Roaring 20's

These are a few pictures I have not seen before of my Mom and Dad.



So young with first baby Richard.

All dressed up.

Playday for Mom and Dad

My Dad with first son Richard (I think)

 

My Mom with David--2nd Son--pretty coat!

My Dad

Here is a really nice picture of my Dad that I do not remember seeing before.  I have no idea what all the flowers are for or what date this was taken but I love his big smile which he always had for everyone.  It looks like it could be a Christmas decor, maybe at my brother's house next door.

I have been scanning all the pictures I went to my sister's home in Orem last October to find.  I had made a Book of Remembrance for my Mom and also a photo album and I wanted to scan the originals instead of just the copies which I sent up to the cabin.  Jeanne could not even remember what I was talking about so asked me to fly over and see if I could find them.  They were actually at her son's Steve's house.  Anyway I am almost finished and then I will send them back.  I am so glad I am doing this because the pictures are so much better and I am finding some I did not remember.

A New Joy In My Life

I am so happy when something really pleases me and the 6" Kindle Paperwhite does please me.  One reason I have been able to get so much work done is that I know I can stop and rest and read from one of my good books on the Kindle whenever I am tired.  I have read at least four in the past week.

Why do I like it so much?

1. It is small and light.  It is so hard to hold a book when you read in bed, so hard to turn the pages and to get enough light on it.  Now the kindle is easy to hold, no turning pages. love it.
2. There is always enough light, even in the dark!!!  No more looking for good lighting when I am visiting my children or reading in bed or strange places, love it.
3. I can download in an instant from my Wifi or Computer, love it.
4. Amazon keeps tabs on what books I have and what to do with them, love it.
5. With Library to Go I can have 6 books checked out all the time or have some on Wait List, no more running to the library, love it.
6. I actually like to read rather than Audio, of course I can still do audio with my computer, but I prefer to read, because I read so much faster and don't fall asleep midstream, love it.
7. Amazon has free books and special deals so I can even get books besides my Library to Go, love it.  The deal today was Eric Fromm's "The Art of Loving" for $1.99.
8. When my eyes are tired I can increase the size of the letters,. love it.
9. I just tap on which ever book I want to read at the moment and it goes to the right page!

While I am on it, I think Amazon is an amazing company.  I love doing business with them and they seem to have their hands in everything.  Now the owner buys the Washington Post for 250 million, what is he going to do with it?  Something very techy I am thinking.  Besides my Kindle manager they also send me my Pamela's Bread Mix every three months and they sent me an Aeblskiver pan for practically nothing and I love their Instant Videos--how come some people are so smart and the rest of us are just consumers.

Yes, I quit Facebook, so commercial now, but I love Amazon, they are actually doing things to make my life better and making it so easy to do them.  It is all commercial, but it is my choice what I choose, love it.

More Moments with Keira

Meagan captured these pictures, here we are all ready for the Sunday night concert.

Keira likes the little cedar benches that Matt made.

Walking with Sadie with a fruit bar.

 I
I think she has the swing down.

At last, proof that I noodle in the lake.  It holds me up, honest.

Life is good.

This is a little scary, I probably have not combed my hair, no makeup, and a scrunched up face.  But look, Keira scrunches her face, too when she is concentrating.  She just looks so much cuter doing it.

Doing the Guy Stuff

I was always happy being  a girl because I never wanted to do the "guy stuff".  I was always contented with the guy knowing how to do everything and taking care of me.  Ha, be a widow for 16 1/2 years and you are going to have to learn to do a lot of guy stuff.

This month I have fixed the refrigerator, the vacuum cleaner (I know how to take apart and clean out every possible juncture for problems), the dishwasher (I did try and get a plumber, no one would call me back, but I pursued with what Johnny told me and finally found the last  answer on the internet at 9:30 pm), the disposal (yes, after not working for more than a year I applied the Richard Hardy method with the broomstick one more time and voila, it works!),  I also mended the cut in the hose, of course it looked so easy when Mike did it but guess what, I have no muscles in my hands.  It took five tries and five water explosions before I finally got it to stay.  Even now I expect it to pull  apart every time I turn the hose on.  I also tackled the front hose with pliers and wrench and got that fixed.

My hands hurt and my arms hurt and my back hurts but for the moment everything is fixed.  I also cleaned the carpets, the couches and stained the back deck and front stairs.  Front deck remains to be done and that should be done tomorrow.

My nightmares of vulnerability have stopped, is that because I have conquered the appliances???  I am holding my breath till the next thing breaks.  I have lived here for 14 years now, so hard to believe, but I love my little cabin in the woods.

 

The former living room rug.

"These are a few of my favorite things."

As I looked around my home this week I thought about where everything came from.  The couches are from the 70's in our La Jolla home, had three different covers, but still very solidly holding up.  The rockers are from 88 and our Rancho Bernardo home, also recovered, wonder what happened to the other two rockers???  The glass case Richard picked out himself in 88 for the RB home, I treasure it but would have missed seeing it except for him and I love all the memories collected in it.  The grandmother clock is also from the 70's in La Jolla, I have had it fixed once but right now it is stopped on the moment Richard died and is not working, still love it though.  The coffee table and couch table are from RB as is one of the couch tables and the other end table is from our Pacific Beach home in the 60's!!!

Also in the living room are painted pictures from nephew Brian of the Silver Gate cabin, the Arches, Pilot Peak, and the monument of "This is the Place".  There is also a painted picture from a budding artist from the 60's of a sailboat, a favorite of mine.  There is a sign with our Rancho Bernardo address on it that Maria painted, the clock my sisters gave me when I moved in and the painted sign Camber gave me for Christmas stating, " The Hardy Family Est 1959".  The organ Richard bought for me from a client in the late 80's.  There are three of John's photos, one from Montana, one from Nepal and one from Peru.  On the coffee table is the replica of the Hot Dog Stand Richard always wanted, the hand painted vase from Vida (I took it back from Maria as it is both our favorite, she can have it when I die) the shell collection John created in a glass jar, and the little house Maria gave me with the note inside and the handmade glass lookee from Idaho.

  Only the lamps were bought for my cabin home here.  The mail tray on my end table is a wedding gift from my childhood friend Carla.  The fish hook glass holders are from John and the others are from Guam.   There are special rocks and shells and wood things from my travels and John's and his beautiful book ends.  Sitting at the organ is the Victorian Rag doll Linda gave me.  Sitting in the rocker is the special velvet Rabbit Richard bought for me at the San Diego Craft Fair--I think I named her Esmeralda.  On the dining table is the silk bouquet Carole made for me in 1988 when the Fuquas were living in San Diego.  On the glass case is the silk bouquet made in Big Bear to go with the picture we had over our  La Jolla bed--which I still have, love my electric bed so I can sit up and put my feet up while I watch late night movies.  The large mirror over the organ was from our RB home, love it.  The pillow covers on the rockers are from Croatia and the wonderful Mediterranean cruise with James.  The Grandma pillow is from the Valko children.

Amd now there is the new shag rug which I now want to snuggle my old, tired feet in.  I think I had a similar larger one in RB????  My RB home was supposed to be my retirement hone...life has it's little surprises.

So it is easy to see why I did not want to sell my home here, it has my past, my present and so much of myself and memories in it, it is a place of peace and security in my last days. (I hope).

One More Thing about Keira

Keira found this cut down tree in the woodpile and decided on her own it belonged in the garden, not the woodpile.  Very good logic I would say.

Footprints and Handprints at Lake Almanor

Keira added her footprints to the Grandchildren foot and handprints.  The stones are all from Montana.

I tried to reconstruct Melissa's but it is too far gone, I saved some cement and a pizza box for her to do another.

The others still look quite solid.

 

 

 

Farewell to Meagan and Keira

 

Since there was 24 hour road construction on 32  we drove west on 36 to Red Bluffs and then on 5 to the airport, it worked well.  I came back on 70 and 147 and it took me longer and it was much too zig zaggy for me anymore.  Keira would not have liked it as she did not like riding in the "jungle" down 32!!

Great trip, so glad they came to visit me.

Lake Almanor Mud and Swim

Sadie loves the mud.

And so does Keira.

What is as fun as playing in good old mud? 

 

 

A nice rest after a hard swim.  As one man said as we passed on the Rec 1 Road, "Another stressful day at Lake Almanor."

Loved having Meagan and Keira visit!!!

On the last day Keira takes command and swims around the lake.  "Look, Mom, no vest!"

 

"Love my swim."

Supposed to storm at 2:30--drats, just another lovely day at Lake Almanor.  That is Meagan and Keira on the right.

Meagan and Keira Visit

As Melissa and Meagan load the luggage, Keira says Hi to me.  They arrived at the Sacramento airport at 1 pm Saturday, the 20th.  I had stopped in Chico to pick up Melissa to help drive.

Since then I have not taken enough pictures, here is Keira as the two big happenings at my house pose together, Keira visiting and the yellow lillies all abloom at once.

 

Alan and Elaine Hardy Visit

Richard's nephew Alan and his wife Elaine are taking the scenic route on a trip to Oregon and so stopped by my home for a night.  It was such a delightful visit with them.  They live in Boulder City and have another big home in Gunlock, where they have a huge garden and can and bottle foods and juices.  We stayed there once and what a wonderful place to gather family.

Elaine brought a jar of pomegranate jelly she had made and I finally had to get up in the middle of last night so I could have a toaster waffle and spread it with the jelly.  It was as delicious as I thought it would be.

One thing interesting is that Alan wanted a couple of head shots I had in Richard's Memory Book of Warren Hardy and Caroline Blake and I said I had just scanned them from another book.  I then asked him if he was into Family History and he said he was.  I suggested he come and look at the Family History books I had from his Grandma Vida and if he wanted any he could have them.  He had as much right to them as my children did.  He was so happy to find just the book he had been searching for and in fact he had prayed he could find a copy.  I am sure neither one of us had  anticipated such an event.  Prayers are answered.

Speaking of, I found my phone!!!  Last Tuesday I had carried my phone in a bag with a tin plate and utensils and a water bottle to a picnic in the Clear Creek Park with the RS Ladies.  The next morning I could not find my phone.  Of course, I went to the park and expected to find it under the picnic table I had sat at.  I could just imagine that it had tumbled out of my bag when I brought the bottle and utensils out of  my bag.  Alas, it was not there.  I sent emails and phone calls but no one had seen it.  I stopped the service and prayed I would find it.

Today I decided I better go in to Verizon when I went to Susanville for a Walmart run and see what my options were.  I took my old phone with me to see if it was able to work and have my numbers all transferred to it.  On the way to Westwood I noticed my Blue Tooth was reading my phone so I pulled over at the Clear Creek turnoff and did a more thorough search than I had already done three times before!!!  Lo and behold it was hiding in a nook and cranny behind the front seat.  I wish I had thought about that Blue Tooth before.  I would never make a very good detective!

Thinking back I realized what happened.  On the way to the park I had stopped to pick up Karen and while I waited for her I noticed my bag was full of water because my water bottle had turned over.  I took the bottle out and got out of the car with the bag to get the water out.  The phone must have tumbled out as I exited the car and I never noticed it was gone till the next morning.  I did search the car at least three times but it was in a weird spot and I missed it and the only time I had driven was when I was  showing Alan and Elaine around the Club and so I had not noticed that my Blue Tooth was on.  Whew!!

 

Happiness

I watched a couple of the Ted talks from Lifehack and was impressed with Shawn Achor who argues that instead of doing our work harder so we can be successful so that we will be happy that happiness inspires productivity so create the happiness in the present and you will be better and do better at everything you do.  He suggests rewiring your brain by:

• Writing down 3 gratitude's a day for 21 days and at the end of 21 days our brain will be trained to  a pattern of looking for the positive things in our life
• Journal about one positive thing each day so you can relive it
• Exercise everyday so our mind and body know that our behavior matters
• Meditate so we can get over the multi tasking and learn to focus on one important task at a time
• Do random acts of kindness and it will become a habit of happiness

"Ripples of positivity will turn into a real revolution."  You will be happy in the present and thus more productive and do better in every phase of your life.  Makes sense to me!!

It goes along with the "as if" theory that Richard tried to live by, living as if everything was just the way he wanted it in his life.  And James always tells me he only wants to hear positive things, no negative thoughts in life.

Unfortunately I am too much of a realist at times, which leads to always waiting for the other shoe to drop and expecting the worst instead of the best.

I must say I have tried to make a habit of a few of the above items--I can do all of them.  How about those 20 shows of yoga I have saved to do someday, why not start today!!!

And my three gratitude's for today are 1--my legs that are still working and I can do most everything for myself  2--my brain is still functioning and I can do many writing, thinking, and creative tasks  3--my house to live in and keep me safe and warm (or cool).

Good Morning, Lake Almanor

Great expectations from this barrel of lilies.  The deer have left it alone because it is too high.  I found yesterday they had destroyed all the buds in  one of my gardens.  Hope they tasted good to them, a whole season down their tummies.  I was out in the yard very early.



And it was a morning for more baked bread and honey ambrosia--is that where these last few pounds have come from, too much of this I think.

 

And true to what Matt told me to do, I stained the front steps with the last of the good stain.  Have to buy more to get the decks done--busy morning, time for a long nap from 9 AM to 12:27 Noon.  

Hardy Grandchildren

Jacob takes part in modern scouting!!!!

Kelsi looking so lovely -- 7 years old.

The Last of 100 Passions--AFI

I had eight on the list of 100 Passions (movies) from AFI that I had not seen.  I couldn't find five of them, but watched three the last few days.  The last one was a real doozy, from 1920, a Lillian Gish silent film.  It was 2 1/2 hrs long with a long cast of characters with a dramatic ending of the betrayed woman floating on a piece of ice toward the falls.  We have come a very long way in 100 years, not all of it good, but technology has certainly improved.

One was "Manhattan" with Diane Keaton, Woody Allen, and Meryl Streep when they were very young.  Richard and I had had to leave a drive-in Woody Allen movie very early, when the children were very young.  We had no idea what it was about, thought it was a comedy, and I have seen few or none since I don't think.  I especially liked seeing Meryl Streep with her long, long hair.  She was so beautiful.  Diane Keaton has definitely gotten better over the years.  Her hair was very kinky with a bad cut but she had pretty eyes.  Woody Allen doesn't change much over the years.  It was a typical Woody Allen film, however, and definitely not a favorite of mine.

I really enjoyed Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck in "The Lady Eve"--a comedy.  She was so pretty and charming and he was a handsome nerd, both very young.  Well done but they drew the story out much longer than they would today. 

Yesterday I cleaned both living room rugs, it is so easy I have no idea why I do not do it more often.  I think I will try cleaning the couches one of these days.  Sadie had been peeing on the center rug and I was not aware of it--under the table!!!  I just don't understand her.  She is outside most of the time, she has a pad in her little home.  For some reason she does it when I am napping or working in the other room.  I think she needs a psychologist as well as retraining.  At least the carpets look and smell nice.  That is great and she can never be in there alone again!!!!!

News About the Grands and Great Grands

Grandma Linda is visiting Las Vegas this week so here is Kate and Brynn ready for swimming to keep cool.  Love that swim vest, Brynn, and Kate looks so grown up in her sunglasses. 

Visiting Grandma and Grandpa at the Hotel.  Yikes it is hot in Las Vegas--must stay cool.

 

Jimmy is recuperating from a tonsillectomy--looks peaceful enough, hope he comes out of it calmer than some of mine did.  And pray he will stay well now.  Thumbs up, Jimmy.  Get well, soon.

 

A Perfect Day

Sadie enjoys sitting in the sun when it is not too hot.

 

And look at the thermometer, a perfect day.

My favorite color of lilies pop out.

And here comes the yellow.

Maintaining My Home--and Fun at the Movies

Two for two!!!  Living alone can be frustrating with maintenance of home tools and utilities.  My vacuum was not picking up and had been that way for a long time.  I had already cleaned the brush as Richard had taught me years ago.  He was the best vacuum fixer I know.  I had discussed it with Matt and intended to get out the manual and work with him on it and then I forgot and he went home.  So I get out the book and aha, I find a new place I never knew about and simply dislodged the clog and the first run around the bedrooms almost filled my vacuum with dirt and fibers!!!  I am a success.

Then the refrigerator started freezing the cut cantaloupe.  Lowering the temp just made it worse.  Well, that is what manuals are for and luckily for us of the modern age they are always on line.  First thing I learn,  you should run the refrigerator at 3 or 4 at least or it makes the fridge work harder and it freezes even more things.  Simple solution, follow the directions for cleaning, of course, and voila, it works great and no more frozen fruit!

A few days ago I had the pleasure of watching Bette Davis in "Now, Voyager"--I couldn't remember a thing or perhaps I was too young for that type of movie when it came out.  She had won the Oscar for it.  I found that it was 23 on the AFI 100 Passions--interesting that most of them are the "oldies" which I love.  Looking over the list I find there 8 that I could not remember seeing, now to find them.

The 100 AFI (American Film Institute") lists are fun to read.  My favorite song is the #1 on the Songs of the Cinemas--that would be "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" of course, so, see I am not so weird after all.  The quote that is memorable from "Now, Voyager" is something like, "Jerry, let's not reach for the moon, we already have the stars."  A good thought to remember.  Most of the memorable quotes I was familiar with.  #1 film was "Casablanca"--watched it again not too long ago.  I did not necessarily agree with their placement on everything, such as the movie star lists.  And some movies I love were too near the bottom of the 100.  Fun lists for sure if you love the movies like I do.  Thanks to Ted Turner for preserving so many of the very favorites.