Wednesday Morning Dec 3rd

Well you would never know its winter here as its been in the upper 80's during the afternoon with tons of humidity, so much so I spend the afternoon reading in the house with the a/c full on, oh well. It sure beats trying to stay warm with below freezing temps in the mountains. Tuesday was rather typical except for the evening when we visited with Sheri and Steve at their place for supper and cards and to celebrate neighbor and friend Dan's 71 big day.

I had a started the morning with a well before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding some better than others and some going down hill fast with severe health issues. I headed out on my bike to the REC for a great work out and some really good play with all A players and left after close to 2 hours of non stop play, winning most of my matches with different players. We play that winners split after each match so a couple doesn't dominate and its makes for good play. We have about as many women players and men and all are good players. I'm still the oldest of the group on these Tue. and Thurs. match ups but on M,W,F, there is a player a couple years older than me, but he isn't very good or active, oh well. At least he comes for some exercise at 82.

I came back and had a bite of breakfast with half an avocado and egg drizzled with olive oil and a slice of toast before we headed out to shop at Sam''s Club, Lowes and Publix. I filled up at 2.80 a gallon which is up from last weeks at 2.76, oh well. I'm looking forward to 2 bucks a gallon with all of the oil been produced with Trump's energy policies. The local gas was at 3.19 and I thought something is wrong because even at Sam's they had to be making a profit and the locals were ripping off consumers, oh well.

I bought some onion slips that are supposed to grow into vidalia like bulbs and transplanted them into the garden later in the afternoon when the heat some what abated, plus a cilantro plant. Everything in the garden seems to be growing and now I have radishes up and breaking ground in only 4 days, wow. During the afternoon I read for a couple hours and the true criminal investigation of a murder back in the 90's is starting to see some evidence pointing to the guilty. Its a great read but a long one as the two detectives are writing this story.

Well we picked up Dan and Carol and headed to the Nymark's at 5:30 for supper and cards. It was store bought lasagna, salad and key lime pie for dessert. Sheri's life long friend Sandy came alone as Jim her husband is not doing well with his health, so we played Michigan Rummy which is played alone instead of team play. Well Carol won both games which is tough to do but fun and you must be quick and thinking ahead of the various sets you need acquire to go down. It was 10 when we finished and headed home. I jumped into the shower as was in bed by 10:30 after an early morning rise, LATER

Tuesday Morning Dec 2nd

Well Monday turned out to be another hot sunny day with no rain which is needed. I got in some pickle ball play early in the morning and then worked in the gardens off and on during the morning and late afternoon once the temps abated. I started the day much the usual with a before 6 rollout to my quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. 

The bike ride to the Rec for a good hour and half of pickle ball was quite pleasant but was starting to warm up quickly on the ride back home. I had a couple hours before I had a skin appointment at 11:30 so I hand watered the gardens and set out a couple tomato seedlings I had been growing into the garden proper. I eventually set out another 12 lettuce seedlings I had started from seeds as well into the garden as well. I have just about used up 3/4 of the gardens but sill have enough room for more beet seedlings I'm growing in a pot.

I read the afternoon away during the hottest parts and started a new read thats a real page turner by two homicide cops in L.A. who never gave up on solving a murder back in the 90's. It's titled BLACK TUNNEL WHITE MAGIC and its a real life story and very interesting. Nancy decided we needed to eat a frozen pizza for supper which was fine since I cleaned up the leftover turkey for lunch and wasn't really hungry. I'm trying to eat less and more salads now that I'm growing leafy greens for the salad bowl. I set the sprinkler on the front yard for an hour or so as evening lessen the heat of the day.

I read until shower time and then watched a little of the NFL but found it boring so I switched to some survival show which is kind of staged unlike ALONE where the folks have to film themselves in the wild, LATER

Monday Morning Dec 1st 2025

 Well Sunday was a fun day and a first for me in years as I attended a Buc's game in Tampa with son Bobby's family and with son in law Tyler and grandson's Sam and Gabe and the Buc's won the game for a change. I had to miss my greeter job at S.R.B.C. but did worship on line at Cornerstone Chapel. It was a near perfect day for being outside and the crowd was huge with lots of Buc followers. We are still leading our division but I doubt we will go far in the playoffs as the Panthers are just a game back and they beat the Rams today which destroyed us last week, oh well.

I started the morning much the usual with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I did head out to hand water the gardens before heading to Tampa with Tyler and Sam where we met up with Bobby and family minus Annsley for the game that started at 1 PM. 

Bobby's mother in law has season tickets which are on the 40 yard line about 10-12 rows from the field and they were great seats to say the least and the stadium is modern with two huge jumbo screens on each end of the stadium and if your blocked by a fan you can view the play on them live with replays, very nice and the excitement from the crowd is awesome as well. It was a bright sunny day but not overly hot and humid and while the home town team won it was close at the end. The traffic leaving the place was awful and the GPS took us out of the way due to streets being blocked from the game, for nearly and extra hour getting back home, so it was 2 plus hours getting home after dark, oh well.

I grabbed a left over hamburger for supper them settled into the night games until shower time and then some horizontal lab at 10, LATER

Sunday Morning Nov 30th

 Well this month is gone and now just a month away before a new year, wow time just flies by as you age, but I'm blessed so I'll just keep on loving Jesus, family and life itself with pickle ball and gardening which is just what I did Saturday morning and then some football after lunch. I headed out to the Rec after starting the day with 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and then to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. All seem to be holding with this post. 

I rode my bike to the Rec for some very good play with a few new A players  who are still working and don't get to play during the week, of course these are much younger players all very good. I managed to hold my own and won most every match with new partners despite some age differences, after an hour and half and a wet head and shirt, I called it a morning and headed home to work in the gardens and yards. It was a bit chilly to start the morning but by the time I left the Rec going on 10 it has warmed up to near perfect weather.

I hand watered all of the gardens and front planters and then harvest my first mess of both white and red romaine lettuces, kale and a couple collard leaves for the salad bowl. I rinsed and then spun them dry and broke them up for my lunch which was delicious. I'll soon have two more lettuces to add as well as Swiss chard to the mix. I blessed neighbor Dan with several lettuce and Swiss chard seedlings for his garden as I'm running out of room in my three plots. The tomato's are blooming and I still have several seedlings to put in the garden proper as well as more beet seedlings. I'll add their leaves to the salad bowl in a couple weeks as well. Its getting that time of the year when its a salad a day for us which is so healthy, now that I'm growing my own which makes it even healthy as I use no pesticides.

Well the college games were great and I watched them throughout the afternoon while Nancy went shopping and then I hand watered again before dark as the breeze and sun dries out this sandy soil here very quickly. We fixed our own plates from the left over turkey day dinner and its still delicious. I'm skipping church this morning, but I will watch and worship on line as son Bobby has received some extra Buc's tickets so Tyler and Sam will pick me up and we will head to Tampa around 11'ish. We even got a parking pass as well as 40 yard seats 10 rows up from the field, wow that will be a first for me, lets hope both offense and defense show up for the game against the Cardinals from Arizona, LATER

Saturday Morning Nov 29th

Well Friday started out on the chilly side with temps down into the low 50's and a stiff breeze which made it feel even colder. We did have plenty of sunshine and blue skies but still for Florida it was an extra shirt when outside. I started the day much the usual with a before 6 rollout to my usual routines that begin with some quiet times after posting this ramble to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I headed out to check on the gardens and then to hand water all of the seedlings as well as sowed some radish seeds in the side garden where the carrots seeds never germinated and then to sow a couple hills of half runners as well that never germinated. Most all the seedlings that I put in yesterday seem to be holding as well.

After hand watering both the gardens and planters I headed out to the front yard to pull some weeds and hand water the yard and those areas that were parched because we haven't had any rain in so long. The water just runs off those areas and will not soak into the ground so that means some hand watering daily to get those areas saturated again so the grass will take hold, oh well. Thankfully the shallow well seems to be holding especially for the gardens.

I piddled around until an early lunch which was the supper the night before which held me the rest of the day and evening. It was even more tasty than the night before and we have enough for at least another full meal. We just over cook too much plus we gave a ways several containers plus three huge plates for Betsy to take home, oh well. We will do it all again in about a month when we have everyone here for Christmas dinner but this time with a prime rib roast. I watched a little of the 3 PM NFL game on TV before we headed up to the Botbyl's where we joined up with Steve and Sheri for hand, knee and foot and the gals came from behind in both games to win on the last hand, oh well. Its been a while since they have won and everyone was happy for a change. 

It was chilly walk home around 9'ish and I soon hit the shower and was watching some ALONE in the horizontal position until lights out at 10. Today Saturday I'll head to the Rec for some pickle ball and then work in the gardens and yards. Not sure what is planned for the evening but if nothing its college football. LATER

Friday Morning Nov 28th

 Well Thanksgiving Day was great as always since both son and daughter's family were able to be here in the evening along with Nancy's sister Betsy and the food was delicious to say the least and plenty of it as well, enough so we will have it again this evening or on Saturday. We played family games until nearly 9'ish before everyone left for home and I could help put the house back in order before hitting the shower. 

I had started the day with my usual before 6 rollout to some quiet times to honor Jesus, lift up several by name for comfort and healing after giving thanks for another day, all are holding with this post. I headed out to check on the gardens and eventually worked outside until 1'ish when I came in and turned on the first of three football games. Nancy was busy in the kitchen with food prep and getting for the gang around 4'ish, when everyone came shortly thereafter.

The kiddos all played some kick ball in the back yard as we guys sipped a little fruit of the vine watching them play until it was time to eat. Then it was a meal to delight the taste buds to say the least which of course was a huge turkey and gravy, dried stuffing, smashed tatters, candid yams, green beans, mac and cheese, a Greek spinach dish and home made rolls and then three kinds of pie with ice cream, yikes did we ever spark up the fixin's this year and Ava made the home made rolls. There was some cheese and crackers first but I passed but did have some vino.

Everyone was having such a fine time afterwards playing bingo and then another game that was guys vs gals in a game much like charades, supposedly the gals won but that was debatable, anyhow it was a great time as the kids and kiddos are maturing and some of us getting older. Hopefully I will be round for next years celebration, LATER

Thursday Morning Nove 27th..Thanksgiving Day 2025

 Well Wednesday was another quite warm day especially after lunch but the morning started out quite pleasant and of course my day started with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quite times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I headed out to the Rec on my bike for a workout and did get in a wet shirt and head before leaving around 9:30 and headed home to work in the gardens and yards until lunch time. Most everything is holding and now I have both red and green lettuces ready for harvesting which I will do tomorrow as the kitchen is taken over with the big turkey dinner this evening when both kids and all 7 grands come for supper plus Betsy. 

I moved up 18 more lettuce seedlings into 6 packs and will keep them there for a few days until they shown more leaves before setting them out into the garden proper. I did some hoeing and hand watering as well as pulling some weeds out of the front yard. I now have several new tomato seedlings up from some old seeds I had saved years ago and wondered it they would germinate and they did, so I will have more than enough to share with neighbors when they start to produce. The collards are ready for the pot. The kale and Swiss chard will be another week or so before they are ready to harvest and add to the salad bowl. I lost another cucumber hill but still have more than enough if these all make, oh well.

I started a new read about serial killers titled MURDERLAND by Caroline Fraser and she does a magnificent job on several killers in our day and more specifically with Ted Bundy and those events as she probes their minds and bloodlusts. She really delves into their back grounds and even areas where the environment may have been a factor into their rampages, very interesting.

Amy, Eliza and Sam came over after lunch to make cut out cookies with Nancy for an hour or two while I read. I never ate one cookie which I'm proud to say as I'm continuing on my decision to lose a couple pounds. I saw 194 the other day for the first time in months and I'm hopeful for 190 by the end of the year. I do believe taking Metamucil daily has helped some what to curb my craving for sweets and desserts and some what portion control. Today will be difficult with several different pies and of course smashed tatters and gravy as well as stuffing and yams, oh well, LATER

Wednesday Morning Nov 26th

 Well Tuesday was another hot day after a pleasant morning and a work day for the most part after a great work out on the pickle ball courts starting around 7:30 and ended some where close to 9:30 before calling it quits. I had won most all of my matches with all really good A players and left with a wet shirt. After pedaling home I worked in the gardens for another couple hour or so before calling it a day until around 5'ish when I headed out as the heat was waning to mow the yards until it was time to grill some peppers and onions in a grill basket and then some marinated chicken breast for fajitas for our supper. 

I had started the morning with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. All are holding and the lady that got run over in the yard next door last evening survived with a fracture of her pelvis and tibia, so glad to hear she had no internal injuries.

I transplanted some Swiss chard where the bush bean seeds were sowed but never germinated and the transplanted lettuce seedlings are doing well as I'm hand watering them twice a day. I now have lettuces ready for the salad bowl and will harvest some today. I did lose another cucumber hill and not sure why. Maybe I'm watering them too much as they don't like wet feet but do like moisture. The onions continue to send up stalks and the tomato's are now blooming as well. I still have marigold seedlings to be set out around the tomato's to keep away those nasty microscopic nematodes that look like root knots and suck the nutrients from plants especially tomato's and Swiss chard.

Nancy was off with sister Betsy again shopping and doing their togetherness each November as she takes the month off from the post office on vacation. It good for her as Gus is some thing else with his health declining. I spent the hottest part of the day finishing a great read about two corrupt NYC cops who worked with the mafia and nearly got away with their crimes and duplicity for money. They were finally incarcerated and died in prison in the early 2000's. This book is based on actual evidence and footnoted with photos as well. Its titled BLOOD AND THE BADGE. Being a former LEO this just makes you sick to your stomach for what they did and became, LATER

Tuesday Morning Nov 25th

 Well Monday was another hot day with no rain but it was a bit foggy to start the day which held the temps down until mid morning then it was bright sunshine and blue skies. I started the day with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and then to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. Last evening after getting back from a basketball game at Keswick a neighbor visiting some how put her car in reverse and attempted to exit the vehicle when it rolled back knocking her to the ground then rolled over her legs and stopped on the left leg pinning her to the road. Luckily I was out there to help with getting the car off her legs and then held her hand until EMT's arrived and transported her to the hospital. 

I headed out on my bike to the Rec for a good workout on the pickle ball courts before coming home and working out in the gardens. I got several hills of lettuce seedlings in the ground and hoed all of the plants before calling it a morning as the heat was oppressive. I chilled until it was lunch time then spent the afternoon reading while Nancy took Amy and the grand girls Christmas shopping since they are off this week from school. I started a new read which just breaks your heart and makes you angry that policemen in NYC were so corrupt and evil. The book is titled BLOOD AND THE BADGE by Michael Cannell. It a real page turner and it exposed the mafia in all of it forms as well as these two corrupt cops.

Well it was after 4 when Nancy got home so I headed out to give the gardens a hand watering and most every thing is doing well except the bush bean seeds I sowed a couple weeks ago never sprouted in the side garden which is OK as I now have half runner's breaking ground and they are the best tasting green bean, so now I will transplant some Swiss chard where I had sowed those bean seeds. Anyhow I did lose a cucumber hill but still have plenty left and of course now I'm going to have more tomato seedlings in a couple weeks to set out into the garden.

My neighbor who has carrier pigeons brought me a sack of pigeon poop which I will compost and use as fertilizer once it breaks down. Its very high in nitrogen and plants love it. We ate salad for lunch and then the leftover fried chicken and some fresh asparagus for our supper and then headed out to Keswick for some basketball. Ava's boyfriend plays on the varsity team and we really love watching the teenagers play. It was close to 8 before we pulled into the driveway and I was putting the truck in the garage when the neighbor's friend had her incident with being run over by her car, LATER

Monday Morning Nov 24th

 Well Sunday was a great day of corporate worship both here at home on line with Gary Hamrick at Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg, Va. and then with our local pastor Derek at SRBC. We were back at the second service greeting the many folks who came to worship in the 10:30 service at the front doors. We love this chance we have to volunteer and to meet and greet many new folks as well as reconnect with many friends and believers. We have met so many and became close friends with this chance we have in welcoming folks to worship.

I had started the morning much the usual with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet moments to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding with this post. We heard a great message from Gary on line about spiritual warfare and putting on the armour of GOD and then again in person at SRBC about our attitudes toward other believers. It was a great day of worship. We decided to come home and eat a salad for lunch instead of eating out. It was another warm day with temps up into the 80's and no rain. I did hand water the gardens before heading out to church and then again in the late afternoon and something got one hill of cucumbers and wiped it out, oh well, everything else is holding for now and I noticed some small tomato seedlings coming up from some old seeds I had saved from years back.

I watched the NFL the rest of the day and there were some good close come from behind games but our local Bucs were in L.A. and they were getting blown out at half time 31-7, so I cut them off and watched something else until lights at 10, LATER

Sunday Morning Nov 23rd

Well Saturday was a work day after I tried to get on the pickle ball courts at the Rec, but it was closed down for a craft fair. I did get an early morning bike ride there and back. I started the day much the usual with a before 6 rollout to my routines that start with some quite times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. All are holding with this post but some are not doing great as they recover from surgery.

After getting back from my bike ride I headed out to work in the gardens. I had about 2/3 rds of the gardens still not planted and the weeds and grasses were starting to show, so I took the electric rotor tiller and turned those areas over which kept me busy for a good hour working up a healthy sweat. I now have about 20 pots of seedlings that I will soon put into the garden proper next week. I did move more Swiss chards seedlings and marigolds into 6 packs. I now have onions breaking ground and will soon be harvesting both white and red romaine lettuces for the salad bowl. The cucumber plants have added an extra leaf so they are looking good in both patches as are the three tomato plants. I actually have blooms on one already. 

I worked outside until lunch time then the heat and sun got to be too much, so I got down all the Christmas decorations from the attic and helped Nancy put together the tree and then she decorated it for the rest of the afternoon while I chilled watching some college football. The heat was back during the mid day but by late afternoon it started to cool down enough that it was comfortable to be outside so I hand watered the gardens again before grilling some pork chops for our supper and sat outside with a glass of Merlot while they cooked. After the clean up I settled into more games while she was on her phone and I-Pad.

By 8'ish I was ready for a shower and then some horizontal lab by 10'ish. It was quite a busy day and I was whupped to say the least. Today is corporate worship day at SRBC as we work the front doors as greeters which is my gift from GOD while making all feel welcome, of course we worship every day with our quiet moments in prayer for those who we know who are family and those who need healing and comfort, LATER

Saturday Morning Nov 22nd

 Well Friday started out with awesome temps but eventually warmed up to the middle 80's and it was quite hot in the afternoon, so I did most of my outside work early after pickle ball. I got in a good work out on the courts then transplanted some beet seedlings as well as hand watered the gardens. Everything is looking good thus far despite the heat and lack of rain.

I started the day with my before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding but some better than others. We got word Grant our mountain buddy is not doing well, so keep him and Shirley in your prayers. I had a VA visit to clean out the ears now that I'm making so much wax which is annoying and they cleaned them both out which is a big help, despite using that liquid and a syringe at times during the summer, oh well.

We headed over to Brandon around 3 'ish and it took an hour and half to go 50 miles in all this heavy traffic. We played with the boys then had pizza and salad for supper before heading to the ball field to watch their last playoff game of the season. Bobby's team lost 17-15 in the last innings and it was a close game with the lead change every inning, but since they were up first the other team scored in the last inning to win.

It took us close to an hour to get home and then I hit the shower and watched some UFC before lights out at 10 for me, LATER

Friday Morning Nov 21st

 Well Thursday was another hot dry day after a very nice start with moderate temps. I was up before 6 to start my daily morning routines that begin with some quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I headed out on my bike to the Rec for a great workout winning most all of my 10 or so matches with different partners. It was a wet shirt workout and I made a stop at the library on the way home for a several new non fiction reads which one kept me quite busy during the afternoon when it was too hot to work outside. Nancy was out with her sister, Betsy shopping once again and they visited Ava at the coffee shop in Largo. I did run a couple errands picking up an egg plant and set it in the garden proper.

I did repot several lettuce seedlings into 6 packs and now have 18 new leafy lettuces which I will set in the garden in a few days, once I see they will make. I now have a couple more half runner beans sprouts breaking ground, so its looking like the seeds were still good. I still have beet seedlings in the one planter that needs to be moved into 6 packs before setting them into the ground. All of the veggie seedlings and plants are thriving with at least two hand watering a day. Thankfully the well is holding despite us getting no measurable rain since we've been home.

We headed out around 4'ish for Keswick school to watch grand daughter Eliza play their first home game against a good school and they lost by 3 points in a tough match up, but playing much better. They still have a couple girls who are clueless on the court but 3 or 4 make the team and Eliza is one of the best players of the first year team. She will be a asset by her senior year if she stays with it. We stayed for two other games and Keswick girls lost both of those games as well, but it was fun and we bought a season pass for all the games in support of the school.

We got back around 8'ish and I hit the shower and was soon watching the final ALONE show and the gal won half a million for sticking it out for 50 days in cold Labrador, Canada, surviving in squirrels, rabbits and mussels. I love those kinds of shows and I know I could do it even at this ripe age, oh well, LATER 

Thursday Morning Nov 20th

 Well Wednesday was another rather warm day with temps up into the 80's with tons of sunshine and blue skies. It was a work day after an hour or so of pickle ball first thing after my usual morning routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I headed out on my bike to the Rec for some play with a mixture of A and B players and left with a wet shirt. Nancy was just eating breakfast so I joined her with an egg, half an avocado drizzled with olive oil on a piece of sour dough bread, yikes is that not ever delicious and supposedly good for you. Anyhow that held me until a salad for lunch and then another salad with a piece of pan fried salmon filet for supper. Truthfully I'm still just under 200 pounds for some reason as I can not lose these 10 pounds I'm carrying around. I quit drinking beer and now with us being so busy with church and basketball games during the week, its maybe two glasses of Merlot during the week, oh well.

I sweated while working in the gardens transplanting my jalapeno peppers and kale seedlings which have added some good roots since Saturday afternoon and now I'm starting to see half runner beans sprouting through the ground. All of the leafy greens as well as the tomato plants are growing and I'll be adding them to the salad bowl in a week or less. The garden is loving these cool nights and warm to hot days as I have tons of seedlings up from seeds in my two planters which I will move into 6 packs before setting them out into the garden proper.

I finished the book during the hot afternoon while Nancy was getting her hair colored and cut. THE IDAHO FOUR is a good read and it takes you right up to before the killer admits to his evil deeds. The book reads like a novel but very moving about the families and lifestyles of those four victims. The investigation turned on the DNA on the knife sheath left behind at the scene and then it was finally putting all the pieces together to arrest the bad guy.

Well we headed out after an early supper to SRBC for what was called a packing party for Thanksgiving bags for the needy or some not well off, for both our members and for schools down the road from the church in our neighborhood. We filled over 130 bags or whats usually called baskets with lots of everything for a turkey day dinner with even gift certificates for actual birds. It was a process with a couple hundred folks doing the filling as we progressed through the tables loaded with items then we added hand written cards in with the items and then prayed over them as well. It was very touching and we hoped to not only fill some tummy's but gave them a reason to be thankful and hopefully know that we want them to be filled with the love of Jesus through our giving and sharing our bounty, LATER

Wednesday Morning Nov 19th

Well Tuesday was another busy day that started with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. I have to add another name to the list as our friend Sandy who we played cards with last evening told us her husband Jim in quickly going down hill. Jim, Sandy and I are all about the same age of 80 and its such a matter of time for him. Saddened to hear this about him. Everyone else seems to be holding with this post.

 I got in two hours of good pickle ball play with all A players and left whupped with a wet shirt just before 10 and then pedaled home on my bike in the warm sunshine to work outside in the gardens for the next hour or so. I set 10 hills of two different types of cucumber plants that all came up from seeds which surprised me, but I put them in different spots in the gardens. I did some hoeing and then hand watering until I took off to get my hair cut at a new barbershop here in Seminole and was back at the house just after noon to have a salad and then it was read time until Nancy got home with her sister from shopping around 4'ish. I started a new read titles THE IDAHO FOUR by James Patterson.

We were eating at the Botbyl's for a lite supper along with Steve and Sandy(minus Jim) and Sheri was on a cruise to play hand, knee and foot around 5:30. It was a soup and sandwich meal with some apple crisp and ice cream for dessert that Steve made. Well the guys whupped the gals in one whole game and then we decided to play just two rounds as it was getting late and the guys whupped the gals again. I got back to the house around 9'ish and hit the shower and then at 10'ish it was lights out for me, LATER

Tuesday Morning Nov 18th

Well Monday started out with my usual before 6 rollout to my routines that start with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I soon headed out to the Rec for a good work out on the pickle ball courts with a mixture of A and B players and worked up a sweat before leaving a little early as I had to drive Nancy to the northern part of the county for a doctors appointment. I read while she was inside and then we made a stop at Sam's Club to gas up at a 2.76 a gallon. That is about what it was most of the summer in the mountains. We then ran a couple errands on the way home and then had a bite of lunch before we were picked up by Tyler and Ava to attend Elizas game in Tampa at a muslim academy at 2 o'clock. The game started at 3:30 but the traffic was unbelievable both going and coming. It took a good hour to get their and as much or more coming home. We watched a little of the middle school boys game and they were getting blown out by what looked like varsity boys who were a foot taller than out boys, oh well.

This place was high dollar with a very modern gym and all of the folks especially the women were covered except for their faces even while playing basketball. The girls were all much taller and seemed much older than our 6th graders and of course they beat our girls by 20 points, but we played much better than on Saturday's blow out loss. They are improving but have a ways to go. Eliza scored several times and is much like her older sister on defense with great tenacity an eagerness. She loves the game and wears her sister number 14 on her jersey.

Well I now have my first half runner green bean popping though the ground as I was beginning to wonder if the seeds were still good. I'll play pickle ball this morning then garden and mow the yards this afternoon while Nancy is off with her sister spending money/shopping. The weather has been awesome with a chill in the air in the morning and up to the low 80's during the afternoon. We do need some rain, LATER

Monday Morning Nov 17th

Well Sunday was an awesome day both in worship and temp wise. I started the day with an early wake up in a spare room as Nancy's snoring was so profound I could not sleep, so I headed to the spare bedroom of which I never was able to go back to sleep, anyhow I survived to live another day. The temps were on the cool side to start the day but eventually warmed to t shirt and shorts attire by the time we left the church around 1'ish after a luncheon for all the volunteers who make things happen without the staff's help on Sunday's and even during the week on Wednesday's. It was a taco theme meal with lots of homemade dishes and Nancy baked and brought her signature chocolate cake with white icing which went fast.

I had started the morning with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and then lifted up several who need comfort and healing, all are holding with this post. I soon headed out to hand water the gardens as I knew it would be late before we got back from church and then in time too hear Gary Hamrick speak at Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg, Va. He and our local pastor at SRBC are fine speakers and do a great job with scripture interpretation. We are a large congregation church with two services on Sunday running probably 1000 or so in both combined services and our campus is large with tons of groups especially for all ages but a big emphasis on the children and youths who are really your next church's existence. We love greeting folks especially new believers and first time attendee's. I've yet to meet very few strangers which is a gift from GOD.

We dropped off Dan and Carol and then headed home to unwind and watch the hapless Bucs play terrible football in the cold frozen north of Buffalo, N.Y. They were horrible to say the least and but still are leading in their weak division, oh well. It was football until bedtime for me and I skipped any supper except for a handful of mixed nuts. Today Monday will be another busy day as I'll hit the courts at 8 for an hour or so then drive Nancy north to a doctors appointment which is a good half hour or more away and then we will ride with Tyler to watch Eliza play basketball in Tampa with the school and then back home hopefully before dark, LATER

Sunday Morning Nov 16th

 Well Saturday turned out to be a very nice day actually it warmed up enough Nancy needed the a/c on in the afternoon. I found it almost perfect with just a slight chill in the air to start the morning. It was a fun day except for a little garden work in the afternoon and I broke a sweat for an hour or more in the gardens. The morning started with a before 6 rollout for me to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healings, all seem to be holding with this post.

We headed out around 8:45 for a local school where our youngest grand daughter has taken on the mantle left by her older sister on the basketball court and Eliza did just fine in he first structured game against really good players with some being 8th graders against her team of 6th graders. Anyhow she played hard on defense and actually scored the only bucket in the second game to start that game until another player scored just before the end of the game. Their team lost both games as they played 4 times for 5 minutes in each game. The school was packed with different teams through out the day and luckily her teams played first and we were finished by 11'ish.

We headed over to Sunshine Joe's which is in the Largo area where Ava Mae now works a couple days a week in a coffee shop. She loves it and so her boss loves her and her personality as well as work ethic. We all had specialty drinks and visited for awhile. Amy and Eliza followed us there and we saw some classmates from Keswick there as well. Afterwards we made a stop at a nursery just up the road and picked up some more veggie plants and onion sets I wasn't able to find at Home Depot or Lowes.

I moved these bedding plants into larger pots and then set out 3 small rows of onion sets into the garden as well. I'll soon have enough seedlings from my seeds as well and then the gardens will be fully planted and then to just wait to start harvesting. The weather except for the cold snap has been delightful with cool mornings and warm afternoons and even a little bit hot yesterday.

 I did get in some college football time in the late afternoon and then we did a salad and frozen pizza for supper. Today is worship day both on line and at our local SRBC. They are having a volunteer luncheon in the fellowship after the second service so Nancy made a cake to bring for dessert, LATER

Saturday Morning Nov15th

 Well its hard to believe this month is half gone already and Thanksgiving is in less than 2 weeks, wow. Time just movers on so quickly as you grow older, oh well I suppose it beats the other. I started the morning with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healings, all are holding with this post. I soon headed out on my bike to the Rec for some two hours of pickle ball play with a mixture of both A and B players and I left whupped with a wet shirt. I got home just as Nancy was leaving to shop with her sister in northern Clearwater/Countryside area where Betsy lives until after 3'ish, so that meant I was free to do as I wished.

I worked outside in the yards and gardens until lunch time which was finishing up the left over roasted lamb we had a couple days ago and then I settled into finishing up the ALONE episodes held in Africa and then I headed out to work on my feet with soaking them in white vinegar, mouth wash and a little water to kill any fungus and then clipped my toe nails and then rubbed off any corns and callouses. I do that at least every month or so.

I finished a true story on a murder that occurred in the 80's in Georgia that had the wrong man be imprisoned for 20 years while the real murder continued to terrorize his family and neighbors but was eventually captured and sentenced to prison. THE MAN NO ONE BELIEVED is a real page turner and exposed the shoddy police work in southern Georgia and the wrongful arrest of an innocent man and who was eventually awarded a huge sum to make up for the wrong did to him and those who stood by him.

Well Nancy got home after shopping and we ate some frozen fish young Caleb Dalton blessed up with called Crappie before we left the mountains. That is some of the best non fishy tasting fish ever and so white. Nancy breaded the filets and baked them in the oven and they were superb and long with some black beans and rice. I had eaten lite during the day and I'm trying to use a little of that Pink Salt in hopes it will help shrink these fat cells around my belly, so far I've seen little change as a matter of act I've added a pound or two since coming back from the mountains, hopefully its muscle from all the exercise.

After supper and the cleanup I settled into a new read titled BANDIT HEAVEN which is another non fiction read on the final chapters of the wild west. Great read thus far and it tells the real story of those early settlers who attempted to make a go of it and settle the western states. I hit the shower around 9'ish and then settled into another ALONE episodes in the frozen north of Labrador, LATER

Friday Morning Nov 14th

Well Thursday started out on the chilly side but quickly warmed up to t shirt and shorts temps but the ride to the Rec around 7:30 on my bike was a bit nippy. I started the day with a before 6 rollout to my quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I donned a sweat jacket and headed out for close to two solid hours of pickle ball play with mostly A player and won most of my games. We had a couple new good players for the first time and our stable is growing of good players. I'll go again this morning but its mainly B player with a few A's in the mix as its mainly a work out day whereas Tue and Thur it competition play.

I came back and worked in the garden as Nancy was off to her Bible study class so I was able to set out three tomato plants into the garden proper and the soil is like dust in the garden, so I dug my holes and filled them with water and then watered them again after setting them out. The garden is just a dust bowl and so I let the hose run for several minutes hoping to get it back to real soil again. There seems to be some compost in it but it so dry. All of the seedlings I've set out seem to be holding despite these couple of cold nights. I'm now hand watering twice a day until I can get the garden soil solid again and hopefully some earthworms.

I read and watched some ALONE episodes on the lap top during the afternoon after a lite lunch and then before heading out around 6'ish with neighbor Dan to our mens Bible study class I ate some leftovers for supper. We are in the book of Kings and it very interesting to say the least. Not much else to report except the warmth is coming back after those two winter days, LATER

Thursday Morning Nov 13th

Well Wednesday started out with our coldest day of the year with temps close to the 30's in some areas but here it was 41 around 6'ish, but eventually it warmed up to the low 70's by early afternoon which is normal for our area with tons of sunshine and blue skies. Not nearly as blue as the skies around the mountains of N.C. but still blue in color. I started the morning with a  before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post.

I got ready and headed to the Rec for a good two hour workout on the pickle ball courts and left after working up a sweat. I drove the truck as it was quite chilly with the breeze and the old temps. I got back before 10 and Nancy was about to leave for her doctor appointment so I had my glass of metamucil then headed out to work in the gardens. It had warmed up to t shirt temps by then and was quite nice. I transplanted the last of the lettuce seedlings had bought into the garden proper and then moved some cucumber seedlings from my seed bed into small pots for another week before setting them into the garden proper.

I headed over to the small plot outside the back yard along side the house and sowed two small rows of green bean seeds and a row of carrot seeds and then hand watered all of the gardens hoping the moisture with once again attract and draw the earthworms back. They are the real key to good gardening as their casings are the best plant food. I stayed outside until lunch time then ate some fresh made fish spread neighbor Andrew blessed us with. He has a huge 3 axle boat with twin outboards some where around 25 foot or more and he fishes monthly or more and blesses us with some fresh fish from the Gulf. This spread was from King Fish he and his buddies caught last week.

Well I had a skin doctor's appointment for my 6 month checkup and they took one biopsy and sprayed a few areas, hopefully no surgery on the arm area, oh well. Better to be sure with the dangerous effects of skin cancers. I got back and Nancy was off shopping for the Thanksgiving baskets for our church where we are making baskets for the needy in the community. She loaded up all kinds of dry and canned goods for the packing next Wednesday at church. I read and finished the book on the murders in Houston back in the 70's and the eventual process used to identify these victims placed in the ground inside of a storage shed and other places. The bad guys helpers both went to prison after they shot him, what was sad these two young guys helped procure the victims for this murderer from among their friends and in their neighborhood.

Well we ate leftovers for supper and then headed out to church for the evening message along with a good crowd and met some new members who we knew from Keswick basketball. I had a good chat with them before the service started. It was 8:30 before we got home and since I had showered before the skin doctors appointment I skipped another shower and watched some ALONE before lights out at 10'ish, LATER

Wednesday Morning Nov 12th

Well winter has sprung here in usually hot, sunny Florida as we had temps almost to the 30's over night and it never reached 60 for a high, yikes. We haven't turned on the heat yet, but I'm sure Nancy is thinking about it, anyhow the stiff breeze made for long pants and a sweat shirt or jacket when outside. I did venture out about mid morning to hand water the gardens and then again around 4'ish to do it again, but mostly spent the day in doors reading. I started a new non fiction read titled THE SCIENTIST AND THE SERIAL KILLER, wow what a true story on the mass murder by a killer of young teens in Houston Texas in the 70's and how many who were never identified were finally laid to rest with a name. I did start the day with my before 6 rollout to my routines that start with some quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post.

It was Veteran's Day and every thing was closed but restaurants and many were honoring us Vets by giving us free meals, at first I wanted to try Applebee's, but since it was so cold out I decided the Zuppa soup at Olive Garden was the right choice on this cold day, so we headed out around 2'ish for a good meal and then Publix of all places was giving 10% off on your grocery bill so we made a few purchases there and saved a couple bucks. It was stay in the rest of the day and evening.

I tuned into the YOU TUBE channel on the lap top and watched several series on the ALONE adventure in South Africa before hitting the shower around 9 and then by 10'ish I was gone for the night, LATER

Tuesday Morning Nov 11th..Veterans Day

 Well Monday started out on the warm side but by late evening it had cooled down to the upper 50's but the wind made it feel even cooler, but still pleasant enough to wear shorts, but a long sleeve shirt felt good when we left a friend house around 9:30 last evening. I started the day with my before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet moments to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I headed out on my bike to the Rec for a work out on the pickle ball courts and then made a stop at the library for a couple non fiction true crime reads before pedaling home against a stiff northern breeze to work in the gardens until lunch time.

I managed to set all of my seedlings I had potted up last week into the ground except the tomato and pepper seedlings and couple small lettuce seedlings. I placed them in different spots this season as I like to rotate them yearly. I used up almost half the space in the one garden and still have several seedlings in the planters to set out plus I want to sow more seeds when the moon is right for radishes and carrots which is the dark of the moon, anyhow the ground was so dry and dusty that I soaked the holes before setting the seedlings into the ground but they all had sprouted extra roots while I had them potted up into larger containers from the six packs. They were looking good as I set them into the holes with some cow manure compost and some non burning fertilizer and then watered them again. I water the whole gardens by hand as I need to attract the earthworms back after the gardens have dried out and they move on this summer.

Well I had a couple pieces of cheese with crackers for my lunch as I knew we were eating large at the Nymark's around 5:30 and then cards afterwards. Sheri had chili on this cool evening along with dogs and all the fixin's. It was delicious to say the least and then the guys wiped the floor in hand, knee and foot against the gals. It was so bad we didn't add the final scores and then a game of Michigan rummy which I led the whole game, but could not go down on the last hand and was whupped by Carol, oh well it was a fun evening and we caught up with Sheri and Steve as she has become a cruise addict with her daughter. She leaves again the end of the week for another cruise with her, oh well. Steve hasn't had any real interest in his mountain place which suits us as we have fun when they are there, LATER

Monday Morning Nov 10th

Well Sunday started out with my usual before 6 rollout to my routines that start with some quiet moments to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. It had rained a little overnight and in the morning hours and that was a blessing as its been so dry this past week and from what neighbors say weeks before we got back. We watched our Cornerstone Chapel service with Gary Hamrick on TV(internet) before we headed out to our local SRBC where we were back at the the front door greeting folks for the second service. We love this weekly chance to meet and greet folks and especially new folks seeking a church home. Lots of hugs and welcome backs with many hand shakes and tons of smiles and how much we were missed, wow does that not ever make your day and all in the welcoming folks to hear about Jesus and the Bible.

After the service which was led by our men's conference speaker who was a close friend of pastor Tom and Karen we met at the fellowship hall for a free meal for veterans and their spouses which was cantered by Sonny's barbecue. This is a yearly event for those who served the military and in addition a spokes person for the Honor Flight was there and briefed us on that event that is for west central Florida that takes a one day trip to D.C. to visit all of the memorials there. I registered for the flight but it may not occur for some time, anyhow it was a nice program and the food was excellent.

We got back and I settled into the Bucs game which they at one time were winning but blew the lead and lost to the patriots here at home, oh well. They are still in the lead in the division but barely. We skipped any supper after the big meal except for a piece of the left over birthday cake around 6. I finished Bobby's book THE COMING DAWN and now today after pickle ball I'll stop by the library for some new reads.

Tomorrow, on Tuesday several eateries are giving vets free dining so I want to try Applebees for change and its been awhile since we were last there. We usually attend Olive Garden but want to try something different for a change. Our friends don't like Applebee's so we never go there, oh well.

I headed in to watch the late game but instead watched a new show or series on 30 days Alone in the wild with no tools, but the big game had been killed ahead of their arrival, so they had food but have to prepare it for eating among the bears and other predators. Interesting show, LATER

Sunday Morning Nov 9th

 Well Saturday was a busy day with lots of fine eatin' both early in the morning at our mens conference at church and then again at our house when we had the whole family over plus three extra's who are boy and girl friends which made for a full house at 16. We had plenty to share and even some leftovers which were excellent in taste, especially the leg of lamb which I must say makes the best gravy ever.

I started the day with my before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post.

Neighbor Dan picked me up around 7:45 and we headed to SRBC and had some pastry/muffins with some fresh fruit to start the morning gastric juices flowing. That held me until lunch time when I cleaned up some leftovers from Nancy supper on Friday night which was some leftover nacho meat, any how we heard some good messages for men and it was all biblical coming from the book of Genesis, especially with the woke culture today. Men need to return to "manning up" not only physically but to being the leader in their homes and church as well as culturally because GOD ordained it. Anyhow the speaker was awesome and left us all inspired about how the church should once again be the driving force in our society and the role men play within it.

After getting back around 11'ish I hand watered the potted veggies as well as the beans I had sowed the other day as that ground is just plain dust. In two of the small planters I had sowed some seeds and now have lettuce, beets and cucumber poking through the ground. Hopefully they will make enough to move them into 6 packs this week and eventually into the garden proper.

Well I did get in some reading during the afternoon and watched a little college football when the kids all came around 5'ish. Nancy was busy in the kitchen with food prep for the family supper and it was delicious to the dessert which was a favorite of mine as well. I grilled fresh asparagus and she had fresh green beans, tons of smashed tatters and two boneless legs of lamb and Bobby made the gravy from the juices of the lamb roasts, plus crusty bread. We all had some cheeses we brought back from N.C. as well as a glass of vino before feasting. The coconut cake was very lite and we sent much of it home after eating our fill. The cake was a pan cake and huge to say the least, oh well.

Afterwards we played Herd Mentality with everyone sitting in the front room and it was a hoot to say the least. Well around 8:30 Bobby and his gang with Gabe and girl friend Izzy headed out for Brandon and then Annsley and her beau Trisdan left and then Ava and her beau Landon and then Amy's family left. I helped to straighten up the house and then finished the dishes and was soon in the shower and by 10'ish it was lights out for me. Nancy came in later.

Today we have church at 10:30 and then a Veterans luncheon at church which is catered by Sonny's barbecue so we always know that is going to be good. Hopefully we can get finished by 1'ish as the Bucs play the Patriots in Tampa. GO BUCS, LATER

Saturday Morning Nov 8th

Well Friday was another busy day that started with a before 6 rollout to my morning routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. All seem to be holding with this post. I headed out on my bike to the Rec for an hour and half of pickle ball and worked up a sweat plus trying to get back into shape after a summer of eating too much while entertaining many at the cabin.

I came back and piddled around outside in the gardens and yards until lunch time then it was stay inside checking on the world news as well as whats happening with Israel and the terrorists in the middle east. Despite Hamas supposedly surrendering they are still killing not only the IDF but their own people and now we have a supporter of them elected by the idiots in NYC, the largest most prestigious city in the world. Unbelievable. I did manage to read on son Bobby's book for a couple hours during the heat of the afternoon.

I picked up neighbor Dan as we both were scheduled to attend a mens conference at SRBC where we attend when in Florida at 5 with dinner included which turned out to be a plate cleaner meal; delicious with a filet wrapped in bacon, baked tater with all the fixins', sauteed mushrooms and onions as well as a toss salad and then different pies for dessert. There were about a 150 men mostly from our church but I rekindled old friendships with a couple from the church we use to attend. The speaker is a life long friend of our executive pastor and has just retired for pastoring churches all over the USA and has now moved to Florida. Awesome speaker as well.

It was 8'ish before the conference was over and headed home to drop off Dan and then I hit the shower and was soon ready for some horizontal lab around 10'ish. This morning we head by to church at 8 for breakfast and then another couple hours in the morning before we have a large family supper with supposedly 14 coming for supper, should be a fun evening, LATER

Friday Morning Nov 7th

Well Thursday was another beautiful morning and the skies were overcast for most of the day but no much needed rain, anyhow it was a great day for working outside after I spent close to two hours on the pickle ball courts with all "A" players. More on that later in this post. I had started the day with a before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet moments to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post and we got some good news on Grant and why he hasn't been able to eat or wanted to eat.

I headed out around 7:30 on my bike to the Rec for some pickle ball with all good players and renewed lots of friendships with hugs from most all there. I felt like a rock star and believe it or not I won every match except one with different players through out the morning. I suppose I should lay off playing as my bad habits disappeared once I got on the court and folks wondered and remarked that my play was excellent especially being the oldest one there. I worked up a good sweat then decided to head home as I still has one garden patch to clear of grass and then rotor till it before it became to hot outside.

I loaded up two huge garbage cans of the grasses and weeds and got them off to the garbage truck so now I'm basically free of weeds and grasses but still have some shrubs to clip but nothing like I was facing in the gardens. I doubt I will get one can full of clippings whereas when we first got back I filled my three cans and borrowed a neighbor huge can, oh well. I'm relieved that job is done and now its time to fill it up with veggies plants and seeds. I sowed a row of half runner beans and that is the first seeds sowed actually into soil, whereas the other seeds sown have been in pots and six packs waiting to be transplanted into the ground once they become large enough. The recently bought seedlings are doing well as I had moved them into larger pots from 6 packs.

Nancy was off until after lunch with her Bible study class at church and then shopping at Publix once again. It seems our toll for Saturdays birthday dinner will include some girl friends and boyfriends of the grands. That total will go up to 14 from 11, oh well. I'm thrilled they want their friends to meet their grand parents. I had thawed out two deer back straps that Caleb had blessed us with for our supper and they were delicious on the grill along with some fresh zucchini and sweet taters. I'm so thank full he blessed us with several messes of venison for this winter which usually mountain neighbor Gerald does, but Caleb rescued at the last minute with venison and some fish fillets he had caught over the summer as well.

Well it was dark by the time we ate supper so it was time to stay inside despite the weather being very nice outside and its supposed to get down into the 40's next week which is winter time here. The a/c has been on but but not nearly as much as last year at this time. I've actually been able to work outside much more this year as in the past. This weekend there is a mens conference at our church starting Friday tonight with a steak dinner included and then on Saturday morning with breakfast included so I'll attend and then the big family dinner on Saturday night and then we are back to being greeters at the 10:30 service at church on Sunday morning and then a luncheon for Veterans afterwards, WOW nothing but social and eatin' this weekend, oh well, LATER

Thursday Morning Nov 6th

Well Wednesday started out with my usual before 6 rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding with this post. I headed out to the Rec for an hour and half of pickleball and got in a good workout before heading home to hand water the veggie plants I had potted up into small pots for a week or so until I get the beds ready for planting. I still have one small bed besides the house to clear out the weeds and knee high grass before tilling the soil. The afternoons are back up into the 80's with no rain so I want to give these veggies and good start before setting them into parched soil.

Nancy needed me to drive her to her doctor's appointment at 10 so I didn't want to do any garden work and get real dirty so I sat and started son, Bobby's third book in the trilogy EPIC OF HAVEN which is titled THE COMING DAWN. I read about 4 chapters while she was in with the doctor then we headed to Sam's Club to stock up the freezers. They had boneless leg of lamb at 4 bucks a pound less than Publix which we are serving on Sunday for birthday dinners for Gabe and Anns with at least 11 folks and it maybe more if the kids bring boy and girl friends, oh well.

We loaded up on ground meat, chicken breasts, brats and lots of other goodies before making a stop at Lowes next door for some herbs. I picked up a Thai basil, sweet basil and parsley and moved them into larger pots as well. I brought a couple dill plants back the deer had eaten off and I'm hoping they make and then I sowed some cilantro seeds I had harvested from my mountain garden. I also sowed some Swiss chard and jalapeno pepper seeds as I could not find any seedlings, oh well. If every think makes I will have another good garden again this fall and winter here in hot sunny Florida.

Well we headed out to church for the Wednesday night service and renewed lots of friendship and was welcomed greatly and we got back home around 9'ish. I soon hit the shower and was watching some Hulu TV in the bedroom while Nancy had her TV in the front room with lights out before 10 which is a quite a change from the cabin as we have just the one TV in the living room, LATER

Wednesday Morning Nov 5th

 Well Tuesday started out with my usual before 6 rollout as I had tons of projects on my mind and the temps were in the 50's to start the day and just perfect for working in the gardens as the afternoons would soon heat up and I wanted an early start. I did my routines that begin with some quiet time to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I waited until sunrise then headed out to work on clearing the gardens beds inside the back yard. I have small one on the outside of the fence that is totally over grown with grass knee high and I'll work on that last later in the week, but I wanted to clear the grasses and weeds in the two patches in the back yard so as to get my potted veggies in the ground.

I first raked and dug up some the huge patches of grass that would just clog up my electric rotor tiller and cleared those out of the beds before using the tiller which is a powerful electric machine. It really works you but loosens up the pack soil and also brings up the nasty grasses and their roots which I have to cut out around the blades. The ground was so dry and the dust was nasty covering me completely that I finally wore an old covid mask and then after finishing both back yard beds had to take the water hose and clean myself hand to toe, wow what a mess but I got it done and then I took the mower and ran over the grasses and weeds mulching them down for the garbage can. I filled 4 cans on Monday with the clippings. Normally I would use these mulched grasses for just that but this grass is the worst ever and I want to rid it if possible so in the garbage can it went for pick up on Thursday, anyhow it was shower time and clean up as we had to leave around 2'ish to vote in a city election and then to Brandon which took us over an hour and half due to traffic.

We headed to Bobby's where we were eating supper and then off to Annsley induction into the National Honor Society at Bloomingdale High School where she is a senior. This campus is huge and there are over 500 students in her class. It was nice but a short program and we got to meet her new boy friend as well who attend another school but is also a very bright young man and quite handsome. Katie was unable to attend as it was the twins last baseball game so she and her boss who had joined us for supper attended the game and then after the program we headed back to watch the twins team come from behind to win the final game of the regular season by a run. Bobby is usually the coach of team and so we went straight there.

We headed on home after the game and got back to the house before 10. Since we had already showered and I was whupped so I  soon hit the sack and was out for the night. Nancy has a doctors appointment this morning and wants me to drive and then shop Sam's club afterwards so Ill forgo any real garden work as we have church at 7 and an instead head out to the Rec for some pickle ball this morning at 8, LATER

Tuesday Morning Nov 4th

Well Monday was a total work day for me that started around a 6'ish rollout with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seems to be holding with this post. Life here is completely different from the cabin and we so enjoy both. The neighbors are so close that I can spit across the fence or when I hand watered the front shrubs my hose rests in their yard, but both are very nice and we get along fine.

I headed out after a some what sleepless night as I'm getting use to the bed which is a king size compared to the queen at the cabin, so I have more room and Nancy's snoring isn't in my ear. After my routines I had a bite of breakfast then headed to work the grown over shrubs and garden patches with an electric clipper which soon made the side fence look much better. I have this one vine I planted 20 some years ago and it thrives here as well as a pest vine which smell and grows feet in length over night. I use some weed killer on it but it keeps coming back when we are gone for the summer.

I headed off after Nancy got back from stocking up the fridges and pantry to two different stores which we have plenty to choose from. I made a stop at the mower place for a used starter as the kids had broken the pull cord over the summer while taking care of my yards. Then it was off to Home Depot for veggie plants in six packs and for some potting soil and mulch for the front yard shrubs. I did hand water them three times as they were looking poorly from the lack of rain. I shut my well down over the summer and despite no hand watering they were still alive and blooming, oh well.

It was late afternoon and while I still have tons to do before putting any plants in the ground I have to get all of these grasses out and one patch had grass as tall as my waist and I had to pull it out by hand and its one tough grass, any how I love the physical work and the ground here is as flat as a pancake which saves me tones of energy in that respect. Not much to look at here except houses all around but I do have a good 6 ft wooden fence on three sides so I have tons of privacy. Its different an I miss seeing the woods all around the cabin with 7 acres to explore and use for what ever. 

I borrowed a neighbors extra large trash can that are picked up at the curb and yesterday I filled my three and one of hers full of grasses, vines and clipping from the shrubs. I still have that much and more for the next pickup on Thursday They pick up twice a week which makes it great instead of having to drive 10 miles to the landfill, oh well. I grilled pork chops and Nancy had fresh Brussel sprouts which we hadn't had in months and I love them with dijon mustard and some pasta for our supper which was in the dark, oh well.

Well I'll only get in about a half day of work as we have to be Tampa this evening for grand daughter Annsley National Honor Society program at her school. We will leave here around 3'ish and then have supper with son, Bobby and visit with them before the program and then head home in tons of traffic, oh well, LATER

Monday Morning Nov 3rd..from sunny warm Florida

Well since I was last on this venue I've travelled over 700 miles and left cold temps of 30's to a nice 80's degrees when we got back to our place here in Seminole.  I knew the time was changing on the day we left but still wanted to leave on old time which was an hour earlier. Nancy wasn't happy but I never sleep the night before and even sometimes two nights before when making that big change either coming or going. I have my mind working all through the night on remembering all I have to do before leaving especially in the mountains where I have to winter the cabin with draining the system and making sure I put antifreeze in all of the traps and draining the cabin down to the hot water heater which is the lowest for water to exit in to the drain in the floor of the basement. I work hard for an hour while she spends the whole time in front of the mirror complaining about me being so hyper busy and raring to go, oh well.

The drive down the mountain was uneventful despite seeing tons of live deer along the roadway edges but thankfully none jumped into the road or the truck. We saw lots of live deer as well as some that had died after being hit by vehicles along the way. We came back through Charlotte which is great during the early morning hours and made great time all the way into Florida where we encountered heavy traffic on the interstate, but still got back in a little less than 12 hours after making a couple food stops, potty stops and then and then some walking a few minutes stops. We usually have our stops planned out but used different ones this time except for the welcome center at the Florida line.

We were unloading the truck before 3 at home and then turning on the water and flushing the pipes and all the things you do when changing residences after being gone 5+ months. It's sure a change here with no hills and walk ups. The yards looks decent but the gardens patches are over grown and I will spend the day cleaning them out and then off to purchase bedding plants for the season. I did bring back a couple tomato seedlings and some dill plants but not sure if they will make.

Amy and Tyler and the grands were thrilled to see us and prepared a delicious supper of grilled salmon on cedar planks for us along with a pasta dish and some broccoli and a glass of red wine to accompany. We gave them the portrait of Rocky we had painted for them by wife of an old class mates. They were thrilled with the picture and Rocky wanted to bite it because he thought it was another dog, how funny. The only hiccup was getting the HULU to work in the living room. I had it working in the bedroom right away but not in the big room, oh well. I'll work on that at a later time. 

I soon hit the shower after getting back around 8:30 and was in the horizontal position soon there after. This is a totally different life style and we are blessed to experience both with seasons and different landscapes. Neighbors here were thrilled to see us as well a we were sad to say good bye to so many in the mountains, LATER

Saturday Morning Nov 1st..my last post from the cabin this year

Well Friday was another cold and windy day but no rain and no frost or ice on the truck, but despite no below freezing temps it was cold all day long. The stiff breeze kept it quite chilly even with bright sunshine and blue skies for most of the day. I started the morning much the usual with a 6 ish rollout to my usual routines that begin with some quite times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding with some more severe than others. I did head out after day light to stretch on the back porch before walking the property which has been a custom of mine especially when the gardens were in full bloom, but now that they are gone for the winter and covered up with leaves and pine needles I just like to walk around limbering up the joints and getting in some exercise. I did later in the afternoon walk the steep driveway from top to bottom three times which is just as good if not better than the usual mountain top hike. The wind was so strong it really made for being in the woods a little unsafe from falling branches and tree limbs which have been hung up in other trees, oh well.

I did more packing up and getting my tools to be really for loading in the trunk as well as some last minute storing of my gas machines and taking the battery out of the riding mower and storing it in the basement which doesn't freeze. Today I'll make a last minute dump run and gas up on the way back to the cabin and do some final sorting and cleaning out freezers and fridge's. We were having Mechelle, Billy and Caleb for supper so Nancy was busy with that. Caleb brought me several packages of venison and fish fillets so I'll have plenty for this winter until next summer. Hopefully Neighbor Gerald will have good hunting after we leave on the property, especially those deer who eat my garden. It's no wonder the meat is so tasty.

I grilled steaks along with baked spuds, green beans and Texas toast and Nancy had a fresh batch of brownies with ice cream, another feast no doubt. We don't get to see them much since Caleb is now stationed in Charlotte with the USAF guard full time and of course Mechelle and Billy both work. We only saw her folks a time or two this summer as many changes have occurred with their stages in life and some not as good as others. Caleb is special since we have known him as a small boy and watched him grow in a great and honorable young man.

Well this we will be my last post from this window seat this year as we leave hopefully around 4 in the morning until next summer. It will be a busy day with lots to do and then again in the morning as I drain the pipes and winterize the cabin for the next 7 months, LATER

The next post should come from Florida where the temps have been awesome and the high heat has abated. Perfect for getting the gardens ready for planting next week and then back to daily morning pickle ball, of course we have to make a trip to Tampa on Tuesday and I'm sure at least a weekly trip there in tons of traffic, oh well

Friday Morning Oct 31st... Halloween

 Well Thursday was another busy day both outside and inside after being cooped up for 24 hours due to the constant rain that dropped over 3 inches upon us and with it more cold temps and now wicked wind at times. I managed to work out side piddling around in the yards and gardens as well as getting more areas winterized for our departure on Sunday morning for the next 7 months, where did these 5 months go and so quickly.

I started the day with my usual routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding with this post. I did stretch on the back porch before doing several laps around the property before heading in to a semi mountain breakfast of pancakes which were delicious to say the least with a banana in the batter. I used the last of the honey on my cakes as we are cleaning up little bits of stuff before we head to the dump to unload lots of empty containers and of course trash on Saturday morning. That will be my last trip into Sparta this year and then I'll stop and gas the truck up, plus gas up some non ethanol for my equipment for next summer hopefully when we arrive in May/June.

We eventually took a nice long hike as the sun finally warmed up the air around lunch time, so down to Steve's place which he is selling out and then up to the back road that runs along our upper property line and then down the side road and then finally up the steep drive way back to the cabin. I was a great hike and very exhilarating to say the least. We saw lots of wild turkeys on the back road as they had been scratching where neighbor Gerald puts out corn. What leaves haven't blown off are gorgeous as the rain brightened them up, but lots of trees are totally bare which creates a dark look in the woods. We can see clearly the landscape of how the ridges run around the cabin.

I grilled pork chops for supper and Nancy fixed the October beans I had shelled from my small garden plot as well as Cole slaw. We were supposed to have the Frankis Family but their little ones came up with some colds and throwing up so they cancelled. We will have other dear friends over for supper tonight as we continue to eat down the freezers and then we are totally into packing on Saturday for an early morning departure around 4'ish, Sunday morning, LATER

Thursday Morning Oct 30th

 Well after raining for 24 straight hours or more it has finally quit this morning as I make this post, yea. Its still rather chilly outside but at least I can get out of the cabin and walk around the property and finish up the last few small things that need to be completed before we leave Sunday. Yesterday was stay inside all day long  except for when I first got up and saw how foggy it was outside. I headed out to stretch on the back porch and hopefully get in a few rounds of walking but the lite rain started and then stayed raining a nice steady soaking rain until last evening when it brought so gully washers for a couple hours. I got up in the middle of the morning around 3'ish and it was still raining but a steady rain finally. I'll be surprised if the driveway isn't washed out from all the rain and there isn't a stream of run off rain coming down the mountain in our usual dry gully, oh well.

Not much to write about except we did lots of cabin cleaning, packing and deciding what we were taking with us and what we were giving away to a neighbor from the fridge. We got word the Frankis kiddo's all had some kind of bug so they cancelled for tonights supper and get together which I'm glad because we didn't want to catch it on the way home, which will be close to 12 hours as it is. I did do a lot of reading and perusing the internet through out the day and Nancy used up some frozen hamburger patties for our supper with some Jasmine rice and mushroom gravy and frozen lima beans, delicious. 

After the clean up we settled into "the living room" which is now what our Wednesday night get together is called at our local church in Seminole. We were able to watch it on You Tube and saw lots of familiar faces and Alex our new out reach pastor led the discussion on judgement vs discernment. That lasted an hour and then I watched the world series and Toronto was winning big to go ahead of the Dodgers 3-2 in the best of 7 series, plus the teams go back to Canada for the next game.

I hit the shower in the 7th innings and then the sack as I was tired from doing basically nothing which is weird to say the least, but it was past my bedtime which is usually at 10, LATER 

Wednesday Morning Oct 29th 4 days to departure

 Well it was a lite rain and very cold to start the day but by mid morning the rain stopped and we saw maybe a few moments of sunshine but not enough to warm the atmosphere as it stayed in the 40's all day long. Since the rain had stopped I ventured out to finish up some yard and garden chores for the biggest part of the day. I wrapped fences around the hydrangeas by the front porch and the well house which the deer will have eaten down by the time we get back in May/June. 

I started the day with my usual 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I did head out after the rain stopped to stretch on the back porch before walking several trips around the property as I needed the exercise before coming in and having some yogurt and a banana for breakfast as I'm trying to eat as much from the fridge that we don't throw away or carry back to Florida with us on Sunday. We bought lots of yogurt for Carol when she came because she is having chewing issues and this was a soft food which helped her, but we have a huge container plus some small ones and of course the bananas go bad quickly here with the heat on constantly. I knew we were eating large at 7 ish as we met with our couples class for a meal that honored us and our last time with them for at least 7 months. 

Nancy made a chicken and pasta dish that everyone raved about and even one gal took what was left home with her, there went my entree for tonight, oh well. Francine is a hoot and we just love her. There was ton's of delicious dishes starting with salad's, spaghetti, mac and cheese and appetizers as well as desserts. We just visited and the group decided they were through with this study which had become redundant and some what boring. We were always spending a lot of time discussing current issues and going down rabbit holes with the study which was good for about 2 lessons on forgiveness, which is a major theme in that GOD's forgiveness to us in the form of Jesus dying in our place and us asking for forgiveness for our issues and giving forgiveness to others as Jesus forgave us. We have been in that same work book all summer and most were ready to do a study on one of the books of the Bible instead of a theme, oh well. Its seems last night was the ending of the class until some time this next year when we all meet again.

We got home around 9:30 and I settled into and inning or two of the world series and the Blue Jays were trying to ties the games up to two a piece and the score had them ahead when I hit the shower and then some horizontal lab around 10:30. I'm not planning to head back off the mountain again except to fuel up on Saturday as we have two more meeting with friends here for meals on Thursday and Friday. We are eating down the freezers as we entertain dear friends; the Frankis Family on Thursday and then Mechelle, Billy and Caleb who we have know since he was knee high to grasshopper. He is trying to get me some venison to take back with us on Sunday, but if not thats fine. We have been thrilled with his life's decisions and he has turned out to be one honorable man who has made us proud, LATER

Tuesday Morning Oct 28th ..6 days to go

Well the lite rain was evident all day long but this morning it coming down much heavier and I wouldn't be surprised to see some local road flooding as these hills drain quite rapidly down into these small streams, plus its down right cold with temps in the 30's and 40's all day and night. We were in town twice first to run some errands and then for our respective Bible classes at 7. I stopped at a new friend's place who runs a small engine shop to have my old chainsaw tuned up on the way home. We got back to the cabin around 3'ish the first time and 9'ish the second time and I tuned into some NFL and MLB until 10:30 then it was hit the sack.

I started the day with my usual 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift several up for comfort and healing, all are holding but some more severe than others. It was stay in the cabin all day except for the two forays in to Sparta. I headed to the land fill first, then the newspaper to change the address as well as to the post office and finally to the grocery store as we are taking a dish to our couples class tonight with a pot luck meal for our last meeting with the group this year  at 7. 

Neighbor Gerald came back to his cabin and stopped by in the afternoon to pick up his mail and it was miserable out with rain, some fog and cold. We chatted briefly before he left and they will be here until until Wednesday. I basically stayed on the internet watching and listening to the world news and some travel channels and keeping a watch on the huge Category 5 hurricane Melissa which is supposed to miss the USA, but is heading to Jamaica which will be devastating to say the least.

Well not much to write about except at day break those pesky deer were in the back yard looking at us when I opened the blinds. This group of 4 have really grown over the summer and now fall and I'm sure they wonder why there is nothing growing in the gardens and why we are still here, oh well. They will sure make for some fine eatin' for some one this winter, LATER

Monday Morning Oct 27th...7 days to go

 Well Sunday found us sleeping in for some reason as it was after 7'ish before we rolled out which was quite unusual for me, so every thing we did to get ready for church at 9:30 was abbreviated to say the least, but we got off on time after listening to Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg, Va. message on AI and it was very educational as well as Biblical. Pastor B at our Cornerstone Fellowship had a great message as on walking through the fire that we all will face at times in our lives, but we must maintain our love and loyalty to Jesus and the Bible's messages.

I did not go out and stretch on the back porch or walk the property before we left or anytime during the day which is a first for me in many weeks. After the service since our dear friends the Frankis Family was out of town on vacation at the beach we came directly home and ate leftovers for lunch which held us the rest of the day and evening, until I popped the last of the corn around 6'ish. I was into the NFL starting at 1 and that last until nearly 11 for me as I watched some good games and our local team the Bucs continued to win despite down several players with injuries. The late game was a good game with the Packers coming back to win over the Steelers.

The weather forecast is not great here with rain predicted for the next several days after having almost non stop sunshine and blue skies for several days. The woods can use the rain but with it come very cold temps down into the 30's at night, so hopefully no snow. I did move the porch furniture to the basement so it was dry when I put it up for the winter. We will continue to eat down the freezers with two more suppers here with friends and on Tuesday a going away supper with our couples class. It will be a time of cleaning, sorting and packing on what we take back with us to Florida for the next 7 months. I have the gardens and flower beds ready for winter and just need to remove the batteries for the law mower and golf cart and my main outside chores re finished, except for packing the truck on Saturday. 

We will make a couple more trips to Sparta to check in with post office, the local weekly newspaper and to the landfill as well as pick up my chain saw that I had some work done on it and get it ready for next years cutting. Tonight, Monday we head to our men's class and then on Tuesday our couples class and then have two different families over for suppers, so it will be a busy week but looks like it will be spent mainly indoors with the rain and the cold. I was hoping to get in another couple hikes but that isn't looking to promising, LATER 

Sunday Morning Oct 26th..7 days to departure

 Well Saturday started out quite chilly with temps close to freezing at day break but by 10 it had warm up to a balmy 40 degrees when I walked onto the pickle ball court with 3 other players. We got in 2 + hours of constant play and my ability to play was still there winning with each of the other players in the best of 3 games per set.

I has started the day with my 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding and some will take awhile to heal and get better.

After getting back from pickle ball we had a bite of lunch then headed out tp run some errands and take a different road we had never been on called Pull Tail Road which eventually leads back to the parkway. There were some interesting farms and summer places and few very nice houses on that road. This post will be short as we slept in the morning as we want to start our on line worship Cornerstone Chapel in Leesburg in a few mintues and then head out to our last Sunday at Cornerstone in Sparta, LATER

Saturday Morning Oct 25th

 Well Friday started out down right cold with the temps in the 30's and the wind kept it quite cold most all day until late evening when it finally died down. There was some ice on the roof of the cabin but no frost on the grasses. I started the day with my usual 6'ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times after posting this ramble to honor Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing. One of our neighbors is a new addition to that list Mike who is back in the hospital with kidney stones. Seems this is quite often an issue with him. He and his wife Linda were supposed eat supper with us when this attack occurred the night before. All the others are holding with this post and now Grant and Shirley were able to attend last nights get together at least for the eatin' part which is great to see he is getting stronger daily and eating better.

I headed out after posting this ramble and checking on the news and facebook posts to stretch on the back porch before walking the property in the cold and after a couple laps I decided to wait until it warmed up a little which it finally did around 10'ish, enough so I could work outside. I decided to take down the last patch I had a fence around which was some October beans growing. They actually came back after the deer one night inSeptember ate most of the leaves off the vines but not all the blooms and these matured enough to get a mess of beans. I spent the afternoon in the sun sitting in the driveway shelling the pods out of the wind which was nice and warm. The sun was bright and plentiful as was the deep blue skies but the wind still kept you with some outer wear on.

Nancy was in the kitchen baking pies and cobblers for the big supper. It turned out we were having 9 for supper instead of 11 who all came around 5:30 with several side dishes of salads, twice baked tatters, Texas toast, a pineapple and tatter dish and of course steaks on the grill. We had black raspberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream, custard and pumpkin pie and Shirley brought a layered pumpkin cake with a delicious icing and pecans on top for the desserts. Needless to say we sent most of everything home with guests except enough for another meal or two. We still have more meat to serve with other friends before heading back a week from Sunday as we try to eat down the freezers. We leave on Nov 2nd this year so tomorrow will be our last Sunday church meeting.

After the semi clean up we played 5 rounds of chicken foot dominos and it was a hoot with Mary beating me out on the final hand as it was getting close to 9. I was winning the whole game until the last round. After they all left we finished the clean up and settled into the World Series first game and it was tied when I hit the shower and then the sack around 10'ish and was out until 1'ish when Nancy woke me up with her snoring and bathroom issues, oh well. This morning I head to Sparta for some pickle ball around 10'ish with 4 other players, hopefully it will warm up like yesterday and the wind dies down. Tomorrow the forecast is for rain the next couple of days and more this coming week. If it stays as cold as forecasted we may see some white stuff, LATER

Friday Morning Oct 24th

 Well Thursday started out very chilly especially with the breeze which was constant all day long, probably our coldest all day long of the year with temps down into the middle 30's. There was plenty of blue skies and bright sunshine which helped with the cold but still our coldest winter day in Florida because after a chilly start there it always warms up by the afternoon, anyhow I was able to work outside around mid morning for the rest of the day. We took a hike later in the afternoon to visit neighbors and then we were in the rest of the day and evening.

I started the day with my usual 6 ish rollout to my routines that begin with some quiet times to honor my lord, Jesus, give thanks for another day and then to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all are holding with this post. I headed out to stretch on the back porch despite it being col and breezy but was wrapped up with plenty of outer clothes. I did a couple laps around the property before heading in to finish up the box cereal for breakfast as we eat down the cupboards and make ready for our packing next week. After checking the news and social media posts I headed back outside to piddle around in the yards. I had a couple low places in yards so I dug a couple loads of dirt and filled in those places as well as finished up the back woods garden with covering it with compost. All I have to do now in the gardens is take down the fences around the patches and reinstall them around the hydrangea bushes in front of the porch and the well house.

We took a mid afternoon hike to say goodbye to Anne and Frank who are leaving next Monday for Lakeland, Florida. Frank has breathing issues and is on oxygen 24/7 but both love it here and we were responsible for helping them get their place in 2021. They love it and while she is a gardener like me she raises most of her tomato's and peppers in a pot on the porch and they do great. After visiting instead of walking back by the road we instead cut a path down their steep woods because we can see their cabin from ours and across the gully which runs with water when we have days of rain. We were amazed at the huge downed trees in that divide as our properties connect. That was the first time I had walked that area this year. We made it back and saved that steep uphill climb in our driveway. Nancy then made of pot of soup for our supper which was delicious.

Well Nancy was busy in the house prepping for the big supper tonight with 9 neighbors who are coming for steaks on the grill as well as three desserts she is making; black raspberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream, pumpkin and custard pies. They are bringing the side dishes and then we will play a couple games of Sequence I'm sure before calling it a night. Tomorrow I'm meeting 4 other guys for pickle ball in Sparta at 10 and will make a dump run before play, LATER

Thursday Morning Oct 23rd

 Well winter is here in the mountains for us flatland Floridians with temps down right cold helped by the brisk breeze. We did get lots of sunshine and blue skies but it was long pants all day long with a long sleeve shirt. When I don these clothes its winter time in Florida, oh well. The leaves are falling and being blown about as now most all of the trees are past peak. There are still a few trees with some color but mostly they are through for this year.

I started the day with my usual 6'ish rollout to my routines that start with some quiet times to honor my lord, Jesus, give thanks for another day and to lift up several by name for comfort and healing, all seem to be holding with this post. I did after posting this ramble and checking on the world news and social media exchanges head out bundled up, to stretch on the back porch before walking around the property to get the blood circulating. It was down right cold, some where in the low 40's but the stiff breeze made it feel even colder. I did several laps around the yards checking on whats left, which isn't much and planning on what I wanted to accomplish outside today as we didn't have to go any where in the evening.

I did finish up coating the one backwoods garden with a couple loads of rotting pine needles I had stored over the summer from when we got here in May. I had removed  them from the gardens and of course they had broke down and composted which hopefully will add good food for my next summers garden vegetables. I still have to weed whack down the remaining flower beds that still have some blooming zinnias and daisy's and some wild flowers. Neighbor Mary and Christine came by for a visit and were here for an hour or so. Nancy had clothes in the wash so I hung them outside on the line and it was a perfect day with the breeze and sunshine. Oh what a smell for them when being dried outside in the fresh air and sunshine.

We decided after a lite lunch to walk to the mailbox which has several hills and is about a mile each way. We stopped and visited with neighbor Mike for a few on the way out. He was up working on his recently renovated old cabin he purchased a few months back and now has it quite livable inside and ready for friends and visitors to stay in. It was very rustic and needed lots of work which is just up his ally when it comes to remodeling and fixer up.

I harvested the last of the beets the deer had eaten off the tops and they were delicious when roasted with carrots which we had for our supper along with some leftovers. We are cleaning out the freezers and tomorrow night we are having lots of the neighbors for a steak dinner and then games afterwards. I think we will have 11 counting us and I have about that many steaks in the freezer so that will help with freeing up space in case Caleb brings me some venison to take back to Florida.

After the supper clean up I settled into the last few chapters in RAVENOUS SEIGE the second book in son, Bobbys trilogy titled EPIC OF HAVEN and while I had a hard time in the first book this one is much more interesting with tons of action. I'm looking forward to the third book which we have at home in Florida and will attack it in a couple weeks once I get the gardens and yards squared away in a couple weeks,  LATER