Quote of the Day

Most people live, whether physically, intellectually or morally, in a very restricted circle of their potential being. They make use of a very small portion of their possible consciousness, and of their soul’s resources in general, much like a man who, out of his whole bodily organism, should get into a habit of using and moving only his little finger.

-– William James

Cabin from the Air

This is a view of the cabin and pasture from a drone:

More Birds

Northern Cardinal

Blue Jay

Yellow Bellied Sapsucker

European Starling

White Crowned Sparrow

Tufted Titmouse

Bird Count

This weekend I participated in a bird count for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. Over a period of two days I counted the birds of each species that gathered at my bird feeders.

This female Cardinal with its bright orange and white wing 

feather is a partial albino.

Christmas Program

I'm getting old. We were late for Jenna's school Christmas program this morning because it took us so long to scrape ice off our windshield. We got soft over the summer and were unused to taking the time to prepare to drive in cold weather. I don't know how many years will pass before I just give up on driving on cold winter mornings. Driving at night is difficult for us now; our night vision has disappeared over the years.  Anyway, we arrived before the entertainment began.

Jenna in the blue shirt sings with her group.

Marley, Gracen, and Hunter enjoyed the show.

Where Did the Time Go?

Today is Marley's 16th birthday. She celebrated by driving herself to school in her own car.

It seems like yesterday that she was 5 yrs old.

There she goes.

Thanksgiving Photo

Cabin Progress

Flower Girl

Gracen was the flower girl at her cousins wedding on Saturday. 

Appliance Nostalgia

We recently replaced our toaster.  It was twenty years old; it still worked fine but the cord would get very hot indicating that the internal strands of wire had broken from years of use. I suppose I could have just replaced the power cord but Dorothy thought it was time for a new, modern stainless steel model. It's pretty fancy with settings for bagels, warm up, and you can even defrost frozen bread before it is toasted. I hope it lasts another twenty years but I don't have much confidence in contemporary appliance quality. And here's why:
     In 1976 we bought an upright freezer from Montgomery Ward (remember them?).  That freezer gave us 34 years of trouble free service and then one day in 2010 it quit. We bought another one. We plugged it in, the light came on, and it began to hum. It never got cold inside. We called the department store and they picked it up and left us with an identical freezer. It works fine but leaks water. There is a copper line under the freezer that gets encrusted with frost that,  during the defrost mode, condenses into a pool of water on the floor. There is a plastic reservoir that is supposed to catch the condensate but it doesn't. Poor design. Instead of insisting on a new freezer we just lay paper towels down to absorb the moisture. If we replaced the freezer we may get another lemon so we'll just make do.
    We bought a new refrigerator, all stainless steel, french doors and bottom freezer. It has more cubic feet that the old one yet holds less food. There is a water and ice dispenser in the door but I cannot get a full glass of ice without a cube or two flying off in random directions and onto the floor. It seems modern appliances are very nice to look at but are lacking in functionality.
     My daughter recently bought a new dish washer. It didn't actually clean the dishes. I checked it out and even called the customer service line. The service rep had me hold my phone to a location on the washer and an electronic signal was uploaded  and used to diagnose the problem. It didn't work. So a technician was dispatched to her house and he replaced a part.  It still remains to be seen whether that will be a permanent fix. 
     We're living in an age where we are driven by rampant consumerism to buy expensive, flashy products that are nothing but junk in disguise. But isn't that true of our politics, religion, and most of our modern culture?

Marley has her braces removed

She will be 16 next month!

Cabin in the Woods

Small houses and cabins are popular these days. People are coming to the conclusion that  huge living spaces are not only expensive to buy but to maintain, cool in the summer and heat in the winter; not to mention the taxes.
    My daughter and her husband are building an approximately 400 sq. ft. cabin on our land and they will live there part of the year and sail the Caribbean the rest of the time. Construction began a few weeks ago.

Clearing a space at the edge of the woods.

This ditch will connect the well to the cabin.

Short Summer

It's fall. The leaves are falling and the shadows are growing longer. I look back on the Summer and it seems that it was a short one. I've been neglecting this blog partly because of time spent analyzing the events of the summer of 2015. 
     Because of a spring that was cooler and wetter than normal our garden was a dud. The tomatoes cracked and rotted; the ones that survived lacked that good, tart flavor I  look forward to every summer. The okra was stunted. We did harvest some good green beans and potatoes. We'll try again next year.
    In early June I went to the doctor for my yearly wellness exam and was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. I immediately went on a carb counting diet, bought a blood sugar tester and started using it religiously. I'm trying to get more exercise. I was able to bring my body mass index down from 35 to 32.5, I keep my blood glucose level within normal range, I've lost 23 pounds and my blood pressure is normal. The doctor is pleased with my progress. I feel better however I do miss those donuts, mashed potatoes, and biscuits.
     At the end of June I had another surgery for a basal cell carcinoma on my nose. This is the second surgery in 4 years. This one was on the opposite side as the other one. The surgery required the removal of more tissue than the last time. I don't know how I let that slip up on me. So, now I have to see my dermatologist 3 times a year instead of just once.
     My 46 year old nephew died. His death is under police investigation. That's all I can say about that right now.
    And last but not least I turned 70 this summer. I don't see that as a negative life event, in fact I'm grateful for the years I've spent on this planet and the people that I've spent them with. But it has me turned toward contemplating the time of my departure. So I've been doing a lot of spiritual/metaphysical/philosophical ruminating to prepare myself for that final and irrevocable loss of consciousness. Please don't think I'm being morbid. I know, like every human being before me, that I only  have so many days allotted to me and that I may have 20+ years to enjoy. I just want to make sure they are fruitful ones.

Family Gathering at the Community Center