Where did January Go?

 My truck's engine has been knocking for a few years, usually when first started. Different knowledgeable mechanics gave differing opinions; some said that was typical of Chevy engines; others were less optimistic. Rather than wait for the worst to happen, I purchased a rebuilt engine and then took truck to my mechanic over a week ago for installation, with the council to replace any questionable parts while he had it disassembled. And he did call me a couple of times to inform me that such and such a part needed to be replaced or that he could spend two hours at $78 an hour drilling out broken and rusted bolts, or just buy a new part for half the price. There was no urgent need for a truck, so I told him to take his time. Hopefully he will be finished tomorrow. And I will feel more confident that I can drive it anywhere without fear of throwing a rod.

Seminary presented some unwanted challenges this week. Monday I was all excited about an activity for the students to do and then was going to end with a short video. When I attempted to share my screen for the activity, it was blank on their end. Argh! So then I had to walk them through the process; no big deal, just less effective, and more aggravating for me. Then when it was time to show the video, it also came up blank on their end. Good thing I had a plan B. Technology can be such a blessing, or a curse. I didn't think any more of this challenge until the next day; remembering the previous day's problem, I did a test with my first student to log on, and it did not work. Later that day I tried all sorts of corrective action to no avail. So I reached out to our bishop who is computer smart. He suggested rebooting the computer. Hooray, screen sharing now works! There just might be an analogy for me in this process; if not functioning properly, just reboot me.

Wednesday morning I awoke to snow, big white fluffy flakes. It covered the ground in a beautiful white carpet of 1-2 inches. It was cold enough to remain all day, but by Thursday evening it was all melted. And the Mountain Home schools didn't cancel classes, they had a virtual day. I asked my seminary students the next day how effective their virtual school day was. It appeared that several just logged into the class and then did something else. Basically a wasted school day. 

Friday, the elders invited me to join them as they taught a 14 year old young man. His mom had recently been baptized. The elders had used social media to advertise their service and she contacted them. They, plus others, came to assist her with her work projects. In the process they were able to introduce her to the gospel, subsequently teaching her the lessons and then baptizing her. Both mother and son are friendly and outgoing and it was a fun experience for me to share my testimony with them.

I also was able to visit one of my ministering families. They are a few years older than me and have been laying low due to the virus. She is busy doing a lot of family history work and shared some of the documents she has been accumulating. Since I was out, I stopped by my ministering companion's house. A pace maker recipient and on three times a week dialysis, he still is alert and capable, and usually drives himself to his dialysis appointments. He is my go to guy when I have tractor problems; he is just no longer able to make house calls. I enjoy our conversations because he has a lot of knowledge and good advice.

Due to my suggestion that we should start our Empty Nester's FHE on the first Monday of the month, I had to offer to get the ball rolling if it was going to happen. I like the KISS rule  (keep it simple silly) and decided punch and cookies with Elder Bednar's recent BYU devotion on 'As Long as the World Shall Stand' council on temple covenants would be appropriate. So on Saturday I visited the church building to verify I could stream his talk from computer to TV. Once there though, I realized that the building was in need of come cleaning; it would appear that the regular building cleaning has ben put on hold. So I spent some time in the cleaning mode. And then when I went to plug in the computer to the TV, it was discovered I did not have the right cable! 

This week I have been dedicating several hours a day to scanning documents. Currently there are over 16,000 photos, letters, cards, etc. scanned, with lots more to go. In scanning our letters from my deployments, there was a six month period of missing letters. Well, I found those, plus another six month's worth; they were stuck in a file folder instead of in a binder. Just when I think there is some light at the end of the tunnel, I discover it is nothing more than a street light along the never ending tunnel. But it is fun (mostly) to go down this memory lane of an earlier time in our lives.

Today we had great YouTube sacrament talks about the Articles of Faiths. and instead of just reading and sharing personal thoughts, a majority of the comments the speakers shared were from the general authorities. Very powerful.

Week ending 24 January 2021

 In need of frozen peas for my dinner, I searched in the freezer for some. They had been sighted recently, so I knew they were there. They were located and dinner was a success. But while looking through the items stored in the freezer, several unidentifiable and unknown things that previously would have been considered edible, were discovered. Most of those were not labeled or dated. They got thrown into the trash for obvious reasons. Oh, but trash day isn't for another five days - poor planning on my part to clean out the freezer just after the trash was picked up. Didn't want that food spoiling in the trash container and inviting unwanted guests. So I made room in the other freezer until the next trash day.

The dermatologist called to say the biopsy from the tip of my nose was cancerous and scheduled me to come in on Thursday. The procedure was basically painless and quick. The doctor is very good and his concern for my welfare is appreciated. However, I have nicknamed him "scrape and burn'. Now I just have this small divot on the tip of my nose. Wearing a mask in public has a new meaning now.

I spent a couple of hours each day scanning additional letters, notes, and pictures that have been accumulating in a tub where I have been putting them for the past couple of months. A lot of these are random items that don't necessarily fit into a specific category, such as letters from1987-89, rather they are one or two of a kind that don't fit into any particular already existing file. So I spend a lot of time trying to find an appropriate home for these 'orphans'. One of my favorite 'finds' was found in a hand written journal that GG had kept on Sandra's birth and early years:  "she has more bounce to the ounce than a Pepsi", referencing a Pepsi commercial in the 1950's.

Friday evening Miranda's family arrived in time for dinner and stayed until Sunday afternoon. Saturday Dan had meetings in West Plains for a good part of the day. Ethan and Alex braved the 40 degree weather to help gather downed tree limbs so we would have a burn pile for a bon fire. Using the tractor, we would fill the bucket with wood and dump on the pit. Miranda came out and received a crash course on how to drive the tractor which freed me up to help load the bucket and use the chain saw. And of course she had some help:

With the help of the tractor we were able to push over two 40 foot dead and decaying trees; because they were partially rotten, it was easy to cut them with the chain saw. On the last load before lunch, and with a bucket full of wood, the bucket did not want to rise. Opps, needed hydraulic fluid, and I had none. Because it is a John Deere, and they highly recommend using only their brand, I was in trouble since there is no dealer within 50 miles. But wait, Dan was in West Plains where there is a dealer. He didn't respond to our calls or texts, so we assumed he was still in his meetings. With less than 10 minutes before the shop closed, I was able to purchase 2.5 gallons of approved hydraulic fluid over the phone. They would put it out at the base of their sign with my name on it. Evidently they do this often. Dan did contact us shortly thereafter and was able to bring the fluid home so we could continue using the tractor.

Before enjoying a roaring fire, Miranda and boys assisted me in removing the last of the deck railing on the back side of the house. There was approximately 30 feet that needed to come down in anticipation of my kitchen expansion project. It helps to have additional assistance in the form of youthful enthusiasm. And a friend stopped by before the day was over to haul off the railing for his own project. 

Then we lit the fire, just as unscheduled hail started to fall lightly. It did not last long and we got the fire going. The boys take great delight in preparing their own spot to ignite; all were successful. Within two hours, and probably a little early for me, they were out there cooking marsh mellows and eating s'mores. And they still had room for dinner a couple hours later!

We had 'real' elders quorum meeting this morning. About 25 were in attendance and we had a good discussion on Elder Rasband's Oct Conference talk on "Recommended to the Lord".  Then home for sacrament; was nice to have more than just me for this ordinance. We had a few minutes before our church meeting broadcast, which gave me time to set things us. Unfortunately, there were technical difficulties on their end, so watched the video: Mountain of the Lord, the 40 year story of the building of the Salt Lake Temple.

My second stimulus check arrived today. Still not sure what the logic is, if any: the government prints money so they can then send me a check, but they take approximately 6-7% of it before sending it to me.

January Rolls on and on...

This was a week of medical appointments and domestic duty.

Monday  morning I was at the doctor's office for lab work. Since it was my first visit of the year, they needed to see my driver's license and medical insurance cards. And I am no longer a name, I am a date of birth.

Tuesday was my monthly visit to the chiropractor; they needed to see the same documentation, but there they know me by name and don't care about my birthdate.

Wednesday was my follow up appointment with the dermatologist. It had been two months since my last blue light treatment to eradicate any potentially harmful cancer on my face. There was one small spot on the tip of the nose that he took a biopsy of; hopefully it is benign. Hate to have a divot on the tip of my nose.

Thursday afternoon was my doctor's appointment to discuss the results of my lab work. Except for when they called me from the waiting room by name, I was a date of birth to each person thereafter. All the blood test numbers were within normal except for my prostrate, which has been increasing over the past couple of years.  He will schedule a consult with the appropriate doctor.

Saturday, Nathan the cabinet maker, stopped by to evaluate my kitchen make over. He will work up a diagram based on his visit and hopefully we can agree on the particulars so he can get started on this project. Due to current projects, he won't be able to start for at least 4-5 weeks. That might give me time to figure out just what I really want. That evening we had a bon fire at the elder quorum president's house. The temperatures were in the low 30s, but 12 of us enjoyed the comradery of cooking hot dogs and roasting marshmallows for smores.  And the fire kept us warm! 

After several months of procrastination, I again started scanning letters and other important (to me at least) documents.  Over the past months I deposited any letter, card, or document worthy of preserving (mostly from Sandy), into a bin. Now it is time to dust them off and finish this project. The pile is growing smaller. But if I finish this project, what will I do with my time?

I also climbed into the attic and removed the six tubs stored there. They contained mostly Christmas decorations. Those six have been reduced to three which are stored in the shed out back; much easier to access there than in the attic. I also did a second reduction of some of Sandy's things. After her passing, we went through her belongings, many of which found new homes with other family members or were donated to local charities. Now it was time to take a second look at the remaining items and decide what to do with them. There are some items that I was initially reluctant to part with, but time has a way of dimming their significance. And there were a couple surprise finds in unexpected places.

Looking out dirty windows encouraged me to do my domestic duty and finally wash them. Over a couple of day's time, I managed to get all but one or two windows washed. It is nice to look out the windows and not see finger prints, smudges, water spots or dirt on them now. Unfortunately, clean windows accentuate the missed spots (yes there are a few).  And there is the one window that is discolored between the panes. Ah well, I just don't look out that window.

We had two days of light and occasional snow flurries, but none that stuck. One of those days was very windy and it was impressive to see the snow whirling by horizontally. 

Life in Arkansas

 

Last Sunday was spent at Jonathan's. They hold a real sacrament meeting. And that afternoon Miriam received her patriarchal blessing; this was a marvelous experience as we spent about 30 minutes visiting with the patriarch and gained insight to how he receives revelation for each individual that requests a blessing from him. It was a beautiful blessing, too. We come home to the wonderful smells of pizza. David was in charge of preparing dinner this night, and he did a great job. If you are visiting this family, you don't want to miss Sunday pizza dinners; they are so delicious. And most of the children know how to make the dough and prepare the pizza.

Monday, after using Jonathan's office to conduct seminary, I headed home. I did make a stop at Sam's to stock up on some of their food stuffs. I returned in time to put things away and get ready for another week at home.

Wednesday I had a meeting with personnel at the law office that manages our trusts. Sandy may have passed away 15 months ago, but there are still a few loose legal ends that need to be completely transferred to me.  I stopped by the DMV to get the title on the van changed to my trust, only to find out I need a lien release from the bank showing the loan was paid off. The bank is sending one. We are still doing battle with one bank that does not acknowledge me as the rightful heir and therefore is blocking me from access to that account. My lawyer is confident they will soon see the light and change their behavior. Fortunately, the money in that account is not a significant amount and there is no pressing need for it. I thought the purpose of the trust was to avoid such situations!

Because on occasion I tend to rock the boat, the elder's quorum president asked me to come up with suggestions for some activities that would help create unity amongst the men in our quorum. Three others were willing to meet on Thursday to discuss things we can do to strengthen us spiritually and temporally. We were not able to resolve all the world's problems in an hour; the general consensus was that we need more opportunities to gather, something which current virus restrictions inhibit. We are going to try to reactivate the monthly empty nester meeting and a hot dog roast/bon fire is on the schedule in the coming weeks. We will continue with live EQ meetings every other week, and we proposed SS be held on the other two weeks.

Friday and Saturday I felt ambitious and brought down six storage tubs from the attic. They contained our Christmas decorations. They are now separated into two groups:  that which I will keep, but put in the storage shed (easier to access than the attic) and that which is to be given away. I took pictures of 30 plus items and posted to family members in the hopes that someone will adopt them.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been visited with two unwanted guests. Jack Frost invaded the downstairs upright freezer door, building up ice across the top of the door and into the freezer. First thought was to replace the 10 year old freezer; that thought quickly vanished when I discovered the cost of a new one was twice what I paid 10 years ago. A new door seal was 1/10th the price of a freezer. After about an hour's work, the new seal was installed. There is still a light dusting of frost across part of the door but over 90% of the previous frost and ice is gone.

The other undesirable guest was a leaky toilet. I would never have known there was a problem if not for those midnight visits to the bathroom. I could hear water running for a few seconds, and then stop. After experiencing this for a couple of nights, I went downstairs and turned off the water to that toilet. By day's end the tank was empty. So I replaced the flapper valve; although diminished, the water was still leaking. So I bought a new float valve assembly and overflow tube. Installation involved removing the tank from the commode to install a new seal with the which was no big issue. However, it still leaked enough to annoy me. So off came the water tank and the nut holding the seal was retightened. Victory is now mine!

In our Youtube sacrament meeting, we heard from a recent convert and her relatively new husband, who is a long time member. After 40 years of marriage, her first husband died of cancer. Six year later she met and then married Steve. He introduced her to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She quoted D&C 123:12 and asked if during her upbringing was she kept from the truth? Her parents were not religious so she was not overly involved in a church. As a college student, young adult and then mother who attended church when she made the time to be involved, she asked: 'did I keep myself from the truth?' She basically answered these two questions. However, the answer to her last question is not so obvious: 'why did it take so long for her to learn about the Gospel of Jesus Christ?' 

Life in Mountain Home continues. No snow, but night time temperatures in the 20s. I am still teaching seminary five days a week to a group of amazing youth. And I am hopefully moving forward with my plans to enlarge the kitchen. Stay tuned for more on this new adventure!

It is 2021

 Early in the week the local weather forecast was for several inches of snow to fall by week's end. Knowing I planned to spend New Years at Jonathan's I decided to leave a day earlier than originally planned, just to avoid bad weather. And then the forecast changed by Wednesday to only rain; but I left that afternoon anyway.

In anticipation of wet weather, I spent time both Monday and Tuesday burning as much of the leaves in the neighbor's yard as possible. Still a lot to go, but there is light at the end of this tunnel. Except, it will take a week of dry weather before they will burn.

On my drive to Missouri Wednesday afternoon, just north of Branson, snow blanketed the countryside. There was no real precipitation during my drive, there was clearly enough white stuff to cover the ground. The roads were clear because of several days of warm weather preceding the snow. I arrived without incident to find Miranda and family already here.  The ground had one-two inches of snow and the kids had been out playing in it already. My original plan had been to stay home for New Years, until Kristy said the MO and AR families were gathering at their house. Not one to pass up family gatherings, or great food, I came.

Thursday morning this is the scene which greeted me.

Thursday was spent in preparing for the evening festivities; Kristy puts out a great spread for New Year's Eve.

By dinner time, Kera's family (minus a working Andy) and Deborah's family had arrived. It took some bedroom rearranging to get everyone situated, but it was accomplished without any complaints. Kristy had invited a couple of families to join us for the evening, although she did warn them there were approximately 28 of us, and two families joined us in eating, playing games, eating, talking, eating and visiting. I decided the new year did not need to be greeted by me at midnight, and was in bed before 11.

Over night, we received additional snow and ice; the countryside was bathed in sparkling wonder:

This last photo was of a once majestic looking willow tree in the front yard.

Friday's activities were dictated by your age: the adults stayed inside visiting or playing games while many of the younger ones were outside playing in the snow. Issy had fun towing the young ones behind the ATV on a sled to their great delight. Jonathan improved on his bread making skills by baking baguettes or sourdough bread every day; each loaf was quickly devoured and enjoyed.

Saturday, Katie was up early and started her drive to BYU-Idaho, stopping for the night at my brother's home in Denver. In the afternoon, Kera loaded up the remainder of her family to return to their house. She was followed by Miranda's family and then Deborah's. It suddenly got very quiet. No children chasing each other around the house, no shrieks of joy over a board game, no boisterous laughter.

Photos from this morning (Sunday):

Evidence that Mariam walked the 200 yards to the mail box and back last night, barefoot in the snow - because she could - to retrieve the mail:

The local ward holds in person sacrament meetings and it was good to attend; this is the second week in a row where I have been able to actually 'go to church'. The drive to church was spectacular; the sun finally came out, the sky was clear and all the foliage, all covered with ice, were sparkly and bright. 

Two hours later, much of that ice was melted and the trees are back to their normal time of the year bleak and naked appearance.  Later this afternoon,  I will join the family as Miriam receives her patriarchal blessing.

It has been fun, relaxing, exciting, and enjoyable spending several days with so many family members. The cousins had a good time with each other (mostly), the food is always excellent and all-too-plentiful and the break from the normal routine is welcomed. Tomorrow seminary will start up again and life will take on a more structured order.