Old People On The Road

Thanksgiving in Cove Oregon

2011-11-26T20:12:00.000-08:00

We spent Thanksgiving this year at Ascension School Camp and Conference Center in Cove Oregon. The organization is under the auspices of the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon and runs camps during the summer for children including children whose parents are incarcerated.

We had heard how wonderful the facility and staff were and when we heard that they would again be offering Thanksgiving dinner and that the Bishop and her husband would be attending, we decided to go there have dinner and spend the night in the conference center.

Cove is about six hours from Bend and the view from the roads through the mountains and national forests is gorgeous.

There were about 35 people who attended dinner, most of them simply drove in for the dinner but there were four couples, including the Bishop, her husband and their niece who stayed the night. We had an enjoyable evening just sitting around after the meal and talking with those staying the night.

One of the things that the Bishop likes to do is to play games – here are a couple of pictures from the game. The Bishop is on the right in the black and red sweater and her husband is sitting at the far end of the table.

Helen with one of the participants.

And finally the Bishop and her husband “relaxing” – except she is answer email on her IPhone.

And the Winner Is?

2011-11-05T13:34:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Ms Helen for winning the People's Choice Award at the "City Walls at City Hall" art competition at Bend City Hall. This competition is a uniquely-themed quarterly juried art show held at Bend City Hall and built around the overall theme of inspiring community with art. The competition is designed to support artists, advocate for the business development aspect of the arts and develop successful partnerships to promote the arts. This is the first year for the show which will hold a total of four competitions this year and to date Helen won the Judge's Prize in the first competition and the People's Choice award in the second!

The theme of the show she just competed in was “Growing Up – Bend Inspires Its Children: Our Future.” Artists where paired with organizations in the city that support the development of children in need and the goal was to have the artist meet with members of the organization and produce art that represents the mission of the organization.

Helen was paired with Healthy Families of the High Desert. The organizations website describes it as “… a voluntary home visiting program that assists families in giving their newborn children a "healthy start" in life. The program offers weekly intensive home visits for first birth, high-need families and a one-time welcome home visit to all families with newborns.”

Family – look closely you may see someone that you know in the images!

4th of July Parade in Redmond OR

2011-07-04T19:21:00.000-07:00

Greetings after a LONG posting absence! Our motorcycle club was in the Redmond 4th of July parade. The club's picture guru snapped these photos. Helen was first in our group behind the club's banner (one of the advantages of having the biggest motorcycle in the parade) and got a several ATTA GIRL’s from the people who turned out for the parade!

Oh the Pain

2010-10-03T21:52:00.000-07:00

Helen and I were delegates to the 40th annual convention of the Diocese of Eastern Oregon. It was an interesting time – the Church is faced with some serious issues. However, let’s not address that here.
Unfortunately on Sunday we were walking in the parking lot at the hotel and Helen fell and hurt her knee (left side) and broke a chunk of bone off of her right ankle, one that she has broken before. Here are the gory details, forever preserved in the ethereal world of the Internet…
It hurts when someone you love is hurt…….

The Beekeeper

2010-06-17T19:28:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to see Jennifer (also known as Jenn) and Ryan for a couple of days on our way back from KC. It was great to see them and as usual there was something interesting going on - we had our first chance to see their (mostly Ryan's) beekeeping activity.

One of the days we were there he was weed-whacking near where his two hives are located and apparently this caused one of the hives to swarm - he discovered most of them on the branch of a tree nearby. They eventually returned to the hive, but when Ryan checked the hives it was obvious that the little guys had been very busy so there was a rush to add another level to both hives.

Some photos (double-click for larger images!):

And a short video!

Ein deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms

2010-05-18T19:12:00.000-07:00

Over the last three days I have had one of the most thrilling and challenging experiences in the many years that I have enjoyed singing with choirs.

The Central Oregon Mastersingers, along with the Cascade Choral and the Central Oregon Symphony performed Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem (German Requiem) in German. There where 85 members in the orchestra along with a chorus of 104 voices. What a glorious sound!

The preparation for the performance was extensive, 7 rehearsals of the choir members and 4 rehearsals of the choir and orchestra - 33 hours in all!

Brahms began this work in 1864 after the death of his mother and unlike the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass, written in Latin, the Libretto was written in German using text from the German Luther Bible. Also, unlike the Roman Catholic Requiem which focuses on prayers for the dead, the Brahms' work focuses on God as a figure of comfort.

Anyway, I don't have a recording of our performance but there are many on utube - give this one a listen, it's the second half of the second movement of the work (OH turn your volume down!):

Utube: Movement 2 part 2

Mexico - Pt3: Chichen Itza

2010-04-26T22:31:00.000-07:00

Our visit to the Mayan Civilization ruins at Chichen Itza was a 2 hr bus ride from our hotel on a VERY hot day. Here is Ms. Helen suffering from the heat but "hot" as ever.

The descriptions here I have pulled from http://www.chichenitza.com/ I (of course) cannot guarantee their historical accuracy (can I hear a DUH!)However I can tell you it is a remarkable site, and there is MUCH more to be seen than what I have included here.

The major feature of the the site is the "Great Ball Court" (El Gran Juego de Pelota). "The Mayans were great sportsmen and build huge ballcourts to play all their games. The Great Ballcourt of Chichen Itza is 225 feet wide and 545 feet long overall. It has no vault, no discontinuity between the walls and is totally open to the blue sky.
Each end has a raised to the temple area. A whisper from end can be heard clearly enough at the other end 500 feet far away and through the length and breath of the court.
The sound waves are unaffected by wind direction or time of day and also night. Archaeologists engaged in the reconstruction noted that the sound transmission became more and more strong and clear as they proceeded.
In 1931 Leopold Stokowski spent 4 days at this site to determine the acoustic principals that could be applied to theater for an open-air concert he was designing. Stokowski failed to learn the secret. To date it has not been explained.
It is easy to imagine a Mayan King sitting here presiding over the games. Legends say that the winning Capitan would present his own head to the losing Capitan, who then decapitates him."
Note the hoop in the wall.

The Castle (El Castillo - the Kukulkan Pyramid):
" The Kukulkan Pyramid was built for astronomical purposes and during the vernal equinox (March 20) and the autumnal equinox (September 21) at about 3pm the sunlight bathes the western balustrade of the pyramid's main stairway.
This causes 7 isosceles triangles to form imitating the body of a serpent roughly 37 yards long that creeps downwards until it joins the huge serpent's head carved in stone at the bottom of the stairway."

The Sacred Cenote (Cenote Sagredo): "The Yucatan Peninsula is a limestone plain, with no streams or rivers. The region is pockmarked with natural sinkholes ( Cenotes ) which expose the water table to the surface.
One of the most impressive is the Sacred Cenote, which is 60 m. in diameter, and shear cliffs that drop to the water table some 27 m. below.
The legendary Sacred Cenote (natural waterhole) of Chichen ltza was special to the people for its social and religious significance. On occasions, the sacrifice of human life was part of the offerings made to the Water God. But, it was not as common as had earlier been imagined."

Mexico Trip Pt2 - The Animals of ....

2010-04-22T21:12:00.000-07:00

Well I started to call this post "The Animals of Mexico" and then realized it really should be titled something like "The Animals of a Real Expensive Resort, Not Native To Mexico" then realized that there was at least one animal that was native.

Peacocks and Guinea Fowl all over the place, and the peacocks are LOUD - especially when they start yakking at each other at dawn...

The one native species, these are Coati, they look like a cross between a raccoon and a cat!

There where a LOT of feral cats hanging out close to the beach, here is one that was begging food at dinner time:

Mexico Trip - Pt 1, Horseback Riding

2010-04-15T22:16:00.000-07:00

Some of you are asking - what do the IN tourists wear for horseback riding? Well the answer is clear from this photo:

Notice that the other tourist in the background looks on with interest!

For the more tradional look - you have Ms Helen and myself, trying to set a good example for the more traditonal riders.

In part 2 - The Animals of Ibaerostar Resort

The Trip to Crater Lake

2010-03-19T07:38:00.000-07:00

Last year we purchased snow shoes with the intent of Getting Out There. We did OK last year but with the exception of Helen going on the Park Ranger snowshoe at Mt. Bachelor we haven't done that great this season. In our defense it hasn't seemed that much like winter around here, at least not like the winter or 08-09.

So we decided that we should go and take the Ranger-led snowshoe at Crater Lake National Park. Since the lodge at the park is closed this time of year we (I) did the Internet thing and selected lodging at "The Wilson's Cabins".

According to their website:

"The Wilson brothers began construction on the cottages in 1937. Everything from the wood shingles to the furniture was made by hand from trees harvested on the 135 acre property. The quality of their craftsmanship has withstood the test of time.

Annie creek, which originates from a spring inside Crater Lake National Park, flows through the property. It offers a mesmerizing, tranquil retreat amid the tall pines and one of the oldest Quaking Aspen stands in North America. Come and enjoy lodging at a truly unique and beautiful place located next to Crater Lake, one of the natural wonders of the world."

When you where a kid, if you ever visited a place like the Lake of the Ozarks and stayed in the cabins there - a similar place. We where the only ones there, they don't get much traffic during the winter. Very rustic, but clean and good beds to sleep in.

Here is an album of some pictures of the place:

Crater Lake
Almost 2,000 feet deep, the lake is the seventh deepest lake in the world, and the water is amazingly clear. On weekends the park offers free snowshoe tours with a park ranger and they even provide the snowshoes. The snow base was 119 inches and they had 24 inches of new snow the night before.

The tour lasted about 2 1/2 hours. we started out by walking down the slope away from the lake and ended by climbing back up to the rim of the crater to see the lake. Absolutely gorgeous!

Here is the slideshow of the photos:

It never rains in California

2010-01-24T17:30:00.000-08:00

It never rains in California – isn’t that what the song said? Well if you’ve been watching the weather reports the last several days you know it has rained a lot in California. And so on Thursday we left Bend along with Robert and Diane to go to Palm Desert for the yearly meeting of our LLC.

The view out the front window of the car in SUNNY California:

Fortunately yesterday when we go up the weather had changed from rain to simply cloudy and drizzly. Then by afternoon mixed sun and clouds – so off we went to the Joshua Tree National Park. Here is a slide show of some of the park – totally awesome place. Click on the photo below and it will take you to the photo album. Once you get there there is a SMALL button at the top left of the first picture to let yo view larger images in a slide show format.

Joshua Tree National Forest

Do Ya Wanna Dance?

2010-01-07T19:11:00.000-08:00

We have seen many interesting things looking at the wildlife out our kitchen window, but... well see for yourself. These little guys where newborns in the spring, how things change.

Note that this video IS SUITABLE FOR GENERAL AUDIENCES!

The Fountains

2010-01-03T14:35:00.000-08:00

A couple of months ago we were invited to go on a trip to Newport Oregon with Robert and Diane. Newport sits almost in the center of the scenic Oregon coast. One of the most interesting attractions there is the Oregon Coast Aquarium - but more on that in a later post.

While we were there we were in a store and saw metal tanks that had been converted into fountains. Basically they were inside tanks from water heaters that had been cleaned and very intricate patterns cut into them so that a light mounted inside would display the patterns at night. The artist used the pipe that goes up the center of the tank and exits the top at the tanks center to route water out of the top of the tank to spill down the sides. The tanks where then powder-coated to finish them off. They were VERY cool.

Well Robert had the idea to make our own fountains as Christmas surprises for Diane and Helen. Robert rounded up two old water heaters from a local plumbing company and we stripped the outside and all of the misc hardware from the tanks.

We then struggled with designs for the tanks. Realizing that we probably did not have the necessary skills or the equipment to do the level of detail that we had seen in the “professional” product we settle on relative simple designs.

Robert cut the patterns into the tank one cold, rainy day; while I stood by watching to make sure that nothing caught fire (including Robert!).

We decided to let the women make the final decision on finishing the tanks off, so unveiled the interim product to them on Christmas day. Here are a couple of pictures of the final product.

Thanks again to Robert for the idea and all of the help!

Christmas Concerts

2009-12-22T23:55:00.000-08:00

Well the heavy-duty choral work is over for the year for me. Last Wednesday the church choir had its evening of "Lessons and Carols", an event not well attended but the choir and the string orchestra did a credible job.

Last Saturday and Sunday the Central Oregon Mastersingers gave concerts in Bend and Sunriver along with the Sunriver Bell Choir. The bell choir is very good and has a large following in Sunriver as the members of the group come from several different churches in the Sunriver area. Both concerts where sold out.

We did well despite what appeared to be an inept sound system person at the Great Hall in Sunriver.

It's hard to explain the joy that singing with this group gives me. For those that care about such things I have been moved from the Tenor section to the Bass section - the director says it's a promotion (humor alert) and I've always wanted to sing Bass since I first heard the Bass Oratorio "Thus Saith The Lord" from Handel's Messiah. It's a new experience and so far I really enjoy it.

On a slightly different topic, I've posted a recording of one of the numbers that we (Mastersingers) performed at our benefit concert for Habitat for Humanity in the fall - the link is HERE.

Helen Enriches Yakima

2009-12-06T21:51:00.000-08:00

Yakima Washington is now culturally richer thanks to the Holiday Inn's decision to contract with Helen for artwork for display in the remodeled lobby of the hotel. Thanks goes to our friend Diane who was instrumental in linking Helen up with the manager of the hotel, Diane provided design services for the remodel. The richness of color in the carpeting and fabrics that Diane used is reflected in Helen's design.

Congratulations Ms. Helen the work looks great, even better when you see the quilting up close - we are proud of you!

Dewey Chester Harman 1921-2009

2009-11-11T07:10:00.000-08:00

We learned yesterday that Helen's Father-in-law from her first marriage has died in California. Helen always referred to him affectionately as "Dad". Dewey was a man of strong opinion but a soft heart; a man who battled alcohol for years but had been sober for years. He leaves behind his wife Donna, and family and friends that will miss him.

Peace to you Dewey...

As a Deer That Yearns...

2009-11-08T23:07:00.000-08:00

The deer are back, well not like they ever go away for an extended period of time, but this was the view out of the side door of our bedroom a couple of days ago:

The Renting of Lee Blvd

2009-11-02T11:09:00.000-08:00

Well - after MANY months, two price reductions, and SEVERAL people saying they wanted the house, we finally have a Contract on the place! The renter is a woman who just graduated from medical school and is interning at Children's Mercy Hospital; and her fiance who is a physical trainer. THE LEASE RUNS UNTIL THE END OF MAY 2011! Hopefully when they are finished with the place the market might be better to sell it.

Also, as a further sign of good luck on this, Uncle Bob was passing by the place on Saturday, saw cars and people in the yard and dropped in to see what was going on. He first met the fiance, who was there with his mother, and it turns out that he is the son of Bob's dentist! He also met the doctor and gave them all a tour and answered questions - AND was favorably impressed with them, so another reality check!

Anyway, this all looks very positive and they are scheduled to move in on Nov 25Th.

And last but not least many thanks to Bob for his babysitting of the place in our absence, it's good to have someone spot-checking the place.

Before the Moon NASA Came Here - and the great dumpster fire

2009-07-20T09:34:00.000-07:00

A mixed news day here in Bend Oregon!

Before the Moon NASA Came Here
That was the tag line for the front page story in today's newspaper. "Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were among the many astronauts and researchers who came to Bend between 1964 and 1966 to observe basalt and other volcanic rock that might resemble the lunar landscape and practice negotiation the terrain in their space gear."

The front page of the newspaper in August 25, 1964 devoted one half of the front page to "Astronaut Cunningham finds jagged lava tough going" which included three pictures of the astronaut, two in his spacesuit. The paper reported that "Cunningham hiked through the lava flow at McKenzie Pass in his space suite for about six minutes, before he tripped on a rock and fell, tearing a hole in his glove.

An area outside of bend where the astronauts spent some of their time training is now the Newberry National Volcanic Monument. Here are some pictures of the area (double-click on photos for a large image):

A plaque near the beginning of the main trail remembering the astronauts:

A couple of views of the area, it's really hard to get a feeling for just how desolate and rugged the lava flow is:

And finally our friend Robert up to his ears in lava:

The Great Dumpster Fire

One of the headlines from KOHD TV was a report of a dumpster fire next to a business in Bend yesterday. It was complete with some great film clips of the heat-ravaged dumpster and the front of the business along with the assurance that a "second fire unit was called in to inspect the roof of the building" to make sure that the fire didn't jump to the roof. Now to be fair, this was the THIRD headline after the report of a drowning from yesterday and the repeat of a three-day old stabbing. All cities should have the problem that the big news is a dumpster fire.

Evan is 2! and Taylor (alias The Bug) is 1!

2009-04-21T15:47:00.000-07:00

We got back last night from spending the weekend with Heather, Leslie and Evan. Evan was 2 last week and H&L had a party for him on Sunday. There where a lot of kids and parents there for the festivities and Evan handled the crowds very well.

One of the pictures from the festivities:

Taylor Ann is 1 today - it's hard to beleive the year has passed this fast. Wish we were there to celebrate with Sophie, John and Devin.

Easter, Bo, 15 YDs & Snow

2009-04-15T08:49:00.000-07:00

Easter
Easter was a relaxing day for us - mostly. The weather was supposed to be sunny and warm so I rode the murdercycle to the church for the first of the two services that the choir was singing. Between services one of the ladies that works in the Family Kitchen (they provide meals for the needy) fixed breakfast for the choir and the Rector so I had a chance to talk with the her (the Rector) for a while about some of the things going on in the church office where I work part time.

After breakfast I noticed that it was cloudy with a little moisture in the air and realized that I had not packed my protective pants in the saddlebags of the mudercycle. I don't normally where them for short rides in the city, but if the road was going to be slick I definitely wanted them on, so called Helen to ask her to bring them when she came to the 2nd service.

After the second service it was, of course, cloudy with a little drizzle in the air - but not as bad as for the yard work. (More on that later).

The afternoon was spent in conversation and food shared with good friends - always a great combination.

BO
In regard to Bo - just threw that in for the ____ of it as enough has been said already.

Yard Work
As some (are most) are aware we left a rather large yard at our home in Leawood for a smaller yard, and allegedly less work, here in Bend. So to prove just how much work there can be even in a smaller yard we ordered 15 cubic yards of mulch to "refresh" the beds around the yard.

When we purchased the mulch the weather report was for sun and temperatures in the 50's. In Bend that doesn't mean much as the weather can shift a LOT in a few days. Anyway yesterday when the first of two loads where delivered it was 35 degrees and overcast.

Here is part of the first delivery sitting on the driveway:

And Ms. Helen performing her yard duties:

A short time later snow! Note that, even though you cannot see it, it looks just like the little beads of Styrofoam use to pack things in boxes!

And a little later:

As you might expect we did NOT finish the job yesterday. Today we are waiting for the sun to melt the snow so that we can get back at it!

First Ride of the Season

2009-04-05T17:08:00.000-07:00

It's been a BEAUTIFUL day in Bend - right now its 66 degrees and sunny. Robert called earlier in the day and asked if I was interested riding the Murdercycles. So we rode about 70 miles - first to the city of Sisters and then a circuitous route back to Bend. Thanks Robert - you always show a guy a good time!

In front of me when I was getting of the highway was a three-wheeled motorcycle. I thought at first it was one of the Can-Am Spyders:

But after stalking the thing for a while I decided the front wheel base was too wide for the spyder, I thought about stalking for a while longer but thought that would be tacky.

Re: A SLIGHT change in plans

2009-04-01T21:14:00.001-07:00

OK Fess Up! Did you believe the posting about us buying property in California, particularly since is was posted on April Fools Day? Let me assure everyone that it would be a cold day in ____ when we invest in another piece of property especially a fixer-upper.

Hope I didn't give anyone heart failure.....

A SLIGHT Change in Plans

2009-04-01T09:38:00.000-07:00

As Jenn and Ryan prepare to move out of the LA area we are in the process of setting up some time to look at real estate in that area. According to many articles, there are some excellent, albeit long-term, opportunities for making large returns on distressed properties in some excellent areas like Signal Hill, LaVerne, Hidden Hills and West Holywood.

This all may sound crazy, and we do love the Bend area, but this would give us a project we could really sink our teeth into, and Lord knows we have plenty of experience with having to refurb and remodel houses.

In talking to our investment advisers they seem less than enthusiastic about the prospects, but I assume that is because we would be moving a LOT of money away from them to California, so they are not exactly the most objective people at this time.

SO - more later!

Skiing Mt. Bachelor !!

2009-03-20T18:06:00.000-07:00

Since USUALLY honesty is the best policy, I must admit it was not I that skied Mt. Bachelor today. Jennifer and Ryan are visiting for a few days and Ryan brought his skis - so it was off to Mt. B this AM.

Ryan took a number of photos (at Ms. Helen's request) while he was on the mountain.

Apparently on his very first run, Ryan took the lift to the top of the mountain, only to discover that visibility was a LITTLE tough. So he ended up in an ungroomed area with deep snow that was a "little" hard to turn in. This picture shows how many went this direction before him - HUM apparently not many:

This picture shows Ryan celebrating his skill(LUCK?)in managing to get back down from the top:

This is a most excellent view of the mountain that is called Broken top:

A fun shot at the top showing what appears to be signs that point to nowhere:

A tree near the summit that shows how fierce the winds and general environment can be at the top:

And finally - the view of the Woman waiting for her MAN to come down from the mountain - hopefully with a fresh kill for dinner!

Jobs & Refrigerators

2009-03-11T09:37:00.000-07:00

First of all the GREAT news - John sent me a message last night that said "We have jobs!". As you may or may not know both John and Sophie work for Sprint in KC and they where sweating over the details of the latest layoffs that had been announced.

It was too late last night to call him when we got home, so I don't know the details - but I'm hoping this will keep both him and Sophie out of harms way for a while. Keep them and everyone else that is facing hard times in this economy in your prayers.

And now the REFRIGERATOR.

For those of you who read a previous blog regarding the case of the GE Advantium oven, we now have the case of the GE refrigerator. It's one of those custom jobs with wood on the doors to match the cabinets in the kitchen - retails we think for about $5,000! Anyway a couple of weeks ago we noticed that everything in the frig was freezing - and no matter how we set the controls it was still freezing the food.

Similar to the situation with the Advantium oven, when we contacted GE for warranty work they said that the frig was purchased in the summer of 2006 and the 2-year parts and labor had expired. Helen, that fearless pursuer of justice, advised them that the frig had only been in service a little over a year and that in was ____ ____ that we would be faced with paying for this repair. Anyway after two service trips, one to diagnose and one to install a $300 part, the total repair bill is right at $500.

GOOD NEWS this morning, GE called and said they have adjusted the warranty date to the date we bought the house and they would be sending the local repair people an authorization for the work! Kudos to Ms. Helen!

Twiddley Dee

2009-03-05T21:22:00.000-08:00

Twitter my eye! Seems like someones eyes are on a hot chick!
He appears to be using the old line - "Want to see my poles? - they are really cool!"
She does seem impressed!

And what about the mailbox repairs he has been doing?
Thank heavens the little old ladies at Mountain High are having a little wine now and then, which makes for backing out of driveways a little tricky!
The mailboxes suffer - they have a good time - and it gets him out of the house!
Plus he has decided they need to be re-engineered!
We have also had some good times recently - took a snow shoe trip with church lead by the Park Rangers on Mt Bachelor, gave some great information about water shed management, trees, moss and what do if there is an avalanche.
With the snow we have been receiving this week, the base on Mt Bachelor should be well above the 350" - which will help with the water for the summer.

Twitter You This

2009-03-05T20:59:00.000-08:00

As you have probably noticed, I have been somewhat remiss in posting anything in this blog of late. There is a reason for this - my perception that most of what is going on here is somewhat boring. I guess it reflects my feelings about Twitter, Facebook, and all of the "social networking" sites - in general nobody REALLY cares that I had salmon for dinner tonight and that I then closed the financial books on BendEscape for March. OH - and I used my new nose spray from the allergist this morning so that I wouldn't sneeze and blow my nose all day, and it REALLY works!!

SO - if I am wrong and you would like to have one of those daily commentaries (of course less than 140 words) let me know, you can either comment through this blog site or send an email to outofthoughts@ihavetoomuchtimeonmyhands.org

OH - by the way I bought a AWESOME steel storage rack for the garage at COSCO yesterday... As I've said before, life is sweet in Bend OR.

New Job and New Experiences

2009-02-05T13:51:00.001-08:00

I started today assisting in our church's office. The Church Administrator met with me for about 45 minutes and then had to leave for an hour or so.

One of the things that needs to be done is to "buzz" people through the door to get into the church building. The church is downtown and has had some break ins and is careful about who is allowed in the building when there is no public activity going on. I of course know very few of the people so whenever someone came to the door I needed to identify them in some way.

A bearded man rode up to the church on a bicycle and walked to the door. When I opened the door I told him that I was new and asked him who he was. He promptly replied that he was homeless and wondered if the church was having lunch for the homeless today - the church shares a ministry with others in the city and has a kitchen that feeds the homeless on a routine basis.

I was somewhat startled by the man's demeanor, he seemed unabashed by having to admit his homelessness, but there was something else going on that I could not put my finger on.

I told him I didn't know for sure if they where having lunch but that there where people in the back unloading food and we could just go back and ask. Well it turned out that lunch was not being served that day (it would be evening instead).

As we started to walk back towards the door, we passed a table loaded with bread and the homeless man asked if he could have a loaf of bread to take with him. The response was not simply OK, but "SURE" and the person from the kitchen brought out a bag filled with fresh bread that they had just unloaded - and the smell was heavenly! The man selected a loaf of fresh bread and a large pastry to take and then the kitchen person gave him a nice cloth bag to carry the items in.

It's then that I realized what was going on. This man was comfortable because he knew the people in the kitchen would treat him with respect and dignity. What a great lesson and example for me on my first day.

Lawsuit Ending

2009-01-31T22:17:00.000-08:00

For those of you who have patiently sat through the Loooong story on the background of our lawsuit (with our partners here in Bend) against the Realtor and her company that sold us property at the Inn of the 7th Mountain - you will no longer have to suffer through the continuing story.

Although we cannot reveal the terms of the settlement (one of those legal things), it appears that we have reached a settlement. It does not give us what we really wanted, but it is much better than the proverbial sharp stick in the eye. We can only hope that the result causes certain people some pain.

A final note on this: for those of you who think that fairness is the rule of law, be advised that the law is indeed blind and complicated - maybe beyond the realm of rational understanding. Also note that the people with the money have a BIG, LARGE, GIGANTIC, advantage in the system. I could now digress on the issue of capital punishment - but this would probably not be productive (and I might be accused of being a closet Democrat).

ANYWAY - at least it is over!

Bad News/Good News X2

2009-01-27T21:21:00.000-08:00

The bad news first - unemployment in the county is now at 11%, but I'm sure the new administration will make things better!

Good news #1 - KOHD TV announced this morning that there is a new stoplight in Redmond. For those of you not aware of the geography of the area, Redmond is only 20 minutes from Bend. That means, unless there is something of higher priority (like an interview with the pregnant man) we will be able to run over there this weekend and see it!

Good news #2 - each morning the KOHD TV weatherman has his dog on the set with him - laying on the top of a platform in front of the weatherman and his display. The dog is very cute but we have been somewhat concerned as the animal doesn't move! Wasn't sure if the animal was stuffed or alive! Well today the dog was not only moving but standing up!

Life is sweet in Bend, where else can you get a two-fer Good News day!

Freezing Fog

2009-01-23T17:35:00.000-08:00

For those of you who complained about the last two postings, the incomprehensible murmurings on things ancestry, we have something more interesting - hopefully.

We have a phenomena in the this area called freezing fog. For those of you who are bored an explanation can be found here:
http://www.theweatherprediction.com/habyhints/359/

Helen took a bunch of pictures during one of the events and are below. It's worth DOUBLE CLICKING on the pictures to get a slide show. When Picasso web albums opens up click on the SLIDE SHOW button at the top left for a full-screen slide show. The last two pictures (birds and sunset) are thrown in for general interest - enjoy.

Just in Case....

2009-01-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

Okay, so as to not offend "Saint Toni", which I would never, repeat never do, as I am so grateful that she loves my brother.... I don't know for sure her heritage. Croatian - Polish???? I hope I have not offended ANYONE!
I would like to mention growing up in "Dot"(Wyandotte County) - it was always a treat to be invited into the homes and families of the "Strawberry Hill" and surrounding neighborhoods. I think just the fact that they all had relatives living in the same town, sometimes on the same street was amazing to me. Our relatives were all in Kentucky, there were no big family gatherings, not in Kansas anyway. So to this day a good polish sausage, a plate of cabbage rolls and a loaf of poviticia brings me home. And for the record.... I haven't found that in Bend yet!
Happy New Year Everyone,
Helen

Correction 2

2009-01-01T08:43:00.000-08:00

OK - not to start the year in a contrary way, but CROATIAN? Although I have no particular knowledge of, or interest in, the historical conflicts between certain ethnic groups from central Europe I am part POLISH, not Croatian. And that's about all I know about that part of my heritage!

Correction

2008-12-31T17:57:00.000-08:00

Well...I received a call from my brother, Jim, informing me that the information about my heritage was incorrect! No I am not Croatian, my husband is part. However, this is a tradition I adopted back in the 70's with a close friend at the time and continue today - not as frequently as I used to, usually at Easter.
Our family, the Bishops, are known for "Fruitcake" Yes FRUITCAKE! Very good fruitcake I might add! I have not made my share of fruitcake for several years now. I didn't want to hunt down all the ingredients.... however my brother will get a fruitcake next year!
The story goes is that... one year, around 1956 or so, our mother decided to sell fruitcakes door to door to make money for Christmas. My sister and I went out with a basket full of samples and took orders. I don't remember how many we sold, but the kitchen was full of fruitcakes. I not only sold, delivered but had the chore of dusting the fruit with flour and doing lots of stirring.
Our mother made fruitcakes up until her last years, still pretty good.
So.... please stand corrected.... I do have a Croatian sister in law "St. Toni" and I am married to a 1/2 Croatian - that should count!
The next loaf we cut I will obtain a cross section picture to show the thinness of the dough!

The Making of the Povitica

2008-12-31T15:03:00.000-08:00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - Povitica:

"Nut roll is an Eastern European pastry of yeast bread with one or more fillings. It is also known as: Potica (also known as gubana, guban'ca, or povitica, depending on the region) in Slovenian; Orechovnik in Slovak; Makowiec in Polish; Povitica, Orehnjača (walnut variant), or Makovnjača (poppyseed variant), or strudla (trans. strudel) in Croatian; Štrudla in Serbian; [1] and bejgli in Hungarian. Over time, it has been adopted by most of Eastern Europe, and has subsequently changed into regional varieties of the same dessert. It is traditionally made to share at weddings, for Easter and Christmas, and on other celebrations or holidays."

One of the benefits of a large house that we really can't afford is having a large work area in the kitchen. This has allowed Helen to return to her roots (at least gastronomically speaking) and produce a large batch of Povitica before Christmas.

Why these pictures now - on New Years Eve?
A. I need to post something
B. I have, like, 45 pictures of deer in the yard and I'm saving them for the next post
C. The pictures are cool

The view from above:

The final product before baking:

The final product, it is actually BETTER than it looks - and it looks wonderful!

Three Feet of Powder!

2008-12-19T16:13:00.001-08:00

Yesterday - in the midst of a continuing snow storm, Helen and I went on our "Snowshoeing 101" trip with the "Silver Striders". A woman here in Bend has a company that specializes in taking people 50+ snowshoeing.

The area we went to was one of the "snow parks" just adjacent to the Mt. Bachelor skiing area. There was THREE FEET of new powder, and despite me having a rented snowshoe with a binding that was partially broken we had a great time. The round-trip was only 1.5 miles, and the scenery was beautiful!

Helen on the trail...

Lunch Time! We sat on mats that we brought along on our packs. Here is Helen enjoying the moment...

And Mr. Bill...

We rode out to the area with Jack & Julie, nice folks that we had great conversation with on the road. Here they are at lunch...

Pam is the owner and trail breaker - she's in front with her assistant Jim in the background...

And the other member of the group - Kermit...

Can you believe the Internet & a $1500 surprise

2008-12-12T11:00:00.000-08:00

The house we own in Bend was built about two years ago - and we have owned it for almost a year now. But needless to say we have spent very little time in the place until recently. So the two recent problems:

Our GE Advantium oven (high-tech thing with all kinds of electronic controls on it) started beeping and giving an "F3" error on the control panel. Of course the first think Mr. Bill does is hit the Internet to find out what is going on. GASP not only was there a plethora of complaints about the control panels on these ovens (all with the F3 error code)but also horror stories of how the manufacturer doesn't pay the companies that do the repair work so it's hard to get these ovens fixed.

Add to this that the warranty is one year from the DATE OF PURCHASE of the unit, and you can see a train-wreck coming. Nothing could have been further from the truth. The contact at GE was cordial and sympathetic and gave us an authorization number after a little bit of research. The local company came out in about 5 business days to fix it, and GE called us back the next day to make sure that everything went well. So take that Internet stuff with a large grain of salt!

Problem #2:
We have a high-efficiency furnace and AC system that has already needed maintenance twice since we have moved in. TWO pieces of good news - they have finally diagnosed the most recent problem and everything is working well; also in this process we found out that the contractor that built the place took out a 10-year parts and maintenance plan (a $1500 value) so we are good for eight more years! A pleasant surprise as there has been a lot more money going out of our pockets than into them recently.

Good-Bye Tink

2008-12-03T09:21:00.000-08:00

Well there has been another passing in our family - at least it feels like family. Last night Tinkerbell, our friends Robert and Diane's cat, had a stroke and they had to have him put to sleep.

Tink was a gentle soul, and like many pets, brought out elements of our personalities that sometimes get hidden under the stress and strain of our everyday lives.

We will miss him, but there are a lot of great memories that remain and I'm sure that in the near future some lucky cat will find a caring home with Robert and Diane.

House Hunting

2008-11-28T20:28:00.001-08:00

First of all, lest someone doubt our sanity (even more), we are NOT HOUSE HUNTING ourselves!

On our way back from KC we had the opportunity to stop in Lincoln Nebraska and hook up with Jenn and Ryan while they where there. It was a combination trip for them, a chance for Jenn to do some coordination and bonding with her future colleagues at the university, and do a preliminary survey of the housing situation.

We spent some time house-hunting with them and of course I had to take some pictures:

Here Helen has to admire the fine collection of cowperson boots - esp. those yellow guys. Jenn is imagining what fun it would be to have a pony.

Ryan is concerned that the new 72inch LCD TV won't go around this corner.

Helen's already staking out a place for HER pony.

One of the strong points for this particular house - a separate cottage for the parents when they visit.

Father and steppy had a good time with the kids and breathed a sigh of relief when they did NOT find a house that they couldn't live without. It's always great to have a bit of a cooling off period!

The Hat & Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T10:30:00.001-08:00

As the financial market gets weaker/stronger/weaker (well you get the idea), like most Americans we have begun to get more, shall we say frugal - nay perhaps cheap!

Apparently Jenn and Ryan have noticed this phenomena and have elected to help me out with this wonderful birthday present:

In case you can't read it the hat says: "Don't forget my Senior Discount"

And lastly - Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! And keep a positive attitude as we move into the holiday season and the new year!

MR. BILL

The Case of the Missing Bird Food and Deerly Beloved

2008-11-08T15:40:00.000-08:00

One of the watershed events of the last couple of weeks was Helen getting her bird feeders put up in the yard. And since we are not cursed by squirrels in this part of the city, she has started using a seed mix that has peanuts mixed in with it.

There has been some traffic to the feeders, but we noticed that one feeder has emptied out pretty quickly. Since a lot of larger birds have been landing on it we though that maybe the seed was being knocked to the ground - but no sign of that.

The case was solved this morning - Helen looked out the window in time to see a deer feeding at the feeder. The picture was taken through the window so not the greatest but here it is:

Since there was a fairly large group in the yard - I got the video camera but only got a few seconds until the battery died! Click the arrow at the bottom left of the image to run the film.

The Limping Deer

2008-10-31T08:19:00.002-07:00

This morning we noticed that one of the deer that hangs out in the lot behind us is limping - not using one it's back legs at all. We will keep an eye out and call animal control if the situation doesn't improve.

The Trip to Ka-Nee-Tah

2008-10-31T08:01:00.002-07:00

On Thursday Robert invited me to go on one of the last motorcycle rides of the season. The group consisted of mostly retired professionals who have been part of a local club for years. The round-trip was about 180 miles.

Ka-Nee-Tah is an Indian resort and casino, you can see the facility on their website: http://kahneeta.com/lodge-hot-springs-central-oregon-resort

The weather was great on the ride out - a little cool but nice. We ate lunch at the report's restaurant. Service was just a notch about bad, the waitstaff seemed more interested in talking to each other than waiting on us, there where seven that went to the restaurant. The food was OK.

We didn't spend much time looking at the place but I'd categorize it as "dated". Seems like they need to spend some money on refurbishing the place.

The ride back was a mixed bag. We took a lot of back roads and the scenery was beautiful. However for about half of the ride it was lightly raining and some of you know that I do not like to ride in the rain - esp when it has been dry for weeks. It means that the roads can really be slick with slim.

Anyway we made it back safely and for the first time I got to ride in one of those groups of motorcycles on the highway that annoy some of you!

Yes We Made It!

2008-10-28T20:27:00.002-07:00

This is the only picture we took on the trip out here! This is heading into Bend from the east, you can just barley see Mt Bachelor and Sisters in the distance. This was around 11:30 on Wednesday the 22nd.

We are sorry we have not taken the time to update the blog! We did call!

It was a fast trip - Cheyenne WY on Monday night - Boise Idaho on Tuesday night - and Ladera Rd Wednesday night!

We unpacked half the truck on Wednesday and the rest on Thursday morning! Everything made it just fine - still can't believe all Bill got on the truck!

It has been a busy few days just putting things away and trying to organize the garage - but we are getting close.

60 during the day and upper 20's at night - sky is full of stars! However Hay fever has a hold on everyone here due to a late spring! However the mold allergies are not a problem here!!!!

I promise to post again before the week is out - with pictures!

(Thanks for being patient Dixie!)

And - no I have not seen the gal/guy family - I have not been downtown for my special coffee either! Perhaps before the week is over!

More Later,

Helen

Thanks and On The Road Again

2008-10-20T19:53:00.002-07:00

First of all I wanted to thank all of you who took the time to come to the party, call or drop by the house to say good-bye to us. It's been particularly hard to say good-bye to family - I especially have trouble articulating my feelings, I'm just too good at stuffing them inside. I guess at some level it really isn't good-bye it's just so-long until the next time, but right now it seems so permanent. So to all of you - we love you and keep us in your minds and hearts until we see each other again!

On a lighter note: We hit the road this AM with a truck and pulling the car on a trailer behind. As I write this we are sitting in a Comfort Inn in Cheyenne Wyoming - our goal for the day. The highlight of the trip so far has been turning around in Cabelas' world headquarters parking lot when we overshot the Perkins in Sydney WY. Cabelas' has a campground, we could have slept in the car - oh wait..... the car is full!

From Helen:
Only wildlife sightings so far has been several acres of adorable Prairie Dogs! (the larger variety of the little buggers that dig holes in Leawood) They do at least have mounds, so you don't step in holes. I am sure the farmer that owned the land loves them - or was it a Prairie Dog Ranch and that was the feeding lot????
Also a rather small flock of Wild Turkeys - and of few deer resting by the side of the road.
Pretty uneventful in the animal division.

Weather has been sunny and windy and a little rain as we headed into Cheyenne, but only enough to smear the bugs on the windshield.

All for now, the "comfort" of this inn is calling!
Pictures tomorrow - promise (maybe)!

The New Kitchen

2008-09-22T19:08:00.005-07:00

At long last the new kitchen is completed and the house is back on the market! Here are the pictures of the new kitchen... DOUBLE CLICK on the image for larger pictures.

Optimizing Your Workspace

2008-08-29T16:34:00.002-07:00

Here in Bend we have a wonderful island in the kitchen area that is about 4ft x 6ft. Since I have many needs (and no spouse here to tell me otherwise) this is the current view of that island:

Note that there are NO dirty dishes on this island - this is a work area! All of the dirty dishes are stacked up in the sink where they belong! Hopefully they will be moved to the dishwasher at some point, but that is a low priority for me now.

The Trashing of Unit 1112

2008-08-22T16:03:00.004-07:00

It could have been a lot worse - I'm saying this now since I need to keep things in the proper perspective.

Yesterday I started the process of cleaning up one of our two rental units. They are of course by terms of the rental agreement to be left clean when the renter leaves. Not so much so this time around...

The refrigerator was TOTALLY filled with food - most of it way past the end of it's useful life. For an example - the freezer:

And what is that gunk in the bottom of the crisper drawer?

The bathroom? Well just a couple of examples:

The cabinets had a few good examples also:

And lastly - how dirty can a floor get?

First Morning in Bend - and what about that lock?

2008-08-18T21:46:00.003-07:00

Well this is my first full day back in Bend. Helen stayed in KC to watch over the last of the work on the kitchen. I came to Bend because our friends and partners Robert and Diane are going on a two-week motorcycle road trip and there are things that need to be attended to at our condos.

Of course I woke up about 5:30 AM this morning - the old body is still on KC time. So I got dressed and decided to get some things from the garage, closed the door behind me and when I went to go back in the house - LOCKED DOOR. So I spent from then until 8:15 waiting to get Robert to bring his key over to let me back in the house.

The only "good" thing about this is that Robert said that Helen did the same thing when she was here last month! Don't remember her telling me that...

What The?

2008-08-13T14:20:00.004-07:00

Yesterday Helen and I went to our favorite (?) bank to get into our safe deposit box.

The summer intern (my assumption not confirmed by any real info) led us to our box only to discover a "button" stuck in the key slot of the box. Confused Look from intern. Intern says "I'll Be Back". Fear arises - isn't that what the Terminator said?

In the meantime we are roaming around the vault and see a sheet of paper that tells us what the button means. The color was black - so apparently I am deceased!

Intern returns with a Real Employee (one who we assume is experienced). At this point we are both laughing our ____es off - this is pretty much par for the course with us these days. Real Employee says to Helen: "are you Mildred"? - apparently my existence is dependent upon my spouse identifying herself, WITHOUT any form of identification.

SO - we are given access to the box. The explanation, which seems reasonable since it came from the Real Employee is that people bring their children into the room and the children move the buttons around.

No further comment.....

THE SINK

2008-07-29T19:09:00.004-07:00

How difficult can it be to connect the drains on a new two-sided sink for the kitchen. After all you can safely ASSume that the locations and heights of the existing drain pipes in the wall will work just swell with the NEW sink mounted in NEW cabinets.

WELL,

The horizontal locations are OK - heights not so much so. To make a long story shorter, one pipe was unuseable and both sinks had to be piped to one of the drain pipes. Oh, and since the new cabinets have bottoms that are higher than the old cabinets coming directly out of the wall to a new "P" trap - not enough room.

SO,

Remove the old fitting coming out of the wall and put in an elbow to get some height. The old fitting proved to be a bit stubborn - in fact it broke where it entered the wall - much cursing and grinding ensued.

OH,

Drains for new sink are back further than old sink, so after the turn is made - end of drain from wall will be too far forward. The ensing piping ends up crossing over and under itself - looks like a gerbil tunnell designed by a drunk - but it doesn't leak - at least not yet.

AND,

How many trips did this take to Lowes, Home Depot, the Plumbers Friend and ACE Hardware? I lost track, suffice to say that it may have been cheaper to get a real plumber to do the work.

THE WEDDING!

2008-07-19T13:08:00.005-07:00

Jennifer & Ryan's wedding was last Sunday in Santa Barbara. The weather was beautiful and the site was perfect - a small park on a hill overlooking the city.

A few pictures...

The kids honored their fathers by having them officiate at the ceremony. My picture with them first...

Dan's next (but checkout Ryan's smile - double click for a better look - 9.8 out of 10)...

The mothers where honored by giving readings at the ceremony, here is Pat with Jennifer. My apologies to Sue, Ryan's mom, as I don't have a picture of her giving her reading.

The kiss and the departure....

And finally, Sue and Dan together at the reception...

Kitchen - Progress!

2008-07-02T18:00:00.002-07:00

Just a reminder of where we where a couple of weeks ago:

The new cabinets arrived on Tuesday - the installers are not completely done yet but here is what the place looks like now. All cabinets are in place and we are waiting for the granite people to come tomorrow to make a pattern to cut the top.

The Fire

2008-06-20T06:25:00.005-07:00

Just when we thought things couldn't get more "interesting" in our lives - FIRE! Before we go on with this the good news is that we are fine (just more depressed than usual) and the work in the kitchen is going well thanks to a first-rate plasterer.

The Story

We heard a "pop" and when Helen went to investigate she noticed that the electric clothes dryer was not running, when she opened it up there was steam and the first hints of smoke.

This is a picture of the area where the fire was - the fire department moved the dryer out, it was stacked on top of the washer that you see in the picture.

Here is a shot of the dryer. The fire chief thinks that the drum seized up and that is what caused the dryer to overheat and catch fire.

Of course the water that they used to put out the fire had to go somewhere. The water went into the finished ceiling in the basement family room. So we hustled to get the ceiling down to stop the water from migrating into the finished wall in the basement.

Now you see it, now you don't and the case of the phantom microwave

2008-06-07T19:26:00.006-07:00

It's been over a month since I published anything - sorry about that but we are keeping busy!

This post will be all about the continuing story of trying to sell a house in this lousy market. You may or may not be familiar with our place but we decided that we need to make a few "minor" updates to the house to make it more appealing to prospective buyers. And at the top of the list was replacing the cabinets and counter tops in the 50-year old kitchen.

So here are a few pictures to give you the idea of what is happening...

STEP 1 - the problem door
Next to our family room there is a small bedroom with a door to the central hallway and another to the family room. The door to the family room has been a problem as people have been "confused" that the room has two exists - so we decided to remove the pocket door between the bedroom and the family room

Here we are getting the opening framed in:

And just before installing the final board to close up the opening (at least on the family room side). Please note that this last board was custom crafted by the Author!

Step 2 - the wall come tumbling down!
So - rotating 180 degrees from the above pictures we have the door (on the left) between the family room and the kitchen.

Wouldn't it just be swell to open this up a little? OK - here goes...

Step 3 - demolition!

One closeup view before:

And during demo:

Step 4 - more later

The case of the phantom microwave:

When we where talking with the company about the cabinets - they said will you have microwave? To make a long story short they talked us into a shelf for a microwave - a shelf so that counter tops aren't being used up with a microwave. The problem is that the shelf (and upper cabinets) are only 12 inches deep - but they had a solution: a microwave that they have spec's for years (a STANDARD - it NEVER CHANGES!)from GE that would fit both the shallow depth and the width of the shelf. Of course when we went to purchase the model it was not longer available - but was replaced by a new model ( more expensive of course!)

Family - what a blessing!

2008-05-03T19:41:00.005-07:00

Thursday night - FAMILY NIGHT!

Jennifer and Ryan came over at noon and spent the night, John & Sophie & Devin & Taylor where her for dinner - THE PERFECT EVENING!

A few pictures follow:

"Home" Again

2008-04-15T21:04:00.002-07:00

Where IS home for us? Well, tonight we got back in KC - thanks to Helen's brother Jim and his wife for picking us up at the airport!

My New Ride and the "Great Ride"

2008-04-13T17:17:00.004-07:00

My New Ride

As some of you may be aware, I am not yet ready to have a rider get on the motorcycle with me. Helen, on the other hand, is not sure if she ever wants to get on the back of a motorcycle with anyone again. So our friend Robert has suggested that we get one of those three-wheel motorcycles and then Helen and I would feel better about riding together.

But a better option has arisen - behold the QUAD!

This guy is a BMW 1130cc motorcycle on a 4-wheel chassis with independent suspension for all wheels - top speed 115 mph, perfect for summer drives in the mountain! The base price is only $49,000!

OK, lest anyone think I have lost my mind, I have NOT purchased this monster - but it does get my testosterone (what's left of it) flowing!!!!!!

The "Great Ride"
One of the great things about this town is the great people we are meeting. Diane and Robert introduced us to a couple named Kathy and Mike. Kathy is a quilter and Mike is a builder. And to make things sweeter both Kathy and Mike are bikers.

So we where invited to ride our bikes to Kathy and Mike's house in the city of John Day, which is about 150 miles from bend. Mike went ahead so Kathy, Diane and Robert, and Mr. Bill got on their bikes (with Helen in the chase car with essentials: wine, wine, food and clean clothes) and we headed out on Saturday to John Day.

Mike and Kathy's place is John Day sits on the side of the mountain with a breathtaking view. Pictures follow - to get a better look double-click on any photo and you get a larger photo and you can move between photos at your leisure!

Evan's First Birthday (almost) and Mt Hood

2008-04-11T09:18:00.004-07:00

From Helen

Well we have been really lazy in updating what has been going on with us. We seem to spend a lot of time taking care of business, rearranging things, looking for things (some of which made it on the truck, others not). The days fly by and before we know it, it is 7pm and where is dinner? Real TV shows do not start until 8pm here which means we stay up for the 11pm news, well we try. It is really nice to see stars out your window when you go to bed, I mean "Stars!" The deer continue to use our side yard as their pathway to the canal for a drink. There are reports from the neighbors of a fox and yes a mountain lion in the area. There is a large area of walking paths not far, I am thinking I should not go alone? Perhaps the "kitty" hangs out there?
We made it up to Seattle to celebrate a little early Evan's 1st birthday. He is walking, talking (although some things sound the same to me)- he did get the hang of "Rock Chalk Jawhawk -KU" - and was exposed to his first Final Four at a bar! Stick with Grandma Evan, we will have fun!Everything was blooming in Seattle, one street was lined with Cherry Trees, just beautiful. Great visit, too short, but nice to know they are within driving distance. Check out the pictures.
On our way back we took a chance and drove up to Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. A visit you don't want to miss if you are in the area. WPA project that has all the craftsmanship that came out of that program. The government would do good to put something like that in place again, if the peoples mentality would put their arms around it, we would have more structures still standing and people who are proud of their craft. Anyway the snow was incredible - we could not see the summit, and just barely saw the lifts headed up there. I think the actual summit was closed because of the snow. It looked like great skiing! Check out the pictures and captions.
Today holds a "ride" to John Day. I am following in the car, with supplies! John Day is about 2 hours away and has some scenic area's we are told.... I will take the camera. We are staying with some friends we have met, she is a quilter who rides a Harley...and he just rides....they have a house over there, I think it is like a cabin in the woods.... we are to take bedding, it is a good thing I am driving?!
Well that is it for me - we head home next Tuesday to Kansas - it will be hard to leave here, but it will be good to see everyone.

Travel Plans, Birthday, Babies, and a Wedding Annoucement

2008-03-28T09:14:00.014-07:00

Seems like we just got here and now we are making plans to get back to KC. We have reservations for April 15 to fly back.

We also have tentative plans to go to Seattle by car the weekend of April 5 to see Heather, Leslie and Evan. Evan's first birthday is on the 16th, but we need to be back in KC by then - so an early visit.

New Baby on the Way:

Sophie (John's Significant Other) is on bed rest waiting for the arrival of their first baby. They visited the doctor last Monday and the doctor would like to have a couple of more weeks of development on the baby before the birth - so hang in there Sophie!

Wedding Plans:

Jennifer and Ryan have announced their wedding plans. Here is the message they sent - make sure to checkout the website:

"Hi All,
We've finally decided on a wedding date and would love to have you all join us if you can make it.

The date: July 13th, 2008
The place: Elings Park, Santa Barbara, CA

We'll also eventually be sending out invitations, so when you have a minute please email one of us your mailing address.

We'll post information about hotels, directions, fun things to do in Santa Barbara, etc., here:
Wedding Channel

Hope everyone is doing well,
Jenn & Ryan"

Update - long past due (Sorry)

2008-03-26T10:19:00.003-07:00

We have started to get settled in. Internet and TV was installed Monday, but had some problems with the Internet that seem to be resolved at this point so now I have no excuse for not getting more information published.

Last weekend Robert and Diane took us to Portland to celebrate Easter. We left Saturday and spent time at Ikea looking for chairs for one of our condos (successfully) and a table for our dining area in Bend (unsuccessfully).

We spent the night at a motel that Diane worked on remodeling. Apparently it was a blight on the neighborhood and a local church bought the facility and refurbed it. They used low-cost materials and fixtures to do the work, but it looks excellent! They have a great coffee shop, with Internet, and a small church above the coffee shop that appears to be geared toward the people in the immediate neighborhood.

Easter Sunday we went to the local Episcopal church for services. They had a great brass quintet playing and an excellent choir. All of the ordained ministers in the church where women - a pleasant surprise to us as refurbed Catholics.

In the afternoon we went to an excellent brunch at a hotel that Robert & Diane visit on special occasions. The food was extensive and excellent with all the coffee, champagne and juice included! A great idea from Robert!

Prior to the feast we had our picture taken. The young folks where using a Polaroid, and the scan of the photo leaves a little to be desired but here it is:

Update

2008-03-17T12:18:00.003-07:00

Well - no Internet access so sitting in the downtown coffee shop putting this together. Helen is out spending money - needs some items for the kitchen.

Below is a sequence of picture of unloading the motorcycle - a bit hair raising but accomplished successfully!

Arrived Safely!

2008-03-15T09:06:00.002-07:00

Sorry for the delay in information - we actually arrived late Thursday night in Bend. Of course we have no Internet connection and our neighbors have the audacity of having security turned on for their WAP. We spent Friday unloading the truck. Jim's brace for the motorcycle worked beautifully, and after a few moments of fear I managed to ride the thing off of the truck into the garage.

I'm sitting in the cafe at the 7th mountain to do this quick post - more later.

Wednesday - Travel Day 2

2008-03-12T21:02:00.003-07:00

Well - spent the night last night with Jerry and Annette in Goodland. Always great to see them - and the room rate for the night was perfect. Only place in Kansas that you can sleep under the stars no matter what the weather is!

I had worried that the truck might be overweight, but we weighed in at 14,500 lbs -weight limit on the truck is 16,000 lbs.

Today we made it to Evanston Wyoming. Statistics for the trip so far:

Miles traveled - 950

Diesel Fuel Purchased - $415.00

Miles per Gallon - about 10

Number of stops - many, old people go to the bathroom often

Herds of Antelope - 5 numbering at least 100, 1 group of 50, 1 group of 25 (several resting by the side of the road)

Deer - 25 in one group - 1 all by him/her self.

Snow - lots on the ground, but none in that air and so far all roads clear

Wind - all across Wyoming

Fabric YoYo's constructed 18

Pounds lost due to jiggling in the truck - at least 5! Each!

3 way stations

1 port of entry

One dead end parking lot with snowbank to back into - successfully extraction was a team effort!

Tomorrow's The Day

2008-03-10T17:44:00.002-07:00

Truck is packed (hopefully it's not overweight) and toilets are clean - time to head on out.

T-2 And Counting (Again)

2008-03-09T18:06:00.001-07:00

Saturday I picked up the truck and John helped me get the big stuff loaded, after which I was ready for a nap. So nothing further was accomplished until today (Sunday). Jim and Toni came over so that Jim could help me get the Murdercycle in the truck - he constructed s brace system to hold the bike upright - thanks a lot James!

We took the truck up to Ranchmart Shopping Center and used their loading dock to get the bike on the truck - Helen's idea, I hate it when she gets ahead of me.

Here are a few pictures from Sunday - sorry John, didn't get any Saturday.

Getting Closer

2008-03-06T13:50:00.002-08:00

Helen's brother and his wife (James and Antionette) where here today helping us get some of the heavy stuff out of the basement. James as usual impressed us both with his practical approach at getting things done. As part of the festivities we moved a couch over to Uncle Bob's - I'm sure the girls (the two cats that Bob inherited fomr us) will be happy to have it as they spent many an hour sitting on it.

Also visited the Post Office (twice) trying to make sure we understand how Premium Forwarding Service(PFS) works. The next great adventure will be picking up the 26 ft truck on Saturday.

Until then...

The Preperation Begins

2008-03-03T18:11:00.002-08:00

Well (there's that word again!), we are preparing to hit the road again. Spent the day taking furniture apart in the computer room and getting it wrapped. Just as in any task - preparation is the key!

Also, as I prepare this post, the last (?) of the quilt meetings is occuring in the den. Hopefully we will get this place sold and get moved permanently!

After 70 Days, 5449 miles and 10 States - HOME!

2008-01-22T20:44:00.000-08:00

We are back in KC - got in at 9 PM (did we mention 9 smashed pennies?).

Since we are not on the road - will there be more posts to this BLOG? You will have to wait and see...

Another Side-Trip Another Smashed Penny

2008-01-21T20:27:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Tucumcari New Mexico!

As usual we got sidetracked today for a couple of hours. We paid $26 (total- senior rate) to see a hole in the ground east of Flagstaff. Actually it was a meteor crater and quite impressive, and you may recognize it from the movies or one of those late-night science shows on cable channel 26781. Helen of course found one of those penny-smashing machines and we have another penny for her collection

Since you are not allowed in the crater, they have setup this really authentic looking place where you can take pictures that look just like you are standing at the bottom of the crater!

And finally, a look out the window of the car at the scenery in Western Arizona

On the Road Again + A Late Night

2008-01-20T19:39:00.000-08:00

Well - we are on the road again, and this post is being composed in Williams Arizona, about 60 miles from the Grand Canyon.

Our last night at Jennifer and Ryan's ended in a spirited discussion on No Child Left Behind that ended at 2 AM with no consensus reached and both Ryan and myself so fired up that we couldn't get to sleep. Thanks especially to Ryan for keeping me thinking, and to Jennifer for having the sense to go to bed.

My solution to chill out was to listen to the last hour of my Audiobook copy of I Am Legend, the 1954 book by Richard Matheson, adapted to film as The Last Man on Earth in 1964, as The Omega Man in 1971, and again in 2007 as I Am Legend with actor Will Smith (in my opinion and EXCELLENT movie).

Thanks Jennifer and Ryan for housing us, putting up with us and helping us see some of the sights. You are both great and we love you a lot!

Helen says... One more smashed penny for the collection - Route 66 - of course!

Last day in CA!

2008-01-19T21:31:00.000-08:00

Helen Says:

Well Venus Beach, Muscle Beach... we really didn't see much muscle, but a few surfers were out and definitely some great people watching! We walked the beach, Ryan did a little skate boarding and we avoided all the "Rap Artists" selling their CD's.

My artsy picture.... the seagull flew away before I could focus!

Surfers ... trying to catch some waves.

Surfing of all kinds - they were having fun.

Ryan practicing his skills!Don't worry Sue, he didn't hurt himself!!!!! I made sure!He claims his board is for old people...but you won't see us on one!

Some of the local artwork on the beach.

Jenn giving it a go.... but a short ride... she plans to practice in the hallway of the apartment!

Off to see where Jenn & Ryan work.

One of the signs on the bulletin board at the lab that we thought was interesting.
We also got to see Jenn's aphids and Ryan's fruit flies.... it was really exciting!
Actually amazing the work they do, way over our heads!

The evening ended with a trip to the "Griffith Observatory" - "Rebel without a Cause" - remember that one??? Very interesting, we probably could have spent a half a day there. The view of the city lights was incredible to say the least. However we did not take the camera, so you will just have to take our word for it.

Tomorrow we pack up and head East....so we will try to find something interesting to report on on the way home.However we just looked at the tempture in KS and its 7 degrees.... we may take our time!

Geeks, La Brea, and JP (Getty)

2008-01-18T20:58:00.000-08:00

Another jammed-packed day!

As usual the day starts with the geeks siting around and checking what? Anyway the picture tells the tale.

La Brea Tar Pits

The quality of the site has changed dramatically changed since my last visit, there is a new building (at least new since the 70's) and several "pits" that you can view outside. The next picture shows one of those areas where asphalt perks up through the earth's crust along with methane and hydrogen sulfide gas.

This is one of the mastodon skeletons that have been pieced together at the site. The area has produced an astounding number of bones - all from about 30,000 years ago, which puts them well past the time of the dinosaurs.

This is a view through the glass into an area where they are working on cleaning and classifying the bones, all of these are from the California Saber-Tooth Cat (note Cat not Tiger!). This site is so rich that they actually have a decade or more or work to get caught up with what has been already been found on the site - and they say there is much more!

The J. Paul Getty Museum

The museum is an amazing group of buildings that sits on 570 acres in the foothills above Beverly Hills. The following two photos do little to give you an idea of the scope of the buildings - go see for yourself the next time you are in LA!

(PS - there are more pictures, artsie ones, I will post later! Helen)

Ikea, Ryan's BD, Hollywood and Belated XMAS

2008-01-17T23:17:00.000-08:00

A FULL DAY!

We started the day (if you can call 11 AM the start of the day) going to Ikea - possibly the 2nd most mind-boggling store after Frye's Electronics. Of course we were thrilled to find a personalized note from the fine police officers of LA informing us that we owed them $45 for parking a little to close to the fire hydrant that had no markings on the curb and was covered with trash cans. But on returning to the apartment we found a sweet spot right in front, which we will have to move between 12 and 2 tomorrow so we won't get a ticket, because they MAY clean the street. Stay tuned on that one!

Then it was off to dinner to celebrate Ryan's BD. The restaurant was a Latino-American fusion type of place in Hollywood. Great food and south-American drinks. After dinner we walked around Hollywood and observed the sites - both architectural and human!

To finish the day it was back to the apartment for a belated Christmas gift session.

The whole family together (Alice is the short one with the dark nose)

Helen observes and directs the session

Alice close-up

Southern California & More Relatives

2008-01-17T08:32:00.000-08:00

Helen says.....(Bill said I had to start this way, so you would know I posted and not hime!)

Dad and Donna, in their natural habitat! They have slowed down a little, but still going strong for 86 years young. I will be glad to be within driving distance of these two so I can visit more often, neither of us are getting any younger.

Dad figuring out his camera so he can capture a few moments.

View from our motel - the mountains are very pretty. The traffic, well that we can live without! We found a great spot to eat in downtown Redlands, where we stayed, which is just down the road from the folks. We came across a wonderful children's book store, where we helped keep them in the black! Bill had to drag me out of there, with a full sack I might add, gifts for all the kids!

Sunset view on hi way one, and not far from the exit of hi way one, back to the freeway! On a clear day it would have been enjoyable, but it became a little tedious driving in the fog as the next pictures will show.

There is supposed to be an ocean out there, so they say! So much for the scenic drive down the coastal highway. As far as you could see it looked like you were in an airplane looking down on the clouds.

Even the road disappeared at times. And apparently there were a few rock slides, because there seemed to be some freshly patched road.

Lunch at Monterey was relaxing, we ate on the wharf and watched the sea otters and seals.

Della & Ralph took us to a closed gold mine, where we could have spent an entire day, especially listening to the volunteers tell stories of the operations. Reality check on the gold prices of yesterday!

One of Della & Ralph's babies - recovering from surgery - great solution to keeping him from digging the stitches out - and he certainly did not mind being dressed up! Notice the train on the shirt!

All for now, we are currently at Jenn and Ryan's in the heart of LA! We heard trash trucks and other strange noises all night long. They found they have to sleep with a "white noise" machine. Tonight we will celebrate Ryan's "entering his 30th year"! or the fact that he is 29! They are getting too old! That makes us old! We will capture some photos and post later... today we are on our own in the city! Yikes.... hopefully we will survive!

Happy 30th BD John!

2008-01-14T22:44:00.000-08:00

We've been traveling all day so will post more info tomorrow, but wanted to say Happy Birthday to John - it's amazing he is 30 years old already! Son - I'm proud of you and love you a lot! Hope presents arrived on schedule, will celebrate more when we get back.

Love,
Dad & Helen

Dinner and Good Times at the Armstrong's!

2008-01-12T20:18:00.000-08:00

We are staying with Helen's sister Della and her husband Ralph in Sacramento, and yesterday their sons Larry and Andrew and their families came over for dinner, talk and just plain ole good times. Some pictures from the festivities:

The wall that you see in some of the pictures, with tiles that have words or images on them, are at a local park that is very popular with the kids. Several years ago the play area in the park was burned by vandals and the community came together to rebuild the park. Some of the old tiles where salvaged and used on this wall others are new - some of them written by young adults who grew up using the park and where devastated when the arson occurred.

Bye-Bye Oregon - Hello CA

2008-01-11T21:38:00.000-08:00

From Ms Helen:

Apparently California does not welcome Oregonians! We did not see one "Welcome to California" sign.
So we are on the road again, to Sacramento to visit the Armstrong family.
Concerns all this week about what the pass around Mt. Shasta would be like, well the roads were clear and the views were incredible. We are thinking we need a panoramic lens for next time.

This is Mt Shasta from highway 97.

This is Black Butte - which is off highway 5.

All for now, we made it in time for a chili and cornbread supper.
More later with pictures of the Armstrong's.

First Meal

2008-01-09T21:15:00.000-08:00

Well today was a busy one, putting up temporary blinds, liner in the cabinets, getting the locks re-keyed, washer and dryer delivered....we were tired....so Papa Murphy's to the rescue!
Oven works great! Pizza and wine by the fireplace, what a treat!

Bill hard at work cutting liners for the drawers. Sorry it is a little blown out - this is a cell phone capture!
Notice first pan hung???? Hooks are a little long, something to work on, later.

The sewing "studio" has been christened with a few items purchased while here...after all Stitching Post in Sisters did have a 25% off sale!

Packing and cleaning tomorrow. So - should we leave a thank you note to our lovely neighbors above????

Snow, NEW HOUSE! and Planning to Leave

2008-01-08T19:41:00.000-08:00

Let it Snow! The view out of our apartment window today:

NEW HOUSE - FINALLY!

Yes - it can be a challenge to get up the driveway...

Helen - breaking the tape...

And the view out the front window...

Leaving...
I know - it sounds goofy, but now that we have the house this is the plan: Weather permitting, we hit the road on Friday for California. More later on that part of the journey as it happens. If the weather looks exceptionally bad at the mountain pass we may opt to put off the CA trip and head home - but the weather report looks fairly good for Friday so we shall see.

Sunday and Sunshine but...

2008-01-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

It's a bright Sun-shiny day in Bend. Helen has not put in an appearance yet, but both of us have slept badly the last couple of nights. The night before last it was because the thugs in the unit above had left their heavy-metal music on all night long and where not home to shut it off.

On the subject of the house: We where called by our realtor on Friday who said that the Seller's realtor has called and said everything was fixed and ready to go for us to take possession. In a rush of adrenaline we went over there and only one thing was fixed from the list! Our realtor proposed that we hold some money out and take possession - we said no, we figure that if the people are not motivated by us holding hundreds of thousands how will a few thousand get them motivated? Plus of course the realtor doesn't get paid until we release the money.

More good news later - hopefully...

Houston We Have Problem

2008-01-03T17:39:00.000-08:00

Well - we are supposed to take possession of the house tomorrow (Friday) but the repairs that the owner agreed to make are not completed yet. The weather the past fews days has been great but of course now it has turned rainy and some of the work is outside. Don't know what will happen but we have told the realtor that we won't release the funds until the work is done...

More later (hopefully)

Happy New Year

2008-01-01T11:34:00.000-08:00

We hope that everyone had a safe and happy New Year's Eve!

Robert and Diane had a dinner party and we all managed to stay awake until midnight! It was a great time and we owe R&D yet again for their hospitality.

We close on the house on Friday - so our year is off to a running start!

Chain Me Up Bill

2007-12-28T16:49:00.000-08:00

Well - behind on this again. We left Seattle yesterday and hit the dreaded sign "chains required" as we went over the mountain. I have (of course) never installed chains on my tires before and had ignored the suggestion in the instructions that you should practice putting them on before you use them. Also the instructions didn't give you any idea how much of a pain it can be to get the darn things off. Anyway we made it and it should be easier to go through the process the next time.

Christmas Day - And the forgotten pictures of the trip from Bend to Seattle

2007-12-25T21:38:00.000-08:00

Helen's Comments:
Christmas Day started with a pretty fluffy snow fall here in Seattle. We started our day with brunch at friends, and then home to spend the day with Heather, Leslie and Evan. After a short nap, we opened presents and played with boxes and wrapping paper before ending the day with a wonderful salmon dinner. Fun was had by all... and hopefully a good nights sleep by all. It was great to have spent time with Evan on his first Christmas.

Christmas eve we attended St.Mark's Episcopal Cathedral for the 11pm service. The music prior was wonderful as were the musicians. Huge church, very old with some great history, it was never completed to the Gothic state intended, it remains unfinished inside, just bare concrete walls with the marks of the wood used for forms in the early 1900's. When we went by to check on times for the service, Bill discovered that the artwork he had seen in August when he was here was still on display. I was invited in and given a private showing of "Keiskamma Altarpiece". Amazing work and a powerful story. Go to http;//www.keiskamma.org to learn more.

Here are some of the pictures from the festivities at Heather, Leslie and Evan's:

The Trip
The comments from Kansas seem to be that they think the sun does not shine in Bend! Well it does, usually in the morning and then if snow is coming for the mountains it starts to cloud up as the day wear on. Then the night is clear and there are more stars than you can imagine. So I had to capture the beauty of the mountains for the "dotts" in my life!

It was a pretty drive until we hit Washington, then the rain came, all the way to Seattle, then the clouds broke. However it has rained pretty much every day since we have been here. The snow this morning for Christmas was nice, it didn't stick, which is a good thing because unlike Kansas, they don't have a clue what to do on the streets, it shuts them down. Leslie spent most of the day worring that she would have to go into work if the snow kept up because people would not show up. Thankfully it melted away.

All for now - hope everyone had a wonderful Chiristmas.

Penniless in Seattle

2007-12-22T22:45:00.000-08:00

We arrived in Seattle today, spent some time with Heather, Leslie and Evan then Heather took us to her friends house where we will be house-sitting while we are here. The owners have a pair of zebra finches that are very cute and very talkative.

Went to the movies tonight (Saturday night - it's actually two hours earlier here than the time that is shown on our postings - the server must be in the Midwest). $8.50/ticket (senior rate) plus $9.50 for a small coke and small popcorn and then $12.00 for the parking (theater was in downtown). WELCOME TO THE BIG CITY! Plus, of course, the traffic is absolutely frantic in this city.

Observed lots of shopping downtown, lights, a carousal in the street, and lots of people with Santa hats. A word of caution - when headed North on I5, be carefull not to get in the express lane as you will be getting off of the highway 50+ blocks past the street you wanted!

Pictures of New House

2007-12-21T22:01:00.000-08:00

Here they are - if you want to see a larger picture with (in a few cases) captions, double-click on the picture.

House Update - Almost There!

2007-12-21T07:32:00.000-08:00

Sorry - the last few days have gotten away from us. Our last offer was accepted by the Owner and we had the house inspected yesterday with a few problems noted that we have sent to them to get repaired, we will hear back on that sometime this weekend.

I tried to upload additional pictures but the connection kept timing out. We are leaving today for Seattle so it will probably be another couple of days for more pictures. You can see a few at the post on 12/16/2007 "Try, Try Again".

A Little Closer

2007-12-17T21:04:00.000-08:00

Well - the news from the home buying front is that we have had a counter-offer that we MOSTLY agree with. We have agreed on price but we have asked for an extended warranty on some of the concrete work. Another 24 hrs should tell the tale!

But until then a few pictures of places that didn't make the cut:

Try, Try Again

2007-12-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

Made on offer on another house yesterday (Saturday) - pictures are below. This is the 2nd house we have actually put an offer on - but after 50 houses or so it has started to feel like an eternity.

We are fairly close on price with this one so the hope is that we can close the deal - but we shall see. Our preference was a ranch, but it has become obvious that a ranch style with the space we want is out of both our comfort and price range.

If this one does not turn out we will probably stop looking for now - we are worn out.

Rejected and Helen with Evan

2007-12-14T08:40:00.000-08:00

Rejected
Yesterday the realtor gave me the reply from the owner on our last offer,they countered with a price that was still $20k more than we wanted to pay. So after talking with Helen on the phone (she was on here way back from Seattle) I told the realtor that we where breaking off negotiations and to give us another list of homes to look at.

Helen and Evan
Pictures from Helen's trip to Seattle and time with Evan. Helen claims that he is as cute as Heather was when she was a baby - you can decide for yourself. She also says that he has a lot of the same mannerisms that Heather had at the same age - genetics in action!

Portland and Boring Oregon, Call from Realtor

2007-12-12T22:05:00.001-08:00

It's a boring day - at least for BLOGging - I rode with Robert today to Portland, he needed to do some planning with a client so I spent some time shopping at the mall for Xmas presents. One the landmarks that we passed was boring - i.e. Boring Oregon.

In the meantime, Helen with Diane to Seattle. Diane was going there on business so Helen was going to take the opportunity to spend some time with Heather and her family.

HOUSE UPDATE
While we where on the road to Portland the realtor's assistant called to tell me that they had a reply from the current owner - of course not to be revealed until we meet the realtor in person, that will happen at 10 AM in the morning. We shall see.

The New House? Probably not - but waiting

2007-12-10T20:56:00.000-08:00

This is actually a couple of days behind - but we made an offer on a house. Pictures are below. The house has been on the market since the spring and has been reduced significantly, but we think it is still too high. First and second offers to the Owner have been rejected and we have left the last offer on the table just in case... we will see in a couple of days.

It meets all of our requirements but is a bit large and definitely is need of a little fixing up and a serious kitchen make-over, but all in all a good house - if the price comes down another 20K or so.

Food/Snow/Food/Presents and ByeBye Jenn

2007-12-08T23:22:00.000-08:00

Saturday we started the day with breakfast at our favorite restaurant and then it was on the road for some site seeing. The first stop was at the Inn of the 7Th Mountain where we own two condos with our partners Robert and Diane. Then it was on to Mt. Bachelor - a couple of pictures follow...

Next stop - another vacation area, I wanted Jennifer to visit Santa but she said large groups of children scare her.Sun River is just south of Bend, lots of activities and popular year round.

And then finally more food! Then back for a nap and then, you guessed it, more food! This time with the motorcycle club that Robert and Diane belong to, which was followed by a White-Elephant gift exchange. Can life be any sweeter?

Bye-Bye Jenn
Sunday morning we took Jennifer to Redmond to catch a plane back to Eugene - sorry to see her go! I hope that Ryan and her can come back at some point in the future to do some outdoor activities.

Jennifer Day

2007-12-07T16:14:00.000-08:00

This morning we took a trip over the Cascade Mountains to Eugene Oregon to pick up Jennifer. She was there for three days interviewing for a job at the University of Oregon. She feels like she did fairly well but doesn't want to get her hopes up - understandable, but I hope they realize that future Nobel Prize winners are few and far between!

Here we are leaving the Secret Garden B&B - cute place complete with dogs!

We stopped on the way back to bend for lunch at The Lodge at Suttle Lake, they have a Rustic restaurant on the lake.

And Helen tried out the facilities!

After resting for a little while, we walked into town for "First Friday" The Galleries were packed with people, the food and wine were good, especially the chocolate truffles. Most of the art was beyond our means but impressive.
We met up with our friends Robert & Diane and after visiting most of the places downtown we settled on Thai food, which was tasty.
That brings everyone up to date - tomorrow a whirl wind tour of Bend for Jenn!

Housing Malaise and The Stoned Neighbors

2007-12-06T07:56:00.000-08:00

There hasn't been much happening in the last few days. We had a little bit of movement on the housing front yesterday, but to a great extent we are discouraged. We will be revisiting some property today to try and get our perspectives realigned.

The Stoned Neighbors
We are living in a three-story condo and our unit is in the middle of the second level. It didn't take long to discover that there was a young man living in the unit above us who is fond of parties and drinking. The night before last the party started about 9:30 and by 10:30 I went up and knocked on the door - it took several knocks before an obviously stoned young man finally opened the door. There where a number of young people in the apartment.

I asked the person at the door to cut down the noise - and I believe the reply was something like "OK, whatever man". Felling that this was perhaps not the commitment I was hoping for I told him that if the noise kept up we would call the police.

The noise did cut back for a while, but about 11:30 it was so bad that Helen called the police. When the police showed up and knocked on the door there was a flurry of activity in the apartment above including flushing toilets, and several people who climbed down from their deck onto ours (Helen opened the door and gave them hell!) who then jumped to the ground and ran away. We think that the police took a couple of people away.

Last night when we returned home we where greeted by a large slice of half-eaten pizza laying by our front door. A bit later we heard activity on the steps, our friends from upstairs. I politely commented to them that "I assume the pizza in front of our door is yours - I'd appreciate it if you would take it with you". The young man did and I thanked him for taking it - he did not look pleased.

We shall see what happens next, but apparently this young man lives in a condo that is owned by his parents and has been a problem for a long time. You ask - why has it not been taken care of? Good question.

Snow/Snow/Rain/Snow/Rain

2007-12-03T08:08:00.000-08:00

It was a snowy, rainy day yesterday in Bend. The weather, along with some pointed questions from Helen's brother Jim about where the water would go at the house we put on the BLOG, got me wondering about the actual rainfall in bend. So here it is for Bend:

And here is the graph for Kansas City:

House hunting update:
We did "drive bys" on another nine houses yesterday and sent a list of 3 more to visit to the realtor - we shall see if one of these is the dream house.

House Number 35

2007-11-30T22:28:00.000-08:00

Well - the week has been a continuous stream of houses to drive by or visit. We think we are starting to get a handle on the market, and thought a couple of times that we might have found "the house".

The pictures below are from the one that so far has survived all of the cuts, but we are certainly not sure if we should look at more places or not.

Almost Free Lunch

2007-11-27T21:27:00.000-08:00

We have discovered the new cornerstone for the baby-boomers in Bend - the Senior Center.

The best part, which I in particular intend to make the best of, is the $3.50 hot lunch! This is NOT a light snack but the full-meal-deal that is our birthright as old people!