Monthly Archives: September 2010

We left town for a few days over Labor Day and when we arrived home the grasses were dead and brown, and the trees on the mountains were bright red and yellow. Now even the trees are gone. Before I even got a photo. The aspens will take over in their brilliant yellow-ness and signal the end of Fall. And it’s September.

Is it that much earlier this year? I think it’s going to be a cold winter. We’ve had birds on the flyway stopping by for a few days to feed before going south for weeks. We rarely see, but sometimes hear our local crane family of two adults and one colt. I hope the colt is ready to fly south, they’ve already lost one.

We miss our friends, the large cranes, but they’ll be back in the Spring. In the meantime we may see other wildlife as elk or moose, coyote and fox, and skunk. The seasons rule our lives in other ways, with longtime residents, and many “guests,” especially in top ski season. It’s an interesting place to live and it has been wonderful to have spent this time here in the mountains.

Once we get our super-duper snow tires on our two AWD vehicles we can go practically anywhere. Now, learning to ski is on the list. If we stay, also cross-country and snowshoe. We’ll see. Say goodbye now or wait two months ’til there’s enough snow. Cheers, Dee

Today was my dad’s birthday. He says he had a good day. It also marks the week we sat by our mother’s side until she died two years ago next. Life, and Hurricane Ike had done their damage and tomorrow was another day. Sorry, Scarlett, but I don’t give a damn about Ike right now, though it was problematic with no water or gas….

We can talk about the Job Jar or weeding or setting 3,000 bricks around the pool three years in a row, or hauling stones to make a retaining wall. Fact is, we had a pretty cool childhood, from living in town to being on a large property in an unfinished house. Yes, our job was to finish it. I worked the rudimentary miter to make window frames. I also tried to do ceiling tiles in the basement but my two hands were not strong enough yet to run a staple gun.

This was the dream, and the family dream house. My family went much further than there but even though jobs outside the job jar ruled our weekends, we did get to swim in our new pool, rope to the creek and build sand castles with leftover materials. I like to think of our time up on the hill as the happiest time for our family and cherish it. No, you have to picture a home with a living room with a ceiling of cedar. 60 double-paned casement windows, and a state-of-the-art electric kitchen just needing to be finished.

Need I say that the “new” owners have been there for decades. I’ve always wanted to buy this property but think now I’d only like it for the memories. I thank my parents for that. Ask Mom, Ask Dad were always the worst chores in the Job Jar. Folding diapers or dusting was easier.

Happy birthday, Dad! Love, Dee

I told you we heard of Tommy’s TX BBQ the weekend before last, so we searched for it this past weekend. It claims the best BBQ in the state. So now we’ve found the best burger and the best bbq in the state, next is deli then we’ll go on from there.

So we drove into Tommy’s parking lot and there were a lot of Union soldiers, ladies, guns, tents and horses there. There was no sign for any event. We walked out into “old town” and saw a Captain giving a speech and his men showing a few folks haversacks, hardtack, containers for powder and papers. They were all dressed in Civil War-era clothing, from boiled wool jackets to sabers and women in their homespun, bonnets and holding lace parasols.

We ate our brisket and ribs overlooking the site then stopped by a table of a man who had all the memorabilia from his grandfather, who was from a town less than 30 miles from where I was born. He let my husband handle a Kentucky long rifle embellished with silver and bronze.

The freakiest thing, however, aside from having folks in 1850′s clothing walking into and out of the restaurant, it was when we walked out to get our car. A SUV was unloading, a man in Civil War cap and garb, wife and kids in homespun. So, there are some interesting things going on out West on the weekends! Also the ribs and brisket were fantastic so we have a new place to go and also a way to fill in for parties.

I spent a day or or two per year learning about the Civil War while growing up. Apparently Southerners spent all their lives doing so and some still term it “The War of Northern Aggression.” My father-in-law can tell you moment-to-moment of certain battles and reads about it when he’s not working at the ranch. Sorry, Joe, there wasn’t a Confederate soldier in sight. One might think the western lands were more independent and I’ll have to look into that more. Cheers, Dee

I’ve been reading about this and hearing it for years, just not heeding it. Last week we went for a drive through the West. I drove all but the first hour out and last hour back, and we were gone for three days. Why? Because I wanted my husband to enjoy the trip and scenery. Did I have a good week? Yes. Back at home early, I spent all day Friday reading a book. Ultimate decadence.

In preparation for this weekend the house is clean (not all my doing), I cleaned the frig, sheets, towels, dog and dog towels, fish tank and fish towels and make three meals a day. It’s after ten at night and I just got out of the shower, finally. And I wiped down the shower afterwards with a squeegie to make sure we don’t have spots.

I could be #10 on the list but today I got on the list. It’s nice to be here writing to you with the dishwasher running and the bed made, husband in it on his laptop upstairs. We’ve a pretty easy weekend, a home tour and I’m cooking a simple Sunday brunch for neighbors.

Try to get yourself on your list. Perhaps we’ll all then get better at it. Cheers, Dee