!” which, in fact, I had so I didn’t argue. I figured the manner of his speech and his excited manner didn’t have room for me to try to explain just exactly why I was laying there on his deck. Next he got his phone and called the police to report me as trespasser which is a terrible crime in St. Helens. At one point, while talking to them, he covered the the microphone portion of his phone, leaned toward me and said, “What’s yer name?” I promptly said, “My name is Doug O’Peal, but you can call me Jerrie.”

“How the hell do you get ‘Jerrie’ out of Doug O’Peal?” he bellowed in a questioning manner.

“It’s my mother’s maiden name,” I replied, calmly.

“Your mother’s maiden name was ‘Jerrie’?” he asked, with his eyebrows raised.

“Yes.”

“What’s her first name?”

“Diane.”

“Diane Jerrie?”

“Yes.”

The conversation, such as it was, deteriorated from there until, finally, the police arrived to find us verbally engaged with the guy still holding his thumb over the phone’s microphone. I guess he forget he was on the phone with the police. They weren’t happy about it, either, because they came in full tacitical assault mode, not knowing what to expect. Lots of flashlights and yelling people. Soon the contents of all 13 boathouses were standing on the walkway connecting all the houses to the shore and it quickly devolved into a party.

Five of the guys got out their guitars, a little blond highschool girl dragged out a complete set of drums, and one of the wives just happened to have a huge bass fiddle. The hoedown was on.

While that was going on I told my story to the police and it was evident they didn’t believe much of it because, I had to admit, it was a bit far fetched. So, just to make it easy on themselves, they cuffed me and hauled me away for trespassing, and for ruining this guys illegal gill net. After depositing me at the jail I have no doubt they returned to the marina to participate in the party.

Jail was no fun at all. I never is no matter how many times you wind up there. It always sucks. The only really good things about it were I got to take off all my wet clothes, I discovered that I didn’t have any contraband stuffed in my butt, and I got a nice set of clean orange overalls and a pair of socks.

I’m just gonna skip to the chase right here and get to the really bad part of the evening. That’s when I had to call Diane and ask her to please come bail me out again. She wasn’t really surprised but I was surprised when she agreed without any negotiating at all.

After all the paperwork was done, I was released into Diane’s custody. They let her keep the handcuffs and she made me wear them the rest of the night, chained to my table saw in the basement. It was not a good night.

I made it through to Monday, chained to that saw, and she finally let me loose to use the bathroom and to call my doctor about that CT Scan. Instead of talking with the doctor, they made me an appointment for Wednesday the 18th at 0725 in the morning. So I waited. Patiently.

On Wednesday, at 0725 in the morning, I was at the office and talking with the doctor. She’s really great, and I like her, so of course she’s moving to another state to practice medicine and I have to find another primary care. But, that’s not important here. She told me that they didn’t find anything catastrophic on the scan, but they did find some (insert really complicated Doctor Words here) that are common in people my age. She converted the doctor words into something I could understand. Apparently I got many small areas of dead blood vessels in my brain, none of which indicate that I’ve had a stroke, or that I’m failing due to alzheimer’s disease. I just have little shrivled up veins that aren’t a concern.

Really? Dead blood vessels in my head and I shouldn’t worry? Well, OK. I won’t worry. What’s the point? It is what it is and the only downside, apparently, is that the areas damaged in my brain are important to those who don’t wish to be injured. That’s just a guess, of course. I definitely have the injury problem but I think it’s in my genes, not because of some little dead blood vessels.

So, there you have it. My brain is fried.

I’m sure no one is surprised.

Cheers.

OH – PS – none of the foregoing is true except for the doctor’s analysis.

I’m a Busy Guy – Update

Posted on January 6, 2017 by Jerrie Cate

It’s been a few days since visiting with you because I’m just a busy guy. Busy watching TV, busy napping, busy counting my carbs, busy researching things I have absolutely no use for, busy napping, and busy making sure Diane doesn’t get mad at me. I probably work hardest on that last one.

You may think that’s because I’m afraid of her, or that she’s just plain mean, but that’s not the case at all. She’s my best friend and confidant, and I just want to make sure she’s a happy camper all the time. Sometimes I do stupid things that go against my best intentions, but I never do hurtful things on purpose. So, as age progresses, so does my need to concentrate more diligently on doing the right things, all the time.

One of the difficulties I encounter every day, in that regard, is curbing my tongue when opportunities strike to point out a perceived flaw, or mishap not of my making. Mostly I’ve done that to deflect attention from myself because I have more flaws, and more mishaps than anyone I know. So, I’m really trying to add a little pause in my thought process to help avoid spontaneous, thoughtless output. It’s working better all the time.

Now, let’s talk about other stuff, like my right shoulder. And my left thumb.

The shoulder is pretty much trash, now. I believe I mentioned previously that my bicep tendon completely disassociated itself from my rotator cuff a few days ago which, really wasn’t a big deal because there was no pain involved. Then, when I forgot about it I moved in a way that created a situation very similar to when I first injured the shoulder in 1971, or 1992. I’m really not sure about that. Anyway, the main problem is it hurts to comb my hair.

Yes, I still have hair that needs combing. Diane’s solution, which is a really good one, is to either get a haircut. The problem is that I really like to comb my hair because I fear it won’t be long before it won’t be necessary any longer and I’ll have to wear a hat all the time so I don’t freeze right out the top of my head. It could happen. Even with just short hair. As for combing, I suppose I could use my left hand, but that just doesn’t feel right. You know? I’m right-handed and have to wield my comb, when I can find it, with my right hand. So, with my current situation, I find it necessary, as I did in the past, to raise my right hand to the proper level with my left hand to accomplish the task. It works. So there really is no need to complain about it, right? Well, since the shoulder only hurts when I use it, I forget until I reach for something that requires that bicep tendon. It’s becoming a minor irritant and I’ll be just fine. Just you wait and see.

The thumb is going to receive the attention of Dr. Kim, a reconstructive surgeon, Monday morning. He’s got me scheduled to check in to Good Sam at 0830 and will remove the appendix of the bone world from my left thumb. That’s another item that only hurts when I use it. The right one hurts when I use it, too, but he wouldn’t do both of them at the same time. It had something to do with feeding myself, and washing, which I didn’t understand because I’m married. Right? Why should I have to do those things myself when help is needed? Well, I must bend to his wishes because he’s the guy with the knife.

Regarding pain with I use the thumbs; it’s when I find the need to squeeze something to pick it up, like a book, or a plate, or a glass, stuff like that. I’ll let you know how that goes.

Now I must go prepare myself for a visit with my favorite Nephrologist, Dr. Smiley. Yes, that’s his real name. I’d like to introduce him to my dentist, Dr. Grimm, one day but that’s not likely to happen.

See you next time.

PS – my nephrologist said I’m good for another year.

My stupid iPhone made me do it

Posted on January 2, 2017 by Jerrie Cate

Please forgive me for using a tragic 2014 “accident” in Dallas, on Christmas Eve, as the basis for my first 2017 post. But this caught my eye and it won’t get out of my head.

A little 5-year-old girl was killed by a driver who was distracted while using Facetime on his iPhone. Now, two years later, the parents of the little girl they lost is suing Apple for not configuring the iPhone to disable Facetime while traveling at highway speeds. The police confirmed that Facetime was still active on the driver’s iPhone when they found it.

It boggles my mind that Apple could potentially be held liable because the offending driver was simply stupid. Many states have outlawed cell phone use while driving but Texas isn’t one of them. So, the offending driver was legally using his phone and apparently wasn’t cited for it, but he was charged with manslaughter because he caused the death of the little girl.

I’m stunned that this is a lawsuit that will apparently be going to trial.

Thanks for ‘listening’.

Another Ho-Hum day in the Northwest

Posted on December 29, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

First, for those of you who read yesterday’s post, the hair clog in the tub was anticlimactic compared to what I’ve extracted in the past. I can get more hair off Panzie with a spoon that I got out of the drain. But, the drain is flowing like it should. My favorite spouse is happy with me and that’s what’s important.

So, instead of a hair clog photo, I’m compelled to share this one that I took this morning.

Kinda makes you love nature just a little more, doesn’t it? This is an unenhanced photo, by the way. Enhancing it wouldn’t have made it any better. Not long after this shot was taken, the sun came up just to the right of the mountain, then all the color went away.

Here’s a closer look at that nifty cloud.

This morning I attended our Men’s Coffee Clash at the Kozy. I don’t get to go every Thursday, but there’s always someone there if you want to drop by. We start at 9 am in the back room. This morning we had six people show up which is a modern-day record. Normally it’s between 1 and 4. Good to see the guys. Like normal, we solved a lot of the world’s problems in the hour we spent together. Too bad people don’t listen to what we have to say. I think we had a discussion one day where we talked about pooling our retirement income so we could buy an island somewhere and start our own country. I may have imagined that one. Lots of our discussions blur the line between fantasy and reality for me, especially when I try to remember what we talked about. Considering what’s going on with the presidency, I suspect you probably know we spend some time on politics. We also spend a considerable amount of time on religion because our church is going to through change because our expensive Pastor retired and we must search for a new cheaper one.

Then I got to go to ACE where I bought Diane a new outside thermometer, a new rain gauge, and a new battery charger. The thermometer is HUGE so Diane can read it without her glasses, from the couch in the living room, if she wants to. I don’t know why she would ever want to do that because the old way worked pretty good; “Jerrie. What’s the outside temperature?” and I’d check AccuWeather on my iPhone and tell her. With the new thermometer in place all I have to do is run to the kitchen and look instead of looking for my phone.

That’s the kitchen window way over there. The thermometer is attached to the fence post that has the humming bird feeder attached to it. It’s good to have the humming bird feeder right above the thermometer because we’ll know right away when it’s freezing so we can take the feeder inside before it solidifies. Poor little hummers might bend their little beaks on that ice.

Speaking of looking for my phone … I got Diane and me those little Tile things that you can put on your key chain. With the Tile app on the phone you can make the Tile beep, and find your keys. An added bonus is that when you can’t find your phone you can double-click the Tile and your phone will play a nifty little song. It plays really loud, too, so it’s easy to find. Pretty cute.

In another recent post, Christmas Day, I think, I mentioned that I nicked an artery in my finger while slicing tomatoes and put on a rubber glove when I got blood on the carrots while cutting them. The glove help seal up the , apparently, because when I took it off this is what it looked like. Kind of disappointing, really.

That’s all I’ve got for today.

Showers, Doctors, & Jack

Posted on December 12, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Before going to the doctor I always take a shower. Diane insists. I suspect she does that because it’s assumed that one would put on clean underwear which is the really what she wants me to do. You see, it’s illegal to go to the doctor unless you have on good, clean underwear. The only exception is for emergency visits for medical attention, something I’ve done more than a few times.

The thing about those showers, which I always take because I know Diane is keeping track, is that I’ve been taking a lot more of them lately for one reason or another. Simple stuff, like a congenital ingrown toenail, a sore thumb, a couple of routine checkups, and most recently, like today, for a bulge in my right bicep.

I suppose some may find that amusing because normal male people strive for bulging biceps. In my case, I only have one of those and, it’s lopsided. And it hurts a little. So, I call the doc to see if there’s an opening in her schedule, which there was at 3:45 pm, then worked a while longe on a piece of sheet rock I cut to fill the hole in the ceiling of Diane’s Girl Room when I worked on the bathroom above it about 4-5 years ago. All the sudden she said it’s got a gold breeze coming out of it. So, I fixed it. Then I took my shower and went to the doctor.

After looking at my arm, confirming my belief that it was malformed, my doctor said I should contact my orthopedic doctor for a more informed diagnosis, but she thought it might be a ruptured bicep muscle. Personally, I think there’s something growing in there because I can feel it, make it move around like a big marble. But, maybe that’s what a ruptured muscle is like. I won’t know for sure until I visit the orthopedic folks.

My first query to the orthopedic people I know is to find out if they are the correct ones. That field is so specialized now that I think they have different clinics for shoulders, shoulders to elbow, elbows, elbow to wrist, wrists, then fingers. Hopefully I’ll know more tomorrow.

Until that determination is complete, I’ll continue to work on the drawers for Diane’s pantry. Actually, all the drawers are done. I just need to stuff them in the cabinet and bolt them to the inside. After my doctor’s appointment, I went to ACE to get the proper size screws needed to finish the job. I should be able to get them done tomorrow. Unless I have to take another shower, that is.

In case you didn’t know, today is my big brother Jack’s birthday. He won’t tell me how old he is but I know he was born in 1938, or thereabouts. Following a family tradition, I called to wish him a happy day in person. It’s always good to talk with Jack, for any reason, but especially good on his birthday.

Next up for birthdays is my lovely bride – December 20th, my Christmas Baby.

Gotta go now.

Politics, Hallmark, & Projects

Posted on December 11, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

I’ve been thinking lately, not something I typically do on a regular basis. Normally I just roll with whatever’s going on at the time, oblivious to external influences. Consequently, I miss out on a lot of things that are apparently important to lots of people.

One thing that got my attention lately is the Texas Elector who decided he wasn’t going to cast Texas’ electoral votes for Trump because he’s an elector “to elect a president, not a king.” So, he’s resigning, leaving, which brings up another question in my head. How do these people get a job as an Elector?

Are they appointed by someone? If so, who might that be?

Did they win some sort of raffle at the last convention?

Did they happen to sit in the only chair at the convention dinner that had the winning envelope taped to the bottom?

Considering the fact there have been Faithless Electors in the past, those who do not vote for their winning candidate, I can’t help but wonder about either the validity of the elector process, or those appointed to serve as an elector. Seems like I read somewhere, in my long, arduous research on this, that the Electoral system was designed because voters couldn’t be trusted to vote for the most qualified candidate. Actually, I did read it somewhere, like here. Go figure.

Enough of that.

Now, how about some more interesting stuff? OK.

We’ve been watching a lot of Hallmark Channel movies lately, like we do every year at this time. All have Christmas themes, and all have great stories where the guy gets the girl and every one is happy forever after. Today was different, however. It was about a young woman who was transported 71 years into the future from December 22nd, 1945 to December 22nd, 2016. During her time in 2016 she learned about how small, kind things she did in 1945 had enormous impact on her town and families in 2016. Being able to witness these changes gave her a new outlook on life, changing her view of herself as insignificant to the understanding that even a small stone makes ripples in a pond. It was very good. So good, in fact, that we didn’t even take time to make popcorn. That is a stellar testament to our value of this movie.

I’d tell you the name of it, but I can’t remember.

I’ve got two drawers installed in Diane’s pantry. Only 8 more to go. As soon as I remember to buy the right kind of screws the next time I’m at ACE, I’ll be able to finish them up. I’m looking forward to the end of it because I’ve been talking about it for at least 7 years. That’s not all about procrastination, which I’ve very good at, but also about having lots of other things to do. So, drawers were never high on the list of priorities. That, and having emergent issues interfere with my 3-hour work day. Too many club meetings, also. Since I stopped going to all the meetings, I’ve been able to use my tools more often.

Part of the building process gave me an opportunity to use the drill press I was presented by PGE at my 20 year employment anniversary. I drilled about a zillion holes, some of which were countersunk to make shorter screws work like longer ones. All that drilling caused lingering pain in my right bicep which I thought was just normal tired muscles. Frequent checks, however, because it just feels weird, revealed to me that something is rolling around in there with that tiny muscle. I’m convinced it’s a growth of some sort, or that a portion of my bicep experienced a small explosion. One of these days I may call my doctor to see if there’s a chance she can figure it out. Maybe it’ll just go away. In any case, progress comes with a price. Perhaps this is mine.

We’ve had snow. See.

Those are tiny little snow drifts made by our one day snow storm on our porch. I imagine they are pretty hazardous for small bugs in a hurry, but not too bad for people. The front yard was a winter wonderland, too, but I didn’t take a photo of that

I’ll stop for today on that note.

Happy November 1st, the sugar rush Teachers love

Posted on November 1, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Yes, it’s November 1st already and I’m betting all the teachers will be glad when it’s over. I say that because Halloween was yesterday, on a school night, and there’s no doubt that most of the kids in their classes consumed way more sugar than normal last night. And, they probably brought some with them so they can taper off throughout the day. What fun, right?

Because of that I’m surprised our government hasn’t taken steps to move Halloween to the last Friday of October so the candy rush might wear off a little by Monday. After all, they changed a number of holidays to Monday so the work force could have more opportunities for three-day weekends, right? If I were president I’d make it a priority. Yes sir. I’d do that.

We didn’t have trick-or-treaters last night for two reasons: 1) We live on a dead-end street that doesn’t have street lights, and; 2) We ate all the candy so left the porch light off to ward off the adventurous tot’s. Does everyone realize that the word “tot” is actually an acronym for trick-or-treaters? It’s true. It’s a term for children that should only be used on Halloween.

You naysayers are no doubt thinking, “OK, why are there ‘tater tots’?” right? I’m with you on that. I think that’s a total misuse of the word and we should ignite a protest insisting that they be changed to ‘tater chunks’, ‘tater slugs’, ‘tater cubes’, or something equally more descriptive. Who’s with me on this?

It’s another lovely day here in River City and I may just have to mosey out to the burn pile and ruin it for anyone down wind by lighting up my burn pile. It won’t take long and it will give me an opportunity to take pictures of all those pretty flames. I’d wait until tomorrow, but Junior wants to go golfing and we don’t pass up those moments. Also, I need to work up an appetite for our late lunch because Diane is boiling eggs to put on our afternoon meal of Dungeness crab salad. My favorite thing in the entire world, right after Diane’s meatloaf and beef stew. Oh, and maybe homemade chicken and noodles. I guess it just depends on the day and what’s available. Food is good.

Now I must go to work.

The end result of an afternoon of burning is that about 1/5 of the pile is ashes and my right should is totally unusable.

But I’m still going golfing tomorrow. That should be fun.

As reported, Diane made me an epic crab louie this afternoon that had at least half a pound of fresh crab in it. Pretty tasty.

Now I’m done for the day, waiting to see if I’m going to have a bout of gout.

Happy Birthday Jennie Lynn

Posted on October 23, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Yes, this little bundle of joy from 1975 turned 41 today. I’m comfortable sharing that for two reasons … 1) She’s not currently standing near me, and 2) She really isn’t hung up on age. Although the real birthday wasn’t until today, we celebrate it on the 22nd because she was born on Guam, on the 23rd, when it was really the 22nd here. It’s not complicated, just confusing. Guam is actually 17 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time. I looked.

Honoring tradition she received a small stack of scratch off tickets. Also honoring tradition, but I don’t know how, she didn’t win anything on any of them. But, she had fun scratching them off and I let her keep the quarter I loaned her to do the scratching.

The cake preparers. They were given this task as a team because neither of them have two fully functional hands and arms. Together they got the job done quite nicely.

This is the gift Jennie got from her brother, Jeff. The bandage on Gilligan’s head is the result of a bike crash, just before they were to come to the house for the party. Tough kid.

Jennie made everyone play the game with her, even Mom. Diane was in such hysterics I’m surprised that she didn’t inhale a bunch of whipped cream. It was contagious.

Gilligan and Baylee watched the action from a distance with mixed emotions.

It was a good party and everyone had fun. To end, here’s a short trip down memory lane for our little Jennie Lynn.

… and Jennifer, just to ensure you never forget …

After the party Diane broke out the box of costumes we’ve accumulated over the years and tried on a few pieces.

So did I.

I stayed home from church today because I was coughing and my nose was running. That made me a perfect candidate to monitor the pot roast lunch I’d been helping Diane assemble this morning. Earlier, Jewel went out to do more deconstructing on the grape vines. Knowing she was out there, I turned the dogs loose. Panzee and Ozzie stuck around, but Ziva took a hike into the woods, or someplace where things go to die, and found the most putrid thing available to roll in. It was so nasty that I explained to her, in great deal, that I’d much rather she rolled in deer poop. I’m not sure she was listening because she spent the entire time I was washing her trying to get away from me.

After washing her I dried her off really well so she could come in the house because I know she was cold. The bath was given in the yard with the hose and the water is like ice and made her shiver. Made me shiver, too.

Diane and her Mom, Jean, finally arrived and Diane immediately targeted Ziva for another bath because the residue had been removed, but the horrible odor remained. Nasty. So, back to the yard we went for another bath. I think the second one turned out OK. I’m sure Ziva hopes so.

I’ll leave you with that image, even though the intent of this post is to congratulate Jennifer on another good year and blessings for many, many more. We all love you to pieces.

Day 21 – Maymont Park – Richmond, Virginia

Posted on October 10, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Today we left the base and embarked on an adventure to Richmond to visit Maymont Park based on the recommendation of the nice lady with the German accent behind the reception desk at our exceptionally nice abode.

I programmed our destination into my phone’s GPS, plugged it into the car, and away we went on I-95 North. It was a quick trip because Richmond is only about 29 miles from Fort Lee. Since Columbus Day is apparently a holiday for most folks in Virginia there was very little traffic on the freeway. That was true for the side streets in town that we had to traverse at the insistence of Veronica, our GPS expert. It’s actually SIRI, not Veronica. I was just trying to trick you.

Richmond has some very narrow streets that I’m sure haven’t been widened since they were primarily used for horses and buggys. With the only available parking is on the street for most of the housing we saw, like this, the situation doesn’t get any better. There actually are individual houses around, and we saw some, but row houses like those in this photo are all over the place. These are actually separate homes with about a 5-6 foot space between them, but on first look they appear to be joined at the hip. There are others that are obviously newer, made of brick, that I would call town homes because they are physically joined. I didn’t take a photo of any of those because I didn’t want to. That, and my phone/camera was connected to the car for the GPS. That’s why I didn’t want to.

Getting to the park took us directly through the heart of VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University). At least that’s what it seemed like because we were surround by buildings with the VCU logo on them for a mile or so through town. If those were indeed university buildings, I’d hate to have to make it from one class to another across that campus. Maybe they have some sort of underground delivery system for students.

Once we got to the park the first thing we discovered was that the welcome center wasn’t welcoming anyone because it’s not open on Monday. So we followed what looked like a group of Richmond natives down a walk that led waaaay down into a valley on this 100 acre estate.

At the bottom Diane stopped to rest her knees, which hurt all the time, and she was in need of a restroom. Fortunately, Dave was just about to pass us and he was dressed, to me, like someone who might work on the estate. I know his name was Dave because I asked and told me. Before that, however, I asked him if he knew where a restroom might be. He did, of course, because he volunteers his time at the park working in Raptor Valley where the birds live. He said he was heading that way and to follow him. Naturally that led to a conversation about where we were from. When he discovered that we were from out West, he slowed his pace to match ours and gave us a comprehensive history of the Maymont property and its original owners, the Dooley’s. What a guy!

Dave said James Dooley made his millions in a variety of enterprises, including the railroad industry, and built this incredible mansion on a hill in Richmond. When he and his wife died they had no family so left the property to the city of Richmond. Unfortunately, the property didn’t come with money to maintain it. That required a group of wealthy Richmond folks to step up and begin a program for that reason. The result is beautiful Maymont Park that includes the mansion and all of it’s grounds. It’s worth a trip. Oh! and it’s free.

Diane and I wandered around the winding paths and stairways to the tune of between 4-5 miles, depending on whose fitbit you want to believe. Mine came up with 3.97 miles but Diane’s was 5. My fitbit also said that I climbed up and down 15 floors of stairs. That one is absolutely true, I’m pretty sure. We did some ticking up and down hills. Diane’s knees will never be the same after today.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped at the Wal-Mart* super center a little south of Fort Lee to get some required items, then stopped for a Pizza Hut dinner at the facility on base. When we got to the room I was a little shaky because I hadn’t had anything to eat for approximately 6 hours. As a newly crowned diabetic I could feel the need for food and confirmed it when I checked my BS level. It was 73.

The pizza was good and we demolished the entire thing, each eating half. That’s significant for Diane because she normally can only eat 3 pieces.

Now we’re settled in for the night and I need to stop because Monday Night Football is about to start. Since Cam Newton is out with a concussion for the Carolina Panthers our home town boy, Derek Anderson, will be in at quarterback. They are playing Tampa Bay with Jamis Winston at QB. It would be fun to see Derek beat them.

I will terminate this with some photos from today’s trip.

This is a terrific little stone bridge at the bottom of the trail, just before we met Dave.

Wandering through the Japanese Garden.

At the to, near the mansion, we found a large stone barn that has huge bird houses for dormers.

More out buildings with a really pretty fountain.

A comprehensive view of the estate buildings. This was taken from a wicker chair tied to 3 large weather balloons. It’s secured to the ground with a very long rope, thank God. It was still a little breezy up there, but it provided a terrific view of the James River and the estate. Those descriptive words just magically showed up when I imported the photo.

This is the last shot I took as the handlers were hauling me out of the sky.

Inside is the freakishly weird Swan Bed in Mrs. Dooley’s bedroom. I’m guessing this feature of her choice in bedroom furniture was a large factor in their childless marriage. I mean, really?

The kitchen is huge and finely attired. Looks very functional.

The living room is very ornate. Lots of wood that needs lots of pledge to keep it looking like it does.

Outside Diane walks through the arches where the Dooley’s, and guests would access the home from their carriages without getting wet, in case it was raining.

That’s Diane standing at the top of the steps on the front porch. She thought it was pretty nice, but that it should be screened in. Still, pretty classy.