Back to Business

Well, the magical ride continued through yesterday---about 9:14 a.m. or so.  That's when I learned officially about the ZAGS finishing first in both national polls.

It was a fun day, probably the best part was seeing the KREM-TV news footage of the 30-ft long blue cake in the shape of the number "1" being served on the Gonzaga campus.  

"Let them eat cake," certainly had a much more uplifting meaning for the GU students than the day Marie Antoinette thought feeding on cake was a good idea for her people.

Throughout the day, I tuned in briefly to various commentaries online and on TV but mainly got back to the business of "real life."  

Our fabulous trip and our ecstasy over the Bulldogs' No. 1 ranking made the adjustment to the mundane a little more difficult than usual.

Still, I'm pretty much back on track----the laundry, the barn stalls,  the still undone taxes, three story assignments, meals to cook, house-cleaning and dog-log demolition.

Believe me, there's plenty to be done with the latter.   

I probably destroyed or flung (over the fence) a couple of hundred various-sized brown deposits yesterday, and more will appear with each segment of melting snow. 

Three dogs helped me with my duties and, for the most part, they did not appear to add any more to my job description---within my sight, that is. 

Nothing will bring one back to reality quite like spring cleaning of the yard. 

We also have a number pieces of sod sinking to the ground from various melting snow piles where the tractor blade removed them and pushed them into the bank to stay frozen for the winter.

I retrieved a few, tried to find the gouges in the earth where they had once resided and packed them back into place, with hopes their roots would recall familiar territory and take hold. 

I also planted seed for more than 50 tomatoes yesterday and filled more pots with soil for a session of flower-seed sowing today. 

Last night, I pulled out a notebook for list-making:   get that story about Mother off to Rhonda at the fair office, figure out more of the Schweitzer "originals" to interview, make up questions for Joe's interview.

Joe is the huckleberry picking "King" of the Sandpoint area, and I can assure you he's got a story to tell.  I'm looking forward to learning how he picks 129 gallons of huckleberries per year. 

I also plucked on my banjo two or three times.  Fiddlin' Red is gonna know I didn't practice as much as I should have while on the trip.

I've got an excuse.  One night we forgot to bring the banjo into the motel from the truck.  Cold temperatures put all the strings into a state of total disharmony, to say the least.  

When even I can tell it's out of tune, there's a major problem.

So, we went to a music store in Glendale and bought a chromatic tuner.  The lady also was nice enough to tune the banjo, and it's been sounding just lovely ever since.

Bill, the former music major,  knows how to use the tuner, so I think I'll be okay from now on.  Plus, we learned to keep the banjo out of the elements. 

Yup, life is pretty much back to normal, but the "high" from the trip and the ZAGS will go on cuz the whole scene outside will continue to get better with each day of more light and spring-like weather.

It's a good time to get back to the business of life, and I'm looking forward to enjoying it all---'cept maybe the taxes!

Happy Tuesday.