October

It's been 60 years !!! ..... since I was a freshman on this campus.   We met Jon and Mary Beth and spent the weekend with sophomore Mason.    We got the grand tour, of which I remembered very little.  It is a beautiful campus and a perfect day for wandering.     

We went to the airport and watched the students take off one by one.   I think it's a good place to fly...,without mountains.   I was a bit anxious thinking about Mason being up there by himself.   I don't remember being concerned about Jon doing the very same thing.   I'm assuming I just can't remember but Jon was also flying on his own before he even left for college so had some experience.   And Mason is the youngest of the grands......

It was a fun filled weekend, punctuated by a UND hockey game.        How fun to see all the families, babies with headphones, everyone in green and cheering loudly.   And they do sell a lot of beer.    Mason is in the band but skipped this evening so was my guide to everything hockey and band....they are good and added so much to the spirit of the game....but they still lost.  

He sent this pic to his girlfriend  ( who is in school in Gainesville ! ) and she said I was 'slay'.... I took it as a compliment ?

Back to our other life..... the leaves are turning, the roses are in full bloom ( after hardly showing up this summer ) and the weather is perfect.   

  In the recesses of a cupboard, I found this like-new rice cooker.    It made the fluffiest and most perfect quinoa in 35 min.   Normally I use the Insta Pot , which is faster, but it sticks to the bottom.    Next up is brown rice.    

We will get our flu and Covid vax today and hope that getting them at the same time won't be a mistake.   

This is Scout.   He is a Catahoula Cattle dog.   He looks more ferocious than he is.   But he was a pain to draw.   She gave me several pictures and he was grey, brown or black depending on the light.   And the pics were out of focus.    I should have taken my own but I stumbled thru.    He has
 a blue and a brown eye.   That was the first thing the framer said so I'm glad that is obvious.   I give them double matted.  I think it enhances my work and protects the surface from contact with a glass frame.  I hope they like him.   Next up is a golden retriever..... I think it will be very hard.  

 

September

We did our annual jaunt around Crystal Lake.   This is a 4 mile trail at 9700 ft but fairly flat so the altitude isn't an issue.    The lake has been drawn down due to a crack in the small dam so the reflections are not as 

impressive and it gets pretty boggy farther out.

This was the only wildlife.   In years past, we've seen moose in the boggy areas and a large fat porcupine.   The bear claw marks on the trees are fresh and a reminder that we are in their territory.  

Yesterday we headed up Last Dollar Road, it is up and over the mountains to Telluride.   Had hoped the aspen were at peak but we were a few days late and there were bare spots and some dull color.   Still a pretty drive but busy.    It is very very rough and narrow and has water crossings.   On each end, it starts out a gravel road and some try it in ordinary cars despite the warning signs to use 4 wheel drive.     I have so many good pictures from previous years that I took none yesterday.  

This is the finished Alex.   They were so pleased and have spread the word so I have had some requests.    I think I may start charging a small fee to cover my supplies and the double mats. 

  

This is Scout.   He is a Cattle dog and the picture is terrible.   She sent me several and sometimes he is light grey, other times dark brown and then black.   We had a chat and she says he is black.   He has one blue eye and one brown altho I had to use other pictures to figure that out.   I'm glad I don't do this to keep food on the table.  It can be stressful....

And here are the silver medal winners in the Delta tournament !!   Their opponents were in their 40's !!   When you get up in years, there isn't availability to play with your peers so you get challenged mightily by the young and agile.  But they looked great and held their own and impressed the challengers.    Well done.  

The hummers are gone for the year and I will miss them.    We discovered that 3 fat raccoons tried their best to climb the pole to the feeder at 2:30 am.  They succeeded in spilling sticky water all over the patio.   We put out a taller pole and that seems to have stopped them.   

We'll be traveling for a few days ........ be back shortly.

PS.   The tomatoes came back, started to ripen and the deer returned....... how do they know????

August......

We feel signs of fall..... still hot at times but more rain and cooler mornings.    The hummingbirds are feeding heavily and I change the food daily now to keep up.    They will leave in a few weeks and I will miss their antics.  

And so I keep drawing........ here's a few glimpses of what makes me happy.  

This is Alexander the Great.   He is all of 15 pounds but has a jaunty presence.  I see him on my walks and have decided to try and capture his cuteness.    White dogs are a BIG challenge and he is coming along slowly.    

I have always liked this picture of Andy and Mason so decided to do a pencil drawing.    I would like to go in this direction again.  

I did Oliver as a favor for a friend.   He is her grand dog and very very old.   She will gift it to her daughter at some point.   It was a terrible picture to work from.   Luckily he is a pure bred and I could find lots of references for color.   

   

Rosie is Becca and Michael's young mixed breed.   Very rambunctious.    The picture was of her full body but at this age, she is all legs and I opted to edit to a better view.   

This is Sir Reddington.  Jeff and Jen's Shiba Inu ...... I am not thrilled with this but if I get a better pic, I will try again. 

And here is the late Guiness.....another Shiba of Jen's.    He was fun to do.  

These two gave me fits.    I took a gazillion pics but still wasn't pleased with any of them.   I just decided to go ahead and do my best ..... I'm sure I will try again .     On the left is Aspen and the other is Tellie.   They are Portuguese water dogs and live at Mike and Jenna's house.   Tellie is blind and diabetic but I gave her pretty eyes.    They are now joined by Georgie, who is a few months old doodle.   She will not be easy either with her dark curly hair.     The round thing in the corner is a magnet which holds the paper to my board when I'm drawing.  

And then there is Mother Nature's handiwork. .... beautiful cherry tomatoes from 2 plants.   They are 

exquisitely tomatoey tasting .

I see many more in our future salads.   I also have another plant with bigger tomatoes but they are slow growing.... 

So that is August and you can see what I do with my time....besides Wordle of course with my smart grand girls and....... wanting to hope again and feeling the JOY !     
 

July.......already ?

I'm still in April.   

With a special dispensation from the city officials, 56 golf carts from our community drove down to Cerise Park one lovely evening.    The city dug deep and built this generous amphitheater and we've enjoyed several concerts over the past year or two.   This evening, it was the USAF band.    

We followed the bike path  altho we had to cross a couple city streets.    Of course, we stopped traffic but except for one irate, vulgar guy,( in a large truck of course ),   the journey was enjoyable.   And the evening was perfect and reminded us of our Sunday evenings listening to the West Point bands,  overlooking the Hudson.

 

 

And then Lizzie and her friend Tristyn drove over.     We did the rough and narrow shelf road up to Yankee Boy Basin.   It is a favorite ride up to 11,000 ft.   The wildflowers were perfect.    

My first drawings of Murphy and the cat are on display now above Jon's fireplace.   And joined by the antique propeller that my dad gave to Jon when he soloed at age 16.   My dad also flew small planes so I guess it's in the DNA.   I took lessons, thinking it might help me overcome my intense fear of flying, but never considered soloing...... never.   And it didn't really help.   So, they say, talk to a pilot...........!!

I did draw as a child and was praised by my teachers and given special assignments.   Then I wandered on to other things and in my 30's, I took up oils.   It was messy and smelly and I enjoyed it.   I had to paint at the dining room table, surrounded by 3 kids and various pets.  

 Later, I explored various media and took lots of lessons but no direction became inspiring.  

And then, at the ripe old age of 80, I take up animal portraits.   I'm still surprised.  

I have 4 more dog portraits finished and matted but not in their homes yet so can't reveal.    And always getting more ideas for my next one.   

I read a good book.  "You Are Here" by David Nicholls.   Now I want to walk across England.   Kindle books are expensive and a real extravagance.      As my roommate says, 'well, we don't buy meat ! '   I also reread many and I'm back to "Wolf Hall" and will probably read all 3 in the trilogy by Hilary Mantel.  I've always enjoyed British history .... and, if I walked across England, I could also see the castles I read about.    Now I'm enjoying Prime's "Lady Jane Gray" movie...   She was Queen for only 9 days before she lost her head and this is a witty, bawdy telling of her story.   

Feeling much better and back to walking my usual distances but still avoiding golf.   And I can get on and off the bike without pain so that is a plus.   

The news is dismal, depressing, frightening and makes me want to move to Finland where I could live among the happiest people.    

PS:    The nest on the front door remained empty for another day so we took it down.   The door was not as scratched as I thought.    Then for the next 3 days, we found smashed blue eggs in front of the door.   Was she flying by and just dropping eggs??   There is a roof over the porch so she had to be quite the acrobat to do a 4 egg bombing run.     

PPS:   I'm no longer moving to Finland.   I'm donating, voting and cheering loudly.   

Too much of a good thing......

A long story short..... I have been totally sidelined for over 10 days with severe S I joint pain.   After the 10K, I came home feeling empowered and proceeded to walk more than I should have and also walked the golf course twice with a push cart.   After a vigorous morning walk and a shower, I suddenly could not walk upright, get out of a chair or move much at all.    Ice helped but not much else.   Visits to a chiropractor ensued and gradually, I am moving again.      Today I did a short walk and will take it slow.   The inability to have normal agility and movement was very sobering.     

BUT, just to cheer me up....I got my stats from the BB.     I was 36,823 out of 43,333 finishers.   My pace was 19:40 / mi..... over 2 min off my usual.  My last mile was faster than my first (crowds !! ) and out of 17 women in my age group, I came in 8th.   I am so impressed with all the details, both before, during and after the walk.   

And another member of the family made some important strides as well.   Congrats to Mason on his solo flight !!   

So a mother bird decided our front door would be a good birthing place.   It's a large bird but other than that, I have no idea.    I'll check in a few days and see if there's anything in it.   She's scratched the door very obviously so a major paint redo will be needed.  

 Dog portraits have started up again now that I can sit comfortably.   Black curly fur is not my favorite.  

Weather hot but that's normal .... we did get some impressive storms with hail and wind and more rain than usual.   Need to get into the mountains  in the next few weeks to see the wild flowers.  

The BolderBoulder

Many months ago, Becca encouraged me to walk the BolderBoulder 10K with her.    This iconic Boulder 

tradition of 44 years is well known and runners from around the world enter.    And, many many senior walkers enter as well.    

I have walked (jogged in my younger days) regularly since I was in my early 30's.   I remember getting out in the early dawn to get it in before work.    And I have continued to pile up the miles as I've aged.   I still walk an average of 3 times a week at a good clip and manage 3-4 miles.   My walking app, Strava, informed me that it was time for new shoes after I had put 400 miles on them..... I complied and my current favorite are Hoka.   

It was a perfect Memorial Day..... Low 60's at the start with light breeze and Colorado blue skies.   

Yes, this is about 3 miles in and you could still reach out and touch your walking neighbor.   It was a bit frustrating at times as I tend to walk a bit faster than many in this wave (waves were made up of like runners, joggers, walkers, wheelchairs).    It's a relatively flat course.   I trained on the hills of AZ but that was not at altitude.   Boulder is a bit lower than Montrose so maybe that was a bit of an advantage. 

This race is known for its 'entertainment' along the route.   Homeowners and various groups provide diversions....slip and slides,  tequila shots, belly dancers, goats, blow up water slides, blow up swimming pools, lots of hoses spraying water ( which was appreciated later on)..... and music of all sorts.   Military bands, DJ's, amateur groups and Elvis and Neil Diamond showed up.     Queen was my favorite and kept me humming.     And, the gardeners displayed their beautiful yards...I even saw a huge yellow peonie and the ubiquitous red poppy and California poppy were plentiful.        There were frequent water/Gatorade stations and porta potties ( sponsored by a local urologist with funny sayings on the doors).       A Dorito display had staff holding large containers of Doritos....people just grabbed a handful with their grubby hands.    I said no thanks !!!!    But then followed up with. " well, if it was Cheetos, I'd get in line. !!"

Another BB tradition are costumes.   I considered a tutu ( there were thousands) but then my saner self said to act my age...... But others go all out....bananas were popular as were dinosaurs, family matching outfits and a hilarious chicken.  

The race ends at Folsom 

Field at the University of Colorado.    We had to circle the field to the cheers of the masses.....and the stands were packed.    Our bibs had tracking devices on them so Paul and Lizzie, in the stands, could follow our progress.   And  later we got an email with our splits and times.   

At the end, the world class elite ran ...... a record was almost broken.     I did the  10 K, 6.2 mile route in 2:02 and they did it in about 30 min.     I was hoping to do it in about 1:50 but I think the slow start and the crowds held me up.   I had no doubts I could do it since I had done it a few times before and I felt very good at the end.  

At noon, there was an impressive Memorial Day service with military sky divers and a fly over.   

I forgot to turn off my app at the finish so this time isn't accurate but is close.....

It was very special to have Becca at my side and Paul and Lizzie cheering us on.     And no, I won't do it again..... maybe..... I didn't like the crowds but thoroughly enjoyed the entire event otherwise.    I don't think I've ever been part of a group totaling over 47,000  happy people.      

 

May....

To the young, life at 81 might not seem that exciting or enviable.   But to the 81 year old, life is very good and might even be exciting now and then........... 

Love the color of these tulips which helped me celebrate my day last month.  

 

It's been a colorful spring with favorite birds returning.   I've got the Merlin app now so I can identify those chirps and trills and calls.   Mostly, we have finches and sparrows and red wing blackbirds.   The oranges are out waiting for the Orioles.    We see the fascinating kingfisher hovering above the steam before his steep dive to capture his lunch.    And we've always had an old weather-beaten heron that has been here as long as we have. But then, 

this new colorful heron dropped by.   He is quite magnificent.   

One day, while being lazy on the patio, I noticed a large bird heading toward the pond and extend his talons and swoop low.   He came up empty taloned but I was shocked to see that it was an eagle.   I have never seen one around here.   They are an hour or so away near the mountains but this was a great surprise.   

In years past, spring meant many baby geese and ducks on the golf course.    I think bird flu in the past years has really decimated them.   We have one Mallard family of 5 cute ducks and a geese family of 4 little ones.   That's all I've seen.   

Somehow, we ended up with a 60 year old son.   I remember that day vividly and many of his milestones and now he is a grandfather !    All the kids came to surprise him and Ashlee and Victor helped with the blowing out of all 60 candles.  It was a great weekend.     And yes, that table top is covered in pennies.  

And, as I write this,  son #2,  Jeff, celebrates 58 years young.   He is  also a grandfather and a talented golfer.   Those were busy years with 2 very active boys.  

I've been increasing my walking distance in prep for a fun event next weekend with Becca.  Stay tuned.   Great views and interesting audio books make for good walks.   

 

We came home from Mike's birthday gathering with a new toy.   I know nothing about 3-D printers but Mike and Jenna are so creative and they have made amazing things.   I wish I had taken some pictures.   She made a tower for hydroponic gardening and has about 8 plants happily thriving.   Ours is humming away making things that are functional....currently these cute clamps.   Stay tuned....

Meanwhile, this is the latest off the drawing board.   This is Kismet, Lizzie's cat.   She was fun to capture with all the bright colors.    I have finished another dog but it is not ready for public viewing yet.  AND, always waiting in the wings are the 2 black curly haired  dogs, Aspen and Tellie.   I have attempted them but I need more practice and confidence.   

I am still quite surprised that I have taken this sharp turn into animal drawings.   But it seemed to come quite naturally once I got the basics down.   If anyone out there among my hundreds of viewers is interested in learning to draw animals, flowers or people,   I highly recommend Bonny Snowden Academy.   She is on YouTube  and has her own teaching website.   She is the best I have ever used.     I started on my own, grew frustrated and sought out various teachers on line thru their Patreon pages but no one is quite like Bonny.  Plus, I think anyone with a British accent seems smart and appealing.  

My golf has improved.   I have no idea why.   Maybe I've relaxed more as I'm not playing the high pressured league.   I'm trying the 9 hole league group since the 18 hole group is getting younger and better and altho they are very nice, it can be intimidating.   I'm also going back to walking 9 holes and enjoying the scenery while I play.   

Until next time.......... 

 

Birthday month....

We had 3 birthdays in March and all were celebrated in Colorado.    Mary Beth celebrated hers on the slopes in Crested Butte with Jon and Mason.    I have no pics of them but they are as good looking as always.    

Overnight rain was predicted but we awoke to a pretty foot of snow.   In order to get to the mountains , Jon had to shovel the cars out.   The winds were ferocious the night before and we found the construction porta-potty from next door had wandered down the street and tipped over.    Fortunately, a phone call and it was promptly removed.    

Then, a week later, Jon and Andy flew out.    The non-stop from Newark during ski season is a real gift.  The boys had different spring breaks from college but we were thrilled to get to see them both, but not together.    Jon had his BD on the 13th.   Yes, it was Friday the 13th when he was born!    

 

We had to interrupt a Rummikube game to blow out the cupcakes.  

And then, on the Ides of March, we celebrated Andy's 21st.    Brownies with sparkler candles and later, ice cream.  

Usually, we play board games that really challenge my brain..... but since it was my house, my game, we taught Andy how to play Backgammon.    Of course, he mastered it in no time altho it was close up to the very last .   

 

And Ruby's portrait was finished and sent off to my sister Maureen.     I have yet to meet Ruby but I suspect she and I could be friends since I know every hair on her head.    

Weather is warmer and trees are budding and iris are coming up.    Life is good.  

Home

From this........

......to this !

 And we are back home after a month away.    Mostly, I missed my fireplace.     When AZ is cold, a sweater or warm socks just isn't the same.

We were happy to be able to come over Lizard Head pass, near Telluride instead of the extra 90 min to go thru Moab.   It makes a big difference in a full day of driving.      We always take PB&J sandwiches, a few snacks and keep our stops to a bare minimum.   Yes, I missed the fry bread but I have pictures.    

After I get my hair cut this morning, I plan to tackle the kitchen.   There's nothing like putting away your few AZ groceries and freezer items to realize that maybe those spaces could use some  "Marie Kondo-ing".     And then I will sit by the fireplace. 

I have another family pet on the art table but I'll keep it hidden until it is gifted.   It has NO long hair.  

As we drove thru the desert, we listened to Kristen Hannah's new book, "The Women".   About Army nurses in Vietnam.   It got rave reviews but to an older generation, I think it will bring back some difficult times.  

I'm also listening to "Demon Copperhead" on my walks.   Not very upbeat.     

AND, I easily did a 6.3 mile walk on the favorite AZ hilly trails in under 2 hours .   So I have no doubts I can do the BolderBoulder.   My partner in all things is upping his mileage as well AND, he gave in to my constant nagging and got a pair of Hoka's.   And he likes them.  Strava, my walking app, is telling me I need new shoes but I think there's a few more miles in them....and me. 

And now it's time to hug my Valentine 💗