Saturday Morning... August 31st..

Well Friday was another one of those days you bank in your memory as it could have not have been any more perfect for being outside and alive or I suppose alive anywhere but as for me outside is the best. It was chilly to start, with the dew dripping off the roof and then it warmed up to the low 70's for the rest of the day with  bright sunshine and clear blue skies with a gentle breeze.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble from the day before's activities and then spent some quiet moments with my Creator giving thanks and lifting up several for comfort, healing and safe travels as well as those in the path of this storm called Dorian. The forecasters are saying Florida will be effected in some way the first of the week or maybe sooner. I'm praying the upper winds will keep it out to sea away from land and any destruction. The state is under a watch and our family and home is located in central Florida and on the west coast, so we do have concerns for both.

After a breakfast of eggs and grits with the  hottest jalapeno pepper(thanks Mike) ever I headed out to check on the gardens and flower beds. The pesky deer made their presence known again last night eating the flowers and new growth on the raspberry bushes, so far they have stayed away from the rest of the gardens except for eating my beets off to the ground. They too know what is good for them and I know when I'm eating the venison neighbor Gerald gives me from his harvest here on the mountain they have eaten well. There is nothing like home grown meat with no steroids or hormones added to it.

I loaded up the hoe and shovel on the golf cart and headed down to a pile of top soil which has grown over the years from the runoff of the rain. The soil had no or very little stones or gravel in it, so I loaded up the golf cart three times over the morning and spread the soil in several low places in the backwoods yards but mainly in the flower beds as they needed new dirt. That kept me busy for a couple hours as well as giving the outhouse its final coast of paint; matching up the colors from the spray paint on the silicone caulking. The old shed in over 25 years in age and still looks good for another several years as Mr. Roy used pressure treated wood for the frame and flooring during construction. We got in a mountain top hike before lunch and it was another perfect day for distant views.

We stopped and chatted with Ben and Laura on the way down and he had a picnic table he wanted to get rid of that was made of pressure treated lumber. We really didn't need it but to help him out and to give us a table near the fire circle we loaded it up on the golf cart and brought it down off the mountain. I'm sure it will come in handy and can be left outside in the weather. We had a bite of lunch around 1'ish then chilled for awhile before taking a golf cart ride to the mailbox and visiting with neighbor Gerald who is constructing another chicken house. He plans on having chickens again for the fresh eggs which he did a few years back; so it looks like he will be here on the mountain year round again with occasion trips to Blacksburg.

Well that was about it for the day except for some piddly jobs and forays around the area. We took a golf cart ride in the evening to the top of the mountain and down the back roads for the first time and noticed where the road had washed out last year. It will take some heavy rain again to wash this area out as it is fortified with huge boulders and the blacktop is once more in place. It was a beautiful evening so when I got back I hand watered the gardens from the rain barrel and noticed the recently transplanted lettuces have added another leaf during the day. They love these cool nights and warm days with lots of sunshine. It's supposed to be this way until the first of next week.

The Rays finally came through with a win at home and kept their playoffs hopes alive for a wild card spot. They have some tough competition coming up against the Yankees and the Red Sox's later this next month and that will probably determine if they get the slot for the playoffs. College football is back this weekend and I'm thrilled. We head down to Wilkesboro today Saturday for the big FaithFest concert which lasts for about 8-10 hours with the headliner King and Country plus lots of Christian artists. It's an outside event and it does get rather warm in the afternoon sun but your allowed to bring coolers with food and drink plus your chairs. It's a great event but about an hour or so from the cabin. We will meet up with the Tracy's about half way there and ride together and have a lunch somewhere in the area, LATER

Another view from the back deck of Ben and Laura's looking down on our side of the mountain with Bullhead in the distance.

Friday morning ..August 30th

Well if I could dial up the weather, today Thursday was the day to do so; it was cool in the morning so much so I had long pants and a flannel shirt until 10 then it was shorts and tee shirt the rest of the day. No humidity with bright sunshine and a deep blue Carolina sky. Just gorgeous. I was outside all day and the hike we took before lunch made for the high lite of the day. We could see the buildings in Winston Salem for the first time in weeks it was that clear down off the mountains. To me it was the first day of Indian Summer as we use to call it back in the day or a Fall day.

I started the day with a sleep in until 6:30 which is becoming more usual than unusual  due to staying up closer to 10:30 than 10. We haven't resumed the series called "TURN" which we must do as its that good and which usually keeps me up past 10 as well. I've been watching the Rays who are playing later due to being in Texas which is an hour behind so their games get over later but I'm not sure I want to watch as they have been getting whupped except for yesterday, oh well. We ate healthy or lite for breakfast and really for the most part all day as we have been trying to cut down on carbs and mainly sugar.

I did my usual morning routines with the cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I post this ramble and then spent some time with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several. Now we are adding all of Florida who is in the path of the hurricane coming this weekend; lets hope it is hit with some wind shear and downgraded to a tropical storm which is almost like a daily occurrence for the state but at this times the forecasters are predicting a big one. Our kids and grands are in central Florida along with our home which seems to be in the path of one of the models of where this storm could travel and they usually do occur on the Labor Day weekend as I've been involved in several while on patrol over years past. Many days off where cancelled as well as working double shifts back in the day and one year the storm stayed off the coast for days bringing damage and torrential rain.

I worked out in the gardens pulling weeds and grasses from the flower beds before painting the new renovations to the outhouse/toolshed. I did notice where I had caulked the cracks with silicone the water base paint would not stick. So I let it dry then took a can of red oil base spray paint and gave it a coat which did adhere. I'll go back today and paint over that with the red paint of the shed and cause it to blend in. I had sowed some lettuce seeds and many came up so I transplanted a couple dozen into individual pots and will set them in the garden when they get 4-5 leaves. I squashed more green worms on my collards plants and I'm thinking maybe I should use some Sevin dust. I try not to use insecticides if possible but they have the leaves looking like Swiss cheese.

I noticed when I awakened that a deer was leaving the back gardens after eating my new Blackeyed Susan plants as well as most of the new leaves on the black raspberry bushes. They left everything in the garden alone which I'm surprised. I harvested another couple cucumbers and I must say these are the sweetest cukes ever and I just wash them off and eat the skin and all they are that tasty with just a little salt. I did notice my first cherry style tomato is starting to turn towards being ripe. The large tomato's in the upper garden aren't showing any signs yet but there are a dozen or so on the 3 plants. The okra is at a stand still for some reason with no blooms or any height in the plants. I did pick a nice bowl of blue berries from the two bushes which finally are producing some fruit. One of the bushes must have a couple hundred berries all in various stages of ripening so I'm getting a handful almost everyday for my breakfast and for snacking. They are very tasty and so good for you.

We took off just before supper to a neighbors cabin to take a photo of his wood burning stove in his basement for him as they are in Ohio and he is changing home owners insurance and needed a picture of this stove, Nancy texted it to him and them we headed to the mailbox before heading back to the cabin where I fried up some delicious catfish fillets. Wow, were they ever so good and they come from huge channel cats from a lake in South Carolina. No fishy smell or taste and the meat is pure white and they were given to us from a friend who caught the cats and processed the meat. We decided to have a campfire on this evening as the temps were starting to drop down into the low 70's high 60's. I got a nice fire going using up some sticks that fall from the trees almost daily in the backwoods yard as well as using some "liter knot" which is petrified pine. We had a nice blaze and then just before heading in I burned the trash which saves me a trip to the landfill except for the cans and bottles which I do drop off weekly.

Well that was about it for this awesome weather day here at the cabin and its supposed to be a replica again for today Friday and through the weekend depending on when and where that storm goes heading towards Florida, LATER

Thursday Morning ..August 29th

Well Wednesday was a total fun day with friends Patrick and Kathryn as we ventured down to the Boone Area for shopping and then to a new eatery called Red Dog which is in the Piney Creek area near the Mouth of Wilson just inside the border of N.C. The weather was perfect with temps in the upper 70's and tons of sunshine; absolutely gorgeous with a soft gentle breeze. We even ventured a different route home with a stop at the old Todd General stores which has become a historical landmark.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble and then spent some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving for another day and then lifting up several by name for healing and comfort. Paw Paw is still at home with daughter Pat, his caregiver but is having some health issues which comes to all men who live long enough, yuck I'm not looking forward to that, oh well. Everyone else seems to be about the same as I've heard nothing to the contrary. Helen's sister seems to be improving as well as she is back home on her own.

I piddled around outside pulling my onions as I didn't want them to rot in the wet ground from all the rain and wet soggy conditions the past few days. They were about the size of a golf ball but oh so sweet. I squashed a few green worms with my fingers and left the residue on my collard plants which should help with reducing their proliferation and then picked a couple cucumbers. I noticed the leaves are starting to turn yellow but the hundreds of blooms are still viable and I have several small ones maturing. The okra is still only about a couple feet tall and haven't started to bloom yet which is puzzling to me. I have several small lettuces up in the back yard garden and I will move them up into separate 6 packs today for transplanting in a couple weeks. The cool nights should be perfect for them to mature.

We headed out around noon and made a Walgreens stop for Nancy's scripts before meeting the Tracy's at their cabin then we headed south down the twisty 221 towards Boone. That road is being 4 lane from Jefferson to Boone and is in various stages of construction with some stop and go traffic. Once that road is completed it will be like a freeway through the mountains and what an engineering feat with some of the mountain removed in various places. We made several shopping stops for different article which could only be found at specific stores. First it was Walmart and then Publix for their Boars Head lunch meat and some items on sale before a lite lunch of a KFC sandwich which we ate outside across the street at Starbucks. They all had their specialty drinks but I'm not a fan of them so I had water with my grilled chicken breast sandwich.

We sat in the outside eating area which was awesome before heading over to the Todd General Store area. The road took us through the mountains where the scenery was beautiful with old farms many still in operation and some old abandoned family houses now covered with vines and growth. It was sad to see several of those at one time majestic places gone to ruins. The many fields of corn still show that farming is still done in the area with many of the fields dotted with cattle and horses. We did see a few goats as well. We took some roads never taken before and that is always a pleasant surprise. The Todd Store has changed hands and is now open only on weekends and it too has changed in its appearance from what we remembered from several years back. The annex which we don't remember is still in daily operation selling baked goods, desserts and lite lunches with tons of "what nots" as we call them which is your basic touristy goods.

We next stopped at Shatley Springs to refill the Tracy's water jugs from the ever present non stop cold water coming out of the mountain. The restaurant was starting to gather folks outside on their huge porches waiting to dine on home cooking but we wanted to try a different eatery just reopened about two months ago called the Red Dog. We heard good things about the food and they were true but you needed a jacket as the a/c was working quite well. We had ice sickles hanging by the time we left around 8'ish. It's a small dining room which seats about 8-9 tables and does have a bar area which seats 6-7 folks. We only waited about 10 minutes for a table and the service was quite good and the only down side was the attitude of a couple servers who we knew were busy but quite abrupt and not very gracious. A couple of the owners were there and maybe that was the reason which we could see the lack of real friendliness which is very unusual for this area. The food was prepared and presented in good fashion and while we would go back again the distance from our place is over an hour which is a draw back.

We got back to the Tracy's before dark and transferred our goodies then headed home. The cooler was still showing frozen ice packs which as great since I put them in the chest around noon. We had purchased some goodies for the orphanage down off the mountain that Cornerstone supports with a service, a cookout and then some needed supplies for their daily needs. We won't attend that meeting but we all chipped in for some of their needs. We got back on the hill just about dark and could feel the temps dropping which was perfect for a good nights sleep. It wasn't long after a hot shower and watching the Ray's once again blow their chances of making the playoffs as a wild card. They got blown out 15-1 the night before and was now down 6-3 with a couple innings to go. I hit the sack around 10:30 and never heard Nancy come to bed as she is a night owl and a "sleep in" morning person. It was a fun day and the weather was almost perfect and supposed to be this way through the weekend. We are watching a hurricane which is projected to hit Florida in the coming days, so we may have family headed this way depending on the severity of the storm and where its coming ashore, LATER

The long distant view is just what we see on our ride back from the Boone area and the old general store in Todd seems to have changed somewhat as well.

Wednesday Morning August 28th

Well Tuesday was basically another soggy damp wet day with cool temps in the morning which finally gave way to less soggy and it did warm up slightly. The rain finally stopped mid morning but we never saw the sunshine for another day and the fog came in just before dark once again. The rest of this week starting today is supposed to be near perfect weather wise. I guess we need these overcast days to make us appreciative the near perfect days in the forecast.

I started the day a little later with a near 7'ish roll out as we had been up late watching Netflix's. I had my usual cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble then spent some quiet time with my Creator in giving thanks and lifting up several by name. Most all seem as well as can be expected with no change for many due to their ages and health issues. I haven't heard the past day or so how Paw Paw is doing but he is home once again but for how long no one knows. All we can hope for is that he is being bearable to his care giver and not in too much discomfort; everyone else seems about the same.

I spent the morning on the internet as it was too wet to do much outside except to take the compost down to the pile and turn it over with the pitchfork and check the gardens. I did do a couple small honey do's but mainly read. We invited the Tracy's for a late lunch/early supper of the homemade vegetable beef soup around 3'ish and then we played a couple games of spades of which we each won a game right up until it was time for me to leave and pick up neighbor Gerald for some nearly two hours of pickle ball at the Roaring Gap Club with two other fellers. We had great points and a good workout on the non skid surface of the court under the lights as the fog once again made its presence.

We heard from our son Bobby, Katie, Annsley and Gabe the twins Katie is carrying are both boys. So it looks like the Triplett name will be carried on for generations as Gabe was the last one to carry the name and now with these twins who I think will be named Rhyder and Huxston. I'm not positive on the spelling but these are the names they mentioned over the phone and I have no idea where they came up with these names either, oh well, LATER

Tuesday morning ..August 27th

Well Monday was dreary overcast, damp and cold to start the day; in other words it was a Florida winter day. We had the heat on during the morning hours and once the wood in the cabin was saturated with heat it stayed cozy the rest of the day and evening. The sun never broke the clouds and at times the mist from the fog was a bit heavy, oh well.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and boy did ever warm the body on this cold damp morning while I posted this ramble and then did my quiet moments with my Creator. All seem well with those I lift up daily as I've heard nothing to the contrary. All of our grands are now in school and loving it along with Amy who is an aid at the school where all three of her kids attend. This is the first year she has worked full time since Ava was a born.

I stayed in the cabin for most of the day as it was too wet and chilly to do much outside except we did get in a hike around 4'ish to the top of the mountain. We saw no one on our trek and the temps made it nice for hiking with no bugs buzzing your head. We saw lots of fresh deer tracks in the roads and paths along the way. We did take the golf cart when we came down off the mountain out to the hard top where our mail box is located and gathered the mail. We saw no one on the way out there either. It's supposed to be like this until the latter part of the week when it begins another warmup. The grass seems to really like this damp cool weather as does the garden. I did notice a couple of small jalapeno peppers have finally set but I'm still waiting on the green peppers despite lots of blooms which seem to fall off overnight. The tomato's are plenty but none turning as of yet. Hopefully I will have enough to give away.

Nancy had a huge pot of vegetable beef soup on the stove and my oh my did that ever smell awesome and we had a couple of bowels for our supper which was perfect for this cool evening. We spent most of the afternoon and evening watching the Netflix series called "TURN". We watched several episodes which took us up to 10 PM and its a really good show about the spies during the Revolutionary War. The weather was perfect for this stay in the warm cabin and watch the TV which we almost never do or least I can not sit still that long. I did venture out for a few after lunch to hoe the soil around some of the plants that where packed down from the rain, but that was about it.

Well it wasn't long after the 9th episode I hit the shower and was soon in the horizontal position around 10:30, LATER

Monday Morning August 26th

Well Sunday was a great day of worship both at our local church in Sparta and and to start the day at our home church on line in Florida. We of course honor our Creator every day with a few quiet moments of giving thanks and lifting up several but do like to gather corporately on Sundays with friends giving hugs and handshakes which I think honors GOD even more while hearing a message of encouragement and gratitude.

I started the day with a 6'ish roll out and Nancy a half hour later as she likes to get up earlier on Sundays due to getting ready for church whereas during the week she is a sleep in person, as for me its about the same time every day. We did our morning routines and of course mine starts with the cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and some fresh ginger root, which I quit for awhile but now have resumed while I posted this ramble and then did my quiet time. Paw Paw is still having some health issues but the last I heard he is back home with Pat after another trip to the ER. Everyone else is holding their own. We had the heat on with the small fake fireplace which really puts out the heat using the regular socket, as the temps were down into the low 50's. It stayed that way for most of the day and never got out of the 60's with an occasionally burst of sunshine.

After the church service at Cornerstone we met up with the Tracy's and Mechelle for lunch at the Pizzeria in Sparta. We like their salad bar but I still believe the food and price at the Japanese eatery is the best for lunch. We skipped the pizza as JB's has the best in town but they are not open on Sundays so we saved our desire for a pie for another day when they are open. We made a stop at the Food Lion for a couple items which we always seem to miss getting when in Galax and then headed home. It was going on 2 so we chilled actually hoping the cabin had warmed up a little with the sun bursting through for a few moments. We had the doors open for awhile when the sun was shining but that lasted only for a short while. We put on flannels shirts and watched the Little League World Series game and the team from Louisiana played magnificently shutting out the other team. Afterwards we headed out for a nice cool hike to the top of the mountain.

We stopped and chatted with Ben and Laura for a few and then the older folks who bought Norm's place who we saw walking on top. Everyone commented on how beautiful the temps were after some hot dry days last week. The front brought some much needed rain and one gauge I checked had nearly 2 1/2 inches of rain. My rain barrel was about 3/4 full. (It's sprinkling again this morning with some fog as I make this post.) There were no bugs or mosquitoes out on this brisk evening and Nancy handled the hike the best ever with the lack of heat and humidity in the air.

We came back and piddled around in the yard then had a snack of fresh cucumber and dip, some peanut butter in celery stalks as we munched on some pop corn while watching the baseball game. We had eaten a salad for lunch so that was wearing off. The temps were dropping once again so we had hot tea and hot chocolate while watching the Netflix series TURN. We immediately liked it better than Outlander but I'm still having trouble hearing and understanding only about half of what the actors are saying. Maybe that's why I'm not a movie watcher except on my laptop which I can plug in my earbuds, oh well. The series is very well done and from what I remember of my history close to the truth as possible during the Revolutionary War. We watched two episodes before I caught myself nodding off as it was 10'ish. I hit the shower and was soon afterwards in the horizontal position by 10:30, LATER

I harvested 6 cukes this morning as they too loved the great rain and the other is Nancy's bugs on a log snack.

Sunday Morning ..August 25th

Well we got our wish for some rain and cooler temps actually it got a little too cold so Nancy had the fake fireplace going last evening after getting back to a chilled cabin. Now I know that sounds weird when the temps were in the upper 50's but the dampness, fog and no sunshine cooled the cabin down inside while we were gone for nearly7 hours.

I started the day on Saturday with a sleepin until nearly 7 after hearing the rain beating down on the tin roof. I didn't venture out side but once all morning to empty some veggie clipping into the compost pile and it was downright a winter day for Florida. The wind, fog and rain with the thermometer around 55 made it cold; so I donned a long sleeve shirt and pants for the first time since leaving Florida in June. Anyhow we never saw the sun at all during the day and the mountain tops were covered in fog. I had my usual cup of hot green tea laced turmeric which made the cool morning all that much delicious until I ventured out and got chilled to the bone while wearing shorts. It wasn't long until I had much warmer clothing on. The rain beat down steadily all morning and at times it came down so hard it sounded like hail on the roof. I don't know how much we got got since my rain gauge was broken and I keep forgetting to buy a new one but anyhow it must have been a couple inches.

After my quiet times we settled into the social media and then the world news and finally into some You Tube videos until lunch time. I was at a lost by being closed up in the cabin as I'm an outside guy and I had no projects to be completed in the basement. About the only exercise was bending the elbow which meant eating big for the day. There goes the spare tire again. After lunch settled into the Little League World Series and saw a good close game and then later in the day a blow out by the Louisiana team over Hawaii. We headed out around 2:30 for the Tracy's and played a couple games of Spades before the others arrived around 5:30 and then after a delicious supper of fresh garden salad and finger foods provided by Nancy and then settling into Kathryn's  signature lasagna. She sent enough home for a lunch on another day for everyone. Kay brought two awesome strawberry pies for our dessert.

We got into a 7 person Sequence game with me playing a Harvey Hand(the imaginary white rabbit) to make it an 8 person game which you have to have even numbers to play. Its a real thriller and about the only game Gerald likes so we played the best of 7 games and while the gals won their first and only game with the guys winning 4 straight. Wow, that doesn't happened very often and truthfully I think that was a first ever for us. It was starting to get dark so we called it a day and said our good-byes and headed home. The deer were out in the fields on this cool evening and the cattle dotted the hillsides. I know they must love this weather as it keeps the pesky flies away, anyhow it was good to be back on the hill. The cabin was chilled so we turned on the fake fireplace and the forced heat soon warmed up the cabin and made it cozy. I tuned into the Miami vs Florida game and it was a game that changed leads several times on penalties, fumbles and interceptions and very poor tackling. The Gators won in the final seconds over a hard running Hurricane team. The defense for the Gators was outstanding on rushing the QB but everyone else needs to learn how to tackle.

The Rays were getting blown out by the worst team in baseball the Orioles. Once again poor pitching let that game get away. After a hot shower I was ready for some horizontal around 11'ish for a change, LATER

Saturday Morning August 24th and some much needed rain

Well Friday was another day of work and fun and once again some fine Mexican food in Galax with friends, the Tracy's. The temps were down but still had lots of sunshine and a nice breeze enough to dry a load of laundry hanging outside on the line. We even got in a morning hike before lunch time.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my cup of green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble and then spent some time in thanksgiving with my Creator for my many blessings as well as lifted up several by name. Paw Paw came home during the afternoon after an extra day in the hospital with daughter Pat to her place in Wardensville, where he will be under her constant care and supervision. It's a big time job and she had taken it upon herself now that she is retired to handle and to care for him as we are just too far away to be of any assistance and both Josie and Dee still work. We know just what she is experiencing as we too were both involved with Nancy's dad before he passed and then somewhat with her mom as we cared for her before she moved to Michigan. It's not an easy obligation and very demanding.

After a breakfast of left over deer sausage, eggs and a home grown tomato and jalapeno pepper I headed out to check on the gardens and the yards. The deer did eat off the new growth on my raspberry bushes which despite new growth they are still prickly, oh well. They love my beets greens and Swiss chard but other than those few plants they haven't bothered anything else. I loaded up the golf cart with a rake and headed down the driveway as we had some rain which loosened the soil so I could work the driveway. I smoothed out some ruts and loose gravel making it easier to get up the hill without spinning your tires and then opened up some ditches for the the rain runoff which is in the forecast. I worked up a good sweat before finishing the job but the temps were down into the low 70's which was perfect for work.

Nancy was ready for a hike so we took off around 10:30 for a nice hike up to the top of the mountain. The long distant views were better as some of the mist and haze were nearly gone and we could make out Pilot Mountain but the building in Winston-Salem were still obscured with haze. The birds were singing as were the cicadas which is a sure sign summer is on the wand and fall isn't far off. The temps were down considerably and this coming weekend the highs are in the 60's. We stopped and chatted briefly with Larry, one of the workers who helped us as he and his son were finishing up a major restoration and painting job for neighbor Bertie on her cabin. Everyone else was gone on top so we headed down the mountain and had a lite lunch of guacamole and chips.

After lunch I decided to do some major restoration on the old out house/tool shed which sits near the fire circle. Mr. Roy built that back around 1994-95 and its been a great useful out building as well as a symbol of what it was originally used for; and outhouse which set on the septic tank instead of a portable toilet the girls used before we had a bathroom. The walls on the upper side were given away to dry rot as well as the lower portion of the back wall. I had a piece of this great plywood type board that Larry used for the flooring in the upstairs bathroom leftover which was perfect for this job. It took some sawing out the rotted areas on my hands and knees but the job came out better than expected and the wood is supposed withstand weather better than anything yet. I forget the name of it but a 4x8 sheet was around 40 bucks or so which came in handy for this job. I just need to paint it once the rain stops which started overnight and is still raining now as I make this post.

Well we loaded up the trash and made a dumpster stop on the way to Galax, stopped by the bank in town then headed to Walmart for some items before gassing up at 2.29 a gallon and then to a new Mexican eatery in town. I had heard this place was great and they have a second place in Independence which we had eaten at before and the food was terrific there. We met the Tracy's  around 6'ish after also seeing them at Walmart. When we came through Galax we noticed the main street was blocked off for a car show as we at first had planned on visiting the Rex Theatre again in town at 7 for some mountain music. After a delicious filling supper our plans changed on the spur of the moment.

I had the special which was chicken chimichanga's with refried beans and a salad with guacamole  and Nancy had enchiladas with a white sauce, beans and rice. The salsas and chips were endless and she even had a glass of sangria and I a margarita all for about 20 bucks. This place is a definite once again while in Galax for eating out. It was nearly 7 when we left the eatery and headed for downtown Galax. At the last minute instead of going into the Rex we saw the old cars parked next door so decided to walk around the areas and saw many beautiful old restored original cars and trucks then we heard music on a side street playing oldies from the 60's and 70's and the vocals were awesome as well. There was a parking lot set up with a bandstand and these 5 guys were very good and the crowd was quite large as was the area in front of the bandstand with lots of old folks dancing, jitterbugging, the twist etc. Well we joined them for several fast numbers and even did a couple slow dances. The music was fantastic and they took requests which they did. We left around 8:30 after working off our supper and working up a nice sweat. It was a great fun spur of the moment event.

We headed home and it was pitch black on the mountain as the days of light until 9'ish are over until next year and now the mornings are still dark when I roll out at 6'ish whereas day break was evident a few weeks ago. After unloading the ice chest of our goodies we settled into the Ray's game which was on the TV and then I saw where the Bucs preseason game was on another channel. Well the Ray's beat the Orioles 7-1 and the Bucs beat the browns 13-12. Both now hometown teams won for a change. It wasn't long until it was my horizontal time, LATER

This is a section of old Galax, Va. which is where we do most of our shopping on a weekly basis. It's also the home of the Fiddlers Convention which is a whole week of music and is now renown in the Blue Grass /Mountain Music World. It's a very nice and clean old town with a newer section a couple miles away that has the super Walmart and Lowes.

Friday Morning ..August 23rd

Well this week has surely gone by in a hurry and here we are coming up on the last week of the month. I can remember as a kid how slow time moved, but it seems as we age it just slips by almost instantly, oh well. Thursday was a first in a quite spell or so for things like a good rain which we desperately needed so now I can quit hand watering and then eating out at the Muddy Creek Cafe in Sparta in a month or so with friends. Nancy even took a trip over to Kimberly's in the afternoon to see her new colt by herself.

I started the day much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble about the day before's activities and occurrences so I can let my grandkids know what our lives were like living here at the cabin in the summer and then again in Florida during the winter. I knew very little about what life was like with my grand parents some of which I never met except only on the tombstones in the cemeteries at St.Johns and Mountain View churches. It's a whole different lifestyle from just a few decades ago, especially with this electronic age and social media which has brought good things in so many ways but has stolen the heart away from the family life which was so needed to survive in the old days.

Neighbor Gerald blessed us with some frozen venison sausage and hamburger meat killed right here on the property as he and his friends hunt the backwoods while were are gone during hunting season. I think he mentioned they harvested 8 from the area. I fried up a skillet of the sausage patties and my oh my were they ever delicious since this meat has no steroids or hormones and of course eating from my organic garden at times through the summer and fall I'm sure added to their flavor. Speaking of deer we have seen so many this summer out foraging in the open during daylight and evening hours. We saw several last afternoon and on the way home last night, most of which are huge in size. It must have been a good rut season as many doe's are with twins and even triplet fawns.

I'm still working on getting a good stand of grass in the backwoods yards which still shows a lot of the green moss so I loaded up the golf cart and spreader with sacks of pelletized lime and gave the yards a good liming as I saw where the forecast was for some rain. Changing the PH of the soil with lime to alkaline is supposed to thwart the moss from reproducing as well as promote the grass to spread. It's much cheaper than fertilizer as well. Anyhow that job was like an extra hike to the top of the mountain as pushing the spreader along these hilly yards are a workout. We got the rain in the afternoon and then again overnight which awakened me with the sound of a downpour on the tin roof.

The cucumbers are making and I'm starting to give away some and the lettuce and recently sowed turnip seed are showing some colors and finally I noticed a jalapeno pepper set on one of the plants I started from seeds in Florida in May. I have no idea why it has taken 3 months for them to produce a fruit. I noticed the bell peppers are still losing their buds and leaves as well and along with the jalapenos they haven't done well either. Hopefully we will get some before we leave in October. I piddled around in the gardens and in the basement doing little jobs until the thunder storm broke in the afternoon. I gathered in the laundry which dried on the clothesline and peeled the last of the peaches from Helen's tree. They do not last long after softening on the tree. We know why they are picked rock hard and found that way in the markets and stores because once they soften they rot and turn with mold, oh well these peaches while not freestones(the seeds or pits come away from the meat) were very tasty.

We got ready and headed to Sparta around 5:30 to meet up with the Tracy's and Mechelle and her male friend Kevin for supper. I wasn't still particular hungry after the large breakfast but did manage a grilled chicken sandwich with fries and a pickle; so much for the attempt at the Keto diet with the bun and fries, oh well. I stayed away from any booze for the past couple days except for a beer at lunch which is full of carbs but oh so good on a hot humid day. We had an enjoyable time at supper then the Tracy's headed for their cabin and we headed over to Mechelle to play a couple games of dice. Kevin is confined to a wheelchair and makes no bones about not wanting anyones sympathy or help. He is very independent and holds down two jobs one which is with a huge corporation in the human resource area. He is very likable and we sure enjoy his company and hope this is working for her as she is family.

Well we came back and hit the showers and checked our social medias before I hit the sack around 10:30'ish. The Ray's were finally on the big screen in Baltimore and why the local stations broadcast the Orioles games who are one of the worst teams in MLB is beyond me; but they were tied in a rain delay. So I gave it up and headed for some horizontal lab, LATER

Thursday Morning August 22nd

Well, Wednesday was a mixture of work and play with some fine eatin' for our supper with the Tracy's. It was a beautiful start of the day with a strong breeze which kept the temps bearable while working at our "mountain moms" place but by lunch time the sun was extremely hot and luckily we were finished with our outside work and headed to the a/c in our cabin.

I started the day with my before 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble then lifted up several to my Creator for healing and comfort in this their hour of need as well as gave thanks for my many blessings. All seem well as be expected and we got word Paw Paw is being released to go back home after a lengthy stay at the VA hospitable in W.Va. Pat the middle daughter will once again except the care giver role for him at her place in Wardensville.

I ate lite for breakfast before we headed over to our "mountain mom" Helen's place to do some yard work for her. She had several dead limbs in her Dogwood tree as well as her apple tree which needed cutting. We also trimmed her huge black walnut tree that had branched loaded with nuts touching the ground. We must have hauled off 6 to 7 golf cart loads of tree limbs, vines and briars to her trash pile where she loves to burn. We then worked over her mulch pile which was over grown with weeds and vines and then hauled 3 loads of mulch for around her back yard bushes. While doing so a large buck deer walked out of the woods by the apple tree we just trimmed and began eating on her grape vines. He had a nice rack and we were surprised to him in the broad daylight. On the way out of her drive we saw two more deer both does running into the woods which is unusual during the daytime.

I was whupped and hungry so we had a turkey/ham roll up with chips and a beer for me. That held us until 6'ish when Nancy heated up a pot of frozen spaghetti sauce and meatballs for our supper with Patrick and Kathryn, along with a fresh garden salad. Kathryn brought her signature strawberry shortcake with ice cream and whipped cream for our dessert which was delicious. We played a game of spades before supper and then another game afterwards and the guys prevailed in both squeaker wins. We loaded them up with cucumbers, peaches from our "mountain moms" tree and water for their drinking jugs from our well. They rent in an area that has tons of Christmas tree farms and I personally think the chemicals the farmers use on the trees has infiltrated the aquifer causing the cancer rate in this county to be very high. Thankfully there are no tree farms near us so our well is clean and pure.

Kathryn set us up with her Netflix account as they are always talking about really good mini series so we watched one after they left called Outlander. The Ray's game wasn't on so I barely managed to stay awake through what I thought at times was very slow and of course I only picked up about half of what the dialogue was due to music in the back ground. Many thanks for sharing this account but I'm not one to watch hollywood in any shape or form due to their politics and anti-GOD stance but I will chance it with this series and one on the civil war about spies the Tracy's say is good; maybe it will come in handy on a rainy day shut in at the cabin when I can not venture outside to work and play, oh well.

I dozed a couple times during the one hour show and then it was shower time afterwards which awakened me enough to read another chapter in the Phil Robertson book about how America has lost its soul to the PC crowd, libs and progressive secular dem's. I know many who do not like this potus but GOD can use anyone to lead America back from the depths of destruction within the nation and Trump is the man to the job. GOD used all types of folks to save the Jewish nation his chosen people and I think GOD is using Trump. He is beholding to none and his giving the USA once again the right to be a beacon in the world for freedom and liberty. I have no idea why so many want to take away those rights and destroy our way of life with great economic benefits.

 There are many examples of what happens when a few get the control over the populace i.e. socialism, communism, etc. that destroys all forms of individual rights and leaves a society totally destroyed; Venezuela is a great example as well as Russia, Cuba and even China and North Korea. If your part of the ruling class its great but otherwise human dignity and freedom is gone forever when governed by the few elites. Trump is our Moses from the old testament and while its proven through out history that GOD can use anyone to save his people and Trump is a great example and the left, the dem's and libs as well as the MSM are totally complicit with destroying him and his policies to keep America safe and not some globalist country governed by a few elites. It's just mind boggling to think so many folks who are brainwashed by the dem's who no longer honor the precept that man is created in GOD's image and that all human life is scared; thus we have the abortions, mass killings, the killing of our law enforcement community and terrorists who bomb innocents to promote their religion which does not honor the one true GOD and the sanctity of life. These are just a few of the examples of how we have lost our soul in America and we had better wake up and support this potus in 2020 or we will have gone down like the once great Roman Empire; imploded from within, LATER

Just finishing up the mulch pile for our 91 year old "mountain mom" Helen. Notice her golf cart's name Hel-Hel

Wednesday Morning ..August 21st

Well Tuesday was basically a work day until late evening when I got in a good two hour work out on the pickle ball court with 3 other fellers. The weather was perfect in the morning hours and by late afternoon the heat was once more upon us but not extremely. The humidity was back which added to the heat and thankfully the a/c is working perfectly and keeping us very comfortable.

I started the day much the usual with my before 6'ish roll out to a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble and then spent some quiet moments with my Creator in humble thanksgiving and intercessory prayers for many by name. All seem to be as well as can be expected at this time and Paw Paw seems to be improving daily. All of his tests have come back negative for any infection which is great and now the Dr's think its just severe arthritis that is causing the shoulder and neck pain.

I headed out before breakfast to work the last grown over flower bed to weed while the sun is shaded off the back yard. The weeds and grasses have taken over but I do have lots of small cone flowers which I think will make a come back now that the choking grasses have been eliminated.The rest of the flower beds are looking great and the hydrangeas have really added lots of new growth. The zinnias are looking better each day and there are tons of blooms for me to head this fall for next years planting. The dill seeds I sowed are up and I'm hoping to get enough to add to our salads and fish dishes. I love the smell of fresh dill and most all fresh herbs. There is a saying that if you smell fresh rosemary daily you will never have memory losses. It is an awesome herb on grilled chicken and on taters rolled in olive oil and fresh rosemary and then under the broiler in the oven, delicious.

We took off to the top of the mountain before lunch as we wanted to beat the mid day heat. We stopped and talked with Billy and then Larry and Brandon who are working on Berties cabin doing some wood replacement that had dry rotted. What a bigger job than they first anticipated but they do good work and are very through. They blessed us with two Asian pears from their tree at home which we will try today. We headed back down the mountain and I piddled around in the gardens until it was too hot to do much outside. I had a couple cucumbers for my lunch as I had a huge late breakfast of an apple, peach, blueberries, raisins, pecans, walnuts and a spoon of honey. I'm trying to only eat eggs a couple times a week and this breakfast is quite filling so I held off until 4'ish when I grilled a couple marinated chicken breast and Nancy had a pot of half runners cooking. That was our supper around 5 as I was playing pickle ball at 6.

Gerald picked me up and we headed over to the Roaring Gap Club for a good workout on the court. It was really a pleasant evening as some rain clouds kept the sun blocked, though we got no rain. We played 5 sets or about 11 regular games which left us all whupped. Gerald let me drive his BMW ragtop sports car home and does it ever have some get up on these mountain roads. It's been years since I drove a sports car and I think the last was a corvette stingray I had confiscated in a felony hit and run death case and drove it back to Tampa from Punta Gorda back while I was still on patrol. They are fun to drive but you almost need a shoe horn to get in and out of the seats.

Well the Rays got beat again last night at home with some poor relief pitching. They are still in the hunt for a wild card slot for the playoffs which will becoming up next month. It's hard to believe football season is here with the meaningless preseason games and that baseball is winding down which means we are over half through here at the cabin for this year. We leave a week or so earlier due to Katie's pregnancy who is due in January with twins. What a ride thats going to be for everyone, LATER

Tuesday Morning August 20th

Well this month is just flying by and yesterday was no exception. It was a bit hot in the afternoon but the morning and evenings are just absolutely beautiful with a nice cool morning and no humidity. I got a lot of yard and garden work done around the cabin and Nancy had laundry hanging on the clothesline.

The day started much the usual with a 6'ish roll out to my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble and then spent some quiet time with my Creator lifting up several by name and then giving thanks for another day in this beautiful part of His creation. I just pinch myself when I think I have this place to use and share with so many and I'm the groundskeeper to make it beautiful and unique for us and others. Sure I pay the taxes and insurance and all the renovations and hopefully some day our grand kids will love this place as much as we do and share it with friends as well.

Nancy slept in until 8'ish as she was still recuperating from the hay baling experience on Saturday, so I headed outside to finish weeding a couple flower beds while she had her coffee and did her morning devotions. Around 10 'ish we had a large mountain breakfast of bacon, eggs and grits which held me until supper time around 6'ish when we fried up several yellow squash and made that our supper, yeow that is some fine eatin' and I doctored mine up with fresh cilantro, oregano and basil from the garden along with a banana pepper brought back from Mike's garden. This staying away from the carbs hopefully will pay off with some reduction in the spare tire.

I fired up the riding mower after breakfast and mowed until nearly 1 o'clock. We both love the smell of fresh mowed grass and the yards look so beautiful as well. I have one more flower bed to weed and then I'm through for this summer as I will weed whack them all down when we leave in October. It's been a great year for weeds after the deer ate most all of the flowers last winter giving the weeds plenty of room to take over. I now have lots of small cone flowers trying a come back but the weeds and grasses was smothering and hindering their growth; hopefully they will get large enough to shade the weeds out. The black raspberries are sending out runners for next years crop so I fixed a couple poles for them to hang on as they are doing better than expected. I'll cut them back before leaving in October once the new runners have set roots and then I'll fence them in to keep the deer from eating all of the new growth next Spring.

We heard a couple chain saws in the back woods and it seems the neighbor on top had most of the tall pine trees cut down for a view and they just left some really nice white pine timber laying on the ground. It's too bad to see these beautiful trees just left to rot away. When we cut timber when I was but a teenager I used mules to drag the logs out to a road where we load them onto a truck but no one using them anymore. Now a days they use these heavy tractors which of course needs a road to maneuver which destroys the landscape to remove any logs. I like the old days as you saved the other small trees from being destroyed, oh well. It's not my property or timber but I hate to see such waste of good timber that could be used for lumber.

We took a 7'ish hike to the top of the mountain and spoke with Billy for a few who informed us of the tree cutting operation by the land owner next door to him. We did see one other vehicle at a residence but the mountain top was basically deserted after so many was there on the weekend. The evening was perfect for hiking and being outside after a rather hot afternoon. We took a late evening ride out to the mailbox before retiring inside for the night. The Ray's were being blasted by the Mariners 9-3 and the Little League game was another blow out as well with 10-0 by Louisiana over Minnesota, oh well. I hit the showers and was soon in the horizontal lab position around 10:30, LATER

Monday Morning August 19th

Well Sunday was another beautiful day and a little on the warm side much like Saturday except we weren't in the hayfield which made it seem a lot cooler. Nancy is still having nightmares about that adventure and the heat in the barn while unloading the hay bales, oh well. She just can not take the heat any longer.

The day started with my usual before 6'ish roll out to my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble then spent some quiet time with my Creator while lifting up several and giving humble thanks for my blessings. All seem well and baby sister Dee and husband Mike made it to Colorado in two days traveling without any mishaps. Paw Paw seems to be improving while still in the hospital and we are thankful for both as it gives middle sister Pat a break, who is now his care giver which he can be a handful at times. The saying goes "we come into the world like a child and if we live to old age we become much like one again before exiting".

After a breakfast of fruit and nuts we tuned into BridgePoint our Florida church on the internet before heading out to Cornerstone our mountain church. We heard two messages both very inspiring and right to the point on Faith and and then again on Baptism which Cornerstone was doing later in the afternoon with a picnic to follow. We weren't at church last Sunday so we had made no plans to attend the latter events so we met up with Patrick and Mechelle at the local Japanese eatery in town for a delicious lunch. Kathryn was a no show due to a migraine. We made a stop at the Food Lion for a couple items before heading home and chilling the rest of the afternoon until 5'ish when we took a hike to the top of the mountain.

It was beautiful to say the least with a nice gentle breeze and we sat and chilled almost napping while gazing out across the great divide into the valley's below. We sat on the Brown's front yard chairs in the shade and it was just plain beautiful and so restful. I kind of nodded off a couple times as the woods were so still behind us and the breeze was so soft on your face after the steep hike up the back trail. We did see a car at the Browning's old place and another car came in the lane to another house but no one else was out and about on the top of the mountain. We came down and chilled the rest of the evening after I hand watered the gardens and picked 3 cucumbers which now seem to be setting fruit. We love fresh home grown cukes dipped in a ranch dressing or just added to a salad. We now can splurge instead of rationing them.

I tuned into the sports channel and then neighbor Gerald stopped by for a short visit and informed us of his upcoming comings and goings. He is back here at his cabin on a full time basis with daily trips to Christiansburg for part time work at the Lowes Store which makes it nice for us when we leave the end of October for Florida. He is a great neighbor and looks after the road as well as our cabin and pretty much keeps to himself unless we invite him for get togethers and pickle ball which he is now back to playing occasionally. We help each other out on jobs which require and extra set of hands or muscles.

I watched a little preseason football before hitting the shower around 10'ish and then it was horizontal lab for me shortly thereafter, LATER

Sunday Morning August 18th

Well Saturday was another rather warm day but just beautiful in the morning to start with temps in the low 60's and it did reach the middle 80's in the hayfield by mid afternoon. It was a work day after lunch as we helped our dear friends the Luffman's put up nearly 400 square bales of hay in their barn which meant you handled the bales at least 3 times each.

I started the day much the usual with a before 6 ish roll out to my morning routines that has me washing down a handful of vitamins and supplements with my cup of hot green tea laced turmeric while I post this ramble then spend some quiet time with my Creator. I give thanks everyday for our blessings and for the health and recovery of many by name as well as for our nation and those who protect from the enemies. It seems now we have enemies within our nation who want to destroy our culture and way of life that so many gave their lives for to protect. I'm at a loss at those who voted radicals into positions of power and influence to destroy us from within and to openly wish harm on our Potus Trump. It's mine boggling that we have thrown our Judeo-Christian principles out the window and now are openly worshipping everything that was once wrong or bad and just the opposite is occurring with dishonoring the good and Godly mores that once made us the role model for the world.

After a hearty breakfast of sugar cured country ham which I now boiled with some water in a skillet before frying to take out most of the salt, along with a couple cackleberries(eggs) and a couple sliced tomato's I headed out to piddle around in the gardens and flower beds. The weeds grow overnight so I pulled several in one backyard flower bed which was nearly over grown before we headed up the mountain for our daily hike. It was rather warm on top which was bearing the brunt of full sunshine. At the cabin we were under the shade of the tall oaks that surround the area and the temps were at least 10 degrees cooler plus we had a nice gentle breeze but that was opposite at the top. Those who live on top have the million dollar views but do suffer so with the temps as its always colder there in the winter and hotter in the summer as they are exposed to the elements whereas our position down in the trees gives us both comfort and protection from the wind and sun when they are at their worst.

We visited with a few folks on top before heading down the back trail. We had really worked up a sweat but could feel the change in the temps as we worked our way down through the trees. I continued pulling weeds until it was time to head out to the Luffman Farm where we were meeting up with Mechelle to take us to the hayfields. We were a little surprised to find that area of the county bone dry as we had a thunder storm come through dumping some much needed rain on our area and the temps dropped nearly 20 degrees in just minutes. We headed out and sure enough that area was in bright sunshine and getting hotter by the minute.

Gerald had one field nearly baled with rows of the square bales throughout and eventually moved to a different field to bale. Kay, Mechelle and Nancy started pitching bales while I stacked the wagon with nearly a hundred bales of hay. We took one load to the barn and unloaded it in the hot barn. Nancy nearly passed out as she just can not take the heat any longer so we made her go out of the barn. We did that routine for a total of 4 wagon loads before getting the last of the hay bales into the barn. We were all hot, dirty and whupped when we finished around 5:30.  I was covered in hay seeds and very itchy. Kay had planned on us eating burgers at her place so I showered at Mechelle's before heading over to their place. Gerald was in town getting things to make homemade peach and blueberry ice cream while I grilled the burgers. The supper was delicious as we all were famished after such a workout. I know it was a relief to the Luffman's to have the extra help by Nancy and I and it felt good to once again do what I use to do many years ago while on the farm. It's a tough dirty job but one that makes you feel great as you provide feed for the livestock.

Well we got back to the cabin around 8'ish and Nancy was in the shower. She was whupped and I was starting to feel the muscles in my arms and shoulders that I usually don't use with such repetition of lifting and tossing 40-50 pound bales or so constantly over your head. It was great to sweat profusely and my shirt was dripping with sweat much like when playing pickle ball at times. Well that was about it except for some catching up on the Ray's game and they beat the Tigers 1-0 at home in extra innings. They are still in the hunt for a wild card slot in the playoffs. Today is corporate worship day back at our mountain church Cornerstone in Sparta. Last Sunday we were at my old home church St. Johns near Winchester. Take time today and everyday and lift up our nation to our mighty GOD who has blessed us in so many ways that we might once again honor Him and the commandments set forth that made us a great nation and that His son has intervened to give us hope after leaving this life on earth. There is no other more powerful name than Jesus, LATER

   

Saturday Morning..August 17th

Well Friday was a mixture of work, eatin' out and play. The weather was perfect until around lunch time when we turned the a/c on as the humidity crept back into the picture. We got in a good hike to the top of the mountain as well as ate healthy for the most part as we are trying to stay away from carbs and sugars. The dinner out nixed that playbook with pasta at the Twisted Fork eatery in Galax, Va.

I started the day with a before 6'ish roll out to my usual routines that start with my handful of Nutrilite Vitamins and supplements washed down with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I post this ramble and then spent some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting several up by name. All seem to be holding their own at this point despite some very serious health and age issues. Paw Paw is still in the hospital but stable. Keep my baby sister and husband in your thoughts for safe travel as they left Virginia for Colorado by vehicle. They sure showed us a great time while visiting last week end at their beautiful Shenandoah Valley home.

I fired up the weed whacker and trimmed the whole property. It's finally running right after some major tuneups; just when I think about buying a brand new one it starts running great. I some times believe these machines can hear what your saying, anyhow that was a good two hour plus workout on this hilly yard. Nancy wanted to get a hike in before lunch so we took off up the back trail and we ran into some fresh bear scat(dung) as we neared the top. A small bear was seen in the area a day ago as well as two large rattlesnakes were seen on the east side of our mountain; the bear is still loose but the snakes were dispatched according to a neighbor. We haven't had this much wildlife activity in quite a spell except for the normal deer damage done to the gardens and flower beds.

We visited with several on top and learned our old friends John and Shirley sold their beautiful cabin on the side of the mountain within a month or less. They have already moved out so we will be seeing the new owners shortly. Bertie is having our laborers Larry and Brandon do some extensive wall work on her cabin as many of the outside boards are rotting and splitting. They have been there for nearly 40 years or more. We came back and had a fresh garden salad for lunch. Afterwards we settled down and wrote a couple letters to our young airman Caleb who is still in basic training at Lackland AFB in Texas. I too went through there back in March of 1966 and eventually went to California where I stayed for 7 years. I did my 4 years of service and then 3 years of active reserve service while getting my B.A. at Cal State Sacramento before moving to Florida in 1973. Wow where did that time go? I wouldn't take anything to do it again but would not have missed that part of my life for anything.

We cleaned up and headed out around 4'ish to Galax where we had several errands to run before meeting the Tracy's at the Twisted Fork Eatery in old Galax. Their speciality is home made pasta and while its a little pricey for this country town the food is excellent and they have a great business. The place was hopping when we left around 6:30 and walked over to the Rex Theatre. The admission is 5 bucks per person and usually they have a full band but last night it was mainly a jam session with three instruments and finally a fourth person from the crowd filled in on guitar. We managed to dance several dances and at time there were 6-8 folks on the floor. We recognized a couple of regular dancers who mingled. It's the greatest cheapest evening ever as we visited with several and then we saw and old friend and his wife who we haven't seen in years.

Donald Heglar is the brother of the Grant and Shirley Heglar who have a place on our road into the cabin. He is the best horseshoe thrower I've ever seen and then he told me he played major league baseball in the farm system years ago. He has a place on the New River and we visited him there way back when. He is avid Christ Follower and gives everyone he meets a 50 cent piece and tells then he prays for them daily. We still have ours by the beside he gave up many years ago. He is aging as are all of us but a real down to earth fun person to be around. We tried to get him on the dance floor but he opted to watch. We left at the first intermission as this type of music sounds

exactly the same with just a different name of the song. It old time music which is quite different than Blue Grass as they use the clawhammer banjo, fiddle and base guitar and mandolin when available. Despite the shortage in the band they entertained us for an hour before we left.

We headed over to the super Walmart for some things on Nancy's list before heading home. It was pitched black when we got to the top of the hill. We did see a couple of deer on the parkway but they stayed out of the road. It wasn't long after a hot shower and few minutes of the preseason game of the Panthers I hit the sack to read for a few. I'm reading a birthday book from sister Dee by Phil Robertson of the Duck Dynasty about America losing her soul to the PC crowd, the libs and fake and biased MSM promoting the idea that GOD is dead. What is happening is satan is alive in the spiritual warfare battle for the soul of the nation and our individual souls with help from those mentioned above, LATER

Friday Morning August 16th

Well Thursday was another beautiful day on the mountain with bright sunshine and blue skies, however it did get a bit hot in the afternoon so the a/c felt good after being outside working in the woods, yards and garden. Nancy had laundry on the clothesline gently flapping in the breeze which is such a comforting sign. We do need some rain as I've been hand watering daily since getting back from our trip to the Woodstock area.

I started the day much the usual with a before 6'ish rollout to my morning cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble and then spent some quiet time with my Creator in thanksgiving and lifting up several by name. Paw Paw seems to be doing better but is having some dementia which comes with old age. He is still in the hospital in W.Va. as the doctors are trying to access why he is having so much pain in his shoulder and neck areas; at least with him there, Pat is getting a much needed break but I do think she is traveling there almost daily. Everyone else is holding their own as I've heard nothing to the contrary.

Nancy fixed me a country ham breakfast to start the day which was delicious to say the least. I grew up on sugar cured country ham but I did find this brand a bit salty and its probably because I haven't eaten it in ages. It's one meat that doesn't require refrigeration and was used by the pioneers as they traveled west to settle the country. I think next time I will cook it in some water to get out the salt then fry it. That held me for most of the rest of the day. I fired up the chain saw and headed up the back trail to saw up a large tree that had fallen while we were gone last weekend. It was blocking our path up the steep mountain and while up there I sawed up a couple other downed trees for fire wood. I needed a couple supports for the raspberry patch so I sawed down a few pine saplings and brought them down the mountain and fastened them to the post surrounding the berries which are spreading out for next years crop. I must keep them contained into an area with a makeshift fence.

I piddled around in the gardens and yards until it was time to head out to Mechelle's farm and play with the horses and new foals which are just so friendly. They are like a puppy dog's as they want to be petted and played with. A couple of them like to nip you for attention if your not watching. We decided to head to Sparta and have a supper of pizza at JB's which has the best pies in town with Mechelle. So much for our non carb day but the food was delicious and we chatted for a couple hours. We had already got in our hike to the top of the mountain around mid morning so we piddled around in the yard as the sun had gone behind the tall trees surrounding the cabin. I hand watered and pulled weeds which seem to always be thriving no matter.

We came in just before dark and tuned into Trump's speech in New Hampshire. You have to love what he is doing for the nation. Those on the left are having a fit with being exposed for what they are trying to do in changing our nation and its culture. They are globalist and Trump is a nationalist and the fake news networks are promoting their ideology. He has a way of working up the crowds and exposing the corrupt thinking of the left. I love the fact he can not be bought by the left and he is not a politician which is the opposite of the last corrupt administration led by obama and hillary. I find them so objectionable I can not capitalize their names. We now are getting more info on just how corrupt and complicit they were in destroying the FBI's integrity by using them to bring down Trump with an attempted coup. They had so many sycophants in the DOJ and FBI as well as NSA that its unbelievable they did not succeed. It's strictly by the grace of GOD and a few die hearts who saved the nation by exposing their crimes of corruption.

The murder of Epstein by the Clinton Syndicate is just another example of the corruption within their ranks. I just can not believe they are so insulated from their murderous deeds over the years and now that Epstein was going to reveal Bill's debauchery which we all knew he is guilty of, they had him knocked off. The elites protect the elites and they are the epitome of crime and corruption supported by the Hollywood crowd and the fake news networks. I do think with this new AG Barr something will be done to those who broke the law and tried to undermine the constitution. We can only hope and pray Trump is reelected in 2020 and that American will send republicans to both houses of the congress, LATER

Thursday Morning August 15th

Well this month is moving right along as its now nearly half gone. The day started out with me helping our "mountain mom" for a couple hours as she needed her front bushes clipped, so I did my good deed for the day but I sure feel it this morning as I used a hand clipper. I think I'll buy her an electric clipper next time I'm in Galax as her bushes are huge and I only did the front ones plus there are that many more on the other side of her cabin.

I did some garden work around the cabin after I did my morning routines and before I headed over to Helen's. I had my cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric while I posted this ramble then lifted up several during my quiet time with my Creator. All seem as well as can be expected and even Paw Paw seemed to have recovered and is now out of ICU at the VA hospital and into a private room. Meningitis was thought to be the culprit but that has been ruled out and the intense pain is probably a result of his arthritis in his neck and arm.

I harvested some beet greens, kale, Swiss chard and lettuce to add to our store bought lettuces for a huge salad which we had for lunch. I also pulled some green onions and found another cucumber large enough to slice. The cucumber vines are loaded with blooms and a few small ones but they sure aren't producing like years past. I'm back to hand watering as the rain we had on Tuesday wasn't a lot. The tomato's are as large as golf ball size and one plant has about 8 on it so far but lots of blooms. Hopefully I'll get enough to share with friends and neighbors by the end of summer. I did sow some turnip seeds before I left last week and they are up showing some green as well as some lettuces.

Well we got in a good hike to the the top of the mountain and saw where our friends the Cottle's sold their beautiful place in just about a months time and have already moved most of their belonging out and then we went by the Browning place and there was someone in the house and the for sale sign was down; so just maybe that too is sold. Anyhow lots happening on top of the mountain. We stopped and visited Bertie Moore who is thrilled to have our two workers Larry and Brandon doing some carpentry work on her cabin starting today. They had already diagnosed the problem and had lumber stacked waiting to replace several boards that had rotted through. Roddy is up for a few days from down off the mountain and is looking for a roof person so I'll send my guy out to check on his issue as well. It seems now that I'm the go to guy to get issues corrected as this county is hard to find good help.

Well we ate no carbs for the day as we are making an effort to cut down on our sugars and carbs. We ate fruit for breakfast as I picked a bowl of blueberries from my bushes which are loaded and ripening at a slow pace which is good and for lunch a salad with no crackers and just a handful of nuts with our glass of vino before a supper of broccoli and brats. Hopefully we can get rid of all the carbs we ate so much of during our 4 day visit with family which was great. The sweets are a real killer and we gave our bag of cookies to Helen who could use some carbs. Well that was about it for the day as we settled into the Fox News channel since the Ray's played in the afternoon. They have been winning big the last several days but lost in San Diego yesterday, LATER

 A few pics from the hike last evening.