1 Jun: On this momentous occasion, the halfway mark of 2026, it is 9:40 AM and we are thinking about getting up. We have named the June blog. Ron has three important jobs, Call Dr Dougherty, Dean and buy more blueberries.
Where is Ron now?
Monday, June 1, 2026
Friday, May 1, 2026
MAY BIRSARY: Together Is the Best Place To Be
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| Birthday Boy with the ramainder of birthday cake |
30 May: This is a SLOW SLOW SLOW DAY. At high noon, we are low energy. For the other partner in this enterprise, it was a lovely day to luxuriate in bed until noon. Then we walked to the Sub Tropics (click here) for a foot-long veggie sub, which was very good, and a medium walk on the beach. We ate lunch at the Corner Diner, enjoying a large serving of grilled flounder and veggies.. There is so much flounder we brought a Togo box home. We walked the beach a second time, despite a windy chill, dodging the high tide. We took the boardwalk up from the beach at the Island Grille, rembering our walks from times past on the beach to get to the restaurant. 3.6 miles. After the morning beach walk, the observer, who will remain anonymous, noticed the energetic partner:

29 May: And it is another day we are excited to wake up, although we were quite late, arising at 10:00 am, and ever so thankful for a long, refreshing night of sleep. Now that breakfast is done, Cynthia's exercises and a walk are the next order of business. We walked along the beach to the fishing pier (free for pedestrians), and espied enough bikinis to keep Ron happy. On our return along the beach, Ron spotted a pod of dolphin, certainly four that were highy visible, maybe six or eight all together, but no more bikinis. Ron walked to Food Lion for fresh fruit, etc. Our highly anticipated dinner at the Island Grille (click here) did not disappoint, a delicious meal of salads and blackened flounder. Afterwards, we walked in the direction of the Sands Resort Condominiums but were stymied by dead ends. Backtracking, we stopped to chat for a few minutes with Joe and Elaine, a very entertaining couple with backgrounds at BC (Boston College), Georgetown, Duke, and military brathood. The index for Volume IV is completed; the book totals 512 pages. Editing the last few chapters is the next step. We walked 4.19
28 May: Yes! Joy Oh Joy! We walked 2.2 miles to the Food Lion and back for nominally fresh fruit, and Cynthia chose instant coffee to avoid coffee grounds. It was pure joy to not have any hip pain. Our lodging includes a microwave, a bar refrigerator, and a coffee maker, so our cooking choices are limited. (Ron notes that we avoid cooking to avoid dishes.) We do great, cooking oatmeal with fresh fruit in the mornings. For lunch, Cynthia ate an apple, a few grapes, spinach, broccoli and a baked sweet potato. We ate snapper for dinner this evening at Amos Mosquito. Ron is very happy to report that the indexing is going much faster than he imagined possible. 4.81 miles walking... 12,604 steps.
27 May: We have reservations for a room with a King sized bed at the Caribbe Inn (click here), which is supposed to be a rather unusual small hotel, nicely kept and run by a delightful couple, Mike and Sarah. What a big surprise!! They were able to give us the King bed room for seven nights at $115 per night. It is a small room with older appointments, but perfect for us. Oh Joy, Oh Joy. Maybe Ron will finish the index for volume 4. Dinner tonight was at the Island Grille, a hot spot for locals because the food is the best. We remember this restaurant, not vividly, although Cynthia does remember walking a dark alley with power lines everywhere. Once she saw the building, memory returned of delightful evenings with the solo waitress. The yellowfin tuna was the best ever eaten. Cynthia is also happy because her hip pain is mostly gone until she lies down for any length of time. Once up, and after getting synovial fluid moving in the joints, she is good for the day. The key to happiness is having a grateful attitude.
26 May: We are up, and Ron called the library to discover that their copy of Van Stille's manuscript is older than Ron's, so we don't need to stop there. We also don't need to go to the LDS Family History Library since they are only open from 10 am to 2 pm on Tuesdays but close during any week with a holiday. Consequently, we can go straight to Ruby Tuesday for lunch before heading north up the Atlantic Coast. Who knows how far we will get this afternoon. Cynthia would like to find a simple beach cottage for ten days to finish the index on volume Four and to walk. Ron wanted to find a nice room with an ocean view for $125 per night. We settled on a Doubletree hotel room at twice that cost but located the Caribbe Inn where we can walk daily for three nights at $125 per night. Unless they have a cancelation, we will have to leave and take a couple of ferries to Ocracoke Island (click here) and beyond.
25 May: Ron joined Hans on his typical morning walk through town looking for loose change that falls from the sky every night. Cynthia and Audrey surprised us by honking instead of running us over after they visited the church where Audrey and Hans worship. Right at the crack of noon, we were on the bike going north on US 701 towards Tater, North Carolina where we ran into a miles long traffic jam and wet roads. Ron opted to get off the bypass and take the business route through town, which went quickly. We continued east on US 76 and found even wetter roads as we arrived in Wilmington, NC by two PM. Fortunately the rain had stopped but our GPS misdirected us, so we had to scout around to find the Hilton Garden Inn hidden a mile away behind other buildings. We searched on-line and found a Ruby Tuesdays only six miles from the hotel. By three PM we were happily seated and eating lots of salad.
24 May, Sunday: Rain is forecast and the skies turned greyer and greyer as we approached Hans and Audrey's house. As we rode through Loris, a few small raindrops hit us and wet Ron's glasses, but we pulled into the driveway dry and happy. Audrey welcomed Cynthia into the house and suggested that Ron park in the barn. Before he got back to the bike, the heavens opened up, and a deluge poured out on Ron, who was immediately drenched, but did manage to ride the bike into the barn quickly. Audrey found him a towel, and we sat on the patio enjoying the rainfall while we waited for Hans to return home from a trip to Lowes. Despite short notice, Audrey was able to find salad fixing (including home grown lettuce) and noodles to fix us appropriate to our diets.
23 May: After so many days without ice cream of any flavor, Ron decided to walk to Trader Joe's for sorbet. It was good but not impressive. Immediately afterward, Clark and Elizabeth again picked us up in the Tesla so that Cynthia could again have a front row seat to see what self driving entails. (You just select a destination from prompts and punch a button to make the car take you there.) Lunch with Mary, Clark, Elizabeth, Cheryl, Tom, and Dick at Ruby Tuesday's Restaurant in Lexington reminded us all of the good old days. We have all survived despite the outrageous slings and arrows of Old Man Time, so we thank God for survival. Clark continued to give Cynthia Tesla driving lessons on the way back to our Hilton Garden Inn.
22 May: Elizabeth, Clark and Dick joined us for breakfast. Ron walked to Walmart for vitamins and berries
21 May: We rode from Athens to Columbia, South Carolina following old route 378, stopped in McCormick, SC for lunch, and were quite surprised by a sudden, quick, brief rainstorm at St. Peters Drive in Lexington. We ducked underneath a big tree and walked to a store in the light rain that followed and waited for half an hour for the rain to quit, then continued on to the Hilton Garden Inn in Irmo. Clark, Elizabeth, Dick, Mary and Cheryl joined us for dinner at Ruby Tuesday in Lexington. Thanks to Clark and Elizabeth for driving us. Ron rode shotgun on the way there and insisted that Cynthia ride up front on the return to see how self-driving works.
20 May: Athens, GA .. a quiet morning with a delicious spinach and salmon salad at Hilltop House and a lovely afternoon visit with cousins Sharon and Quint.
19 May: Angi and Michael hosted us for a delicious dinner last night. Today we rode to Athens, GA.
18 May: Oh, my! Cynthia got three hours of sleep when we arose to meet Danielle, Camille and their dad for breakfast at 6:30 AM. Our time together was all too brief, but wonderful. From there, we returned to our hotel to take care of things, packed up, and rode to Sandy Springs, GA, to make the statement, "Together is the best place to be" in Ruby Tuesday's restaurant. We ate way too much. Now we will overnight at Michael and Angi's. 6497 days.
17 May, Sunday: We have been together 6496 days, Or 17 years, 9 months, 14 days, excluding the end date. Or 213 months, 14 days, excluding the end date. Almost 24/7. After leaving the security of Pritikin menus and fitness trainers a week ago, we are on our own, scavenging for food as we travel north. We spent two wonderful days celebrating Ron’s 79th birthday and our fifteenth wedding anniversary on Hutchison Island, one of Florida’s barrier islands. The mother sea turtles are nesting, so we had to be careful walking the beach and close our drapes at night because they need darkness. It was astonishing to see five huge pelicans with vast wing spans hovering in an updraft of wind, like drones. We visited the effervescent former Pritikin Medical Director, whose passionate interest in longevity is at the cellular and molecular level now. The three of us dialogued about how to bring about change, to wake people up to make better food choices to allow enjoyment of longevity. We visited a cousin and his wife, who surprised us by praying for the President. That was a very pleasant thing to hear instead of the raging hate. She made wonderful whole wheat sourdough bread. We visited a 93 year old cousin who was praying he would see us once again before he died. He was so happy to see us. And now we have arrived in Perry, Georgia to visit my two grand nieces, Danielle and Camille at 6:30 AM tomorrow for breakfast. The best news is that I am walking great without pain! The platelet rich plasma therapy in my torn hip tendons worked.
16 May: "Together is the best place to be" according to the tee shirt at Surcheros (click here). And together we enjoyed a fun afternoon with our distant cousin Don in Brunswick, GA; great conversation about genealogy, cemeteries, DNA, hobbies and AI before we boogied out to lunch. Don drove us several miles into town in the comfort of his Cadillac, which car he doesn't drive often. Afterwards we drove to the cemetery to visit Doris' grave; she passed last Christmas Eve. We said our goodbyes (with hugs) and returned to the Comfort Inn for the night.
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| The intrepid travelers, seated, belted, and ready to ride. |
14 May: We spent a very lovely day with cousin Monte and Ellen in Port Orange, FL enjoying the most delicious and nutritious food. Mmmm! Ellen's whole wheat sour dough bread is divine! They grow many of their own veggies.
13 May: The ride through the Barrier Islands was lovely; we arrived at Monte and Ellen's spacious home for a two night visit.
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| Ron, final gasps of a wave that threatened him |
12 May: Ron's birthday and our anniversary... the ANNABIRSARY!
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| Ron and Cynthia photo taken by Dr. Fruge |
11 May: We left Pritikin early enough to take the scenic route by Lake Ocachobee en route to Jupiter, FL to visit Dr. Fruge. She is doing a million things now besides having a concierge wellness practice that goes so far as FaceTime exercise sessions with her patients. We finally said our goodbyes around 5 PM, rode across the inlet and onto barrier islands for a while before coming onto the mainland for several miles following A1A back onto the barrier islands to the Nicholson Shore Resort for our anniversary.
10 May, Sunday: HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!
9 May: We celebrated Ron's birthday at Pritikin!
8 May: We had doctor appointments with gold star lab results.
7 May: Oh my gracious. We walked a total of 5.33 miles throughout the day. That is too much. Ron did extreme cardio! Cynthia had a fitness class with a personal trainer and we had three lectures. Ron knows the topics so well he could give the lectures. Cynthia is organizing her saddlebag for Monday's departure. She is hopeful for a pleasant Mothers Day by packing early.
6 May: Another good day in paradise. Ron had help from two other Pritikin guests to finish the jigsaw puzzle in record time. He did his cardio after dinner in two installments, 20-minute interval workout followed immediately by a 22-minute steady state. One would think that his legs are getting much, much stronger.
5 May: Pritkin celebrated Cinco de Mayo with a festive, colorful dinner with mahi and bison tacos; we wondered where the mariachi band was. We did a lot of exercise today; Cynthia had a fitness class and Ron is always moving. The PGA temporary units are being torn down. Cynthia is looking forward to the next part of the travel but she is also sad to be leaving this healthy and safe place for her torn tendons and back issues. Ron is close to completion of this 1000-piece puzzle.
4 May: Moving Day. Our villa is going to be remodeled, so we are being moved next door to the Gary Player villa. We packed everything before breakfast. Our new unit is much smaller. Both of us have been doing workouts. The puzzle is proceeding quickly, 1000 pieces.
3 May, Sunday: We have never been more well-protected. The President arrived last night; security outside was extremely tight. Our morning walk was pleasant despite the crowds. We saw endless numbers of Secret Service police. Cynthia is hopeful to get LDL below 70 by eliminating fruit after lunch and not eating fruit first or alone. "Fruit needs Friends." Ron started the new puzzle.
2 May: It was wonderful to sleep late. Ron participated in the Stretch Class before we watched part of the PGA tour and continued our jaunt through the golf grounds for exercise. Then chaos erupted when Cynthia could not find her purse. She thought she hung it on a hook in the restroom. We searched everywhere before assuming it was gone. The faith-filled PGA sentry told Ron that Cynthia would find it. And just like that, Sophia, the wait staff manager, motioned Cynthia to the patio where the purse was sitting on a lounge chair. Cynthia hugged the manager and the sentry.
1 May: Wishing everyone May baskets of bountiful blessings. We are at Pritikin for eleven more days. Ruthie gave Ron a new puzzle to do
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
April in Miami
Sunday, March 1, 2026
Two Rolling Stones En Route to Pritikin
28 Mar: With three exercise sessions, a lecture, two walks, and three meals, Cynthia is busy pondering the impossibility of people realizing they can prevent disease. zzzzzz Good night! 4.37 Miles.
27 Mar: Ron is making progress on the puzzle; Cynthia is making great progress on exhaustion after four fitness exercise classes today. We had a great lecture on osteoporosis. The food is fabulous. The sunset was glorious. 3.67 miles.
26 Mar: Cynthia had three fitness classes today, plus lab results which were excellent except for a recent spike in blood sugar NO MORE I CE CREAM! We are fed so much delicious food! 2.45 miles
25 Mar: Morning comes too soon! After Core strength classes and cardio5, Ron had an appt with his cardiologist and received gold stars on his labs. We had our Dexa scan labs and analysis; learning we have work to do this coming year! Cynthia lost a pound of muscle because of inactivity this past year. Cindy and Greg, friends from the Florida Keys, were scheduled to visit us here this afternoon, but we didn't hear from them. And Ron is making progress on a challenging puzzle 3.0 miles
24 Mar: And all too soon it was morning! Immediately after breakfast, we had strength training followed by forty-five minutes of cardio with Ron rocking out to old rock songs, getting his heart rate up to 138, and delighting the rest of the class. 3.6 Miles
23 Mar: Immediately this morning was lab check time. Our results are returned on Thursday. Included in the lab check is the fitness check. Cynthia logged twelve plus minutes on the treadmill. Athlete Ron did eight minutes because of his knee injury. We both passed all the other fitness tests, and we are logged into the same level fitness classes. We spent an hour with the nutrition counselor learning about Pritikin's reversal to the early stringent, medical program, reducing cholesterol dramatically, and getting folks off blood pressure meds. They take your BP meds away the first day. This is not a spa. No cheese at all, no desserts, but they do have NICE CREAM. The plant based buffets are fabulous. Ron is very interested we had a good walk despite the intense sun. 3.81 miles
22 Mar: The ride through the Everglades was most enjoyable, especially stopping to see the alligators. We arrived in time for a late lunch and spotted friends we have met here before.
21 Mar: We had a great restful sleep! The hotel has Original oatmeal. Yay. We might go for a hike. And we might not go for a hike. We opted to work on our electronics. Ahi Tuna Dinner tonight at Cynthia's classmate Annie's was fabulous. We overate big time.
20 Mar: The morning was spent with Drew and BD; we left about 2:30 and arrived at our Naples, FL hotel at 4:30, immediately ready for a lovely snooze. Waking up hungry, we discovered there are no restaurants that can feed us. We played the game Frogger walking in the dark for 25 minutes to a Super Walmart with no sidewalks and a street under construction. Cynthia watched for alligators after seeing the alligator pit near Drew's house. Ron had a heavy bag with apples, yogurt, bananas, raspberries, and blueberries, and still managed to hold Cynthia's hand returning through the construction site the way we came. We won! The traffic didn't kill us after all. Saturday we will have dinner with Cynthia's Northwood classmate Annie
19 Mar: Ron and Drew flew to a fly-in brunch; Drew is Ron's MIT alum and a pilot. BD and I walked and talked. BD showed us the alligator nesting area near her home. When the guys returned, we walked to the famous Venice Beach and Pier, just in time to watch a fisherman catch a bull shark with a rope and hoist the floundering shark up and over the railing. Drew made fabulous Turkey chili for dinner with Chardonnay.
18 Mar: Arrived in Venice, FL for two nights
17 Mar: The temperature at check-out time is forty-five degrees that translates to thirty-five degrees on the motorcycle. We have a three- hour ride to Crystal River where we visited Ron's old friends from years ago. Cynthia was bundled up in all of her heated gear and three pairs of gloves She lost two right-hand gloves while trying to adjust her the heat The ride was pleasant because of little traffic and smooth roads We are half a whole wheat Subway sandwich gutted, toasted and filled with veggies for lunch: Cynthia ate a hot Spinach salad with mahi mahi while Ron ate a redfish sandwich and baked potato for dinner. He greatly surprised Cynthia with a Hampton Inn stay for the night at Brooksville, FL. Yay! They have real, hot oatmeal for breakfast.
16 Mar: It is raining in Panama City Beach. We have 127 miles to ride to Perry, Fl, but it is raining there, too Hmmm! We waited until the rain stopped ar eleven AM and rode to Mexico Beach to see the remarkable reconstruction from this community devastated by a hurrucane. We stopped on Port St Joe's peninsula, Hunt's Oyster and Seafood Bar, for hot Seafood Gumboj (to warm Cynthia's frozen fingers), and red snapper. It was very cold riding! We stopped for the night close to Perry, Florida.
15 Mar: At noon, we had lunch at Ruby Tuesday's to get our veggies and took off for Panama City Beach by one PM Ron stopped several times so Cynthia could walk for five minutes. The Comfort Suutes hotel is surorusingly nice after the last one. Ron thought it would be fun to get lost walking the 1.25 mile to Uncle Ernie's Seafood Restaurant. We made it just fine, but Cynthia accidentally ordered Grouper Imperial AND lobster tail. The food was delicious and we made it back to the hotel without getting lost, too 4.04 miles
14 Mar: Oh, joy! Oh, what fun! We slept late and walked to Ruby Tuesday's for lunch. The crows were making lots of noise in a nearby tree, Cynthia learned how to pronounce cacophony correctly. Ron knows everything. We are at work on our electronics; Ron will shop for necessary fruit for our morning cereal and we will go for a long walk in the Mississippi sunshine
13 Mar: We spent a lovely morning with Pat, walking for thirty minutes, and packing to begin the second leg of the ride to Miami. The ride along the Mississippi Gulf Coast is always a delight, but today, more so, because the traffic was not too heavy. Many of the once palatial coastal homes were destroyed in the hurricanes a few years ago; some have been rebuilt, but the developer's touch is evident with many rental units having taken their place. Biloxi is now more commercialized. Ron found a wonderful seafood restaurant that has been in business for a hundred years, and we ate Cajun seafood gumbo, red rice and beans, and parsley potatoes with grilled redfish. Cynthia ate three hush puppies. Arf! We walked on the white sand beach and marveled at the vastness of the Gulf Coast waters sparkling like a trillion diamonds in the sunlight. We are lodged in Pascagoula near a Ruby Tuesday restaurant! We walked a total of 4.48 miles... 11,729 steps.
12 Mar: Our travel this year is "play it by ear." In January, the electrophysiologist told Ron his pacemaker has six months of battery left, which is an approximation. Once the battery number is up we get a different notification which will be more precise. Therefore, we are traveling as long as we can until we get a phone call. Also, our plans for hiking in Vermont are questionable; the inn is up for sale, and they no longer have long-term guests. They will only be open four nights a week. Today, Pat drove us to an audiologist who repaired Cynthia's hearing aid, then to the post office and we treated her to lunch at Jason's Deli. Ron loves Jason's Deli and the free ice cream cones. We walked for thirty minutes.
11 Mar: Baton Rouge, LA Cynthia is relearning how to pronounce Louisiana, New Orleans, Atchafalya and Avoiyelles from a life-long Louisianan. It is vastly different from the Texas drawl Cynthia is accustomed to. Ron is helping Pat with her Stille ancestral line, while Cynthia walked for forty minutes. We will do another overnight. 2.32 miles.
10 Mar: At 6:52 AM, Cynthia woke Ron from a deep sleep! He was not happy; we must be out of the condo by eleven. Now, the day begins as usual, but two very tired Smooches are up to exercise, eat, and load the bike for the first leg of the ride to Miami. We left Montgomery at eleven-thirty AM. We arrived in Baton Rouge to lodge with a cousin eight hours later. 2.54 miles.
9 Mar: We worked, we packed, we shipped the box to Pritikin, and we unloaded more stuff at the storage locker. I deleted my earlier post so I don't recall what I wrote.
8 Mar: After worship, we had a lovely salmon brunch at The Oscar's, followed by a brief walk until it rained, and then we must begin the big push to be able to leave on Tuesday. Except, a nap was important, and the MIT review arrived with articles about AI and the NGS journal carried interesting articles, too. We did indeed manage a walk and a quarter (rain). So here we are at dinner time, and we begin our work. Cynthia spotted Ron's handiwork on her bathroom mirror yesterday, and today it was posted on the coffee table! Note the ice cream spoon addition from Cynthia! 3.66 Miles (almost 10,000 steps, getting back there!)
7 Mar: Unfortunately, we didn't sleep much last night. Ron was obsessing about the TSA agents working without pay; Cynthia was experiencing continual back pain. Thunderstorms are forecast for late today. We started out for our walk experiencing tiny sprinkles, but thinking it was ok to continue, we did just that, until big raindrops fell causing us to turn into the parking garage. The rain stopped, allowing us to continue walking the Breakwater. It is a lovely walk, with four or five Great Blue Heron, a good-sized flotilla of ducklings, and several large ducks of another type. Today, several yellow pollen patches lined the inner banks. And just as we returned, so did the rain. Ron decided to nap, and Cynthia thought that was an excellent idea, too. It was very pleasant listening to the thunder and rainstorm, but we did not fall asleep. 2.15 Miles.
6 Mar: Ron awakened at 6 am, quietly did his exercises on the bed in the spare bedroom (still clean from Marvin & Carolyn's visit two weeks ago) and ate breakfast before 7:40 when he awakened Cynthia. At 8 AM he was out the door and on the bike towards Woodlands BMW for the warranty replacement of the driveshaft. And this will need to be done every 36,000 miles. (Yes, we have that many miles on this bike already !!) BMW was all done by 10:30, so Ron stopped at Jason's Deli for salad bar (and free ice cream cones) on his way home. Now he has returned to preparations prior to leaving in four days, early next Tuesday, starting with entering receipts and routes into his spreadsheet. Cynthia had the car washed and filled with fuel, went to the bank to reorder check blanks, picked up the comforter from the dry cleaners, and prescriptions from the pharmacy. Despite the morning activity, we managed two thirty minute walks today! We thinks there is an afternoon nap in our futures. Naps are good medicine. 3.64 Miles
5 Mar: We drove the car to the storage locker and unloaded much of Cynthia's stuff and then to Oscar's to have dinner with Larry & Dawn. Another mandatory stop at Walmart for walnuts and Vitamin A (for the eyes, as recommended by cousin Dorothy). Oscar treated us well as usual, feeding us salmon, salads and rice. Larry and Dawn evidently also really enjoyed their meals. 2.43 Miles.
4 Mar: MEDICAL, ENT at 10:30 AM. This was Ron's opportunity to go through all his piles of paper looking to separate 1) things to go with 2) things to go to storage, 3) recycling, and 4) etc. He had good success with a pile of papers to photograph, receipts to enter into his spreadsheet, and recycling. Since the next four days are supposed to be cloudy and rainy, when will he find bright enough light to photograph documents? 3.37 Miles.
3 Mar: MEDICAL. Cynthia has a doctor's appointment at nine-fifteen with an ENT and the wellness doctor at noon. We will meet Samantha and her family at three-thirty. Well, the doors were locked for my ENT appointment. I called, and they said the appointment was in College Station. I was very annoyed they failed to tell me that when I made the appointment. Thankfully, a different ENT near Jon’s house worked me in tomorrow. We had great fun with Samantha and Adam, and their two precious boys. More fun, Cynthia’s nephew called tonight, and we enjoyed a great visit about their son interviewing colleges for next fall. We hope to connect as we travel the next few months. 1.21 Miles.
2 Mar: MEDICAL We rode the motorcycle to the medical center in the Woodlands for Cynthia to get trigger point epidural injections. Next we dropped off recycling at Target and ate lunch at Jason’s Deli. The TP injections felt great for six hours until the lidocaine wore off. 1.51 Miles.
1 Mar, Sunday: After worship, Jon joined us at Oscar’s Restaurant; we ate poached salmon and plates of vegetables. We came home to nap, but we didn't fall asleep. 1,83 Miles.
Tuesday, February 3, 2026
February, nose to grindstone!
| Dale, Ron (as Adonis), and Aldona |
14 Feb: Happy Valentine’s Day! Lovely roses, a Valentine's card, and we had a great walk together to the trail! Cynthia is ecstatic that she walked for an entire 30 minutes without suffering during the walk or afterward. 2.58 miles
13 Feb: Walk # 1 is over, so is lunch. Ron is cleaning, organizing, and recycling, and we completed walk #2. 2.77 miles.
12 Feb Oh, boy! We are going to have guests. Ron started the recycling project by burying compost last night after his usual 4-mile walk. This particular compost burial was to fill in a hole on the breakwater path where Cynthia has hurt her back after the grass grows high enough to obscure the hole. We won't know if the hole is filed until the dirt settles next year. Ron has been so busy reading through Volume 4 to create the index that he hasn't updated the blog much at all. His first necessity is to list the favorite flavors at Blue Bell on the 10th.
11 Feb: Cynthia and granddaughter Lauren started a conversation that could become a book. Lauren opened the conversation by sending Cynthia 20 questions. The first one took her days to answer because it opened the door to a difficult time in her life. Lauren will respond and also answer the question.
10 Feb: Ever since Dr. Beim told Cynthia that he wanted to see her again in three weeks, we have been looking forward to our last trip this year to Brenham because the Blue Bell Cremery tasting room is located conventiently near Dr. Beim's office. After our medical appointment in Brenham with Dr. Beim we hustled posthaste over to the Blue Bell Ice Cream Factory. Mmmmmm! We were more relaxed and less frenic than during our earlier visits, so we only ate 11 scoops of ice cream. Ron's favorites were the pistacho, peachy peach, butter pecan, mocha almond fudge, and happy tracks; Cynthia's were the butter pecan and cherry vanilla (although she complained that cherry vanilla is supposed to be white instead of pink). Neither of us was impressed by the black cherry or the oatmeal creame pie. Afterwards, Cynthia opined that the ice cream and tasting room were too cold and that she actually liked eating Kroger's Premium Selection Amaretto Cherry Cordial at home better.
9 Feb: We are two tired puppies after riding the bike to a financial appointment, followed by Jason’s Deli and two walks. Addictive behaviors die hard; Ron has been an ice-cream-aholic all his life and has had the habit locked down for 16 years, but ever since he splurged following his cataract surgery, his passion has been reignited. He even enjoys the FREE soft serve cones at Jasons Deli and consumes four fairly large cones with his salads; he has even stopped ordering a baked potato to insure that he has room for all four cones. 3.59 miles.
8 Feb: We were delighted when a woman told us after worship how much she enjoyed watching our relationship. 2.85 miles
7 Feb: The weather is marvelous. We worked on computer tasks all day, took a nap, and we took two walks. Cynthia received many responses to the grandchildren's Valentine's Cards. Charlotte's dancing was a delight.
6 Feb: Last night we both slept well for an uninterrupted 9 hours. What a relief. Cynthia's epidural has kicked in and she is now full of p___ and vinegar. (Who me!? We walked twice today for a total of 2.96 miles. Woo! Hoo!)
5 Feb: Cynthia had a Women’s Wellness Dr. Appt; afterward, we had oil and filters changed (the Lexus Wellness session), followed by a delicious salmon dinner at the Pizza Shack before picking up meds at the pharmacy. Ron is helping Cynthia transfer data onto a spreadsheet in preparation for Monday’s meeting with a fiduciary.
4 Feb: We drove into The Woodlands today in chilly, windy weather to Texas ENT Specialists for Cynthia to get new earpieces (ear molds) for her hearing aids. It was a fun visit with an eccentric Mom. On the way to the Woodlands, we noticed a new Jason's Deli that we had never noticed before, just next to the Target and Research Forest Drive on 2854 (Honea Egypt Road). It was a good restaurant.
2 Feb: MEDICAL: Cynthia had an epidural in her SI joint. Ron had an echocardiogram that apparently indicates to the technicians that he is still alive. Let's hope the doctor agrees. The assessment on his MyMedical chart at UT Health agrees. So far, so good.
1 Feb, Sunday: We enjoyed worship at Grace Lutheran and lunch at The Oscars. Oscar is so good; he ordered salmon especially for us.
Thursday, January 1, 2026
2026 We Turn 18 Again Beginning in January!
| Ron in treehouse preparing to zip-line down |
30 Jan: Great-granddaughter Charlotte successfully competed and won the yellow belt in Taekwondo. We successfully slept, oatmealed, exercised, and walked. Ron walked twice.
| Volume I, Lea genealogy |
| Volume III, the DNA study |
29 Jan: Here we are just bouncing to the end of January achieving goals. We exercised and walked twice. Cynthia had a pedi/mani and returned items at UPS. Ron has moved on to Hico, the last Watershed before editing and creating the index for Volume Four. Yay. It certainly will be a treat for this to be off to the publisher when we leave for Pritikin so we can focus on eating and exercise. 3.15 Miles! HOORAY
28 Jan: Buy four AA batteries Cynthia; she did! She also bought a small adult blood pressure cuff, but it must have been child size, so it was returned. We walked twice and did upper-body workouts at the fitness center. And on this day we continued our great progress with being eighteen again. We exercise a lot, we eat a lot, and we laugh a lot! 2.56 Miles
27 Jan: We had a fabulous day, or was that yesterday? Cynthia is elated to feel so great. We did our morning stretches, she did the physical therapist's workout, and we did an upper-body workout at the fitness center, followed by a 15-minute walk on the trail. How exciting is this? The best part of workouts and walking is the exhilaration. Ron is making great progress with Volume Four. Cynthia worked with DNA correspondence. Lauren sent Grandmother a list of questions with answers that might make another book. It is a joy to have so many grandchildren. Ron is walking the trail earlier tonight. 2.31 Miles
26 Jan: The day was quiet doing the usual with the grandchildren correspondence, exercises, and seeing the gastroenterologist. Does Broccoli give indigestion?
25 Jan: Thankful. That's the word for our awakening to electrical power and to no snow. We ate, exercised, and walked twice. Cynthia is deeply thankful for walking without pain. Ron is almost finished with North Hico. 2.0 Miles. TWO MILES T.W.O. 2 MILES.
24 Jan: Ok, historic storm is forecast: we are ready as we can be. The car is filled with fuel, Cynthia has containers filled with water in the bathtub, but it is futile to fill the tub or sinks because they won’t stay filled. Extra food is in the refrigerator and cabinets. We did laundry. Cynthia is very proud that Ron has started recycling; this takes weeks to do before we leave for Miami on 10 March. Thank God for heat and power, but, Cynthia would have preferred to go to a lovely hotel with a backup generator.
23 Jan: Cynthia was bound and determined to be prepared for the worst possible hurricane, tornado, blizzard, and the Great Flood by shopping and shopping again. We mailed the Lea books to the NGSQ for a critique/review. Ron finished South Hico Watershed in Volume Four; the remaining are North Hico, Hico, and the Index. The book size was trimmed back to 500 pages.
22 Jan: We must have been busy. Maybe we will remember what we did on this day
21 Jan: Dr C’s consultation in the Woodlands for the epidural in the SI joint, is now scheduled for 2 Feb along with Ron’s echocardiogram at two PM.
20 Jan: Oh!Oh! We saw the ophthalmologist in Brenham. There is a Blue Bell Creamery right there. Then we drove to Hempstead to talk to the CPA about taxes.
19 Jan: Cynthia awoke at 7 to discover Ron sitting at his computer at five AM still working on Volume Four. The sun is shining and bright, high temp of 63. Cynthia is always chilly so she ate oatmeal for lunch, too.
1/18 Sunday Worship followed by salmon lunch at Oscar’s, pick up packages at Jon’s, and stop at the storage unit to pick up sweatshirts and knitted caps.
1/17 Cynthia housecleaned, did laundry, finished recording receipts to go to the CPA, and she did her therapy exercises. Ron is working on James Lea, Volume Four, with three more watersheds for inclusion. Next, he wants to create a website for the Leas. We walked for eleven minutes. Cynthia called the Inn at Long Trail for summer reservations. It is so cold in Texas that we went to bed to get warm.
1/16 Cynthia is celebrating her graduation from Physical Therapy. Everyone is pleased that she is finally starting to strive to be an achiever. She needs more degrees! She is happy not have pain.
1/15 A day of Rest nite nite
14 Jan: Cynthia is doing taxes; Ron is writing correspondence.
13 Jan: Allergy Medical Appt @ 10:00 AM, followed by appointment with podiatrist at 1:45.
12 Jan: Physical Therapy and home again, home again.
11 Jan: Turn the Page. An important part of the Forde Family has passed from this place to life beyond. Now we turn the page. Cynthia has PT at eleven.
10 Jan: Happy Birthday Paul! We arose at six AM to ride with Jon to the Klein Funeral Home in Houston for the Memorial Service for Stan F.. Scott’s service was held there in 1998. Following Stan’s service, too, we traveled to the graveside service at Scott’s Grove, our family cemetery. We had a lovely lunch catered by Waller County Catering. Friends were in attendance from forty years ago. Most of our great-grandkids were there.
9 Jan: The plan for January and February is two-fold: Cynthia wants to finally spend time with the grandchildren, and we will get the taxes done in addition to physical therapy twice a week. YES, we are thankful for our marvelous life together.
8 Jan: We enjoyed a lovely, late sleep followed by Cynthia's housecleaning, doing laundry, washing dishes, and floors. Ron decided it would be good to do the first of three ten- minute walks so we escaped the kitchen for ten minutes. Cynthia is worn out, Ron went for a walk after working on Volume Four. The already published James Lea volumes 1-3 were ordered for Barb, libraries, and archives today.
7 Jan: Today was another early “Rise and Shine” day for Ron’s electrophysiologist appointment six blocks away. This guarantees a mile of walking. He has everyone laughing hard at his stories. Cynthia had a physical therapist appointment, we picked up a RX and returned a pair of shoes to Amazon, returning to the condo by 4:30 PM. Cynthia walked 2.82 Miles
6 Jan: Cynthia’s hair appointment with Sasha was at eleven AM. Sasha has been her hairstylist for 45 years, and he really enjoys Ron! We ate lunch at Jason’s Deli; Ron slept all afternoon. We walked to Salata before he returned to work on Volume Four. Now he is getting in the four-mile walk around Rice University. Cynthia’s lab results are good. Cynthia walked 2.65 miles
5 Jan: Our cardiologist appointments were at 7:45 AM. Cynthia was delighted to be able to walk the six-block distance from our hotel to the doctor’s office. We wished him a Happy New Year after our great appointment and he said, “Let’s plan on another twenty years.” We napped, looked at the news, and walked to Salata for dinner. Cynthia walked 2.51 Miles.
4 Jan: Charlotte turned four years old, awakening to find 100 balloons in her room. After worship, we ate at Oscar’s and rode to the TX Medical Center for three days. Our cardiologist might put us in the bad patient jail because we have eaten contraband. Cynthia walked 1.53 Miles
3 Jan: Today: We listened to the President's report about capturing Maduro. At three PM we will do an upper body workout at the Fitness Center. We exercised and we ate!
2 Jan 222… 6.! TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX! Now what??? Aha! We rode the motorcycle to UPS to return a package. Cynthia also mailed a package to Cousins Quint and Sharon. We ate a late lunch at Oscar’s, and we increased our walking to twelve minutes. Ron is working on Volume Four. Cynthia is organizing tax info. DNA will be set aside for taxes this month.
1 Jan 2026: We celebrated New Year’s (Christmas) with the Forde family at granddaughter Corrie’s; her backyard is filled with tree houses, playhouses, zip liners, rope swings, live chickens and goats, and thrilled all ten great grandchildren. The BBQ lunch was delicious. Except we ate contraband fat and sugar.
Monday, December 1, 2025
December Joy in Texas
3 Dec: And off we go to physical therapy, always comforting and healing. We stopped at UPS to print out medical forms and dropped off two pairs of pants to be hemmed. Cynthia slept all afternoon. Zzzzzz
2 Dec: Sleeping until noon translates into joy We are happily eating lunch at one-thirty. Ron worked on Sudokus, and he walked at five PM. Cynthia is frustrated by inactivity. But movement causes pain. Reading, normally a great joy, is curtailed by vision. Having a good attitude is transforming the tough times into joy filled times.
1 Dec: JOY! Oh, what joy! We are ready to do physical therapy! Cynthia learned her left hip has so many problems that it is better to replace it. She has an appointment next Tuesday with an orthopedist.







