Wednesday Babble

 

This young man and his lovely daughter had to be on Cloud Nine yesterday in Washington, D.C.

This is retired Sandpoint High School government teacher and Vietnam Army Veteran Terry Iverson who, along with his daughter Amy took the honor flight to the Nation's Capital.  

They'll return to Spokane and then to Sandpoint this evening after having the opportunity to visit national historical sights and monuments. 

Some basketball team members and my sister Barbara. 

Nice kids!

Our daughter-in-law Debbie, SHS girls coach Madi and Madi's sister enjoyed a hug and some fun moments at last night's Sandpoint High Basketball Foundation fundraiser at Sweet Lou's in Ponderay. 

A percentage of every meal tab will go to the Foundation. 

Both the boys and girls players were on hand at Sweet Lou's last night with baskets to fill with raffle tickets. 

Turns out somebody I know better than anyone else won the raffle. 

I'm taking a cue from my niece Laura who won the raffle at this weekend's Food Bank Fundraiser.  

I'll do a "Laura" and give my winnings back.  

I just now found out who called to tell me about my win. 

It was Coach Madi.  

She said the raffle brought in $1,300 so that's pretty neat for the teams. 

Madi also told me that, ironically, her dad won the raffle last year. 

GO,BULLDOGS!  

Let's hope both teams have a banner year. 

I went over to Roxane's and spent some time with my horses yesterday. 

Horses are different from dogs in that they don't wag their tails or wiggle all over with excitement when they haven't seen their humans for a while. 

Instead, they stare, maybe walk up to you and then start sniffing your pockets or your hands in pursuit of possible treats. 

I'd like to get inside the mind of a horse some day and learn what they really think about their humans.

Anyway, it's always nice for me to see them whether they reciprocate or not. 

It's Bill's big day, and the "Be Prepared" Eagle Scout had everything laid out before dawn this morning.  

He had even moved the black pickup to the "pointed-out-the-driveway" position. 

Around the time I publish this post and when he climbs in for the last time AND if he hasn't forgotten something (Bill averages about two or three returns to the house after saying "So long.), he will point the pickup toward the north. 

He will drive HWY 95 to Bonners Ferry, proceed on north and somewhere along the way will cross the Kootenai Valley to the West Side Road. 

After driving that road a while, he'll pass Smith Creek Falls and then turn left on the Smith Creek Road. 

Bill lives for this day every fall. It used to be, when we had the "New Old Motorhome," that he would drive it to Smith Creek and stay the night. Often that was right at the end of the Labor Day weekend. 

This year, however, a forest fire set that back a bit, but now he has the green light to go back to the site where he stayed in a Forest Service encampment for the summer and learned many of the fishing pools in the Smith Creek drainage. 

I'm sure it will be after dark before he reappears, all refreshed and reinvigorated with his day of nostalgia and his fly-fishing pursuits. 

So, it's a beautiful day, and here's wishing Bill a safe and fun Smith Creek adventure. 

So, the dogs, our three resident deer and I will enjoy a quiet day here at home. 

I'm making a dent in the fall outdoor projects but have a LONG way to go. 

Happy Wednesday. 💓

Tuesday Mutterings

 

Several of today's photos were taken while I mowed some lawn yesterday. 

I'll be mowing along and suddenly a scene mesmerizes me so much that I stop the mower, pull out my phone and take a picture.  

Fall colors add a lovely dimension to my beloved sport of lawn mowing. 

Besides the lawn, I finished a number of other projects, including some grass seeding next to the new paved parking area. 

I voted and will take my ballot to the Federal Building today.  The ballot did not have all the boxes marked, most notably the one where we are supposed to vote for the state gun of Idaho. 

Nothing against guns or people who own guns cuz we have several, but it seems like we have more pressing items that should be decided on our ballots. 

Maybe I need to initiate a movement to name the state car or maybe even the official dump truck that drives down our country roads. 

I think Bill would be very happy for the constituents of Idaho to vote on the state fly rod. 

Just sayin'. 

Also, some news about my plans to arrange for and pick up ZAGS basketball posters. 

I called the university yesterday, and they told me that the posters are not printed yet.  

They hope to have them available by the first or second game in late October. 

For some reason, I get the feeling that not all is going very smoothly with ZAGS basketball this year. 

Fingers crossed that the problems get crossed out. 

                                                                     --Annie Love Photo

I can report this morning that, after a trip out to the apple tree yesterday, that I'll be taking the poop pick out there and removing almost a carpet of deer do do from beneath the tree.

This will happen when I go out to pick some apples for myself.  At this point, they're all up pretty high since the deer have done a rather thorough job of removing the bottom tier of apples and happily dropping do do while eating. 

I think the deer were pretty disappointed when we arrived home on Friday.  They had enjoyed the place all to themselves for more than two weeks.  

Don't cook dinner tonight. 

Let Sweet Lou's Restaurant on HWY 95 do it for you. 

Sandpoint High Boys and Girls Basketball players will be taking your order and serving you. 

They'll probably also sell you some raffle tickets. 

All profits go to the Sandpoint Basketball Foundation, which offers financial support to the teams during their respective seasons of competition. 

Pass the word and hope to see you there!

🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀

I worked with this guy for 33 years. Through all those years as colleagues, I can say that he can be a bit on the impish side. 

Terry and his wife Edna, also a retired SHS colleague have been friends of ours for a few decades. 

Our kids grew up around the same time, and since our respective retirements,  we've had some fun times together and remain pretty much a speed dial away.  

This year Terry, a former American government teacher and coach, spent a week in this upstairs computer room repairing a hole in the ceiling which occurred when a severe wind gust propelled a tree limb through the roof.  

During that time, we sat around the kitchen island, drinking coffee and telling stories almost every day when Terry would take a break or quit for the day. 

I heard some of his Vietnam War experiences, and I'm happy to say that Terry has become acquainted with my brother Mike, also a Vietnam vet. 

This morning, maybe even as I'm typing, Terry and a plane load of other veterans are bound from Spokane, Wash.,  for Washington, DC on an honor flight.

We couldn't be happier for our friend, and we look forward to spending some time ahead drinking coffee and hearing about his experience. 

A fellow friend and colleague of ours, the late Johnny Nitcy, poured his passion, his talents and his hard work, locally, into supporting the honor flights for veterans.  

I have a feeling Johnny is sporting a great big smile from Heaven, knowing that his friend Terry is on one of those flights this morning. 

Congratulations, Terry. We are happy for you.  

Hope you behave on the flight.✈✈✈😉

Update:  Terry sent me a note this morning and said he will be looking for the name of a friend from Coeur d'Alene (where he grew up) on the Vietnam Wall.

He told me that his daughter Amy is accompanying him and that he also has done an interview with KXLY  Channel 4 News.  

https://www.honorflight.org/

We had a dramatic freeze overnight.  

When I took the dogs out for their first walk, the ground was glistening in the darkness with tiny ice crystals. 

I'm glad that gardening is done for the year. 

Happy Tuesday. 

Monday Hodgepodge

 

I felt a slight sense of grief last evening while walking around the yard and noting that we, here at the Lovestead, have probably passed the peak season for fall color. 

For one who thrives upon colorful, vibrant scenes for capturing day-to-day life with my camera, there is a sense of loss when the ground is covered with leaves and the branches are half naked. 

The weepy moment passed by quickly because my eyes started focusing on those leaves that have dropped to the ground. 

They're still vibrant with brilliant colors, and the patterns their respective landings form can be stunning. 

So, we have some days left where color will dominate our outdoor experiences, whether the leaves are still hanging or have fallen downward. 

It's pretty quiet here at the Lovestead after a hustle and bustle of activity over the weekend with re-entry from the trip and with the comings and goings of family members, especially after the food bank fundraiser. 

Willie and Debbie brought their coffee cups just after 8 yesterday morning, and, a while later, Mike and Mary came for a quick visit. 

Annie hung out here for a few more hours.  Then she and Bill headed off to the airport. 

The dogs and I enjoyed some quiet time, and I worked on a few outdoor projects before settling in to watch TV, only to catch myself nodding off several times. 

Seems our adrenalin high from all the weekend's activities wore off. My Google Health aka Fitbit tells me I received a good night's sleep, and it's quite proud of me for taking my morning walks. 

Nice to have that electronic imput on one's every move. 

And, it's nice to keep moving. 

🏀🏀🏀🏀

Come one. 

Come all for a night of fun and good food.

🏀🏀🏀🏀 

Speaking of continued activity, we seem to be pivoting into the realm of fall and early winter.  

Schweitzer has a thin layer of snow and we'll start thinking about basketball as soon as tomorrow evening. 

Here's a shout out to the basketball teams and their efforts to earn some funds for their upcoming season. 

Bill and I have attended these events in the past, and they're always fun, especially with the opportunity to get to know some of the players who take orders, serve and sell raffle tickets. 

So, come on out, enjoy some dinner and help support Sandpoint High School basketball. 

This week I'll also be making arrangements for a trip to Spokane to pick up my ZAGS posters.  I'm a little behind on that project because of our trip but am hoping to complete it by week's end. 

Looks like it's apple-picking time.  

Add that to a long list of "to do's," promising to keep me busy, busy, busy for the next few weeks. 

I love my fall work, so it's nice to have a long list of outdoor activities to check off.

 

I received my mail-in ballot before we left on our trip. 

So, I placed it in a prominent place where I would not forget to fill it out. 

That's one of my very important to do's for this week.

Since it seems that confusion about mail-in voting could continue to escalate over the next few days, I'm following the simple, wise approach suggested by my sisters. 

I'll fill out my ballot and carefully follow the directions for inserting it into the envelope and signing off.

 Then I'll save my postage money in favor of using my high-priced gas to drive to the Federal Building and insert my ballot inside the box outside the Elections Center. 

It will be gas money well spent because I will know firsthand that my ballot arrived on time and to the place where it was supposed to be deposited. 

No confusion and full proof, I think anyway.   

Looks like we have a gorgeous week of weather ahead, so tackling the "to do's" will be a pleasant experience.  

Time to get started. 

Happy Monday, and do skip cooking dinner and drop in at Sweet Lou's tomorrow night.

You might even get to meet Coach Love and his family.