December's Dwindling Daze

Cynthia finds amusing things to post from Facebook
Santa's "helmet" is NOT DOT approved !!

31 Dec: Happy New Year!!! The Smooches are celebrating the anniversary of Ron's first marriage proposal with dinner at Cafe on the Green. We were both surprised she said, "Yes." She said yes the second time, too.

Beautiful piano rendition of Auld Lang Syne: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7YrtkA8grW4

30 Dec: Go, Tell It On The Mountain-- Ron had lost four or five pounds, but even though Christmas food is fat-free and sugar-free, the scale is back up temporarily. Workout this AM was very successful if being very sore means success. The excitement builds every week for the big shopping trip to Wally World only to discover the low price Walmart brand Corn Flakes (fat-free) was unavailable. Yesterday the Jacuzzi worked great on our sore bodies so we tried it again today. Cynthia spent this afternoon with granddaughters baby Fyn Rose and Zoe (who was celebrating a drivers permit as of today). And we managed a 4.5 mile walk again this evening.

29 Dec: We Three Kings Of Orient Are-- Brrrbutwearecold: The CrossFit participants wore leggings and jackets to workout because the gym (housed in a large warehouse) has no heat; despite the cold we worked up a sweat. Ron made a discovery about George Lea: WooHoo! After lunch we crawled into the Jacuzzi for a long, therapeutic soak and Ron treated Cynthia's sore feet and back to a massage that was so helpful we were able to log our 4.5 miles tonight. Our FitBits are quite demanding.

28 Dec: Joy To The World-- Not the correct song for this day: wind and 40-degree temperatures, plus a potential storm in Denton do not make for an enjoyable day; Ron rescheduled his visit to 97-year-old cousin Dorothy for mid-January, after medical and dental appointments, etc. We were Late! Yes, we arrived at CrossFit a half hour late because an email said, "The 12 Days of Christmas will be at 9:00." Misunderstanding! The "12 Days..." is a CrossFit routine that occurred Christmas Eve day. But, we worked out for 40 minutes anyway; Cynthia is still very sore. It's a beautiful sunny, chilly day in the neighborhood. Our walk was lovely and brisk this afternoon. Ron is working on Volume 7 (of the Colonial Records of the Swedish Churches of Pennsylvania). Cynthia is assisting women adoptees locate their birth mothers:

1. Rosemary Lavine or Lavigne b. ca. 1928-32 used name of Rosemary Scott on Apr. 18, 1950 Galveston, Texas, St Mary's Infirmary.

2. Sept 30 1964, 7lbs 3oz. Baby girl, Baylor Hospital, Dallas, Texas. Mom was 15 years old, likes to bowl, auburn hair. Surname begins with C.

27 Dec, Sunday: Away In A Manger-- On the 2nd day of Christmas, we wished we were back in our king-size manger; the rain is pouring down in sheets. We arrived at church the usual time only to discover that the service an hour later today. We sat in the car waiting for worship and a break in the rain. The Christmas Carol Service was lovely, especially the guitar Offertory. We planed to boogie to the fitness center after brunch, but it closes at two on Sunday and the rain just kept coming down so a walk was out of the question. We are ever so thankful to be spared the violent storms that tore up North Texas, followed by blizzard conditions. Ron is packing for a trip to Denton to see our 98 year old cousin Dorothy in the BrrrrrEarly hours. She loves thee homemade bread that Cynthia bakes, so Cynthia popped one of those into the bread machine. Late in the evening, Dorothy wrote that the storms were violent and perhaps the smarter course is to visit somewhat later. After checking the forecast and discovering a high of 40 degrees with strong winds, Ron regretfully agreed.

26 Dec: The Twelve Days of Christmas -- And on the first day of Christmas we ate leftovers. Early morning CrossFit (9am) gave us a good workout so that one of us could feel justified spending a lazy day. Late afternoon we walked to dinner at the Caddy Shack. After dinner after dark we explored the golf cart path towards holes 1-9 instead of the usual 10-18; this route turned out to be about four miles and, although no rain was the forecast, we were rained on most of the last half mile. Glad tidings this Christmas is news that a new grandchild is due in July, making 13 (11 grands and soon 2 great grands). Guess who is elated?

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth

Pretty in the middle

25 Dec: I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day -- We enjoyed a delightful day with grandson Brett, Roxanne and granddaughter Kira at their home when Santa Claus surprised us with a visit and gifts. Santa remembered (from years ago) bringing Ron peashooters and slingshots that Ron's grandma took away from him. (Those confiscated favorite toys were tossed high up onto the top shelf of the pantry, never to be seen again.) We ate too much food, but it was delicious, all fat-free and sugar-free including sweet potato casserole. Cynthia received a fit-bit but being too much-over-sore from jumping jacks yesterday, Ron went walking alone to get the 10,000 steps his Fitbit demands. From Ron's Christmas card: To me beloved wee-fee, "I couldn't be happier - than with you. I love how lovely you are-- appearance, heart and soul. I love how happy we are together-- and wouldn't change a thing about you-- even if I could. Here's wishing you a Merry Christmas and many many more. Love, Smooch.

24 Dec: Silent Night-- The shepherds are wondering, the cattle are lowing, and Angels are singing "Gloria in Excelsis Deo" for the babe of Bethlehem, the Savior of the World. Alleluia. We worshipped at Barb and Jon's Lone Star Cowboy Church (their Church band rocks! and the guitar player is truly gifted; have you ever heard an electric guitar produce sounds like a violin?) followed by dinner at Pappadeaux. And to all, "Merry Christmas and a very good night."

Marvelous Christmas gift from Ann (in Iowa) Many, many Thanks.

23 Dec: O Holy Night-- O Night of Surprise! A breathtaking bouquet (from Cynthia's Iowa friend) was delivered while we were walking. The Birds of Paradise are signature Ann J. arrangements especially at Christmas time. Ann J. and her mother traveled to many churches throughout the Midwest giving presentations on flowers in the Bible. Thank you Ann and Dale. Family and Friends are the greatest gifts for which we thank God.

22 Dec: O Little Town of Bethlehem-- Busy Daze-- Doctor's shot dictates that Cynthia cannot exercise for 72 hours, so we took the day off from CrossFit but walked 4 miles after dinner. Ron has almost completed his autobiography except to add Niagara Falls View Marriott, Room 806 (and thousands more stories). Cynthia mailed her annual class Christmas newsletter and made four loaves of marvelous fat-free, sugar-free banana bread using egg whites and unsweetened applesauce. We gifted one to our neighbors. Iowa sweet corn on the cob and Norwegian lefse will arrive from Iowa friends by UPS today (but a day late - anxiety is high).

21 Dec: The First Noel-- The Smooches had a busy day beginning with CrossFit, what wored us out. Kim is merciless. Nonetheless we are both feeling virtuous to have met our goals on the rowing machines. Then we breakfasted at the Toasted Yolk en route to Cynthia's doctors appointment in the Woodlands. After a quick in & out there, we stopped at Smoothie King to fill Ron up with a Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie, then at the storage locker for someone to retrieve cute shoes (guess who), then at the UPS store to collect Cynthia's class letter (now ready for mailing), then at Wally World for Christmas dinner supplies, diet coke, and bleach (do not mix). Ron remembered to add the story of the marriage proposal to the autobiography. Last night, while walking & talking after midnight, Ron accidentally lost his headlamp when he took off his shirts (yes, it was that warm); since it had been a rainy, foggy morning, he hoped to find it (and did !! ). Twenty minutes into the walk Cynthia said that she regretted saying that she'd like to go; the poor girl is pooped. AND sore muscles. Ron isn't feeling particularly bouncy either. Looks like an early bedtime is rapidly approaching.

Delightful luxurious lunch w/ Steven, Samantha & Jon. SmoochSmooch is in the middle

20 Dec, Sunday: Have a Wonderful Christmas Time-- Grandkids Steven and Samantha joined us for a delightful Christmas brunch at the Yacht Club. Their dad would be very proud of them: Steven (Eagle Scout) is an executive Director with the Boy Scouts of America; Samantha starts a new job in January as a counselor to Autistic children. Jon had brunch with us, too. Cynthia looks a bit height challenged. Ron's brain went Bling with an anecdote for his autobiography so he wrote it on his palm during worship and proceeded to show his accomplishment to Yassar at the club. (Do you want to see my handwriting? - the writing on my hand.) We spent the afternoon complaining about being sore, working on computer stuffs, being sore and tired, until Cynthia fell asleep on the sofa whereupon waking Ron challenged her to stretch aerobics. The jumping jacks were not quite kosher. Ron made a credit card payment over the internet for the VERY FIRST time today in order to make a donation to help fund his friend Richard Gardner's recovery via GoFundMe.com. If any of my friends can spare a few bucks to help a friend of a friend, Richard needs help.

19 Dec: Special Feature *** Santa Claus is Rockin’ - Bradley Gillis -- Midnight ?! at Lake Conroe, Montgomery Texas. What in the world is Ron doing up this late ?? Obsession. with changing filenames to include page numbers on hundreds of photographs. But that is done for this one book (Otken's) and it is time to sleep. To Mee Weefee, I love you. SMOOCH! (From said weefee) and you win! CrossFit class wore one of us out, the other took it easy. After eating breakfast at Magnolia Diner we ran errands, Cynthia cleaned the house and made fat-free, sugar-free, three-layer Jello salad; Ron toiled mightily over installment two of his autobiographical letter, intended to be a small part of a friend's Christmas surprise for his daughter; especially important for the girlies, Ron remembered to add a link to our wedding photos. Eric's coin website may have been helped thanks to Uncle Ron; we won't know until someone running Windows 8 checks it out. BEWARE Windows 8 and Windows 10 are causing headaches for lots and lots of people. After making progress on two of his four missions for the day, Ron is looking at Volume 7 of the Colonial Records of the Swedish Churches. (Fortunately he has forgotten what the fourth project was.) Cynthia was too tired to walk tonight. Ron is going out now for a long walkity-talkity. Goodnight.

AttaGirl Samantha

Ron Beatty & beloved weefee (an attempt to get pictures to show up on Google searches)

18 Dec: YulePlay's Top 10 Christmas Songs Granddaughter Samantha graduated from the University of Houston with a MA in Ed. Psychology. We left the house at 9:30 in order to breakfast at the Toasted Yolk, allowing for the 1.5-hour drive on I-45 SW, where traffic is normally challenging or worse; today we were pleasantly surprised and quite pleased that holidays plus graduations hadn't increased traffic as anticipated. So we arrived early and had to wait in line for an hour. In an amusing roll-reversal, Cynthia chatted up a storm with the guy in line ahead of us while Ron made a cautionary pit-stop at the Science and Engineering Classroom building. Samantha looked very elegant and graceful "waltzing" across the stage to accept her degree. We were anticipating seeing her from close range as the graduates normally walked the perimeter of the "infield", but she apparently ducked out a back door. It did not take us many minutes to decide to avoid the crowds and depart early too. Rush hour traffic at 3:30 wasn't so terrible although it did stop a few times before we arrived at Pappadeaux where we enjoyed a yummy salmon dinner. Immediately upon arrival home on Northshore Drive we changed clothes and enjoyed a pleasant 4+mile walk on Walden's golf course on a beautiful, clear, starry night. Lights reflecting in the lake looked like Neverland. Ron continued working throughout the day on the MacBook relabeling photos of Frances Otken's Lea book. Adobe Acrobat Pro is an amazingly useful application. You can take document photos, combine them into an PDF and run OCR with quite good accuracy. Imagine how happy our little techie is.

17 Dec:Away In A Manger CrossFit class was better today, but we are still sore. Ron is writing an autobiographical letter for a high school friend to give to his daughter. It will not be short. Once it is completed it will be posted on Ron Beatty website. Maybe this will be the overview of the yet unwritten book, "A Bachelor's Guide to Life." We walked 4.5 miles tonight after dinner at the Caddy Shack.

16 Dec:It Came Upon The Midnight Clear... Midnight in Texas. Ron should be asleep, but feels good that he sent the final OK for Volume 6 and got Richard's Page started. Smooch, smooch, smooch, I love you (to Cynthia). Awweee! Smooch! (To Ron) If we print the eight years of this blog we could title it, " A Beatty Good Love Story," ?? Oh, my goodness we are sore from our first session at CAPElite Boot Camp this morning. One exercise is called the butt drop; once this is mastered we can be assured of never needing assistance getting up from the toilet. After the hour workout Ron took the bike to Rick's Station to be inspected for registration renewal. We worked on our projects which included yet more email about Volume 6. Finally, finally, the order to print is received and acknowledged. We walked about four miles roundtrip stopping at the Caddy Shack for dinner en route.

15 Dec: Lisa Brigantino - It’s Christmastime and we were off to the dentist after breakfast at the Toasted Yolk. Staples would not exchange the Fitbit since they have a two week window for electronics returns. The day was long, but a delicious salmon dinner at Pappadeaux Seafood Restaurant revitalized. Ron was reading galley proof pages for Volume 6 in the car and at the restaurants all day today. Tonight Ron walked for two hours, visiting by phone with Richard G. who suffered an unfortunate stroke recently; the medical bills were horrendous, and he ran out of funds for rehab. He is struggling in an inferior nursing home. Richard is a friend from MIT college days. Beanie is again near the top of the kidney transplant list and has a good potential donor; we are excited and hoping for the best, and soon. Volume 6 passed inspection and is ready to print.

14 Dec: The First Noel Another "busy" day in Montgomery, Texas. We shopped for groceries at Wally World, ate lunchtime breakfast omelets at the Magnolia Diner, and put our shorts on before walking to the Walden fitness center about two in the afternoon. The Fitbit was pleased and buzzed at 10,000 steps. Too amusing to realize that Texans don't wear shorts until winter because it it too bloody hot to leave the air conditioning the rest of the year. During winter temperatures are pleasant enough to be outdoors in shorts. Ron is still preoccupied with James Lea - now working on Herndon Haralson, whose autobiographical letter written in 1842 has survived and been published several times. Tomorrow he MUST STOP that and review galley proofs for Volume 6. Ouch!!! Lauren was rear-ended at 249 and FM 1960 and her car was shoved into the car in front of her. The guy who caused this mishap checked to see that the drivers were ok and suggested they move the cars (in TX, if you can drive it, clear it) and the guy drove off. Thankfully this happened after graduation and not before. Beddy Bye. G'Night.

13 Dec, Sunday: What Child Is This? "First the silence, then the peace, then the empty hands uplifted;" it was good to worship at Grace Lutheran once again. Pastor Diane launched her sermon with a an engaging sing along. During the children's message about the angel's visit to Mary, a precocious little girl asked "Where's Joseph?", getting a hearty laugh from the adults. We said a brief good-bye to Pastor Hinkhouse (who is moving to central Texas) and beat a quick retreat to the Walden Yacht Club for Sunday brunch. The Yacht Club staff welcomed us home, royally. Ron insisted that we show another diner Cynthia's cell phone EKG app and got a HUGE surprise, a "normal" EKG reading (instead of the usual "cannot classify" message). Sunshine and clearing were promised for this afternoon, but clouds and light rain prevailed. With great relief, we found Cynthia's ministry files on backup external hard drives. Ron continued endless editing on James Lea. We shoulda ignored the forecast & gotten out for a walk; Ron's Fitbit is having fits about lack of physical activity.

Da HAPPY graduate

graduate sandwich

12 Dec: Joy To The World Congratulations to granddaughter Lauren Nicole Forde who graduated with a Master of Arts in Counseling. Lauren's parents treated us to a celebration lunch at Del Pueblo. At three PM we started our walk, but simultaneously rain started falling, so instead we drove to the Fitness Center for a light workout followed by dinner at the Caddy Shack. Cheryl S. emailed, "Ron never imagined he would be a grandfather, did he?"

11 Dec: Have a Wonderful Christmas Time. Cynthia has an appointment for a girliecure or at least the pedicure & manicure parts. Ron will be reading/ editing through more of James Lea as soon as Word decides to function. It is 80 nice degrees hereabouts. Afterwards we walked to the Caddy Shack for dinner. After dinner it was dark, so we could walk the golf course to the point of the lake in hopes of Del Lago fireworks, but that was a No-Show this Friday night. This time one small herd of deer stood still while we walked by within fifteen feet.

10 Dec: Jingle Bells At 1:01 AM Cynthia stole the march and got points for first "I Love You" of the day, breaking Ron's streak of several first points. Today's good news is that Cynthia has lost weight after all, so we can eat before the end of the month. We've eaten "breakfast"; Ron called the Rosenberg Library in Galveston and sent an e-mail to William T. Block in pursuit of "The History of the Lea Family" by Albert Miller Lea 1879, and we are ready to go pick up Cynthia's rental car, before or after a visit to Smoothie King. Imagine our astonishment when a realtor called Jon now asking to show the house TODAY, our first day back; fortunately we hadn't strewn our stuffs too widely, so it was not a problem to hide everything in a hurry to make the house presentable. Smoothie King lived up to expectations; the strawberry-kiwi Smoothie was delicious. Unfortunately all God's Smoothies contain waaaay tooo many carbs for Cynthia, so we fed her a bun-less hamburger at the Caddy Shack. A nice, long, pleasant and comfortably cool walk to the fitness center ended our day as darkness fell.

9 Dec: Special Feature *** I'm Goin Home *** and we arrived at the lake house minutes before noon after a pleasant 30-mile ride from Cleveland, including a stop at the Toasted Yolk, where one of our favorite waitresses was working today. Cynthia says she has lost no weight, so we are not eating again this month; I'm hoping for a visit to Smoothie King later today when we shop for groceries and retrieve a few things from storage. So here I sit outdoors sans shirt for this update to the blog - probably 70 degrees now with a forecast high of 74. Ditto tomorrow & Friday, rain Saturday (for graduation ceremonies) & Sunday.

8 Dec: O Come, All Ye Faithful ! Rested we Rode! The 250 mile ride was marvelous, winding across the bayous, bridges and prairies of SW Louisiana on old U.S. 190 and LA 12 and into Texas before turning north on TX 105 to Cleveland, Texas. We've finally caught up to fall, at least in the form of falling leaves and worn-out, muted colors. D and M 's Cafe serves all day breakfasts, and the new waitress was a hoot. Funniest sign today, "Bark Park."

And Ron knows how to load a buffet plate

The Grand Hotel knows how to create a buffet table centerpiece

Here is that cousin, Gerry.

Our distant genealogical cousin (Rambo of course) owns this.

7 Dec: Good Christian Men, Rejoice We started out riding on back roads from Navarro Island to Baton Rouge, LA, covering 267 miles by the end of the day. The Grand Hotel, decorated beautifully for Christmas, was a perfect place to stop for lunch; several staff members remembered us (who wouldn't?). Nearby Fairhope, one of Alabama's favorite retirement communities, is home of Rambo's Auto Service, and a stop is mandatory although Gerry was very busy today and Freda has gone back to work for the schools. Once we got to I-10 we stayed on it following fastest traffic to get to Baton Rouge before dark. Ron woulda preferred Gulf side back roads with scenic views insterspersed among wall to wall construction. Cousin Pat B. boogied over to the Hilton Garden Inn to join us for dinner and marvelous conversation. She is a jewel.

Lazy River at the Pensacola Beach Holiday Inn

6 Dec: Go, Tell It On The Mountain is an apropos Christmas Carol. We said good-bye to our friends at Sharon's Cafe twice today (breakfast and lunch). Ron finished re-cycling and mailed our Christmas cards. Today's ride along the Gulf Coast provided marvelous views in between hundreds of high rises and countless condo units. Panama City boasted beautiful antebellum style mansions along miles of shore line. Once we reached Navarro Island, the sunset glowed surreal in shades of scarlet, orange, pink and magenta reflected in the Aquamarine gulf waters; pristine white sand dunes hugged seven miles of unobstructed natural wonderment. Ron is quite pleased Cynthia was so delighted with his "find;" this unique Holiday Inn with a "Lazy River" swimming pool situated directly below from our seventh-floor balcony.

5 Dec: Cynthia was greatly amused by this Christmas list: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=I-iFsxSNN2c. Ron discovered eating grits, plus hash browns sans oil, and a 3 egg-white veggie omelet provides satiety until lunch time; a stack of fat free blueberry pancakes, another 3 egg-white veggie omelet with grits, resolves hunger until dinner. It is surprising that his weight drops so easily when he eats no bread, no pretzels. Kim, the waitress, expressed astonishment at the amount of food we can eat and still stay thin. Today was a gorgeous, sunny day with temperatures reaching 70 degrees; we felt a potential sunburn during our beach walks. Ron finished responding to last years Christmas cards, stamped and addressed the envelopes. We are nearly packed for tomorrow's 125 mile ride. Dinner tonight at Toucan's was very good. Looky at the photo below of Ron in 2008, super skinny with a beard after hiking 1500 miles on the Appalachian Trail.

Another photo from long ago that Cynthia is recycling

4 Dec: Shayna Leigh - Wake Me When It's Christmas Our days are satisfyingly repetitive: we eat breakfast and lunch at Sharon's Cafe, walk the beach, do computer stuff, walk to dinner, & done. (Ron was surprised to discover he left without paying the lunch bill at Sharon's yesterday.) This afternoon we walked about five miles on the beach and back, marveling that the drifts of pristine white sand beach resemble snow banks. As usual, we worked on computer projects: Volume 6 re-appeared in the inbox with two more images that needed correction; nephew Eric phoned with an issue on his website that was apparently already corrected by the time Ron checked. Cynthia is writing her class Christmas newsletter, plus an endorsement for a friend's book about surviving divorce. We had a nice walk, although a bit chilly, to dinner at Toucans. The food is OK; Mexico Beach lacks fine dining and selection in the off-season. On the other hand, we've had the place to ourselves this week. Now to work on our Christmas letter and cards. (We found delightful starfish-on-the beach "Seas and Greeting" cards). Ron is struggling to reply to last years Christmas cards.

3 Dec: Hark The Herald Angels/Little Drummer Boy (click the link and listen to the carol) We awoke to condensation on the windows, a real feel of 44 degrees, and overcast skies. Walking the nearly empty beach we saw two women who were very excited to share their discovery of a school of starfish in the shallow surf. A number of seagulls were sitting near a large, beached redfish, and the sun was taking sneak peeks on the gulf below. This afternoon we learned red tide (which is a "normal" increase in algae) is responsible for the dead fish and birds we were seeing. Even though the day was chilly, we enjoyed a very long walk on the beach to the canal. A few healthy Pelicans frolicked near the canal, and four or five fighter jets flew overhead. (Tyndall Air Force Base in nearby.) On the way back to the hotel we found the perfect Christmas cards in a gift shop (Seas and Greetings). Sunset displayed a ribbon of scarlet and deep magenta at the horizon against a sky full of ominous shades of black, gray and blue. Rain was forecast, but did not fall on us as we walked to dinner at Toucan's. (The salmon was yummilicious.) Ron has averaged 15,000 steps a day for the past seven days.

El Governor decorates this pavilion beautifully

2 Dec: A Christmas carol: "Do You Hear What I Hear? " After breakfast we walked to the post office in a light mist that turned to serious rain on the return trip to the hotel. A nice fellow in a pick up truck offered us a ride back to the hotel. We were pleased with a total 2.13 miles for the morning walk. The surf is fascinating to see from our room with computers in our laps; Ron is back on track with James Lea while Cynthia is progressing with the Lea YDNA project. The sky turned very dark at four but we ventured forth to walk the beach to Mango Marley's to dinner. Ron's Mahi Mahi was tasty and Cynthia's Redfish was very good, too. And! WooHoo! 13,548 footsteps today. El Governor is continuing their Christmas light decorations; this is another picture that benefits from enlarging.

Sunrises about 5:45 AM. We enjoyed this magnificent one and a few others.
This one is worth seeing full size; click on the picture.

1 Dec: Twas the month before Christmas and all through the room; not a creature was stirring especially not us retired sleepyheads. Ron arose from his spot without even a cap, but detoured to the balcony before answering nature's call, and what to our wondering eyes should appear but the this gorgeous sunrise on Mexico Beach. (More polish, or is this good.) Woohoo! 8000 steps were recorded by 10:00 AM. We walked along the beach to Sharon's for breakfast and afterwards westward to the pier. The sun was blinding as we returned to the hotel, so we followed the street for bits of shade. A Sturgis tee-shirt prompted conversation with a guy who had trailered his Harley from Indiana. His uncle helped him build his first motorcycle, powered by a 3HP Briggs and Stratton. First guy we've ever met who has ridden a Briggs & Stratton motorcycle. We walked to Sharon's again for lunch, and after lunch Ron continued on the beach to the canal, walking and talking Sistah Carol and other friends on the phone. Sunset was also delightful. The sunset photo is forthcoming.

Posted with Blogsy

November News With BMW Views

30 Nov: Mexico Beach, Florida, part of Florida's "forgotten coast." Breakfast at Sharon's as usual - you can assume breakfast & lunch there for the rest of our stay here. Ron tried sitting with the computer outside on the balcony but the sun made for too much over-eyestrain. We went for additional steps early today with a visit to the "Walk Under the Palms" city park which is sadly in need of a little TLC. If Ron could borrow a clipper and a rake, he could do some trail maintenance. Ron opted for more eye strain when Cynthia was sunbathing on the balcony.

Nov. 29, Sunday: go to meetin' and eatin'. We enjoyed breakfast & lunch at Sharon's again and walked along the Beach to Toucan's for dinner. It was surprisingly good with a good waiter, not like the obstinate waitress in a previous year. The big events of the day were changing from a ground floor room to a fourth floor room (more privacy/ security, more FitBit steps !!) and visiting the recycling dropoff (sadly over-full, needs attention). Also worth mention is that Ron is (again) finished with Volume 6; hopefully the replacement photos have satisfactory resolution. Cynthias's AliveCor EKG shows Ron's heart to be amazingly erratic; apparently he is just full of electrifying activity.

Nov. 28: We awakened to sunshine at El Governor Hotel in Mexico Beach, Florida, and Cynthia immediately drew the drapes aside to gawk at the sea. (Yes, it is THAT close.) Good Morning To You, Good Morning To You, we're all in our places with bright shiny faces. (So goes the song and our day.) Once again we became "regulars" at Sharon's Restaurant, the only good foody place in town for breakfast and lunch. Today Cynthia's iPhone heart rate monitor showed Ron's heart in a normal rhythm, forestalling Cynthia's buildup of symptoms.

A flashback to Nov. 2008's update on the calcium tomography tests: calcium levels in heart arteries doubled from the same tests five years ago. At that time they were at 90 percent for having a cardiac event in two to five years - now they have doubled across the board despite following a stringent heart healthy eating plan and hiking 440 miles last year and 1500 this year. (The nurse wanted Cynthia to take Ron to a cardiologist immediately!) All other indicators (C-reactive protein, total cholesterol and blood pressure) are excellent; but following the restrictive eating plan will continue: no meat, milk fats; no white flour, no sugar and lots of vitamins. Weight is being maintained at 175 with daily walking. (Little did we realize the heart was so ischemic).

Dinner tonight was a delight at Gary's Oyster Shack: https://www.zomato.com/panama-city-fl/garys-oyster-shack-panama-city

27 Nov 2015, sunset at Mexico Beach, FL, 10 steps from our back door

sCamille excaped before Cynthia remembered photos

Nov 27: We arrived in Mexico Beach, Florida shortly before sunset. First thing this morning we walked a mile to I-Hop for breakfast with Cynthia's lovely nieces, Danielle and Camille. A wonderful time was had by all. While showing off the ECG to the girls, Ron had a surprising and unsettling AFib result. The ECG test tonight is normal. (Cynthia breathed a sigh of relief - and Ron is happy to think that Cynthia might remain symptom-free.) We left Macon at high noon driving for an hour on I-75 before taking scenic back roads. The 297 mile ride to Mexico Beach, FL took 5.5 hours, and we arrived in time for a sunset photo at 4:38 PM (CST). Views en route were marvelous, of hundreds, maybe thousands, of acres of tree farms: peach, pecan and pine; vast cotton fields, some harvested, some still ablaze with millions of bright white dot; huge fields of tomatoes or peanuts. In contrast to the agricultural abundance, the towns appeared economically depressed with most shops and businesses boarded up. The restaurant pickings were very slim in these tiny towns, a Burger King, a few Pizza places, and an Oriental buffet. or two. After crossing the state line into Florida, residential properties improved but only fast food restaurants have survived here too. Ron's sole choice for dinner at Killer Seafood (here in Mexico Beach) was tuna grilled on an oily grill adorning a good fresh salad. Cynthia did not care for the American cheese (only choice) on her bun-less burger.

Thanks God for whatever still works

Nov 26: Ron & Smoochie are in Macon, Georgia. Today, the 5-hour, 200-mile ride was delightful; it was "warm," the skies were a bit too sunny as we were heading south and west, looking directly into the glare most of the day. Tomorrow promises more of the same. Thinking positive, our facial suntans should be in great shape for the Florida beaches. We were delighted to catch back up to fall foliage with several trees still wearing golden or scarlet leaves. We kept to the back roads and enjoyed views of rivers and lakes, including a crossing over Russell Lake. Ron was as surprised as Cynthia when we entered Wilkes County, Georgia, home to her ancestors. The Talk of the Town Restaurant in the heart of downtown Washington was open and served a tasty Thanksgiving Dinner with turkey, beans, cranberries, and salad with which Ron gorged himself. Our Thanksgiving Dinner was indeed special in the ancestral city of Cynthia's early Georgian ancestors. The Georgia moon is most magnificent, romantic even...

Nov. 25: Ron has gone to the Hughes Library, Greenville, SC to research, leaving both poor little Smooches (one is white, the other is green) at the hotel to starve. Afterwards Ron located Staples downtown and attempted to exchange his gift Fitbit (THANKS Margie) for one with a heart monitor. Apparently these are on some "best Christmas gifts" list since this is the third Staples to have none in stock. Imagine his surprise upon returning to the hotel to discover Smooch Smooch eating a hamburger in the restaurant, a mere thirty minutes after he phoned her to say he would be back to take her to dinner. Oh well, Ron decided to walk to Trader Joes to move his Fitbit counter over 10,000 again for the 8th day in a row. He returned with chicken, a boule and red roses, all for under $10. We are packed and ready depart for Georgia bright and early with good temperatures forecast.

Nov 24: Greenville, SC. The bright, sunny day was deceiving because it was chilly riding with the temperature in the low 40's departing Columbia. After lunch we did research in the Hughes Library where Techie Ron was fascinated with the ingenious book scanner that places OCR searchable copies on his new 128 GB flash drive. Surely there is a portable ultralight book scanner that will fit into the motorcycle top case??? By 7:00 PM we were famished; we opted to dine at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. Ron relished Sorbet for an appetizer, swordfish entree and Sorbet for dessert. The restaurant alarm went crazy because a dump truck ran into overhead power lines with the truck (sans cab) flipping over a bridge landing on the hotel and restaurant power terminals.

Cynthia found a news article online about her son from years ago:

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/archives/park-in-turkey-honors-scott-forde/article_d570e19f-ce5e-575f-a644-88c03e52ef13.html?mode=jqm

Zzzzzz Good Night!

Nov 23: Columbia, SC: Bright, sunny morning here, but we've wasted all that beautiful daylight by staying indoors working on computer projects. Ron is nearly done replacing photos/ images in the Word document (Volume 6) and is going over to his friends' house to look for a book that might be there. Dinner with Tom and Cheryl at Ruby Tuesday's was so fine.

Nov 22, Sunday: Oh, no! Rain??? Yup, raindrops were falling at 7:55 AM when we exited the hotel; it stopped raining by the time we arrived for breakfast with Clark and Elizabeth at Lizard's Thicket. The usual crowd is out of town: Donna, Greg, Dick! It didn't rain again, the sun is out, and it's time to exercise. Ron walked to Staples to exchange his Fitbit Charge for a Fitbit Charge HR (with heart rate monitor). Unfortunately they did not have any, nor did WallyWorld. Ron is such a sucker for special deals on jump drives that he bought a 128 GB drive from Staples for $24.99. Walmart was out of the 64 GB miniature drive for $19.99 or he woulda bought one of those also. The tragedy of the day was that Ron's fitbit (repackaged) missed recording ALL THOSE STEPS returning to the hotel. Cynthia thought we had dinner planned with Clark & Elizabeth, but Ron was absolutely certain that we would see them tomorrow, so we walked to Ruby Tuesday and gorged ourselves --- about two hours before Elizabeth called and asked if we were on our way. Ron was WRONG. Fortunately Clark drove over and chauffeured us to a very enjoyable dinner where we conversed more than we ate.

Nov 21: Ron has 100 images to resize and replace into Vol.6. Ohmy. We walked to RT for a very late lunch that worked for a very early dinner. Cynthia exercised in the hotel's fitness room, Ron walked and talked on his phone for an hour. And we had another very late night on our computers.

Nov 20: Columbia, South Carolina is where we are this evening, prepared to go meet Clark & Elizabeth at Ruby Tuesday - and we need to leave NOW. Our day started with packing the motorcycle luggage and riding to breakfast at Happy + Hale, followed by goodbyes to Del & Savannah & our newest acquaintance, the girl from Leasburg. The ride this morning on U.S. 1 was splendid. Traffic was light and fast, but the early morning sunshine and crystal-clear skies worked magic with the trees still decked out in fall colors. One small yellow tree and several with red-brown leaves were truly remarkable. After a while, Ron became puzzled: Why does this extensive stretch of 4-lane highway exist? What purpose does a lightly used 4-lane road serve here in this remote, underpopulated part of southern North Carolina. Then we passed closeby the Rockingham Speedway, a NASCAR venue. AH-HA, follow the money. NOooo, NASCAR did not pay for that expensive stretch of highway, but everyone profiting from NASCAR revenues needed that highway built to encourage attendance and bigger profits, so the taxpayers state-wide and nation-wide subsidized NASCAR profits. The rest of U.S. 1 to the South Carolina border was much narrower and not nearly so well maintained, and the road became quite lumpy and bumpy through a couple of South Carolina counties. Entirely too obvious that South Carolina has no vested interest in the Rockingham Speedway. We stopped for dinner in the small town of Cheraw, SC at the River's Edge restaurant. (No river to be seen anywhere in the neighborhood.) This is a Mennonite restaurant, and Cynthia really enjoyed the quilts hanging on the walls, seeing, not eating, the HUGE cakes for dessert, and a good hamburger withou a bun. Ron made two trips to the salad bar and ate a baked sweet potato. As we neared Columbia, traffic became very congested until we exited onto Interstate 20. At 3:45 on this Friday afternoon, "Malfunction Junction" lived up to its name. We checked into the usual Hilton Garden Inn and arranged to see Clark & Elizabeth for dinner. A good conversation was had by all. Cynthia and Ron walked to and from for nearly a half hour each way. Ron's Fitbit recorded 16,790 steps today (Thanks to Margie). One of the big draws drawing us here was the thought of daily walks with Dick. Imagine my surprise to learn that Dick is in Connecticut until after Thanksgiving. Similarly disappointing is the news that Vince and Mary may be unavailable since the SCE&G nuclear power plant is still shutdown for maintenance (known as an "outage.") No telling who we will be able to see or when or how long we will stay here before moving on. (And no telling just what the next destination might be since Ron is in charge of travel "plans.") Now that this blog update is in order, it is time to move on to locating the original photos used in Volume 6, the book that just won't go away.

Nov 19: The rain didn't stay in Spain, that is plain. At 9:18 AM, we exited the hotel with plans to take the city bus downtown, but, as we rounded the corner, we watched bus # 7 passing. Surprisingly, the rain, forecast to last all day, had ceased. Should we wait 30 minutes for the next bus or walk and risk encountering a downpour? We waited for the next bus and got off conveniently close to Happy and Hale for our veggie and egg white breakfast. Our day at the Archives was busy and productive. We are very pleased with our research in Raleigh, but it may take a month of Sundays to get the few thousand photos reviewed and labeled. Thankfully the skies had cleared allowing us to walk home dry after another dinner at Rye's. Now we pack.

Nov 18, Wed: WooHoo! On this bright, sunny, warm day we rode the bike to Happy and Hale for breakfast and on to the State Archives (brief stop) before we rode to Yanceyville to photograph the court cleark's deed books, unclear on Archives microfilm. The rain forecast for tomorrow will delay our departure to Columbus, NC until Friday AM. Oops, when Cynthia texted Duncan with a revised schedule, he was shocked to realize that we would be arriving imminently, especially since he was in Ashville with commitments to be in Winston-Salem over the weekend. So, once again the domino effect changed OUR plans also, so we will miss visiting Duncan and head straight towards Columbia Friday. (No telling how far that is or when we will actually start, etc., etc.)

Nov 17, Tues: Christmas lights and decorations brighten downtown Raleigh; an ice skating rink is set up next to Happy and Hale, change is in the air. Cynthia's hat fell from her coat pocket during the morning walk downtown and wasn't to be found in the evening.

Ron's desktop, Cynthia's delight (and Cynthia is delightful)

Nov 16: Walking to the State Archives on Wilmington increases our exercise distance to 3 miles each way with the route far better than walking along the heavy traffic on the interstate. Happy and Hale is certainly our favorite foody place, breakfast was yummilicious, and the staff is a happy group, too. Their enthusiastic joie de vivre is contagious. The Caswell and Person County wills and estate records are all photographed. 490 photos were taken today of books about the Leas of Caswell County now to be run through OCR. Dinner at Rye's Restaurant (in the Marriott) was a treat.

Ron at "work"/play at the Archives

Nov 15: Brrr@31 degrees@eight AM when we began our hike to IHOP for breakfast, and on to the Dollar Store for pretzels, Lowe's for a buckle they don't carry, IGA for Sorbet, a BPGas station for Cynthia to use the restroom while Ron walked to another food market, and sweating by 1:30 return to our hotel. Ron's Fitbit shows 16,000 steps for 7.5 miles. Do you know IHOP uses pancake batter in omelets??? Tripps is the newest restaurant that works for our dinner. Good Night zzzzzzz

Nov. 14: The 3 mile walk to the State Archives was the equivalent of 8000 steps on the Fitbit. Cynthia's MyFitness Pal on her IPhone6 tabulated 7500 steps. The Fitbit even records restlessness in the night rewarding Ron's success with gold stars. We saw many lines of men walking to and from a Soup Kitchen for the indigent. The panhandlers are out downtown in the afternoon and evening, but we are safe. We ate at Happy and Hale, amused by interesting transportation downtown Raleigh (a 14-16 passenger "bus" was moving by virtue of people pedaling like a bicycle). We hoofed it for another 3 miles back to the hotel at 3:00 PM where we worked on computer stuffs followed by a 3 mile roundtrip hike to Capt. Stanley's Seafood Restaurant for a yummy delicious dinner.

Nov 13: Yanceyville, NC, A Mini Lea reunion began at Briggs BBQ. Ron brought his own lunch and ate bananas and vegetables. Leas from William of Cobbs Creek and James Lea Country Line were present. We stopped at the Historical Society and the courthouse to get directions to Leahurst. The 1840 plantation home was lovely, the owner so kind and gracious. The cemetery is in ruins. Susie and Austin dropped us off at the hotel; we ate leftovers from Happy and Hale before Ron walked to Batteries Plus and got lost but counted 10,000 steps on his new Fitbit gift from Margie. Cynthia's granddaughter Kiira went to ER and was admitted for kidney stones.

Nov 12: Oh my the time does fly! The 4.5 years anniversary celebration started out mighty fine with a walk to downtown Raleigh for breakfast at Happy and Hale and on to the State Archives. Ron photographed estate records while Cynthia read Oange County records. Cousins Susie and Austin Lea arrived from CA for the mini Lea reunion tomorrow; we enjoyed an awesome dinner at Death and Taxes. Ron ate a whole fish.

Nov 11: After Monday's experience walking to and from the State Archives in the rain (returning after dark along the interstate) we opted not to try that again. We rode the city bus into downtown this afternoon and home again tonight. There is a day and night difference. During the 45 minute wait at the bus station a window was opened into a different factor of the human experience. Cynthia was overwhelmed at the pathos. Yet,our early evening in downtown Raleigh was fine: we ate at Happy and Hale, checked out the restaurant "Death and Taxes" where we are eating tomorrow night, walked ten blocks to the Yellow Dog Bakery and back downtown where we had our adventure for the day. Maybe a taxi would be good the next late night???

Nov 10, Smithfield, NC, thirty miles from Raleigh, we are at Ruby Tuesday's Restaurant to meet newly engaged Sweet friends for a congratulatory lunch; with the name Sweet they may receive a lot of candy gifts. Cynthia was teary-eyed when they asked her to officiate at their 2016 wedding. We arrived back in Raleigh at the State Archives by 3:00 PM where a professional genealogist suggested TurboScan for IPad Nd IPhone, $4.99. It scans, runs OCR and creates PDFs of multiple documents. Cynthia downloaded it from the App Store onto her IPad. It will sync to her Iphone6 but not to Ron's thousand year old flip phone.

Nov 9: Raleigh, NC with normal EKG. Woohoo! Yesterday's inconclusive reading was emailed to Walter who reassured Cynthia the even spacing between beats was more important than the erratic reading. We change hotels this morning to a $79.00 Comfort Inn near the Archives because the rates at the Hiltons are increasing to $220.00 minimum a night. It is raining lightly about 9:30AM with heavy rain forecast by noon so we will pack up and roll. Speaking of rolling, here's a great article, "Wanderlust is "genetic": http://elitedaily.com/life/culture/wanderlust-gene-people-born-travel/953464/. Traveling in the rain is not by choice, but born of necessity. By mid afternoon we managed an 18 mile ride in the rain to our next hotel, checked for cleanliness, walked 2.4 miles in light rain to the State Archives with a lunch stop at Happy and Hale to eat and drink our veggies. Happy and Hale's was a repeat for dinner followed by a 2.4 mile sloppy, wet walk in rain and mud back to our hotel. Photo: Ron's Shakedown Cruise, Sept 15 2007 in Staunton, VA, posted with fond memories:

Nov 8: Warrenton, VA to Raleigh, NC was a six hour ride that started out on highway 15 west from Warrenton until we missed a turn and discovered ourselves on highway 29 south through Amherst where we stopped for lunch at the Travelers Restaurant; the back country roads through Danville, VA into Person County, NC were not scenic. The day was cheerful and sunny, but the temperature did not get over 60 degrees. We met a lovely young girl named Bailey in Brookneal, VA but failed to get her last name. After we arrived at the Hilton Garden Inn (about 4:30), we kept on our warm clothing to ride to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. Ron ate tuna and Cynthia had a filet. The hostess expressed delight seeing us cuddled up on one side of the table and smiled at our explanation, "We are newlyweds." (After we have been married 30 years can we get away telling people we are newlyweds?") We haven't felt rested after last nights late hour and awakening at 6:00 AM. Another cold is coming on. Zzzzzzz

Nov 7: Yup. West Chester, PA has certainly been a good place to visit. The Classic Diner serves hiker portions, perhaps because this is a college town, albeit expensive. We were packed and off early for a two day ride to Raleigh, NC. Today's ride on scenic back country roads had marvelous views of vivid, intense autumn foliage. Picturesque Amish farms, complete with black buggies behind horses, was indeed a sight to see near Lancaster, PA. Charming stone houses on smaller farms, and the variegated hills in Maryland, offered compelling comparisons. A late lunch at a diner was sorta ok. The day was nice so we continued riding longer, past Mt. Airy forsaking a night at Jim's house, arriving in Warrenton, VA at a Hampton Inn about 6:00 PM quite tired. Sleep sounds good after editing photos to see how they will work run through OCR.

Nov 6: 5:30 AM, WakeUp Ron! This will be a heart changing day. Why is it always difficult to leave morning cuddles?? The driver was waiting for us promptly at 5:57 whisking us to the Chester County Hospital twenty minutes before the Heart and Vascular Center opened; the staff immediately whisked Ron away which is unusual. So I (Cynthia) am left alone and thinking. Thankful. The world needs more Ron, the consummate King of Kindness, the ultimate balcony person who lifts people up, leaving others better and happier, the living expression of God's kindness in his eyes, kindness in his smile. Thankful. I am. See the top and middle sets of lines on the EKG; this is a15 second flatline before the heart converted causing the doctors to hold their breath. Ron was hungry upon return from the hospital so we walked five blocks to Nudy's restaurant (suggested by Nurse Nancy) for delicious omelets. The Chester County Historical Society was a good choice to spend the afternoon shooting 266 photos. Kim-Eric and his lovely friend Ruth joined us at the Iron Hill for dinner. We walked them part way home.

Nov 5: West Chester, PA, the Warner Hotel; it is the closest hotel to the hospital for Friday's very early trip to reset the heart. The Warner Hotel was once the Warner Theatre now converted to an Art Deco themed hotel. The rooms are lovely, spacious and the enclosed parking garage is a terrific plus. We have a 10% discount card for the Iron Hill Brewery. After lunch and yogurt at Kiwi's we walked the streets for an hour and a half stopping into the Chester County Historical Society briefly giving Ron ample time for his favorite pastime, telling stories. Cynthia had not yet heard the Chester County Mechem stories. The hospital called with the cheery news we are to arrive at 6:45 AM; we secured a driver to take us there departing from the hotel by 6:00 AM, and a wake up call at 5:30 with No food or liquids after midnight. Kim-Eric met us at the SideBar for dinner: http://sidebarandrestaurant.com, followed by frozen yogurt at Kiwi's. Good Night.

Nov. 4: West Chester, PA, Echocardiogram at 11:15 AM. The Echocardiogram went fine; the technician said it would sound like an old wringer washing machine. It did. Lunch was at the Iron Hill Brewery, one of the 150 trendy restaurants in this charming, historic community. After lunch, we returned to the seminary instead of researching for Kinchen Rambo at the Historical Society. The ride through the historic Main Line region (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Main_Line) was breathtaking with magnificent, fanciful stone mansions. Indian Summer is fully present under a cloudless, azure blue sky. Autumn. Abundance. The view of Autumn from our motorcycle brings to mind God has more colors than Crayola. We said our good-byes to Jim Z.; Kim Eric met us at Scoogi's for dinner. Now we are very sleepy! Zzzzzz

Nov 3: Yup, we are still in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, an outskirt of Philadelphia, still awaiting to see the cardiologist, but this time the wait is for a scheduled cardioversion. Finally, Volumes 6A and 6B of The Wrangel Years are being published; and Vol. 7 Goransson-Hultgren Years template was sent to Ken P who almost fell out of his chair because it appeared completed. Foodified, we enjoyed the beauty of Indian Summer walking to the Fort Washington Post Office. After dinner at Scoogi's in Flourtown, Ron is elated to discover Alma Mechem's death date and burial information amongst seven pages of old notes being transcribed into the computer (Cynthia's over-abundance of joy is exceedingly excessive).

Nov. 2th: Ft. Washington, PA, a suburb of New Sweden (AKA Philadelphia) where Cynthia has been waiting the past ten days to have Ron see a cardiologist. Our 3:00 PM appointment today is to see if cardioversion to put the heart back into normal sinus rhythm can be scheduled yet this week. SURPRISE, it will be done Friday, God willing. Believe it or not, the bill for TWO heart procedures, including doctors and hospital days was received with a great feeling of thanksgiving: $20.76. Medicare plus Mutual of Omaha Supplemental paid the remainder of $66,000.

WooHoo! Surprise! Neither of us believed it was possible to arrange a cardioversion yet this week; Doctor Warnick was very friendly and personable, but a little perplexed that we want to have cardioversion HERE, but once he understood that our Houston cardiologist wanted it sooner rather than later, he arranged it for this coming Friday morning. It will be a very early day, but Ron will not be in the hospital overnight. On Wednesday we return to West Chester for a diagnostic echocardiogram. (Dr. Warnick says he likes to know the condition of the heart before he cardioverts.)

Tonight, we enjoyed a lovely walking tour through historic West Chester with Kim-Eric as our tour guide. He took us to look at the Waverly Hotel. Impressed, Cynthia immediately booked a room for Thursday and Friday nights. It is the closest hotel to the hospital for our very early check in on Thursday. Dinner at the Iron Grill Brewery was excellent; Cynthia enjoyed swordfish, Ron had salmon on a salad.

Nov. 1th: All Saints Day: "For all the saints from whom their labors rest... !" Our sainted and not so sainted ancestors make up a very lengthy list; thanks for them all. Some hotel guests at breakfast looked like hungover/leftovers from a wild Halloween party, but they were from two different weddings. Living saints John and Emily T. picked us up for a lovely lunch at Scoogi's; John had good news about two family group sheet sales. Photo: Beatty Saintly duo, doncha think?

Awwww, lookie the litttle "angels" Photo from years ago in Hawaii

 

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