96 square feet of it.
The tower is abandoned now. This picture was taken almost 20 years ago. By now it probably is just a pile of rubble.
But we spent a good summer there.
Wednesday, December 31, 2014
the dance
I am old hippie.
My kids call my house (I designed it and built it and then rebuilt it) “Dad’s Hippie Hut.” That is a definition that does not bother me.
My hippie credentials are a bit squishy when you remember that I was (and am) monogamous, that I don’t do drugs, or even alcohol. So I don’t fit into categories easily.
When I was in my early independent days I spent 3 summers living in a 14 by 14 house that sat right on top of a mountain. Sometimes we were in the clouds, but more often we were above the clouds. It was exhilarating.
I eat simple. Close to the dirt. Home grown as much as possible. Lots of color. I am a vegetarian. I adore small spaces and small houses. I lived a year in a 300 square a tiny house.My art work is quite minimalist. I drive a 23 year old car that I bought new as a gift for my beloved. As I said, I am simple person.
Sixteen years ago my sweetheart contracted a terminal disease and I lost her last year. I lived alone, but that was not working out well. But finding someone who shared my lifestyle wishes and was fun to be with was and is a challenge.
I used to tell my students in college: If you can hit the ball two times out of ten, and strike out the other 8 you will have a decent career in baseball. If you can hit the ball 3 times out of ten, riches will follow. It works in baseball.
So my new woman and I are at the educate and adjust stage of our dance together. Earlier this week I made Oatmeal for breakfast and the pot boiled over. She told me I was not to cook any more. So the next day I cooked Polenta! I’ll not stop.
And, the dance continues.
My kids call my house (I designed it and built it and then rebuilt it) “Dad’s Hippie Hut.” That is a definition that does not bother me.
My hippie credentials are a bit squishy when you remember that I was (and am) monogamous, that I don’t do drugs, or even alcohol. So I don’t fit into categories easily.
When I was in my early independent days I spent 3 summers living in a 14 by 14 house that sat right on top of a mountain. Sometimes we were in the clouds, but more often we were above the clouds. It was exhilarating.
I eat simple. Close to the dirt. Home grown as much as possible. Lots of color. I am a vegetarian. I adore small spaces and small houses. I lived a year in a 300 square a tiny house.My art work is quite minimalist. I drive a 23 year old car that I bought new as a gift for my beloved. As I said, I am simple person.
Sixteen years ago my sweetheart contracted a terminal disease and I lost her last year. I lived alone, but that was not working out well. But finding someone who shared my lifestyle wishes and was fun to be with was and is a challenge.
I used to tell my students in college: If you can hit the ball two times out of ten, and strike out the other 8 you will have a decent career in baseball. If you can hit the ball 3 times out of ten, riches will follow. It works in baseball.
So my new woman and I are at the educate and adjust stage of our dance together. Earlier this week I made Oatmeal for breakfast and the pot boiled over. She told me I was not to cook any more. So the next day I cooked Polenta! I’ll not stop.
And, the dance continues.
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Grandma Sharon
This week daughter Lora 2 lost her mother-in-law, and son-in-law Cliff lost his mother.
She was also a Sharon. We had been friends/in-laws for a long time, close to 30 years. She was a pleasant little lady (not quite 5 feet tall).
My Shar met Sharon at Thanksgiving time. She looked healthy, though there was mention of a doctor's appointment. Our visit was short and now Grandma Sharon is gone. The end came much to quick.
She was a good mother and grandmother. Lora's children lost both of their grandmothers in a bit over a year.
She will be missed by all of us.
She was also a Sharon. We had been friends/in-laws for a long time, close to 30 years. She was a pleasant little lady (not quite 5 feet tall).
My Shar met Sharon at Thanksgiving time. She looked healthy, though there was mention of a doctor's appointment. Our visit was short and now Grandma Sharon is gone. The end came much to quick.
She was a good mother and grandmother. Lora's children lost both of their grandmothers in a bit over a year.
She will be missed by all of us.
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Odds?
Lady Shar and I have been married almost 110 years, just not to each other.
My first marriage went over 57 years and her was over 50. So we begin with a good bit of experience. One of my friends sent a congratulations note with this line: “If this marriage lasts as long as your last one, you will be an old man.” Most of our past was very good.
We are both pretty set in our ways, pretty hard headed, maybe we even be called a bit stubborn. So, what are the chances of this marriage between two septuagenarians working long term? Of course it is too early to do much beside guess, but from this perspective, it seems that we have a pretty good shot at long term (there is that term again) happiness.
For one thing, though we are both fairly (or more) stubborn, we are also smart enough to know that most battles are just not worth the trouble. And we laugh a lot.
We are both more resilient than I might have thought. We both own houses and while neither is ideal for the two of us, we have both agreed that we could live happily in either, though we are keeping our eyes open for something even more suitable.
I hope that is a predictor of good times ahead.
So, while it is way to early to know for sure, we are off to a decent start.
My first marriage went over 57 years and her was over 50. So we begin with a good bit of experience. One of my friends sent a congratulations note with this line: “If this marriage lasts as long as your last one, you will be an old man.” Most of our past was very good.
We are both pretty set in our ways, pretty hard headed, maybe we even be called a bit stubborn. So, what are the chances of this marriage between two septuagenarians working long term? Of course it is too early to do much beside guess, but from this perspective, it seems that we have a pretty good shot at long term (there is that term again) happiness.
For one thing, though we are both fairly (or more) stubborn, we are also smart enough to know that most battles are just not worth the trouble. And we laugh a lot.
We are both more resilient than I might have thought. We both own houses and while neither is ideal for the two of us, we have both agreed that we could live happily in either, though we are keeping our eyes open for something even more suitable.
I hope that is a predictor of good times ahead.
So, while it is way to early to know for sure, we are off to a decent start.
Saturday, December 27, 2014
We live in her house.
My house is 25 miles away.
Neither is perfect for us, but either would work for us if we set our mind to it. But for now we have the luxury of thinking and planning.
So I was at my house making bread. I know I could bring the gear over here and make bread in this kitchen, but this house has more construction going on right now, and there is not a real good space for all of the gear I use to make bread.
That includes, but is not limited to: a grain mill for making flour; a big Kitchen Aid mixer, bread pans that are just the size I am used to; the 3 or 4 bins of the flour that I use; plus a bunch of things that I am used to using.
In other words, I am nuts to think I have to go to Caldwell, but I do and did.
So I had the bread made and the cake made (Christmas is Lady S's Birthday) and was ready to load up.
I looked outside and it was raining.
A few minutes later I grabbed a load of stuff and headed for the front door. There was 2 inches of snow on the ground and it was snowing hard. I loaded the car quickly. The bread was cool enough to fit into open ended bags.
The cake was right out of the oven, baked in an ancient 12" skillet. It was really hot. I put it in the top of a wood crate I made once.
The trip home was uneventful, though slow. On the freeway I drove in the fast lane screaming along at 25 to 40 mph.
Just another crazy day on the farm!
My house is 25 miles away.
Neither is perfect for us, but either would work for us if we set our mind to it. But for now we have the luxury of thinking and planning.
So I was at my house making bread. I know I could bring the gear over here and make bread in this kitchen, but this house has more construction going on right now, and there is not a real good space for all of the gear I use to make bread.
That includes, but is not limited to: a grain mill for making flour; a big Kitchen Aid mixer, bread pans that are just the size I am used to; the 3 or 4 bins of the flour that I use; plus a bunch of things that I am used to using.
In other words, I am nuts to think I have to go to Caldwell, but I do and did.
So I had the bread made and the cake made (Christmas is Lady S's Birthday) and was ready to load up.
I looked outside and it was raining.
A few minutes later I grabbed a load of stuff and headed for the front door. There was 2 inches of snow on the ground and it was snowing hard. I loaded the car quickly. The bread was cool enough to fit into open ended bags.
The cake was right out of the oven, baked in an ancient 12" skillet. It was really hot. I put it in the top of a wood crate I made once.
The trip home was uneventful, though slow. On the freeway I drove in the fast lane screaming along at 25 to 40 mph.
Just another crazy day on the farm!
Friday, December 26, 2014
This is the year of clothes.
I did alright until I decided to get married. No one cared if my blue pants had white knees (I spent my life on my knees) and no one cared if I wore the same shirt a week at a time
Then it all changed!
Granddaughter Emily advised me that I needed a white shirt for my wedding and so for the first time in a couple decades, I own a white dress shirt.
Then Christmas came. Shar and I were alone Christmas Eve. There were three presents for her under the tree and 6 or 9 for me. They were all the same sized (which should have given me a clue).
Which reminds me of a line I heard from a new bride once, “I like him just as he is, maybe just a few minor changes.” “Minor” can have a lot of definitions.
So I opened packages and found pants and shirts and more pants and shirts. One shirt even had a neck tie, the narrowest I ever saw. It looked like a ribbon it was so narrow and to my eye looked incredibly like what I would not want to wear.
There was even a bag full of hats (Shar has a closet of hats). OK there were three. Two are OK and I will wear, the 3rd is going to have to go back to whoever thought it up. I don’t mind hats that have a lot of wear and character, but I want the character to be from use and even abuse and not from some factory on the other side of the planet.
Any way, I am well dressed, with more new clothes than I have bought myself for a long long time.
What did I buy her?
I admit it wasn’t terribly romantic, but I bought her a Ipad Air2; Gold; 64; WiFi. Not sure it was terribly romantic, but she likes it!
I did alright until I decided to get married. No one cared if my blue pants had white knees (I spent my life on my knees) and no one cared if I wore the same shirt a week at a time
Then it all changed!
Granddaughter Emily advised me that I needed a white shirt for my wedding and so for the first time in a couple decades, I own a white dress shirt.
Then Christmas came. Shar and I were alone Christmas Eve. There were three presents for her under the tree and 6 or 9 for me. They were all the same sized (which should have given me a clue).
Which reminds me of a line I heard from a new bride once, “I like him just as he is, maybe just a few minor changes.” “Minor” can have a lot of definitions.
So I opened packages and found pants and shirts and more pants and shirts. One shirt even had a neck tie, the narrowest I ever saw. It looked like a ribbon it was so narrow and to my eye looked incredibly like what I would not want to wear.
There was even a bag full of hats (Shar has a closet of hats). OK there were three. Two are OK and I will wear, the 3rd is going to have to go back to whoever thought it up. I don’t mind hats that have a lot of wear and character, but I want the character to be from use and even abuse and not from some factory on the other side of the planet.
Any way, I am well dressed, with more new clothes than I have bought myself for a long long time.
What did I buy her?
I admit it wasn’t terribly romantic, but I bought her a Ipad Air2; Gold; 64; WiFi. Not sure it was terribly romantic, but she likes it!
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