The Blog: Spellbound by our own imperfect lives...

If you're in junior high, don't use this in a research paper. I am not a scientist. I make no claims about the validity or accuracy of this information. A person has so many corpuscles. If a person focuses their corpuscles on brain activity they get smarter and remember things and speak articulately. If instead, a person focuses their corpuscles on physical activity, their brain stagnates and they become forgetful and woozy in the head. Since I started exercising on a regular basis, I have been the latter. Woozy in the head. Acupuncture has not helped my chi to flow to my brain. I like basking in the afternoon sun with a glass of wine instead of making lists and doing stuff. I really loathe football on tv. How does this qualify as entertainment? I almost told someone today to have a nice weekend but stopped just in the nick of time. How could I think it was the weekend when it's only Monday? That's enough of my weird and cranky thinking for one day.

Regis took this very lovely picture of our hummingbird in the canna lilies this afternoon.

We had breakfast at Seven Mile Creek with Betty and Tom this morning. Nothing like the smell of a campfire and bacon on a fall morning!

To answer Jill's question about twitter. I'm no authority because I don't tweet although I did for a short time. I think twitter is one step down the social ladder from blogs and facebook. Shorter and more public. I think. It can go out over phones. Who would want to read anything that way? Here' an interesting article in Slate about what the author calls orphaned tweets , people who sign up for twitter, post once, and then are never heard from again. It's all very interesting. Let's see. The ladder would go (top to bottom) epic novels, romance novels, literary journals, newspapers, tabloids, blogs, facebook, twitter. I have probably left out a few.

As I was drifting off into my nap this afternoon, I was writing a blog post in my head. Unfortunately, it drifted away as I was sleeping and I could only remember what came after and. It might come back but then again, it might not. We've had a wildlife haven here at the Ponderosa today. Regis took this picture of a hummingbird in the cannolis but he wasn't prepared with his long lens so he'll be ready tomorrow. I think it's a good shot of a hummingbird. Not like the little bastards sit down and pose for you. In the other shots, there were rabbits, squirrels,and a plethora of finches. When I came home from the grocery store, there was, no shit, a red-tailed hawk sitting on the back gate. I almost died. Last winter, if you recall, we had a sharp-shinned hawk eating a mouse on the back fence. I'm almost scared to let the dog out. Here's my main thought for the day. I've been neglectful of my blog this summer, mostly because I have been fascinated with the medi...

We had a great Saturday. Got some things done around the Ponderosa in the morning and had the afternoon to relax in the sun. Amber's mom and dad, Mike and Peggy, rode their Harley down from Grand Rapids and came to our house for dinner. They're always fun. We had Regis' tremendous ribs on the grill, sweet corn, beer bread, and cheesecake for dessert. It was such a nice evening that we sat on the patio until after 9:00. Regis and Amber on the patio. This is one of our canna leaves. They're huge and tropical looking and are starting to bloom now. The hummingbirds love them. I guess I don't know if that's plural hummingbirds since we only see one at a time. The plants give our yard a great jungle feel. Regis is on laundry detail already this morning. What a guy. We bought a solar address sign the other day. Ever since the incident where Regis had to be transported to the ER by ambulance in the dark of a winter night, I've worried about people being able to fin...

I'm going to see a chiropractor tomorrow who does accupuncture. I have a funny pain in my upper left leg that feels like a nerve zinger. That's my diagnosis anyway. It hurts like hell when it hits. I don't want to fall down so we'll see what the doc has to say. It's probably all that exercise. We went to Mankato last night with some crazy friends. We went to Pub 500...the on to Choppers, South Street, and Blue Bricks. Quite the evening. There is a different crowd coming out after dark in that town, let me tell you. One guy coming in the door of Choppers as we were going out, commented that we smell like we take showers. Hmmm. We're on grill withdrawal today. Yesterday it poured rain all day and today it's been breezy, cold, and rainy so no grilling. We have a turkey breast brining and a hunk of beef waiting for a dry rub so looks like we're on for tomorrow. Big black clouds overhead again so maybe not... We're watching I Love You, Man . Some good lin...

I was sitting in the coffee shop this morning staring at my calendar, working on lists, and holding my head in my hands. A friend of mine walked by and asked what I was doing. Getting my marbles into the right slots so I can go to work, I said. I'm not sure I accomplished it. When a summer is as nice as this one was, it's hard to go back to rushing and list making and action plans. Ella came for dinner. Regis picked her up and when she got in the car, she let out a big sigh and said, "Finally I get to see Nana!" We just went to the fair together Friday but it must be one of life's great pleasures to have someone miss you like that. We made burgers on the grill, she played with the cream pitchers, and we ate popsicles and toasted pink marshmallows on the patio. I'm reading a book called The Women that was highly recommended as in "I can't put it down". I can put it down, believe me. I've been trudging through that damn book for two weeks and I...

Suddenly, making plans for the week is more difficult. Hard as we tried, we didn't win a lottery so I have to go to work. It doesn't leave as much time for play. Harrumph. I worked in the house yesterday. We're clutter kind of folks so once in a while, you need to rearrange and find the piles and get rid of some crap. I sold the piano and the very nice people who bought it came to pick it up in the morning. They have three children who want to learn to play, and as much as I loved that piano, nobody here ever played it. I have two songs in repertoire and it didn't make sense for it to live here and never be played, and we needed the space. But when I saw them getting ready to load it in the pickup, I was overcome with sadness. I went into the office to weep because I know crying makes men nervous. I'm better today. I found another piano book after they left so I think I'll put it in the mail with a note about being glad our piano found a good home. We went to Di...

Regis at the end of the evening. Amber at the beginning of the evening. Teresa at the end of the evening. (I can't be responsible for the order of pictures.) Regis, Bob, Ella, and Amber on the lawn tractor. Amber and Ella in the bobcat...Regis getting in on the photo. Regis and Teresa winning at bingo. Bob and Ella on the merry-go-round. Ella has a hand-squeezed lemonade. Ella paints a picture. Bob and Ella, Amber and Reg, and Regis and I went to the Nicollet County Fair. We had a grand time and these are some of the things we did: We won five dollars playing bingo. We ate at various junk food stands. I had a gyro that was only marginally good. Regis had a Chicago style hot dog. We went through the animal barns and saw alpacas, a calf, sheep, and baby pigs. Bob and Ella went on the merry-go-round. We talked to Kathy Sheran about her next campaign. Ella painted a picture at the early childhood booth. Ella sat on lots of lawn tractors and bobcats. Bob gathered food (ribs, cotton cand...

On Monday night in Rochester, we were invited to a very nice martini party. My mom was warned by one of her more worrisome children to not drink any martinis. Of course, she decided that a martini was just the ticket so she had one, and told us later if she had know other people were having two, she would have had another. She behaved herself with decorum and the martini party went on without incident. Yay, Mom! Other events from the day included a visit to Steve and Sherry's house where we were entertained by Pepsi, the ditch dog, a four mile walk around Rochester on Tuesday morning, a trip to TJ Maxx, and a stay at a nice new Hampton Inn where we had big white duvets and feather pillows. It was quite plush. It was great fun to see Deb and Larry again. We hope Larry is having a safe trip on his hundred mile bike trip. Regis, Young Regis, and Tom went to see the Vikings practice on Wednesday. The picture above is some dude apparently, ummm, rearranging his parts...or making a rude ...

Mom's here so she slept in the king-size bed with me and Regis was reassigned to the couch. He insisted. What a nice guy. We had a great summer dinner of steak, shrimp and scallop kabobs, sweet corn, and a salad with basil vinaigrette last night. Mom and Regis had some of Bruce's apple pie recipe for dessert. This is the apple pie you make with grain alcohol, not the kind you make with apples. It smells great, though, so I enjoy it from that angle. I got up early and went to the Pulse where I watched an episode of Clean Sweep while I walked on the treadmill. The treadmill routine (is that the right word?) that I started a month ago and which nearly killed me is now easy. Funny how that happens. It's dark in the morning when I go and I hate that. We're heading to Rochester today to see the Norris cousins, their spouses, and kids. We've been invited to a cook-out at the home of a niece on Mr. Butler's side. I guess they like to serve martinis. My brother Pat warne...

A summer night. The moon's face, almost full now, comes and goes through clouds. I can't see any stars, but a late firefly still flicks his green lamp on and off by the fence. In this light that is more illusion than light, I think of things I can't make out: milkweed opening its millions of flowerets, their heavy heads smelling like dark honey in the night's darkness; day lilies crowding the ditch, their blossoms closed tight; birds asleep with their small legs locked on twigs; deer stealing into the uncut hay; and the young bay mare kneeling down in the pasture, composing herself to rest, as rounded and strong as a meant prayer. "A Summer Night" by Kate Barnes, from Kneeling Orion

I had such good intentions of cleaning my house today. I have so little motivation, though, and finally just succumbed to laziness with a good sit on the patio and an hour long nap. Mom's coming to visit tomorrow but I know she doesn't care about a dust dragon or two. I did get two things done that have been on my to-do list for several years. I called a cleaning person who will come on Thursday to see if she wants to take us on as an encumbrance in her life. She comes highly recommended and other people who have her say she doesn't need to be told what to do. A cleaning person who wants instructions would be like a hair dresser who needs directions. They're the professionals. I also called a painter to come and take a look at our garage. He's been painting in town for forty years so when he asked if this part should be white and did this color match the siding of the house, I just shrugged and said, "You're the professional, Don." So by the end of the...

Regis reminded me tonight that it's been almost a week since my last post. I've composed a few in my head but nothing I got down on the screen. I'm back. It's been a busy week, some of which I can't remember. Tiffany's car broke down and we decided to buy her an inexpensive car to help her make it through school. That's stressful stuff for a person who doesn't like to look at, think about, or shop for cars. I finally remembered that my cousin Mike sells cars in Winona. I checked out his website, then called him and bought a car sight unseen. It isn't the first time I've done that, by the way. Mike was a great help and has gone way out of his way to make sure Tiffany has wheels on Monday when she starts school. They're even delivering the car to her in Minneapolis. Joanne came for coffee early Wednesday morning and we sat on the patio as the sun came up. There was a hummingbird in the garden so that was like a tiny gift. She left for Illinois ...

I was out of town today and Regis went over to see the little kids. He offered to take Ella out for lunch and let her pick the place. She wanted to go to Patrick's of course, so off they went. They were having a conversation (language dancing) and she wanted to know where Nana was today. Regis explained that I had gone to a friends house in Minneapolis for lunch and that other friends were coming, too. Ella asked a few question, then the pieces fell into place and she said, "Oh! She's playing!" We sat on the patio tonight for a while. I sat near the grill...the heat felt good. I lit a candle and it seemed right. Honestly, it's like October out there except it stays light longer. I read on some weather blog that temps for August through October are supposed to be more normal. More normal? The Trib says statewide, the average temperature in July of 64.4 degrees was the third lowest on record. I think it's been great but Regis and one other guy in town (that I kn...