God Bless Us Everyone....

...To good and the bad,
The happy and sad.
God bless us everyone,
Family and Friends it’s good to be here again….
So, I believe that is how the song goes. My extra chorus would god something like - God bless the medical staff, the housekeepers, the dietary people, the maintenance crew and ground keepers, the chaplains, the respiratory therapist, the lab people, the administration people and all the people seen and unseen. To have access to good medical care is truly a gift. God bless the billions of people who do not have such a gift and may we somehow work towards a more just system of equality among all.
Christmas weekend was the first experienced of being in the hospital except for the night after Ben was born. It is hard to describe what it is like in a semi-private room. Not that it was a bad experience, just not a pleasant one. My roomie was good one – a talker who has had a difficult life. Christmas eve day came and went just like any other day. Usually we would have the kids down for dinner and gift exchange that night but this year just had a different flavor to it. Midnight came and went with the nurses helping my roomie in to the bathroom yet again. Good chance to wake up and wish everyone a Merry Christmas. One of the nurses shared her tradition of mid-night mass that she was missing this year – I thanked her for that and for being there for us. I also had the wonderful situation where most of the kids came and sat with me during the day. My roomie had no visitors.
Jerry and Ben were my early morning visitors on Christmas along with our good friend and hospital chaplain, Fr. Bob Henderson – more on that visit in a minute. The doctor came in and asked if I wanted to go home – silly question. I was home by about 11:30. Jerry had time to get to at least the second half of Christmas Mass.
The rest of the day was somewhat different than most Christmases. I joined in Jerry’s large family celebration for a few hours but then came home to go to bed by 8:00.
The day after Christmas found the kids and boyfriends at the house for dinner and gift exchanged. Clair, with the help of everyone else, too k over the kitchen duties and pulled off a wonderfully delicious meal. Many good gifts were exchanged. Good conversation and laughter. My best gift was just being all together. It was a perfect evening.
Backing up a little to the Christmas blessing delivered by Fr. Henderson. There was a lot going on in the room at that moment. At the tail end of the blessing I caught the eye of the nurse waiting to get the discharge on the move I felt totally distracted and not very present to the moment. But just let me say that God works in spite of us sometimes. So I’m going to give that blessing credit for something that happened a few hours later. I walked in to the house and sat in my favorite old blue chair. A moment later I asked what that smell was. Hmmm, smell…. Those of you who have been around me lately know that I lost my sense of smell and taste just about 3 years ago. But wait, what was that smell? I went to the kitchen and smelled the peanut butter, the vanilla, the cinnamon, the chili powder, the orange juice, the ice cream – you probably get the idea by now. Later on Christmas I could taste the appetizers. What an exciting experience! What a gift! Now it may be the combination of meds and blessing but I just want to say – What a gift! Thank to all family, friends and God Bless ’Everyone’!

picture this

For a few Galapagos pictures try:
https://picasaweb.google.com/112003209825716421057/Galapagos?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCKiuj6aQ742U7gE&feat=directlink

Road Trips, Road Trips, Everywhere

Road trips, Road trips, Everywhere and so many turns on the way.

So, we got home from our ‘out west – national park road trip.’ It was wonder-ful. So many sights, so many campgrounds, so many star filled nights, so many pictures.

Life was somewhat ‘normal’ for a while. We joined a gym and have worked out on a fairly regular basis. Life was good. Then on Tuesday - 11/28. Clair got an email from a friend offering us a spot on a National Geography Cruise to the Galapagos Islands. Believe it or not we thought about it for a night-looked up air fares and left bright and early the following Friday morning for Ecuador. No grass growing under our feet! If you want the long version of this, talk to us in person. If you want pictures, let us know and we’ll send you a link. It was ten days filled with snorkeling, hiking, swimming, lectures, Zodiac boat rides, indescribable nature – many, many different types of birds, iguanas, sea lions, fur seals, and so much food. It was wonder-ful. We had no internet coverage so there were no blogs written there and anyway it would be hard to find the words to do it justice.

We arrived back home on December 13th. Oh wait, it’s the Christmas season! Hit the ground running! And I did! Just about caught up by the 23rd. Dinner planned for all the kids on Christmas eve. Oh, wait, ‘we make plans and God laughs’. I remember that. So on Dec. 23 Jerry and I took a road trip to the ER. Apparently I had a very serious asthma attack - first ever. O2 levels very low, b/p very high. Did the whole 9 yards of all possible tests. So here I sit in room 2323, knowing that I won’t be home for Christmas eve. But hoping that I will be home for Christmas or at least part of it.

A MOMENT THAT MADE MY DAY. Right now, there is a Hispanic man cleaning the hall ways. Pleasantly dressed, nice appearance but - oh, wait, he is singing Christmas Carols and he has a good voice. I mentioned this to him and he spends and extra 5 minutes in front of our door. That’s what’s all about folks.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!

Question/Answer

October 14

To answer a question - Yes, we did make it home okay. Sorry I guess I forgot to mention that. Over 7850 miles, outstanding miles, time well spent together, a once in a life time deal.
Over 7850 miles and never a close call – until about a mile from home after crossing the Brent Spence Bridge orange barrels appeared in our lane with no warning at all. Traffic was merging down to the left two lanes. Trucks were to the left , in front and in back of us. There was nowhere to go. Jerry was driving. I hit the emergency flasher lights Jerry darted between the orange barrels. I really thought ‘this is it’. It was an interesting feeling. I must admit that I felt a sense of peace (that’s a good sign I’ll hold on to). Somehow Jerry managed to stop on the wrong side of the barrels without an incident. We caught our breath and waited for a chance to merge back on to 75. Two exits were closed, again no signage but we got home safe and sound.
A deep breath and were happy to be alive – for more reasons than one.
When we picked up our dog the next day I do believe that she too was happy that we were alive.

One last thing – My favorite bumper sticker of the trip was spotted in Crested Butte. It read:
“Non-judgment day is near”

Thanks for reading the blog!

catch up time

Sometime during our stay in Crested Butte Jerry heard a mountain call his name. Apparently he tried to ignore it but that didn’t work so Friday morning, bright and early I dropped Jerry off at the base of Mt. Crested Butte Mountain. The mountain is marked with ski slopes and mountain bike trails but Jerry graces it with his footsteps. All the way to the summit, elevation 12,??? It was a good day for walking and he made it back mid afternoon. I spent the day tidying up Neal’s Place and gathering things together for the long haul home.

On Saturday we pulled out of Crested Butte just as the sun was coming over the mountains and bringing out all the golden color of the beautiful aspen trees. It was a little hard to leave but it was time to head home. We could feel it in our bones.

We spend our last night in the tent in Salina, Kansas. We pulled in to one campground just as it was starting to get dark. The office was closed but instructions were there for checking in late. We found the tent sites but the bathroom door was locked. What’s with that? Tent sites need a bathroom nearby. It is not like we have all the conveniences like the RVs have in their big bubble. And there were too many RVs around to play primitive camping. So it was back on the road. A short time later we found a KOA campground, not always our choice because they are big and somewhat expensive but it was getting dark so we decided to stay.
In case we weren’t aware of it already (which we weren’t) October had begun and with it the Halloween season. Well, the campground was full of the inflatable decoration. Our campsite was right next to a green Frankenstein. Next to him were three stoned buffalo - my guess is that they are there all year round. There were other inflatables – ghosts, monsters, something that popped out of a box, I didn’t look at that one too closely as I was on my way to dream land. There was a spider on the way to the bathroom (yes, they were unlocked) when you walked by the spider’s eyes glowed red and his head turned to follow you - creepy. There was also half of a witch sticking out of a grave. When I shined the flashlight on her she screamed and started waving her hands. That surprised me!!! Luckily there were no other tents around and I doubt it anyone in their RV bubble could hear it. Did I mention that the location of the campground was right next to the expressway? So along with the spooky decoration was the constant noise of traffic zooming by. Ah, the great outdoors!

Sunday was a day on the road. The road that finally brought us back home. What a wonder-filled trip!

So here we sit

in Crested Butte, CO. Crested Butte - elevation 8.885. Crested Butte – the wildflower capital of Colorado. (There are still wildflowers blooming as the trees are turning.) Population – it depends on the season. Things are fairly quiet here at the moment. Crested Butte - where everyone owns at least one bike. Crested Butte – where no one locks their bikes up. In Crested Butte you wake up to a mountain outside your window every morning. Crested Butte – filled with ‘beautiful people’ most everyone below the age of 30, all in tip top physical shape. One shop keeper our age described the town as a place where men are men, and the women, they’re men also. Apparent this area has produced more that its share of world famous athletics.

We took the free shuttle up to Mt. Crested Butte, just 2 miles up the mountain from Crested Butte, and there was no one there. It is a town of many lodges, motels, inns, homes built everywhere. It is definitely an up-scale community. It is where the chair lifts begins, where the ski runs are cut in to the mountain side, where in a few weeks, after the first snow fall, there will be a lot of activity of people enjoying the ‘good’ life. It’s a community where you will not find a soup kitchen or a cold shelter.

For us today was a laid back day. Jerry went for a run today – that is a little easier to do when you don’t have to break up camp. Computer work at the library, laundry. The first day we did not spend any time in the car since August 29. That was a treat.
Talk of heading home and of things we want to do before we do. We’re just mellowing out at Neal’s Place. Thank you Neal. I really never thought we would here doing what we are doing. Adding to the uniqueness of the trip.

+++

On Thursday we took in another National Park, Black Canyon of Gunnison about a 2 hours drive from Crested Butte. It was beautiful. Jerry of course appreciates Canyons and Mountains on a different level than I do. I like to look. He likes to understand. Geology has become the topic of the day on this trip. Each and every day! That’s okay. I think I might be learning a few things by now.

On the way back we stopped and picked up a few groceries, enough to get us home. Somehow Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream also found its way in to our bag. After we unloaded the groceries as the sun was beginning to set, we headed out in search of Oh Be Joyful Creek and Campground. What a name! We had to try and find it. And we did - off a dirt county road at the base of a mountain, through an open range area, (which means that there were cows on the road to maneuver around), Aspen trees the color of shinning gold amid the deep green of the evergreens, wildflowers still in bloom. It was once again breathtaking. The campground was nice and not at all crowded. If it wasn’t for the chilly/down right cold nights we might be tempted to stay there. However having slept the last few nights in a nice warm real bed we will probably forgo the camping experience while we can. It was a special place to discover. We made it out before sunset and headed up to Mt. Crested Butte. We found the perfect spot to watch the sun set. Again, breathtaking and inspiring. The colors were unlike anything I’ve seen before. The light dancing on the mountains to the music of the breeze. ..

What a gift this trip has been. Thanks to all who had a hand in helping this happen.

Awe and Wonder Yet Again

Sunday we arrived at Arches National Park early afternoon. We come to find out that the campground that reservations and fills up a year ahead of time. So there was no room for us in the inn. However there are some BLM campsites next to the Park along the Colorado River. There are a little more rustic with vault toilets. But it served us just fine. If anyone would have ever told me that I would ever spend over a month sleeping in a tent much less now on a river bank I never would have believed them.

When we drove back to the park Sunday afternoon it was really crowded. There were bus loads of people everywhere. We decided instead to drive up the canyon next to the park. It was breathtaking. The rock walls, the Colorado River, the towers, the blue skies so unique, so inspiring.

Later in the day we headed back to the park. The crowds had thinned a little. So we drove the arches road. We stopped for the views and we walked to some of the amazing arches. We got back to the campsite just as it was getting dark.

Monday morning we broke camp early. Then headed out for a 4 hour rafting trip on the Colorado. It was a gentle trip with only class 2 rapids. Very enjoyable. There was only one other couple on the trip with a guide just a little younger than us. After the trip we went in search of showers. We ended up at the Community Aquatic Center - $3. Showers – we’ll take it!

On the road again to Grand Junction to visit cousin Ken and his wife Kate and their sons, Nick & Ross. Haven’t seen them for a long time and a one on one visit was even longer. They live Near Colorado Monument. Actually the Monument is in their back yard. We had a great visit. Getting caught up on family, kids, reflecting on memories of so long ago, recalling all the good times and the good people who made us who we are. Ken and Kate made us feel so welcome and for the first time in a long time we slept in a real bed. We also had some wonderful meals and ended the even by sitting on their deck watching the heavens and again enjoying the Milky Way.

Tuesday morning they drove us through The Colorado Monument. More great views and great company. We left Ken and Kate early afternoon and began the drive to Crested Butte CO.

Thanks to Neal, a friend who’s house we are staying to tonight. We headed out to get something to eat. First impression – we are the oldest people in Crested Butte at the moment. Second impression – after we ate we walked back in our shorts and t-shirts. Most everyone else had on winter coats and scarves. Mental note – it gets cold when the sun goes down.

Another Day - Another National Park

Jerry put in 10 hours of hard hiking on Wednesday. He said that he had gotten the hiking bug out of his system. I don’t believe that one for a moment.

Thursday morning we left the South Rim and headed for the Petrified Forest . Once again we were on the road almost all day. The Petrified Forest was so unique. There were hundreds of huge petrified logs lying everywhere. The forest butts up against the Painted Desert. Another unique place.

Ever since we left the Grand Canyon the landscape has changed. We have been traveling through desert for the last couple of days. Hot, dry, dusty desert. You can see the dust in the air and you can feel it in your lungs.

We camped at Canyon de Chelly for the night. The campground was free. Can’t beat that! We didn’t realize that it came with a resident dog(s). The kind that bark all night! No exaggeration! The dogs roamed the campground. Jerry even said that he saw one on the top of the restroom building during the night – as far as I know he was not drinking anything stronger than water.

We left as soon as the resident alarm clock bird went off – that’s fairly early. Another day of driving through desert brought us to Mesa Verde. We set up camp and Jerry is now doing a Ranger lead hike to some of the ruins of the canyon. Some of the ruins you can see from the overlooks. I only wish I could get around this fear of heights thing and do a little more.

Two nights here and then on to Grand Junction to visit a cousin and then to Crested Butte to debrief and relax a little at a friends condo before the trip home. I think we’re both about ready to head east – home to family and friends.

#42

And so when we moved, we ended up in site #42. Now for all you Douglas Adam you know that #42 is ‘the answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything’. What more could we ask for ?!
Neither one of us felt too enlightened from the experience but the site did provide some entertainment – we were right next to the bathrooms so we could people watch – the people across the road apparently didn’t have much experience in tenting so they were fun to watch - a group of 4, one man three women. Two ‘rent a tent’ tents. Didn’t know you could rent tents! Learn something new everyday! Both were two person tents which means that are fit one pweson comfortably. There was a guy next to us who put up a piece of plastic to sleep in. Seems he was rafting the next day and had sent we were headed to Crested Butte in a couple of days and (Karen you should appreciate this) he offered us the use of a house he has there. Seems he is in housing market. He was hoping we stay there and want to buy it. Back to the entertainment – the Ravens are real pranksters. The fly low, real low and make a woosing sound with their wings. Sometimes you swear they are aiming for you. And on the North Rim they have squirrels with white tails. Really strange looking creatures – I may have mentioned that before.

We moved on to the South Rim but not before crossing some pretty fascinating scenery. We passed the Vermillion Cliffs and crossed the Colorado River on the Navajo Bridge. We saw cliff dwellings, rocks and formations that Jerry continues to giggle at.
We were able to get a campsite for two nights. It came with its very own dumpster and recycling bins – oh, wait, I guess we have to share them with the entire camping loop. The Ravens here are plentiful and the little gray birds are not afraid of anything. If you shoo they off your picnic table they just fly to a branch above you and threaten to poo on you. Jerry is hiking in to the canyon again today, hoping to get to the river and back. I spent the morning on shuttle busses taking in a few views, doing a few short walks, seeing the canyon from at least 6 feet from the edge-my way. Shared a seat with a woman from MD who agreed with me that the canyon is almost too big to appreciate-her words not mine.

Sitting at the campsite a few moments ago, I looked up and saw a bull moose in the campsite across the road. Keep the camera handy at all times.

Backing up a little – when Jerry was last hiking in the canyon from the North Rim he met two people who had hiked the AT – Jerry was wearing an AT shirt and they always bring comments – they hiked it in ’03. The same year Clair did – so Clair, Sparky and Zip-man said to tell you hello. Once again, everyone sing now-Its a Small World After All………

And we did move on to the Grand Canyon.

Sept. 19
We even got a campsite. Since we didn’t have a reservation we were flying by the seat of our pants. It was a good site with a resident white tail squirrel nearby. And we managed to secure a site for a second night. Apparently that does not happen too often. But we had to move to another site – tear down and set up. First we had to wait until the previous camper moved on. They stayed as long as they legally could. But now we are moved. I’m doing laundry once again and hopefully a shower will happen. Jerry is out doing a ½ day hike. He’s happy, I’m happy.

The Badlands had their endless space, Custer the big buffalo, Glacier the huge mountains, The Tetons also big mountains, Yellowstone the geysers, Dinosaur the fossils, Butch Cassidy Campground the noisy trucks, Brice the wonderful hoodoos, Zion thebig rock walls, and now the Grand Canyon – well in my opinion it is just too big to appreciate. Maybe if you could get a bird’s eye view. All the trails go down and then up. I for one appreciate level. The wheezing isn’t quite as bad on level. We did attend a couple of ranger talks yesterday. One was talking about geology. The other was on the California Condor. The presenter was a great storyteller. She had the whole audience captivated. Jerry even had an active part he got to hold up one of the wings of the felt condor.
Things seem to be warming up a little. Seems like this area had its monsoon season last week – so maybe we’re in luck.
We’ll move on to the south rim tomorrow and then start to head back east – with a few stops along the way.

Three Dog Nigiht

Sept. 17
Yesterday we took a day trip to Zion National Park. Each park seems to be completely different from the other ones. Zion was no exception. The landscape was just totally unique. Huge does not do things justice around here. No hoodoos in Zion but massive land formations which are pretty indescribable. That what pictures are for I guess. We spent the day there, did a little walking but mostly just sight seeing. And what sights they were! It rained while we were there and on the way back. We got back, cold and tired and in spite of trying to talk ourselves out of it we stopped and got pizza for supper. Petty close to the best pizza I’ve ever had.

A THREE DOG NIGHT - The problem is we only have one dog and we left her and home. The forecast was for a low of 31. As far as I was concerned with no dog, it became a 2 sock night. The trusty ‘smart wool’ socks go in the feet. The usual pair of wimpy socks go on the hands. And of course, the hat goes on the head. I discovered that when you were a hat all night it feels as though it is still on your head during the day. Strange. We crawled into the tent early, without a campfire, and read for awhile. Another discovery – it is hard to hold a book, much less turn the pages with socks on your hands. It rained during the night which probably meant that it wasn’t cold enough to snow. Started out with a few drops, then the heavens opened – hard and heavy but it only lasted about 20 minutes-thank goodness.

They’ve had a lot of rain lately. The rangers are referring to the monsoon season that usually hits in August. Guess it was waiting for us. While we were at Zion yesterday, after a downpour, the rangers were out looking at the mountains at the museum center where we were. It was really inspiring to see them so excited watching the water falls that occurs because of the rain.

At the moment Jerry is off doing a ½ day hike-a decent to the floor of the hoodoos. Tomorrow we will probably move on to the Grand Canyon.

The Music, The Moon & The Magic

Sept. 11
Gotta love the big RVs that try to fit in a space way too small for them. They end up blocking the road and the paths to the bathrooms – guess they don’t need them …. the same ones that sit up late and crank up the radio so that everyone around them can enjoy their favorite country music. Ah, thanks – but no thanks. Honestly, it could have been worse but it was pretty bad. Guess our tolerance level is fairly low – we’ll need to work on that. The moon was almost full and was casting shadows everywhere. Totally beautiful. And then there was the Magic. The couple two sites down (not the music people) came over and offered us some dutch-oven-homemade apple cobbler. Warn and delicious. Yummmm.
I had just hit that twilight state of sleep when my tent mate said ‘Did you hear that’. I was far enough gone to ignore him until he repeated it a second time. He continued – it sounded like a wolf and it sounds close. After 36 years of marriage he should know not to say things like that to me, right? There went my good night’s sleep. So that was the evening 9/10 – I say that not for your sake but to help me keep the days straight.
In the morning we left Yellowstone and headed for the Grand Teton but not before we ended up once again in the middle of yetanotherbuffalo
The Tetons are breathtaking. Snow above, a few flowers below. We camped at Jenny Lake. While there Jerry took a kayak out for an hour or so. Yea, arm! It worked. The evening brought very dark clouds and thunder and lightning in the mountains. We went for a short walk in our rain gear then stayed close to the tent and van. We ended up eating leftovers, something quick and simple. The clouds just hung above us. Didn’t seem to be moving at all. In the end we had a lot of wind but very little rain.

Spet. 12. Ate breakfast at the base of the Teton watching the sun come up. There was quite a chill in the air again. We broke camp and headed for Dinosaur National Monument (Jerry’s pick). We drove through the Flaming Gorge National Rec. Area. This is one of those roads where I keep my eyes shut a good part of the time and only imagine the steepness of the river below-don’t know which is worse reality or imagination. The reality is that it was beautiful. Cliffs, rivers, long horn sheep. Another ‘wow’ adventure. We drove about 350 miles, 8 hours or so. Found a site at Dinosaur National Monument. We stopped at the information center on the way in and Jerry was crushed to find out that the main exhibit building was closed. They are hoping to open Oct. 4th. Turns out they have been closed for the last 4-5 years. Maybe we should have checked the web site. Oh, well. BTW- This was the first campsite we have had that did not come with a bear box. Yea, for leaving bear behind.
Last night the moon was full and the sky clear – until about 1:00a.m. I woke up to lightning and thunder in the distance. It continues to get closer until you could hear the thunder start in one part of the sky and roll over to the other end. The ground vibrated when it passed over us. Seems that rain doesn’t happen too often here. We were just lucky enough to experience it.
We did a ranger lead hike this morning to view some fossils in the cliff wall. This afternoon we drove over to the CO. part of the park. Ended up on a plateau and drove for about 30 miles. Jerry did a hike. Why anyone would build a road going up so high is beyond me but it was beautiful and you felt like you were literally on top of the world.
One of the joys of camping is when you stay two nights in the same place. It prevents you from having to break up camp and set it up again each day. Well that is what we had planned on at Dinosaur but the fates had other plans. Seems as though they were planning on repaving the area we were in, so…. We thought of just putting the tent on the top of the car since we really didn’t have to move that far, or just walking the tent to its new site but I guess common sense won out and we took down the tent only to put it up a few spaces down the road.

The other morning while lying in our tent trying to talk myself in to getting out of the warm sleeping bag I noticed something interesting. We have a Euerka tent. Their trademark is a ‘!’. Our tent has a ‘!’ on either side. What a nice way to hem in your day – between two ‘!’ marks.

Sept. 14 – Wednesday – Chore Day!
We broke up camp and headed in to town in search of an oil change, a laundry mat, and a Walmart. Jerry dropped me off with the laundry. Went and had the oil changed. Found an ATT store that solved his phone problem. Went to McD to use the internet and have a breakfast sandwich. All while I was still groving’ with our laundry. All our chores were done by noon so we hit the road and headed for Bryce Canyon. Once again the drive was amazing. Then we hit the rain and stayed in it for some time. It was like driving through a cloud. Actually, we were driving through a cloud. Evening time rolled around and we found a campground in Salina, UT. The Butch Cassidy Campground. Wasn’t bad – clean restrooms, free hot showers, grassy sites. Down side was it was about 50 yards from a road. We figured the traffic would let up as night fell. Were we wrong! All night long coal trucks rumbled past us. Some vibrating the ground just like the storm of a few nights ago. Give us the rain any day!

Sept.15 Blew We blew out of Butch Cassidy town as fast as we could. Still heading for Bryce. Once again the scenery left us in s state of awe and wonder. Once again, Jerry was giggling at the rock formations. Pulled in to Bryce late morning. Found a good campsite. Set up camp – I sometimes remind Jerry how I did all of this myself last year. He said that he wants to try and set the tent up solo sometime – but that time hasn’t come yet. It is so much easier with two.
The land here is full of hoodoos. Crazy rock formations that seem to defy gravity. It’s a wonder! Rained a little more but what’s a few drops now and then. Saw a rainbow. The other element that comes in to play is the temperature. It’s getting cold once again. There was fresh snow on the mountains this morning and it is suppose to get down in to the low 30s tonight.

Breathing deep

Sept 9 con’t
Jerry found his magical forest with the petrified tree (stumps). After 36 years of being married I knew that Jerry had an unusually strong interest in rocks and geology. But I have never before heard him giggle when he sees land formations or other things he tried to explain to be as being, oh so wonderful! We ended the day once again with hot dogs over the fire. That is oh so easy when you’re tired after a long day of enjoying all that nature has to offer.

Sept 10
A cold, cold morning. Jerry had the wonderful idea of warming up in the car as we drove towards Old Faithful. We spent most of the day there watching geysers and walking through thermal areas. At one point we asked at an information desk if there was a place where campers could take showers. The young woman pointed out the building to us and told us that if we asked at the desk they would gladly let us take a shower – for $5. Then she mentioned that we could just walk past the front desk to the second floor and help ourselves. We choose the second option. The showers were a gift- both to us and those around us.
While at Old Faithful we started talking to a young couple who came in on bikes. They were
from NY and were taking 3 years to bike around the world – yep, that right. They said something about visiting local farms and breweries along the way. They have a web site – FoodCyclist.com She was biking with 40#, he was hauling 125#. Kind of crazy. When they got to the west coast they planned to fly to New Zealand and continue their journey. As I said they were young!
We had ice cream for lunch. We promise kids, we’ll start eating our veggies one of these days.

More Bits and Pieces (referred to in the future as B & Ps)

Jerry decided that many tourist are guilty of drive by shootings – that is pulling up to a scenic area, winding down their car (van, RV-some of those things are huge )window, snapping a picture and moving right along. He’s right.

Noticed that the entrance and exit ramps in MT have cattle guards. Hmmm.

When gathering firewood for the campfire you notice that there is a buffalo between you and that perfect piece of fire wood, it is time to settle on the second best perfect piece.

Goodbye to Bozeman

Sept.7 As with all good camping experiences we started the day with a trip to Walmart – forgive us but we needed a few supplies and some food. After buying only what we needed we headed out on to the wide open highway towards Yellowstone. As the crow or perhaps eagle flies it is not that far but the windy roads and the construction added to the time spent on the road. We entered by way of West Yellowstone. We pulled in about 2:30. The lady at the entrance booth offered us a doggie biscuit for our puppy in back. Jerry and I looked at each other and wondered what we might have picked up along the way that we did not realize. Turns out she was seeing my hats that I had put over the head rest. Pheew. Decided not to stay at the campground run by the concession company that does not honor the senior pass but headed for Norris Campground that in run by the National Park System. That way we could camp for $7. per night – what a deal. (BTW-Jerry now has his own pass, a birthday gift from Joanna-that also means that he too is getting old enough to enjoy the finer things of life.) We seem to have gotten the last site available. Decent site. Turns out to be site # 75. The same numbered site we had in Glacier. Must be our lucky number. However at the information board later that day there was a sign with a box below it the box was full of scat. The sign read – grizzle bear scat found a few days ago in loop C. Did I mention that site #75 was in loop C. According to the map we were camping at about 7570 ft. I noticed a difference in my breathing right away but then add to the fact that the bathrooms were up a trail probably about 8000 ft. We sat up the tent on a ‘just the right size level spot’. Spent time riding through a little of the park. Headed back ‘home’ for dinner. A little rain and a campfire rounded out another wonderful day.

Sept.8 Woke up to frost on the car windows, picnic table and tent. Not the frost that you look at and it disappears. It hung around until the sun was out in full force. We had bought a ½ dozen eggs so we had eggs and left over bacon for breakfast. We decided to hard boil 2 of the eggs for later. Campers tip – freshly hardboiled eggs make great hand warmers. When we thawed out we rode and saw Virginia Falls and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. We also stopped and hiked at the Norris Geyser Basin area. Supper was the good old hot dogs over the fire and beans.

BITS AND PIECES:
Going back a ways. South Dakota is full of sunflower fields. As far as your eye can see in some area. Next time I buy sunflower I have to notice where they were grown.
Jerry and I have found a new use for the two prong hot dog fork. We have found that if you drive one in the dirt it serves as a balance pole for getting in and out of the tent.
Night Caps have become a part of the routine. I wear mine. Jerry drinks his.
I have three hats that I’m using on this trip. One is my afore mentioned night cap. Something to keep my head warm at night. Trouble with that is when your wear it all night you feel like you have it on all day also. Then there is the new definition for hat hair in the morning – it too lasts all day. Then there is the hat I wear in public. It’s the one Clair made for me. Forest green with a cream colored leaf pattern. My favorite.
Then there is the – It’s so cold out I don’t care what I look like hat. It has ear flaps. At least I had enough sense to cut the little hang down tassels off.
Every campground has a ‘resident alarm clock bird’. In the gorge it is usually a crow. In SD it was a magpie. This morning it was an owl – he was way too early to be going off.
Saw a young osprey sitting in his/her nest on the top of a tower of rocks. Apparently the parent was flying close by calling to the young one. After a while the young one took off circles the nest and landed again. Looked like a maiden flight. This happened a second time and we were lucky enough to see it.
Saw a t-shirt the other day. A hiker standing on a rock cliff, above a cloud. It read : ‘On earth as it is in heaven’. After experiencing what we have had the privilege of over the last few days it kind of makes you wonder what heaven must be like. If it is anything like this I certainly want to go there. But I’d opt for a place on the lower plain with the buffalo. Some of these mountain goat higher places make me weak in the knees.
A Friend once made the statement that ‘God is constantly revealing herself though all of creation’. That statement becomes overwhelming in a place like this. Totally overwhelming!

Sept. 9
Up this morning to the sound of a owl calling. Wish I knew what kind it was. Frost on the tent again. Warmed up with hot tea and a campfire. As I was sitting by the campfire I happen to look up to something moving in the trees a little way from our site. I really think it was three wolves in a hurry to get somewhere. How neat! At the moment Jerry is off doing his hiking thing, in search of a petrified forest. Should take about 3-4 hours. I found a picnic area. Ate lunch. Getting caught up on the blog. Reading a book. Life is oh so good!

On and On

Sept -5
Cancelled our boat ride and hike this morning do to my allergies really acting up and not being able to sleep the last two nights. We drove up to Canada instead and visited Glacier-Waterton Peace Park and nice little trip. We ate our lunch there – ice cream, yum! On the way back across the boarder we got busted. They took our kiwi, and avocado. They let us keep our, way too old peach. Seem that if it has a stone it okay to transport across the broader. Going in to Canada they didn’t seem to care about such things . We got back to Glacier in time to take the shuttle up to Logan Pass. Jerry did a short hike to Hidden Lake. I stayed back and took some pictures. Seems that Big Horn Sheep like to visit the parking lot there. Sure enough. One showed up and after walked around the lot for a while people took pictures – he seemed to be posing. We took the very last shuttle of the season back down.

Sept 6
Happy Anniversary to us – 36 years. Wow. We broke up camp and headed out of Glacier today and drove towards Yellowstone. The landscape here is totally awesome! Spent the night in a Super 8 – big spenders - and will end up at Yellowstone later today – That’s the plan. Going back to the world of scarce cell phone and internet coverage. Ah, the beauty of it all.

Red, Red Wine...

Actually it was a glass of white wine, but that is not the way the song goes, we had while watching a moose feed in a lake, while the sun set over one of the, oh, so many mountains around here. What a wonder-filled day. But first let me try to play catch up.

August 31
Slept well after all. Got up with the sun to take a ride along the Wildlife Loop Road. Saw some pronghorn antelope, prairie dogs. No sooner than I made the statement about it apparently being the wrong time of day to see buffalo, we rounded a bend and ended up in the middle of a herd of about 60 of them. How neat! We sat there for about an hour just pretending to be one of the gang. After finishing the loop we returned to our campsite only to find out that a single bull buffalo had visited our campsite. The couple next to us had some amazing pictures – our picnic table and the buffalo. Apparently her rested there for about ½ hour before he left. He did however leave us a little gift, a buffalo ‘pie’ right by our picnic table. A little bit later we looked at the google map[ directions for Glacier. Our goal was to arrive there on Thursday before the holiday rush. Total driving time, which we hadn’t looked at before was 13 hours. Oh, Good Grief, we just drove 13 hours on Sunday and didn’t want to do it again. Let’s take off and get some hours in on Wednesday. So we broke camp at about 1:30 p.m. and hit the road. Some hours later we came into Billings MT. We had intended to camp there but both campgrounds in town wanted $30. For a tent site. All we needed was a 9x9 piece of ground and maybe to flush the toilet maybe four times between the two of us. $30. No, Way. So we drove on, and on, and, on. The roads out here are long and lonely at night, and dark. In one spot we saw a bunch of blinking red lights ahead of us, not on the road but in the sky. Jerry brought up the image of Twilight Zone. Just what I needed. They grew closer and closer but we couldn’t make out just what they could be. Finally, a flash of lightening in the background revealed a windmill farm. How cool. So here we are in the middle of nowhere looking for a campground that did not exist. I was doing okay until Jerry said that maybe we should call the kids and let them know where we were. Well it was about 9:00 our time making it midnight their time and besides we didn’t know where we were. We headed for a place called Louistown, MT. Just before we hit town we spied a rest area with a sign that said that overnight RVs welcome, no charge. They didn’t say no tents so in the pitch dark we put up the tent in the shadow of our van. A little later we realized that we were at the end of the local airport runway. The plane taking off at 2:00 and 4:00 a.m. was our first cue. Actually we slept well and broke came before dawn to continue our journey to Glacier.
Sept 1 – I think
So we got up before dawn and drove the rest of the way to Glacier. Think that getting there on Thursday would land us a campsite before the holiday weekend crowd arrived. We pulled up to the entrance booth about 3:30. Used my trusty little senior citizen pass to get us in free. On the way back to the campground we saw a bear cross the road in front of us and a moose feeding in the lake. Concerned about finding a site we didn’t stop to take in the sites. That turned out to be a wise move since there were only a few sites left by the time we got there. The evening was cold and windy. So much so that we ate in the café. We’re trying not to do that too much but please don’t keep tract of the times that we do.

Sept 2
The Wind was really strong during the night – really strong and loud. But we slept through most of it. In the morning we took an eight hour Red Bus Tour over Logan Pass to McDonald Lake on the other side of the park. The weather was – well just about everything. There was a chill in the air in the morning, too much of one to have the top pulled back on the bus. By the time we got to Logan Pass we had sleet, snow and about ½ inch of ice on the road. This was not a road for wimps and I’m so thankful someone else was driving. By the time we were about ¾ back to the Many Glacier area the driver decided that he just had to pull back the top. It was cold but the sun eventually came out and the view was indescribable. Just WOW! When we got back to the lodge where we had boarded we say with a drink and watch the sun sink from the mountains. Thus, the red, red wine.

Sept 3 – Saturday
We were up to the lodge to watch the sunrise. The sun dancing with the mountains to a score all their own. A bald eagle must have heard the music and joined in. He flew no more that 20 ft. from us. We ate a great breakfast of sweet potatoes pancakes back at the camp site. They were not as good as what Clair makes but there were good. We headed over to the Two Medicine part of the park. There we took a boat ride across the lake and a boat captain lead hike up to Twin Falls. The walk was good but not enjoyable. The guy leading it had a stride longer than Jerry’s or Jay’s. It was an effort for most everyone to keep up. The falls were beautiful, as is everything in this park. After the boat docked we stopped and walked back to Hidden Falls. A unique falls since it came out from underground. We then continued on to East Glacier to see the lodge there. The lodges in this park are something else. So grand and ornate. We ate at the Whistle Stop café and then headed back to campsite sweet campsite. I was beat and hit the sleeping bag early.

Sept. 4
Up a little after dawn. Our campsite is shaded so it’s hard to get warm in the mornings. Tried to do an all day boat ride and ranger lead hike to a glacier but they were all sold out. We bought tickets for Monday’s trip. Then hiked up to Rock Lake and Falls. It was a good walk and when we remembered to look up from the trail there were times when we saw Mountain Goats way up there on the mountain side. How do they do that? Jerry did a hike on his own in the afternoon while I did the laundry. We were both happy. How long can you wear clothes until they get so dirty they become socially unacceptable? Remember we are campers so the bar is lowered.
Laundry is expensive in the park but Oh well!

You may get the idea that internet coverage is almost nonexistant where we are. Along with phone coverage you are right.

ROAD TRIP

August 25
ROAD TRIP vs. road trip
Our Road Trip was delayed a week due to a medical issue. This time it was my turn and not Jerry’s arm. Nothing major just a nuisance. So for Jerry’s birthday we decided to take a day trip. We headed to Yellow Springs OH. A place we have heard about for a long time but never had the opportunity to visit. The ride up was a long one, mostly back roads. We had a nifty little book that directed us to a Nature Preserve in Yellow Springs. That was our first stop. We stopped in at the bookstore to ask about the trails. The lady recommended one that lead down to the yellow spring – what an idea. Except part of the trail was closed and we had to back track. Oh, no, a Von Handorf going back the way they came! After the hike we headed in to town in search of some lunch. Town consisted of a lot of little shops, just like any trail town. We ate at Peaches Grille and then headed back home. It was good to get away for a day road trip.

August 28 – ROAD TRIP
Headed out of Dodge, aka Covington, about 6:45. We were aiming for 5:00 but someone had a late night out with his brothers and decided to ‘sleep in’ until 5:30. By the time we gassed up and got someone’s coffee and donuts it was about 6:45. We took the road more traveled and passed through OH, IN, IL, IA. The end of the 13 hour drive found us in western IA. In looking for a place to pitch our tent we discovered that most of the state parks in that area were still closed due to the flooding of a couple months ago. The road we were on was still sand bagged in places. The fields were still under water. We finally found Lewis and Clark State Park which has just opened three weeks ago. Still a major part of the campground was closed because of water in the sites. The campground was next to a lake full of water lilies (?). Sleeping was good but the best part was waking up at night and going out to see the stars, and the stars, and the stars. Hadn’t seen the Milky Way in a long time. How wonder-full. It was a good place to be even if we were in only little tent in RV City.

August 28 – Quickly we crossed over in to ND. Took a little jaunt to Sioux Falls. Another beautiful spot. I even went up on the observation tower, folks! A lot of water, a lot of falls, a good place to stretch our legs after becoming one with the van. We ended up in The Badland National Park for the night. We drove through a little rain late evening but resisted the temptation to spend the night in a motel. The sleep was again good. Many stars early on interrupted by a shower and a little thunder. This morning the stars were back. I woke up the guy in my tent and talked him in to getting up and going somewhere to watch the sunrise. If you never been to the Badlands put it on you Bucket List. It is indescribable. The sun coming up over the pinnacles was magnificent. After breakfast we took in two ranger talks. Anyone want to guess the topics? Geology and fossils – that’s right, folks. Talk about a rocky relationship…. We did have our first argument of the trip today. I thought it was Monday, Jerry tried to convince me it was Tuesday. Of course…he was right-again – but we did have to check our cell phones to be sure. Clair has asked us to stay in touch with the kids as much as we could. So today I called … Clair in Antarctica. From a high spot in the Badlands to The Ice. How about that! We left the Badlands and headed west again for a couple of hours. Our goal was Custard State Park. And we made it. Turns out you need reservations to camp anywhere in the park. So we had to call from the gate and take the site they gave us. Our first impression was not a good one. Kind of crazy looking spot. But we worked with it and now our tent is set up, there is a fire in the fire place, Jerry is munching on a mett and I’m getting chilly. Saw mountain goats – in our campsite today and a great horned owl in a tree within a stone’s throw – which we will not do. Heard that buffalo frequently walk right through our campground – not just one or two but sometimes a whole herd. Good sleep tonight? – I doubt it.

Just a short walk...

......
before dawn – streets are quiet - no exhaust fumes in the air just yet – only one cyclist passes – branches hang over the sidewalk - I reach my modest goal

dawn – is breaking between the houses of the city keeping it’s summer distance from the church steeple – heat waves already begin to rise in the air – the hill is more of a challenge now

early afternoon – a walk in the rain – no umbrella just feeling the rain, listening to the thunder and being aware of the lightening in the distance – feelings of childhood – looking for puddles to step in - smells of freshness – cool breeze last for a short time before turning warm again – steam rises from the sidewalk

I reached my modest goal

A Few Last Thoughts

Body Art – It was amazing to see some of the tattoos that visited the Center. Some were typical. Some you wished you hadn’t seen. Some were in color. Some were almost beautiful. There was one on the back of a woman that was fascinating. From what I could see it was a trunk of a tree those branches became arms of a woman, the branches were full of life i.e. birds, animals. There was the face of a woman above the trunk. I would have loved to have seen the whole thing or even to have taken a picture of it. Never having visited a tattoo parlor I can’t imagine how expensive these works of art are.

The Guest, Staff and Volunteers of the Rebuild Center – God bless every one of them, please.

Hats off to our traveling team - I was grateful and happy to be a part of it.
As far as the New Orleans adventure goes – Amen!

My Old Kentucky Home...

It is so good to be home.

Needless to say we spent a lot of time in the car yesterday. We left New Orleans at 4:30 a.m. on the dot. We arrived home at 8:00 p.m. (maybe missing the dot by a minute or two). Spent about 1 ½ hours in Birmingham picking up our van from the garage, taking the rental back to the airport. You can do the math. On the way to the airport while I was driving our van the check engine light came on – O, Good Lord, really? A call to the garage assures us that it was okay to drive. All my instincts and background said – you’ve got to be kidding? Everything else looked okay so we hit the road hoping and praying for the best. Well, I guess the Good Lord was just kidding (what a sense of humor …).

We ate a fast food breakfast sandwich in Mississippi (I think), we had lunch at a rest area just as we arrived in Tennessee and we snacked our way through supper.

We arrived back in Covington safe and (somewhat) sound. Hats off to Sisters Ruth, Claire, Dolores and Amanda. It was a good week, a little too short but still good.

There are still a few reflections rattling around in my head. Perhaps they will find themselves in the blog in the next day or two – perhaps not.

It is good to be home!!

Quote of the day from one of the guest

If you ain't got faith - you ain't got shit !

Toast Anyone ?

Here’s to our last day at the Rebuild Center - to the staff, volunteers who give so much energy, understanding and love

Here’s to the guest who struggle to survive day by day, sometimes hour by hour to maintain their dignity, their humanness

Here’s to those who donate their time, energy, talent to make the place a warm and welcoming one

Here’s to those who shared their knowledge and experience with us, helping us to understand -to question just why places like the Center need to exist and what our response needs to be

Here’s to the Sisters of Notre Dame who allowed us to stay in their home while they were away, giving us a comfortable place to return to in order to become refreshed and renewed

Here’s to Dan and the workers of the Catholic Worker’s House who mirror for us gospel values everyday in every way – how many people do you know who would offer a retreat for the homeless

Here’s to the men in Winn Dixie, the ‘big wigs’ who we happen to run in to who went above and beyond the call of duty with their friendliness and helpfulness

Here’s to Sister Ruth and her ability to navigate the streets of New Orleans – no small feat my friends

Here’s to Sister Claire, usually mild mannered and soft spoken, who learned that if she lowered her voice she could project loud enough for the guest to hear her as she called their name for the use of the phones

Here’s to Sister Dolores who really likes Butter Snap Pretzels

Here’s to Amanda, our NDA senior, who shared her energy with us and kept us smiling. But, really Amanda, the ‘old’ jokes got a little old real fast

Here’s to team work, cooperation, good humor that allowed things to work so well

Here’s to a safe trip home, good weather and awake drivers

Here’s to our God who manifests herself in so many glorious ways and allows us to be a creative part in the eternal scheme of things. Yeah, God – nice work!

Here’s to the fact that I did not lift a glass after every toast – at least not yet

So, what did today bring....?

Honestly sometimes I'm so tired I can't remember - but...

I helped Brian and Horace in the showers today. Okay, I wasn’t in the shower with Brian and Horace but I help them by cleaning the shower after it was used and providing towels, soap, etc. for the guests. There are ten shower stalls all together or maybe they are saunas in disguise. Can’t imagine trying to dry off in the heat and humidity trapped in those small compartments.
Horace is a guest that seems to help out around the Center whenever he can. Today he was sitting writing for a while. Finally he handed me two papers and told me he wanted me to have them. They were two prayers that he wrote. One prayed that God would give all doctors and surgeons the knowledge they needed to heal the sick. Now most of you probably know what has been going on with Jerry and his arm but I didn’t tell Horace. I don’t know if he knew or how he knew or didn’t know at all but his prayer certainly hit the nail on the head for me. So much so that it’s kind of scary.

After lunch today we took a driving tour with Sister Enid as our tour guide. We drove over to the Lower Ninth Ward. This was the area where there was so much devastation and death due to a barge breaking loose and breaking through the levee. Interesting to see the effort to rebuild. We saw the houses financed by Brad Pitt and Ophra. Houses each painted in bright colors. The design of the houses was all the same but they were made home by the individual colors and landscaping. Bright, bold colors – I look at these homes and realize that we (whoever ‘we’ are) have missed out on a sense of freedom of expression. We’re not the ones who are free folks – at least not when it comes to expression of exuberance.

And then….the rain, rain, rain came down, down, down ……for quite a while. It began while we were still driving back to the center. It was raining so hard that we sat in the parking lot for about 15 minutes hoping it would ease up – no such luck. We finally got out of Sr. Enid’s van and into our rental. We did not manage to run between the rain drops. We headed towards the gate of the parking lot when we realized that the street we needed to turn on to was flooded. Cars were passing on it with water up over the wheels. It had to be getting in on the floor of the cars. So we waited a while longer finally venturing out hoping for the best.

Home to a night of leftovers. Needing to clean out the refrigerator. Thinking about the adventure coming to a close. Hoping for good weather on Saturday when our journey once again takes us home. (of course that will include a stop in Birmingham for a game of musical cars.)

Okay, the computer just started doing something goofy so I’m hoping this posts correctly – if not, good luck! Otherwise - Good Night!

It was a slow day ?

Not many people at the Rebuild Center today. No one could give a reason for it. Just wasn’t a crowd. The showers and the phones and the laundry were busy but not totally overwhelmed all day.

We did have a 3 piece band come in and play for a couple of hours – great blues. We did have one person pass out and need an ambulance. We did serve a little over 100 lunches. We did sit and listen to the director for over an hour as he told us of the beginnings and development and vision of the Center. We did come home tired and beat once again and a little overwhelmed at the people who crosses our paths.

This evening we fixed a couple of pans of lasagna, some carrots, bread and desserts and headed to another part of town to visit a Catholic Worker House. One of the start up guys use to work at the Center as a Jesuit Volunteer and he has stopped by on Monday to do a prayer service with the people at the center who might be interested. We talked for a little while and then invited ourselves for supper.

There were 13 of us around the table – 14 if you count 6 month old Micah, who parents are part of the team there. A very simple house with a very big idea behind it – hospitality to the homeless.

There were about 2-3 guest living there. There were a couple of men from the neighborhood who just dropped in for supper. Everyone was very welcoming. Everyone felt at home. We listened to stories of what it was like to live through Katrina, to be evacuated, to be brought back to start over – no job, no home, not much hope. We saw how these people supported one another. We saw grass root efforts at work. We saw young people responding to the needs of others in the spirit of Dorothy Day. Young people full of hope, vision, energy and youthful dedication. We saw the hope of our future.

In the words of Dorothy Day: "The final word is love."

Feed the Hungry, Clothe the naked...

,…… give showers to the hot, stinky people. Wait, I don’t remember reading that last one anywhere. But that is what we did yesterday and today at the Rebuild Center. Well, okay, we didn’t give them showers but we made it possible for them to take showers – 103 of them. (I learnt that your do not want to stand downwind from a person using spray deodorant.) Others of us made it possible for people to make phone call anywhere in the US. We helped serve lunch, Folded towels, Handed out razors and combs, Sweated like little pigs in 100+ temps. (Do pigs really sweat? – I don’t remember that from my life on the farm – was that just last year?)

But all is well!

I can say that because I’m not homeless, or living on the streets or suffering from mental illness. It is interesting to cross paths with people who are. Makes you appreciate what you have. Makes you wonder why you have, and they have not. Makes you wonder how they cope with their situations and if you could do the same. Makes you wonder about their stories and how they got to where they are. Makes you wonder if the government couldn’t do more to help out such people. Makes you wonder about the young adult volunteers who show up every day to serve these people. Makes you wonder about the adults who show up year after year to serve these people. Makes you wonder about hurricanes and natural disasters that put people in this situation or drive them over the edge. Just makes you wonder….

Ah, Sunday....

I wish I could say I slept well Saturday night but the mind would not slow down and being in a strange place made for a restless night.
But Sunday morning came as usual and we headed off to church at St. Leo and St. Raymond Parish, just about 1/4-1/2 mile away from where we are staying. We had gone there last year so I entered in anticipation. The minister of hospitality greeted us with a kiss. The parish is comprised mostly of black folk. The priest is also black. The choir was the youth choir. There was a visiting priest there to preach on behalf of a mission. This priest happened to be the one who was in on the ground floor of the establishing of the Rebuild Center where we would be working for the rest of the week.
The next two hours were filled with a hand clapin’, foot stompin’, body swayin’ music and Amens and Alleluias. The pastor was alive with the spirit as was every man, woman and child present. Such freedom of verbal and physical expression is a wonder to behold.
The music was fantastic. Us white folk who get antsy after 2 verses of a song have a lot to learn. The songs lasted up to 5-10 minutes. The keyboardist was totally into his work/praise. (I could see brother-in-law Len sitting there being just as passionate about the music – I wanted to hear more.) The teenagers were totally into their song/praise. The people would stand in praise. Get the feeling that there was a lot of praising going on? Right On !
One particular man stood through almost every song turned toward the choir with hands raised cheering them on. Turns out this guy is a MBA coach who was visiting his home parish and getting ready to conduct a basketball camp this coming week. You could see him cheering on his team like he was cheering on the choir. (I’ll try to remember to look up is name if I can get on to the internet.)
The celebrant also had no problem departing from the structure of the liturgy to inject his enthusiasm. He speaks with his words, his hands, his whole body.

There was a woman there who was celebrating her 88 birthday. Before the final blessing everyone sang Happy Birthday to her. I have never heard that version of Happy Birthday – it lasted 5 minutes.
If you’re ever in New Orleans consider going to St. Raymond and St. Leo the Great Parish for liturgy.
This parish really knows how to celebrate!!
As we were leaving I noticed a rug at the door. As you enter the church it reads; ‘Enter to Pray’ When you leave; ‘Leave to Serve’
Once again it was good to be there – witnessing the people giving a new meaning to the word Celebrate.
“Let the People of God say – Amen !!”

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to......

To New Orleans…….So there is this Mission Trip that a few of the Sisters of Notre Dame did last year to New Orleans and they decided to repeat the trip again this year. There is a day shelter open daily from 8-2. The shelter provides services like showers, laundry, legal advice, medical services, help in getting an ID, providing a mailing address, etc. If you are really interested I am sure I blogged about this last year. Okay, so Yes, I am once again on this mission trip with three sisters and a student from Notre Dame Academy.

We left Covington on Saturday morning. 5:15 a.m. was our target. We started the van exactly at 5:16. Pretty good. We had a seven passenger van from the convent. We each had a piece of luggage, there were a few snacks and the rest of any available space was filled with donations for the Center.

Merrily we rolled along. Homemade blueberry muffins for breakfast in the car. Yummm. We ate our packed lunch at a rest area in AL. Back in the car - and my turn to drive again.

Shortly after we left the rest area traffic slowed to a crawl, a 5mph stop and go crawl. This lasted for about 45 minutes before it broke loose. As I tried to accelerate the steering wheel began to vibrate like crazy – it stopped and it began again.

Time to pull over. There was an exit ahead. Exit 289. Ok, that will have to do. Oh, but wait, what is that over there by the lone gas station? Why, it’s a D.Q. (See, there is a God.) Pulled into a parking spot got out to walk around the car and, my goodness, the front left tire well is smoking. It’s not suppose to do that. The others said that it smelled awful. However, not being able to smell a thing, I didn’t notice that.

So…., the convent just signed on to a car service deal. A couple of 800 # phone calls later by Sister Ruth, our fearless leader, two hours sitting in the D.Q., milk shakes all around, and an unbelievable effort to coordinate things, we found out that; a) the car would have to be towed into Birmingham (45 minutes away), b) they would send a cab for us, from Birmingham (we reminded them that there were 5 of us and many things in the van) c) they would arrange a rental car for us ( reminded them that there were five of us and many things in the van). So we waited……..

Thing is that were we were did not seem to have a name. Come on, every D.Q. is in some town or another – apparently not. The cab could not fine us. The tow truck could not fine us. More phone calls. More waiting. Thank God we were not on the road somewhere. Heat index = well over 100.

Eventually our knights in shinning tow truck & cab arrive – okay, forget the shinning part. The cab was a very dirty van. Didn’t feel too comfortable sitting in it but we did because it was our ride to the car rental place at the Birmingham Airport – 45 minutes away.

Arrived at the car rental place. Talked to the person behind the desk. Our car was to be found in space # 42 – ah, 42, the answer to life, the universe and everything. Good Omen.

Well, a little white corolla was sitting under the # 42. Can’t be right! Back to the friendly lady behind the desk about a block away. Oh, was her reply, just press the panic button on the key. It will be sitting in the slot next to #42. Back to the garage. Presses the panic button – nothing happened! Oh, come on! Sister Ruth walked all over the garage looking for the van we were to rent. Finally, two rows over and 12 cars down….

However, it was a 5 passenger SUV. Oh, come on! So the next 5 hours we traveled with 5 adults in five seat belts. That was a little tight. Sister Claire took the middle hump seat in the back, God bless her. By the time we added all out things we were not only 5 people in 5 seat belts but each adult, except for the driver, had things sitting around their feet and on their laps.

Our 13 hour trip to New Orleans was finally over after 17 ½ hours. Needless to say we were (are) exhausted. Some wonderful sisters from the neighborhood brought some food over for us to get us through the night.

Bottom line is that it could have been a lot worst (of course it could have been a lot better). The van is now fixed and sitting in Birmingham waiting for us to pick it up on our way home. In the mean time there are still 5 adults in 5 seat belts. But we are in New Orleans. We go to the Center tomorrow to do what we came to do.

All’s well that ends well!

Amanda’s (NDA student) summary of the day goes something like this - we packed the van, we unpacked the van, we packed the van, we unpacked the van, we packed the cab, we unpacked the cab, we packed the SUV, we unpacked the SUV. And she is RIGHT!

The Tale of Two Passes

Nothing is simple – that has been one of my mantras for many years.

This past Thursday Jerry and I left for just one more fun trip. We headed down
to Red River Gorge for a couple days of camping with friends. We had been there
is April for our annual spring flower hunt weekend. At that time we got there
on a Wednesday, off season rates were still in effect until Friday night – off
season rates = $7.00. What a deal! And with my trusty Senior Citizen National
Park Pass the first two nights were only $3.50. On Friday the rates when up to
the in-season rate of $22. For a double site – but wait, with that same little
pass our rates (for being old) was $22./night. Yes!

This time we got there on Thursday, paid for three nights – same pass/same price
– total $33.– at least that is what you’d think. We were told by the campground
hosts that the pass wasn’t accepted there – mind you, the same campground,
actually the same site as the month before. We were told we could pick up a
Golden Age Card at the nearby information center at Gladie Creek. Well worth
our while- we’d still get ½ price. So, good friend, Karen and I head there
about a 40 minute drive through the Gorge. Nice scenery but I’m beginning to
dislike the narrow road in my old age. When we get to the Information Center we
were told in fact, that we did not need the Golden Age Card and that the NPP
(National Park Pass) card was accepted. A mistake had been made. Okay, that’s
cool. Saved myself $10. So when we get back to the camp site #1 campground
host stops by, apologizes and said that the #2 host had made a mistake. After a
very confusing conversation I wasn’t convinced that we had the right card so a
day later Jerry and I went back to the information center to get the Golden Age
Card which we were told could be used in places through the country where the
NPP was not accepted. When we get there for the 2nd time and after talking to 3
different people it was decided that the Golden Age Card no longer existed and
the program was absorbed into the NPP program. How totally crazy! Hopefully
our experienced help straighten things out a little so on one else will be as
confused as we were most of the weekend. But don’t get me wrong – the
campground hosts are really good, friendly and really hard working people. The
really do their best to make your stay an enjoyable one. Someday we want to be
campground host too!

The rest of the weekend looked something like: good friends & family, perfect
weather, good food, guy hike, girl walk/run, cold drinks, campfires, good fire
wood, marshmallows, nice neighbors, 2 very impressively large black snakes,
bees/wasps/ants in the camper, sunrises, stars at night, visit to the frog pond,
a few drops of rain one night, a couple of good hikes, mountain laurel, tulip
popular in bloom, lady slippers, clean outhouses, did I mention Good Friends?

Nothing is simple – but it’s all good!

Scratch one more...

… off the bucket list. Jerry has always wanted to see a space shuttle launch – and now we have. The adventure began Saturday morning when we left Covington about 6:00 a.m. Our intent was to drive most of the day and then camp somewhere probably in GA. This part of the trip was fairly uneventful. We ran in to a storm in GA that caused us to pull off the road for about 20 minutes. It was fast, furious and had a lot of lightning and thunder. I can’t remember that it was cold before the rain but it sure was after. I recall checking the weather down south before we left. High in the 80’s and lows in the 60s. Great camping weather, right? So after the rain highs were in the 50’s and lows in the upper 30s. Neither one of us packed cold weather campin’ clothes so we visited a Day’s Inn for the night. After doing the usual bed bug check we slept fairly well. We hit the road early on Sunday morning. We had talked to our friends Sheila and Eduardo, who we were staying with and they suggested we arrive after 5:00 p.m. That was great. We had some time to kill so we got off the expressway and hit some back roads. The Magnolia Trees were in bloom. The Spanish moss was fascinating. We followed RT. 1 down the coast – saw a lot of hotels/motels/souvenir shops and some water. We ended up at the National Sea Shore Park. There was an entrance fee – but I had my trusty little senior citizen National Park Pass in my wallet which allowed us both to get in free. (Yea, for being old.) We found a hiking trail and decided to walk it. This was our first introduction to the Florida Love Bug. For those of you (if there is anyone out there reading this) who don’t know the love bug flies and walks tail to tail with its mate. They don’t sting, they don’t bite but when there are thousands of them they can be very annoying. Literally you had to put your hand in front of your mouth if you wanted to talk to keep them from flying in. When we opened the car door to get in or out we ended up with a dozen or so pairs joining us for the ride. Not a good thing. It was like it was raining bugs! Also, our car became covered with the little things. Apparently the squished bug leaves an acid that removes the finish off your car. They are really tough to remove from the windshield also. Back to the walk - walk led us up a ramp in to the tops of the trees. This too was a challenge since I don’t ‘do’ heights very well. We then drove to Eduardo and Sheila’s wonderful beach house. When we got there the Love Bugs were there also, everywhere, heavier than before. We ran from the car in to the house. Apparently the bugs have never been this bad in the 20 some years that they had lived in Florida. Just our luck! They were so bad that we could not even walk to the beach, which is in their backyard. We went to supper about 2 miles from their home – no bugs. Ate a wonderful meal, watch the sunset and caught up with friends. What could be better? On Monday Jerry and I got up before dawn. Having said goodbye to our hosts the night before we drove off in search of the perfect shuttle launch. Eduardo had given us some ideas as to where to go to view the launch. There were so many people lining the roads, at the parks, in the streets – and this was 4 hours before the blast off time. We got to the city where we wanted to be. People were everywhere. We found a church that was charging $20.to park in their lot. Perfect – good cause, they sold snacks, had restrooms and were right across the street from a place where we could watch from which was behind a burnt out building but right on the water front. There were few people there. The owner of the building came out and said that we really shouldn’t be there because it was private property but they would allow us to stay anyway. Yea, owners! We were about 3 hours early so we saw the sunrise, fish jumping, birds diving and even dolphins passing by. What a treat! We watch the launch with a young couple from New England – he had a smart phone which kept us up to date with what was going on launch-wise. There was an older couple there from Cleveland – oh, wait – maybe we were the older couple. Then there was Betty Boop, Sleeping Beauty, Fiona all rolled in to this one woman who also worked for Disney in Japan and climbed Mt. Fiji – a very interesting young woman – and I do believe she was telling the truth, So the countdown happened but not before the clouds rolled in and clung so very close to the earth. 3-2-1- there is goes! There it went! – maybe 5 seconds worth of’ ooooo’. Of course from the distance you cannot see the shuttle or boosters or anything else that you might see on TV. So that was it! 5 seconds! Like a giant bottle rocket. I’m not saying that it was not worth the 2,000 mile trip. It was! But 5 seconds?! Back to the car, locked in traffic – but only for about 30-45 minutes. I think we were lucky there. Then we drove home. Spent the night I in a Red Roof Inn because it was in the 40s again. In the name of simplicity we had taken our Corolla. Only the two of us - we thought we could be comfortable and at the same time squeeze our camping gear in the trunk. It was an experiment. Worked fairly well. However,…..at some point the car started to fall apart – literally! Some gizmo (Jerry should be telling this end of the story)– maybe something like heavy cardboard that lies under the engine to protect it from dirt, fell off on one side and started flapping on the ground. Not good! Jerry and his bionic arm managed to crawl under the car – not a whole lot of room there folks! – and tie it up with some string that came from a piece of camping clothes line. With that secure feeling we headed back on to the expressway. Within 20 miles another piece of the car started flappin in the wind. This came from under the passenger side door. Totally unrelated to the first incident. All but one bolt apparently broke off. Jerry managed this time to break off this piece way too easily – who needs it anyway? It now is riding in the back of the car. A little closer to home the tire pressure light comes on. Wait – we had a slow leak a week or so ago but we got that fixed – apparently in our dreams. A little air held it until ½ block from home when the light came on again. Ah, but who cares? We made it home safe and sound and in time for Nephew Adam’s graduation. Life is good! Congratulations Adam.

Back in the Saddle Again

Ah, Progress! The last couple of months have been full of ups and downs. Some ups have been higher than others. Some downs have been lower than others.
It is a well know fact that Jerry completed the AT in October it is also well known that he tore a tendon about 2 weeks before his heroic finish. He had 2 surgeries and since the beginning of December we have been dealing with an unbelievable stubborn infection. Somehow that seems to be putting it mildly.
Jerry has gone from being unable to bend his arm for quite a long time to being able to bend it enough to feed himself. Two steps forward, one step backwards – is that the old saying? Let's just say it has been a looonng journey.
Even though the infection is still rearing its ugly head, great strides have been made. This past week while we were camping Jerry managed to split wood for the campfire. (Even though I told Jim that he was not allow to let Jerry do this – Jerry did. Thanks, Jim! Guess it’s just the motherliness in me wanting to be overly protective.) And some campfire we had! Even in the rain.
Yesterday, WooHoo!, Jerry got his old friend out of the garage and managed to ride his bike once again! I think the cry of triumph was heard throughout the whole neighborhood. It has been over a year since he had his wheels under him but the world is once again beginning to open up. Loveland Bike Trail here we come.
There is another change in Jerry but I don’t want to spoil the surprise for anyone who might see him – no he isn’t losing weight – after all, Sally, our wonderful niece and wound care nurse keeps saying ‘eat, eat, more protein to heal the arm’ – but it is a change that is truly noticeable.
YEA for splitting fire wood,
YEA for riding bikes,
YEA for friends, family, green, earth day and Easter !

It is Like Coming Home Again

This is the thought that Jerry and I both had at the same time when we saw the sign for Koomer Ridge Campground last week. It had been almost two years since we had been to the Red River Gorge area. Since Jerry was hiking the AT last year we missed out on our annual spring camping trip with friends that we been doing for almost 25 years – wait we can’t be that old!
We had planned to leave on Tuesday but woke up to wet, chilly weather. After checking the forecast for Slade KY I decided to wait until Wednesday. Jerry was anxious to get there but decided to wait also.
When we arrived on Wednesday the campground host said that Tuesday was a completely miserable day. Yea, for a good decision!
So we arrived on Wednesday. Our friend Jim pulled in right behind us. We settled in campsites next to each other.
The next few days were, sunny, windy, rainy, chilly – it’s hard to remember which days were what. There was a sunrise or two and at least one sunset that we saw. Looked for the space station a couple of times but it was just too cloudy to see it.
Jay came over on Thursday and the three men did their ‘guy hike’ thing. Seems like the Pinch-m-tight trail was true to its name – only Jim could make it through.
Thursday brought Joan and Dave. Friday brought Christy, Karen, Nick and 9 month old Ethan – go Ethan, your first of many camping trips! Saturday saw Christy, Joan and Dave leaving. Nick and Ethan also hit the road back home. Joanna and Mike came and later in the day Sheila arrived with Micah and Toby.
We made a trip towards Whitleton Arch by way of the lower trail – saw a lot of spring wild flowers. We took Ethan to see our favorite Frog Pond. This hike we later repeated with Sheila, Toy and Micah. The boys seemed to totally enjoy it. They ended up with wet feet but also a tadpole, salamander, and frog eggs in their net.
We enjoyed campfires, saw a few lightning bugs, had some good camp food, talked a lot, hiked some, played a little dominoes, laid in our sleeping bags and listened to the wind and rain, lightning and thunder, enjoyed the campground with very few people around, watched a guy with his leaf blower cleaning the campsites in a national forest – talk about job security, talked about going back in a week or two to watch the progression of the wild flowers.
It was good to be there and we are grateful for the opportunity to once again enjoy the wonders of nature so close to home.

And it's Good-bye Again - again

Once again Clair was Leavin’ On A Jet Plane. It was a good visit but after 2 ½ months back in the states the Ice is once again calling her name and she must answer (because she signed a contract to do).

She seems to enjoy her job in Antarctica as Solid Waste Manager, which includes Haz Mat control, and as Fire Marshal.

She hasn’t seen a summer season in a few years as she spends her winter on the Ice and then heads back to KY during our winter season. Crazy woman! I don’t know if I could go without seeing spring wildflowers for that long.

It was great to have her home if only for a bit. We’ll miss her. The dog will miss her. But it does a parent good to see their child doing what makes them happy – however crazy it might seem.

There and back again - again

The weekend road trip started with Clair’s friend Neal from CO arriving here on Wednesday. After an afternoon of Neal meeting most of the immediate family it was an early to bed evening. We headed out about 6:00 a.m. (late start due to Clair fixing her famous oatmeal). Clair’s and my destination was the PA/NJ boarder, Neal was headed to NH. It just so happened that Google maps took him past Covington and past my favorite spot in all of PA, Judy’s house. (Judy = wonderful sister-in-law and aunt.)

10 hours after pulling out of Covington we pulled in to Bangor, PA. Neal spent the night there and moved on the next morning. The trip was chilly, rainy.

It was good to see Judy, Len and Justin. The next five days were spent talking, eating, sleeping, knitting, reading, hiking, riding in the car – to the liquor store, to the bakery shop, to the state park, to the gas station, to the bank, to the grocery store, to the drug store….

…And to the farm where we visited with Smadar and Mike, saw Samson and Hannah from last year, met the new guy James, gathered eggs, washed the eggs, watered the chickens, took care of the chicken who met his demise at the hands of a hawk, hiked to the pond, weeded, watered, planted, shucked beans, sorted beans, bagged beans, ground corn, bagged corn meal, helped get ready for distribution day, helped prepare for a mailing.

The biggest disappointment of the trip was to find out that The Run Way Café was closed for the month of March. Darn! That is my second favorite place in NJ next to the farm. It is a place where you can go, have a greasy lunch and watch planes and gliders come and go – if you’re lucky. And you can go in your farm clothes, the muddy, really dirty ones. And you can go without worrying about your hair and make-up (not that I normally do – worry about it). On the up side we had some great food by way of home cooking – home made tomato soup, corn casserole, C lair’s oatmeal, coconut milk based chicken dish, somosas.

It is always a good to visit the farm, to work in the dirt, to walk the hills. It be with people who are so well grounded. It is always hard to say goodbye to Judy and her family.

The trip end with the long ride home - rainy once again.

Seeds and a Fork in the Road

This weekend was a good one spent primary with Jerry’s family sharing a meal, prayer and great company.
On Sunday some of us met at the local coffee house to discuss our garden plans for the summer and to order seeds. This is a step up for us. We usually have a small garden of some type in our yard, just a few tomato and pepper plants, etc. Last summer we had a bumper crop of strawberries. The kids next door came over and saw how strawberries looked before they appeared on the store shelf in plastic containers. They enjoyed picking them and taking some home to the family. More often than not though by mid-summer the weeds have taken over and we end up just harvesting what we can.
However yesterday was a power meeting of what our garden could look like.
Spring fever set in and we began ordering seeds. Brother-in-law Jack was the experienced one. While Dave and I have done a little gardening for many years, Jack has done mega-gardening, at least by our family standards. Our true inspiration comes from sister Judy who has worked on Genesis Farm in NJ for over 23 years. She is the one with the ‘know how’ and the experience. She is the one who answers all our questions and offers advice. She is ‘the one’!
So a couple of hours later we were thinking green and tasting wonderful veggies in our heads. Over $100. worth of seeds to be shares 3 or 4 ways. Not too bad for a summer worth of vegetables. Oh, and don’t forget the flowers! Judy says that you must plant flowers in order to feed the soul as well as veggies to feed our bodies. I like that kind of thinking. So some of the flowers we ordered are edible.
So that was a fork in the road for me – to get serious about gardening and eating locally grown. How much more local can you get that your own back yard. Perhaps we’re taking the road less traveled but I think there are a lot of people beginning to walk down that path.
But wait, there was another fork in the road that we responded to yesterday. We attended two fundraisers on Sunday. Two different local high schools, two different causes, both worth our time and money. Besides you can’t beat $8 for breakfast and $6 for dinner.
As I was thinking about dinner I had an epiphany that I decided to act on. Jerry graciously went along with the idea or at least put up with it and decided to humor me once again. Instead of using the plastic knives and forks we took our own forks (didn’t really need knives) from home and our own napkins also.
When we refuse the paper napkin wrapped plastic ware the lady looked at us kind of strange but eventually said ‘that’s an interesting idea’. I’m not sure she meant it but I hope the idea got talked about later.
At the table we were sitting with some of the family. They either didn’t notice that we were using real forks and napkins or decided to ignore it as to not embarrass us – not that it would have. I would have liked to have had the chance to say, ‘yea, we did it on purpose’.
So another literal fork in the road has been taken. Hopefully we will continue down this path also. A friend of our daughter for some time now has taken his own container with him when he east out so as to eliminate the need for a ‘doggie bag’. I like that idea. Hopefully I’ll someday remember to do that also.

To Elk or not to Elk...

...that is the question.
The past couple of weeks/months have been long ones. The temps, the snow, the lack of sun, the arm ( I know I haven’t address that element but perhaps sometime in the near future.) So when the opportunity came for a short mental health get-a-way I took advantage of the situation. Called my BFF, managed to get reservations and headed to Jenny Wiley State Park for a night and for an early morning elk sighting tour.
After we made the reservations I found out that the tour was on land that had been the victim of mountain top removal. I became aware of a knot in my stomach. I do not remember reading that the tour was on land that was still an active surface mine and was not aware of that fact until the presentation began at 5:30 m. Saturday morning. The knot in my stomach was growing larger. Surface mine, mountain top removal, strip mining (I was told that is a dirty word and not used anymore.)…..the knot began to grow even more.
There were about 28 people on the tour, three vans, three employees of the park system.
The good thing was the ground was frozen - so there was no mud to get stuck in. The bad thing was that the frozen ground was covered in spots with snow and ice.
Our van driver who fit the description of a ‘good old boy’ to the T – really nice guy, said he was just ‘Dukin’ ‘ it. (took only a second to get his reference to the Dukes of Hazard-after all that is the country we were in.)
Well, that wasn’t the extent of the good and bad of the morning trip. That was the easy part to handle.
The driver sang the praises of Mountain Top Removal every chance he got – the wonderful economic boost that it brought to the area touched all the people, the jobs it created, the cheap energy source, the great landscapes it created for things like recreational activities, golf courses, sports complexes, ATV trails, hmmm, elk viewing – sponsored by the state park system ( How can that be?). All kinds of stomach churning examples.
I hesitate to say too much here since I haven’t done a lot of homework on the subject but I know what I heard in the past. So I invite you to goggle Mountain Top Removal. Check out some of the videos. Listen to the people from the area and their opinion of MTR. The people who are not on the payroll of the mining companies. The people who love the mountains.
So the knot is the stomach is still festering, still growing. What have I contributed to?!
Sure it was great to see elk. But I think next time I’ll head over to western KY to the Land Between the Lakes area where there are no mountainsto be harmed. Or better yet out west somewhere where the mountains have not become victims of MTR!
Or maybe just stay home!
BTW this very weekend a group of concerned citizens of KY occupied the office of the governor to protest Mountain Top Removal.
Read more at…
http://www.kftc.org/our-work/canary-project/campaigns/mtr/MTR-generalinfo