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I don't know if this link will work as it is to FaceBook - but Glacier National Park folks posted this time lapse vid of aurora borealis activity over Lake McDonald last night - and I thought it was wonderful. That is one of my favorite spots on the planet - so serene - and with the lights . . . oh my!
So sorry to hear this bad news. A few years ago it seemed like I was going to a funeral every couple of months.
Thank you, Clark. I am so glad my friend has her family there with her . . . they all live close by - children and grandchildren. Her parents have been gone for a good while. These two got married early - while in college - and built such a good life together (and have a beautiful family). Breaks my heart.
It is shocking to me that the last 20 years went so much faster than the earlier 20 years (and they seemed to go too quickly, too!) And I am told the next 20 years will go even faster. You would think that once you retire (not quite there yet myself, but definitely have scaled back) -- things would go slower. I don't understand how my sense of time has changed so much. I feel "behind" on everything. Heck, the reason I feel behind is because - I AM! lololol
You noticed that too, huh. While working, weeks seemed to stretch on interminably. Now they pass quickly and we wonder where they went. I hope you get that peaceful time with your husband. Drums, not so much. With all my wife has been going through that has left us virtually housebound for months I'm certainly grateful for our home in the hills and hollers of the Ozarks, as is my wife.
Up until this last week it's been a relatively cool and very pleasant summer and by tomorrow will start cooling again with some summer thunderstorms in the offing. They're my favorites. The real saving grace is that even when stuck at home, nature comes to us in the forms of cardinals and bluebirds, tufted titmice, Canada geese, the occasional roadrunner, turkeys, wintertime bald eagles and many more, chipmunks, squirrels, foxes, rabbits, deer, coyotes (heard, not seen but very rarely) and the lake right outside. We could certainly do a lot worse.
I'm sorry about your friend's husband. Too early to die indeed!
Last edited by Curmudgeon; 08-28-2014 at 09:08 AM..
Seeing as how last winter was the one from hell, I am not going to get caught short on resources this year.
I've already started laying in extra supply for the animals. Hay and bedding. I think it's a little too early to start hoarding grain.
Crude oil is low so I'm waiting for the new month to grab a load when the futures prices take effect.
Anyone else panicking?[/quote]
You're certainly not in a panic; you're behaving in a rational and prudent manner.
It's never to early to begin hoarding grain as well as fuel and other supplies. I've been buying bottled water in larger than normal amounts because Walmart is stocking the store with their house brand and cutting way back on Nestle. I've added to my kerosene supply; I bought more wicks and mantles; I tested my kerosene stoves and lamps. I have an eight month supply of lisinopril, my only prescription. There's plenty of food for us.
In a long term emergency spouted seeds can be a source of Vitamin C. If you have heat, light, food, and water along with the ability to defend yourselves, your animals, and your hoard you'll be fine.
Last year, because I thought we would be in Fl by now, I pared down the hoard of supply. You go to town once a week, wth do you need a month's worth of everything.
Then I was down for a week with sinus infection and HAD to go to the store. I felt okay to drive but there were days I felt like I would pass out if behind the wheel.
So two weeks ago I realized I simply cannot be without two weeks at the very least of everything.
It's ironic, every year for the last twenty when summer finally came, a few weeks into it and winter would be a distant memory.
Not this year. I can still 'see' the snowbanks, the ice. Vividly.
Gotta fix that spring on the generator.....
I've been saving the big three liter bottles from soda for water storage.
Our generator always negated the need, but it's not putting out the energy it used. Slowly over the years (it's an eight year old Coleman with a Subie engine, 6250 max) it stopped powering things it used to. First the boiler, then the big TV.
Better to have and not need then need and not have, I guess......
Last year, because I thought we would be in Fl by now, I pared down the hoard of supply. You go to town once a week, wth do you need a month's worth of everything.
Then I was down for a week with sinus infection and HAD to go to the store. I felt okay to drive but there were days I felt like I would pass out if behind the wheel.
So two weeks ago I realized I simply cannot be without two weeks at the very least of everything.
It's ironic, every year for the last twenty when summer finally came, a few weeks into it and winter would be a distant memory.
Not this year. I can still 'see' the snowbanks, the ice. Vividly.
Gotta fix that spring on the generator.....
I've been saving the big three liter bottles from soda for water storage.
Our generator always negated the need, but it's not putting out the energy it used. Slowly over the years (it's an eight year old Coleman with a Subie engine, 6250 max) it stopped powering things it used to. First the boiler, then the big TV.
Better to have and not need then need and not have, I guess......
Just don't forget that you're far safer where you live now than you could be anywhere in Florida. I suspect that the worst winter you've ever experienced will pale in comparison to a hurricane. Then there's the difference in crime.
I know, but I'm also a lot further away to hospitals and doctors. Amenities will become more important for us that remoteness as we age.
Hurricanes don't bother me as much as winters do (I grew up in SoFL). Going to a safe area, too.
If not for winters I could probably hang here another ten years but I just don't want to anymore. I was okay doing all the yard work, but now doing all the animals on top of it is enough.
We're tired of the stairs, the hilly terrain. Enough.
I mean, I remember when I was 5 years old I begged my Mom to buy me a toy advertised in a comic book. The ad said "allow 4 - 6 weeks for delivery." My Mom agreed and mailed out a check for the toy. The next day I asked if the toy arrived. My Mom said no, you have to be patient it will take 4 - 6 weeks. The next day after that I asked if the toy arrived ... and the next day after that. 4 - 6 weeks seemed like an eternity! By the following week, I had forgotten about it. When the toy finally arrived I forgot we ever ordered it!
This type of thing will happen for you again some day soon, lol.
I recently came home to a big brown box sitting on my porch I thought must be some mistake, must be the neighbor's. When I read my name on it I still thought there was some mistake. Pulling all the newsprint wrappings out I looked in and saw some items that vaguely rang a bell. It was my order from Amazon, placed only two weeks before.
One great thing about getting older is that our friends can come over and warm themselves around our birthday cake!
Looking on the bright side is important for me; last night I got on my rowing machine and it sank.
The willingness to try new things keeps us young. I understand there's a marijuana-flavored toothpaste now. You still get cavities, but you don't care!
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With all my wife has been going through that has left us virtually housebound for months I'm certainly grateful for our home in the hills and hollers of the Ozarks, as is my wife. 
Let's try to look on the bright side:
