This month's calendar Archives
June 17, 2011
IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!
Now that the weather has finally decided which season this is and has given us a few days of sunshine, I managed to get some yard work done without having to dodge all the rain showers that we have been getting lately. Last weekend was simply gorgeous and just what my garden and plants needed. I now have green beans, carrots, beets and kale sprouting in my garden. I got some weeding done in my various beds around the property and even managed to attack the area between Leanna's place and ours with the weedeater. It's starting to look pretty good around here.
I have been working on my "fountain" project and got the area all weeded out the other day. There are four rotten stumps that have to be removed before we can wire for the fountain and install it. So Dave got the Kubota fired up and decided to pull them out. Well, two came out with ease but the other two still have solid roots and will have to be sawed off flush and then we'll get our friend Des to finish the job with his stump grinder. Dave also put up a gutter on one side of my greenhouse where he had installed a shelf. When it rains, all the water runs off the roof into my flower pots on the shelf and drowns the plants. So he installed a gutter and we placed a rain barrel at the end of the spout so I can collect the water. Is that conservation or what!
On Saturday evening we were invited to join a group of friends at a local venue where we listened to a band ("Shy Jazz") outside under a clear sunny sky. Des and Donna's daughter, Dawn was a guest performer with the band and she played her flute. Where else for $8.00 can you get a nice glass of wine, all kinds of food (cheese and chocolate fondue) and be entertained for three hours by a live band? It was great!
I didn't have to cook dinner a couple of times this week which is always nice. We were invited for dinner on Monday evening at the home of some fellow steamboaters. Norm and Jeanette live in Astoria and have this neat old house which has a view of the Columbia River and the bridge. We had a nice visit and a great meal. Then on Tuesday night, we were invited down to the Kahrs' for dinner. Donna is on a gluten-free diet and fixed spaghetti. She started out with gluten-free noodles but wasn't very successful as they all stuck together. She ended up making just regular noodles which was fine with us. She also made some homemade bread and brownies which were gluten-free. I usually can tolerate most anything, but for the last couple of days my digestive system hasn't been doing very well and I don't know if it was the food or a bug. Donna had just had surgery on her shoulder and - bless her heart - managed to pull off a pretty good meal.
We got a phone call the other evening from our oldest granddaughter, Ashtin. She is in the sixth grade and called to tell us that she was given a Presidential Certificate for her scholastic abilities. She was so excited to receive a note from the President of the United States! She is a pretty smart cookie and received all A's and one B on her report card. She loves to read and I think this is why she is so smart.
Our daughter Lara called the other night to tell us their exciting weekend. Around 9:30 p.m. on Friday, they got a knock on the door. It was an FBI agent and a State Trooper who wanted to use their back yard for a 48-hour stake-out! Apparently the house behind theirs - which is about 100 yards across a gully - has some suspicious character that they wanted to keep an eye on. The agents assured her that there was no danger involved. They live in West Linn which is considered a pretty upscale area but they sure do attract some strange people in their neighborhood. About a year ago the police used their backyard while they arrested another neighbor for ID theft and I guess at the end of their street (which is a dead end) there is guy growing marijuana. He says it's for "medical reasons" although there is traffic at all times of the night.
We have the steamboat almost ready for the season. I've spent the better part of the last couple of weeks getting a coat of paint on the interior and we now have everything back in, ready to fire it up. Dave has to finish working on a pump (he'll get the parts he needs in Portland this weekend) and then we're hoping we can steam it up and launch it.
Things may get busy for Dave because our city manager just resigned. The selection and interview process can get a bit involved for the city council, so there's one more thing to add to the list of things that we need to find time to get done.
Dave is off to announce at the Rose Cup races this weekend so I will be keeping the home front safe. He will leave on Friday and return sometime on Sunday evening. I am expecting some good friends to drop in on Saturday evening and we will probably go out to dinner somewhere. Otherwise, no great plans.
