For the Archives-2025

My greenhouse. 

Our chickens. 

We gathered together to inter Earls ashes at Willamette National Cemetery. 

Seriously, I am being very realistic about the times, this year, and you. It seems to me that things do not make you happy. A shadow is hanging over all of us. Bad things happen even to us. 

There is ice in Hillsboro...not the frozen kind. You know what I mean. I have not seen them. Is it true? 

I belong to an organization that is simply asking for the delivery of groceries because people are afraid to leave their homes to shop. Children are so scared to go to school. It must be so hard for those people. Instead of feeling total indignation, I feel torn. One side of my head is thinking that if I were those people, I would want to go back to Mexico and home. I also know that they fled their country to seek a better life, and there is nothing to go back to. I ask myself, "What would I do?" 

I am told by a pediatrician in the area that serves the Hispanic community that ICE is not taking any verification of citicenship. They arrest first and check later. It seems that those people that are brown skinned should be afraid. The whole process is such an unknown. Bad things happen to good, honest people in spite of the effort to keep them safe. I don't suppose any of us would want to be in their shoes.

I read that a lot of illegal activity has been stopped  Its a trade-off I suppose  

The inauguration of Trump in January has somehow made time stand still. The media will not let it go and the truth is elusive.The weeks and months drag on, and watching the news is harder and harder. Even though I watch middle-of-the-road news casts, it seems that every time I want to check on social media, there it is. I can't hide in a hole, no matter how tempting that is.

Brick and motor stores here in Hillsboro are closing. Our Macy's is gone, as well as JoAnn's Fabrics. Walmart if not one of my favorites.  Choices shrink, but we are reminded that small businesses are the bread and butter of our community. Finding what I need has me using a "big box" online stores which is not any better...Amazon, Etsy, Temu and eBay are on the radar. Small online businesses are having a hard time too I think...I am always asking, "Is it a scam"? Etsy is supposed to be small business, but who knows.

The internet serves me well. I order groceries and then just pick them up at the store. I like Uber Eats a lot. I have put "gluten free" in the app. and it helps me find good food.

NOTABLE IN 2025

• Ethan and Mikaela bought property in the country. They had been wanting it for so long. 
• Elena dn Micheal moved into a better appartment.
• Susan and Doug are going to Spain next fall.
• I turned 84.
• Donald Trump took office.
• I sold my Arizona house and am back in Oregon fulltime now.
• Brayden and Brycen are helping me with my house and yard.
• Doug finished and installed a new front door and screendoor.
• We drew names for Christmas (Tuesday gift are anew thing.)
• We put Earl to rest. 
• I have rejoined PEO. 

My last crop of grandchildren are growing. Three of them now. The other nine are grown or off to college. I am 84 years old so it seems appropriate that family grows older too. One is graduating from Oberlin in '27 and one is entering University of Arizona in the fall of '26. 

I sold my house in Arizona. Andy and Amanda bought it. They are remodeling the two bathrooms. The house was built in late 1970s so it needs some updating. Earl and I did a lot but still....

Now 2026 is looming. A quick Thanksgiving then Christmas. I love to be near to my family this time of year. The choice to move back to Oregon is feeling really good. 

I made bread/cinnamin rolls today. A neighbor takes my garbage can in and I share homemade bread with he and his wife. My neighbor, Clementine, turned 93 or something this week so I took her some too. I still love to cook. I'm not a good eater so I eat sporatically...twice a day with no thought food in between. When I get hungry I want to eat NOW! Sigh. 

My health is ok and my brain workss better than ever. I am grateful for that.

How are you doing? Leave a comment please.

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The Cow Path or get out of my way!!!

 

Opening day for the box in 2006

Did I mention that a woman drove through my library box in the middle of the night? It was the first "get out of my way" moment this week. There was a big bang, and when I looked out my front window, books and puzzles were strewn down the road. The fire dept, police, and paramedics showed up. My dog about had apoplexy. Everything is now cleaned up, and we are in recovery mode. It was way too much excitement for a retirement community.

Debris from the box.

My beautiful husband with his library box.

Cow Paths

I was raised in rural eastern Oregon, in a community of fewer than 800 people. It was a railroad town that served several large ranches. We bragged that one of the daughters of a rancher was a Pendleton Roundup Princess. Her father drove their Cadillac slowly through town each day when he picked her up from school. We did get out of the way when that car came driving through. No Ford pickup for her.

Cattle were allowed to be free range within limits...fences were a serious business for those people. But most interesting to me was the fact that roads often followed the cow paths. It was so simple. Cows know the easy way up the hill and around the bend.

My dead husband was like the cows. He knew that the simplest and fastest way to the sink or the front door, and the furniture had to be arranged in such a way that his cow path did not have to vary. If it was in his way, he would push it to the side.

It was fine, though. Being married is hard and full of compromises. If you cannot live that way, DO NOT GET MARRIED. I was known to laugh at him and tease him about it. We loved each other.

Is that MY Leg???

Annie and Barbara (b+)

 I have noticed that as people age, they inspect all their body parts every day. It is a waste of time because it is almost certain that the body parts you went to bed with are in the same condition as when you slept a few hours earlier.

My late husband put broken things in a drawer in the hope they would heal and become useful again. Like that broken tool or low battery you put in the drawer, generally, things do not heal overnight. 

It is possible that you think too much. Although there are people who claim to be in perfect health, such individuals are rare. In my case, I go about my day blithely, ignoring most things. I sit when I am tired, and I read or do a puzzle to pass the time. But best of all, I work hard. 

Do I have a list? Well maybe. Let's see.

1. Look up!!! It improves your posture, and you will notice things you haven't seen in years. I promise.

2. Make the obligatory appointments and KEEP THEM! Check-ups and body maintenance are important. In between, trust that you have done the right things and forget about all those aches and pains. You will enjoy the day more and more.

3. Get dressed in a way that makes you feel special, and you will. My neighbor puts on makeup and perfume every day! She is the prettiest woman in the neighborhood. I admire that.

4. Socialize. Just do it even if you're not in the mood.

5. Try to avoid procrastination. Undone business will weigh on you and cause you to develop wrinkles. Truly, if you have nothing to do, I guarantee that you are procrastinating. Look around.

6. Oh, and while you are looking up SMILE! I'm just daying.

 I am sure you can add to this list or have one of your own to share. Please let me know!

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It's my birthday today. I am 84. Am I an expert on aging? Not even close.

I believe you need a good talking to!!!

Here I am, right back where I started! current stats: single (widowed and living in Oregon), aging...next birthday I will be 84 years old, health is passable, and it is fall-rainy, chilly. The people I need are very busy. Andy and Amanda are both in Abu Dhabi, Susan and Doug are here in Hillsboro (both working), and Larry and Kim (running a business and working) are close by in Cornelius. 

This is the time of year when we would typically return to Arizona, but I don't miss going there at all. The decision to move back to Oregon permanently was the right one. I feel content and happy. For anyone who has done that thing, it is simply normal.

When I was much younger, I noticed that old people would turn on the light outside, turn down the bed, and even put on their jammies at around 7 in the evening. The top of their fridge held liquor bottles and pills. (Yes, I did love to drive by park models in Arizona after it was dark. Sorry!) In fact, when we were in Green Valley in the winter, the village would simply go dark. 

In Tucson, we lived in an RV resort on the east side of the city. Unlike Green Valley, the people were more active and seemed younger. I often wondered how it was that they didn't seem to age. In the end, I attributed their life to constant companionship and social life that never stopped. We truly loved it and the people who lived around us.

As time passed, people like me who had moved away returned home. Being near home and family, even when the snow is drifting and rain is falling, is comfortable. At the age that feels right for each individual, that is what we do.

And all that expertise we gathered on being a "snowbird" is no longer needed.

For me at least, the only problem remaining is my need to talk. I know stuff and for some reason need to share it with anyone who will stand still. The idea of buying "mouth tape" seems like a very good idea. 

If you are reading this and you are one of those people who has been trapped by me because I believe you need a good talking to, I apologise.

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Please leave a comment. I am interested.