Tuesday This and That

 

Hard to miss this gal standing on the sidewalk next to DiLuna's Restaurant on Cedar Street in downtown Sandpoint.  

She was dressed for wet weather too. 

I went to town yesterday and enjoyed lunch with my classmates at the restaurant.  

We had a comparatively small group, with some calling in sick, but that and the rain didn't dampen the usual enthusiasm to enjoy each other while swapping stories.  

I'll be honest and say that a good percentage involved health issues, which has become a prime topic for most folks my age.  A lot of it is serious stuff, but we manage to find a way to keep our senses of humor as we compare notes. 

I never dreamed that discussing health issues could be so interesting, but when we arrive at this point in life, it's actually healthy, sometimes relieving and often somewhat comforting to talk about it.

So, that's what we did, and I have a feeling everyone felt a little better when they left, thanks to the camaraderie.  

I also met an interesting lady at DiLuna's yesterday.  Sarah Stabler in charge of the engineers at Daher, which I learned has a "y" sound to the "h." 

Daher was known as Quest Aircraft Co. when we lived on Great Northern Road and they established themselves behind us.  

The company ended up purchasing our farm, enabling us to move to the Lovestead 20 years ago. 

I told Sarah that we actually watched the Kodiak prototype (the airplane produced by the company) take off and land for the first time.  

It was fun sharing some stories about the early years of the company and reflecting on the nice people who established it. 

She told me that Daher, a company from France which purchased Quest, now has around 270 employees. 

https://www.daher.com/en/aircraft-manufacturer-turboprop-business-aircraft-kodiak/#

 What a boon to this community the company has been! 

🛧🛧🛧🛧🛧

 

In all our glory----five of us Sandpoint High Class of 1965 alums showed up for the monthly lunch gathering at DiLuna's. 

A good time was had by all.  

Thanks, Amy and Karen from DiLuna's, for always taking good care of us and for this photo. 

I've been having some fun tinkering with some old black and white photos among our family collection. 

It's uplifting every time I send AI a photo and ask them to colorize it. 

This is my brother Kevin with a broodmare we once owned.  

Her name was Janis Love; we called her "Jan" for short.  

She was a purebred American Saddlebred. 

She had been crippled in the front legs so she raised foals rather than being ridden. 

One such was Skean Dhu aka Cricket, my mother's most favorite mare.  

Cricket was a tall red chestnut with four white stockings and a strip.  Her flaxen mane and tail added to her beauty.

Mother truly loved Cricket and proudly rode her around the neighborhood and in horse shows.

And, I'm loving bringing back the past in "living color."  

This is another of the black and whites turned to full color.  

Upon looking at this photo, I guess I've been knock-kneed all my life---just didn't know it until an orthopedic doctor brought it to my attention.  

It might explain my klutziness. 

I love this photo because I miss my mother and such images bring her back to life, albeit momentarily. 

There were actually five deer but one raced into the Meserve Preserve.  

They seemingly "came home" yesterday afternoon from Gary Finney's place. 

Early this morning, thanks to the flashlight, I could see that their beady eyes where they were all bedded down in the first two pastures along the fenceline.

We've enjoyed them over the winter.  I'm not so sure our feelings will remain the same when flowers around the place become too inviting.  

🦌🦌🦌🦌🦌

Below:  a gorgeous wildflower scene in an iconic location in Ireland.  Our friend Marcia is heading to Ireland today. 

She's taking along a Kansas University flag, sent to me by our Kansas U grad and friend Jean.  

The flag will eventually add to the KU memorabilia in a house in Kenmare, Ireland, where Willie and Debbie stayed last fall. 

Twas pretty obvious when we walked into the house and saw its outdoor surroundings that the owner had been a Jayhawk.   The house was a virtual KU museum.  

Soon, the museum will have one more item, because Jean saw photos of the displays on my blog when we visited last fall.   

Once she arrives in Kenmare, Marcia will hand over the flag, and Willie's friend John Adams will see that it reaches its final destination. 

Small-World Master's Snippet

 

On this morning after the Master's, I'm thrilled because Rory McIlroy won the world renowned tournament again.

Rory has been one of my favorite golfers for a number of years. 

Last year, just before the Master's, we visited Belfast, Ireland, and met a friendly, engaging and fun tour guide at the Belfast City.  

Her name was Michelle.  She not only spent considerable time visiting us, but she also took our photo and made it into a postcard featuring us and a collage of Belfast attractions.

During our time there, we learned that Michelle's family knows Rory's family.  Her dad is a member of the Holywood Golf Club, just like Rory and his family. 

After we returned home and when the final day of Master's was airing last year, I sent a note to Michelle who was glued at the time to her TV watching the tournament. 

It was late at night in Ireland, but that didn't matter. Rory's fans, including Michelle's dad, were staying to the end to see their native son win his first Master's. 

Fast forward a year, and, by golly, there was Rory again at the top of leader board, tied for first when the final round began. 

I did some work outside yesterday and then came in to watch the first few holes.  Then I thought about Michelle. 

Once again, I sent her a note, and it wasn't long before she responded, telling me that she was once again watching at home, but that her sons and her parents were watching the tournament at the Holywood Golf Club. 

She also sent me a screen shot from a TV clip, clearly showing her sons in the foreground. 

A minute or so later, a similar scene at Holywood appeared on my television screen, and, sure enough, there were Michelle's sons. 

The Master's suddenly became even more interesting, knowing that in North Idaho and Northern Ireland, messages were going back and forth about an event occurring in Georgia.  

It was really fun when occasionally, for the rest of the tournament, Michelle's sons would appear in Holywood, sometimes jumping up and cheering and occasionally, grimacing with disappointment if Rory had a rough go on a hole. 

Besides this personal interest, the drama of this year's tournament was mesmerizing, with several lead changes throughout the day. 

For many Rory fans, there were cheers and tears of joy as he pulled back to the lead and maintained that position for the rest of the tournament.  

That segment had its challenges, though. On the last hole Rory's tee shot landed in a bad spot. 

His skill, however, took over and he worked himself out of that challenge for an easy final putt and for his personal emotional joy at accomplishing a back-to-back win which has happened only three other times in the history of the tournament. 

When it was over, I thanked Michelle for sharing her excitement in Belfast, and then it was time to feed the horses, fix dinner and paint fence. 

I had a difficult time tearing myself away from the tournament throughout the afternoon, so I tried to make up for lost time afterward in those lovely evening hours.  

Yesterday's outcome of the Master's made my choices for how to spend my time totally worth it.

A painting by my Irish artist friend Billy Austin. 

I love to watch the pinnacle events for many sports, and this year's Master's definitely offered much more than I had anticipated. 

I think we're done with the big sporting events for a while---at least, until the Kentucky Derby. 

That, to me, is the best event of all. 

And, so it's Monday after the Master's and also after another good-news event that happened yesterday in Hungary.

  The people spoke and the dictator was defeated. I will say that he earned respect by accepting the election results and appearing gracious with his loss.

A good sign and example for future elections.

 

Today is our Class of 1965 group luncheon.  I'm glad we decided to meet monthly because I really look forward to these gatherings at DiLuna's Restaurant.

  Plus, Bill looks forward them because I bring home the best Reuben sandwich  ever for his dinner. 

So, it's a win-win and a tasty one at that. 

Happy Monday. 

I'm wondering if there are eggs up in that snag.  

The goose is landing there on a regular basis. 

Sunday Miscellany

Enough with the idolatry of self and money! 

Enough with the display of power! 

Enough with war! 

True strength is manifested in serving life.

                                                                                                                  ---Pope Leo XIV

Launch more rockets.

 Build longer tables.

 

Be grateful for what we have.

 

Do random acts of kindness.

 

Listen more.

 

Work to heal the world.

 Lift others up.

 Be humble.

 

Have more heart and less attack.

 --Dr. Johnathan Reiner, cardiologist

One of Bill's most favorite sights of the year---when larch needles burst from their pods. 

The green is amazing. It's happening. 

Cousins:  Signe, Willie, Marianne and Lizzie. 

As a journalist and a family member, I'm really excited today to include a piece of journalism, written and published earlier this month by one of our Chicago cousins.  

A couple of years ago, Elizabeth "Lizzie" Short and another cousin Signe (both from the Chicago Short family)  came to the Lovestead with three other friends and spent a couple of nights with us.  

It was a delightful experience for us, to say the least.  Bill and I were pleasantly overwhelmed with the warmth, talents and zest for life among these amazing young ladies, and we were sad to see them go. 

But it was a cross-country road trip for a bunch of college gals, so we understood. 

Later, when we traveled to Ireland, Lizzie had enrolled as an exchange student at the University of Galway.  She met us at the ferry and we spent a day on Inis Mor in the Aran Islands. 

Since then, Lizzie has come home to the United States and, as noted in the bio, she is a senior at Georgetown University where she is involved in a spring semester internship with Street Sense. 

So, upon seeing and reading this article of hers, I asked to include it on my blog because it tells a story about loss of home equity that can affect elderly homeowners across the country.

Good job, Lizzie.  

Elizabeth (Lizzie) Short, from Oak Park, Illinois, is a senior at Georgetown University studying anthropology and journalism. 

Before working at Street Sense, Lizzie worked as a contributing reporter at Growing Community Media and wrote for the Georgetown University College of Arts & Sciences website. 

In her free time, she loves to knit, watch movies, go to museums, and try new recipes.

https://streetsensemedia.org/article/predatory-practices-target-low-income-older-homeowners-in-d-c/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRIb2pleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFtckY4VHUybUVTOFcyOWVhc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHqquhQ_69Vk3D0HarcbTvtrfEodqjozkUpfxnHcSUjLPypk3tEoEcyedYlEH_aem_FaAgirnkd_UuLIPaxds5bw

Our dad Harold Tibbs would have been 110 years old today. 

In this AI enhanced photo (the original is a black and white taken by Chris Pietsch on the night before Bill's and my wedding June 14, 1974). 

Harold preferred to ride horses, but that night he decided to try my brother Jim's bike and take it for a spin.

Cowboy boots and pedals seemed to go okay.  He did not get bucked off. 

Since his eyes were closed in this photo, I added some sunglasses. 

Happy Birthday, Harold. 

It is so pretty here this morning. 

We had a downpour overnight which left puddles and washed things. 

So, color has been heightened all around the place. 

Wish those daffodils could hang around for a long, long time. 

They are stunning against the deep green grass.

Should be an okay day ahead.  Bill and I have been watching some of the Master's on TV. 

Our favorite and last year's winner Rory has gone from a six-stroke lead to being tied. 

Today's final round should be exciting.

Good luck, Rory, and Happy Sunday.  

Saturday Slight

 

Lovin' the hyacinths, which are coming on strong. 

It's just beautiful out there these days.  Today when some raindrops were falling, I loved the smell of spring wetness. 

Below:  a different perspective from usual. Yesterday morning I walked along the north fence bordering the Meserve Preserve and captured this neat view through the trees. 

A Scoop!

The Bonner Community Food Bank, now located at 1707 Culvers Drive in Sandpoint, is getting a new home in nearby Ponderay. 

With an estimated opening date of Nov. 1, the facility will be operating off from Kootenai Cutoff Road.

The upcoming change became official this week with signing of documents to purchase the new site. 

The package includes the building, a larger parking lot in the back and room for expanding the annual garden---all beneficial to the ever-increasing numbers of families and individuals served by the food bank.  

The former Tom's Differentials building at 900 Kootenai Cutoff Road just across from the ice rink will provide a dramatic expansion for the needs of clients and for inventory provided by the food bank. 

Plus, another building on the grounds will provide rent income or other kitchen-related opportunities. 

Last night after Friday night dinner,  food bank director and daughter-in-law extraordinaire Debbie Love took some of our family members on a tour of the building.  

To say it feels massive is an understatement.  

A lot of work lies ahead in readying the site for operation, and finances are needed to prepare the building (paving, interior construction, etc.) for its opening.  

Plus, as always---especially now with this major move---donations are appreciated. 

If you wish to donate and learn more about the local food bank, visit the following link. 

https://www.bonnerfoodbank.org/

Food bank director Debbie Love explained many facets of the building as we did a walk through last evening.  

In other news, yesterday was maintenance day for three lawnmowers and fix-it time for one tractor and a chainsaw----all of which can be attended to by the gentleman I like to call the wizard, Tony Bitton, owner of Pac West Parts.

Yesterday marked his first visit to the Lovestead for 2026, and, of course, we wish it will be the only time something needs fixing. 

We also know better because stuff happens on any given day with machinery. 

Nonetheless, I now have three riding lawnmowers, all ready to go for this mowing season. 

Actually, I rarely use one of the implements for mowing.  

The old Sears Craftsman serves as my tugging machine.  It pulls a wagon filled with dirt or equipment around the yard area AND it saves a lot of wear and tear on my knees and back. 

My back got a workout yesterday when Bill fired up the rototiller for me, so I could work up the garden dirt.  

I still can't figure out why a mini rototiller is so hard to start. You'd think the opposite, but Bill has to pull the cord cuz I can hardly budge it. 

I hurried to get the rototilling completed because we're supposed to get rain today and tomorrow. 

It was a good feeling to complete that project and a really great feeling knowing all those mowers are ready for duty.  

Below, apparently yesterday was National Siblings Day, so my sister Barbara (top left) played with our high school senior portraits and put together a nice display of the six of us. 

I thought it would be fun to share:  that's Barbara and Mike (right); Laurie and Kevin (right); Jim and Marianne (right). 

The left side is Batch Two in order of their age, while the right side is Batch One in order of their age. 

Thanks, Barbara. It's a neat graphic. 

And, happily, as Barbara stated on the Facebook display:  we're all still kickin'. 

Happy Saturday. 

💚💙💜💙💜💛💚