Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was a work day with a hike thrown in later in the day. It was mostly cloudy but we did see some sunshine towards the late afternoon. The temps stayed down into the 70's for most of the day as well.

The day started with my usual morning routines; a 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea with turmeric and honey while I posted this ramble and spent a few quiet moments with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several by name. The update on GG isn't good as she suddenly wasn't able to talk. She was cognizant and lucid but her speech was mumbled and no one could understand what she was saying so she was transported to the hospital by ambulance where she is under going all kinds of tests for this sudden inability to speak clearly. We suspect she had a mini stroke but she is able to move her hands, fingers and smiles with no facial affects and writes down what she wants, oh well we will see what happens over the next couple of days as they want to keep her for further observation and tests. We saw her on live video and she seemed to be in control of her arms and fingers with no drooping to the face.

We had a semi mountain breakfast with biscuits, bacon and eggs which held us to suppertime. I headed out shortly after eating to the backwoods yard where I had a large patch of the green moss with no grass growing. I loaded up the golf cart with my tools and headed back to work that area for the next couple hours. I raked out two golf cart loads of the moss and hauled it away as well as headed to my dirt pit where I dug out two golf cart loads of good dirt. After raking the moss I stirred up the ground and sowed grass seeds along with some organic fertilizer then covered the seeds with dirt. Hopefully the seeds with sprout and I can rid that area of the moss. I filled in a couple of other areas in the backwoods yard with dirt that was rough to mow over.

Nancy had a load of laundry on the line and then she finally got off the phone with Miami. She spends 6-8 hours a day on the phone and no wonder she is stressed between checking on her mom, speaking with both of her siblings and of course our Amy as well as our friends here in the mountains. We took off on a hike to the top of the mountain and she call two calls while on our hike. We heard this constant large motor noise and saw where Norm's old place is getting a well drilled. Seems he shared a well with a neighbor and there was some issues with that, so before they can sell his place he needed his own well. Several neighbors on top share a community well which I would think is a non selling point. We stopped and visited with Joe and Jetta for a few and once again she blessed us with a beautiful large tomato and a green pepper. Her tomato's are huge this year and the peppers were so plentiful on one plant it broke a large stem off with 4 peppers.

My garden is still growing despite it being a late one. The green beans are up about 2-3 feet on the wire fence. The Sevin dust around the Swiss chard seems to be working for now as I lost no more seedlings overnight. I keep it hoed as the weeds love this weather. We are forecasted for rain the next several days so I put the hose up from my hand watering. My garlic patch is doing great so far as well. Hopefully I will get a good harvest next summer.

Well that's about it for today as I fried up some beautiful fish for our supper; unfortunately they were store bought but did taste a lot like fresh bass. We sat and read for an hour before starting supper and had a glass of vino, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday was another cool day with limited sunshine and a few sprinkles from time to time. We didn't do a whole lot except hike and then get ready for our friend Jaime for supper. She is back from her mission trip to El Salvador where she and several other PT's helped with alleviating some of the local church and community folks of their physical ailments. I took off around 10'ish for our "mountain moms" pond to fish but they were not biting, although I did catch a few small bass but returned them to the water to get some size. It was an overcast morning with an occasional sprinkle and the temps made it comfortable with an extra flannel on.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and honey while I posted this ramble then spent some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving and prayers for several by name. Nancy spoke with her mom briefly and I also spoke with Paw Paw on his way home from the hospital after a supper stop at Cracker Barrel for his favorite meal of chicken and dumplings. He sounded good and I admonished him about those stairs in his house which I think he needs to sell and get a one floor flat with no stairs. He feels he can manage once again with more caution while using the stairs.

We had a grand hike to the top of the mountain and while the distant views were limited it was a great day for a hike despite the fog and occasional sprinkle. We stopped and visited with Joe and Jetta for a few before heading back down the mountain to a late lunch of leftovers and a can of potted meat they blessed us with. It's been years since I last tasted this canned meat and the first time for Nancy. It would be great on extended hikes and camping and I can remember as a kid the state road workers shared their lunches with me when they were in the area of my grand mothers house before I ever went to live with Paw Paw.

Nancy had chicken breasts in a marinate and a pot of pinto's on the stove  as well as a fresh garden salad and some oven taters and I grilled a zucchini as well along with the breasts, yeow what a feed and oh so delicious. We sat and talked until nearly 9:30 as Jaime shared her experiences with the local folks in El Salvador. She brought us a bag of locally grown coffee from a plantation near where she stayed which is an export for the country. She is planning on doing that trip yearly along with others in her medical profession.

Well it wasn't long after she left I did the dishes and then hit the shower. I read a little before lights out for me. I finished a James Patterson book and started a Stephen King read which looks interesting to say the least. His books are so unique and takes such different twists which are unpredictable, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday was the coldest all day temps we have had since last March when we were here just for an overnighter, yikes. I even wore a flannel shirt for most of the day except when working on the hill and then digging out some small pine stumps in the backwoods; but when I was resting or in the shade it was chilly. I don't believe we broke 65 at any time during the day and Nancy has the small tower heater on in the cabin during the morning hours.

I started the day much the usual with my routines that started with the hot cup of green tea laced with turmeric and honey while I spent some time creating this ramble then having some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving an intercessory prayers for several who are hurting and now especially for those being inundated with flood waters in Texas. I would never think of floods in Texas as that is usually a dry state but with all of the rain and the high tides from Harvey the place is under water. From what I see on TV it will take a long time for those residents to recover.

I headed outside after a breakfast of eggs, grits, a ripe tomato with a jalapeno pepper chopped up in the mix to work on the driveway coming up our hill. There was a huge rock that has shown itself in the middle of the drive and I wanted to remove it from the travel lane. I loaded up the golf cart with my pick, digging iron, shovel and rake and headed down the hill. Well it didn't take long to loosen the rock but it was in excess of 500 pounds; so I took the sledge hammer and began busting it up to where I could slide it up a couple of planks and onto the golf cart where I disposed of it. The whole was huge in the road so I took the busted pieces and filled in the hole with it and some dirt packing it down. What a difference that made in the smoothing out the driveway. I also removed several more smaller rocks from the drive as well and made a channel for the rain to run off and down alongside the drive. I headed out to the big hill coming in our road and smooth out some dips in the road where other drivers spin their tires causing rough dips in the gravel.

I headed out to the back woods and removed lots of dead tree limbs as well as several pine tree stumps. I headed up to my dirt dig and dug up a load of dirt to fill in and smooth out some dips and low places in the yards. I so enjoy using these muscles for physical work and by days end I could feel the lactic acid build up especially from swinging the pick ax and sledge hammer. We took off on a hike to the top of the mountain just before noon where we sat and visited with Joe and Jetta for a spell. We headed back down the mountain and decided to eat some leftovers for a late lunch around 2'ish. I finished up the green beans and taters and the hot broth felt good going down on this chilly day.

After lunch I headed out to work in the gardens and once more found several Swiss chard seedlings cut off at the ground level. I dug around them only to find thick fat cut worms on every seedlings and I quickly dispatched them with my thumb. I decided to spread some Sevin dust around the remaining seedlings in hopes to at least save a few. The cut worms have had a field day with my beet seedlings as well and now I have only about a dozen seedlings surviving their appetites, oh well. The half runner beans are climbing the fence and I picked my first batch of lettuce for a salad along with some kale. I have one cuke that is a pickling cuke about 4 inches long. The plant has lots of blooms and if it doesn't get too cold I should get more fruit. I resowed some beets seeds in hopes to get enough to take back to Florida with me for my winter garden. I have several new tomato seedlings to take back with me as well. I also pulled a half dozen radishes to add to the salad.

Well we settled into the social media and learned that middle sister Pat's father in law passed away from pancreatic cancer today. We are saddened for their loss but know he is in a better place pain free. The up date on GG is fairly good as Nancy spoke to her from the mountain top while we were on our hike. She seemed a little sleepy but mentioned she was still off the catheter and was eating well. She was sitting in a wheel chair which is good. Paw Paw is being released today from Walter Reed Military Hospital in Maryland. I'm not sure where he will go but hopefully not back to the Winchester house with the stairs and the bathroom on the second floor. He is one tough bird and very hard headed and wants things done his way, oh well.

I tuned into the Ray's vs the Kansas City game and they won 12-0 over a very good division leading Royals team. Hopefully this will be the start of a comeback for the Ray's and they make a wild card spot for the playoffs. I awakened during the night to hear the pattern of a soft rain on the tin roof. We were in need of a soft rain and this morning the temps are almost as high as they were all day yesterday, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday was an awesome day of worship that started with our own live streaming service from BridgePoint Church in St. Petersburg/Seminole Fl. We then heard from a missionary couple who is from Sparta who served in China and is now going to Greece to help with the refugees fleeing from the terrorist group ISIS in Syria, Iran and Turkey. Most or nearly all of them are muslim. A christian group called Gateway2life are in charge of operating one of the camps for women and children ONLY and they will be the camp directors administering to their needs first and then giving them the Gospel second which is totally Biblical in nature.

I started the day after a short night on Saturday as we attended the FaithFest event down off the mountain and it was well after midnight when we finally got home, showered and got into bed. I awakened at my usual 6'ish time despite the short night to a chilly cabin. I think Fall is upon us with the temps not getting much out of the high 60's for the day. We did finally get some sunshine by late afternoon which made for a pleasant hike around 5'ish. We did our usual morning routines before heading out to Cornerstone where we met up with Mechelle, Caleb and his squeeze Courtland and then afterwards headed to the Japanese Eatery called Kaipan in Sparta for a delicious lunch. They too have a very nice salad bar and a delicious menu. The Tracy's also joined us for lunch as well.

We made a stop at Walgreens for some scripts for Nancy then headed home via the Blue Ridge Parkway. They are finally fixing the pot holes and its a pleasure to ride that scenic drive once again, plus its a little bit shorter in milage but at a lower speed. Nancy settled into the phone calls with her mom, sister and Amy as well as texting Jaime who is back from El Salvador and her mission trip. She will be here at least until the end of October with her physical therapy skills and expertise. We are having her for supper on Tuesday.

We took off around 4:30 to the top of the mountain and saw no one until we came upon Eddie Harris who was up from the State Road area. We had a good visit with him as he shared his knowledge of the area and those who once owned the mountains surrounding the area. RJ Reynolds the tobacco king once owned most all of these mountains and the family heirs still owns several thousand acres down off our mountain top and is visible from his place which was the old Shally House. We love learning the history of the area and he told us about a stream of water that has the best supple of Brook Trout east of the Rocky Mountains that empties into a huge reservoir build back in the 30's. We can see this body of water from the top of our mountain.

We spoke with Joe and Jetta as they were leaving for their Sunday night church service before heading on back down the mountain. Since we had a large meal at lunch time I popped corn the old fashion way and that was our supper. I tuned into the finals of the little league series and once more Japan was the big winner over a Texas team, oh well. I watched a little pre-season football while Nancy was on the phone with family. Paw Paw is now in a private room at Walter Reed Hospital and still under observation for fluid on the brain, so far no surgery is planned which is promising. GG still is recovering and hopefully getting stronger each day so she can make the trip to Michigan. The family is making plans to sell her house and is emptying the contents to what different family members want. GG will not go back to her house to live and will need the proceeds for her living expenses according to the power of attorney, son Eric. It really is useless to keep the vacant house up with all the expenses.

I hand watered my garden as the promise of rain dried up each day(no pun intended). I'm still seeing the results of cut worms but I'm dispatching them with a thumb to the head when I can find them under the dirt next to the seedling they have cut off and eaten. I detest using any pesticides and so far I have enough seedlings to make up for the ones they destroy, oh well, LATER  

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was a long day that started with my 6'ish roll out and ended around 1 in the morning. It was a work day morning with me weed whacking the perimeter of the cabin and the yards and then a hike to the top of the mountain; once again we saw no one out and about so it was a quick event. The weather was once again perfect for hiking. We got ready after a quick lunch to head out to Sparta to pick up the Tracy's and head down off the mountain to Wilkesboro for the FaithFest Event.

Well it's about an hours drive that consists of some very twisty and winding steep curves with  recommended speed limits of 25 mph, yikes we even saw the tail lights on some of the curves as they were that twisty. We saw a few deer on the way home last night but most stayed off the road which was a good thing. There were lots of other critters some as road kill and few scurrying along the ditches.

Well FaithFest was an awesome event that started around 2 PM and ended around 10:30 PM. We saw and heard some fantastic music many of the familiar songs we hear on JOY FM or Spirit or K Love which are all Christian stations. Now we can put the faces of the artists to the songs.  The place was packed with between 6-7 thousand I would estimate in the grass covered stadium. The acoustics were tremendous and at times you could feel the vibrations in your body. Each set was between 30 and 55 minutes long and was very organized with a message near dark. Several folks decided to make a faith commitment at the invitation call. Each of the sets were very inspirational with all sharing their decision to follow Christ and honor GOD in their daily lives as well as give their personal testimonies.

There were over 300 volunteers to help with this first annual event which will be held the last Saturday in August. We are looking forward to doing this again next year and we did learn coolers with food and drink were allowed in as well as bringing your own fold up chairs(which we did). It did get a little warm before sundown or before the sun moved behind the tall trees that surround the mountains that surround the stadium. We were picked up by a bus that visited the upper parking lots bringing folks into and out of the event. What a blessing that was as the stadium is surrounded with parking lots which required some extra up hill hikes. The stadium is held on the campus of Wilkes Junior College which is beautiful to say the least and also the sight of the annual Merle Fest that honored Doc and Merle Watson. They were big in the "mountain music" era and I believe Doc has passed away.

Well we did receive some sad news that our across the street neighbor in Seminole passed away at the age of 90. Carol and Bill who is also deceased were our neighbors and friends since '79 and I sort of looked out for her doing small things for her when we were in Florida. We won't be able to get back for the funeral as we are still waiting on word from Paw Paw and his prognosis and whether we will have to travel to Maryland while still here in N.C. Well its corporate worship day at Cornerstone after listening live to our Florida pastor at BridgePoint Church. Take a moment or the morning and give thanks, pray for those who are hurting from the hurricane on the Gulf Coast and for our nation as a whole and for the well being of our law enforcement family and our service members. GOD only knows what would happen to our nation without these folks who keep us safe from the terrorists both from abroad and home grown domestic ones, LATE

Saturday Morning

Well Friday found us in Galax, Va. shopping once again. It was rather chilly to start the day with temps in the low 50's not far from the 40's, yeow does that mean Fall is upon us here in the month of August. We did get in a hike after getting back from town and then I mowed the yards until supper time. The day turned out beautiful with temp reaching the low 70's with bright sunshine and blue skies. We are hoping for good weather today Saturday as we travel down the mountain to Wilkesboro for a Faith Fest which features several Christian recording artists, some which we have met personally.

The day started much the usual for me with a 6'ish roll out. Nancy did her morning sleep in until nearly 8 as she is a night owl. I did my routines, prayed to my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several by name. We had good news on both GG and Paw Paw yesterday as it seems they are both recovering to some extent. She was able with assistance to actually do some walking albeit with a walker and attendants and her catheter was removed as well. The bleeding in the brain for Paw Paw seems to have stopped and at this time no surgery is needed for him. We are thankful for this good news and to all who have lifted them up in thoughts and prayers. Their ages aren't the best with him at nearly 90 and her soon to be 89, oh well.

We got ready and headed over to Galax and made several stops along the way as well as stocking up at the super Walmart. I also gassed up as the price will surely rise in the next week or so with the hurricane in Texas where most of our refineries are located. The supple and demand will raise the prices no doubt which is the way it should be. We met up with neighbor Gerald briefly who was up for the day and is planning on coming up with his family over the Labor Day weekend. Our hike was uneventful as we neither saw or spoke with any of our mountain top neighbors. The weather was perfect for hiking with dry cool air.

I had set the battery charger on the mower and it was ready to go when we got back from our hike. I then mowed for then next hour and half until supper time. I skipped the backwoods yard as I just mowed it last week and it could go another week or two. Nancy cooked the green beans with taters and bacon and the broth was excellent along with a couple ears of fresh corn on the cob, yeow what a tasty meal. I headed out to work in the garden until dark and found out why I was losing lettuces and Swiss chard. Cut worms where having a smorgasbord with these two plants and I found several fat worms while loosening up the soil and weeding. Needless to say they were squashed.

Well there was no little league game so I tuned into the Ray's game via the internet and their bats had come to life and were leading 4-1 over the Cardinals when I decide to hit the showers. Afterwards I read for a bit until the sandman calleth a little after 10, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday was mostly a fun day except for after breakfast I did some weed whacking up in the back woods area where some grass but mostly weeds, small pine tree seedlings and some galax plants have begun to grow plus I whacked around some of the wine berry bushes below the old garden. I need to get in there with a rake and clean out the small broken limbs that have fallen and clog up the vines. I did hand water the gardens as the rain that was forecasted failed to fall in our area but the temps have sure dropped precipitously. Yikes it was 12 degrees colder than yesterday morning so I closed all of the windows after awakening. The rest of the day was spent on a hike, a golf cart ride to our "mountain mom" place, a neighbor visit and then out to supper at Mechelle's Farm where I played several games of corn toss or hole; which ever you prefer calling the game.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my routines and then some quiet time with my Creator in lifting up several for healing and comfort. It seems Paw Paw has begun another new round of a hospital stay after falling and striking his head on the stair case. He received a laceration as well as a knot on the back of the head and they transferred him down to Walter Reed Hospital for further testing about the possibility of some fluid on the brain. Josie took him to the hospital ER in the morning and she said he remembered the fall and never lost consciousness as he either missed a step and fell or just lost his balance on the steps near the bottom of the stairs. GG is doing somewhat better as she is eating once again but is now quarantined from others because of this latest infection. Where and when will she ever get back to doing some rehab as its been since may 21st since she last stood on her own, oh well.

Despite the cool morning air which was dry there was plenty of bright sunshine and it was evident all day long with a gentle breeze in the afternoon which kept the temps in the low 70's. We watched some little league baseball in the afternoon and then again last night after getting home from the Mechelle's. The supper at her place was awesome once again with burgers, veggie casserole, baked beans and all the trimmings as well as home made pies. (I just looked out the side window off the porch as I saw some movements and counted 8 large wild turkeys meandering in the yard along with one large rabbit) We had a large gang for supper with the Tracy's, Allen and his daughter Ellie, Gerald and Kay, Caleb and his girl Courtland. We played several games of "corn hole"with different teams but Gerald was on the winning team every time no matter who his partner was. It was a fun evening a perfect for being outside after eating. The girls all went down to the fence line and petted the horses as they were up from the barn area.

Well that was about it for the day. Nancy met up with Shirley who is still having some issues with blisters in her mouth from last year and called our homeopathic clerk in Seminole to find out what she could take to help her with this problem. She prescribed a regiment of various natural ingredients to help and Nancy relayed them to Shirley. I got some chickweed and started taking that as a friend mentioned it was good for ridding the chest of phlegm. I'm still coughing a little in the mornings and can still at times feel some ever present mucus in the chest area. Hopefully this new natural product will work in clearing out the lungs and help with that occasional cough.

Well that was about it for the day. We did get our tickets for the "Faith Fest" in Wilkesboro, N.C. this Saturday afternoon and evening. There are several Christian groups performing live and we have heard many of them on the Christian radio and we know one group "Unspoken" who performed at our church here in the mountains a couple years back. They are awesome and their songs are so inspirational. Well we are heading to the big city of Galax, Va. this morning as we need some things from the super Walmart and from Lowes; plus I will gas up as their prices are 10-15 cents a gallon cheaper than our area, LATER

Thursday Morning

Brr this morning 55 degrees, yikes Fall has happened upon us here in the mountains.

Wednesday was another beautiful day with lots of sunshine and warm temps to the low 80's. The humidity stayed away so it was quite pleasant as we entertained our dear mountain top friends for supper out on the deck. By the time darkness started to fall the air had dried out and temps were rapidly falling. Joe even mentioned he would need to don a sweater as soon as they got home.

The day started with my usual 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and honey that I used to wash down a handful of Nutrilite vitamins and supplements. Nancy was still in the horizontal lab position as she was up late talking with her sister Betsy about their mom's conditions and what is happening with her future and her house until the late hours of the night. I spent some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving and prayer for healing for many as well as some healing for our nation and for our courageous president who is taking on the establishment which I'm coming to learn most of them are less than honest. We need a clean sweep of the swamp and term limits and what is good for them should be good for the rest of the nation.

I told Joe I would come up around 9:30 to give him a hand with installing some 4x8 sheets of plywood within his garage as he is closing in one end before winter. His neighbor has been somewhat lax in coming around on time to help but he did show up about a half hour after we got the first three sheets up and nailed so I headed out. On the way back down the mountain I decided to clean up some of the rocks that make our path down the back trail rough. I hauled 4 loads of rocks in the golf cart and used them to border what was once the lower garden to keep it from washing away when the heavy rains come. That area is now a flat place for badminton, bocce ball and corn toss as I always had a difficult time getting veggies in the area to grow because of the tree shade.

I worked on that project for the next couple of hours and then we took our daily hike to the top of the mountain. The distance views were hazy and we saw no one except for the neighbor Dean and Joe working on finishing up the outside of the garage enclosure. Nancy had all of her prep work for supper complete so we sat and read for and hour or so before the Brownings arrived around 4'ish for supper. I grilled onions and peppers to add to our grilled marinated chicken breast for fajitas as well as black beans and Jasime rice. The tastes were awesome plus we had fresh salsa, sour cream and cheese to add to the top of the tortilla and of course I had a fresh jalapeno pepper from sister Dee's garden to add to mine, yeow, everyone passed on my addition. That was some fine eatin' to say the least. Nancy made fresh hot fudge brownies with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce and whipped cream for dessert. I passed on the dessert as I had a second fajitas; what a trade off.

We sat and talked and then wondered around checking out my garden. Jetta is a master gardener and is always blessing us with bounty from hers. She brought us fresh green beans, basil and tomato's from hers. She grows not only great veggies but the Cadillac of berries; black raspberries and make delicious jam of which she shares as well. She started me some slips to grow my own berries last year and while the vines have grown quite well the deer seem to enjoy eating the young tender branches in the spring; thus inhibiting the berries from forming, oh well. They headed out around 8'ish as darkness was falling. We see and set with them nearly every day on our our hikes and they have become like family.

I washed the dishes while Nancy dried and then we tuned into the little league game between two good team that went into extra innings with N.C. finally winning in the extra inning over Texas. There is a chance they could play again as its double elimination tournament. I watched the Ray's come from behind to tie the Blue Jay's on the internet, but then they gave up a run to go behind in the last inning. I didn't stay up to watch the final score as I hit the showers and was soon reading for a few before lights out around 10:30, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday was a funday as we traveled to Sparta so Nancy could get a hair cut then lunch out with the Tracy's at JB'S pizza place. The girls did some shopping and Patrick and I ran over to the Wellness Center to check on my viability for Silver Sneakers from Blue Cross Blue Shield and his membership with the center. We then made a stop at Grant's Grocery to check on cash checking policy with an out of state bank. They were receptive there but with a daily limit on the amount over your purchase.

I started the day with a 6'ish rollout to a warm morning already in the upper 60's. It did get up to 80 and the humidity came back but we survived without having to turn on the a/c window unit. I did my routines that started with the hot cup of tea laced with turmeric and honey after my shot of apple cider vinegar used to wash down my handful of vitamins. I spent some quiet moments with my Creator in humble thanksgiving and intercessory prayers for several I know who are hurting with health issues, especially my mother in law, GG. She did have a better day yesterday and sounded good on the phone and is eating  little better as well. She has an infection once again and it not able to do any PT which is a set back. On a sad note I lost another classmate and fellow football team member in Winchester and we saw where a friend of our from SFBC passed away overnight as a result of cancer. We have been praying for him for the past couple of weeks.

I hand watered the new beet transplants and some of them will make it as well as all the volunteer tomato transplants. I have no idea what type of tomato but they came up in the upper garden so I transplanted them in the raised beds. The runner beans are climbing the fence almost overnight and if they continue on this pace we will have fresh green beans in a couple of weeks as well as enough to give away. I can now harvest some of the lettuces that I sowed mountain style which is in a patch whereas in Florida I transplant them in to rows. I'm keeping the weeds out by hoeing and stirring the ground almost daily. We did get a quick down pour in the afternoon which gave everything a drink.

We had a superb pepperoni, onion and mushroom pizza and brought about a third of it home for lunch later in the week. We had some home grown tomato's as well as zucchini to use so Nancy made one of my fav's, zucchini pie for supper, yeow I love the flavor of these ingredients. After the clean up which I did as she cooked we took off on our daily hike to the top of the mountain. Most everyone is gone except for Shawnee who just arrived and with her mom visiting on their front porch. We headed on across to visit with Jetta for a few who was harvesting in her garden. She had a basket of beans, tomato's, onions and kale. Joe had started on enclosing his garage door by himself as Dean never came by when promised to help him, so I told him I would come by this morning to help him finish up the job as I have nothing planned for the day. It's supposed to rain today so we will be inside.

I tuned into the Ray's game on the internet and they finally won two in a row. I think they are probably out of contention to make the wild card spot for the playoffs as they are several games out of first place in our division. If you didn't see or hear the speech our president gave on Afghanistan its surely one of the best foreign policy speeches ever by a US President. Mr. Trump is right on with letting those in the field make decisions to wipe out the enemy and give full reign to these leaders in doing so. Maybe we will finally get the neighboring countries to do their part in ridding the terrorists by destroying their places of refuge in the neighboring countries. Trump also put North Korea on notice once again and China as well by economic sanctions, Great Job Mr. President, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well the eclipse was a bust for us as we could never find any glasses plus there was some clouds about the time it was showing itself from our view point; it did get some what darker and the temps did seem a little cooler. The pictures from others around the country showed the real thing which was awesome. We even had an eclipse party that lasted from about 1'ish until nearly 8 in the evening with some fine Mexican style eatin' and then some rather raucous Euchre games.

The day started much the usual for me with a 6'ish roll out. I did my routines that started with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and honey while I did my quiet time and posted this ramble. I spent some time with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several by name for healing and comfort in their hour of need. We saw one of our dear friends at church on Sunday for the first time in weeks who is suffering some severe health illnesses and GG seems to have had another good day in Miami as Nancy spoke with her by phone. We had a lite breakfast before heading to the top of the mountain for our daily hike and then we got ready to run some errands in town before being at the Tracy's around 1'ish to start the party.

Kathryn had made guacamole and cheese dip and Nancy brought salsa and chips for our warming up for the big meal around 3'ish or so. The food was delicious and we had something I'd never tried before, stuffed poblano peppers with ground meat as well chicken enchiladas, refried beans and Mexican rice. Yeow what a feed and we had a little vino with the meal as well. Everything was delicious and so fresh and sauces where very tasty.

Well we chilled after eating and cleaning up then got into the best of three games of Euchre and gals beat us in the third game by one point. We spoke with our old friends from Elk Creek who sold out and moved to Nashville. Sam and Marcia sounded good and they had the total eclipse there. We hadn't heard from them since they moved away from Sparta last fall. They are near their son and his wife and he is doing much better with his health issues as well. Kathryn made sopapilla's from scratch for dessert around 7'ish and they were so tasty and to die for with cinnamon and a honey filling. Wow no wonder I can't reduce this spare tire.

Today Patrick and I are climbing the dome at stone mountain park in our area while the girls shop and Nancy gets a hair cut and then we will eat at the local cafe out our way. The weather has been perfect with temps in the low 80's and lots of bright sunshine. The garden is growing like crazy with the beans starting to climb the fence and I can harvest some lettuce to add to our salads. Well that was about it except we did pick up some new reading material at the library which was one of our errands as well as make a dump run to the landfill, LATER

Monday Morning--Eclipse Day

Well Sunday was an awesome day of worship, a great lunch out and then a fun evening on the pickle ball court. We started the day with a 6'ish roll out as we had to leave by 9:30 for corporate worship at Cornerstone but first we listened live to our BridgePoint Church message by pastor Tim Whipple. He is an awesome speaker and fills you with so much info which leaves you feeling why has this message stopped after about 30-40 minutes or so. We love watching the live early service on line before heading out.

At Cornerstone we heard from four missionaries one of which was from our church on their 2 weeks in orphanages in Rumania. Most of us were in tears as they shared their experiences with new born babies as well as many kids declared unworthy. Some will never received any care other than enough to sustain life and if they achieve adult hood if will be of their ability to cope with the lack of care and compassion. Such sad situations these kids are exposed to when abandoned by their parents and they become awards of the state.

We headed out afterwards to meet with the Tracy's along with Mechelle. We did get to meet our young friend Caleb and his girlfriend Cortland at church and she is a keeper. They are so cute together and now that he is driving we will see less of him on family outings. We had a delicious lunch from the salad bar at the Pizzeria and then we headed for the cabin after a quick stop at the grocery. The weather was perfect once again with low humidity, bright sunshine and temps in the high 70's.

We tuned into the little league game and watched a very good N.C. team annihilate a California team with nearly another perfect game. They seem to be the team to beat so far and should go "all the way". I got ready around 5 and headed out to Roaring Gap for nearly two hours of pickle ball play. I left soaked with sweat and some tired muscles after not losing with several different partners for nearly an hour. I was on today and only lost one game the whole afternoon. I sure felt the muscles after resting before hitting the showers and by 10, I was ready for some horizontal lab. Today we head over to the Tracy's for an eclipse party in the afternoon. The visibility is supposed be about 95% from our location. We will leave early so as to run some errands before the big event, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday was mostly a stay around the cabin, do a little garden work and catch up on some honey do's while Nancy was mostly on the phone. We did get in a hike and after supper a golf cart ride out to the mail box. We dd get in some watching little league baseball games and then an old friend and the builder of the cabin, Ray Todd came by for a short visit in the afternoon.

The day started with a 6'ish roll out. The quietness here in the morning is awesome with only the dew dripping onto the tin roof from the upstairs dormer. We now have two wild rabbits that frequent the yards during the day light hours and many times I come with a few feet of them before they scamper off. They are not carrot lovers as I tried to entice them with some we brought from home but they do love the clover and some broad leave weed that grows in the yards. So far they have stayed from the lettuce in the raised bed.

I did my morning routines that started with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and honey while I posted this ramble and did my morning quiet time to honor my Creator. I lifted up several who are hurting especially GG in Miami. She is doing a slow recovery but has a long way to go. We are encouraged after seeing Paw Paw's miraculous recovery as he too was bed fast for months and he now is back to living on his own and using a cane only for balance. So there is some hope GG will at least get back to some semblance of a healthy lifestyle that will get her out of the bed and back on her feet. We can only hope and pray that will occur.

I fried up some of that delicious bacon we brought back from Virginia on the grill and Nancy made pancakes and eggs. Yeow what a mountain breakfast which held us until late afternoon when we finished off the salsa for a snack until supper which saw us finishing the last four ribs and a couple of ears of fresh sweet corn on the cob that we brought back last Monday from Virginia. Delicious is all I can say with melted butter and some salt. Yeow!!!

We watched some baseball games played by the 12 and 13 year olds from New Jersey and the Caribbean and I flipped to watched the Cowboys beat up on the Colts in preseason football. It wasn't long after a hot shower around 10'ish that it was horizontal lab time for me. The weather was almost a perfect day yesterday with cool temps in the shade and bright sunshine with blue skies. Thankfully the humidity has moved out of the area and we are back to having the windows and doors open. The little window a/c unit does work but I'm not crazy about the cabin being closed up and that has only happened a couple of days this summer. Next week we are looking at down into the 50's and maybe even some 40's with highs only in the 70's. Fall is upon us in a couple of weeks which means our time here is drawing near to be over for this summer. Hopefully we can make it to November but a lot of that depends on GG and her rehab and where she will be in the next few weeks, LATER

Don't forget to worship today with other Believers. Pray that our nation will turn away from the divide that is propagated by divisive people who want to see this president fail no matter what. There is such bitterness for this man who is making true on his promises to make our nation safe, secure and prosperous again. I think those who have been in leadership the past 8 years are so corrupt they are afraid their actions will be found out by this new administrations and they are using subterfuge plots to attack this man through the media and with unfounded accusations. Pray for the safety of our law enforcement community as the radical racist domestic terrorist are killing them needlessly and without any sense of humanity.

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was another beautiful day except for the rain shower which lasted a short time but just enough to scramble us from the lunch table to retrieve the clothes from outside drying on the line. We didn't get in a hike but I was up and down this hill several times installing a climbing fence for my half runner beans. We took off after lunch to meet up with the Tracy's at their rental cabin off Antioch Church Road and then rode with them towards West Jefferson. We made a stop at Shatley Springs where they had never been before and we all had a cup of their supposedly healing water coming directly from a spring that never stops flowing. The history of this place is so interesting especially the saving of the life of the once owner who discovered the healing properties of the water. This water has been analyzed and was recognized as the second purest water in America, interesting to say the least. Where and who has the purest water in the country? You can fill up your jug anytime with no charge. At one time the water was sold.

I started the day with my usual 6'ish roll out while Nancy slept in. She is such a night owl and is up to midnight or later at times. This situation with GG is taking its toll on her as she spends hours upon hours on the phone with Miami, Michigan and Seminole with her sister, brother and GG herself. GG is still in the rehab but now is refusing to do the physical therapy. Diane is getting some of her Relive supplements into her via the feeding tube so she is sustaining some semblance of life as she eats very sparrowingly. She is lucid most of the time and her picture looks good one day and then she is bloated with fluid the next day and always says she is fine when asked how she was feeling. We are hoping she can recover enough to get her out of this facility and travel to Michigan.

Well I now have a small cuke starting to set on the only vine that looks as if it will make it and I have a new Bell pepper set as well. The beans are growing like crazy with all of this rain and warm nights as is every thing but the beets. I only had a few to come up from the seeds for some reason. Usually they sprout great from seed but this batch of seed was at the bottom of the barrel as it was the last of them anywhere in town, oh well.

We stopped in West Jefferson and sat outside at the old Hotel Tavern off main street which is just across the street from a park that features live music on Friday. The atmosphere was awesome with the huge blue/green mountains in the back ground. The town is a little bigger than Sparta but draws lots of tourists as well as many who have vacation homes there. The food was tasty and plentiful and much better than the music which feature an all girl group that played Irish music or something to that effect. It wasn't exactly toe tapping by any means but the setting was great and the price was right; free, so why complain of which we didn't but we did leave after eating. We took some new old roads on the way back and looked at real estate some of which made some people in the car nervous about the steep climb up the mountains. The houses were magnificent with awesome views but we wondered did anyone live there in the winter and if so, how did they maneuver the gravel roads with any snow or ice, yikes the drop offs were huge especially in Laurel Mountain Estates a much ready subdivision with under ground electric and fios cables.

We headed home just before sunset which was so bright as we climbed the mountain from their cabin. The ride back was uneventful as we entered our driveway which neighbor Gerald had scrapped while we were gone. He was down for the night as he dropped off his son Gabriel at my old alma mater in Boiling Springs for his first semester of college. He was just a a youngster when we first met him and his mother would often carry him on her back as we climbed the mountains on our hikes; now he could carry his mother as he has grown into a strong, fine young man with a scholarship in wresting for Gardner-Webb.

Well we tuned into the little league world series and saw N. Carolina play a perfect game against N. Dakota defeating them 8-0. It's on to the next round for this team and they look good with the bats as well as in the field, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday was a work day until late afternoon when our friends Patrick and Kathryn arrived from Florida who are renting a cabin in Sparta for the next couple of months. I had the smoker loaded with applewood and ribs and Nancy had been in the kitchen all morning making preparations for supper. I fired up the weed whacker while the grass was still wet from the overnight dew and outlined all of the gardens, trees and the whole perimeter of the cabin. It was after 1 before I finally completed the mowing and weed whacking.

We settled down around 5'ish to a glass of vino with con caso dip and salsa while the ribs cooled from the smoker. I fired up the grill and roasted 4 ears of fresh corn in the shuck and we commenced to partake of the ribs which fell out of the bones while taking them off the smoker racks. Yeow, were they ever tasty and cooked to perfection and the cool potato salad was such a compliment to the fresh corn as well. We feasted and then settled in to digesting while Patrick and I did the dishes. He does them in his house and I'm so glad he is a willing participant when it comes to cleaning up when we have them over as well.

We watched a little of the little league game then he and I decided to hike to the top of the mountain. The girls came up later in the golf cart. We visited with several on top until nearly dusk before heading down. The Bucs were playing on TV so we settled into that for a quarter or so while having ice cream and cookies for dessert. That filled me to the brim again and I need to stop that after today but they love their sweets so I must be strong and reject it, oh well. Seems we are heading over to West Jefferson this evening for an outside concert and then supper out as well while the girls do some shopping, oh well.

Nancy was on the phone and video chat with her mom and Diane in Miami as well as with Betsy until the late hours of the night. I was whupped after that last hike and was soon in a hot shower and ready for horizontal lab. I did watch the Bucs into the third quarter who was leading 12-0 over the Jaguars, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was both a work day in the morning and then a fun afternoon as we took our "mountain mom" out to a late lunch/early supper in Galax and then Nancy did some shopping. We did get in a morning hike to the top of the mountain and later in the evening we took a golf cart ride to say good bye to Jaime who leaves today for her mission trip out of the country. We got another down pour while we were gone. The drought has left this part of the mountains for now.

I started the day with my usual 6'ish roll out with my cup of hot green tea laced with some turmeric and honey. Honey has really made this drink delicious despite the bitterness of the turmeric. I spent some quiet moments with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several by name for healing and comfort in this their hour of need. The update on GG is she is back in the rehab facility in Miami without the drain tubes which is a good sign which will make it easier for her to be transported when she gets strong enough to travel. The doctors have allowed her to receive this supplement called Relive which Diane swears by as GG is not eating very good. She takes about 8-10 mouthfuls and then quits with her meals, so the supplement will give her the right nutrients which usually comes from the proper food. The food at this rehab is 5 start quality and taste according to Diane and Erica who visit her daily.

I headed out after a breakfast of boring oatmeal with some fresh peaches, cinnamon and honey to work in the front yard where that disgusting green moss has shown itself once again, especially with all this rain. I raked out two full golf cart loads and had a wet shirt from sweat as the result. The humidity has crept back into the picture despite the temps being only in the low 70's. We took off on our hike around 11'ish after Nancy got off the phone with all of her long distance conversations. The smart phone has been a plus with the unlimited calling and texting despite the initial costs and monthly expense, oh well. We visited with the Browning's for a few and once more they blessed us with some fresh picked beans and ripe tomato's; we brought them some of our smoked bacon we bought in Edinburg, Va. on the way home from Dee's.

We picked up our "mountain mom" Helen around 1:30 as she wanted to treat me to a birthday dinner out on my big day on the 6th but she had water troubles that day. We went to Applebees in Galax and had a delicious meal that started with some spinach/artichoke dip and a glass of vino. We all had the sirloin steak prepared perfectly and it was quite tasty with the mashed sweet taters with cinnamon and pecan topping which was out of this world in flavor, Yeow was that ever nice. She also picked up a slab of baby back ribs for her supper tomorrow. The food was great and we had an enjoyable time catching up and sharing about our trip up to the Shenandoah Valley. Nancy headed into Walmart to shop once again for our up and coming guests this next week.

We headed back towards home and dropped Helen off some time after 5'ish and noticed dark rain clouds all around us. The roads were wet and water was gushing from the ditches so we knew we probably got a down pour which we did to the tune of nearly a half inch of rain. Well everything was soaked so about all we could do was read until the sun dried up the yards and I ventured out to check on my garlic patch and loosen the soil around my new seedlings. The weeds love all this wetness and sunshine as do most of my plants. The grass is growing so fast and I will attempt to mow and weed whack again today as soon as it dry's out.

We have Patrick and Kathryn up from Florida and they will join us for supper. I will have the smoker going for most of the day loaded with two racks of ribs and applewood for the smoke. The Ray's lost again last night and are now 9 games behind the division leading Red Sox; its not looking good for a wild card spot in the playoffs. The little league world series starts today and we always love watching these youngsters play ball. Nancy was on the phone with family and friends for most all of the evening. I hit the showers and was soon ready for some horizontal lab a little after 10, LATER    

Wednesday Morning

Well Tuesday saw us with a little rain from time to time through out the day, enough we had to use the dryer for our laundry. We so love the fresh smell from drying clothes outside on a line in the bright sunshine but yesterday the sun was so intermittent at times. We did get in a good hike to the top of the mountain and the distant vistas were shrouded in fog and haze. I did a little driveway work as the night before the heavy down pour caused some ruts. I got in a good work out on the pickle ball for nearly two hours with 5 other guys despite the rain showers late in the evening.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out for me. I'm back to my routines in the morning that start with a cup of hot green tea laced with some honey and turmeric that washes down my vitamins and supplements. I spent some time to honor my Creator in thanksgiving and prayer for those who are hurting and in need of some divine intervention especially Nancy's mom GG. The update on her is somewhat encouraging despite still being in the hospital for observation on her fluid retention and drain tubes. We are hoping she will get strong enough to be released and go back for some more rehab before eventually going to live with her son Eric in Michigan where she will get much needed care with family. She would have to be in a facility here in Seminole if she would come back home as we don't know the wherewithal to handle her condition(s) plus we have no experience with home health care. Eric and Diane have made this their living and are equipped for such cases.

We visited with our mountain top friends the Brownings for a few before heading back down in the threat of a rain shower. We decided to eat our big meal of the day around 2'ish as I had pickle ball at 6'ish. We started the day's with bacon we brought back from Virginia which is so good and fresh with a smoke flavor and range fed brown eggs; that held us until we put the leftover grilled chicken breasts on a bed of salad for our lunch/supper. I never ate again the rest of the day and evening until around 8:30 when I had a cold brew after getting home from pickle ball. Well that was about it after a hot shower and watching a little of the Ray's game on the net, LATER

Tuesday Morning at the cabin

Well Monday found us leaving the beautiful Shenandoah Valley. We had a marvelous time visiting family and friends and saw some very interesting pieces of history for the town of Woodstock, Va. We were treated like royalty at sister Dee and her husband Mike's gorgeous home and their never ending bundle of energy dog, Bonnie. We did see two beautiful hot air balloons early in the morning as we looked out their kitchen window which is a routine occurrence as they cross the fields and sometimes land in their yard. Such beauty in the sky that looks as if they are painted against the blue mountains back drop with the green fields and red barns. If I had to choose another place to live besides the mountains it would be this beautiful valley and this lovely town.

We headed out after our abbreviated morning routines a little before 9. The skies were some what overcast and the temps were in the high 60's and the traffic really wasn't too heavy as school had started their fall session. We made a stop in Edinburg at the Wholesome Food Co. for some of the best bacon ever to bring back for family and friends. We will freeze it in pound packages and share with family as it comes in 4 pound packages. We made a potty stop around Roanoke then continued onto Galax where we fueled up and then shopped the super Wal-Mart and had a Subway sandwich for our lunch. The trip took about 3 1/2 hours to Galax which was a lot less than when we went north through the mountains up to Woodstock last Thursday. I-81 was really not congested and the big trucks posed no real problem.

We saw some old friends in Wal-Mart as we were heading out and visited for just a second before heading on back to the cabin. We spoke with our "mountain mom" and learned we had some heavy rains while we were gone. My gauge showed nearly three inches and the driveway had washed somewhat as well. I will attend to those ruts today with my rake. We were having our new mountain top friend Jaime for supper as she leaves on Wednesday and that Blue had gone back with her boyfriend to Florida this morning as well. We felt it would help with her being lonely the first evening after both of them had gone leaving her alone. She jogged down the back road and up our hill; what a physical fitness buff she is but she is in her 20's as well.

I grilled fresh bell peppers and onions along with marinated chicken breasts for jajias and Nancy made a delicious salsa using some of the jalapenos from Dee's garden as well as the bell peppers. The meal was delicious as always. We shared a little vino before hand as we waited for the grill. Jaime stayed until nearly dark when we walked her up the back trail and she jogged home. We have really felt close to her and her dog Blue. He is now at 55 pounds in just a couple weeks from a mere 15 pounds or so when we first met her and him. He will be a large animal and now he is in Florida with Brandon. her boyfriend who is in the Army. She leaves this week for a mission trip to El Salvador. When she gets back she will no longer be on our mountain as she looks for a place to park her 35 ft. pull behind RV trailer. She will be in this Galax area until October and maybe even longer if she decides to stay at this clinic.

Well the grass had really grown while we were gone the four days and the garden looked good except it was rather soggy so I loosened up the soil around all of the plants. I did have four more garlic bulbs up and poking through the ground. The green beans are a foot tall and the lettuce is almost big enough to harvest to add to our salads. I'm disappointed in the beet seeds as they didn't come up but sporadically. The Swiss chard did much better and so did the radishes. Well that was about it as we unpacked and put the cabin in order for Jaime. We are getting company again on Thursday as Patrick and Kathryn arrive for about two months at their rental cabin near Sparta.

We will once again eat "high on the hog" as Kathryn is an excellent cook as well as we get together with visits and fun nights of playing cards. The excitement never quits here in the mountains. The update on GG is somewhat encouraging. The heart doctor seems to think she will see 95 but we are somewhat skeptical with her fluid retention and still bedfast with a catheter. She is still in a Miami hospital with the hopes of being released back to the rehab facility which is close to grand daughter Erica and her family. She is getting plenty of family visits which allows us to be here at the cabin which has been a blessing for us. After being in Miami for 9 weeks or more we were ground down with stress from being in a strange bed at nights and sitting in the hospital for hours upon hours. I'm finally starting to recover from the cough with just an occasional outburst mostly in the morning. Nancy is still on the phone for hours at time each day which has taken its toll on her as well and ith putting up with some agitated family members, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday was a good day as I got to spend sometime with Paw Paw and to visit at St. John's Church for worship. The weather once again was fabulous with clear skies and temps in the low 80's. We went into Winchester and saw the beautiful campus's of my old high school at James Wood and Handley. The old section of Winchester is just beautiful as well and we went by the old house we lived in for over a year while I was in the third and part of the fourth grade before going back to the farm in Mountain Falls. We took Paw Paw out to a local eatery not far from the church and had delicious fare for our lunch.

We got back to Woodstock some where around 3'ish then settled into a nap while watching the golf game being held in Charlotte. We all napped a little while Nancy was on the phone with Miami regarding GG's health. She is still in the hospital but seems to be improving somewhat and there is hope she will released back to the rehab facility in Miami in the next day or so. Hopefully she will get strong enough to make the trip to either Seminole or Michigan where she will need further care.

Well we ate leftovers and then got into a great two game match of Euchre. If I remember the boys came from behind and won over the gals. It was a fun time and we had some raucous play. What a great time we had as we rested, laughed and ate too much. We are heading out this morning around 9'ish for the cabin, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well Saturday morning found us awake in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley surrounded by the blue mountains shrouded in some fog from the last nights heavy rain. The air was clean and fresh with awesome smells of fresh mowed grass and baled hay.

We had a delicious breakfast of soft boiled eggs with fresh tomato's and jalapeno's peppers out of their garden and a very sweet zucchini bread made also from their garden, yeow was that ever some fine eatin'. We got ready to head out to the Star Tannery community where Gravel Springs Church is located at 10. What an awesome view from the church and cemetery of the mountains. The grounds were set up for the the large crowd expected and by the time we left around 4'ish the place was packed with chairs.

The meal was fine with your choice of country ham or fried chicken with home grown green beans, corn, sliced cucumber salad, potato salad, macaroni salad, apple sauce, rolls and several desserts of your choice. They later in the day served barbecue chicken and pork along with the all of the earlier fixin's. We never stayed for the later meal as the humidity was starting to set in so we headed out for Dee's. I did get in a couple dances with oldest sister Josie on the dance floor. We were the only people out dancing except for a couple of young kids.

I did see an old friend who we grew up together at the old home place. I last saw him in '64 when I left home. It was nice to see so many distant relatives as well as Paw Paw. He looked rather thin but being close to 90 that was expected. He is living on his own again in the Winchester house which requires him to maneuver the stairs several times a day. He refuses to add a chair lift or leave the house which needs lots of updates, oh well. I offered to pick him up for church this morning but haven't heard from him as of yet.

Well we settled into a supper of tomato sandwiches after snacks of guacamole, salsa and cheese and crackers with a little vino. Afterwards we sat around and talked and then got into a couple of game of Euchre where we split with finally a win for the boys. We will have the rubber match tonight for bragging rights, LATER

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was a busy day that found us sleeping in until nearly 7. This mattress here at Dee's is so comfortable that we always comment on we want it when they replace it, even though it was a second hand bed to start with. We had a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs with fresh tomato's from the garden and toast with homemade apple butter.

Mike was gone to work and Dee was waiting on a service man for her washers and dryers so we decided to make a trip down town to Woodstock and walk around and explore the city which was built in 1752. We had an enjoyable time visiting several museums, shoppes and a brewhouse for lunch. The temps were moderate but by late afternoon the heat and humidity came on and then by suppertime we had a tremendous rain storm which lasted a couple hours.

Mike grilled fresh zucchini slices along with pork chops and Dee had fresh corn from her garden along with fresh green beans and bird egg beans mixed and they were delicious, yeow what a feed. Afterwards we got into a game of Phase 10 played a new way and I smoked everyone and then the girls smoked us in a game of Euchre, yikes a whupping.

The update on GG is she is back in Jackson Memorial in Miami because of new drains for her fluid retention and a bacteria that is the result of the drains. Hopefully only for a couple of days. She has plenty of family to visit her daily who live there which has taken some pressure off of us. Today we will visit the picnic which has turned out to be a family reunion each year in the beautiful setting at Gravel Springs Church. We will have food prepared by the church as well as good country Blue Grass Music which lasts most all day long. It's rather foggy this morning and there is the chance of rain but at least it won't be so hot as last year when the temps were unbearable, LATER

Friday Morning in the Shenandoah Valley in the beautiful town of Woodstock, Va

Well we left our cozy mountain cabin and headed out around 10'ish after our morning routines that started with our quiet times to honor our Creator. I was up and ready to go around my normal 6 rollout to start the day. We did speak with our "mountain mom" before heading out and had a boring bowl of oatmeal doctored up with some cinnamon, blue berries and cereal on top to give it some crunch. That held us until Cave Springs when we finally got down Bent Mountain on Rt.221 when we stopped at a Bojangles for lunch. That was our first time ever to eat in one and I must say their chicken breast sandwich and fries were as good if not better than Chick Filet.  We found a new way through Roanoke and were soon on I-81 much to Nancy's chagrin.

The rest of the travel was very boring which we always like and the truck traffic was at a minimum which is very unusual. We made a rest stop area around Verona and then it was smooth sailing into Woodstock where we stopped at a super Wal Mart for a few supplies before heading over to Dee and Mike's beautiful home and manicured yards and garden. Dee's garden is producing tomato's, corn, peppers and zucchini's as well as bird egg beans which are ripe for pickin'. These are the best tasting beans ever and she is out there picking them as I write this ramble at 7'ish in the morning. They are early risers as Mike leaves around 6'ish for work near Winchester. We actually slept in until 6:30 which is a change for me.

Well after getting settled in we took off for a local Mexican eatery for a delicious supper. We took the scenic drive back to their place then took Bonnie their Jack Russell for a long walk in their neighborhood. We settled out on the back porch until nearly 8:30 as the vistas where awesome with the freshly mowed hayfield, corn fields and the huge dairy farm in the distance. It wasn't long afterwards as dusk settled that we headed in to watch a little NFL as Mike got ready for bed.  He gets up very early on Fridays around 4:30 or so for work. We hit the showers and I was ready for some horizontal lab by 10'ish as both Mike and Dee had retired for the evening.

Well thats about it for Thursday and this morning. The mountains are so blue in the distance as we are surrounded by them and offers up a picture to be painted with the blue skies and the deep dark blue mountains, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was a mixture of work and play as we so enjoyed the beautiful temps and of course our mountain friends. We had a nice enjoyable hike and once again was blessed by Jetta with bounty from her garden and Jaime came down along with Blue for a visit in the late evening after I got back from pickle ball. I piddled around in the yards and gardens and even managed to sit on the front porch and read for a couple hours in between the cat naps.

I started the day with a nearly 7'ish roll out which is quite unusual for me as my internal alarm is set for 6. I'm tickled that once in awhile it forgets to go off and lets me sleep in. I think the extra blanket as its now getting down into the high 50's at night which kept the bed so warm and cozy, oh well. I did my usual routines that had me posting this ramble and then spending some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving and intercessory thoughts and prayers for so many who are having severe health issues one of whom is Nancy's mom, GG. She is filling back up once again with fluid and I would be surprised if she isn't admitted to the hospital in Miami. Her condition may require us to head back down to south Florida which I'm not thrilled about. She has family around her daily there which has given us a break from that routine.

I had a great workout on the pickle ball court for nearly two hours and left with a wet shirt despite the cool evening temps. I'm hoping the sweat will help get rid of this chest congestion which is still at times giving me an aggravating cough. We head out today Thursday for northern Virginia where we will visit with younger sister Dee and husband Mike for a couple of days as well as Paw Paw who has recovered from his hip replacement surgery and is back living alone. He is one tough old bird and head strong as well as he is back in the old house with the bath and bedroom on the second floor and a major set of stairs to navigate while reaching both, oh well. We found him last September at the foot of those stairs after he fell and I wasn't really sure if he would survive that ordeal which lasted several months in the hospital and rehab facilities; but he pulled through after the surgery and is back doing things his way while disregarding and breaking some of the rules to benefit his agenda, oh well.

We hope to attend the Gravel Springs Picnic on Saturday to visit with all of the sisters, uncles, cousins and the many friends from my younger days of growing up in the Mountain Falls Community outside of Winchester. We hope to attend St. Johns Church on Sunday where I was a regular attender as youngster and visit the grave sites of so many relatives. The setting is so serene in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and many of the grave stones go back to the Revolutionary War Era, LATER

Wednesday Morning

Wow, August is slipping by so fast and we feel tinges of Fall in the air here in the mountains. I think they are in for an early winter as well and quite possibly a hard one as the hickory nut trees are just loaded with nuts for the squirrels. That usually is a good sign of a cold winter.

Well Tuesday was another work day for me after a somewhat wet start. We did get another half inch or so of rain overnight which was very welcoming. The new garden seedlings are doubling in size and while I lost two of the four cucumber seedlings(which was to be expected) the other two are showing new growth. I now have two green sprouts from the garlic sets poking through the ground I planted a week or so ago.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish rollout to soft rain falling on the tin roof. I was wide awake but this morning(Wed.) I was a sleepy head as it was nearly 7'ish when I awakened. That walking up and down the drive and property while weed whacking took its toll on these little used muscles.  It was such a gorgeous afternoon with bright sunshine and low temps and perfect for working and being outside. I did my quiet time to honor my Creator and lift up several by name for comfort and healing. The update on GG was a little better than the day before as she was more aware and Nancy spoke with her via the phone. She ate a little more but still doesn't have much of an appetite. Luckily the feeding tube is still in place as well as several drain tubes as she is filled up with fluid. She has another infection so she will be off to see a doctor on Thursday.

We took a morning hike just after the rain stopped and visited with Joe and Jetta for a few before heading on across the mountain. We later took a golf cart ride up to let Blue out to potty and give him a run as Jaime had to go in early in the morning for an emergency. He was so funny and so happy to see us. We chased him, played ball and wore him out before putting him back in the house. He was very obedient for just being 3 months old.

I came back and finished weed whacking the driveway and trimming some of the low hanging branches with the whacker.  The yards looked so great after mowing and edging and the smell of fresh cut grass is so sweet to the senses. I staked some of the seedlings which look as if they will make it as well as fertilizing them with some organic dried chicken manure. Hopefully this will give everything a little boost. Well that was about the extend of our activities until later in the evening after a delicious supper of fried green tomatoes and a yellow squash. Yikes, we seldom eat much fried foods but do take the exception for fresh green tomatoes and yellow squash both of which are grown organically on top of the mountain in the Browning's garden. Such delicious fare and Nancy knows how to prepare them as well.

We once again jumped in the golf cart and headed upwards. We made a quick stop to say hi to Jaime and Blue before meeting Bertie's brother Dave(retired NC trooper) and family on a hike and then we headed on across and stopped for an extended visit with Billy and Paula until after 9'ish, Yikes it was dark as we headed down the mountain with the headlights on the golf cart showing us the way. Nancy is always afraid a bear will get us in the dark and just for the record we have never seen one in person since being on the property in over 25 years, oh well. It wasn't long until I hit the showers and watched a little of the Little League World Series playoffs game before the sand man calleth, LATER

Tuesday Morning

Well Monday sure gave us some relief from the drought as it rained most of the night with over an inch of rain which really was a great soaking rain and then again during the night it's now raining. A soft rain but I'm ready for some sunshine. I had drug out the hoses on Sunday evening and it never fails once I hand water we get rain the next day and too of course this week in Galax is the Fiddlers Convention which seems to be a rain magnet, oh well. We sure needed this rain. My garden is growing with lots of color from the seeds I sowed two weeks ago. My hope is that we will be here to harvest some of the bounty.

Monday found us inside most of the day except for a trip to visit our "mountain mom" and then to Sparta to run some errands. The sun did come out for awhile between the rain showers. I did a "dump trip" to the landfill as we now are not supposed to burn our trash, picked up a script for Nancy at the drug store and she did some shopping in town while I sat and read. We did a veggies stand stop on the way out of town for some items before getting back at the cabin sometime after two. She had a salad for lunch and I stuck with some nuts that needed eating washed down with a Bud. I found out Budweiser is offering scholarships to disabled vets family members and found that to be a worthy cause so I will support them with my business although I'm a Yengling Beer fan when I have a cold one after working outside or with a pizza, oh well.

We postponed our daily hike with the threat of rain in the evening. I did meander around the gardens and noticed the lettuce has now added a fourth leave and so has some of the Zinnias seedlings. Most of the sad looking cucumber seedlings I bought have died except for one which has new growth and possibly another one looks somewhat still alive. The pepper plants are holding their own and may make. I did notice a new sprout coming from one of the garlic hills which I planted a week or so ago. I have 14 hills from a bulb that my ole' USAF buddy(Mike) brought to me last year that he grows in New York. I'm hoping these make and are as beautiful as the ones he gave me. The 1/2 runner green beans are about 5-6 in height and I have so many plants I may have to thin them out and then again I may not. It seems the old seeds from a couple years ago were still viable and everyone of the hundred or so seeds I sowed have sprouted and are now up, oh well. I did harvest some kale from the two plants that either lived the winter months and or reseeded themselves which I think the former is true as I remember having one plant last year with two stalks together in one plant and this is what is now growing in my former lower garden. I took out the fencing around that area and once these plants die I will no longer use that area for veggies, oh well.

The update on GG is not great. It seems she was doing so well on Saturday there was talk of moving her out of the facility back to our home area via ambulance, but she has slipped considerably and is now not eating or taking very little nourishment by mouth and has no control what so ever of her bowels and is basically sleeping with just a few moments of lucidity. Eric's wife Diane is back in Miami and her prognosis isn't encouraging for her to be released anytime soon as now the doctor has down graded her for any release from the facility whereas on Saturday she was looking good for release if she continued on her rehab. She is having difficulty holding her head up much less doing any PT. It has become another day to day situation with her conditions. Nancy was on the phone for hours with Miami, Eric and Betsy on what decisions should be made and when regarding care for GG.

We cleaned up the zucchini pie for supper and after I washed the dishes and did the cleanup I settled into the FOX Cable News channel to learn we have a pro active POTUS who has issued sanctions on N.Korea as well as the 15 member UN security council has agreed on them as well.  Someone needs to take this leader of N.Korea out behind the barn and teach him some manners and to feed his people. Maybe these sanctions will wake him up or maybe a nuke to his palace will do him in and put him to sleep forever. I did find the Little League World Series on the tube and watched a good East Texas team annihilate a Louisiana team, LATER

Monday Morning

Well Sunday was an awesome day that started with my usual 6 ish roll out. It was a bit nippy with temps down into the 50's but the clouds soon parted and by late afternoon it had warmed up nicely and then overnight it really warmed up again. We did our morning routines that started with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and honey while I posted this ramble and spent some quiet moments with my Creator. We then listened to our Florida pastor Tim at BridgePoint Church live on line while we got ready for church at Cornerstone.

We headed out around 9:30 and met up with our newest neighbor Jaime at Cornerstone. We introduced her to all our friends and Pastor B and then ate lunch together at the church. We had an awesome meal provided by some great Lexington barbecue cookers and the church provided the desserts. There were less folks to eat than predicted so they sold whole butts for 20 bucks along with some special sauce and I bought one and then later separated it into plastic bags for freezing. I got three meals plus enough for a couple meals for our "mountain mom".

I got an invite to play pickle ball around three so I took off for Roaring Gap and met up with 5 other guys for a good two hours of play. I left with a wet shirt and some tired muscles as this was the first time I've played in weeks. It felt so good to be on the court again and the play was top level. Jaime our friend came by with her pup Blue for a couple hours and we got to know her and her story as well. She is a doctor of physical therapy and comes from a large family in Texas but now travels all around the country doing her expertise which pays quite well. We have grown quite fond of her and Blue. She stayed until nearly dark and we learned she is a strong Christian as well and will lead a mission trip next week to El Salvador where she will administer her expertise along with other medical folks to the needy in that country.

After Jaime left Nancy was on the phone with her family until well after midnight. It wasn't long after 10 that I hit the showers and was gone for the night especially after the great workout. I had many well wishes on this 71st birthday. Bobby and Amy both called as well as tons of FaceBook acknowledgements for this special day. Thank You All, LATER

Sunday Morning

Well I reached the rip age of 71 today, yeow I always wondered if I would get this mature in age but still have the heart and soul of a young man in energy and desire. I'm truly blessed and I give thanks daily for these days.

Saturday was basically a do nothing day except for some early morning gardening, berry bush trimming and late evening weed pulling for Nancy in the back yard flower beds. I started the day much the usual with a 6' ish roll out to my routines that started with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and now some honey as I'm still having an occasional cough. This chest congestion has lingered now for over three weeks and while it's much better I can still feel some effects deep down at times. I posted this ramble then spent some quiet moments with my Creator in thanksgiving and intercessory prayer for several who are battling health issues.

The latest on GG is she is still in the rehab in Miami and doing some better each day but has a long way to go before she regains any semblance of her former independence with being able to just walk. We are hopeful she will stay in Miami until the end of the month when her money runs out for this out of pocket stay then transfer to our area where her insurance will help with her rehab expenses. That means we will have to leave the cabin for ever how long it takes to get her settled and hopefully strong enough for Eric to care for her in Michigan. We will plan on coming back here sometime before winter to secure the cabin for the winter months if all goes well. It's hard to believe summer is just about finished here as the morning are in the 50's and even high 40's.

We got in a good hike today and stopped to visit with our friends the Brownings. Jetta had just baked a coconut cream pie and honored me with a pre birthday piece, yeow so delicious. We came on back and settled into a lite lunch. Nancy made 2 dozen cupcakes to take to church for Sunday as there is a church wide fellowship meal after the service. We sat on the porch and read during the afternoon hours and then she put together a zucchini pie for our supper which is truly one of my favorites. It was delicious as usual and we have enough leftover for another supper. The air started to cool off quickly as the evening drew near. I headed out to the backyard flower garden after washing the dishes to pull grass as the cool air kept the bugs away until nearly dark which now comes so much earlier. We missed those 9:30 darkness evening while in Miami and now the summer seems so much shorter than when we usually come in May instead of July, oh well.

I tuned into the Ray's game and once more the bats were silent as they lost agin to the Brewers at home in the Trop. It wasn't long afterwards I hit the hot shower and was soon ready for some horizontal lab around 10'ish, LATER

Don't forget to worship corporately today with other Believers as we need God's blessing to take our country back from the secular progressives and those who want to change this nation from one founded on Judeo-Christian principles to one based on Islam with the muslim religion which is anything but one of peace.

Saturday Morning

Well Friday was basically a work day and then a fun evening as we went to the town of Sparta for Music on the Main. I did help my "mountain mom" drain her water heater of the silt and dirt from when she got a new pump and water lines so I did get in a good deed for the day. We did have a great time with Jaime and her pup Blue as we had supper with them in an outside patio and then helped with walking him through the crowds of folks on main street later in the evening. Blue was the center of attention as several folks fondled over him and few larger older dogs wanted to get at him as well. Thankfully all were on leaches.

I started the day with my usual rollout around 6. I did my cup of hot green tea laced with honey and turmeric while I posted this ramble then a few minutes with my Creator to lift up several by name for healing and comfort especially GG,  Joe and a dear friend from Cornerstone Caroll who is very ill with cancer that has spread. Afterwards Nancy made us a special breakfast of biscuits with egg and sausage patty, yeow was that ever delicious and those held us until a mid afternoon snack of nuts and an apple. We got in our daily hike just before lunch and once again Jetta blessed us with some bounty from her garden. Joe tried the fried green tomatoes that Jetta fixed for them for supper and he sort of liked them as you must acquire a taste. We always talk about food whenever we visit them or she is always blessings us with something from her oven. What great neighbors and dear friends that we see almost everyday on our hikes.

We headed on across the mountain and headed home. We did see some folks at Berties place, one of which was her retired N.C. trooper brother. He wanted to know if I was the retired trooper from Florida as she had mentioned me to him. My reputation precedes me and it was a good one. We headed down the steep trail with fresh picked green tomatoes in one hand a fresh picked cucumber in the other. Nancy was on the phone off and on all day long with Miami. GG seemed a little better and is doing some PT. They had her stand some yesterday which is a good start with getting her muscles back in her legs. We are hoping they keep her until the end of the month when she is paid up for her stay there before bringing her back to Seminole and into another rehab facility. This will give us a few more days before heading back to Seminole with assisting her in her new environment. We hope she gets well enough to go to Eric's for an extended period as they take care of folks like GG at their home and are set up for helping needs.

I was on the phone as well with GG's bank as there was a mix up with paying her bills on time and her banker was a big help with getting that straightened out and getting Betsy on the account so she can write checks for GG's bills. What a fiasco that was. Well we did set and read a little while waiting for Jaime to get off work in Galax. We met her in Sparta for her first time there to this big city and found a place where we could eat supper with the dog in tow. There is an outside covered patio because it poured rain in Sparta and we got nary a drop at the cabin. It put the damper on the outside music for awhile but we heard three different bands while walking the downtown main street until after 9'ish.

Well it was going on 10 when we finally got home as we showed Jaime a more direct route to and from town. Her GPS once took her up the back road of our cabin which is not a maintained road with huge rocks and gully's and she nearly got stuck like Billy did a few years back when it took a tractor and chain saw to get him unstuck with about 20 people helping. We showed her a more direct route to and from Galax as well, LATER

Friday Morning

Well Thursday started out as a work day and after lunch we took off for the town of Galax to do some shopping. Originally we were taking our "mountain mom" out for dinner but she experienced a loss of water from her well which caused all kinds of issues. She had a new pump and water lines installed in the well itself which took several hours with three workmen to complete and left her exhausted from the stress. We met up with neighbor Gerald who was visiting for the day from Blacksburg and had him up for supper instead.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out for me and Nancy followed an hour later. It was another beautiful morning with cool temps and the stillness of morning was broken only by the dew dripping down onto the tin roof from the upper dormer. Rabbits were in the yard eating clover. This is the first year we have seen so many rabbits for a change in our yard and on top of the mountain. I did my quiet time to honor my Creator and to lift up several by name for healing before checking the news and social media. Nancy prepared some egg and sausage biscuits for our breakfast which were so delicious.

I headed out to trim trees of their low hanging branches in the backwoods yard, front and side yards and then trimmed the two large blue Spruce trees in the front yard. I had a couple golf cart loads of the branches when I finally finished. Nancy had a load of laundry on the clothesline which was a perfect day for drying outside. We decided to take a morning hike to the top of the mountain and saw no one outside on our way. We came back and I finished up the leftovers for lunch before we got ready to head to town. We heard neighbor Gerald pull in his driveway and then stopped to chat with him. He was only here for the night so we decided since Helen cancelled on our supper out trip that we would have him up to cook out on the grill.

I grilled fresh corn on the cob in the shuck, steak and marinated chicken breasts and Nancy had a delicious pot of fresh Brussel sprouts and a fresh salad with homemade Greek dressing, yeow what a feed and to get the taste buds going we a glass of merlot while waiting for the meats to cook. We sat outside on the picnic table on the deck and it was glorious with the fresh air an in the shade. We will miss him and Karyl next weekend as they both will be here as we are planning on visiting the Winchester/Woodstock area for a mini family reunion at the Gravel Springs picnic in Star Tannery, Va.

Well after Gerald headed back down the drive we cleaned up the dishes then fired up the golf cart and headed up to the top of the mountain to visit with Jaime and her pup Blue. We played hard for about 30 minutes then headed on across the mountain and stopped and visited with Shawnee and finally with a stop at Billy and Paula until nearly dark. We needed the lights on to see our way home around 9'ish as the days are getting shorter. It wasn't long until it was shower time for me and then I watched a little of the Hall of Fame football game before retiring to read a little before lights out for me around 10'ish, LATER

Thursday Morning

Well Wednesday was a mixture of work early in the day then we hiked and sat on the front porch and read for a couple hours before visiting several on the mountain and down below. The weather was perfect with some high clouds which held the temps to the middle 70's and the humidity wasn't a factor. It was a great day for clothes drying outside on the line which is always a comforting scene.

I started the day with my usual 6'ish roll out and Nancy and hour or so later. She is a night owl rarely coming to bed before midnight while by 10'ish I'm ready for the horizontal lab. I did my usual morning routines and then spent some quiet time with my Creator lifting up several by name for healing before catching up on the political and social networks.

The update on GG is still good as she is slowly maintaining her rehab. She still isn't walking but the PT is working to retrieve her muscles in the legs. She is still on solid foods which is a plus and the picture of her looked good with good color in her face. She had her hair done yesterday at the facility which I'm sure gave her some hope in feeling good about her appearance. Eric's wife Diane is back in Miami for a couple days and is helping with her care as well as is Erica who visits daily. Arianne will also be there is a day or so and will have daily visits as well. This gives us a chance to stay at the cabin longer and then to make a trip to Winchester to visit my family. So far so good and keep the thoughts and prayers for GG as they have been a significant factor in her recovery.

The world is going to "h--- in a hand basket" and the fake news networks are doing all they can to reduce our strong president to ashes with false reporting and failure to report the corruption this POTUS is uncovering by the last administration and their cronies. There are several in his party who are doing all they can to discredit and destroy his agenda which is to keep US(A) safe from radical Islamic terrorist by regulating who comes into the country legally, safe from the regime in N.Korea and Iran and Russia who they say colluded to make him the president. We have such idiots in the congress in both parties and I hope we get term limits which will help stop some of the corruption in the congress as well. I sure hope all of the corruption is brought to light and only Fox Cable Network seems to be reporting the truth. It's a shame we have such a biased media who covers for the Clinton's, Obama's and those in the Democrat Party.

We got in a good hike to the top and visited with our dear friends Joe and Jetta for a few. Joe has just about finished painting his house and out buildings and Jetta has canned beans, peaches and made jellies from their gardens which is producing beautifully. I now have Swiss chard breaking ground along with radishes, lettuces and all of the bean seeds have sprung forth with new leaves as well. I'm still waiting on the beets to show some color. All of the seedlings I planted last Sunday seem to be barely surviving with the cukes looking the worst for wear. I took out the lower garden as it was an eye sore plus it never really produced due to the lack of sunshine except for later in the summer when it got most of the direct sunlight. Anyhow I now have another flat area for recreation such as Bocci Ball, corn toss and badminton. The three other small gardens are plenty for us which gives me about the same area of Jetta's garden and she grows plenty. I just need to make better use of the space.

Well we visited Russ and Linda after supper for an hour or so and when we got back our new friend Jamie had walked down to visit us with her pup Blue. She left a message on the back porch with small rocks which was so cute and telling so we got the golf cart out and headed to the top of the mountain for a short visit with. Both were so excited to see us and we so enjoy their company. Blue is growing so quickly and will probably we a very large dog.

Well I tuned into the Ray's game and once again they beat a Houston team who is very good with a great record in baseball. We are still in the running to make the wild card playoffs with our record. We need good relief pitching to stay the course, LATER

Wednesday Morning August Second

Well Tuesday was another busy day that found me in the basement cleaning up after the water heater install. A lot of water from the old heater was colored with the red mud from the well and it had dried all over the basement floor plus the old heater had a couple hundred pounds of mud caked inside t the bottom. We never suspected any mud in the water or saw any but I'm now glad I installed a filter to the water coming into the house from the well. I'm surprised it still heated so well after being there for nearly 25 years. It was all both of us could do to get it on the back of the golf cart and then transfer it to the back of the truck. I had to use some "country boy" engineering by using the steep hill at neighbor Gerald's place to roll it down the hill and onto the truck using some boards to bridge the gap. It worked and we took it to the town dump and rolled it off; job done.

We did our usual morning routines and our quiet times before I headed down stairs after a breakfast of oatmeal and fresh fruit. I believe since I've been on my feet and up and down these hills I've lost a little around the spare tire as my pants have become a little loose around the waist. I noticed I'm now doing the steep back trail on our hike with just one rest stop. We got in a good hike around 4'ish as the overcast skies made the temps perfect for hiking. We did make a rather long stop with Joe and Jetta and she blessed us with a slice of "sponge cake" right out of the oven. Delicious and so lite in texture. We also prepared our two green tomatoes she blessed us with for our supper. Fried green 'maters are so good and Nancy does them right with a little cayenne pepper sprinkled on as well. Great appetizers! We licked the platter clean and they now have become one of our favorite dishes. We cleaned up the last couple of leftover dogs with the chili on top for our supper.

We took off on a golf cart ride to the top to visit with our new young friend Jamie and her puppy Blue. We had a great visit as we wore him out. He is so smart and loving and he climbed right up into my lap after I quit chasing and rough housing with him. He still has his puppy teeth and occasionally a nip but stops as soon as you scold him. He and Jamie are made for each other and have become so close. What a beautiful animal and we think he will be a large one with his Great Pyrenees and Lab mix pedigree. We headed home and the night air had suddenly turned chilly; so I closed up the house and we settled into the Tucker Carlson Show on the FOX Cable News. I like Tucker and his interviews are great with exposing the hypocrisy of the Dem's and the liberals.

I tuned into the Ray's game via the Net and they were leading 5-2 when I decided it was hot shower time and then some horizontal lab around 10:30, LATER