Yup!  This is our street!  Clear for driving, but one needs to clear driveways and sidewalks.

We have rain!

It is not raining right now, but it rained almost all night here in Sacramento.  Hope to go back home to Reno tomorrow, but it is very possible that travel over Donner will be severely limited and we will have to stay here in Sacramento for another couple of days.

I am a bit disappointed with the bowl games thus far.  Sure saw a lot of sloppy football.

Hope to troop down to the Palm Springs area next week.  We just might get out of this cold for a while.

Bud was here this morning!

He will return tomorrow morning for breakfast.

We went to the park again and played on the jungle gym, using the slide and then did the swing thing before heading back to the house.

He is truly amazing!  I can't wait to  have him talk.

Dang!

Bud and his parents couldn't make it to Sacramento last night, but will be here later today.  So, our trip to Reno is off for another six months or so.  Bud will have to have his experience with snow another time.

It is a bit chilly in Sacramento this morning.  Heat should come on automatically in another  hour and one half.  I am currently  debating as to whether I should turn it on manually right now.

The front room is stacked with gifts for mom and the kids.  Kirby won't know what is going on (only two months old), but Bud (15 months old) might just be a riot.

We will have Xmas morning here with the kids.  Peter and Laura will then  head up to Grass Valley for Xmas with her family and the rest of us will head down near Elk Grove and have Xmas dinner with Bud's other grand parents (Vicki and Chris).  (It will be a long day.)

After we get  home, we shall start preparing Spook for a trip to Palm Springs, San Diego and Fullerton.  Hopefully, we shall be able to get out of the cold for a couple of weeks and re-connect with old friends in Palm Desert and San Diego.

It has been a very good year.  Hope we have another one like it.

Mo Rain!

The downspouts were talking to us this morning, but are silent now.  The rain sure made it smell good and apparently cleaned the air a bit.

The sad thing about that is that now those contaminates are in the soil, washed there by the rain.  (Can't seem to win.  Cure the problem, but by-products can kill ya.)

Dogs

Yeah, we have two, Teddy and Winston.  Teddy is a Bijon and Winston is a Lhasa. (Both are rescue dogs, so we take the breed suggested as an educated guest.)

Teddy came from a shelter in Lodi. Winston came from the Sacramento pound. They have vastly different histories.  Winston was on the street, but somewhere along the way was given some very expensive eye surgery on  his left eye while Teddy was from apartment living and was most probably spoiled rotten.

Teddy was three when we adopted him and Winston was four.  Both of these ages are estimates, but seem to work fine for them.

We have had them since 2005 and haven't regreted their adoption for one second.

Rain in December

We  had solid rain here in Sacramento begining at eight last night and continuing almost without stop until about ten this morning.  Since that time it has been inter-mitten all day.  Back patio is pretty wet, but no puddling yet.  Gutters are not gushing yet either.

Must just be a soaker this time, but is supposed to continue like this for a couple of more days.

Yup! We had snow in Reno.

We had eighteen inches of it at our place in Sierra Canyon.  Took a few minutes to clear the driveway.  Have pictures, but they are on the computer in Reno.  Not available to me here in Sacramento.

We are waiting for rain here and it may turn to snow.  Probably won't happen right here at our house.  The temp is too high.

Sacramento had snow!

However, it was in East Sacramento and did not fall in the area where we have our winter home.  Sure would have been funny if I had had to bring my snow blower down from Reno in order to move snow here.

For sure, I was ready to take pictures, but ALAS, it came to naught.  Will  head up to Reno tomorrow and perhaps I will get a few snow pictures there.

I think that JoAnn will have to drive.  I am getting my eyes checked tomorrow and they will get dialated.  May take a while for a return  to normal.  Oh well!

Saw Kirby today.  He is one handsome dude, a lady killer for sure at the age of thirty-two days.  He is amazing to hold.

Would you believe.........???

They are predicting snow for the central valley in Callifornia1  Oh well, it does happen about once every ten years or so.  Last time I think it was in the late nineties.  (God bless us all!)

Time marches on!  The mother of my deceased wife passed on on the day after Thanksgiving,  A very special lady.  I would write a book about her life except I am too close, knowing things that might prejudice her memory.

Goodbye mom!  You were a winner in my book!

No sun today yet!

Fog has moved into the Sacramento area.  Might burn off by this afternoon, but would not bet on it.

We have chorus practice this afternoon.  Performance will be on Sunday.  Oh my!

Kirby is now twenty-eight days old and growing like a weed.  Cute baby and I am already proud of him.

Anticipation

Well, Thanksgiving is here and we await the coming of "family." This year we will have three new members of our group. They include two grandchild, who only became aware of each other yesterday, and the grandmother of our SIL.

Included will be the parents of SIL, the parents of DIL, MIL, daughter and husband, son and wife. Including the babies that should add up to a rather manageable fourteen.

Four years ago we had forty, with the garage turned into a dining room. Now that was a Thanksgiving to remember.

Niece will have some of the scattered members of the family to Fort Collins, for Turkey day. and brother in Corvallis, Oregon, will have members of his family there.

There is a multitude of people for whom I give thanks. They played a major role in my life that cannot be measured. Without their help and counsel, I would have been nothing.

"For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in."

Good-bye Mom!

My mother-in-law (first marriage not current marriage) is in hospice, shielded from considerable pain by drugs. She is not expected to live more than a few more days.

I bow my head as I think of the women she was. Surviving with one child while her husband was in the South Pacific, fighting for our country in WWII.

She survives the deaths of both of her parents, the death of her husband, sister, brother, daughter and one grandson. Though it all this woman with an indomitable spirit kept on deeping on.

I can have no greater respect than this. Good-bye mom!

Well....

We have been in Sacramento for the past few days. Here for Thanksgiving and will have about twenty people at our house here if all invited come.

Spook is safely under cover here in Sacramento and will have an additional cover if the one I ordered ever gets here.

New grandson is thriving and getting better looking each day. (He is now seventeen days old.)

We will have to return to Reno pretty soon, if the snow and Caltrans allows. Have to get the snow off the sidewalk in front of our house there. (The homeowners' association is a bit touchy about this kind of thing.)

I really enjoyed the "BIG GAME" last night. Both teams deserved to win and played very well. Daughter, Stanford graduate, did not enjoy it much, but such are the vicissitudes of life.

Must wander on now. Y'all take care hear?

This is a place called Biltmore. It is the estate of the Vanderbilts.

Great trip

Fall Time

It is a bit foggy in Sacramento this morning. It began with a bit of beautiful sun, but the fog came in on creeping feet.

Took Spook to the shop this morning. The engine is not running smoothly, there is too much exhaust noise and I somehow picked up a broken glass in my left front headlight.

You can bet that my wallet will be a bit lighter after this experience.

Nobel Peace Prize

Hmm! For what? Do you suppose that Rangel will win it next ypear?

Beautiful Day in Sacramento

Yup! It is another one of those. The sun is shining and there isn't a cloud in the sky. Not too hot and not too cold. (As Goldilocks one said)

I have a SIR meeting tomorrow and after, getting the minutes written and emailed, we shall return home to Reno.

It is getting to that time of year, so we shall probably not stay in Reno much for the rest of 09, but it would be kinda nice to have the family up there for a Xmas in the snow. (Not much chance of that. We competer with in-laws over the grand children these days.)

No real snow on the ground in Reno yet, but we have shut off the water system to the yard. Don't want frozen pipes and equipment.

Other than shoveling and driving in the stuff, snow is actually quite pretty most of the time. My electric snow blower makes it much easier these days and now that I almost have the knack of it, snow removal goes rather smoothly.

Well, we have theater tonight, so must start preparing for that eventuality.

Y'all take care hear?

The Biltmore Estate

Largest family home in the US.

Where to next?

Yellowst0ne and environs is next. Had such a great experience traveling across country that we want to go again, but probably not in the book until next spring.

Traveling on1

Well, we are just back from a cross country trip to North Carolina. Spook did her thing and we made it back safely to Reno last night We live in a pretty amazing country,

Denmark

Th

This is taken before the cruise started. We are in Copenhagen, Denmark, and are headed for Tivoli Gardens.

I look like I am lost don't I?

Pretty amazing!

Oh my! Look at the plight of the homeless! Sure, many are druggies; but the potential for an epidemic expands as their numbers expand.

Where do you suppose they use toilets, bathe, or even wash their hands and what is the potential for contamination if and when they do?

How long will it be until their problem becomes ours in our environ in the burbs?

Baltic Cruise 1

This is Tivoli in Copenhagen, Denmark

On the road with Teddy and Winston

Barren, but beautiful.














Ever been to Arizona?

Travels with Winston and Teddy.

O

On the road and headed for Texas.

Building the Wall

This is the clear area for drainage to the street. The fence is the property line.









This is a view from the end of the driveway, looking toward the front door. No caps are on the pillars yet and the concrete bricks show before the stucco is added.

Have you met Bud?

This is Bud having a chat with our dog Teddy.

Reno Castle

This is the landscaping just outside the front wall.









This is a picture of our club house in the distance, taken from the east side of the canyon.

Views from the past trips.

Here we are in Roseburg, Oregon. JoAnne is the pretty one.

Yep! About three weeks away!

Some family pleasures come first; but after that, we shall climb aboard our chariot (Spook: A mini-Winnie) and head east along highway 80. Not really sure where we shall ramble, but our planned destination is Gettysburg with a continuing destination of Carolina and cousins there.

There are a number of possibilities on the way including Mount Rushmore and then nephews home in Nebraska. The arch is a magnet for JoAnne and Bill is open to most possibilities.

Polished up Spook a bit yesterday and once she is loaded, we are ready to ride.

Y'all take care hear.

Looking for a cools spot.

Well, had to sacrifice a cool spot in return for clear skies. The skies in Reno were filled with smoke blown in from northern California, but the price is ninety degree heat. Oh well!

Yeah, hot! HOT!

Not really as bad as expected, but one can feel the heat rising from the soil of Central California.

We actually had a few drops of rain up in Reno the other day and it was accompanied by a bit of thunder in the distance. For sure, that is about the size of the rain for us in the month of July.

Hope to purchase a new laptop tomorrow. I think the one I have in Reno is about to give up the ghost. It shuts off right in the middle of a post and starts back up after cooling off for a bit. (Sure sign of a terminal problem.)

Family Dinner

We will have the family to the house for dinner tonight. Guests will include Ross, Su Chin, Noah and Carisse from Melbourne, Australia. Peter and Laura will be here along with grandmother Anne from Elk Grove.

Hopefully, I shall turn out a perfect prime-rib on the rotisserie.

This will be the last we will be able to hang with the Aussie folks as they will be returning to Australia shortly.

The air conditioning has come on in the house, so that means that indoor temperature has reached seventy-five degrees. May be able to eat out in the back yard depending on how quickly the temperature. drop to the low eighties.

We should have a great evening.

Is there a place called "home" anymore?

On a rainy day like this, I tend to stay at home and that is dangerous! For I begin to "think." (Whoa! Oh well, perhaps it is only a hallucination!)

Don't know where the idea about "home" originated, but I suppose that it rises out of the fact that I live in two places on a fairly regular basis with my legal home being in Reno, Nevada, but with a concomitant home in Sacramento, California.

I also have a "motor home" and hope to use that extensively in the next few years. For all practical purposes, I have become a Gypsy, traveling from place to place, never putting down the roots of permanence.

If I have no roots, where is my stake in my community and what does that mean regarding the status of culture.

Oh well! Y'all take care hear?

It's raining! (AGAIN)

We have been dry for a few days, but they say that this combination of storms will last all this week. Thank goodness! We need the water.

Whoa! The coffee tastes particularly good this morning. Checked the obits before I made it. Didn't want to waste an entire day with fruitless actions. Once again, I did not make that list.

Spouse is flying back to Yorba Linda tonight, so the dogs and I will have to fend for ourselves until she returns on Friday. Not fun, but we will handle it and grumble. LOL!

Not much going on this coming week. Will probably attend the school board meeting on Tuesday. District will lay off a large group of teachers this year and we just might hear the results of the civil case the district has filed against former board members and former district level administrators of the old Grant District.

News is not good in areas close to us in Sacramento. It looks like we are growing foreclosure signs rather than trees, shrubs and flowers in out front yards.

We are not really affected yet, but our portfolios have shrunk considerably. Guess we shall just hang on and ponder.

Y'all take care hear?