Category Archives: Opinions

Letters to Diane – 28

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Hi there. After I started these letters, it dawned on me that they should be numbered to reflect the date, but that never seemed to happen, until today. Yup, today is December 28. I’m glad it finally came together but it won’t last. After we leave December, they’ll get all out of sequence again. So, there are those people, including myself, who wonder what’s the big deal about the numbers. It’s not really a big deal, as I’m sure you are aware. It’s just one of those little things that gnaw on me after the fact.

Now I must move on.

Carolyn called last night to let us know she had returned from Arizona, and her TV doesn’t work. Well, it works for sound, but there’s no picture. We’re meeting this morning to see what I can do about it. Worse case, she gets a new TV. It’s a small one so it won’t be very spendy. I’ll let you know how it goes.

This morning the temperature was just above 30 degrees. Simply looking at the thermometer made my feet cold. I’m really thankful that you had the wisdom to add an Elmer Fudd hat to my collection. It’s really stunning, don’t you think?

Makes me want to go out and get a flintlock rifle, or something.

That’s not true, of course.

I went to Carolyn’s at 1000 to check measurements for a new TV and to see if there was any hope of making the old TV work. She said they’ve had the old TV for 15 years or so which means they got their money out of it. It was well used.

The first place we went was Walmart and quickly found a 32″ TV for $98 that we thought would be a good replacement. Took it home, unpacked it and set it in the opening of the TV cabinet and it looked really small. I tried to raise it to a level she deemed acceptable but it just didn’t work. I would have used pieces of 2×4’s but she vetoes that. There will be no 2×4’s under her TV. So, I took some new measurements and determined that we might be able to cram a 40″ TV into the existing spot.

Went back to Walmart and got a 40″ Visio, went back to the house, removed the first new TV, and installed the second new TV. It fit perfectly. Carolyn was actually excited, as was I.

We packed up the first new TV and plan to return it tomorrow. Then we went to work training her about how she can get to her programs just like she did on the old setup.

Before we started, I warned her that it’s not going to be an exact replacement because after connecting it there will be differences. The first challenge was connecting the TV to the internet. It’s an automated setup, mostly, but we got the password wrong. Once that was fixed I went through the process of connecting her Dish receiver. It all worked together just fine. Here’s how it works …

  • Use the new TV remote to turn the TV on (top right button).
  • Use the new TV remote to select the TV input (top left button).
    • Select the HDMI-1 choice for the dish.
    • Set the TV remote down.
  • Use the Dish remote to select the channel you wish to watch.
    • If the TV screen displays a pop-up window telling you to press the SAT buttons on the remote it means the SAT button on the left side of the remote.
      • That means the left side literally. Not the left side of the surface that has all the other buttons, but the left side when you rotate the remote CCW 90 degrees then tip it so you can see the left side.
        • CCW means counterclockwise.
    • Once the SAT button is successfully pushed you can ignore all the other buttons on the left side.
    • Rotate the remote 90 degrees CW and push any other button that looks familiar.
      • Watch whatever comes up on the TV and be happy it works.
        • If you know the channel you want, press that number key and press enter.
  • When you’re done watching TV turn the TV off using either of the remotes.
  • The next time you want to watch TV, start this process over.

It’s a process that must be practiced many times to get it right. One day I may figure out how to make the Dish remote work for the TV, or the TV remote work for the Dish but that just couldn’t happen today. I plan to do some research about that. Tomorrow.

Now I must quit and take Max for a walk. It’s dark already and I need to be at the Walters’ house for supper. I ate lunch there today, too. It’s getting to be a thing, I think.

I’m sorry I didn’t have any interesting topics to share. I’ll work harder at this tomorrow.

All my Love,

Jerrie

Letters to Diane – 27

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Good Morning. I slept in today, same as yesterday but it’s only 1135, so it really is morning. Yesterday was Christmas Day and I didn’t do anything news worthy other than wake up and get up. Max doesn’t seem to care how late I get up. He knows he’ll get a walk eventually so he calmly waits for me to get moving.

Sometimes he’ll plant himself in front of my chair and look me in the eye with a sad look. If I don’t acknowledge him, he will whimper very quietly. I used to offer him permission to jump in my lap, but most times he’s trying to let me know he needs to go outside. It rook him a while to get me trained to I understood what he wanted. Just when I think I’ve figured it out, he changes the rules so confuse me. I’m sure I see him smiling when I get it wrong. He’s just messing with me, like a game. That’s OK. He’s still the best little dog in the world.

I did very little yesterday, Christmas Day, but that’s alright. I do not feel neglected at all. Jeff and the girls came by in the afternoon for a visit and I watched a couple of movies. Max got a couple of walks and we got to bed at a reasonable hour.

I stopped to look at my photos for something relevant and found this one. It’s being added to the “my favorite pictures of Diane”.

I didn’t check to see when I took this but it doesn’t matter. It’s you and You’re smiling. That’s relevant.

Love you.

Letters to Diane – 26

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Hi Hon,

It’s Christmas Eve, but it just doesn’t have the zing it used to have. Today is more like, well, Wednesday for me. Might be because today is Wednesday. I guess the Holiday Spirit just hasn’t touched me yet. I have a feeling this feeling will take a long time to go back to some semblance of normal. No, it will never be normal. New Normal, but never just normal. Without you nothing is normal.

Tonight, Max and I will be alone because Lydia is staying with her family with all the brothers, like she does every year. I think that’s just great and I know she’ll have fun and be safe. Max and I will be just fine.

I went to the Walters home at 1630 for spaghetti supper. We visited until it was time for the 1800 service at Grace Baptist Church. Lydia and Jeran participated in the service, so it was a family affair. Everyone was there, including Jerad. After the service we all returned to the Walters home to watch the children open some of their presents before going to the 2100 service at Bethany.

Jennifer broke all the rules because she bought me three presents and she wasn’t supposed to buy anything. We drew names. She gave me a huge mahjong set that weighs about 50 lbs. That thing is heavy. So now I have to learn how to play the game properly instead of like I do on the computer. I’m pretty sure the rules are different. Jennie wants to play to so we’ll learn together. That will be fun. It’s probably a game you would like.

The services at Grace and Bethany were both good and well attended. The Littles got up and danced like crazy with the hymns and had a good time. At Bethany I was happy to see a lot of people we’ve missed over the years, especially Brooke and Heather, Al and Vonna’s daughters. They hadn’t heard the news that you are palling around with Al up there somewhere, so we had a nice visit after service. We were the last ones to leave. Jennie mentioned on the way out that we would have been the last ones out if you had been with us because you would have made sure the doors were locked, the lights were off, and the furnace was turned down. We were always the last ones out, weren’t we? It was fitting and we didn’t mind.

I got home a little after 2200 and Max met me at the front door as I struggled to get in the house with that really heavy mahjong set. He usually makes me look for him when he’s been alone for a while. He made it clear that I needed to take him out and I was ready for him. I got his harness, but he met me at the patio door with the primer treat, I gave him before leaving, hanging from his mouth. This was a message that he didn’t really want a walk. He just wanted to go outside to pee and bury his treat. I’m not really sure what burying those treats are all about.

I took the treat from him, and we went out back off leash and he was fine. I apparently read his mind because he peed and went right back to the door. When we got inside, I gave him the treat and he promptly ate it. Now all he has to do is eat the bowl full of turkey he got for dinner.

Right now, it’s 2330 and I’m tired. Time for bed. No need to get up early for us except Jeff visited while I was out and left gifts for me and Lydia. I think I’ll make him a batch of fudge tomorrow just for fun.

I’m going to stop now and go to bed.

I still love you, just like I always will.

G’nite.

Letters to Diane – 25

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Hi!

Even though you aren’t actively responding to all these letters, I trust that you are enjoying all this family news. Responding isn’t a requirement to keep me going, I’ll do that anyway, so you have permission to just read. One of these days you may find a way to touch me again.

Today I woke up early (0720) and heard Lydia sneak out the front door on a mission. She didn’t get home from her folks’ house until almost midnight. She had a good time playing games with her brothers and visiting with Mom and Dad. Because of that late arrival, I was surprised that she was out of the house so early. I knew it wasn’t for work because she took the whole week off. With a bit of sleuthing, I figured out that she was going to the car dealer that sold her the car because the display quit on her. They ordered a new one for her.

So far today, all I’ve done is take Max for his morning walk. I might take him grocery shopping if he wants to go. Usually that’s a no-brainer because shopping involves riding in the car. I prefer to go alone because he likes going up and down every aisle. As you know, I don’t. I’m getting better at it, though. Usually, when I forget the shopping list, I’ll eyeball everything to see if anything registers and wind up getting lots of stuff we don’t need. You know how that goes, right?

So, with that thought in mind, I’ll pause this and head to town. I think I’ll go alone tis this time.

Love you.

I’m back. I took two bags to Safeway, got what I needed, and a few extra things that looked like fun. I got another whole chicken I’ll cook with noodles, two boneless breasts, and a couple of thick pork chops. All the other stuff was on the list. I honestly think I could remember everything I got but that would just be showing off.

After putting everything away, I made a big salad with drenched it with my newly acquired bottle of French dressing. It was exceptionally good. Lydia told me she was going to Panera Bread for a sandwich and soup, then she visited her eyelash lady and did her nails. That was Lydia did her friend’s nails. I think it’s part of a barter system Lydia has to help with her eye lashes. I think that’s great.

Then she worked her way back home and must tell you that I did just fine. I took Max for two walks and didn’t wobble even a little bit. I was very proud of myself and I suspect you are, too.

Later in the afternoon Jeff came by and borrowed the truck to retrieve 4 railroad ties to replace those holding in the soil next to the roses and carport. The current ones are falling all to pieces, so the new ones are welcome. Now all we need is a work crew to get them in place. I think we already have that in Jeff because he got them in the truck and out of the truck which is remarkable. Those things are enormous. You should take a peek at them.

Now it’s late (2150) and time for bed. Max has hinted that to me a couple of times by whimpering to go outside like we always do. He’s really good off leash out back in the dark.

I visit with you some more tomorrow. Perhaps I’ll be allowed to dream of you tonight. I love you. Now I’ll leave you with a Fossil, Oregon sunset.

Letters to Diane – 24

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Good Evening, Sweetheart,

It’s 2200, an hour past my bedtime. That’s not entirely true because I don’t really have a bedtime. I’m sure Lydia would agree. She and Sanchez spent most of the evening dying a dress black for Lydia to wear for her part in a Christmas Eve service at their church. I’ve been told that both she and Jeran have speaking parts so I may have to go to them as well as Bethany’s 2100 service. The Walters family plans to attend Bethany’s, too so it’s going to be a busy day for everyone.

Today there were 30 people in church at Bethany and we had over two full settings for communion. That hasn’t happened in a long time. It was truly good to see all those folks.

After that I came home to rest and walk Max. I took him down to the river because he really likes it down there. Sadly, I forgot to bring his leash, so we had to go back home. He’s almost to the point where he will stay with me off leash, but that’s just in the back yard. He’s really good with me, there. I don’t quite trust him to be that good in a busy environment. I wound up taking him around our block because the 3rd Sunday Lunch scheduled for 1500.

I made fudge for my contribution for lunch. That was Jennie’s suggestion. I probably mentioned that yesterday. It’s really good. Jennie was happy.

Lunch was excellent. Jen made pulled pork and sourdough bread. It was pretty awesome, and I ate more than my share. After everyone was done eating we had our gift exchange. It was loud and a lot of fun as Siah got everyone’s attention so he could pass out the gifts. As you know, we drew names. I got Herther and Jennie got me.

After all the gifts were in place the wrapping started, one at a time beginning with the youngest. So, Siah started the festivities. He did a great job.

I got Heather a very busy puzzle to hopefully challenge her prowess at the puzzle table. I also got her two candles – one smelled like dinner rolls and the other was something with chocolate. As it turned out, Baylee’s name didn’t get drawn because it would have been Tiana to do it and she wasn’t there. So, the candles went to Baylee. She was very happy about that. Jennie got me a mini art supply set which means I’ll have to get busy painting. Jeff got one, too. Her thought was that since I’ve had painting dates with her on a number of evenings, I could have some daytime art dates with Jeff when time permits. I think that’s a stellar idea. Now we just have to make it happen.

People trickled out of the Walters’ home until all that was left was me and Lydia. She brought Sanchez along for the aforementioned dying project they did. Huh. How about that. I didn’t think “aforementioned” was a real word, but the spell checker seems to like it.

Now it’s late and time to dream of you. I’m disappointed that you don’t show up there more often. I really miss you. The bracelet you got for me helps a lot. Thanks again for that.

Good night.

ILY

Just me …

Letters to Diane – 23

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Happy Birthday, My Love.

Jeff was over earlier this morning and we sang Happy Birthday for you. Then we both grabbed each other and cried for a while. I don’t know about Jeff, but for me, I’m still living in a fantasy zone where I’m sure you are just around the corner from me and in one of these moments I’m going to run right into you. I miss you so much that I have a hard time coping once in a while. I know this probably upsets you a little but I can’t help it.

Yesterday, Friday, was lost to me. I remember a moment where Jennie took me shopping for some stuff and Jeff borrowed the truck to transport a fridge for Gilligan. Or, maybe, the fridge was today.

The Oregon game was on today and you had it set to record. Thank you for that. Jennie brought the Littles over to watch the game and to add a few ornaments to the tree. She stayed until half-time when the kids started getting restless then carted them home. So, Max and I finished the game on our own. It was a good game. Oregon beat JMU 51-34. It could have been a lot worse for JMU but Oregon dropped their guard a little the second half and JMU took advantage.

Apparently, the wind blew a bit last night because there were lots of tree pieces all over the yard. Jeff raked them all up and took them up the hill to burn. Maybe that was yesterday. Hmmm. I’m thinking I need to write something every day but sometimes it’s just hard to get motivated to do anything. Walking Max is still a priority so he’s not missing his walks.

It’s almost 2130 now so I’m going to wrap this up. Tomorrow afternoon is the monthly family gathering at Jen and Dan’s. I made two batches of fudge for the masses. I ate a piece during the Oregon game and it’s really good.

You can stop by any time you want. I’m here most days and I’d love to see you. My beard is getting longer every day that you are away. I’ve made a vow that I won’t shave it off until you look me in the eye and tell me how ratty I look. So, you should keep that in mind.

Now, I’m going to bed.

ILY, Always

Letters to Diane – 22

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Good afternoon, My Love.

It’s Thursday. I missed coffee with the guys this morning and it wasn’t an accident. I chose to take Max around the block before submitting myself to a physical effort involving loading up our trailer for a trip to Everette, Washington next Saturday. Chuck is the driver. He said he’d be leaving around 0400 so he could miss most of the traffic in Seattle. Makes sense to me.

When I got there at 1030, work was in progress by Larry, Lonnie, Chuck, and Kathry. Chris showed up with me. He’s a Scappoose policeman and I can only presume he’s the Chief because that’s what Larry and Lonnie called him. Nice guy. A short while later, Sheriff Pixely showed up. It was a quite a crew we had.

The trailer we loaded was about 20′ long and was hooked to Chuck’s pickup, ready for the trip north. It took us about an hour to load it which was pretty good. I don’t have any numbers about what we loaded, but Kathryn does. I’m not sure how the process works other than someone calls Kathryn and she rounds people up. You probably know more about it than I do.

It was a good way to finish the morning.

Then I went home and visited with Max for a while. I suspect he would like another walk so I’ll have to consider that. But first I must do some errands. Max can go so he will be happy. CRPUD is first to get our new water heater on the record so they can give us the rebate we earned. Then I might stop by Dairy Delish for a chocolate malt that Max has been whining about for a while.

Just kidding. Dogs aren’t allowed to eat chocolate. So, maybe I’ll get him a vanilla malt, instead.

I took a pickup load of Jennie’s clothes and donated them to the Iron Tribe Network facility located at the end of Shore Drive. The location name is deceptive because there’s no way to get to it from Shore Drive. That’s where the clothes you no long need went. They were very grateful. Jennie sent a couple bags of kids’ shoes.

I’ll leave this one here. I apparently lost my mind for a couple of days.

Love you

Letters to Diane – 21

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Hi, Hon. It’s Wednesday, the 17th of December. It’s almost Christmas and that boggles my little head a bit.

It you’ve had time to look around the house you’d see that Jeff put up some really nice outdoor lights for us. They’re the kind we should have bought a long time ago. They are the permanent kind that never need to be removed. I bought two 100′ sections that wrap the house from the front corner of the carport to about halfway up the inside of the carport from the backside. Jeff did a good job.

You can be proud of Max because he’s getting more trustworthy all the time. I’m no longer fearful that he’ll head for the hills when I take him out before bed. Before going out we have a little talk and he just goes go the steps leading down to the shed and comes right back. I think I’ve mentioned this already, but I don’t care. It bears repeating. To make it even better, I took him down to the river thig afternoon and took his leash off for the walk around in the new section. He stayed right with me and showed me how much fun he had by lagging behind me as I walked, then running full out to catch up. He did that a few times. There wasn’t anyone else down there so he didn’t have anything to divert his attention from me. He got a record amount of uninterrupted sniffing while we were down there.

On the way home we stopped at Grocery Outlet to pick up a few things. Max wanted me to get him new treats but I told him he’d have to eat the old ones, first. He already knew that. We’ve had this talk before. He had a really good time walking all the aisles sniffing the entire bottom rows on both sides. He has yet to pee on anything in the store which really makes me happy because I can almost hear the announcement “cleanup on the dog food aisle.” If that happens, he knows he’ll never be allowed in that store again.

Lydia came home from work a little early today with a bad headache. She texted me to warn me, but I missed that so I was surprised when she popped in the front door. Until the garage door opener gets fixed she can’t use that the enter/exit. So, I guess I’ll have to bite the bullet on that and call in an expert. I can’t figure it out. Must be losing my touch. It’s easy to ignore it’s broken nature because there are two work arounds in the front and back doors. I suppose I could free up the laundry room door and make it 3 options.

I finally put up the folded clothes that were on my bed so I can move around a little at night. It’s been easy to ignore, too. I don’t need a lot of room unless Max decides he needs to sleep where I am. Normally he sleeps on either one of you night shirts, or your old dark blue robe. He likes either of them, as do I, because they smell like you. I’ll probably never wash them. Ever.

I think it’s time to quit. It’s almost 2000 and I woke up this morning around 0700. I woke up at 0700 but I didn’t get up until around 0900 when Daniel texted me.

He relayed a greeting from Nelda to me from one of his crew members who apparently saw her at a bazaar event somewhere in Vancouver. I misunderstood what actually happened and thought she may have called Dan by mistake, but I got that cleared up when I called her this afternoon.

She said she was as this event selling stuff and got to talking with one of the customers and learned that he worked for Intel at the Aloha Campus. Nelda quizzed him a little more and discovered that he worked for Daniel so she asked him to pass along a hello from Nelda to his boss’s wife’s father. Hence, the text which he sent mainly to confirm that Nelda is actually a person I know. I confirmed that she’s real and trustworthy.

Now it’s time to stop and start practicing going to sleep at a normal time. Lydia has been keeping me up really late. But, we’ve kind of developed a routine where we watch 2-3 episodes of a fun series, or maybe a movie or two. We’re watched some really bad movies lately.

If you can find a way. send me a photo of what the house looks like at night with the lights on.

Love you.

Letters to Diane – 20

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Dear Diane,

It’s 1935 on Sunday afternoon, December 14th, 2025. I just added the date and time for the fun of it because none of my previous letters are dated. I didn’t think it was necessary because most people who read these things would do so using a computer. Doing that would make all the dates and time available to those who might be interested. I’m guessing you don’t have a computer where you are but I suspect date and time isn’t important to you at all. I can understand that because as time passes for me I find date and time information less important. Things seem to work out just fine no matter whether or not I know what date or time it is. So, I’m just not going to worry about it anymore. I’ll just live in the moment when I’m aware of my situation. I’m sharing that because there are many times when I’m not aware of my situation. Mainly, that’s when I’m asleep. You probably know all this, don’t you?

I went to church this morning, and I was on time for a change. Everyone there was surprised to see me. I was surprised to see Steve Thomas and his mom, Florence, in attendance. Though I have no memory of ever meeting Florence, it was good to see both of them. Steve looked pretty good, and he appeared to be very happy about his return to the church. As you know, our church is a good one to return to.

After the service I went downstairs and had one cookie and one cup of coffee. I shared the story about the friendship bracelet you got me and everyone was suitably amazed about how you made that gift happen. I just accept it now. There is an explanation, I know, but it doesn’t matter to me. You got the bracelet for me and got it to me. That’s all I need to know. I have proof that you love me. I don’t need proof, though. While we were together you made it obvious that you loved me every day. Adding the bracelet just made me understand that our love goes beyond the grave. I know, you don’t have a grave, but you know what I mean.

Lydia just returned from a trip to PDX with the family where they visited a light show at the Hillsboro Stadium, I think. Then they went shopping. They’ve been gone a while. It’s now almost 2100 now.

So, now I will quit.

ILY Always.

Letters to Diane – 19

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It’s Wednesday, I’ve had supper and, yes, I’ve taken all my pills for today. The thing about pills is that apparently most people I know think I need reminders about them because I forget. Well, that’s true. I do. But today is a milestone because no one sent me a text to remind me. I’m not saying people should stop sending them because this is just one day. I could easily forget tomorrow morning.

Today Lydia and I made a batch of chicken and noodles. I’m sorry you aren’t here to enjoy the results because it was pretty good. I ate twice and there are four bowls left. I’ll let the kids duke it out for the leftovers.

I had good intentions about those noodles, but didn’t get it done. Now I’ll have to go buy another chicken. That’s OK. It will get done.

Since the day before yesterday was Thursday, I made a trip to the Kozy for coffee and visited with Jeff, Chuck, and Larry. As always, we had a nice visit and drank a bunch of coffee. Now, since yesterday was Friday, I have no idea what happened after Thursday’s coffee. I’m petty sure I woke up around 0530-0600 this morning and instantly made a decision to stay up a little later in the evening to avoid those early mornings.

Oh… oh … yesterday for supper I fed Lydia one of the pot pies I bought a few days ago. When I saw them in the store they made me remember pot pies in the past that were really good. I wasn’t so enamored with the ones I bought, though, because you can cook them in the micro or a conventional oven. Maybe the one I had would have been a little better. There’s just something that doesn’t sit right with me about a crust that browns in a microwave, unlike the crusts that brown properly in a conventional oven. Lydia said hers was fine, but she’s young enough that she probably hasn’t had something like that before microwaves. That, and she’ll eat pretty much anything when she’s hungry. That’s not a bad thing.

I think I’ll work on making my own crust and see what happens. What could go wrong?

Today I went with Jennie, Jasper, and Siah to the Christmas Bazaar at the fairgrounds. Had I gone with you in the past I may not have been so surprised about what a big deal it is. It’s quite amazing how many people were there that I know. I had a lot of fun talking with them, and even with the vendors I just met. All four of us had a good time, then we went to the Country Inn for lunch. We had simple meals and it still cost me over $70. That’s remarkable. Almost like going to McDonald’s, right?

Lydia’s cats, Lucy and Louis, are getting along find with Max, now. It’s like all the sudden they figured out that no one is leaving so they may as well just get used to being around each other. Or, it may be that the cats think kindly about Max because he helps clean their litter box. I’m thinking about changing his name to Litter Lips.

Things in my head are getting out of hand so I better stop before I get in trouble.

I would tell you to be safe like I do everyone else, but it would be pointless considering where you are. How could you not be safe in Heaven.

I miss you and love you a lot.