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October 28, 2016
IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!
Nothing as quite exciting like a tornado or floods happened this week, just the usual gray, rainy weather and a peek of the sun now and then. When the sun did shine, I managed to get outside and rake up the leaves that had fallen. Most of the leaves were down in the front area so I asked Dave if he wouldn't mind starting up the Kubota so I wouldn't have to haul the two garbage cans that I filled up the hill to the debris pile. Well everything was moving along just fine when half way into the upper driveway, the Kubota gasped to a stop. Dave had forgotten to check the diesel and had run out of fuel. That's a big problem when you run out of diesel as it isn't just a matter of filling the tank, but you have to bleed the lines and get all the air out. So after three hours of doing that, the Kubota finally started and everything was fine. Note to self, remind Dave to check the fuel tank before he starts the Kubota!
Over the weekend, we drove into Salem to Leslie and Jay's to celebrate our daughter Lara's birthday. Her birthday was a few days ago, but with everyone's busy schedule, we have to get together when we can. We had pizza, salad and a yummy chocolate cake. It was a rare opportunity to get the whole family together and it was nice to see everyone. The granddaughters are all busy now that school has started, plus there are after-school activities which take more of their time. Oh, I remember those days! It's a four hour round trip for us, but it's worth it to be able to see everyone.
I ended up driving most of the way as Dave's legs were killing him. He's been diagnosed with Restless Leg Syndrome, but the doctors haven't been able to get the dosage right on his medication. As a result, his legs bother him - and sometimes all the medication does is make him sleepy. So I become his "designated driver".
I've talked about our feral cat from time to time. There really isn't much to talk about because usually, as soon as he's done eating, he's gone and we don't see him until time for the next meal. Well, Tuesday was the exception. Jerry was so proud, he was hanging around, making sure I saw what he had done. He had killed a rat and brought it to the yard to show us. He is pretty good about catching rodents around here. Of course, I had to praise him for his good work. That is two rats he has gotten so far (at least that I know about) and so I am asking myself, why am I paying for pest control?
Dave and Ray have been busy working on the church all week. Every time they turn around they are discovering more rotten wood. The floor had to be put on hold while they jacked up the one wall to replace the mud sills that were bad. They needed to replace one more floor joist before they could continue with the flooring, but as you can see - the sub-floor is nearly complete. We also discovered that the roof leaks so we will need to get that repaired as soon as possible. We have someone who has promised to show up and do that in a couple of weeks. We'll see. When we get all done with fixing the church up, we are going to throw a huge party!!
We did have to make a trip into town this week for Dave's lab work. His PSA level has dropped to .13 (that's point-one-three - he started with a 44 when he was diagnosed a year and a half ago) and we are so glad. He goes in to see all three of his oncologists next month and we are hoping for the best. Since we were driving three hours round trip for a blood test, we decided that while we were in town, we would do our usual running of errands before we headed back to the coast. The drive through the coast range - by the way - is spectacular this time of year with all the leaves turning.
We eat at home almost every night but every once in a while, I convince Dave to take me out to eat. We have been threatening to try the new Thai place in Manzanita, but never got around to it. This week, after great reviews from friends and neighbors, we decided to go and try the place out. We have never really had a lot of Thai food and didn't know what to expect (or even what to order). They made it real easy for us with a great menu and we really enjoyed the place. That one will be on our list of places to eat from now on.
Just as I was getting ready to post this week's journal, we got a phone call from a very excited Ashtin. She and her mother visited Western Oregon University last week and Ashtin really liked the school. It's a teacher's college and that's what she wants to be. So she completed the paperwork to apply for admission right then and today in the mail, she got the news that she has been accepted! We are so proud and happy for her. I don't know if I can handle having a granddaughter in college, but I guess I'd better get used to it.
I see Halloween is coming up so I had better get ready for the goblins. We only get one at our place but its fun to see him. That is one thing I miss living down here is that we don't have many young people. I hope to get busy and carve a pumpkin just the same. Happy Halloween!!
