Mryna - come visit and bring PJ

Greetings

Wishing you all a white Christmas.

Please be careful out there.

CHRISTMAS PLANS?

Looks like we are in for a bout with the weather for our Christmas. I have heard anything from a couple of inches of rain to a major snow event. The next few days may be interesting. Good luck everyone and be careful out there.

Christmas Part 89

I had my reasons for trying to keep this out of the blog and strictly through email, the most prominent one being how dysfunctional this can appear to anyone reading it.

Here's my latest great idea. Sunday, December 27th, soups and pizza in the afternoon, if it snows we can have a slumber party. The gift exchange game same as last year.

Christmas 2009 part Whatever

From all the emails flying back and forth, it looks like a weekend in January will work for everyone, except the 9-10. Tammie, Sue and I all have conflicts that weekend. Shall we try for the 16th at Shirley's? Chantelle and Robby might be able to come, let's be sure and send her an email as soon as we nail down the date and time. Shall we do the gift exchange again? I think it's fun.

Happy Thanksgiving

Birthdays

Happy Birthday, Janell today.

Happy Birthday, Shirley tomorrow.

Happy Birthday, Joe Saturday. (and Dad)

Janell, check your dates on the sidebar. I don't thing Jeremy was born in 1877.
Joe & Angie - 1993

BTW, are we having Christmas before or after Christmas? Any suggestion as to where?

Christmas 2009. Part 1

Any plans, volunteers, suggestions... or whatever?

Mick appreciated all the birthday cards. Thanks, everyone.

Closer view of glacier

This passing little 2-decker boat begins to give a scale of the glacier. Google says it is a mile wide, 180 feet high, and 400 feet deep in the water!

testing

Glacier Bay National Park

During our first night on the cruise ship we left Skagway and cruised along and out of the Lynn Canal into the Icy Strait, so that when we woke up we would be entering Glacier Bay NP off of the strait. So when we got up and got outside on our 'porch' we saw our first ice bergs that had calved off of some glacier. They were pretty small calves though. About an hour later we met a substantial glacier name Margerie Glacier.

Our Cruise Ship

We boarded our cruise ship in Skagway, Alaska in mid afternoon after we got off the White Pass Yukon Railcar ride down the coastal mountains (see a coastal mountain stream at Midtown). But since the cruise ship was not scheduled to leave until 6 pm, of course we had time to deboard and go shopping in Skagway. Two other cruise ships were at dock, so many, many others joined us or us them.

Muskox Stew Anyone?

Whitehorse Wilds Along Yukon River

Update

I haven't been around in a while and had password issues when I tried to get back into my blogger account, but it seems to be fixed now.

I'm loving the Bob & Shirley vacation pics. Does Bob have his own blog now?

I like Cassie's new blog, too, but can't seem to post a comment over there. Do I need to be invited? I like her version of the Degas ballerina.

I was going to take Mick to visit a trail ride today, but when I got there to pick him up, he didn't want to go - said he wasn't feeling well. He seemed a little disoriented. I've seen him like this before and suspect he's having TIAs. He'll probably be fine tomorrow. I'll be going back on Wednesday.

Happy blogging, everyone.

Next stop was --

Canadian Mountains

These are mountains in Kluane National Park in Canada.

Shirley and Bob in different countries together

Shirley Finds Gold!

Can youze find Shirley?

Denali / Mt. McKinley / The High One

Aunt Grace

Happy 95th Birthday tomorrow to Aunt Grace. The family had a nice pot luck dinner at 1 and a party for friends at 3. Myrna, your flowers were beautiful. I heard Grace telling someone they were from Myrna and Paulette. Tammie, Grace told me she got your card.

Although she is getting a little forgetful (aren't we all?) she still gets around with the help of a cane or walker. She can get herself up and dressed every day. She says she doesn't play bridge much anymore because she has no one to play with. I guess she has outlived all her card-playing friends.

Had a nice visit with cousins, Wanda, Connie, Linda, Irene and Sharon. They all kept rotating in and out around our table. Also met Irene's sister from out east. She is a big Red Sox fan and loves to golf.

Grace's first great great grandchild was also present. He is 5 months old.

It was a great party and I'm glad I spent the 4 or 5 hours making the drive.

Playing

Catch

Whose Boots Are These?

Brett Favre?

A Good Listener

Cooler Guard

Smile Big

Picture Perfect

Hey

Kapow

Running to First

7/10/09

Another small gain .4. The small gains add up just like the small losses. No explanation or escuse this week because I don't know what it would be. I thought I had a pretty good week.

Loving the pictures. I really need some help to know why my pics aren't transferring to my blog.

Reunion 09

Jim and Joe


Myrna and Jerry


Mick with his oldest and youngest


Shae


I'm working on a slide show... sort of.
Don't forget to scroll down and see Bob's "Catch of the Day!"
And go look at the new photo I put on our sidebar.

Catch of the Day

4/5/09

I hope everyone had a good 4th. I did weigh in on Friday and was up .4. This was less than I expected after doing nothing but golf and eat for a week.

At the Pasture

Whodunnit?

Who took a picture of me & Mick on the horses? Can you email it to me?

6/27/09

Just checking in. After a week of almost non stop eating and running around I only gained .4 lbs.

Great pics, Shirley.

Going to Cambridge tomorrow for 3 days of golf.

Happy Anniversary!

To Great Grandpa and Grandma, Joel & Almina!

6/12/09

Down .2.

I don't know how to put in a link so -- Do a search for US92 radio in Norfolk. Click on photos and then on the truck pictures from the truck show. You may see somebody you know.

Played NWAGA golf tournament in Beemer. Played ok but not good enough to win anything. Indian Trails Golf Course in Beemer has to be one of the prettiest golf courses in Nebraska. The views from the top of the hills are breathtaking. If I can ever figure out why I can't get my pics to publish I will add some pictures.

Sure have had some nice rains, but it needs to let up now for a few days.

Will see a lot of you next weekend.

From Shirley's Garden

Weigh in

I remembered to do it on Friday this week. I'm down two. That puts me within five pounds of my goal. That's almost scary!

5/29/09

Oops, I posted my weekly report on The Back Nine.

Mine That Bird and Rachel Alexandra

There will be no Triple Crown winner in 2009, except within the Gatewood family.

The 50-1 shot, Mine That BIRD came from dead last on a muddy track at Churchill Downs to take the 2009 Kentucky Derby, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that “It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish…” You can see it here
He ran 1 1/4 mile in 2:02.66 (Secretariat, 1973, still holds the record at 1:59 2/5)

Makes me wish I’d had $2 ticket on that boy.

Did anyone remember that Grandpa had a horse named Master BIRD? Master Bird took the Hotel Capital Handicap at the Lincoln Races August 14, 1948. He ran 6 ½ furlongs in 1:23.3. on June 21, 1949, Master Bird won the 6th race at Ak-Sar-Ben (1 mile and 70 yd) in 1:48.3

And of course, the beautiful filly, RACHEL ALEXandra led the pack from wire to wire and held Mine That Bird in second place to take the Preakness trophy and the blanket of Black Eyed Susans at Pimlico Park. (1 3/16 mi. in 1:55.08)

You can see her here.

So when it comes time for the Belmont, we have an Exacta ticket made in Gatewood Heaven.

Sure wish I knew someone in New York…

5/16/09

Down .6 this week. Have been really busy this weekend, but can't seem to get everything done. Trying to get my outside stuff done so the inside stuff seems to be piling up.
We have 2 graduation parties to go to in Wayne this afternoon. Jerry is trying to get his truck all polished up for a truck show the 30th of May. He is only doing it because Jacob wants him to. No golf today but it is kind of windy and chilly anyway.

Hope you all had a good mother's day. I went to hear Kendra play bells once more and had lunch with them.
Anyone going to Lyons next weekend? If so maybe we could have lunch either Friday or Saturday.

5/8/09

Down .2 this week. Sure is a struggle.

Todays Tulips

5/1/09

To much eating out and a family dinner on Sunday result +1.

Thanks for the birthday wishes.

Jerry's Aunt Mary Mckinzie passed away last week. Her funeral was Tuesday. I took my day off that day because I have to work today since Kent is off. We stopped to see Mick on our way home. He seems to be a little less depressed. The weather is nicer and he goes out and walks around sometimes. He has always come back. I stopped over at the cafe and got him a cup of "real coffee" since he doesn't like the decaf. He is getting to know the nurses and I think he gives them a good-natured bad time.

Happy Mayday.

BIRTHDAY

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO SUE!!!

Have a really good celebration.

4/24/09

Up .6 this week. Almost forgot to check in. The sunroom needed to be cleaned to get ready to bring my plants home. Also the table can be used for our late Easter dinner Sunday.

NEWS! NEWS! NEWS!

EMILY will be awarded a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Writing on May 8, 2009 at the Omaha Civic Auditorium. WOOHOO!! It's been a long time coming and we are really excited about it. Plans for a celebration include supper at a sushi bar after the ceremony. Tentatively, we will celebrate it with a party at our place on June 21. Yes, that's the day after the Reunion - we are hoping the California and Indianna people can join us.

MORE NEWS

SHANNON will be getting married September 26, 2009 in Madison. They are planning a big formal affair. Amber tells me that the whole family is very fond of Dale. We will all be invited.

4/17/09

I'm down 1.4 this week. Golf must burn more calories than working out. I played 3 nights and worked out 1. go figger.

Gramps

Today is the anniversary of Gramp's birthday. T.W., Thornt, Tom, Friday were names other people called him. To the family he was Gramps or Grampa. As I remember him he was not real tall and rather husky with thin white hair. He walked with a slight limp and after recovering from a broken hip while cleaning a horse stall he used a cane. Maybe his leg hurt because Gramma would sit next to him when he was driving and would grab his knee if he wasn't driving safely. He smelled like horses and Absorbine, a liniment for horses. He was a quiet man and I don't remember him every raising his voice to any one. He drank his coffee with cream and sugar. One time while having coffee Gramma said "We quit using cream in our coffee." Gramps replied "WE did not quit using cream." emphasizing the "WE"
He was a farmer when he was younger, but as long as I knew him he trained thoroughbred race horses. They traveled around the race circuit hauling their horses in a big truck that they cleaned out when they reached their destination and lived in it at the track. Later they had a small house trailer and had their horses hauled in a horse van.
During the off season they would spend some time with each of their 4 children. We always knew when Gramps was at our house when we came home from school because we could smell the Asthmador. Gramps had Asthma. For relief he had this green can with green stuff in it that he would put in the indented lid, light it and inhale it. He is the only person I have every know to use this medication.
After retiring they moved into the low cost housing for the elderly in Lyons. He still liked going to the races.
One morning in April he got up around 5:30 to get ready to go to the race track (Columbus I think) and died of an aneurysm. Very quick and painless. We buried him on his 81st birthday. Happy Birthday, Gramps, RIP.

What do you all remember most about Gramps?

4/10/09

Happy Birtday, Tammie. Have a great day.

I gained .8 again this week. I better go get on the treadmill before I get "to busy".

Birthday

Happy Birthday, Myrna. Can't wait to see the pictures of your annual trip to Bogoda Bay.

We lucked out this weekend and didn't get the big blizzard that was predicted. The wind blew as promised, but we only got about 1.5" of snow. It is still cold and windy today, but we are promised a warm up this week.

A day late

The bad news - 1.6 gain.
The good news - I can drive again for 5 years and I have lost 12 lbs since I last renewed my license.

We lost another neighbor this week. Bob was a widower when we moved in accross the street. He was 80 and had cancer.

3/27/09

Down .8 this week.

I thought it was spring. It sure hasn't felt like it.

3/20/09

First day of spring YAHOO. I gained .2 BOOHOO. If I could just get through the weekends without a gain that I have to work off I could probably be in much better shape.

The house next to us was sold last fall. The guy that bought it passed away so his son and a friend have been in the process of fixing it up. It does need a lot of work as the lady that lived there was a divorced lady with grown children and no money for upkeep. I would really be courious to see the updates they are doing. They haven't been around much, but are over there today. Some of the more interesting shows on TV are on HGTV where they "flip" houses or the ones where they get ready to sell. If they would come in to my house, I'm sure they would have a huge pile of stuff that I would have to get rid of.
George Carlin had a routine that said something about a house is a place to keep your stuff while you are making money to buy more stuff. This requires you to buy a bigger house so you can buy more stuff. Only GC could make it funny.

Just some musings while I look out the window on the first day of spring that is kind of cloudy, windy and a little bit chilly (around 50).

Who remembers these?

I'm pretty sure one of us will have a family story about these?




Here's the Community History:

Mick's Point of View

I took a disposable 35 mm camera to Mick a couple weeks ago and told him to have some fun with it. He gets bored with watching TV and I know he used to like taking pictures. He captured some sunsets:







We went to church in Lyons a couple weeks ago. He remenisced about going there when we were kids and took this picture afterwards:



He seems to be doing pretty well. He really appreciates visitors or postcards. He's trying to keep track of us, (his sisters) but he asks me to "write down those names" for him and "get some pictures of them" for his bulletin board. The other day, he said; "That Shirley is quite the little gal!" and laughed. I don't know what he was remembering.

He likes to go on short outings. We went to Bancroft to the Neihardt Center; visited the Statue Garden and Indian Art Gallery in Winnebago; and the Bertrand Exhibit at the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge. He likes walking around and looking at things and taking pictures. Scott and Lisa take him to church whenever they can.

Just thought you might all like an update.

PS: I gained 1.8 last week. It's marshmallow Peeps season. And I seem to have developed a fondness for Sonic cheeseburgers.

3/13/09

Another Friday the 13th. I lost only .2 this week. Not much, but not a gain.
After some near zero temps this week, the sun is shining and the weatherman promises us a warm up.

3/6/09

Nothing to report. Stayed the same. Trying to stay out of the kitchen this weekend.

Nice sunshiny day here after just about any kind of weather you could want this week.
Every thing from -3 to near 60. Sunshine and 50's today.

2/27/09

Gained back .8 of the lb I lost last week. Last weekend was a boring weekend and every time I went into the kitchen I was looking for something to put in my mouth. Couldn't quite work it all off this week. I kept busy today by cleaning my kitchen cabinets inside and out. The problem with that is that I spent the whole day in the kitchen.

When I got up this morning the sun was shining. By noon it had started to snow and has been snowing every since. It is supposed to keep snowing all night. Yuck.
The Fairplay annual dinner and meeting is tomorrow night so spring can't be far behind.

Spring Chickens

In the spring, patchy snow still decorating fields and the sides of the gravel roads, we drove to town.  Several boxes of peeping baby chicks were loaded into the backseat beside me.  I looked through the holes in the boxes at the yellow balls of feathers climbing over each other while keeping up a chorus of peeps.

At home the chicks were taken out of the boxes and put in the brooder house.  The middle of this house contained a low, metal tent-like structure (the brooder) with light bulbs on the underside to keep the chicks warm.  Several watering bottles and trays of food surrounded the tent.  The yellow puff balls ran around on their little stick legs.  They bumped into each other and stepped in their water and food.

I liked to go into the peeping building and 'help' with the feeding and watering of the chicks as long as they were little yellow balls.  When they started growing white feathers they became unattractive and hard looking.  The waiting time for the first fried chicken started.  The chicks grew into chickens.  The weather warmed and the brooder was removed.  A fenced yard for the chickens was added outside and the brooder house became a chicken house.

Six or eight weeks after the peeping boxes were brought home, Mother started catching the larger chickens and feeling their legs to determine if they were big enough to eat.  Finally, the day arrived for the first fried spring chicken.  Of course there was work to be done.  Dad sharpened a long machete-like knife.  He caught the doomed chicken and took it to a tree stump.  With a quick chop he separated the head from the body and let the body go.  We watched it hop around spattering blood until it lay still in the grass.  The body was dunked in boiling water and the feathers removed.  Mother made a torch with rolled up newspaper, set it on fire and singed off the pin feathers.  

The chicken was cut into pieces, the legs, thighs and wings cut off the body.  The insides were taken out;  the liver and gizzard saved.   Cutting the gizzard and removing the sac of gravel and food was a delicate process--if you cut the sac the gizzard was ruined.  (No, I don't know why)  The wishbone was cut from the breast and the breast, back and neck separated.  There was a time when Suzie and I fought over the neck.

Mom's recipe for fried chicken.  Dip the chicken in flour, salt and pepper.  Brown in Crisco in an iron skillet.  Put it in the oven for 30-40 minutes.   She served those first pieces of spring chicken with boiled potatoes and home canned green beans from the cellar.

Those peeping, yellow puffballs I loved grew into fryers and hens.  The fryers had to be processed for the freezer (at the locker plant in town).   A long day of cleaning and cutting chickens.  I reluctantly participated in the various stages as I grew up.  First dipping the chicken in boiling water and removing the feathers and graduating to the rest of the steps.   I never had to cut off a head.

Beyond the fryers were the hens.  The hens that laid eggs that needed to be gathered in an enamel pail lined with straw.

At those two points in the lives of chickens, I really disliked them except of course, for dinner.

2/20/09

Good week. lost 1 whole pound.

Sad news in our town. Marc Whisinand was killed in a car accident last week.
We was 59 years old. He was the son of Duane, brother of Alan, Lela, Rae, and Leslie. I have met his wife Nancy, a couple of times. He has 2 sons and 1 daughter.

Thank you!

What a lovely surprise I got in the mail yesterday!

Myrna added some great photos to my essay "20th Century Champions" and turned it into a book. M, you sure did a good job on the pictures and on the editing. With a little more editing, (I've discovered some factual errors since I first wrote it)maybe we should submit it to a publisher as a children's book.

The dedication to Grandma & Grandpa and their picture is the perfect finishing touch.

Thank you for a very meaningful and thoughtful gift!

2/13/09

Up .2 this week. Glad it wasn't more since my lost last week was due to the flu. Feeling much better today and hoping we don't get a lot of snow.

2/9/09

Thanks to the flu, I lost 2 lbs this week. Look for a regain next week. I got the stomach flu Tuesday night, everything I ate on Wednesday came back up. I still don't feel much like eating much. I don't think I would make a very good bulimic. I hate to puke. Even though I get tired of exercising, I think I will stick with that method of weight control.

Abby had her 16th birthday party Sunday. She had a bunch of her friends over for a super bowl party. Not sure if any of them watched the game. Before the game they all looked like they were having fun on the frozen lake. The biggest kid, her Dad, had fun pulling them on a sled behind the 4 wheeler. It looked too cold for me to be out there, but had a very good view from the window.

The ground hog saw his shadow. So we will have 6 more weeks of winter instead of just a month and a half. Spring is coming the days are getting longer.

1/31/09

Nothing to report, I stayed the same.

THE SUN IS SHINING, THE SNOW WE HAD THIS MORNING IS MELTING. I NEED TO GET OUTSIDE.

01/24/09

I gained .4 this week. We had some friends over last night for drinks and snacks before going out to eat. This meant the house had to be put in order so I didn't have time to even turn the computer on yesterday.

Over time we meet a lot of people. What makes some special? Sometimes you meet a couple that you just seem to hit it off with. Other times one of the couple seems like someone you would like to hang out with, but you can't seem to jive with the spouse. When a couple breaks up, do you have to decide which one to stay friends with? Or do you break contact with both of them? Kind of like taking sides. Then there are those that have lost spouses. Sometimes hanging out with people they spent time with makes them sad.

The one thing we have in common with the friends we had over last night --- GOLF.
We all have different levels of skill playing this silly game, but we all like the time spent on what is commonly called the 19th hole. There was a group of people in Wayne we called the "Saturday group". Everyone gathered about 1 pm and we would decide teams by tossing balls. Everyone marked a ball and the balls were tossed into the air. The balls closest together were the teams. A little money game was decided on depending on how many players were on each team. The stakes were usually very high, 25 cents a point. The winner had to buy the first round of drinks at the 19th hole. Therefore the winner was actually the loser because the winnings didn't cover the cost of drinks for maybe up to 12 people. This group had been together so long and the same jokes told so many times that we got to the point that all we had to say was the punch line and everyone laughed.

I really miss those fun times.

The Clock

Setting my digital clocks after a power outage; I remembered Dad resetting the round kitchen clock.  I do not remember another clock in the kitchen while growing up.  Dad would look at the clock and tell us what time the power had gone out.  Then he would take it off the wall, reset the time, and spin the second hand to start it again.  It is yellow with a silver band around the face.  I'm sure it is the clock I looked at when I  learned to tell time.

I was in my fifties when I noticed another clock on the wall of Mom's kitchen.  I asked what happened to the round clock--did it stop working?  Oh, no she said it's at Bob's house.  When Bob died, I asked his children if I could have the clock.  I stopped at the house where they were supporting each other in their grief. They looked so young and orphaned, although the youngest was nineteen.  We wrapped the clock in newspaper and put it in the back of my truck.  The clock was working when my nephew took it off the wall.  Weeks later, back in California, I hung the clock on the wall of my bedroom and plugged it in.  It would not work.

The history of the clock, as I remember it--Mom told me they had bought it from the Nelsons at the sale they had when they left farming.  I was an infant.

The farms we lived on were known by the owner's last name.  At the Peterson place it hung beside the back door.  When we lived on the Way place it's place was above the refrigerator next to the stairs.

Ah, Yes, the refrigerator, a Corssley Shelvadoor with a name plate that slipped out of a slot on the door.  I can see Dad standing with his arm up o the refrigerator door moving the plate back and forth as he talked.  He often stopped to line up the name plate exactly in it's silver slot.

Back to the clock.  There wasn't room above the refrigerator at the Yost place, so it hung on the wall across from the door to the back porch.  The brown radio, set to stations WOW or KFAB, sat on top of the refrigerator.

When we moved to Grandma and Grandpa's farm, I think it was above the stove or maybe on the wall where I remember the big crank telephone hung when Virgil and Garnet lived in that house.  When mom moved to the little house on Pearl Street the clock's  home was to the right of the stove.  The clock came to my home before Mom moved to the La Vista Apartments.

I still have the clock.  It will not run.  I took it to a repair shop where they told me it couldn't be fixed.  I coiled the cord in the back and taped it so I could hang the clock.  It is above the door in my office set for six o'clock.

It worked

The picture was taken last winter after an ice storm.

My loss this week is 1 lb. 2 weeks in a row for a loss.

Sunshine today and we have had enough snow to cover what has turned to snirt (dirty snow). Better temps predicted for this week. For those of you that don't have the pleasure of Nebraska temps the high yesterday was around 1. It was 48 in Anchorage, Alaska. There is something wrong with that. Al, where is global warming?

1/16;09

I am trying to post a picture. All I am getting is a bunch of jibberish.

Life goes on

On Friday Donna's son & wife had a baby girl, Zoey Mae. She was about a month early, but weighed in at 6lb ll oz so is doing fine. This is just a week after her mom passed away. Her son did make it to the funeral. He flew in on Tuesday and out on Thursday and the baby came on Friday morning.

1/9/09

So far this year I have lost every week. OK, it is only the first week, but I did manage a .8 lb loss. This maybe is boring for you, but if I don't have to report to someone, I will probably just give up.

My friend, Donna, lost her mother last week. The funeral was in Bloomfield so I took the day off to attend. She only had 2 children, 4 grandchildren and 4 great grandchildren. One more great grandchild is due in about 4 weeks. At the cemetery as someone got out of the hearse he bumped the lock and they couldn't get the doors open. They have a release lock under the license plate, but that didn't work so they had to have someone come out to unlock the vehicle.

Kind of dreary hear today might get an inch of snow later. I hope it is only and inch.

Starting Over

I gained so much over the past two months, I don't even want to 'fess up!

I'm recording today's weigh-in as a starting point. Hopefully, will post a loss next Friday.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Happy New Year

This past year I managed to lose a measly 3 lbs. That doesn't sound like much but at least it isn't a gain and I can still wear last years clothes. I was up & down so much over the holidays it was hard to keep track. Starting with today's weigh in I hope to do better this year.

Meeting and getting to know the niece, great nieces and great great nephew this past week was wonderful. With the magic of e-mail and blogs we hope to keep in touch with them. Also hope to meet more of them in the future.

Everyone keep June 20th marked on the calender for our Gatewood reunion at Platte River State Park in Nebraska.

Happy New Year and may God bless each and every one in 2009.