JULY


I put The Flag out at the end of driveway.
At 9:10 I can still see, but it is time to bring it down. At the time the declaration was made public there was not a “United States”. That didn’t come for many years.
It took until June 21, 1788 for the finalizing of the effort. No one much cares so July 4th, 1776 it is.

I began early with a hair cut on Saturday morning. This is the first time in about 53 years I sat in an actual barber chair in a commercial place. Yesterday I went by a recommended place – the parking places (about 10) were full. This morning I stopped by and was 8th in line with their 4 or 5 chairs full. I was turned off by that and the ambiance (none). There was no reservation allowed – just wait.
Two blocks away is The Barber Chop, with 3 chairs, only two in use.
They have a web-based reservation, so I got signed up for a chair in ½ hour. That allowed me to tackle two errands, and I got back with 5 minutes to spare.
My barber, Arielle (Ari), had to deal with a mass of overgrown hair. We talked this through as she worked. My hair resembled a combination of Albert Einstein’s and Bernie Sanders’, so it was time. She earned her pay and a tip, and we were both pleased with the result. I promised I’d be back before it got long again.

The license plates for the truck arrived today, with a listing of all the fees (costs) totaling $189.00.

But wait, there’s more.
It appears the seller has to contact the State. The plates and title get mailed back. Then the plates and title are re-mailed to me at a cost of $4.80. Next year cost should be a lot less as there are first time items listed.

From the Naneum Fan
John

Heat like the mid-1950s in Pennsylvania

Best video I’ve seen of the collapse of the building in Florida.

In other news:
There is an on-going volcanic eruption in Iceland. Here is a photo from the day it crested the rim and began to flow out.Fagradalsfjall Volcano, Iceland – June 14 2021

This reminded someone of this episode from 1912:
On the home front a 30 cubic yard dumpster arrived last Monday (14th), was partially filled on Tuesday, and was carried off Friday of this week. I added things during its stay, but high temperatures caused me to do less than I wanted. Still, over 90% was filled. I topped it off with mattresses and the box springs from an old bed. A couple of small lamp shades were discovered. I don’t recall having seen them. The circle on top is 4.5 inches across. The texture is sort-of crisp, and whether they began life that way or not, it is different and interesting.

During the cleanup, two old carpet vacuums were less than satisfactory. They got tossed. A third is more for things not on the floor. It gets too warm and quits if used very long, say 5 minutes.
So I ordered a large shop-vac. It has a 12 gallon container and a 2.5 inch diameter hose. About 50 years ago we had something similar, called a Filter Queen. This one is a different technology, and prettier.

Saturday morning, about 9am, Kathy and Janelle came with a pickup and flatbed trailer. Temperature was about 87 at the airport – maybe 85° here. That crept while we worked, in part shade and with a slight breeze, just 5 or 6 mph – but it helped.
We loaded about 6 tons of hay (110 pound 3-string bales).
While Janelle strapped the load, Kathy and I searched the edge of the stash of stuff I had put in the hay shed last spring. Years ago at our horse club meetings there would be a raffle of donated items, usually horse related. We won our share and acquired things, such as lead ropes, we already had. We found 2 leads this morning, and a few other things.
That pile of items and boxes are next on the agenda for a sort, toss, and repurpose day. We’ll need cooler weather.

I’m headed to a birthday celebration for an 80 year old I don’t know. I know many in the family, but he is the father of a son that married Suzy West’s younger sister. The gathering is at the old homestead NE of Kittitas, about 15 minutes from here.

Temperature at the airport is now 99° @ 1:00 pm.

From the Naneum Fan
John

Cleaning up and throwing out

Monday brought a 30 cubic yard dumpster to my yard.
Tuesday brought help.
I lost track of all that was going on. Tuesday night I wrote the following and sent the message to the folks that were here:
– – – – –
We’re gonna need a bigger dumpster

Nearing 11:00 o’clock and I am about to cash my chips and head for bed.

My computer acts like there is a parasitic Leprechaun stealing cycles when I type or use the mouse. Useful work is difficult. Then, for awhile all is well. Stuff happens.

Anyway — WOW!
I am stunned by the amount of work that was done today. The dumpster is almost full – 30 cubic yards – despite playing with Minnow, fixing an old stock trailer, trips to EBRG (did you notice nearly everyone was mask-less?), good food, fine wine, and great company. And before y’all arrived electrician Todd spent about 3 hours in the living room cutting holes in the ceiling, installing light canisters, and then cleaning up most of his mess (a fine white dust).
Had I managed to get the old camper totally demolished the dumpster could have been filled with the remaining debris from that ancient structure.
Did I mention I ended up with extra food and 2 cast iron pans?
Within an hour of folks leaving the two inside/outside cats showed up. They must have been watching, and waiting.

Know that I am indebted to each of you.
Sincerely
John
– – – – – –

Note the trips (s) to EBRG. The old stock trailer was jacked up and the wheels removed. The Les Schwab Center replaced the tires, and then the activity was reversed. Meanwhile, others of us went to the Department of Licensing (DOL) and finalized the truck and car sales. The young members of the Dieguez family continued carting stuff to the dumpster, and Cameron loaded and covered a pickup load for transitioning stuff to new homes in Grant County.
I started to dismantle an old camper for a pickup bed. I soon found one does not dismantle such things. Rather they need to be demolished. I hope to finish this, and get the remains in the dumpster by Sunday evening.
I worked on various outside chores about 2 hours this morning, until Phyllis and Cameron came for a second load. When they left about 10:00, I had had enough of the wind and moved inside. Gusts of over 40 mph makes being outside unpleasant.
Before dark, I went back out for an hour and busted up more of the camper.
Wednesday was mostly an inside day, but Thursday I did the weekly run to town – 6 stops, including at the Ford dealer to show my “new” truck to my contact there. He reset the time – Alaska to WA – and showed me a few other things. While there I scheduled an oil change & service.
I’d promised one of the remodel crew that he could buy the old Chevy truck. He has a birthday this week and his significant other agreed to pay for it. {I didn’t ask.} They came late Friday afternoon, and now the truck is gone. I still have to go with him next week and sign papers at the DOL.
He has to pay sales tax, and we have to report the mileage on the date of sale. And I sign over all my rights to the vehicle.
The unused garden has been growing nasty weeds, so I attacked those. I sprayed a week ago, so about half were already dead. Nearer the house I’m slowly working on a ditch and dry-well. Now this is simply digging rocks and dirt out to make a hollow volume where water can drain. Eventually it will be covered with a small-rock landscape, somewhat like that shown here.
I change jobs frequently because I’ve learned long effort using the same muscles is not friendly for old muscles and bones.

From the Naneum Fan
John

Things started . . .

This has been a busy but not an exciting week. I had to take extra sets of keys to the truck dealer in Union Gap. Round trip 100 miles. And from there I retrieved the cargo-cover for the Crosstrek. It was in the Forester, along with the one that was supposed to be there.
The local lumber and tool place had a Milwaukee Day. That’s a tool company. I bought a combo kit with 2 battery powered tools – a drill and an impact driver (bursts of power when it feels resistance). I need to dismantle an old pickup camper. Why?
I have a 30 cu. yd. dumpster arriving Monday, and help coming Tuesday. The camper (not used since about 2001) has hundreds of fasteners (mostly screws with various heads). Snow, rain, and time have made a mess of it.
The door, windows, attachments, inside panels, heater, icebox – all need removed. In reverse mode, the impact driver is the right tool and there is a kit with 32 different heads. So, started today. Not finished.
The remodel of the south wall of the living room started. It will soon have a French door (and more) opening on a covered deck. The siding has been removed and the rest started, but there is a bit of electrical work needed before more is done. Part of the electrical things got done Friday, to be finished Monday.
I signed a Power of Attorney for the CPA so he can contact the IRS as my agent and get the information he needs to complete tax filings. I did a little landscaping (rock and dirt moving) – mostly because I need the physical activity. I ordered a Leer canopy for the truck. The company has a glass supply problem, so I won’t get the canopy until September.
The right-side image is a close look-alike. That truck has back seats and a shorter bed.
I took Almond beverage, Fisherman’s Friends throat lozenges, eye drops and a few other things to the Kittitas food pantry. These things were all purchased just before Nancy’s decline. Now gone. So 1 completion.

I haven’t stopped looking to see where the horses are. After 11 years of expecting a visual fix each morning, or just coming in the driveway, the habit is still there.

There is a storm in the Pacific, off of Oregon and Washington. It is coming ashore late Saturday evening – Sunday morning.

From the Naneum Fan
John

Word of the week – hectic

I’ll start by mentioning that my sister had a medical hiccup on Thursday. I guess she is okay, but it is hard to know because in her best interest she was taken from a smallish ER clinic to a monolithic hospital. Therein cell phones do or do not connect with the outside world depending on cosmic rays, sun spots, or the concrete/steel/electromagnetic frailties of the structure. She called me last night, and a cousin today. My call tonight did not get through.

Friday morning I carried boxes of tax related papers to an EBRG CPA. I have to get a power of attorney signed so he can talk to the IRS about things. So, slow moving on that front.

Today, the three horses went to a new home. They were purchased early in Nancy’s recovery 10 years ago but we were advised that she could be hurt and bleed internally, so she and I stopped riding. They were lovely animals so we kept them until today. I did not have much success in Kittitas County with moving them to new homes. Friends from the west side thought they could adopt them. I have worked with the horses a dozen times in the past few weeks. Now they would come to a small area (known as “home”) and be handled, haltered, and led around – mostly well mannered. Far from a finished ground-work graduate. Still they loaded into a trailer for the two ladies that are taking them west – and by 5 o’clock they were gone.

The horse activity was interrupted because I have been looking for a simple pickup truck. The Subaru dealer was going to take my truck (F350), Nancy’s Forester, and my Crosstrek – but they could not find anything close to what I wanted. Neither could the local Ford dealer.
Last night a used truck dealer in Yakima posted just such a vehicle and friend Kathy was searching and found it – 6 hours after its posting. When she came for the horses this morning she had the listing, photo, and dealer’s number on her cell phone. I called and told them I wanted to look at it. So Kathy’s husband, Francisco, and I left after I put halters and lead ropes on the 3 horses.
At the truck place I was about to write a check for one truck when Francisco noticed another newer one out a side window. We hopped in that one and took a short ride. Meanwhile, Jennifer, the brains of the operation noticed that Nancy’s name, above mine, was on the title of the Forester. Jennifer said we would need Nancy’s signature. Oops!
However, if I had a death certificate the sale could go forward. Francisco called Kathy and I gave her directions on where to find said form. Francisco and I went for lunch, and got back to the dealer just as Kathy showed up with the necessary document. We cleaned out the Forester – Kathy found $22 to add to the $390 she found in the house last week – and we were soon headed back to the Naneum Fan and the horse situation.
The new ride is a white 2019 F150, 4×4, 8 ft. box, low mileage, and a full bed liner.
At home the ladies (Kathy & Janelle) prepared for horse loading. Francisco and I went inside and he wrote checks for the Crosstrek [purchasing for daughter Maraya ] and for the F350, for his own use. About the time the car dealing was coming to an end, there was a Whoop and a Wahoo! from outside as the third horse hopped into the trailer. Did I mention they had not been in a trailer since Nancy and I brought them home 10 years ago. Further, today was the day they were introduced to Horse Whisper Janelle.
With Janelle and the horses headed west, we cleaned out the Crosstrek of my stuff, and loaded a few things Kathy and Francisco decided to add to their stuff.
They will be back Sunday for the F350, more stuff, and the better of the two horse trailers.
Nancy and I bought our first horse, a Quarter Horse named Captain, in 1978 or ’79. We were up to 5 a few years ago. Now Zero.

Change is sometimes slow – sometimes rapid.
Uff da!

From the Naneum Fan
John

Memorial Day (long weekend)

My long awaited phone call with a Social Security clerk came at a little after 2 pm on Monday. I sent a note to friend Dot, who visited the DeKalb County court house to get the certificate of marriage.
That note follows.

I had my phone call with Victor of the Yakima office of the Social Security Administration on Monday afternoon. I either had to drive to Yakima (100 miles round trip) or mail the certificate of marriage.
I have no other reason – just now – to go there, so I mailed it on Wednesday.
The talk was as expected, except he asked if I could read small print. Maybe if I said no I’d get a large print version of whatever he will send to me.
It is also odd that a surviving spouse or child may receive a special lump-sum death payment of $255. This payment has bedeviled congress and the SSA since the beginning.
The amount of $255 was set in 1954, but with price increases since then the amount today would be $2,532.
I will ponder the use of my $255 as I await its arrival in my bank account.
I’m slowly making credit card and other changes as I figure them out.
A tangled web, as you know.

The last line is a reference to the things that followed the death of Dot’s husband Bill over a year ago.
– – – –
SATURDAY
Five of Nancy’s friends and I spent hours sorting and packaging stuff, mostly clothes, from a bedroom, including from on the queen sized bed, from closets, dressers, floor, and hanging on doors. Mid-morning Sunday two of the kind folks will be back for more of the same.
I’m too exhausted to write more tonight.
I should have spent more time over the past few weeks doing some of this, but not being in that frame of mind – and knowing help was coming, I didn’t do much.
A further distraction this past week was serious work on the last major project of the house remodel. Namely, concrete and joists for the deck were 95% completed. Photo #1 below. Photo #2 is the nearly finished entrance sign. This pulled the workers away from the deck; my choice.
However, the entrance structure and sign have been a goal of mine, and I wanted it to be there to greet some long-time friends.

The Nordic horse is a symbol of welcome (Välkommen, Swedish, or Velkommen, Norwegian). This one was painted 35 years ago in Troy ID.
On this Memorial Day (long weekend) spend a few moments remembering those who served.

I’ll put flags out Sunday and Monday.

John
from the Naneum Fan

Cold here this week . . .

. . . and not a lot going on.

I did find out something about credit cards.
I was trying to respond to a Chase credit card notice, but did not see a card with that name. Finally found them.

The card(s) [one in Nancy’s wallet, one in mine] were hiding in plain sight.
The card is, in fact, the Amazon Prime card with that name and VISA (big white letters) on the front. The Chase name is on the back. I discovered this Thursday, but still wanted to do an on-line access of the account.

I didn’t know what user name Nancy used nor the password; although she had a note on her computer, it was no longer valid. I tried to do things on-line by trying to type into the form, but that didn’t work – because I was using the number keypad and it was inactive because I had hit the “num lock” key, turning off numbers and turning on other functions {up, down, side-wise, etc.}.That revelation came just as I had gotten to a person and was explaining my problem.
Having solved that issue, but also having explained about Nancy and why I was trying to access the account – – I was transferred to another person who promptly canceled the account. I was not the “owner” of the account; I was just a tag-along on Nancy’s. The support tech was able to confirm Nancy’s death from some data base, maybe SS.
However, there is (or was) an auto-pay from our bank to that account scheduled for next week. Oops! The pay date is extended 60 days upon the owner’s death, or some such thing.
The local Chase branch is in the Fred Meyer (Kroger) store so I can go down there and give them a check.
I was directed to a Chase web page where I signed up for my very own Amazon card. That seems to provided immediate use on Amazon’s site and a credit limit of $5,000. A hard card is to arrive in 10 days, or so.

Other stuff:
Early in the week I bruised my left heel. Having much to do, it was not a fun week. Seems to be a bit better now.

Saturday morning, Walter the contractor arrived with the “french door” for the south side of the house. He brought the main posts and beams a week ago. A trench is dug, for a critter barrier and post support wall. Concrete pour to come next week – I think.

I’ve got 97% of the work done on a long anticipated sign for the entry near the county road. Blue letters on a rough cut plank. Photo next week when it is complete. It says

From the Naneum Fan
John

Saturday evening

IMPORTANT: Get your system backed up, and do it on a frequent and regular basis.
There are many dozens of files, tips, addresses, phone numbers, and more now gone.

Since last Friday (see previous post- Stuff Happens) I have had to get a new computer and jump through hoops to get it functioning properly at home. Having accomplished that, I now have to get sites – such as WordPress {WP} – to accept the new configuration.
I lucked into getting WP to like me on the Dell laptop. So this is from that machine. However, I have a tendency to touch the track-pad that is below the space bar. Further, the pointer (mouse) acts oddly, or maybe the cpu doesn’t keep up, and the keyboard doesn’t have all the keys I am used to.
There have been interesting happenings these last 2 weeks (not significant), but I need a real computer to work with. Not there yet, but maybe in another day or so.
It is almost 10pm. I’m headed for sleep.
John

Stuff happens

NOON Friday update:

3rd trip to bring computer health –
Most problems (see below) solved, but the default router-to-computer connection is assumed to be a cable. I need WiFi.
Old box and the new are back in town to see if the wifi of old will fit in the new. If not, I’ll have to buy a new one. Most components are smaller now than 7 years ago.

B e l o w:
The good: I just figured out how to use WordPress on the Dell laptop Nancy used — and I dislike bigly.

The bad: The computer I used (large tower, 2 monitors, wireless mouse and keyboard) went to the Great Trash Heap. I brought a refurbished Dell home but it doesn’t recognize the mouse or keyboard, and only 1 monitor appears.
I’ll call in the morning, but I may have to go back in with all the parts to get help.
Other than that it was a nice day.
John

Keeping busy

I have several projects on a daily basis, none particularly interesting.
The animals and I have to eat and this also requires purchases and clean up. Boring.
Each day I try to fill one bushel-size box with stuff destined for a land fill. Much of this would burn, but that isn’t done in this area. Mornings have been windy and cold, a good time to stay busy inside. Dust. Boring.

I do a bit of landscaping every day, and some rebuild of fence where a couple of posts rotted off after 30 years in the ground. I’m also cleaning up an area under some trees where I had an outside workbench. It became a place for stuff that should have been discarded.
This area is under a row of Austrian Pine – obtained from the plant sale I volunteered with before they decided to go with “native only” material. I have just 5 and they are not happy. From the web I learned they “ look like they’ve had some “winter-burn”, caused by dry soils in winter and/or sudden and drastic temperature changes.
” Sure enough, that fits the Naneum Fan characteristics.
They are only 15 feet tall, but right beside them are two (native) Ponderosa Pines about 30 feet tall. They have two issues. I planted them thinking I would relocate them, so they are just 2 feet apart. Still, growing like weeds, they are next to the utility lines and too close to the buildings for my fire sense.
A neighbor (2.5 miles) has a personnel business of tree removal, trimming, and chipping. For him to work, I need to clean out the mess I’ve made over the last 30 years. Also, the trees along the driveway need trimmed, and I have a dozen brush piles that need removed.
The only good thing about all this will be the feeling when the project is finished.
Then there are horses. I’m working with Rodeo City Equine Rescue to foster the 3 Tennessee Walking Horses. These we bought in 2010 when Nancy was set on getting back on a horse and riding with friends. The horse she had been using was old, so she found new ones. Then the medical folks said “Bad Idea”!
We are in the beginning of this process. The horses haven’t been handled or trailered for 10 years. About every other day I get them in a small enclosure, halter them, and do a bit of ground training.
I planned on doing some of this today – but horses find wind objectionable. Things that shouldn’t – move and noise comes from all directions. Below is a chart of our wind today:
The purple numbers indicate the high wind gust for the previous hour.
I don’t like those sorts of winds either. So I decided to do errands in EBRG. I need gas in a can for the lawn mower, so needed to take a truck. At some time (when?) I had the radiator cap off and while the 50 yard trips on the place didn’t bother the engine, the 20 minute drive to town did. Just as I made the turn into the first store, the engine quite, steam came from under the hood, and the electrical power (steering & brakes) quit.
I, sort of, made it into the parking lot and out of the way. Then I found that my new iPhone was not well charged. I learned how to operate the phone on “Low Power Mode.” Triple A (AAA of Washington) was great in acknowledging where I was, and that I had a phone that might go away while we talked. However, the towing service had two truck issues today, so a driver was in Yakima getting a replacement.
About 80 minutes later, Kim of AAA called to make sure I was getting the service I needed. I explained, and she (in western WA) was able to check and tell me the driver was “on Canyon Road south of I-90 and heading north”. That told me the unit was less than 5 minutes away.
Because of Panic20/21 I had to ride home in my truck, facing backward, and perched up on the flatbed transport vehicle. The photo below shows the idea – but my truck was aimed the other way.
My truck is a 40 year old Chevy, so this may be the end of it – 10 years overdue.
I did use the 90 minute interval to walk to the grocery store just 2 blocks away. I ate an early supper while I waited, so did not have to fix anything but pour a glass of wine, after the animals were fed.

A boring week, except for the last few hours.
Hope things were better for you.

From the Naneum Fan,
John