With ice or straight up?

A friend called the other day while driving from Texas to Colorado. He was on his way to pick up his son and then they were going ice fishing! Ice fishing! I know a lot of people like to ice fish, especially when it's winter and the only way to satisfy that craving for fishing to to cut a hole in the ice, but those 2 words don't go well together for me. I like to fish without ice. See, I like to wet wade and having ice on the water is just too much for me to handle. I like it when the water is at least 56 degrees.



Anyway, Eric wanted to know what we were up to since we sort of dropped off the blog world and weren't reporting in. I thought I'd do a quick update on a recent fishing excursion. Lucky for us, here in Arizona during the winter the ice is rare.

Our nephews came to visit last month and the 6 year old was like a typical eager little boy wanting to fish. We took them to the local urban lake where Fish & Game had just finished stocking catfish and had started stocking trout.

When the nephews are older and we're on a stream we plan to introduce 'em to fly fishing, but for now we had to "stick" with the garden hackle variety of store-bought worms. On the first day of the urban lake fishing they caught a nice little bass and let it go. The next day they caught a crappie and a good size trout (for an urban lake). This time the fish swallowed the worm-fly and a neighbor fisherperson wanted them for dinner so we gave them up. However, we were able to share with our young nephews that we put the fish back to live another day whenever possible.

The older boy was very interested in the fishing adventure, but the 3 year old was easily distracted by the other kids playing in the playground and wanted to feed the ducks more than he wanted to wait for a fish to bite. Sort of like me when the osprey flies overhead or the deer wander down to the river bank, it's easy to be distracted.

Although Rick cast the line out most of the time so the worm had a good chance of finding a fish, he let Josh practice casting and soon realized that he was pretty darn good. He'll be able to cast a fly rod some day soon.

We were just as thrilled with our days of fishing as our nephews were. We look forward to the future when we can share fly fishing in Montana with them.

50 years ago Quake Lake happened

Fifty years ago Rick and his family were camping in Montana near the Madison River in the Gallatin National Forest. His family was camping with their red and white 1955 Aljoa travel trailer. Rick wasn't even a teenager yet, but he remembers the summer trip of 1959. Before Earthquake Lake was formed.

They had been at the campground for a couple days, had visited Yellowstone National Park, and planned to go on to Grand Teton National Park. They left the Rock Creek campground by the Madison River and continued with their vacation, moving on to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. While in Jackson on August 18th, they saw the newspaper headline saying the largest recorded earthquake in the Rocky Mountain states (7.5) had brought down the side of the mountain over the campground near where they had been camped, killing 28 people with many more injured. The rock and dirt buried the sleeping campers and the wind created by the slide also caused the river to carry away buildings, vehicles and other victims. The mountain collapse was tremendous and dammed up the Madison River causing the water to quickly backup, starting the creation of Earthquake Lake, commonly referred to as Quake Lake. The deadly jolt caused the land to shift and the water behind Hebgen Lake moved so much it sloshed over the top of the dam. The area roads were distroyed and people were air-lifted out. It was a huge tragedy and the eerily quiet, dead and half-submerged trees in the lake still are a reminder of what happened.

We had been there a few times before, years ago, but with the upcoming anniversary we had to stop again at the visitors center overlooking the scared slide area and lake. The visitors center was focused on the upcoming anniversary and had many events and speakers planned to commemorate the disaster. The local news agencies are also remembering the date with stories and photos and are easy to find on the Internet.



News article: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20090816/NEWS01/90816001/1002/Hebgen-Lake-earthquake-anniversary-unleashes-flood-of-memories

These are photos from our recent trip.

Happy 4th!

We are enjoying our 4th of July with Eric and his family and Jeff and his family here at the campground. Although the forecast is for afternoon scattered thunderstorms, we're going to cook out on the campfire again tonight. We have brats, corn on the cob, coleslaw, and smores for dessert. I hope we get to do a little fishing today. Tonight when it gets dark (10:00 PM or later) they will light the fireworks they brought with them.

We hope your 4th of July is filled with good food and lots of good friends and family. Be safe.

Rainy Sunday

Sunday, my day to sleep in, as Rick says. I did sleep in and when I finally got up I made my famous "angler's sandwich" for brunch. It was cold and drizzly outside and the entire day was spent inside our mobile fishing lodge. I had planned to bundle up with a blanket and a book, but its late in the night now and I never opened the book. I started out with some delicious coffee (sweetened only on Sundays) and soon was working on computer issues for family. I won't name names, but you know who you are. I was happy to help with some digital photo issues, helping to create greeting cards, and a couple other special projects I can't divulge. Rick also did some "family computer support" and the timing was good. We'd already decided that today would be a day off from fishing. What better way to spend the day than with family, even if it was long-distance.

My angler's sandwich consists of grilled ham, grilled onion, cheese and scrambled egg on grilled bread, all made in a skillet on the stovetop. Easy to make in the motorhome or on a griddle over a campfire. I start out warming the sliced ham and thinly sliced onion in the skillet. I remove those ingredients and set aside with the cheese on top. I scramble the eggs and place that on the other stacked ingredients. I place one piece of bread, buttered side down, in the skillet and add the stacked meat, cheese, onion and egg and top with the other piece of bread. Turn when the bread is grilled to your liking. I got the idea for the sandwich from a little corner convenience store/gas station in Shelley, Idaho. We used to stop in there with Eric before floating the river and they made a "farmer's sandwich" which had everything on it, including bacon, sausage and hashbrown potatoes, wrapped in foil and it would last you all day. Mine are made with whatever I have on hand and usually a little smaller. One of Rick's favorites.

Think it over & over-think it

This is something new for me, this rut feeling. I've always been the one to embrace change, look forward to it, even suggest "upsetting the apple cart." But I'm also one who likes to have options, another course of action, Plan B to fall back on. So I am a planner. I'm also one to want quick action. Maybe it's the waiting that's putting me in a funk.

Lately I can get myself in a rut when I'm "contemplating" a big change. I think it over and over-think it. I plan and plan. And when the change is weeks away, I plan and over-think. And it puts me into a rut of sorts. I don't want to start any new projects, but yet I don't want to finish the current ones. I'm in limbo. I make to-do lists to prepare for the anticipated change, and check the tasks off as we get them done. I want to be on the road like our other RV friends, but I want to see family one more time.

I want to make the change because it means we are on our way to a summer spent fly fishing! Fishing and freedom in retirement is what we eagerly looked forward to for years. I avoid thinking about the change because it means we will be far away from family for months. The young ones seem to change and grow up each week. I know we will see them in a few months, but by then one will be babbling, another will be walking, another will be potty trained, and another will advance to the first grade. Phone calls, email, postcards, and webcams will be our means of communication from the motorhome on the river.

I tell Rick what keeps me up at night and he says I should live in the present, not the future. And certainly not the past. I don't dwell too much on the past, for I learned long, long ago that it is impossible to do it over. I don't regret the past, but learn from what's done. I spend more time thinking of the possible future than on the already done past. Sometimes, when I lay my head on my pillow and try to sleep, my mind races in anticipation of what might happen tomorrow. I play out scenes, have conversations, rehearse events, decide on yet-to-come choices and do a lot of "what if's." And it keeps me from sleeping. When Rick said I should spend more time in the present of course I did a couple quick Google searches on the subject. I've found some insight into how to deal with my Midnight Madness and I'm sleeping better. I have ways to deal with the thoughts racing around in my head late at night.

And now that we're closer to our departure date I'm taking action and getting the stuff done that needs to be done in order to go fishing. Opening day is a month away and we'll be in Montana before then. It will be a good summer. I rehearsed it in my dreams.

Happy Birth Day Jared!

Jared arrived a few days ago, on time, as scheduled, with just a little bit of a rollercoaster ride. After our newest nephew was born he needed to go to the NICU for an hour or two for oxygen. Turns out he just had a little fluid in his lungs and he's perfectly OK! He scored a 9 out of 10 on the APGAR test shortly after being taken to NICU. The APGAR tests appearance (color), pulse, grimace (reflex), activity, and respiration in newborns. He is sooooo darling and cute!

Jared weighed 8 pounds, 4 ounces and he was 20 1/2 inches long. His mother, Kat, is doing well, but has a recovery to go through herself. The new dad, my brother Mike, did well during it all, but looked a lot better after Jared, his first, was out of the NICU. Although he quickly got to hold Jared after he was born, Mom and I were there in the NICU when Mike was able to hold him and the realization of it all sunk in. He looked sooooo happy, proud, relieved, elated, and all the other emotions that describe being a parent for the first time.

I think his maternal grandmother, who's been a NICU nurse at this same hospital for the past 17 years, was taking extra special care of her newest grandson and one of her co-workers joked that she just wanted Jared to spend a little time in her unit, intensive care. She made sure that all was well and it was a relief to have her overseeing all the activities. It was really nice that she was able to give Jared his first bath. And she's a photographer so there's already hundreds of photos taken by her and another photographer she knows. In addition to all the other shots family and friends have taken. Wow! Here are a few taken by Rick and me.

It'll be a few weeks before we visit with them again and I'm sure Jared will have changed quite a bit. It puts a smile on my face to think that a year from now Jared will be running around playing with his cousin Leo and all the other cousins.

Quick trip for a new nephew

We're making a quick trip to CA for the birth of yet another nephew. Yep, I'm going to be an aunt again! It's a real contrast in my family with Rick and I retiring and my brothers and sister just having their children. We're finished with work and they have many more years to work. There's a large span of years between us all, and a number of us also. Seven months ago my brother Mark (& Anna) had their first child together, and now his twin brother, Mike (& Kat) are having their first child together. Here's a link to the posting about Leo. http://rickmicgonefishin.blogspot.com/search?q=leo He won't be the baby any longer.

Families get very complex and multi-layered nowadays and mine is no different. Just from my siblings we have 9 nephews and 2 nieces, all under the age of 15. I'm not even counting from Rick's side or anywhere else.

The drive through the desert was beautiful with the yellow, orange, purple and blue wildflowers in full bloom, growing alongside the freeway and a little ways into the desert. It was like a carpet of yellow with purple throw rugs spread around for color accents. If we hadn't had Rick parents with us I would have stopped to get some photos. I've already asked Rick to have the camera ready for the trip home so I can show you that the desert can be beautiful.

Detours in life

Detours can be interesting. They take you off the main route you plan to take.

I've been away from Blogger for a few days and feel some sort of obligation to post when I don't. Not like a job type obligation, but more like an outlet for my thoughts. I enjoy it and miss it. And there are a couple people who tell me they miss me. Thanks for the nice comments and encouragement.

Rick and I have been back and forth to California a few times in the last couple months, a 6 hour drive through the desert, to visit family and take care of personal, private family stuff. We've had some very nice family gatherings, spent lots of time with our young nephews and nieces, and all in all, have had a wonderful time. As much as we like spending time with family, it's good to be home.

Lately I've been writing about life in the motorhome, but life happens outside of the moho. It's been 14 months since we retired and it's still new and amazing. Some days I wake up and marvel at the realization of freedom. It's been nice to escape to the motorhome, escape the TV news of gloom and doom. Can't wait to get in the motorhome and drive north to escape the summer Arizona heat that will surely be here by May!

I'd like to share my thoughts on retirement in a post. There are endless activities taking place here where we live that draw us in. And perhaps I'll share some of the family stuff that we all go through. Thanks for stopping by.

De-clutter De-clutter De-clutter

We've been motivated once again to de-clutter our shed Rick's shed. When we retired 13 months, 8 days, and 6 hours ago we dropped off "stuff" at Goodwill and gave what we could to family. For a few days this past week, we worked with Rick's family to de-clutter his parent's garage. We had 3 fun days working with Rick's sister and her husband, and his parents, to organize and weed through their closets and cupboards. And boy, does their garage look good! Very motivating!

Well, since we've lived in the motorhome for a year and have now been home for a few weeks, we've got a whole new idea of what we need to keep for the motorhome and what we can leave at home. Rick took almost all of the stuff out of the motorhome storage bays and is organizing what we need for the next trip. He's building shelves, installing 'J' hooks, building compartments, and moving stuff around.

I know it's common to over pack for a trip and RVers are no different. Especially when you're going to live in the RV for a while. We both brought things along last year that were never ever used. Rick brought all the extra sewer parts, connections, and hoses that he owned, thinking that if he ever needed it, he'd really need it. That makes more sense than me bringing along the wire shopping basket on wheels. You know, the wheeled-basket with a handle that you take to swap meets to haul all your purchases. Or in my case, I thought I'd need it to haul dirty clothes to the laundry center at the campgrounds. We were always camped close to the laundry so I never got it out from under the bed. Yeah, it'll stay home next time. (What am I thinking? It needs to find a better home through Goodwill.)

Another thing that we kept under the bed with the wire wheelie-basket was a single oak TV tray. I thought it would make extra counter space for when I use the printer, but we've got the nice wooden table from Quartzsite now. So the TV tray stays home. And I definitely need to use the printer more often. Rick refills the ink cartridges and they dry up before I can use them. So I need to print more photos. With all that photo paper that I packed in the overhead cabinets.

We brought too many clothes, extra books that didn't get read, wood carvings that didn't get carved, and afghans that didn't get crocheted. Rick did tie lots and lots of flies to fish with and I hope to tie some myself. We've learned how to pack well and we have a motorhome that can carry much more weight (thank goodness). We'll probably take too much stuff again. I guess if we fished less we'd have more time for other hobbies and time to use all the stuff we bring along. But you know we aren't going to fish less. That's not gonna happen.

Happy Birthday Mom!

It was good to talk with you this morning. We're thinking of you and hope you are surrounded by friends, family and lots of love!

Hey! It's 2009!

I love to watch the Rose Parade! I've been lucky to have seen it in person a couple times, and as a kid my family used to go see the floats after the parade. They were amazing to see up close, even after they had lived their short parade life. I love the fact that it's all about the flowers. This year I'm going to record it on the DVR so I can stop it and watch something again if I want to. I don't like the network broadcasts because they tend to promote their TV shows more than they talk about the floats. So I prefer to watch HGTV which concentrates on the flowers. Perfect for me.

A tradition we've developed is to spend the first part of the day with Rick's parents. We have a bigger TV and high def, so we usually watch the parade at our house. They like to have doughnuts for New Year's Day breakfast so we ask that they bring what they want. I'm going to suprise Rick and make sausage gravy and biscuits! No oatmeal this morning for you! He'll like it and be surprised. We'll also have fresh fruit, eggs, and juice. And they'll also have their chocolate covered doughnuts.

Another part of the tradition is pizza for lunch. I've changed that custom slightly (oh so slightly!) and gotten away from delivery pizza. Rick and I prefer my homemade pizza with dough that I make. Since it's at our house, I get to make the pizza. The Rose Bowl game is not a big attraction for either of us and it's on late in the afternoon. Don't scoff! We usually have it on and I watch some of it, depending on who's playing and if it's a tight game. After the breakfast and lunch traditions there's not much else we want to eat or watch on TV.

Hope you get to spend the day doing whatever you want. And we hope 2009 is full of what makes you happy.

No Bird Has Been Known to Lay a Square Egg

What you say, "no square eggs?" I believe I was in 1st grade (my Mom would know for sure) when I wrote my first school report. Although it was only one sentence long, it was profound. And very wise for a first grader I thought at the time and still think it. I even drew a picture to go with the one-sentence report.

No bird has been known to lay a square egg.

To this day, my Mom still teases me about that report. She can get herself laughing so hard, you can't help but laugh along with her. I bet she's laughing right now reading these profound words again.

This all came back to me when we were on the Oregon coast. At the Yaquina Lighthouse, there was an educational display on the Common Murres that nest on the ocean cliffs and they lay very pointed eggs. No, not square. You probably thought I'd say square. This odd, very pointed shape is to keep the eggs from rolling off the steep cliff edges. If the egg rolls, it pivots around and does not roll away. These birds have markings that resemble a penguin and there were thousands of Common Murres on the rocks near Yaquina Head Lighthouse in Newport, Oregon.




Bet my Mom never thought she'd see my "No Square Egg" report published on the Internet. When you blog you can do just about anything.

Photography - For fun, not for a living

While we were in California for Thanksgiving, my sister asked if I would take photos of her and the family for their Christmas cards. She found a professional photographer who would stage the photos at the beach, but that turned into a bad idea when the weather forecast was for rain and wind. Instead she asked me to give it a try. I like to focus on fish, flowers, and landscapes, but I thought it would be interesting.

So on Sunday after turkey-day, we drove to the Claremont Colleges - Pomona, Scripps, Harvey Mudd, McKenna, Keck and more. Beautiful architecture, manicured lawns, trees, gardens, fountains, and good weather. There were a number of families there enjoying the park-like setting and wide-open spaces. Being a long holiday weekend, there were literally no students to be found.

At times, trying to get the 2 year old and 5 year old boys to pose for photos was difficult when all they wanted to do was run and play. And climb trees. And kick through the leaves, go up and down the steps, play tag, find bugs, climb the low walls, and sit on the benches. Getting them to stay still was the hard part, but they are kids afterall. Here are a few of my favs.

And a slideshow of fun bloopers to give you an idea of the fun we had trying to get them all smiling and looking at me at the same time. Taking pics of fish and flowers is a lot easier. They don't move like a 2 year old! In hindsight I would try a couple different settings on the camera and I'd bring along a couple of props to get their attention.

I wish I could have explored the campuses, but taking the photos of them was a lot of fun. I think we all had fun. And I hope they are able to use a couple of the photos for their Christmas card.

"You have to earn your air"

Continued from prior post- "Something to share"

Steve,
Your email about the elderly gentleman really touched me, as I know he has touched you. I'd like to ask if I can put the story on my blog? What's your new friend hoping to do? Is he wanting to live closer to his sons? What does his future hold? Thanks for sharing this with us.
Mic & Rick

Rick and Mic,
A lot has happened since I wrote the email this morning: he has received a nice warm jacket and other clothes, he has a little more money in his pocket for food and he will be living in a home for at least a month. Tonight will be the first time in a very long while that he will be able to shower and sleep warmly and safely. The lady who owns the house is recently divorced, with the house in foreclosure and at least one child. She saw him on a bus bench last night and asked if he needed help. He said no, but she said I know you do because I've seen you around a lot sitting on the bus bench and doing odd jobs. She said she would make a place for him to stay at her house. When she found out he had a nominal budget for housing, she immediately agreed to give her master bedroom and bath to him for a month. When I took him to the house and paid the lady, he was so proud and happy, and he just had to show me the room. So, we have bought some time to formulate a plan and a backup. His belongings consisted of the clothes he had on and obituary articles about his mother and his grandmother.

Kenneth Jackson is 61 years old and does not have a plan for the life he has left. But he and I are talking about that, and I think plan number one will be to get him to Illinois where his sons live. I don't know what the sons will think, but I will talk to them on the phone to see if we can work something out, even if it means providing subsistence pay for his lodging there.

Kenneth is very articulate, humble and newly hopeful, in spite of his circumstances, and I find it a joy to be around him. As you can see, it's already a fairly long and complicated tale, with much more to come. He has a small social network on his side now, so things can only get better. He actually expected he would die on the streets. I would be pleased to have you use it on your blog. If any of us don't feel fortunate in our lives, then we haven't seen enough of the lives many others live and we haven't thought clearly about the subject.

I think my son is right in a way when he says, "You have to earn your air."
Steve

Steve,
I wish you were here so I could give you a big hug. The tears are running from my eyes. I feel so hopeful for his man. He is blessed to have you by his side. And it makes me want to be more thoughtful and caring in the way I treat people.

Thanks for sharing and I hope you let me know how he is doing.
Mic

Something to share

I'm still feeling a little puny, as my grandma used to say when one of us felt a little under the weather. It seems I've gotten away from my daily blogging just a little, what with all the activities going on and the holidays. But there are lots of words circling in my head, so stand by. And even though I'm not 100%, I'm far better off than many, many others. When I start to have a little self-pity party, I just have to look at what others are dealing with to get me off the pity wagon.

Rick and I are fortunate to be able to spend time with family this fall and I've got some photos from our visits to share later. But not everyone is so fortunate. Although we are all dealing with some personal hardship, be it health issues, relationships, or money problems, we tend to lose sight of others who are suffering much greater hardships.

We received a very touching email from our friend Steve and I felt compelled to share it with you. With his permission I'm sharing.

Wednesday, 10:25 AM

Rick and Mic,


Your recent comments about the good lives that most of us have were, I hope, taken to heart by your blog readers. I got a lesson of my own in thankfulness two days before Thanksgiving Day when I was approached at a market in a poor community by a slender old black man. He introduced himself by name and said he needed help, although he made it clear he wanted to work and was not a beggar. I had a cup of coffee that I had just bought and was in a hurry to get somewhere, but I talked with the man for a few minutes and ultimately gave him ten bucks.

Well, as you might imagine, I felt happy with myself as I drove off. But several hours later I began to realize that I needed to really help this man. So I looked for him around the market several hours later, feeling a certain sense of urgency. Luckily, I found him and we sat down together to talk. I heard this man's hard luck story from his childhood in Louisiana all the way up to the current time in his poor little community where had come two years ago to take care of his sick mother. She died a year ago, but he remains a polite, dignified man in spite of having no place to stay, no food, no transportation, no phone, only the clothes on his back, not having had any medical or dental care for as long as he can remember. He has as close to nothing as anyone I have ever met.

I gave him more money for food, hoping that he would have something to eat on Thanksgiving Day. But I still knew he needed more help than that. When I celebrated Thanksgiving with my family, I couldn't stop thinking about how unbelievably blessed all of us are, having no idea what other human beings within our reach are going through. So, you can bet I was truly thankful, and I tried to share my feelings with my teenage grandchildren as well as the adults gathered around our table.

When I was younger my cynicism might have taken over, and I would have walked away after the first encounter. But now I have a project. I hope to find him a place to live today and to ultimately get him to Illinois where his adult sons live. They don't know how destitute he is, and he doesn't want to tell them for fear of worrying them. Besides, he has had no way to contact them.

I am telling you this because you know me and will understand that this is unexaggerated truth, and because we should all realize that we cannot be thankful enough. How lucky we are.

Steve

I sent an email back to Steve and asked to know more about this man and the outcome. I will share his reply with you.

'Thanks' still on my mind

Although the date of Thanksgiving, the annual celebration, the feasting day, has passed us by, I still have the feeling of being thankful for what we have.

As Thanksgiving approached, I kept thinking that I should share with you and post here what I am so very thankful for. I kept coming up with the usual - good health, family, friends, the freedoms that come with being an American & living in the USA. Thanks to our military and armed forces for serving to keep us free. And thanks for my loving husband.

Thanksgiving is the day that commemorates the Pilgrims gratitude for their harvest and for survival in the new world. Our country seems to be facing comparatively tough times of its own right now. The economy specifically. This affects not only us retirees, but everyone. Everyone everywhere. I have to think that we will come out of these down times and be better for it. If I didn't think that I might be searching the jobs ads. My mom says we are faced with a challenge to do with less and find ways to save. My sister (to paraphrase) says it will bring us back to basics, bring us to understand what is important, bring us to live within our means. It's also a time when we, the citizens, are wanting to be a part of our future, our destiny, and our purpose. I feel more people are aware and involved with their communities, and this country, than ever. At least in my adulthood.

We see the news and know that many are facing tough times. At times I feel somewhat guilty for the 'good' that Rick and I have. (But then I remember our conservative spending habits, our savings plan, and our hard work to get where we are.) Our own family members are dealing with poor health, loss of loved ones, slow downs at work, but we're getting through it all with the belief and trust that it will get better. People are out of work and I've heard of retirees returning to work to get by. Rick and I both realize that we are living a good life and we don't take it for granted. We are thankful for our health, what we've done and the country we live in. I hope that you have reasons to be thankful, even in these tough times.

3 Thanksgivings

This year we were fortunate to celebrate Thanksgiving 3 times! Yep, with 3 turkeys. We had Rick's sister and brother-in-law visiting the week before the official date and were lucky to have them and Rick's parents over for a barbequed turkey. And all the traditional fixins! The only thing missing, according to Jim and me, was the old family secret green bean casserole with mushroom soup and fried onions. Even with the green beans missing, dinner was delicious.

Then on Tuesday before Thursday Thanksgiving we had just Rick's parents over for another traditional feast. But again the old family secret green bean casserole was missing. It was a delicious feast of (yet another) roasted turkey and all the trimmings.

The day before Thanksgiving we headed west to southern California where we both grew up and all my family still lives. My mom roasted a turkey along with all the traditional side dishes I grew up loving. On Thanksgiving day Rick and I celebrated with 25 of my immediate family members and we had a fabulous, familiar feast. We had yummy appetisers, deviled eggs to die for, home-made stuffing, home-made gravy, real mashed potatoes, fresh creamed corn, home-made buttermilk bisquits, sweet yams, fresh home-made cranberry relish (who knew it didn't grow in a can?), green beans cooked with bacon, fresh Chinese chicken salad, tender turkey, 3 different pies, AND a birthday cake. With so many in the family, everytime there's a family gathering there's a birthday cake. They were celebrating 5 November birthdays (I think?). I think I missed some Thanksgiving dish, but there were soooo many great dishes it's hard to remember it all!

I think I heard my brother Dan say he wished he could have brought the old family secret green bean casserole. Next year the casserole will surely be on the menu.

Rick & Mickey have left the river!

The last few days of summer were magical. Well, more than just the last few days. The entire summer has been wonderful. What a perfect way to de-stress from work. The magic is not just the fishing, but the friendly people we've met and been lucky to spend time with. The fishing is not the primary reason we've hung around until the end of September.

The temps have been cool, but just barely warm enough to keep wet wading. The temps overnight were sometimes down to freezing, but nice by noon and through the afternoon. Two or three layers of long sleeves kept us warm. The crowds of anglers were fewer and with the water flowing at only 33 cfs, there were no guided drift boats. Just the rare raft or kick-boat. The fish were pickier which meant we had to be trickier. What some call 'technical' fishing. Some like easy fishing, some like a challenge. At times it's been a top rated challenge.

We love to fish! We are retired and this is what we planned to do when we stopped working. We know how fortunate we are. Fly fishing is something we share and we love to do together. On one of our last days I wandered downriver, away from the other 3 guys fishing, and totally out of Rick's sight. I walked down the river bank and around a bend and couldn't hear anyone else on the river. I could have been on another river it was so foreign. I landed a couple decent size rainbows and enjoyed the satisfaction, but it wasn't the same without Rick there. I definitely enjoy sharing my fishing moments with Rick.

We'd been in Montana about 100 days. It was time to leave, to attend to personal business and to visit family. We miss family. We're not sure where we'll spend next summer, but we have our Mobile Fishing Lodge to take us there. Fortunate, yes, we are.

Happy Birthday to my dear Rick!

CLICK ON THE SMALL SPEAKER IN THE LOWER LEFT CORNER OF THE SLIDE SHOW TO ENJOY THE MUSIC.

Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday to YOU!

Since it's Rick's birthday, it's his choice of what to do today. Of course we are camped on the banks of the river and the fishing was great yesterday! So I know we're going to spend the day on the river. Then he will grill a ribeye steak for dinner, with baked potato and a glass of wine.

September 11

For a long time I've thought that I should write something profound or thought provoking about September 11. The feelings we all have for September 11, since the year 2001, are personal, private or shared, but personal. The feelings are still there today; the shock, the fear, the bewilderment, the raw hurt. Just writing about it now brings back the stress and uncertainty and a little bit of a panic attack.

I remember driving to work with Rick that morning, wondering if we should go on to work or turn around and go back home. We switched radio stations, but even they couldn't figure it out. Not sure, we drove on to work. Being close to Phoenix International Airport, we noticed numerous jets flying overhead to land. Not knowing then what a task it was to bring the aircraft down safely and quickly. The day was spent glued to the radio and watching TVs that co-workers had brought into the office. I remember the feeling of helplessness. I remember thinking about the night before, spent with family, one of comfort and security. The day before had been our anniversary and it was wonderful and nostalgic. Overnight it all changed. Now today was frightening.

The following week was horrific for me as the TV played it out, over and over, 24 hours a day and yet I had to watch it. I know Rick had to be on edge, but he was there to comfort me and let me cry and talk. We hope never again to have such an attack on our country with so many innocent lives lost. I know Rick and I have not forgotten 9/11. I think we should all be reminded of the tragedy, somehow be reminded of the loss and the hurt, so we never forget.