before Christmas- day of - and after

Christmas preparation.
Church on Sunday - The Prince of Peace
and worship Christmas Eve, The story in song and worship.

Christmas Day drive 4 hours plus four hours sandwiched by family connection.

Thank you to the mom and the dad and the girls.
Just right.

Most Christmas cards in the mail

Next Christmas I need to give a grand daughter update. 
Briefly for this year,
Rachel studying for finals as a freshman,
Rose smiles
Sarah climbs on rocks
Lauren reads
Ashley hiking

At church this last Sunday a family lite the Hope candle on the advent wreath.  Two twins in red were active but polite, their older sister read like a college graduate.  Loud, clear, Isaiah 9, 1-3 with superb pronunciation of two Biblical countries.  Seventy percent of adult college would have stuttered.

The mom and dad passed the 6 to 9 month old brother back and forth as they read.  I have watched this family increase, one girl, add twins and now a boy.

A second post today 12/12/12

The pattern of numbers on this day is too unique to leave with no mention.

121212
12/12/12
12 December 2012

Christmas letters going into the mail

One photo on this blog is back 11 months ago.  Kathy and I are loading the rental car for the last time before driving to John Wayne airport for the return flight to Chicago and NH.  We are happy and relaxed after nine days in warmth.

Our next Rose parade is in less than 20 days.  We will be in the family room watching RFD TV on Direct TV.  RFD does the parade with professionalism not commercialism.

Not Wednesday but Thursday

Christmas letter is written and printed.  In the letter I gave no details about James Turner's passing.  Feb 2 in South Carolina he passed suddenly after one of his daily radiation treatments.  The Memorial service was June 2 in the Masonic Hall in Rangeley, Maine. 

Wednesday on schedule

Goal this day is to arrive at the library at 9AM.  Only 70 minutes late,

I am continuing to fine tune my now up to date device.

Wednesday posts ?? will see

New laptop and still dial up at home. My goal is to use the Westbrook library connection weekly.

We will see.

You may now send refrigerators (huge files).  I will have access to the huge files weekly. In the past most were deleted. 

slow start - new laptop

I need to understand initial steps with w-8.

day after

Winter arriving, election ads should end.

Lap top hints welcome.
K treatments nearing the end.

Rain week followed by blue sky

Garden work in progress.  Moving rhubarb and trees.  Making branches into twigs and kindling.

Spelling to be corrected

Fryeburg.  My blog account has gone slow on me.  In time I will correct the Fryeburg spelling.  Mower deck is off.  Snowblade is heavy but I lugged it 120 feet to prepare to install.

New week; another fair

In Maine we have the Fryeburg fair.  Seven days about 300,000 attendance.  Yesterday, Tuesday, seniors were waved in free.  I could have claimed a senior wife but based on the posted age she must pay.  I did, she grumbled but we again walked and enjoyed the day.  The Homemade Ice Cream booth went missing for many loops.  Found it at last.  I thought it was white with a tinge of green.  It was bright orange.

Earlier we ate pizza. One county fair size slice of pizza is enough.  Our people watching proved we do not need the food.

I smiled as I thought of all the men my age having their two digit age posted on their shirt.  Big numbers so when we saw each other we would look at the number, look at the hair, look at the aging face.  At this fair if I survive I could continue as a youngster until 88.  Please someone print up my 88 for a couple decades from now.

Spelling corrected 10-18-2012

County Fair

A beautiful afternoon, yesterday.  Maple syrup, kettle corn and fried dough. Sulky racing. Just sitting or walking.  Keith (pastor) said, if you're talking you are not listening.  Listen.

Another larger rock - unearthed. Mon/Tues

While mowing on a small hillside we often hit the top of a rock. Therefore Monday and Tuesday I dug.  The newly unearthed rock appears three times larger than others I have successfully raised.

Likely the latest buried rock will mostly remain (buried).  I have a plan to dig out the lower slope in order to form a seat on the rock.  Then the lower slope will be a drainage and level area.  Readers are seeing a hole as a hazard.  Correct.  Trees and scrub growth now form a fence for two thirds of the exposure.

Life continues -

I enjoy digging holes.  Yesterday I dug up a thorn stump. Under the stump was a rock (also twenty plus stones).  Stones I lift with one hand.  Rocks I am unable to lift.  By standing the rock on a side or end I then put dirt under to slowly bring the rock above ground level.  That is what I enjoy.  Fight a rock and win.  It was 12-13 months ago I did the same on a back corner of my rhubarb garden.  Those rocks are my mental anchor.

I have a spiritual anchor.  The same powerful powerful anchor as many (not all).  Prayer the connection of my anchor the one offering the prayer and the one being prayed for.

Thank you for praying for  _ _.

Another year - distance event

About age 50 to 60 I would jog 6 miles on my birthday.

Now yesterday we biked 14 or 15 miles. A level route.

Summer mid to cool

Today was the first 40 degree F day since June 18, 2012.

47F this morning at 0630 local.

And now we have fall followed by frozen mosquito's.

Dale's stress

Dale is having stress.  Students ( many as adults) place half full cups of liquid in the trash.  What pigs we Americans have become.

It may not be true,  but I have heard French in Paris would never consider drinking a liquid in their auto.

What should the adults do?  Dump the liquid in the sink (or outside). Also adults train your kids.

Summer warmth

Pleasent; no jacket no sweater.

Fun jobs; fun projects

In life work is work and work is fun. Except when it is not.

My current project is to reset our back brick patio for the fifth or eighth time.  That effort has always been relaxing.

Two of five first books.

Genisis -  1:1.
Numbers

The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make his face shine upon you

Deliver a van

Plenty of stories/memories moments in the East to Midwest drive.

Two grand grand daughters and son and d- in-law made the journey


that is correct.  - - - GRAND.

Kathy and her wheels

Arrive at our sand lot.

Erosion

Our gravel drive is steep at the top.  Gushing rain moves
water from the pavement on Methodist Road to the
top of our drive.  Then the cutting and trenching begins.

I fill the trench; next rain; and fill the new trench now in a
different spot.

And life goes on.

Our Portland, Maine fireworks were washed out by the
above noted event.  We never did commit to walk the
one mile up the hill so remained dry.

Thank you Lord.

Did you read, scientists just found the God particle.
God knew where it was all along.

July 1 and 4

A brother is retiring. Congratulations.

The midweek Wednesday holiday is welcome.

Rain now unexpected late day sun.

Marigolds were dug up by some animal.  Most avoid the marigold odor. Transplanted tomatoes now established. Zucchini are thriving. Peas and carrots conceal yield for now.

We seem to be in the summer warm air for the duration.

Summer writing

Weekly writing is not up to date.

Typical rain May and early June is paused for now.

Maine State Music Theater Thursday visits start tomorrow and continue each third Thursday.  Always quality song; dance;  story line and fun.  We have an opening for early August.

Omaha son was here in early June and his daughter sent her email update for her summer camp.  K and I still work and (laugh out loud) complain.  I do enjoy the kids (students).

Life milemarkers

Two are simple.  The first and the last.
Others are in categories.
I like lists.

Travel
Travel with the job.
Things we do.
Banff - February.
Saco River float - July
gas station lobster roll - summer.
Breakfast out. - at least twice a month.
Medical

Minnesota Graduations

Congratulations.
Maine sends.

In 1963  I read Norman Vincent Peale, ' The Power of Positive Thinking' .
Words and Bible verses helped to get through a Chemistry test.
Throw your heart over the bar and your body will follow.

Weekly not so weekly

Summer is enroute to Maine. It is now safe to put seeds into the ground after typical wet early May days.

K planted many red maples today.   I have 14 ton of sand to move in the next six months.

Few photos;here is one

A grand daughter clicked the shutter.

Omaha zoo. 2012

Edit blog or just post it?

If the errors show up you know I posted it.
I correct most spelling errors.

NEWS/ NOTES/ THOUGHTS

News: K's mom is in Canton, Maine for over a week now.

Notes. Our long drive ended 21 days after departure.

Thank you to all for gifts of time and talk.

Travels and a long hike today.

We are nearing home.  Today we did an afternoon of hiking.  Many waterfalls in a PA state park.

Christ the Lord is Risen Today

Stored in memory are many ( hundreds ???) of powerful hymns.

One of the many in the title above.

Quiet worship, joyful worship is always available.  One simple note pulls up grand thoughts from the past.  "were you there when they laid him in the tomb" sung by the men's choir at the Red Rock EUB church in the late 1950s.  Mom and dad took us to church every Sunday.  The built in foundation of worship is my underpinning. "were you there when the sun refused to shine; were you there." Marvin, Alvin, LaVerne my powerful mentors.

Fran Crosby wrote as many as seven hymns each week and she died before my mother was born.  This powerful worship of song was powerful 200 years ago.  What is it that people were writing seven hymns per week before 1918.  Were they deceived?  Christ the Lord is Risen today.

On the road again

K and I are making our way across half the country.

Excellent breakfast and then also dinner tonight.

This moment

Writers current and past advise living in this immediate moment.
Easy.
Difficult.
Both.

The pond; The ice on the pond.

By magic each year ice disappears in middle March.
Monday ice was 80 percent and unsafe. Wednesday ice was
under 5 percent. Water, cold March water, is always unsafe.

Questions - questions

An inept United States Senate or the sky is falling the sky is falling (global warming).

Pick one which will have the major impact on our grandchildren.

I pick an inept Senate.

How vote you.

Winter spring transition

Still cold but pleasing bright and light in late afternoon.

Tens of days ( middle March) and the sun will rise
north of east.  Smile

22012 - 2/20/2012

Weekly abcxyz - a bit of this; a bit of...

Camden, Maine hosts an annual toboggan competition.  Watching four big bundled bodies shoehorn onto a toboggan was my highlight.  And we forgot our cameras.

Curt, I do have one newspaper photo.

A bit of that.  Cards have arrived for Kathy. Thank you.

Talks - Travels - (with) James Turner

I drove James Turner's van  with him sitting in the passenger seat for a number of years both traveling to or returning from Greenville, South Carolina.  He talked, we talked we traveled.

At times I will look at my journals and share some of his words on those trips.

Kathy was always with Olive in the van behind us. Once through my error Kathy and Olive ended up ahead of us. Not good and that was never to happen again.

Janet, Mike, Alex, Sid and Judy all also made the journey in other seasons either to or from South Carolina or Maine. Second or third hand, I heard some of their stories. You may also.

James is now gone but thousands of other stories will never be gone.
Each reader is thinking of their story now.

2/1/12

Three months then flowering tulips.
Later sunset every day.
The light is coming to us.

1/28/2012 I'm listening

Dear Sarah,

This is a letter to you near your dad's birthday. Nearing eight
you now read and continue to read more and more.

Yesterday in my small driving class (only three girls), I wrote my
Journey words on the white board. One of the girls asked if I was
ever going to stop putting words up onto the board.

As I wrote, 'follow a butterfly' one of the girls stated,
"I have done that."

I could try to write something just for your dad, but it does not work
that way. When I write, the words or the ideas show up. I put the
words on paper.  Each reader sees the same words but never
reach the same meaning  as the next reader.

As I think about you and your dad I smile or even laugh out loud.
You are one quarter me. My poor granddaughters are part grandpa.
That even frightens me.

I will also hand write this note into your wire bound notebook.
As you or someone you know reads it years from now they too will
wonder, "What's he talking about?"

I am just talking to you, and I fully enjoy listening to you.

Please hug your dad for me on his birthday.

Grandpa Dale

HISTORY

Photo history.
Letter history.
Conversation history.
Character history.

24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
Numbers 6:24-26

Snow update - six inches last Thursday

Snow then rain last Thursday. One inch snow
also yesterday Tuesday. That also followed
by rain.

A mouse update - four boxes too many so
I removed half. The odor moves through
sheeet rock.

Mice in the attic - and other

The scratching above our head meant action.

I trap with a spring trap. Four will never
return. I also found three nesting areas.
One of the three was mouse massive.

Four boxes of moth balls are now in the
rafters. We may need to move out of our
under the attic bedroom.

And other. Model output statistic forecasts
show snow and more snow day time Thursday.
Work for me on the tractor and with the
snow blower. I will give an after action
report. 1/10/2012 djmiane

What we saw ---

Three nights La Jolla, CA sunset 12/26 new moon hugging Venus.
Three nights in San Dimas within 20 miles of Pasadena and Rose Parade #2.
Three nights (first, middle and last) near our Polly's Pies and the airport.

Sea World.
Balboa Park and six gardens.
The Nixon Library.

Float construction (preparade)
Parade
and Post parade viewing.

Kathy now has her own camera so photos (x2).
We were in row H grandstands but the top four
rows were open. We stood on the top row
with excellent views.

I park in a quiet neighborhood. We walk
about a mile with all the people getting
to see us as they are lined along the
street in their spots. Noisy, sleeping
bags and litter, but a fun second trip.

All of this in near 70F sunny conditions.
The sunrise cool air quietly becomes
mild.

Departing warm California.

After the Rose Parade.