{"id":818,"date":"2011-07-24T00:37:08","date_gmt":"2011-07-24T07:37:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/hultquist\/?p=818"},"modified":"2011-07-24T00:37:08","modified_gmt":"2011-07-24T07:37:08","slug":"saturday-lots-of-happy-sad-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/?p=818","title":{"rendered":"SATURDAY — Lots of happy & sad too"},"content":{"rendered":"

Beginning Sunday the 17th<\/sup> \u2013 another quiet day on the ranch, we hope.\u00a0 No trips planned away.\u00a0 Today is the day our accordion player returns home from the nursing home where she has been recuperating 3 months from hip replacement surgery.\u00a0 This will be a lot better for her husband, not having to go to visit her every day, a 24-mile roundtrip.\u00a0 And, he still had to do all his farm chores.<\/p>\n

It is morning and John is doing stuff outside.\u00a0 He returned about lunch time, and our neighbor delivered strawberries.\u00a0 I read a book on Beginning Mandolin, and went to sleep (for about 3 hrs.).\u00a0 I guess I needed it.\u00a0 He slept for maybe 1.5 hrs and then worked on his computer awhile.\u00a0 He left for cutting brush on the west side of our pasture. Vegetation is creeping into the pasture from the fringes.\u00a0 Some things have pretty blossoms, some edible fruit, some come with thorns, and some with all of the above.\u00a0 Currently Syringa and Elderberry are flowering and Currents and Serviceberry have ripe fruit.\u00a0 All are easy to recognize.\u00a0 See:<\/p>\n

Western Serviceberry;<\/p>\n

http:\/\/fieldguide.cdlandtrust.org\/fieldguide\/shrub\/western-serviceberry<\/a><\/p>\n

Golden current;<\/p>\n

http:\/\/thumbs.dreamstime.com\/thumblarge_202\/1193924136430tyI.jpg<\/a><\/p>\n

Mock Orange (Syringa);<\/p>\n

http:\/\/c33532.r32.cf0.rackcdn.com\/a8753ab9-6b45-4bf9-bffd-823a525a04df.jpg<\/a><\/p>\n

Western Blue Elderberry<\/p>\n

http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sambucus_cerulea<\/a><\/p>\n

With late afternoon shade, he is working to remove some of the less desirable plants and thus open spaces around those shown in the links above.\u00a0 I went to have a look and we just returned from a walk around the 7 acre pasture (not quite down the whole way and back, but most), with John, the dogs, and the cat.\u00a0 It was a little hot for the clothes I had on, and the cat was very winded and hot, as was I, when we returned.\u00a0 The dogs got to go in the irrigation ditch but the cat and I did not.\u00a0 While down there John went over and fed the horses.\u00a0 He has driven the horse trailer with hay inside, down to the middle of the 7 acres, so he doesn\u2019t have to carry by wheelbarrow so far from the barn (up at the north end of the pasture).<\/p>\n

Finished dinner and am feeling better, finally.\u00a0 We will go to bed after ice cream with strawberries for me and blackberries for John.\u00a0 Amazingly, I went to sleep after having had the long afternoon nap.<\/p>\n

Monday. Was going to go to exercise class, but slept in, and was quite congested this morning.\u00a0 Will just stay and eat lunch with John and work on cleaning up the den for our Sears repairman to come tomorrow a.m. to fix the frig freezer compressor fan unit.\u00a0 It went off 3 times this morning and once last night before bed.\u00a0 It will be nice to get it fixed.\u00a0 (Note–he cancelled out because he had to order the part.) Then we take off tomorrow afternoon to Yakima for a checkup for Nancy, an upgrade to the engine\u2019s software for the 2009 Subaru, and a trip to Costco.\u00a0 The rest of the day was slow for Nancy, taking a 2 hr nap and doing very little else.\u00a0 Supper is over, and we will likely be in bed earlier than usual tonight.\u00a0 John got a lot of rocks moved, brush cut, raspberries lifted and propped off the ground, horses fed, and a few other things.<\/p>\n

Tuesday started with a rain storm.\u00a0 We expected the Sears repairman early, but he called from Yakima and said he would have to order the part from the factory.\u00a0 It won\u2019t get here till 2 weeks; actually it came in Saturday\u2019s mail but he won\u2019t be back till Aug 2 to fix it.\u00a0 We also had to leave for Yakima ourselves at noon to take me for my Heart device (ICD) checkup (every 3 months), for John to take his Subaru for the replacement talked about above, and then he had to come retrieve me from the Heart Center waiting room.\u00a0 I had my computer along so I could kill time.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t get onto a wireless connection, however, so couldn\u2019t access the Internet.\u00a0 My checkup was fine.\u00a0 Next appointment with my cardiologist is sometime in August.\u00a0 Then we went to Costco.\u00a0 Got a bunch of stuff, but also forgot a few things.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t get home till 4:30, put up the groceries, and I took off again for town to play religious music at one of the nursing homes.\u00a0 Then home for home-amended spaghetti sauce on thin spaghetti.\u00a0 It cooled off some today from previous days, making the trip really fine.<\/p>\n

Wednesday.\u00a0 This morning we started out early with John running the dogs and feeding the horses.\u00a0 I joined him in the front yard (where we have a few fruit trees, but still call it our orchard.)\u00a0 The cherry trees are full of birds so we realized if we were to have any, we needed to start picking.\u00a0 John\u2019s method of picking (because the trees are so tall, and we do not have tall ladders), is to go up a ladder and\/or climb on the larger limbs and then saw the branches.\u00a0 After 4 years with no cherries (cold and wet weather) and, thus, no trimming \u2013 there has been lots of growth.\u00a0 This is our way of pruning every so often.\u00a0 Today we \u201cpicked\u201d from the branches.\u00a0 After John downloads the branches, he comes down and cuts the big branches into smaller pieces.\u00a0 He has a nice hand saw he got from service to the WA Trails Association (WTA) for 50+ days of volunteering:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.coronatools.com\/item\/rs-7130?referer=hand-saws<\/a><\/p>\n

WTA engraved his name on the handle.\u00a0 These cut on the pull stroke and are quite effective \u2013 and dangerous.<\/p>\n

I picked cherries for an hour and then called our 85 yr old neighbor to see if she wanted to come sit in a comfy lawn chair and pick some cherries off branches for their family.\u00a0 She probably got about 15 pounds.\u00a0 John and I picked and probably got 15 pounds to take to friends in town and then another two boxes (8 pounds each, maybe) and put in the outside refrigerator in our shed.\u00a0 We will pick more in the morning when it is cooler.\u00a0 I left this morning at 11:30 to go play music at the Food Bank, but missed my afternoon exercise class because I was not up to par.\u00a0 Came back and John and I picked more cherries from branches he cut while I was in town.<\/p>\n

Then we visited two people and dropped off the cherries, visiting at one, and then going by the Univ. for me to sign paperwork for a thesis committee I was on last spring.\u00a0 On to another home, where they traded us some Walla Walla sweet onions for the box of cherries.\u00a0 On home to relax.<\/p>\n

Thursday.\u00a0 Started the morning slowly, sleeping in after losing a lot of sleep in the middle of the night.\u00a0 We picked more cherries and then John picked red raspberries because of all the thorns and the fear I would start myself bleeding.\u00a0 Then off to play music at Dry Creek where they gave the 7 of us there, nice orange or chocolate ice cream bars.\u00a0 Then afterward I dropped off some cherries to a friend, visited the grocery store for pop for John and chocolate milk for me.\u00a0 Then I took off for home but stopped at some other friends\u2019 house to give them some cherries we picked this morning (all Rainiers), and mixed with some Bings from yesterday\u2019s picking.\u00a0 We are having a hard time keeping up with the pilfering by the birds.\u00a0 The folks (in their 80s from my exercise class) had me in to share a nice visit with coffee and cookies.\u00a0 On home and I\u2019m resting again in my recliner.\u00a0 John\u2019s out doing chores in a windy environment.\u00a0 The temp is down to the low sixties, which is very nice.\u00a0 I know the rest of the country is burning up.\u00a0 It started at 58 here this morning and only got to 73 at the hottest.\u00a0 Fine with us.\u00a0 The winds have been regular in the twenties and topping at 37 mph gusts.<\/p>\n

Sad news tonight late (9:30 p.m. our time). \u00a0CH Cedaridge Vintage Cork died at just 6 years old. He had his show championship and was on his way to being a Dual Champion (field and show).\u00a0 He is Annie’s brother (different litter), Kip\u2019s brother and a sweet boy.\u00a0 His coloring was white and orange just like his great grandma, Dual Ch\/AFC\/Can Ch Sirius Sashay, and he had her\u00a0big run, personality, and birdiness.\u00a0 He also took a lot of characteristics from his mom, Cedaridge Legacy of Shay, who is still with us.<\/p>\n

The bad news came in a phone call from his field trainer in PA\u00a0that Cork died from the heat.\u00a0\u00a0Another dog (theirs,\u00a0named Soldier)\u00a0was at the vets and not doing well.\u00a0\u00a0They may lose him too.\u00a0\u00a0(Actually good news is that he got to the vet having seizures, was put on IVs and has survived.) Cork was dead when they found him upon returning home.\u00a0\u00a0Ten dogs were in\u00a0their own crates\u00a0with water and fans blowing, in their garage.\u00a0 Doors were open to keep air circulating. \u00a0 We checked the weather for Pittsburgh after\u00a0I got off the phone with Brian, and it was 94\u00a0with a dew point of 73 for several hours this afternoon.\u00a0 That reflects a pretty high heat index \u2013 we were told later it was 124. The heat wave back in the East has been horrible, but is now easing some.<\/p>\n

Cork had become part of Brian and Helen\u2019s family.\u00a0 He was with them twice as long as with us.\u00a0 We have trained and campaigned winning Britts and know the time and work involved, and the human\/dog relationship that develops.\u00a0 Brian is going to miss him a lot.\u00a0\u00a0I know how hard it was\u00a0for him\u00a0to make that phone call.\u00a0 We have pictures of Cork lying in his lap in a recliner.\u00a0 His wife, was driving as he called me on their way back from leaving Soldier at the vet. \u00a0She took Cork\u00a0through his show championship, with help\u00a0for his last major from another Brittany breeder in the NE.<\/p>\n

We are feeling the loss and sadness, but have great memories of his time with us and the reports over the past few years of how well he was doing. He only needed a major win and a few points to be the Dual, and carry on our lines. \u00a0Now that is not possible. \u00a0 At least we\u00a0can rest in knowing he has happy hunting\u00a0grounds across the rainbow bridge and that he will\u00a0meet up with others behind him\u00a0in our Brittany family (and cat and horses), or those kin to him at our house while he was here; plus he will be there awaiting us, when it is our turn to cross the\u00a0rainbow bridge.<\/p>\n

Happy hunting, Cork.\u00a0 We will miss your cute antics.<\/p>\n

Friday.\u00a0 Didn\u2019t sleep well last night so today was not a normal Friday. \u00a0Did go to town for a free shoulder\/neck massage, much needed and enjoyed.\u00a0\u00a0 While in town I picked up Thyroid pills for one of our older dogs.\u00a0 She needs a half pill twice a day, hit two garage sales on the way home, but one was totally overpriced so I didn\u2019t stay or buy anything.\u00a0 I went to the other on the way home, and normally I won\u2019t do anything advertised as an \u201cestate sale\u201d because they are usually totally over priced too, but it was on the way.\u00a0 I\u2019m so glad I stopped.\u00a0 I got several nice blouses for a quarter each, a dog and cat comb and brush for 5 cents each, 4 paperback books for a quarter each, bottom of a nice music stand (which I need), sunglasses case, 5 pairs of socks, a leather wallet for replacing John\u2019s that has disintegrated (purchased in Iowa in the 1970s \u2013 we think), a plastic container with top, another leather\/zippered holder, a set of blinds, and a can with large 5\u201d nails and roofing nails, a Phillips head screwdriver, all for a dime each.\u00a0 It was definitely worth the stop.<\/p>\n

After I got home, we picked some more cherries, and then took some to friends.\u00a0 They reciprocated with a 19\u201d Rainbow trout they had caught.\u00a0 We had 1\/3 of it for dinner last night, baked by John in a lemon sauce, mashed potatoes and some fried onions.\u00a0 We froze the rest for another day.\u00a0 The meat was salmon colored because of the natural origin of the fish, caught downstream from the Grand Coulee Dam.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=20ZffI6by3A<\/a><\/p>\n

We wonder the age of the fish.\u00a0 This was the smallest fish they caught.\u00a0 They fished for 2 days and got the limit of two per person both days.<\/p>\n

Saturday, a long and warm day.\u00a0 Started with 3 hours put in by me and 4 hours by John with cherry picking.\u00a0 He first picked from the lower branches.\u00a0 Then when I came out (with the cat), he climbed the ladder and cut some mid-height branches, and went on up a Bing cherry tree to take off higher limbs.\u00a0 I sat below in a lawn chair and picked into a box.\u00a0 John would come down long enough to cut up the larger branches into more manageably sized ones for me to pick.\u00a0 We always pick with the stems on because that increases their life and freshness.\u00a0 Some of these were messy and sticky today because of aphids and birds eating parts of berries and messing up those around them. \u00a0Finally late afternoon I had decided to go to town to check out the sale I was at yesterday, and a couple of others in \u201cGrasslands\u201d, a subdivision of pretty nice houses.\u00a0 John was ready for a break and decided to go along with me.\u00a0 My final destination was Kittitas, WA to pick up my registration materials, my name tag, and buy a tee shirt for the WA Old Time Fiddler\u2019s Workshop this coming week (starts at 9:00 a.m. Monday).\u00a0 I didn\u2019t want to have to be doing all that on Monday morning, when I have to be loading my music stands and instruments into the air-conditioned building for the day.\u00a0 Certainly, I cannot leave my instruments in the hot car. \u00a0I\u2019m taking a morning mandolin class (beginning) and an Advanced Intermediate Fiddling class in the afternoons.\u00a0 The latter is a full day class, but it is with my teacher of 19 years, and she was happy for me to get the morning mandolin class and miss hers in the morning.<\/p>\n

Before we got to Kittitas, we stopped at 3 garage sales, first, the good one where I was yesterday.\u00a0 Everything was half price and it was already very low prices.\u00a0 I wanted to ask if they had the top part of the blinds I bought yesterday, (they didn\u2019t) but they gave us the double wide blinds because they were just going to throw them away.\u00a0 We will have to buy the connectors to put in the wall to hold them.\u00a0 I also wanted to see if a can of nails for a quarter was still there, it was, and John was happy with the 12.5 cent price.\u00a0 The neatest thing that happened was that the daughter and granddaughter of the family were there.\u00a0 The granddaughter was my student in 2005 and when we saw each other it was old home week and hugs time.\u00a0 She knew I had been very sick, and was so happy to see me doing so well.\u00a0 She now lives on the west side of the state and had just come back to help with the yard sale.\u00a0 I talked to her for awhile about her jobs since graduation and then took a spin around to see if there was something else we wanted.\u00a0 I picked up more blouses for a nickel or a dime–some are probably too small for me, (mediums), which I will give to my neighbor who has lost down to that size and given me all her L and XL ones.\u00a0\u00a0 Also found a nice colorful ceramic fish dish to give to our fishing buddy,\u00a0 a couple of leather belts for a nickel, a pair of tennis shoes almost new, size 11, but they are too tight for John.\u00a0 We\u2019ll give them to the farmer across the road, who is married to the lady I\u2019m giving the blouses to.\u00a0 Only .75 paid for the shoes.\u00a0 John found a nice glass Pyrex top that will fit our bowls and be nice for warming things.\u00a0 At the other sales we hit (only 2) we got 2 nice pillows in a nice case for a buck.\u00a0 One is big like John likes, and one is smaller like I like.\u00a0 John\u2019s is replacing his of the same make and style that \u201chis\u201d dog chewed a hole in (to the foam stuffing).\u00a0 You\u2019d think at 11 years she\u2019d quit doing that.\u00a0 I also got a couple of nice long sleeved blouses (polyester) for cooler weather (a quarter each), and a nice sun hanging made from a ceramic dish with an edge for the smiling sun\u2019s face.\u00a0 We will give to our friends down in the Yakima valley near Zillah, who hosted our Wine Geography class, and whose Winery\u2019s name is \u201cParadisos del Sol.\u201d\u00a0 They also had one of our Brittany puppies.\u00a0 Also John picked up a new-like towel and 2 washcloths for 50 cents total.\u00a0 I found 5 pair of socks for a dime each, and an almost \u201cnew\u201d bra for a quarter.\u00a0 Think that\u2019s about it.\u00a0 Being right before closing time had the people lowering their prices nicely.<\/p>\n

On to Kittitas, where I bought my tee shirt for 2011 WOTFA Workshop, a nice blue with white lettering and \u201csnow covered\u201d edge on the trees on the front.\u00a0 I picked up my name tag, and materials for the week, plus visited some with folks I only see once a year, and it was good to get it done today when few people were around, so that I don\u2019t have to go in really early for the starting assembly at 9:00 a.m.\u00a0 It was fine to drive the 10 miles out there and to have John\u2019s company.\u00a0 He will only go out one time next week, when we have our end of week, Friday, class recital.<\/p>\n

Hope your week is nice and that I have the stamina to get through mine.<\/p>\n

Nancy and John<\/p>\n

in cool and windy WA.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Beginning Sunday the 17th \u2013 another quiet day on the ranch, we hope.\u00a0 No trips planned away.\u00a0 Today is the day our accordion player returns home from the nursing home where she has been recuperating 3 months from hip replacement surgery.\u00a0 This will be a lot better for her husband, not having to go to … Continue reading “SATURDAY — Lots of happy & sad too”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-random-issues"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p72iNf-dc","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=818"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/818\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":820,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/818\/revisions\/820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=818"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}