Sunday April 6 2008

Sheral and Dick Visited Today
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Today we got a surprise call from Sheral and Dick. They had taken a weekend vacation away and went to Jackson. They wanted to stop by and say "hi" while they were this close, so I asked them to come and help us eat that chicken tortilla soup. They drove in through the slush and mud and we had a good visit before they had to go on their way. We thought it would be another same-o day but having them stop by was a nice break. That was fun.

I went out this morning and got a few photos of the drifts after the wind blew yesterday. Probably they are higher by another foot or a foot and a half. One of these days they HAVE to start getting smaller.

Yesterday Betty and I had our usual phone visit. We talked about possible versions and dates for she and our friend Nancy coming to the ranch to visit - sometime in May, and how we can coordinate a sight-seeing trip back to Nevada together. I want to end up in Vegas in time for Tayler's graduation. So we will have much planning to chew over in the weekends to come before we get some kind of itinerary. Madelaine also called and what a good visit we had. We don't see each other very often but she is one of my favorite people. Today Nanny called from a hill above Wickenburg while Ken prospected in a ravine, so that was a fun experience to share. I'm so lucky to know such wonderful friends.

This weekend is the LDS General/World Conference, so I've been watching a lot of it on TV. Its the first time I've seen the new President Munson since Gordon B. Hinkley died in January. What inspiring and spiritual speeches the men of the church have gave. Saturday the choir was all of BYU college age young people and what a beautiful job they did. Even the primary young women sang in a choir. Today it is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Saturday April 5 2008

Ancient Heart of the Earth

24x30 Oil Painting

by Lynn Thomas
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This is a painting my daughter Beverly owns. It is similar to Washakie Dreams, same theme and same location, but quite different color and feeling. It has had a more complicated life than most of the paintings. I painted it in 1975 from a very poor reference photo I took in the 70s, and it turned out soooo dark that I never could like it, although it got sweepstakes in the county fair the next year. In 1983 I gave it to Beverly, and in 1996 after we talked about it, she returned it to me again. It had a lot of good things going for it. The drawing and composition was pretty good. So I repainted over the old painting and added the horses. By then I knew a lot more too, so was able to salvage it. Then in case painting over old dried paint might cause some trouble in the future, I thought it was best to keep it in the family. Now she doesn't mind having it hanging in their beautiful home.

We had an inch or two of new snow this morning. It must have fallen in the early morning hours, as last time I let the dogs out about 3 a.m. it hadn't happened. So I woke up to a brilliant sunny morning with the landscape all clean and white. By 10 a.m. it was dark gray overcast again. In another hour the wind was blowing snow horizontally past all the windows. The weather report is for chance of snow all weekend.

Joe took the dogs and went out early this morning to get yesterday's mail. He is doing that so he can go while the road is still frozen and not cause such awful ruts later in the day since its very muddy right now.

Spring is sure late coming. I've heard several different times how hard this cold weather has been on the new born calves, and the people taking care of them too. Lots of calving happens in the middle of the night, and the temperatures have just been staying well below freezing and many nights below zero. So when a new little baby calf is born, it might nearly freeze to death or could even die so quickly before the person who is checking calves in the night finds it. Then they bring all these new calves inside trying to get them warm enough to survive. Sometimes the ranch wife has several calves in the kitchen getting warm. They are all getting pretty overworked and tired out.

Friday April 4 2008

Baklava

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Made some baklava today. Not sure why except that I had the ingredients for it. I made it once or twice before years ago. The phyllo dough had been in the freezer for a while and needed to be used. I wish you were here to sit down and have a cup of tea and have some with us. Joe was wanting it to be done before it ever got out of the oven, but he always does that. Rock Springs has a lot of immigrant families from Europe, and I got a few good recipes from some of those ladies. Another I liked a lot was Poticia - had apples and walnuts rolled in a sweet bread dough. I can't find this recipe any more, don't know what happened to it. And Skorpa was another type of bread that you toasted in the oven.

Got some Mexican chicken tortilla soup made for dinner. It has made a big pot full. This is a new recipe, but came from Carrie so I know it has to be good. It's a cream soup instead of a clear broth and you put crumbled tostadas and cheese in the bowl with the soup. Joe liked it. Seems like the whole day is gone so quickly and don't know where it went, but cleaned the bathroom and did some laundry.

Its been another really nice warm day, and no wind. There's a lot of water out in the bare spots. Below are a few pictures of the yard.

Looking at the Back Yard - Keep in Mind that The corral top horizontal pole is about 7' high. The "silver" thing is the snow machine sled, which has laid there all winter. It's upside down. In the beginning it was leaning on the big berm the snowplow left there, which is melted now. It was about as high as the truck window. We've never had to use the sled, and also never even started up a snow machine, except Joe rode his a couple of times before we got the road plowed. I didn't ride a machine this year.

This is from the back shop door looking north at the drift in the front corral.

This is looking at Big Kahuna from inside the back corral standing about at the barn door. I stuck two photos together to get it all in.

Looking at the two 1000 gallon propane tanks that sit in back of the corrals. The yellow and green "things" are the lids that protect the valves on top of the tanks. Raven walking on the drift. When she came back she squatted at the bottom right and said "Help, I can't get down!!

Thursday April 3 2008

Junk Car on the East fork Ditch

High water is somewhere up toward the headlight

more or less.

Glorious Morning! Sunny and Warm. Good day to take the dogs for a walk. I was still in bed, slept really good BTW, when an airplane flew right over my bed. Assume it must have been Bob or Jim or? Then later there was a helicopter. Well, I did my usual awake in the middle of the night a couple of times, and watched a show about black rhinoceroses in the desert. I wondered if Viagra has made a difference in rhinos getting killed for their horns. If so, that would be a good thing. I've already had three nice phone calls this morning. Sandra called and we always have a good visit. She said that two more gravel trucks had turned over on the curvy hill by Muddy Creek down by her. Then Sandy called too. I love getting to talk to her.

I'm feeling so well today it's just amazing. I called Kay and told her thank you for asking for the mass to be said, and asked if it is a good thing to send a note to the priest and congregation to thank them all, so they know the prayers are working. She said yes it would.

Kay had taken her paintings up to that new co-op gallery in Jackson last Tuesday and the lady liked them. We planned that I will go check the place out next Tuesday and let her know what I think of it. It's near Teton Village Ski Area. And plans are I'm going to take some of her paintings up there for her at the end of April since she's off Sunday to visit her family all over the country for a month - from here to Nebraska to Texas to Nebraska and back. We will hope to see each other next at the Wyoming Artists Association Convention in Casper, which is 4/25-27. She will be driving there from her brother's in Omaha. So lots of plans to get discussed and decided and seeing how our dates are going to work together for getting it done.

...... Not much else going on to report and no news. If anything happens to write about, I'll be back later. Or not.

April 2 2008

Ducks on the East Fork

Panorama Photo - At the Gate Yesterday

Our gate on the left and Richies on the right.

That is their backhoe which they are using for

transportation to navigate through the mud and ice

right now. They leave their trucks at the gate when

they come every morning to feed and water the cattle.

SO... I figure I'm lucky to be able to drive the SUV

instead of a backhoe!!

Yesterday was another trip to Jackson for the weekly chemo treatment. Maxine went along with me again, and she also had an appointment up there. Started off before 8 and wish I'd looked out to the distant road because the snow plow was clearing out the road and just getting to the gate. I would have waited a few minutes for Bill to come on in. There were some medium sized drifts in the lane to get through and did just fine in 4WD but would have been less stressful to wait a couple of minutes and have the drifts plowed. He had the rest of the road to the mailbox cleared out too, The county road was bare this time because the gravel trucks have just beat all the snow and ice off. It looked like a gravel truck had overturned on the curve where the dirt meets the pavement, so had to use caution there, as well as a mysterious big bump before that.

Stopped at the East Fork River for a few photos, because the trees and willows were all frosted and there were some ducks on the open water, but they weren't that cooperative and just kept swimming out of sight. Saw some herds of deer along the way and I supposed they are beginning to migrate back into this area as they can get to the feed. We still have piles of snowdrifts and all white over our way though. The closer to Boulder the less snow, and between Boulder and Pinedale the ground is getting bare. Heading north it gets deep again, and is over the fences all along the Hoback. I stopped only for a couple of minutes to say hi to Kay on the way past. She was taking paintings up to Jackson to be considered for a new gallery there. Hope it worked out as a good opportunity for her. Met Maxine about 9:30 at 40 Rod and we were on our way. She had some fresh chicken eggs to give us and we will enjoy those. Thank you Max.

This was a gorgeous sunny day and no wind. There aren't words to describe how beautiful the early morning light was on the smooth new snowfall. This was probably the best driving day we've had. It was overcast at Jackson though.

Maxine wanted to stop at a vacuum cleaner place for a new cord, but needs to bring her vacuum in and have the salesman see if he has one to fit it. Next door was a saddle shop, and what a place! There were hundreds of saddles in there, and every other kind of horse thing you might want. So I went in to look and bought a new rustic pole saddle rack for the new saddle that Tom made for me. Joe brought it home a couple of weeks ago now. It is so wonderfully crafted that we want to have it in the house to admire for a while. It is a work of art.

Got to Chemo right on time. Everything went fine. I forgot to say last week that the liver function tests are good. They didn't take all the blood tests today, just the white count to know that I was good to have the treatment. Carol said the fatigue is cumulative, and that's why I continue to feel so tired.

Maxine had brought her knitting last week, so I brought the sweater I told you about, but didn't get too far beyond figuring out where I was in the pattern and figuring out how to knit again after leaving it sit for 15 years or so. Had to undo what I did twice before it looked right, I was knitting backwards for a while. While the treatment dripped we ate our lunch there again, and it was delicious. Then Maxine went to her appointment. I was soon done and waited in the lobby where they have a computer, and got rid of all my junk email. She was back right quick, and we headed on home, making a stop at Smiths for some groceries. I got some of their nice produce. We stopped at Hoback Junction market for a Mexican chocolate for the drive home.

Back at 40 Rod let Maxine off and got her groceries into her car. In Pinedale I got gas (uh-ohh Maxine forgot her coat and knitting) and the rest of the groceries I needed at Ridleys/Falers. I am not liking that store much, but will wait to judge it until they get their rearranging finished. It just looks junky and dirty at this point. Everyone's mad at the pharmacy.

The drive home was relaxing through the early evening, and there were more deer. Turning onto Richie Road it was slushy and muddy, and half that and icy on through our gate. The picture shows what it was like arriving home. In the lane the snowplow had piled the berms up even higher. It's just awesome. Joe had eaten. I got the groceries put away, and pooped out, too tired to even try to eat so waited a while and had some cereal and a banana. We brought the new saddle rack in, and Joe seemed to like it o.k. although we don't know yet where its going to fit, but I'm suspecting the living room.

Maxine had called before I got here, and I'd just finsihed the grocery job when she called again. We had forgotten to get her coat and other personal stuff out of the car when I let her out and it had her new prescription in it. So she is going to come over tomorrow and perhaps have lunch to pick it up. I kidded her by saying they asked me today if I had chemo brain. Although crushed, I was honest and told Carol I had tried to call Mary Caroline yesterday on the TV remote, and when I made spaghetti sauce and kept asking myself what went in it, what was I forgetting. It simmered for 2 hours and when I went to serve it I realized I'd never put in the hamburger. So quickly browned some and put it in. I told Maxine NOW I had an excuse to loose my memory but reason did she have?!! I wish I'd thought at the gas station to call her but I was about half out of it.

Although I sat up in the middle of the night a couple of times, I did get some sleep. Today I'm feeling pretty darn good, and don't know why since last week was bad all week until the last day and a half before I went back. Perhaps the reason is that Kay asked them to do a 5 o'clock Mass for me at the Catholic Church, and I would have been on the way home when they were saying it. My symptoms started but never materialized as usual. I've been blaming doing so well on that. What a wonderful thing to experience. Thank you Kay, and all who send such prayers and blessings. I'm very grateful.

Elephants Paint

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mPltVHkxyw&feature=related


Think of the abuse these intelligent animals have endured in their association with man(kind?).
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April 1 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEBBIE

Your Card is in the Mail!

WYOMING IS SENDING 600 WOLVES TO WASHINGTON D.C. (Courtesy Sierra Club, Washington Post, Defenders of Wildlife, and Humane Society of the US. Way to go Washington DC!!) AND 150 TO NEW YORK CITY AND OTHER STATES. SEE THIS AMAZING STORY AT info@pinedaleoffline.com

Today Maxine and I are going to Jackson. More Later.