Wednesday, July 21, 09

Where has the time gone?

This is the first time I have been delinquent in publishing our weekly "BLOG".

Sunday evening, the usual time for me to sit down and relive the past weeks events of the Doris and Jim story. 

Son Jim and his bride Gina came for Sunday dinner and an afternoon of cards. After sitting at the table trying to keep ahead of the ladies, my back began to bother me. I decided to let the blogging go rather than suffer. On monday we were to meet with some friends from our former RV group in Turtle Lake Wi for dinner and a evening of gambling.  A short stop in 

Lindstrom, MN  to visit friends Shirley and Farrell Bergner and enjoy some of Shirley's desert made the trip to Turtle Lake shorter. 

We met our friends, Carl and Audrey Peterson, Luck, Wi who surprised us with Marlys Kaye, visiting from Arizona. Marlys is also a former RV'er from the group. Ed Stack and Carolyn Anderson from Wilson and Menominie, WI, long time RV'ers and Northland Travelers group members were there. We were able to find one another in the casino and enjoyed dinner and conversation and exchanged news from other group members who are spread far and wide. 

I am not sure of the gambling success of these great friends who had traveled various distances for an evening of renewal, hugs, food and catching up at the money grabbing machine store.       I can report on my usual unsuccessful attempt at beating those awful addicting monsters that most people seem to love. I inserted a five dollar bill into the hungry devil, pushed a button that I believed would guarantee me a winner and immediately lost $4.50 before I knew what had occurred. I punched  again and again until my recorded balance was .07 cents. I gave this amount to Ed as he traveled the furthest. End of gambling for Jim!  

After a long hunt back and forth through isles of  the shiny brightly lit machines I found Doris (it takes along time to find Doris at a casino)  doing better than I had, putting her money into a penny machine. She was receiving  great coaching lessons from a lady sitting next her. She did win a few bucks. She did not offer her loser room mate the return of his five bucks.

All in all it was a great afternoon and evening with friends. We will anxiously look forward to the next time. 

Walking: 

Walking can add minutes to your life. 

This enables you at 85 years,  to spend an additional 5 months in a nursing home at $7000 per month!

Grandpa stated walking at age 60.

Now he's 97 and we don't know where he is.

Thanks for tuning us in.

Jim and Doris

 

Sunday

July 12, 09

We, here in the Land of Sky Blue Waters are enjoying July weather! 

How about you?

Wish you were here.

This is the week previous to the famous Minneapolis Aquatenial. 

"The Best 10 Day's of summer" so they say!

It is also Doris' favorite time of the summer. She is an active Aquatennial Volunteer and is busy selling Skipper Pins to everyone she can. The pins cost 5 bucks and support the festival. She is getting close to her 09 goal of 400 sales. We shall see!

It has been difficult for her this year. The broken wrist and the problem foot has taken it's toll but she continues on, using her Caddillac walker.  She does keep on keeping on. She has what she considers HER customers, that year after year, look forward to her visit to buy the souvenir pins. Her all time high a few years ago was about 2, 500. Each year the prices rises and it becomes more difficult to get people to buy, especially in this times of our funky economy. Doris also volunteered to work at the bowling tournament and some other activities over the 10 day run. 

I, myself, just sit back and act as her driver for her busy schedule during Aquatennial. 

The tomatoes are growing (fruit/Vegetable, you tell me which) and there should be a good crop. Last year they suffered some crazy diseases and many were not edible. I have taken steps to see that this will not repeat in 09. I received some great help from the U of M. 

The economy has finally caught up to the gang at Eide Saw. Beginning tomorrow each person will take a work day off. This was a tough decision for Daughter Jane, (I was never faced with anything like this in my career). No-one likes to have their pay-day shortened. It isn't only that business has slowed, but the customers have been slower in paying up. It-makes it tough all around. 

I continue running errands and do what I can to conserve. I like to think I help now and then. 

It will get better, it always does and all this will be behind. 

Humor at this time seems appropriate.

Committee: A body that keeps minutes and wastes hours.

Dust: Mud with the juice squeezed out.

Gossip: A person who will never tell a lie if the truth will do more damage.

Mosquito: An insect that makes flies look good.

And remember, the handle on your recliner does not qualify as an exercise machine.

Thanks for looking in at our week, we appreciate.

Keep in touch.

Jim and Doris

Monday, July 6, 09

Minneapolis

It  seems like spring has finally arrived and we find ourselves with almost a week of July gone. My, how the time does fly.

The 4th of July Minneapolis Fireworks display was as usual fantastic. Living near the Mississippi in downtown Minneapolis gives us an opportunity to view of these gigantic ariel displays from an eqsy chair. We look out our north window from our dining area and can see the river and the fireworks from our 14th floor home. These spectacular rockets are fired from the Stone Arch bridge that was built by James J. Hill , the railroad magnet of the "Great Northern Railroad". The Depot is gone but the bridge has been turned into a public walkway crossing the river just as the giant steam engines did so many years ago.  It is just below "St Anthony Falls" the only falls on the Mississsippi. The falls and the railroad is what made Minneapolis world famous as the flour milling capitol of the country.

Doris especially enjoys this entertainment that celebrates the birth of our country. 

I remember the 4th as a young boy living in Milwaukee. Fire works were legal back then and I saved as much pennys as I could to buy fire crackers at almost any neighborhood  store. 

It did'nt take very long to burn up my supply, Probably 5 or 10 minutes, then I would sit long faced as it seemed like I was the only one who burned their supply in the early morning hours. Fire crackers in those days were going off everywhere. In the parks, the neighborhoods, in alleys and anywhere else you happend to be. For a young lad, it was an exciting day. 

After allmost every one was out of fire power we would cruise the gutters that were full of exploded crackes and for for duds (unexploded crackers). We would break the duds in half to expose the powder and light it with our punks (a slow burning fire on a stick). When they started to burn we would stamp on them with the heel of our shoe and they would bang just like they were intended to perform. At night almost everyone had a supply of rockets and you could sit in your yard and watch them shoot into the air. 

It was an exciting time. I can understand why all that was outlawed as many kids and adults alike were seriously hurt and burned each 4th of July.

Sometime I will write about our tricks with carbide, the kind miners used in their lamps to work in the dark and dynamite caps.

Hope you all had a happy 4th.

Doris' broken wrist is healing nicely. She is into the therapy mode and the splints will be removed on the 17th. 

Not to be outdone I have begun therapy for my sore knees. I have been doing some daily exercises to strengthen my knee joints (which are not worn, just weak) hip and walking. It all seems to be working as the soreness in the knees is disapearing. I am also riding the bike in our exercise room on a daily basis. The first sessions were a killer but each day it became easier and the time I pumped became longer and longer. I also realized it was great for my lungs andI  can now walk almost as far as I used to. I can rember the army days when we would walk 20 miles like it was nothing. (after a lot of bitching)

Doris and I are looking forward to the Carlson Family reunion August 1st. Last year after attending we decided it would be our last, but here we go again in 09. 

In addition to seeing all the Carlson Clan we also visit the Madison area Battenberg relations (cousins) and some close freinds. A lot of our close friends in Madison are now gone so our trip is becoming less and less hectic. We used to schedule visits, now we struggle to fill the days we are there. 

The tomatos are growing like crazy and there are many green tomatos growing larger and soon will be turning red. I  check daily to make sure the water in the lower tanks are kept full. I  also keep tying up the branches and cutting back the suckers. Tomato are a vine and they will grow out of control if allowed. I watch them daily and always tying and trimming. 

Eide Saw Service is still operating 5 days a week 8 hours a day. The economic diaster we are all facing is beginning to take its toll as more and more of the customers are slowing down or quitting. I imagine it will also affect our business in a day to come.  We are always hoping for the best and are keepin g on and on. Collection have also slowed and you must be vigilant with your customers and your vendors as all are facing the same problems. 

Time now for a bit of humor.

It is always good for the soul!

A tour bus driver is driving a bus load of seniors down a highway when he is tapped on his shoulder by a little old lady. 

She offers him a handful of peanuts, which he gratefully munches up. 

After about ten minutes she taps him on the shoulder again and hands him another handful of peanuts. 

Driver: Why dont you eat the peanuts yourself? 

Old Lady: We can't chew them because we've no teeth!

Driver: Why do you buy them.

Lady: We love the chocolate on them! === 

Thanks for tuning in to our blog.

Have a great week.

Jim and Doris