Sunday, June 22 . . . . . . . {click photos}
Finally, got the blog out at noon today.
John’s made individual smaller packages of bacon for the freezer from a bulk package. It’s good too, and very lean. More like little pieces of ham with a slight fat edge. Then for lunch, we will have BLTs. All done. I assembled them and we very much enjoyed lunch. This afternoon is a hot one, with no wind, however, and the temperatures eventually got to 89, higher than predicted. Today, John’s going to spend his time inside the house on chores (mostly cleaning strawberries). I shall help too. Goes faster that way. He laughed and said he might need to buy another freezer for all the fruit we will have to freeze. Not a bad idea. We probably froze 15 — 8 oz. bags of strawberries today. They will be great throughout the year on ice cream, cereal, or cake. We ate a bunch, also.
Monday, June 23
Much more accomplished with strawberries for the freezer and friends. Gave some away and went to town for a blood draw for the INR test for my heart. It was fine. While there, I visited a little with a friend who had a knee replacement and will have her other, this Friday. As they say, getting old is not for sissies. (She had it and it went well, and while under, they manipulated her previous knee replacement to give her 100° bend angle from a 60°). Then to SAIL exercise class and back home. John has been weeding, picking strawberries, and watering all sorts of things. The onions like wet feet but get grumpy about all the wind.
Tuesday, June 24
Early morning call from sleep center… 11** times/hr I stopped breathing, and the lowest report on the oximeter was 79% oxygen. They want to do a second test with a mask on from the beginning. Appointment call came later in the week, so I’m set to be miserable overnight again the end of August.
**I seem to be between guideline numbers: below 5 is okay apparently but above 5 is a warning zone; above 15 and they would have put a mask on for the rest of the test. We are doing some guessing here, so will have to learn more. An acquaintance had the test done at a different place and the tech came in and fitted a mask about half way through. I did not learn what her numbers were. Another out-of-state friend had 22 and wears a mask now. Good thing that call was early, ‘cause mid-morning we were on our way to Yakima. I went to Dr. Cardon (foot and ankle type) this morning and then, on to Costco, and home to music work-up. And strawberries.
Wednesday, June 25
Today was playing at the Food Bank, where we had Italian food, with scrumptious cheesecake, on to SAIL, delivering a couple packages of strawberries (in return received a plate of a dozen homemade peanut butter cookies, then dropped by CWU to run some music on the Xerox for tomorrow, and took some more strawberries to Marilyn – the soon to be retired secretary. Home to do more chores, and work again on music for the rest of the songs for July & August. Each month we get 5-6 play dates with more on the months with a 5th Thursday.
Surprises arrived in the mail and we are hopeful this celebration reminder is leading to our next Dual Champion Brittany. The color photo was taken of her win at the Woof Stock Puppy Sweepstakes (15-18 months) show. Funny comment from Jeri Conklin, her co-owner (with me) and handler, that she should have removed the bait (snack) from her own mouth before the picture! Bait is used in the ring while showing the dog, to get their attention, lift head, and pose. When I was showing I always used my pockets, or a little container on my hip. Perhaps Jeri’s doggie treats are better tasting than mine.
This is our year-old female, Cedaridge Kip’s Camelot Shay Tre’, out of our lines. The black and white photo below came out in the American Brittany Magazine, June’s issue, on p 30.
Thursday, June 26
By 11:30, I have sorted strawberries John picked this morning — two boxes to take to people in town, and another for us, we need to clean and freeze. Meanwhile, I finished fixing all the music we will need today. Now have to start on the package to take tomorrow at 2:00 to run off more copies for the next two months, adding 8 songs to the 13 we have for the July 3 (for the 4th) performance at the Senior Center.
I played until just before 3:00, drove to a friend’s place and passed off strawberries without hardly stopping, quickly came home (in the rain) to drop off my violin, pick up John, and drive 80 miles for a party that starts at 5:00 in a public market called Pybus, at a restaurant called South (at the north end of the building) serving food of various central and Latin American ethnicities. We ended up sharing an expensive and rather ordinary bland hamburger plate and an expensive burrito plate, unfortunately with meat with too much gristle. Oh well, the company was awesome. It was a going-away party for Brian Frampton (a student of mine in the 1990s, with others there from the same time period that I also had as students, and some other new friends and political folks from the City of Wenatchee, and also from Chelan County, with whom Brian has worked for several years as a planner. He is moving to Federal Way with his family. Tomorrow is his final day.
I am above with Vivian (Peterson) Ramsey, my student from the early 1990s at CWU. Three of the people there were my former students and 2 of those had John’s class, and another planned to come, but had to go to a City Council meeting in Wenatchee. It would have been close to a CWU Alumni reunion, as a couple more had been at CWU but not in our classes. The meeting the other friend had to attend was on Wenatchee, WA’s City Council reconsidering the prohibition of marijuana retailers following a lawsuit that was filed after the State of WA voters approved the legalization of marijuana.
Back to the party.
Above is John, me, and Brian Frampton, the man of honor, who is leaving his planner job at the City of Wenatchee, and moving to Federal Way with his wife, Megan and 7-month old baby, Keylee, because Megan has a new job with the Gates Foundation. Brian was also my student in the 1990s, as well as Amanda Taub, left in the picture below with Susan, a prosecuting attorney in Wenatchee. They are laughing and enjoying one of the many stories told that evening.
We had a fun time, especially meeting all his previous co-workers from Chelan County.
Friday, June 27
Morning, up early working with music to take to school this afternoon to run copies, at a reduced cost. John’s going along to town because I won’t be there long and he can visit with Marilyn, and wish her well, in her retirement. We took her some freshly picked strawberries for her to take home, and I logged onto the department computer outside her office so he could read news on the Internet while we were in the copy room. Afterwards, we went to Grocery Outlet in town for cat food, frozen pizza, lettuce, and ice cream. Four of the cats were outside tonight, ready for their meal. I awoke at 5:00 and got up at 6:00 to start my work. So, by the time 5:00 p.m. came around, I was ready for a nap. I napped for 1.5 hrs, and plan to be in bed a little earlier tonight than the past two. While I was sleeping, John took pictures off his camera of the new Cabot (quite large strawberries). We used a quarter for scale and I took photos on another camera. We ought to have gotten a couple usable ones.
We have a compost pile about 50 feet from the back door and over a 6 ft. fence. Not much edible is there but with all the berries and some damaged but whole ones having been tossed there during the last week – we had a visitor! Thursday, John tossed trimmings into the bin (6 wood pallets making an oval 4 feet high) and a small Skunk was as surprised as was John. It was there again this evening but John checked before getting real close and so did not add to the offerings there. Deliveries to that restaurant have ceased.
Saturday, June 28
I have been cleaning dishes, working on photos for the blog, and talking on the phone. Had a nice long call from Bonnie Clow about seeing the Field Trial report win (above) in the AB magazine, and how happy she was for us to see we had a dog again on the circuit and in the placements. She doesn’t have email, so I will have to print a few of the blogs with Tre’ (Daisy)’s story to catch her up. Bonnie is very interested because she was the owner and breeder of this pup’s grandfather, Black Butte’s Chocolate Dandy, who actually has been living with us for 7 or 8 years. She didn’t realize the connection until I told her. Tre’s grandmother is Cedaridge Legacy of Shay (now 14), and Dan is 12. Both are still with us, and also Cedaridge Vintage Roussanne, (Annie), a sister of the sire, Cedaridge Tri-tip Kip. Kip, is with Sonja Willitts, in S. Lake Tahoe, CA, with another pup from his litter, Tank, Tre’s brother. Keeping it all in the family. Sonja bought her first dog in 1977 from us, while we were in Troy, ID. That dog was out of our Dual Ch. Ramblin’ Chocolate Dandy (note the similarity in names). He’s behind this pup too. Also, behind her is our Dual Ch/Amateur FC/Canadian Ch Sirius Sashay, which explains the background for my choice of Shay Tre’ for a name. She’s the 3rd Shay in our lines.
John just brought me some more strawberries to sort, and when I got them all done, I put away three 2-pound boxed packages in the fridge. Two go to neighbors and one we’ll fix and add to those he is still picking. We’d had a snack for lunch, and I just gave myself another afternoon snack of H.K. Anderson Peanut Butter Filled Pretzel Nuggets (originally from PA) with a bowl of fresh sugared strawberries. All today’s strawberries are nice but not the very large Cabots as above in the photo. Most of the ones today are medium to large Jewels. Now back working on this blog, with hopes to be done by the time John chases deer away, exercises the dogs, feeds horses and cats, and redirects a couple of hoses. Supper will be a fairly simple salad but with chicken strips fried with mushrooms and a little fajita seasoning.
While John was picking strawberries, Annie was out with him and found hip bones of a deer. She brought this to him and it was dripping wet so it came from in or near the stream. He brought and showed this to me and put it on the patio. She apparently picked it up again, dropped it on the concrete, and it broke. I tried to find the other piece to take a photo. John didn’t find it either so I took a picture of Annie with one side. It would be quite a mouthful. I wish I had a photo of the retrieve. I didn’t get to see it either, but John did. After this evening’s run, Annie came back in and retrieved the missing piece, from her hiding place in the backyard. Now we could get the recreated whole in the picture below on the blue pan.
Busy day and trying to finish the blog with all sorts of stuff still happening. It’s now suppertime (late), and John is fixing the chicken & mushrooms part of the Caesar Salad without Caesar, but with Blue Cheese dressing instead. I fixed the lettuce, tomatoes, blue cheese, and multi-grain crackers broken up as croutons. We need to make some of those as salad season is now here.
Hope your week was fine.
Nancy and John
Still on the Naneum Fan