Crack, Snap and BOOM!

Well, what a day we've had!

I got up at 3:30 a.m. and stood by our front window to survey the snow that was accumulating, as well as the limbs that had fallen. While standing there I was frightened by a crack, snap and boom as a branch broke and part of it landed on the roof just up from the window where I stood. This photo was taken hours later as it was still dark when that occurred, but you get the idea. It was startling at 3:30 a.m!

I knew I needed to get up by 5:00 so I went back to bed and tried to calm down and get some more rest. I tried, I really did, but I kept hearing distant cracks, snacks and booms. Then, I heard one that was not-so-distant. In fact, it was right over our heads. That window is our bedroom and our bed is right under the window. Again, this photo was taken hours later. It wasn't that bad but usually that branch is way, way up in the sky.

I tried to go to work but I didn't make it very far. I was dodging around tree limbs down in the road but after going under two very low power lines I started getting nervous and went back home.

As the sun came up, we saw more and more damage.

We also found our garage covered in limbs.

Sam's car had taken some hits. 

And our yard pretty much looked like a snow bomb had exploded. 

 Every time I went outside I heard more cracks and snaps and booms.

 It sounded so eery out there!

This tree in our front yard usually turns so bright gold that it seems to light up our living room. I've always loved that! This year, though, it didn't even get a chance to change colors. Much of it is on the ground. Also, a lot of broken limbs are caught on other branches still, waiting to crash down.

Mike got up on the garage to relieve some of the weight before it went through the roof. It made me rather nervous but he was careful. He'd saw off bits and throw them down. I'd gather them, lop off some of the smaller limbs and move them aside.  The whole time we'd keep hearing more cracks and booms from our trees as well as those of our neighbors.

Maria and Eric and their girls came over for the day as they did not have power. It gets cold quickly! Eric helped get started on some of the clean up, including climbing on our roof to push off some of the big limbs up there. Thanks, Eric! Click here to see what's going on at their place.

We actually had a rather enjoyable day, despite mourning the damage done to our trees. Maria and the girls helped make it less sad. Our yard is just one of hundreds that are such a mess. It will be a long time before we get all the rubble cleared out but we kept our power, have no holes through our roof and no one fell off the roof! That is the most important part of this day. 

Eric also picked up my camera and took a bunch of photos of the little girls that turned out really well. I will share them, maybe tomorrow. I just don't want them posted with all of these pictures of destruction. It just doesn't go well. You get that, don't you?

Today was one for the record books in this town. Mike Seidel, of The Weather Channel, broadcast from just a mile or two from our house. That really isn't a good thing, is it? Nevertheless, it was our claim to fame on this sadly memorable day.

Stay warm and dry everyone!

Is It Me?

Mike teased me last night that I have been involved in a lot of weird situations lately. He rudely suggested that I might be bad luck, that I was the common element in a rash of odd events.

One such situation began as an innocent lunch. I was sitting at a picnic table outside the surgical center when a guy backed out of a parking spot and into a young woman who had just backed out of her parking spot. Those of us having lunch saw them get out and speak to each other a bit but they did not seem to exchange numbers. Soon, the young woman drove just across the street to a daycare and the guy drove off. Later, we saw out the window that the young woman was back in the parking lot and speaking to a police officer. One of the nurses I work with went out (not sure why) and found out the young woman claimed it was a hit-and-run. Well, eventually I was asked to go out as I'd seen it all. By then, the young woman was crying and admitting that she'd lied. Apparently the man had convinced her it wasn't worth turning into insurance but after speaking to her friends, she'd changed her mind. They'd advised her to get a police report and tell them it was a hit and run. She wasn't counting on an eye witness. That was a weird day.

Just this past Sunday Mike and I were returning to our home after a long day. We were stopped by an accident up ahead of us. Some emergency vehicles were there already, with more arriving. We turned around, along with a line of other people, and headed off, winding through a quiet neighborhood. Mike braked when two little puppies ran in front of us. They wouldn't get out of the street and cars were backing up behind us. I got out and one of them ran under our vehicle. Finally, I was able to call them into a yard and up to the door of a house, which luckily was their's. That wasn't a very exciting story but it was a weirdly difficult time to get to our home that night.

On Wednesday evening I was taking a patient to his car, pushing his wheelchair to the parking lot. I saw two young men buzzing down the street on two little motorized scooters. They were the kind that you stand on, holding on to a handle. They were going surprisingly fast...too fast. One started wobbling and when a vehicle came out of a parking garage he turned to avoid it and he wiped out, skidding along the road. I was trying to figure out how to help him without abandoning my patient but the guy got up, shook himself off and rode off. I bet he was sore later!

So, at lunch yesterday I was telling these things to Maria and told her that Mike/Dad was blaming them on me. After lunch, I rode home with Maria. As she waited in a left turn lane, someone rear-ended us! No, I am not kidding...right after I'd been telling Maria all of this! Not only that, but the driver took off! We got the license plates and description but as we got out to inspect her vehicle, we could see no damage. This isn't a very exciting story either, thank goodness. It was just weird that it happened right after I told her about those other events.

So, what do you think? Is it me? Do you think I am a danger to others?

Get Over Yourself?

I was reading from 2 Corinthians Chapter 5 this morning. What I read was something that didn't sound like it quite jived with what we are taught in our society. That is, we are supposed to be striving to please Christ, not ourselves. I think all Christians know this on some level, but it is really hard for us to put it into practice.

This is hard enough for Christians to understand. How strange this must seem to non-Christians who are trying to understand our motives. Why would we want to do that? Why would we not want to please ourselves? In our society we learn that we deserve certain privileges. We learn we need to look out for ourselves, take care of #1. We need to follow our own desires and be true to ourselves...go for the gold!

All of those things aren't exactly wrong. For example, we are to take care of ourselves. Our bodies are a gift and we are to feed, water and exercise them to keep them healthy. We are to get enough rest to maintain our own health. The thing is, though, we are to do all of this to please our God, not ourselves.

Mike is an example of what it looks like to deny self to please God. If Mike had his way, he would have stayed on the family farm in Northern Montana. Mike is an introvert and it was a good life there for an introvert. If he had chosen to please himself, he would still be there, spending much of his winter hours writing songs. That wouldn't have been a bad thing; the world would have been blessed with a lot more songs of substance. But, God had a different plan for Mike. Mike fought it a bit but once convinced, he put his faith into action and followed that call. He left the life he enjoyed. It was one of the hardest things he has ever done, a big sacrifice. He did it to please God, not himself. He went against who he thought he was to be who God wanted him to be.

When I read chapters like 2nd Corinthians Chapter 5 that term "get over yourself" comes to mind. I'm not saying that things such as confidence and self-respect are wrong. I'm thinking, though, that we maybe need to be reminded that such attributes come from God and are to be used to advance his work. What do you think?

In the Toy Box

Last night we had the little girls over for a few hours while their parents went out on a date. We came up with a way to reduce clean up time later. Usually we end up with toys all over. This time, Mike had another idea.
He just let Elise play right IN the toy box. Clever, huh?

Then, Cordelia wanted to join her little sister.

And finally, Bode wanted to join in.

Clean up was a breeze.

OK, for the record, Maria and Eric always clean up with their

girls and never leave the mess for us anyway.

Cute Lessons

First Skates

Upon donning her first pair of skates, 

Cordelia said,

"Maybe I can be in Roller Derby now!"

Happy Birthday, Cordelia!

Cordelia has been so excited to turn 4!

Today, she finally does.

Happy Birthday Sweet Cordy!

Recently, while shopping with her, I was going through some

dresses and said, "Let's see if this one is your size."

Excitedly, Cordelia said, "Does it say size 'almost 4'?"

Well, she doesn't have to look for "almost 4" anymore.

Today, she officially turns 4.

When asked what she wanted for her birthday, Cordelia simply said, 

"Something pink."

I think we can manage that.

I'll tell you what, these last 4 years have been delightful!

I love that little girl so completely!

She and I had a conversation this past week about the day she was born.

I told her how happy I was when she was born, how exciting it was.

She looked at me and asked, "Is that when my Momma said it was ok for you to be my Grandma?"

With or without her Mom's permission,

I absolutely love being one of that sweet little girl's grandmas!

You are my sunshine, Cordy!

I hope your day is sunshiney as well.

Lucky Tree Trimming

When a heavy, wet snow comes along this early, 

it can cause some damage. 

The trees all still have their leaves so there is a lot 

of surface area on which the snow collects.

It gets too heavy, though.

Branches start breaking.

Driving home from work last night I saw fallen branches all over town.

I was nervous as to what I'd find at home.

As I approached, I could see that some things had happened.

There are branches hanging off our roof.

There were branches laying all over our yard.

This one is about 30 feet long and

when I tried to move it I did not

even make it budge.

Mike got out his saw and took care of it.

The fallen branches looked kind of sad.

Luckily, the ones on our roof were

small enough that I don't think there

was any damage.

A few hours after I got home Mike came in and asked if I'd seen

the one between the garage and the fence.

I had not.

This very large branch had fallen

right smack dab between our fence and our garage!

It was heavy enough it could have taken out our fence

or damaged our garage.

Luckily,

the only damage was a bent gutter.

I am grateful it wasn't worse. 

Our cars were not hit; no people were hurt...

and our trees were trimmed for free.

Good Morning Wyoming!

Gordo

Do you know or remember Gordon Lightfoot? Mike first took me to one of his concerts in 1976 or 1977 in Fargo, North Dakota. It was my first big concert and it was a bit scary. For some reason they didn't sell reserved seating and they kept the doors closed until close to show time. When the doors opened, the crowds pushed forward with frightening force. I remember Mike trying to keep hold of my hand as people were trying to push through. We managed to stay together and my arm eventually healed (kidding). 

Mike has remained a Gordo fan since the 1970's. I am a Gordo fan by marriage. Our children grew up hearing John Denver, Gordon Lightfoot and other pop/folk singer's voices in the background of our family life. So, whenever Gordon Lightfoot is performing nearby, and sometimes when he isn't really that nearby, we go to hear him.  Over the years we have purchased tickets to Gordo concerts in 5 different states. Hmmm.... that doesn't make us groupies, does it?

(Gordon Lightfoot in Wyoming September 20, 2013)

Back then, Gordon Lightfoot was a really big deal. Here's what Wikipedia has to say...

"Gordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. CC OOnt (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music, and has been credited for helping define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s.^[1] He has been referred to as Canada's greatest songwriter^[2] and internationally as a folk-rock legend.^[3][4]

Lightfoot's songs, including "For Lovin' Me", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon of Darkness"—a number one hit on the U.S. country charts^[5] with Marty Robbins' cover in 1965— and the 1967 Detroit riot-generated "Black Day In July" brought him international recognition in the 1960s. He experienced chart success in Canada with his own recordings, beginning in 1962 with the Number 3 hit "(Remember Me) I'm the One". Lightfoot's recordings then made an impact on the international music charts as well in the 1970s, with songs such as "If You Could Read My Mind" (1970) (Number 5 on the US charts), "Sundown" (1974), "Carefree Highway" (1974), "Rainy Day People" (1975), all reaching number 1, and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" (1976) (reaching number 2).^[6]

Some of Lightfoot's albums have achieved gold and multi-platinum status internationally. His songs have been recorded by some of the world's most renowned recording artists, including Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams Jr., The Kingston Trio, Marty Robbins, George Hamilton IV, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Viola Wills, Richie Havens, The Replacements, Harry Belafonte, Tony Rice,Sandy Denny (with Fotheringay), The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, Scott Walker, Sarah McLachlan, John Mellencamp, Toby Keith, Peter, Paul and Mary, Glen Campbell, Anne Murray, The Irish Rovers and Olivia Newton-John. "

Gordon Lightfoot was once pretty much a household name. He was a denim kind of guy, just like Mike. 

A little more than a decade ago Gordo suffered a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm just before a concert in his hometown. That is often deadly and it very nearly was for him. He spent a long time in a coma. They had to put a tracheostomy in him and do abdominal surgery, damaging his diaphragm. These are not actions that improve a person's voice. Essentially he had to learn to breathe again. He still has problems filling his lungs with the amount of air necessary to sing. Nevertheless, he is now doing a 50 year tour. Think of that! 50 years of touring!

When we watched Gordon Lightfoot's Concert last week, I sat there thinking a lot about the aging process. He doesn't look too much like the guy I saw at that first concert. I wondered if he felt like that same guy. I suppose he does. As I age, I realize more and more that we are not the body we are living in. The essence of who we are comes from something much more substantial. I'm pretty sure I just said something profound there but this post is about a concert, so let's move on.

We enjoyed the concert. Gordon Lightfoot seemed to be enjoying himself and that makes everyone else enjoy themselves. The auditorium we were in held over 900 people and I believe it was sold out. Although he was used to singing to many thousands at a time, I liked that he didn't seem to mind entertaining a smaller group in a small town in Wyoming. I expect it was a walk down memory lane for many of those in the crowd, just as it was for us. I think we all appreciated his work, his songwriting talent and his love of entertaining. 



Do you have any entertainers that have stood the test of time for you? Any you'd go see in 5 different states?

It was a pleasant evening. The best part for me was this... after more than three decades, the same guy was holding my hand on the way into the concert. Yes, that was my favorite part. Oh, and I also liked that my arm wasn't in danger of breakage this time.

Healing Bitterness

Well, I decided this post was worth the effort to re-write it. I'm trying to let go of my bitterness toward BLOGGER for losing my post yesterday.

I am enjoying Bible Study with some friends on Monday nights. This week we talked of many things, including God as healer. I liked that! Maybe because I am a nurse, I don't know, but I really like to think of God as a healer.

It is easy to think of healing in regards to disease and injury. Something discussed Monday night, though, was our need for healing of bitterness.  Yes, bitterness. Of course I first started thinking of people I know who seem really bitter. It's always easier to see what is wrong with someone else, huh? The trust is, though, most of us have something that can makes us feel bitter.

Often people who are bitter about something don't realize it or wouldn't call it bitterness. Can you think of anything about which you might be retaining some bitterness? If you can identify something about which you are bitter, you have likely found something for which you need to consider offering forgiveness.

Forgiveness is a tricky thing. Sometimes we want to hold on to our pain, including our bitterness. Sometimes we want to wallow in it, huh? Eventually, though, it starts to smell bad, so to speak. In fact, one of the things we read was bitterness is like a cancer. It can grow and spread until you don't really even remember where it all began. 

So, how to wash yourself clean of bitterness? As I said, forgiveness is usually the ticket. God shows us forgiveness; we need to pass that on. Another tricky thing about forgiveness, though, is that we may worry about what message we are sending. Sometimes our bitterness is based on something really seriously bad that someone did to us. Does offering forgiveness mean to say that the wrong done to you was really ok? Nope. Forgiving and letting go of bitterness is not about saying a wrong is ok, it is about saying YOU are ok. It is to say you wish to quit allowing the wrong thing to keep hurting you. You want to be rid of it. You want to be healed of it.

OK, that is one of the things we talked about and I really wanted to share it. Now, I have. I feel better.

Bitter About Bitterness

So, here is the deal...

I wrote a post for today titled "Healing Bitterness". Doesn't that sound intersting? However, I did it from my phone and when I sent it to publish, it got stuck. AAAAAAAAALLLLL day long it keeps saying "publishing" but it never really did that. It is stuck. I can't access the post at all from my phone nor from my computer.

Perhaps I will rewrite it. Right now, I feel bitter about it and I'm going to wallow in that bitterness for awhile.

Sorry.

Weinermobile

Recently I had trouble finding a place to park when I was just trying to make a quick stop at my favorite grocery store. As I approached, I saw a lot of people lined up in the drippy weather.

Curious, I had to check it out.

It seems they were all waiting for a turn to

tour the Weinermobile.

It was kind of cute but I didn't understand.

Would you stand in the rain for a turn to peek inside the Weinermobile?

Live With Abandon

Live With Abandon

Newsboys

Sometimes the Grass Really is Greener on the Other Side

My Mom is an artist. She really is a talented artist and has done many excellent paintings. That is not the art I want to talk about, though. I want to talk about how she uses her talents as an outdoor artist, working with nature.

A few years ago my mother bought a vacant lot not far from my sister's home. That lot did not look too nice to most of us, but she could see the potential. The lot next to her's is still vacant and shows you pretty much how her's once looked.

That fence marks the edge of her property, and trust me, the grass IS greener on the other side.

It once looked as weedy and sad as that lot.   One of the first things Mom did was have this little playhouse moved from her old yard to the new lot. Then, in the evenings, she'd come over and hangout at her little playhouse. It is cute and fully decorated. Just imagine what the new neighbors must have been wondering. Some even stopped by to ask about her little house, did she live there? She almost could have, except it has no bathroom.  Click here to see photos my Aunt took of my niece's little girls inside this playhouse.

Eventually her new (real) house was ready. Since Mom has been living there she has worked hard to make it what it is today. From a weedy vacant lot it has become a beautiful refuge.  

We were there yesterday and spent some time in her yard. It is so relaxing!  

I marveled once again at her eye for beauty.

If you do not live in a semi-arid part of the world, you may not realize how difficult it can be to grow the things she grows here.

And she makes it look so easy.

Sprinkled throughout her yard are delightful surprises.

And pretty little personal touches.

Even with Summer fading, her yard still has a lot of spectacular flowers.

 There is color everywhere.

It still has a lovely place to read, which we did.

Fun at Target

Cordelia found some fun hats when we were at Target yesterday. That's it. That is all I have for today.

Thanks, Maria, for being our photographer.