Today, I’ll start with a photo (the left one, below) sent to me by our bass guitar player, Sharon Jenson, from her husband, Jack — The view is of the Northeast Face of Mount Rainier and the White River Valley from 6,960 feet high Silver Queen Mountain (pictured above) near Crystal Ski Area. Jack likes to ski, and Crystal Mountain is the largest ski resort in the State and accessible from the Seattle area. Seattle is to the right from this line between the mountain tops.
Silver Queen is 13.5 miles from the peak of Mount Rainier. A National Park road goes along the left of the river to about as far as it shows, then crosses and splits, going to 2 access points. The green hump in the middle with snow covering the top is called Goat Island Mountain. John has worked on trails within this area, including one coming up from the western base of the Ski Area. It reaches two small lakes, and is called Crystal Lakes Trail.
On the right (above), Rascal Cat is stalking Doug, the Douglas Squirrel having a breakfast of Black Oil Sunflower seeds. 
Doug is on the board, upper left. The squirrels are cute, small, noisy, and a pain. They store black walnuts in our insulation in the shed, and compete with John for his Carpathian walnuts, which we enjoy so much and don’t wish to share with him. Once they cleaned walnuts under the hood of one of our vehicles.
Monday, Jan 7
Awoke, still coughing. I will go to town today for a few errands, but our Silver Sneakers class doesn’t resume until Jan 14, so I will finish up the photos from the Chinese New Years’ party, put on a flash drive, and take by to the AAC for their records. I did that and captured the ones from their camera too. Found one with John in it that I missed. A bunch went outside to burn the paper on which they had written 2018/2019 notes. This seems to be a 3rd day event for the new year.
I drove by the Flying J to pick up boots and winter shoes Ann Draper gave me. I did need to go out the back patio door just before dark and my slippers have a hole in the bottom, so I used the black shoes. They were perfect, fit perfectly, and supported my foot in the yard and on the gravel. I’m anxious to try on the felt lined winter boots and the other green shoes. I’m sure they will be awesome, but I really don’t want to take all, or if so, I want her to let me know if she ever wants them returned. Upon follow-up contact, she told me to keep them all.
In return I gave her husband a pair of YakTrax I had so he could descend Manastash Trail when he was coming downhill on slippery slopes as a few days prior.
I see the new Dr. Kim, cardiologist, Tuesday. I have been working tonight to organize all my questions. I summarized values from a Basic Metabolic Panel. I don’t have records back to Nov 2017 to compare with the Uric Acid blood test from then. I have been working on medical record history from lab tests back to Mar 2018, at the local hospital KVH.
Tuesday, Jan 8
About an hour before heading out the door for Yakima, we got a call. The Heart Center had a cancellation – could we fill that slot? We said yes, and drove just a bit aggressively, as the roads were in good shape. We were lucky with the lights at 16th Avenue intersections. Got there 2 minutes early, rather than 2 minutes late. I had called to tell them how close we were and that we expected to get there just on time.
It was snowing here, and on the tops of the ridges, but slowed down for a small time, and then started back more. We got to Yakima with 2 inches of snow having fallen, and still snowing; Roads were wet. We made it in time, and while the travel both ways was unpleasant, the doctor’s visit was encouraging. I weighed the least I have weighed in a doctor’s office since June 2017. That was with my clothes on, but without shoes. I’m 5 pounds less than when we were married almost 50 years ago.
Below the photo will show why I am happy my doctors are not in Seattle, but instead in Yakima. Afternoon at the Pass. Often, when trucks skid and “jack-knife” like this one, other vehicles make contact. Then the road closes for a couple of hours while tow trucks clear the highway and police investigate.
This driver got off easy, and was soon on her/his way.
This is why we don’t schedule anything on the west side of the Cascade Crest from November to March.
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Wednesday, Jan 9
Mid-week we had fog, snow, and sleet. Some images resulted that are beautiful; here’s my favorite.
Photo of Ellensburg CWU campus highlighted by Barge Hall; captured by EvieMae Scheutz from near her Auntie Gaye’s home on Craig’s Hill.
We left for the Old Geographer’s meeting at Hearthstone, this morning. Roads were pretty slick (worse near town because of last night’s sleet there). Just north of the Kittitas Hwy, a car was off the road (at Ferguson) from a failed turn. It was in a deeper ditch than we went in 4 years ago, and therefore at an acute angle. I wasn’t comfortable on the leaning side into the ditch (passenger side). At least the ditch didn’t have slimy water in it as it does this year, and we missed hitting a culvert by only a foot. That story was in a blog long ago, found here:
Click on the link and go to Tuesday to find the details of the ditch plunge.
Today, we made it safely and so did several others (one walking, Mary Ann). Lillian, Ken, Carla, and Dee with daughter Cory. We call this the Emeritus Meeting, but two of the prior CWU professors have passed through the snowy gates, and we had 3 spouses and a daughter. [John thinks it funny that the term emeritus comes from Latin, and at the time of the Roman Legions, it meant a soldier too old or lame to be useful. In education, it means retired with distinguished service.]
Laurie at Hearthstone provided coffee and hot water for tea or Hot Chocolate. Thanks to Crystal, Activities Director, for setting it up. John and I brought cookies: chocolate chip and macaroons.
I cancelled all the rest of my normal Wednesday activities (going to Food Bank for music and SAIL exercise after), and we came home for me to rest and get well.
I washed some dishes and processed some photos, and have a few more yet to do. Talked to a couple of offices to set up and confirm future appointments. Set up a refill on a prescription for me and discussed halving pills and separating them, and not putting them all back in the same container. I hate that, even though I’m grateful for them to half pills for me that are not scored for easy breaking in half.
Am sending photos up to Google Photos for the White Heron Raclette event to get them all stored at one link for people to see.
I succeeded and you can click on this link:
Photos from Raclette at White Heron, 1-5-19
Thursday, Jan 10
Going in to Meadows Place today, probably just with the music and my camera. I won’t join the group but sit in the front row of the audience so as not to risk talking or singing; either starts me coughing. Others in the group will handle the announcing and song intros. We also may have too many people for the crescent circle.
Below on Friday is the description for this video of today’s music presentation for the folks in the Meadows Place Assisted Living Home. All there were pleased with the program.
It was interesting to have a couple of audience members, the gentleman from his walker, dancing in the rear of the audience.
Click the following link to see them dancing in the first song.
Video here starts near 8 minutes. Pull the button back to the left to start at the beginning.
Fiddlers & Friends at Meadows Place
Friday, Jan 11
I delivered some stuff with John’s help to Kittitas. Both deliveries were appreciated, but the results are found above, constructed by my friend EvieMae Scheutz, who transferred my 25 recordings yesterday into a complete video of our yesterday’s music. I was unable to do my usual “leading” so I carried in the music for 3 players, copies for the audience, and sat in the front row of the audience to take videos of the presentation. Evie manufactured them into one recording of the entire day, capturing the best 54 minutes of music.
I came home to recuperate and work on organization, and John did a few chores outside and inside. The cold and fog is not pleasant, and it is to last all week.
My organizing concentrated on records, and file folder copies of receipts. I made some progress, freeing up space in legal filing cabinets to house my data, and threw away (recycled) some educational materials left over from years of teaching. So much more yet to do. I boxed up some tapes with urban geography information to give to the prof now teaching the course. They have taken out the VCR players in the classrooms, and so I hope if some are usable historically, then they can be converted to DVDs. Projectors for color slides and overhead projectors for transparencies have also disappeared from academia.
Saturday, Jan 12
We got out of here before 9:00 to head to town for several errands. Most importantly, was looking for a pair of bedroom slippers for John and for me because both our soles have holes.
We began at the Methodist Church Community Clothing Store, but they had no slippers. However, I found a pair of men’s boots that fit me, John found an orange work shirt and a scarf, and then for me he found some more colorful (pink with purple) slippers with a higher back kind of like a boot, so when the cold air circulates on the floor in our house they may keep my legs a little warmer.
I have plenty of clothes, so I wasn’t looking at the clothes on the women’s side, but John was checking out things and found a small jacket with gorgeous embroidery on it. 
I didn’t try it on, but I got it anyway, knowing I could give it to one of my friends. (Once home, I put it on. It is just a bit small, but I can wear it with a white blouse and not button.) Everything there is free. You are allowed 10 items (only two of the same thing) once a month for the family. We left with 7 items total and happily thanked everyone. I knew one of the volunteers there today, from the FISH food bank. When I walked in, (only my 2nd time there), I did not carry my Photo ID, but she recognized me and there was one other person in the “store” who knew me from playing music at Pacifica. John did have his, and that would have worked or I could have gone back to the car. My first time there was to obtain Christmas tops (you have seen through December blogs) to wear at music events and exercise classes.
This shows the long tops folded over, but such don’t seem helpful.
On to the Goodwill store, to check, but we found nothing that would work. Much of Goodwill is the same packaged products found at regular retail outlets, and at similar prices. Maybe ½ of the stuff is re-purposed donations.
From there we checked out the early morning sale at Super 1. We went primarily for sausage (in rolls). It was claimed to be $3/roll off regular price, but more like $1.25. We eat a lot with brunches. Also Navel oranges were on sale. I hope they are better than the last bunch. We ate one, cooked with one, and threw 2 out.
Last stop was the best, Bi-Mart, where we accidentally on the way out, found men’s slippers in John’s and my size for 50% off. We weren’t even planning to look there for them, but went instead to get stuff for my cough & congestion: Tussin DM and Fisherman’s Friend cough drops. John also buys his disposable razors there. With the 50% mark down I also bought some colorful socks with a loose top. Belts were 20% off and John found one he liked.
We came home to have brunch, using the sausage we just bought.
Now working on projects.
Ending with views in Arizona
These were taken by Celia Slatta (AKA Missy Piecuch to us as our student a while ago at CWU)
She went with her family (hubby and children) over Christmas break and shared these with me, for us to put in our blog. I saw the sunset and asked for permission to use it. She sent me the other as one of her favorites.
Sunday, Jan 13
We will be posting the blog this afternoon, but not including any other activities of this day.
Hope your week was fine.
Nancy and John
Still on the Naneum Fan