Day 181, Church and Sons of Norway Lodge



The cat and the chickens out enjoying the sun.



It was another beautiful morning, and after a great night sleep, minus a few nightmares about the Black Swan, I was ready to start my day.  First thing to do was let the chickens out, they would really enjoy their freedom and the sun.

At 10:45am I picked up Doug as usual for church and we made it just as the choir entered the room singing.  In other words we just about late, but on time.  The service was good and very emotional, as one of the members who had just retired from working at the church is in the hospital and very ill.  We sent out our prayers for recovery and hope that she will be health back with us soon.

After church I had talked Doug into helping work on a few projects at the Sons of Norway Lodge in Bend.  We loaded up a few of his tools and lots of tools from place as well as a few sheets of plywood, 2x4's and various other wood pieces, that I thought we might need.  We arrived in Bend about 1:40pm and immediately began sizing up what we needed to do.  We worked up in the attic, increasing usable floor space, so everything could be put away more efficiently.  In the kitchen we fixed a rack so coffee cups didn't have to stacked so high and would not slide out in a landslide of cups.  We also, made a serving board to go over the sink to increase counter space.  In the closet we hung a dry erase white board, made a toggle latch to secure a table to the wall and attached a protective board to keep the rolling cart of tables from scraping the wall, when put away.  In it we spent about 3 and half hours working on small projects.  It was actually a fun afternoon.

I got Doug back home by 6:30pm and thanked him for his help.  I never could have gotten done what we did in one day.  He's a good friend and a bit of wise-ass, so it made the time fun.

I got home and and spent about 20 minutes unloading the truck.  Then I went to check on the chickens and they were all in their pen.  I gave them fresh water and put out more cracked corn, which they love.  They had laid 5 eggs today.

It was a beautiful weekend and tomorrow starts a new week.  I was just thinking that I have had the Traveleze for almost 6 full months and that means that I have been writing this blog for nearly 1/2 a year.  With the trailer on hold until the company I have selected can get to it, my updates are on hold too.  I am guessing it will be around March be for they can get to it, which will still be plenty of time to get it ready for camping season.   Until then it is safe undercover waiting for it's day to come. 

Day 180, Saturday


 

It felt so good to sleep in and after initially waking up at 7am, I didn't get out of bed until 8am.  The sun was shinning and it was time to get up and start the Saturday morning chore list.  It's strange I call them a chore, but I actually like doing them.  Tossing the sheets in the washer, cleaning off the counter, watering the plants, winding the clocks, dusting and vacuuming.  When I'm all done I feel like I've accomplished something and the house looks good. 


 

Once I finish inside I then move to the outside.  I had let the chickens out and they were enjoying the sun and running around the yard.  I washed the trucked and then started to clean out the garage, breaking down cardboard boxes, and getting my recyclables ready.  I had a huge collection of bottles and cans that needed to be cashed in.  Since is was another nice day, I put the top down on the Packard and backed the car out of the garage and loaded it up with my recyclables, bottles and cardboard.  I had $5 in cans, I dropped the recyclables off at my office and then went to feed store to get some cracked corn for the chickens.



The Black Swan, Yikes!



At 6:30pm Tracy and I went to see the Black Swan.  She had mentioned last weekend that she had wanted to see it, so we thought tonight would be a good time to go.  I didn't really know what to expect, and I really didn't know it was described as a physco, sexual, thriller.  I couldn't figure out what was real and what was imagination.  I think the "girl on girl" action was bit shocking and everyone in the theater felt a bit uncomfortable.  We walked out a bit shocked and laughing at the same time.  It's definitely not a movie you want to go see with your Mom and Dad, yikes!  Our next movie is going to be a Walt Disney PG.

Day 179, TGIF and the Portland Auto Show





1930 Cadillac Fleetwood



I do love Friday's and today was going to be a great start to the weekend.  Immediately after Coffee Clatter at work I was picking up my friend Bruce and we were driving to Portland to attend the Portland Auto Show.  Portland is about 160 miles from Redmond and it takes almost exactly 3 hours.  It was another nice day, with a few clouds looming over the mountains, so I figured it would be a nice drive.



1941 Packard 180



We arrived in Portland around 1pm and Bruce was hungry.  We decided to park at the convention center and walk to Red Robbin, when one of  the attendants at the center said the Dragon Cafe was good and it's right on site.  We both ordered chicken strips and they were HUGE.  It was basically an entire chicken on top of a huge mound of fries.  We should have ordered one and split it, but we didn't, so we took our time ate it all, except for t he fries.



Farrari California



The first cars leading into the show were all classic auto's and I was happy to just stop and look at them. A 1930 Cadillac Fleetwood and 1941 Packard 180 immediately caught my eye.  You couldn't help but notice their massive size.  The height and length was impressive.  You can't help but wonder what it would have been like to have been able to buy one of these cars new.  Or to have seen one of these driving down road and wondering who was inside.



2011 Camero Convertible



Challenger RT



Inside the Convention Center the floor was covered with the latest technology in the automotive world.  There was everything from Ferrari to Fiat, from large to micro.  It was hard to figure out where to start.  Bruce is a Mustang Boss fan, and he found the Ford display right off.  It was a retro auto overload, with Camero, Challenger and Mustang all dishing up something new with a 60's flashback feel.  And then there were the acronyms, with Cadillac's CTS, CTS V, SRX,  Acura's TSX, ZDX, Audi's  A6, A8, R8, BMW's X3, M5, Honda's CR-Z, Infiniti's QX, M35h, Jaguar's XJ, XF, Lexus' IS 250, ES 350, Volvo's S60, XC60, C30, and on and on.  By 5pm we were starting to get on auto overload and by 6pm we were done.



The $170,000 Audi R8



We were back on the road by 6pm.  We were going to meet Bruce's wife in Salem and they were heading to the coast for the weekend.  It takes about an hour to get to Salem and we met in the parking lot of McDonald's on Lancaster.  After saying good bye,  I was then on my way home.  I got home around 10pm and went and checked on the chickens, they had laid 6 eggs.

I was exhausted and was ready for bed.

Day 178, A good day for a run

Its hard to believe that its January 27, with the temperature in the mid 60's.  I couldn't help but have a bit of spring fever and want to be outside.  Today is another workout day, so I don't take a lunch and couldn't go home and let the chickens out.

My workout today was at 4:15pm and I think my trainer had the same case of spring fever and she suggested we go for a run along the river.  I was more than game for that, but was a little worried I could not keep with her.  The gym is blocks away from the Deschutes River at the Old Mill in Bend and there were a lot of people with the same idea.   There is a time in the winter months when the sun is at an angle that it seems to be constantly in your eyes, and today is seemed to be particularly glaring.  It was amazingly beautiful even if the sun was blinding and I wasn't going to complain.  I'm not sure  how far we ran, but ran for about 40 minutes and it was awesome.  I figured I would be done, but she had me do pull ups, some ab work and of course lots of stretching.  It was an great day!

With a stop off at Costco I was home around 6pm.  I checked on the chickens and they had laid 5 eggs.

Day 177, Hump Day

You have to love Wednesdays when you have made it to the half way mark of the work week.  This week seems to be flying by, which must mean I'm having fun, or extremely busy.  

Noon I went home to let the chickens out and at 3:45pm I drove to Bend to drop off one of the awards from the Awards Banquet, which happens to be right next to my trainers gym.   I had my workout at 4:30pm and I needed.  I don't know what I did, but my hip socket was killing me and if felt like I needed to pop my hip.  I quickly discovered that it was actually a muscle in my back and after a few stretching exercises I felt better. 

On the drive into Bend I was able to check in with the mechanic who's been working on the Rolls.  They have been working on the cruise control since Christmas and it still doesn't work.  They know I'm not in any rush so they work on it when they have time.  They do hope to put some time in this week and hopefully I'll get back soon.  It's going to be 4 months come February 8th, I think they might be getting a little tired of it.

After a good workout there's nothing better than going out to dinner and destroying all that hard work.  I texted my friend Doug and asked if he had eaten.  I didn't hear back right away so I figured he must be doing his night chore of chucking the Buck (playing fetch with his German Short Hair).  Buck lives to fetch and will fetch until  he passes out.  A few minutes passes and Doug texted back he was just finishing chucking and dinner sounded good.  Mazatlan Mexican Restaurant, here we come!

After dinner it was off to WalMart to buy replacement floor mats for my truck.  I actually have floor mats for my floor mats, and the old ones are discolored and starting to wear out.  I buy a set of rubber deep tread floor mats for the winter to protect the light tan carpeted floor mats from the slush and cinders.  While walking the isles of Wally World, I found three new bowls for the cats water, food and dry food, two Bic lighters and lint roller.  Wow, this was a really productive shopping trip.

Day 176, Time for an Audit



The Chickens were let out at noon and enjoyed the sun.

Today at work, was a pretty average day, except for the fact that at 3 pm we were going to be doing an internal audit of our books.  I wasn't concerned, but it's a little strange to go through the books looking for errors.  I'm not a numbers person or an accountant and while I understand the books, I want nothing to do with them.  This being said I hire really good people to take care of them.   Other than a few suggestions to improve clarity I don't think there was anything found that was out of the ordinary.  It was a relief to have it over with.
At home the Chickens had been running around free since noon.  by the time I got home it was starting to get dark and they had laid 6 eggs.  For being birds, they really are very entertaining.  They come run up to see me, they actually like to be held and they produce something you can eat.

Having spent the afternoon with an audit committee I was some how in the mood to sort through all my receipts and bills for 2010 and get my tax records in order for my accountant.  It was going to be an exciting evening!

Day 175, The King's Speech



A pretty great movie.



It's another Monday and I was in the need for making the week fun.  My folks had been to the movies over the weekend and saw "The King's Speech".  They said I should go see it.  Before I left the house for work I texted my friend Tracy to see if she wanted to go see the movie and she said sure.  She pulled up the movie listing and found that The King's Speech was playing at 4:40pm or 7:30pm.  We figured we could both use a break and could make the early showing.

After a busy day of work I met Tracy at my house at 4pm and off we went to the movie.  It was a really good movie and I had never heard why King Edward abdicated his throne, or how King George VI became King.  It's a powerful movie and a fairly serious subject but it's interjected with moments of humor that keep you laughing.  Colin Firth does an amazing job and I am sure will be nominated for Oscar come Oscar time.  Of course I loved the old cars and the several Rolls Royces.  It makes me miss my Rolls and reminds me that I need to call the mechanic and see what is taking so long with my car.  It's now going on 4 months since I dropped my car for some required service.

Anyway, great movie and a fun way to start the week off.

Day 174, Church, chickens and a dirty truck

After going to the same church for over 2 years, I figured I should finally join it.  Today they have a "welcome" service where all the new member come before the congregation and we are welcomed as new members.  It's a little strange to stand a face a church full of people, but it was fun and gave me an understanding of the Pastor sees every Sunday.   It was a great service and now I can say I'm member.

Back at home I had a ton of chores to do,  I sorted through a huge pile of papers on the kitchen counter, unloaded the dishwasher, dusted the entire house and had the house ready to be vacuumed which I figure I would do after the sun went down.  I needed to get outside and take advantage of the day light as my list of chores for outside was even longer. 

I had let the chickens out when I got back from church and they were enjoying the sun and their freedom.  I needed to clean the coop, water and feed them and of course its best done when they are out and about.   I also, needed to take the Christmas lights off the potting shed, fix a leaky gutter and wash the truck.
 

Chickens and a dirty truck


I finished cleaning the coop and just started on the lights when my friend Doug stopped by to get some eggs.  His folks are going to be stopping by from Colorado for a few days and he thought they would appreciate fresh eggs for breakfast.   We ended up shooting the breeze for about an hour and enjoying the spring like weather.  Even the chickens came and hung around us and wanted to know what we were talking about.  I really think they just wanted to know if we had food.
After Doug left I got the lights down, gutter sealed and truck washed.  It was now starting to get dark, so I had timed the day out perfectly.  As the sun went down the chicken called it a day and went back to the coop.  They seemed to like the clean accommodations and I spent a little time giving them some attention, before going in to finish up my inside chores. 

It's amazing how dirty everything gets over the course of a week, especially when you have two big hairy farm cats.  My gray cat is losing his winter hair already and there are large clumps of it on the carpet, where my other cat has attacked him.  It drives me nuts, but that's what a vacuum is for and it needs to be done anyway.

Day 173, Black Ice

I woke up feeling pretty good and was trying to figure out how to get all that I needed to get done and go see my Robin in Portland.  I had been invited to have dinner with her and her sisters family Saturday night, but I have to be in church on Sunday morning to be welcomed as a new member.  Robin was going to be in Sublimity visiting her 94 year old aunt for lunch, so figured I could do lunch there and save an hour each way instead of going dinner in Portland.  I really don't like driving in the dark any more and going over the pass in the winter really isn't my idea of a good time.



Dang sign got in my way of the Sister's mountains



I left the house at 9am and the roads were clear the sky was crisp and blue.  The roads were great all the way to the mountain and then I noticed that the truck felt a bit unsure.  I slowed way down and a couple times around 45 mph the truck broke lose and started to slide.  There was black ice everywhere.    I had a white Hummer come flying up behind me and pass me, not more than a few seconds later he began to slide and immediately slowed way down.   I couldn't help but think how lucky he was to have regained control and not have gotten hurt.  With the ice everywhere it made for a bit of a stressful journey.  Once I was out of the mountains it was smooth driving.

Sublimity is tiny little town 15 miles west of Salem in the rolling farm land of the Willamette Valley and is about as picturesque as they come.   Robin's Aunt, her mom, sister and here kids were all going to go to lunch at the Wooden Nickle, a small local hang out with amazing food.  I had a Big Eddie Burger and it covered the plate, it was huge.  Everyone had way to much to eat, but we enjoyed each others company and getting to know what was happening with everyone.  After about an hour and half  it was time for me to say good bye and head back over the mountain. 

The drive home was much less stressful, but there was still areas of ice, but the sanding trucks had done a great job of covering the slick spots.  Of course with fresh gravel down, you can't help but flinch every you hear that sound of rock smacking the windshield.   My truck was filthy and desperately in deed of bath.

I got home late afternoon and was ready for a nap.  I had been invited to friends to watch the Blazer game and to play Wii.  I'm not much of a Wii player but figured it would be fun.  The Blazer's won and I lost at Wii, but I did have fun and ended staying until 12:30am!

Day 172, And the winner is

I do love Fridays, but today is going to be a long day.   Our Annual Awards Dinner is actually a really fun event, where different business' decorate tables that showcase their product of service and over the years the competition has become incredible.  To make things even more competitive we have open seating and the decorators are not allowed to sit at their own tables.   We open the doors promptly at 6pm and the mad rush to find the perfect table is on.

The entire day was spent getting ready and fine tuning for the event.  My roll is to handout the awards and shake hands.  It's a tough job but someone has to do it.  The 25 tables look awesome and the nearly 200 guest were all having a good time.  The event went smooth and we kept the pace moving, so the evening didn't drag on.  By 9pm we were done and we all headed home.  It had been a 13 hour day and once again I was beat.

As for the chickens they had spent their third straight day in the pen and I knew they were going to want to be out all weekend.  Unfortunately tomorrow I would be getting up and driving to Sublimity to meet my friend Robin (from Oklahoma), her mom and Aunt for lunch, so the chickens were going to be cooped up again.

Day 171, Leadership

The third Thursdays of the month I facilitate a leadership program, where I take between 16 and 20 people around the community to meet the leaders of the community.  The program is one day a month for 9 months and today is day 4 of this years program. 

I was out the door at 7:15am to run to the grocery store to pick up creamer, fruit, ice and fresh donuts.  The day is packed with speakers, presentations, tours and discussions.  starting at 8:30am and running until 5pm, it is a long day.   By 4:30pm the program was pretty much done and we worked on selecting class projects that will need to be completed by the end of the program in June.  It was a very full day and I think everyone had a great time and had absorbed all they could.  It was nice to be done a little early, which gave me time to clean up and head back to the office.

At 5:15pm I had round two of my much needed massage.  You would think a massage would feel great especially after a long day; unfortunately it's more of a sharp elbow in my back pushing out knots.  A few times during the hour I almost jumped off the table as a stubborn knot refused to give way.  Anyway, even though they are a bit on the painful side I always feel and move better.

I returned home at 6:45pm, checked on the chickens, 6 eggs, took a hot shower, had dinner, drank a ton of water and went to bed!  I was beat.  Tomorrow was Friday and we have our Annual Awards Dinner.  It's going to be another busy day.

Day 170, Cold and Snow



A cold blue morning, January 19, 2011.

 After a week with highs in the 50's it almost seemed like winter might have passed, but everyone in Central Oregon knows that we have a lot winter ahead.  Waking up to 2" of snow was a nice.  I had looked out the window several times during the night and with a full moon and fresh snow it had been light all night.

At work I was busy running errands including running to Bend for several items including a new Nikon D5000 camera.  I timed it perfectly, running to 4 different locations in Bend to pick up and drop off items and then arriving at my workout appointment  5 minutes ahead of schedule.  My workout was exhausting and we worked all areas of the body, including dead lift pull ups.  I'm still surprised I can pull this 205 lbs, 45 year old body up.

Back at home the chickens had spent the entire day cooped up and only laid 3 eggs.  I think they were a little miffed not being let out.  The temperature was now 26 and I was still in my shorts and t-shirt from my workout.    Way to cold to be outside and I wanted dinner and a shower.

Day 169, Rain and more rain



Another 5 egg day, these two laid late in the day.



Today was a little easier to get up but it was a gray morning with rain and cold weather.  I'd be back at noon to let the chickens out and then not back until 7:30pm tonight.  We had an After Hours event from 4:30pm to 5:30pm at work, and then at 6pm I have a meeting at Church to actually become a member.

After 2 years of attending the same church I decided I should actually become a member.  There was meeting of new members before the Board of the Church in which we were all accepted.  On Sunday we will all be welcomed into the church in front of the congregation.  I'm not one who likes to stand up in front of people, but I'm sure I can handle it.

Back at home I had to once again, check on the chicken.  They had laid 3 eggs by noon and another 2 during the afternoon.  I was raining again and the temp was around 38, so it was cold wet and clammy.

At 10:30pm I looked out and noticed that it was snowing.  The deck was white and large white flakes were falling peacefully to the ground.  I love snow so I had to go out for a walk down the driveway.  It was amazing.

Snow seems to make everything seem to be perfect....all was right with the world.

Day 168 Monday Monday



Chickens happy to see me.

Another week has begun and I don't know what it was, but I did not want to get up.  I really had to struggle to get up and get the day started.  I felt like I could have slept another 2 hours, but I manage to make it to the shower, get dressed and drive to the office.  Even the cats didn't want to get up and I left them snoozing on the bed.
Monday's at work always seem to be pretty busy, so be fore I knew it was noon and came home and let the chickens out.  There were very happy to be free and collected 4 eggs.  I had a lunch of left over and was able to spend a few minute stretched out on the sofa.  I was a great 30 minutes and then I had to head back to work.

The rest of the day was pretty typical and not much to report.  I was glad to be back home  around 6:30pm and went out to check on the chickens.  They were all back in the coop and they were glad to see me, jumping off their perches and running up to me.  I made sure their water was full and they had plenty of food.  There was also one more egg.  I had dinner around  7:30pm and after dinner I just kicked backed and watched a movie.  Bed was going to feel great.

Day 167, Sunday and the end of another week

I woke up to rain and I couldn't help but like I was on the west side of the Cascades.  I had my normal Sunday activities planned and did my usual Sunday chores and got ready for Church.  Church service was nice but the hymns were a bit funky. 


The lutefisk is the small white blog on the left.


The chickens were out in the yard and seemed to be enjoying the rain.  I sorted through papers and stayed inside for the day. 

At 4:30pm I had to leave for the Sons of Norway Lodge in Bend for the Annual Lutefisk dinner.  Lutefisk is a white fish that is soaked in lye.  Luckily they don't soak the fish and bake it instead.  It is served just slightly baked and covered in melted butter and bacon bites.  If it wasn't for the bacon I'm not sure I could eat it.  The texture is just too jello like.  They also served red potatoes, carrots, hand made meet balls and a green pea mush.  It was actually really very good, but I wouldn't go back for seconds.

I stayed an helped clean up the lodge.  It is a rather large undertaking to put on the event and an even larger one to put everything away.  I left the lodge at 10pm.

Day 166, Saturday

It was spectacular to lay in bed until 8am and by 9am, I was up doing my usual chores of laundry, cleaning up the kitchen counter and picking up the house.  My kitchen counter seems to collect junk mail and other stuff that just needs to be sorted through and the majority of it tossed.

First outside chore was to run to the Post Office and mail in my quarterly taxes.  Next was a stop at the grocery store to pick up cat food.  The gray beast was out of canned cat food and he was not happy with me, so it would be best if came home with several cans.

Back at home I still needed to take the Christmas lights off the big tree in the front yard and pack up the lighted reindeer.  The garage is an explosion of Christmas lights and decorations so I spent nearly an hour straightening up the garage and putting everything way.  I even had Christmas lights in the Traveleze.

Tonight was the continuation of Tracy's birthday weekend and we were all showing up at our friend, Wanda's, house.  We hadn't all been together in a long time and it was good to see everyone.  The majority of them got hooked on Wii Dance Party, while I got hooked on jigsaw puzzle that they had out.  It really was a fun night and finally at 11:30pm we all called it a night and went home.

It was clean sheet Saturday night and I was ready for a great night sleep.

Day 165, TGIF

Friday morning I have to drive to Salem for a meeting.  I was on the road by 7:10am and I was very pleased that the temp was in 40's.  I figured if it was this warm in Redmond that the top of the mountain should be fairly clear.

18 miles wast of Redmond is Sisters and Sister Bakery.  I figured I would have to stop and pick up a dozen donuts for the meeting.  Of course I might have to sample one too along the way.

I arrived in Salem at 9:50am perfect timing for the meeting.  It seem rather strange to drive 130 miles for a two hour meeting but they felt it was important to meet face to face.  With a packed agenda, the meeting went pretty fast and before I knew I was back on the road.  I  arrived back in Redmond at 4pm, just in time to check emails, get my pay check and head home.

Tonight I was taking my friend Tracy out for her Birthday dinner and a movie.   Dinner was Applebees and the movie was Dilemma.  Neither were that great, but we had a fun time.  I just love buying a small popcorn, butterfingers and small Sprite and paying $15!  How ridiculous!

Day 164, Good bye Roosters

I met the guy at my house at 10:30am and as it turned out, I knew his wife.   He was a very nice guy and I asked, "so you're a chef - are these guys dinner"?   He laughed and said no they are for friends flock.  He wanted to build up his birds and needed some roosters.   I still wondered, but figured either way they needed to go.   I took him to the pen, where I had left the roosters and with in a minutes I had caught the three roosters.  I couldn't help but think they were freaked out, and hoped they would be happy in their new home.  The little rooster, or Tiny Tim as he has been known all of his short life, look nervous and he hid in my arms as I walked him to his box.  He really was a fun little guy.


The Schwartz Hat from A Christmas Story.



Back at work I spent the entire day writing script for next weeks awards dinner and gathering information about award recipients.  This is also my workout day so I stayed at my desk through lunch knowing I would be leaving early.  It is always nice to leave work early even if I know that I'm going to be worked to edge of death.  Tomorrow I get to drive to Salem for a meeting and back.  As nice as it is to be doing something different, driving over a snowy mountain pass is not my idea of a good time and I would rather be at my desk writing.   At least the weather is warmer and the roads should be relatively good. 

When I got back home from my workout I stopped at the end of the driveway and got the mail.  I had a package, but couldn't remember what I had ordered.  I looked at the return address and it said A Christmas Story House Gift Shop.  Oh yeah, I had ordered the long stocking cap that Schwartz had worn.  It was hilarious and I am sure I will find many opportunities to wear it throughout winter.

I planned to hit the sack early, since I have to be up a little earlier to drive over the mountain.  It's about 130 miles to Salem and it takes about 2.5 hours to get there.

Day 163, Middle of the week

Reaching the middle of the week with no crisis' is always a good thing and so far the week has been busy but hassle free.  Tonight I have an airport meeting and other than that it's been about as ordinary a day as they come.

I did receive a phone call from a guy wanting to take my roosters, so I plan on calling him back and seeing when he wants to get them.   And speaking of chickens I ran home at lunch to let them out.  When I got home I also placed a call to the rooster guys number and got his answering machine.  The message said he was an outdoor chef and  I  had to chuckle with visions of my rooster, turning slowly over a big barbecue.  Oh well roosters really don't have much use and I'll bet they will be delicious.

After my airport meeting I received a return call and the guy wants to come get the roosters tomorrow morning at 10am.  I was happy to be getting rid of them and I'm sure the hens would be too.

Day 162, Workout and a massage

Work was busy with our monthly Board meeting and the day flew by.  At 3:45pm I snuck out to head the gym for a workout with my trainer.  I was feeling a little sluggish and I figured it was the side affects of all the junk food I had consumed while watching the game.   Having expressed my lethargic feeling to my trainer, she chose to start me out slow and work my way up to a full killer workout.  By the end of my hour I was drenched and ready to collapse.

The highlight of the day was yet to come.  For Christmas I received a gift certificate for an hour and  half massage and I was going to use it tonight.  Massages are supposed to be relaxing, but that's never what happens.  I always have so many knots in my neck, shoulders and back, that I usually spend half my time trying not to cry.  I do feel better the next day and I can always tell I will feel better tomorrow.

After my massage it was back home and I needed to check on the chickens.  They had unplugged their heat lamp and their water was starting freeze over.  I collected 5 eggs, plugged everything back in and topped off their food dish.  They all seemed to be doing well and they were all settled in for the night.

I was feeling like pretty tired myself and I was ready for bed even if it was only 8:30pm.   After a workout and painful massage, I should sleep like baby.

Day 161, The start of week 23 with the Traveleze

Another Monday and the Traveleze is secure behind the shop under the carport.  There is still a lot of winter ahead, before I can start dreaming about taking the trailer out and of course it needs a complete restoration before anything.

Work was your typical Monday and I seemed to a do a ton of writing.  No sooner would I finish writing one letter than I would be asked to write something else.  The entire day was pretty much putting out one little fire after another and the day went by quickly. 

The big event for the day of course was going to be watching the Oregon game.  I was invited to friends to watch and eat!  Snacking on everything I could it helped cut the stress of watching the game.  I had kind of figured the Ducks would get creamed.  Surprisingly they  held their own and lost by a respectable two point margin.  By the end of the game I had gorged myself on enough cheese puffs and chips that I needed to go home and lay down.

Day 160, Sunday

It was another beautiful morning  and the weekend  forecast was for nothing but snow.  The weather people missed this one by a mile.  I figured today I could try to start the Benz and Cadillac and take them out for  a spin around the block.   First however, today I get to be an usher at church, so the cars would have to wait until  I get back.

Church was very good and it ran a little long, but I always enjoy the message, it's like taking a deep breath.  But now that I was back at home I had chores to do and I wanted to work on the cars.  The last time I drove the Benz was in October and I was bit nervous that it wouldn't start.  There is something about a V12 that doesn't want to sit and wait in a garage, they want to be out on the road.  I pulled the cover off and unhooked the battery charger.  With a turn of the key the huge engine fired right up.  One of the most impressive features of the car is the stereo system, which was left cranked up when I last parked the car - it's awesome!



1992 Mercedes 600SEL and 1942 Packard 120 Convertible

 When I parked the car back in October I was having some issues with the vacuum closer doors and had taken it in to see what was wrong.  I was told I need to replace the pump because one of the tubes had broken off and it couldn't be fixed.  At over $1,200 to replace I figured I would fix it after the holidays.  I then started to think, why can't it be fixed.  After removing the carpeting and interior panels from the trunk, I was able to locate the pump and sure enough one of the prongs was broke that the vacuum tube connects to.   I couldn't see why super glue wouldn't work, so I gave it a try.  The break was very jagged and would provide excellent hold if the glue would work.    Within 10 minutes the glue was dry and the prong was as good as new.  Once I had everything back in place I tried all the doors and they work flawlessly.  I was very happy to have just saved myself $1,200 in little less than 30 minutes.  

With that project done, I backed the car out of the garage.   I had forgot just how amazing this now 19 year old car, and once proud flagship of Mercedes was to sit in.  With the fuel gauge reading 1/2 full, I decided to drive into town and top her off.  It was as good as any excuse I could think of to take the car into town.

The rest of the day was spent tinkering with the cars, cleaning up around the garage and just enjoying the day.  They chickens had been out since after church and were all back in the pen by 6pm.  They had laid 5 eggs and enjoyed the day in the sun.

Day 159, The weekend

Waking up to sunshine is an awesome feeling, especially when you wake up totally refreshed.  I was up and out of bed and had laundry going by 8am.  By 9am I had the house picked up and was ready to head outside.  With all the sunshine, I wanted to get the truck washed.  In Central Oregon, they cover the roads with magnesium chloride to keep the roads from freezing, and while this is great for anti-ice, it is murder on chrome.  The chrome wheels on my truck take a beating during the winter and the only way to keep the magnesium from eating the chrome is to wash them frequently - today was my chance.

While it looked nice and sunny outside, the fact was, it was only 29 degrees.  I was able to wash the truck and scrub the wheels, but the truck started to ice up when I went to dry it.  My hands were freezing, so I worked fast and moved onto my next project.

My weekly chore of cleaning of cleaning the chicken coop was next.  I figured with the sun being out and me being home, it would be a great day to let the chickens out.  The moment I opened the door, the chickens flew the coop.  I had to move the Buff Orpington out of the nesting box and off the two eggs that were there.  She seemed very interested in what I was doing and when I finished putting in the fresh shredded newspaper she was right there to jump in.  She was ready to lay an egg.   By the end of the day I would remove 5 eggs.



Hall cabinet



The rest of the day was spent running errands, including delivering 2 dozen eggs to friends, via the Packard.  I drove the Packard all over, including to the Post Office store and into Bend.  I wanted to checkout REI and look at their winter hats.  REI has the best selection of funky winter hats.  There were several that I thought would be fun to give to my niece and nephew, but I decided to hold off.  I did however find a great wool and sherpa blanket that would be great in the trailer and at 50% off, it needed to come home with me. 

After REI I went to Costco and I stocked up on a few supplies.  They also had a hall cabinet that could work in my back hall.  I snapped a picture to send to my mother to get her expert opinion and to see what she thinks.  I have been looking for something that is not too deep, yet wide enough to fill the space in the back hall.  This might fit the bill, if it hold up to my mothers discerning eye.

It was now approaching 4:30pm and the sun was sinking low, it was time to get the old Packard back home before dark.  There is something about driving an old car through the country side that is thrilling, peaceful and of course nostalgic.   The Andrew Sisters, Bing Crosby, Margaret Whiting and the like were playing on the radio via my ipod, it was a classic experience.

Once back home and with the car unpacked it was time to check on the chickens.  There were all gathered at the pen and ready to closed in for the night.  It was starting to get really cold, so I was ready to be in too.

Day 158, TGIF

The first work week of the year is offically coming to an end.  Fridays are always a great day at work, with our coffee event in the morning, it starts the weekend off right. 

The weather was clear and cool and perfect for taking down the garland on the kiosks in the plaza.  It felt great to be out in the sun, but it was kind of sad to be take down the village.  It's amazing how fast the time flew by and it seems like I had just put the garland up.  It only took about 40 minutes to remove the lights and garland.  Next week we will have to arrange for a flatbed semi truck to take the buildings away for yet another year.  With that sad, it's always nice to get the holidays put away and to get rolling with the new year and all the things that come with it.

With no plans for the weeked, I was looking forward to getting home and kicking back. 

Day 157, One dead chicken

I was happy to see the sick hen had made through the night once again, and I got up a little early so I would have time to give some food and water piece by piece and drop by drop.

I left for work early for a 7:30am meeting and had several meeting throughout the day.  It was one of those days that rocketed by and before I knew it was time to head home.  I was a little anxious to get home and see how the chicken did during the day.  When I got home I found the hen had died.  What a bummer!  I putter in a plastic bag and took her outside to the trash, oh well such is life on a farm I guess.  I hate to lose a good hen, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be.

The rest of the night I put away one part of Christmas, my Lionel Polar Express train.  I had sprayed the train cars with snow, to make it look more like the Polar Express and yesterday I had hand washed each car carefully with water and a tooth brush.  They were now ready to be put away and it was a somewhat time consuming project.

Once the train was put I way I kicked backed on the couch and watched a great classic love story, When Harry met Sally.  It's still hilarious and timeless.

Day 156, Another Tuesday

There is nothing like a great night sleep and then waking to the sound of a cat about to vomit.  The sound is very distinctive and once you are awake enough to figure out what is happening, it's too late.  So, at 4:30am this morning I was shampooing the carpet, and even though it was a very small amount of cat vomit, I still had to get all up and cleaned up.  I wasn't about to wait until morning.  This little experience did however remind me to giving the cats, hairball control medication. 

Back in bed by 5am I figured I could still get more sleep.  Two seconds after getting back in bed the roosters started crowing and I had to chuckle.  Here I am a single guy living in the peaceful country with a sick chicken in the kitchen, a cat hacking up a fur ball at the foot of my bed and roosters crowing hours before the sun comes up.  I think there needs to be some serious adjustments made in the new year!
 

Work was great noting to exciting to report there, but today, is my first workout of the new year and the gym has moved to a new location.  I was actually pretty pleased with myself for the holidays, as I didn't gain any weight.  It should be a great new year and I hope to keep up my training and staying healthy.

 

After the workout, I was anxious to get back home and check on the hen.  She had been alone all day and probably hadn't eaten or drank anything since I fed her this morning.  I also needed to check on the other chickens outside in the pen.  I realized that I had forgot to take out fresh water and I was concerned they might be out.  As I feared, they had flipped over their water container, so they were very thirsty.  Chickens need to have access to water at all times, so I hope they didn't get dehydrated.  They all looked fine, so I will keep my fingers crossed that they stay healthy and don't end up in my kitchen like the other one.

The tree is gone and the leather chair is back in it's place. 
The holidays are officially over.



Tonight was more of the Christmas clean up and by 9pm I had the house back together.  I'm hoping to turn in early tonight and praying for a better nights sleep.  At least one with no cat vomiting at 4:30am.

Day 155, Monday

The first day back to work in the new year, was a busy one.  Answering emails, cleaning up the office and getting back into the swing of things, pretty much took up the entire day.  I was able to run home at lunch to check on my sick hen.

The poor hen was still sleeping and acting lethargic, but she was still alive. The eye dropper worked great to get the water and antibiotics in her, but she wasn't eating.  I discovered if I soaked bread in water I could open her beak and give her a small bites which she would swallow.  I was able to feed her an entire slice a bread, even though she was half asleep.  I figured that would give her enough energy to fight what ever she has.

Tonight I started the monumental task of taking down the tree and all the Christmas decorations.  I started on the tree at 8pm and by 8:30pm I had all the ornaments off and the tree tossed out on the deck.  It took me another 2 hours to put all the ornaments back into their boxes and put them all away.  At 11:30 I decided it was time for bed and the rest of the decorations would have to wait until tomorrow.

Another holiday season had officially come to an end.

Day 154, Sunday and the end of the Holidays



The funky rooster on the roof of the pen.



It has been a lot of fun having my brother and his family here for the weekend.  It's been a great weekend and a perfect way to finish the holidays.  Family is what the holidays are all about and having them here seems to make all the effort of decorating and shopping seem all worth while.

With today being Sunday, it means going to church and we were all going to go.  I wondered how my niece and nephew would handle the service, for hour, but I figured there is enough singing that they should be entertained.  The pastor is a fantastic guy and his enthusiasm is amazing.  His sermons always ring true to me.  It's a very traditional service which I like, but it might have been a bit to formal for everyone else.

 

After the service my brother and gang, made their final round saying good bye to the folks (grand parents) and my other brother.  I started to do laundry and picking up the house.  It seemed like a double bummer to have them leave and to have the holidays come to end.  Tomorrow it's back to work and I'll have to start taking down all the decorations.



One sick chicken



On the chicken front, I noticed that one of the hens hadn't left the coop all day.  She seemed to be a bit lethargic and by 5pm she could hardly move or hold her head up.  I figured the cold might have gotten to her, so I brought her in the house and used an eye dropper to give her water and antibiotics.  I put her in a cat carrier and figured time would tell.  By 10pm she was still sleeping but seemed more alert when I tried to give her more water.  I'll see what happens over night and hope she will be up and around by morning.  The rest of the chickens enjoyed the day out in the yard and laid 5 eggs.

Day 153, New Year's Day

Having stayed up late, sleeping in was not a problem for any of us.  I was awake by 7:30am, but stayed in bed until I heard others stirring.  The plan was for us all to go over to the folks house for breakfast and Christmas round II, with my brother's family.

By 9:30am we were at my folks house and the kids were anxious to open their stocking from Santa.  Of course Santa had left them there Christmas Eve night and Grandma and Grandpa had just been saving them.


Natalie and the horses



After a good breakfast with farm fresh eggs, we were ready open gifts.  My niece and nephew opened theirs in a flash and had wide eyes.  My niece had seen Star Wars a while ago and fell in love the Ewaks.  I was able to find her a vintage (1983) Ewak stuffed animal on eBay in new condition - she loved it.  My nephew also got a Star Wars stuff, including light-saber, action figure and star fighter.  They seemed to be happy and should be content for hours.  I got something vintage too, vintage egg cartons!  They were way too cool and will be fun to have around.

After opening gifts, I think we all needed a nap.  I needed to run to Lowe's again, and exchange my fathers garage door key pad for one that was not defective -  my brother went with me.  I couldn't help but notice all the Christmas items had been moved to Clearance and were an additional 80% off.  I bought two 60" pre-lit Christmas wreaths for $8!  At that price I couldn't afford not to buy them.



Evan and Dad on the pond.


Back home we took the kids outside to play.  The high was about 19, but kids have tons of energy and they didn't seem to mind the cold.  Natalie went straight for the horses and Evan wanted to check out the frozen pond, with a little help from dad.  I think they decided that farm life isn't all that bad and that Uncle Eric's house is pretty fun.

The Chickens were running all over the yard enjoying their freedom, yet freezing their feet.  They kept stopping and pulling one leg up to get them warm.  Even the rooster was a bit cold and he was very happy to have me hold him and get keep his feet warm in my hand.

We all headed back over to my folks house, for yet another and the last big meal of the Holidays.  I think we all agreed that the next week was going to be nothing but steamed vegetables.

To end the evening we all went out into the Potting Shed and we lit a fire in the pot bellied stove.  With the outside temp near 15, the little stove worked hard to keep the cozy space warm.    It was a fun way to end the holiday season.

Day 152, New Year's Eve

New Year's Eve started off a bit brisk with the thermometer reading 17 degrees at 7am.  With the dusting of snow still hanging around and some pretty heavy frost, it really looked cold.

The first thing on my list to get done was check on the chickens.  I figured their water had frozen despite the fact it sits on a warming tray.  When I checked on them, sure enough the water was frozen and they were thirsty.  I also needed to give them some feed.  They have been eating a combination of Chicken scratch, cracked corn and oats.  I checked for eggs and there were already 2 in the box.


My Niece watching Prancer and brother just before Midnight,
Happy New Year!



I needed to go run to the store and pick up some groceries to stock up the refrigerator.  My brother and his family will be arriving early afternoon and staying the weekend.  I was out of egg nog, milk and few other essentials.   I also needed to stop off at Lowes again, and I couldn't help but check out the 80% off Christmas items.

My brother Greg, Jen, Natalie and Evan arrived about 4pm.  It was going to be like Christmas round 2 all over gain.  Tonight of course is New Year's Eve and my Nephew (5) and Niece (7) wanted to stay up until midnight.  With the help of some movies we figured we could do it.  I ordered take and bake pizza's for dinner, so we had the making for a fun night.  The highlight of them arriving at my house for my Niece and Nephew was seeing the horses and chickens.

Having finished watching Home Alone and most of Prancer, we stopped the movie just in time to see the ball drop in New York's Time Square.  This was my Niece's second New Year's that she stayed a wake to  midnight and this would be my Nephew's first.  Both my brother and I texted a few friends wishing them Happy New Year as the big moment arrived.

Another year has come to an end and another just begun,  Happy New Year every one!