April in New Sweden

30 Apr:  Ron is in the Archives again and will blog later, as usual.  Cynthia has finished up adding source citations to the entirety of the 1693 Census.  AttaGirl, Congratulations on finishing a big job.  Ron has finished his Friend family source citation confirmations (except for materials not in the Craig Collection.)




29 Apr:  We awoke in Wilmington, Delaware.  This was another unusual day because we started riding in Wilmington to join John at the Longwood Gardens (click here).  WOW !!  The flowers are amazing, and it is another surprise that Pierre S. DuPont merged fountains, flowers and music into such an incredible spectacle.  (His organ has 10,010 pipes (click here) and can be played by a computer.)  I have to suggest a visit to my opera-afficinado friend Ed.  Flowers, flowers and more flowers.  What a perfect time of year and a perfect year to visit the gardens.  The recent warmth and rains have undoubtedly enhanced the displays.  John showed us the behind-the-scenes views of the organ, before we listened to the computer play several show tune medleys.  A light display helps the computer know which pedals to push and which keys to play - or maybe that is for the audience.  It was better for me to close my eyes, and listen to the music undistracted.  We were able to order a small lunch salad from their cafeteria.  By 2:30 it was decided that we had best depart promptly if we wished to avoid rush hour traffic.  That tactic was marginally successful although Ron wandered around enough trying to find a pleasant route that we did not arrive back to the Seminary until 4:30.

Gov. Printz and a couple of Colonial lovelies

28 Apr, Sunday:  Not our normal Sunday.  We walked to church with umbrella in hand to ward off the looming rainclouds.  Then we merely picked up salads at Fresh Market and hustled off on the motorcycle to ride south and west to the Doubletree in Wilmington, delighted to arrive there dry.  (Ron likes to quip that God helps those who help themselves, and we helped out by postponed eating until after arriving.)  We then walked through a bad neighborhood for a few blocks to the Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church in Wilmington (click here).  There we were informed that we needed to walk another couple of blocks to our destination, Fort Christina (click here) on the banks of the Delaware, where the Swedes first landed in 1638.  We spent a couple of hours at Fort Christina, enjoying the Spring Swedish Festival and enjoyed seeing and hearing SCS Gov. John Tepe, dressed in Colonial peasant clothing, give a brief speech.  Our reason for riding to Wilmington was to join MIT alums Ed and Joel for dinner after their afternoon opera.  Ed and Joel were roommates, which added a dimension of interest to the delightful conversation.

27 Apr:  Ugh! Arising at 6:00 AM is not pleasant but Ron is committed to joining in the 5K walk with Joel.  Ron judiciously exercised, oatmealed, turned up the heat in the house before riding off on the motorcycle in a surprisingly warm 50-degree morning for the 5K Multiple Myeloma Run/Walk.  Cynthia opted out after learning the temperature was forecast to be 44 degrees.  Had she known that it was actually 50 degrees she might have braved the chill.  The walk was very enjoyable, and Ron chatted extensively with Joel's co-worker for half of the walk.  The highlight was meeting the ever-ephemeral Susan and new pup Sophia.  Annnnddd: here is the photo of the Runners/Walkers:



Ron's ride back to the Seminary was a delight.  Spring is blossoming everywhere in Philadelphia, and the chosen route was blocked off once and wrong way once so that the GPS directed Ron onto a couple of lovely streets with mansions and marvelous grounds abounding around.

26 Apr:  Rain, Rain, Rain, with blue skies in time for lunch at McMenamin’s with John P., who brought his umbrella, just in case.  We made it back to the seminary dry!   5:00 the ominous black clouds rolled in accompanied by a lightning show and roaring thunder.  A ferocious downpour lasted a short twenty minutes.  We were able to walk home dry by the usual 7 pm.

25 Apr:  Two weeks ago Ron looked out the bedroom window and was delighted to see green on the "fingertips" of the trees; today nearly everything was green.  Cynthia's transplanted iris look like they will survive the uprooting trauma.  We are told that the drain man returneth to continue repairs.  Ron has spent the morning recording receipts into his spreadsheet (so that he knows where he's been) and updating the blog.  He was delighted to find new news about Mexico Beach (click here).  Now his seat is getting sore, and he needs to move.  Movement led to salads at Fresh Market - ambience is lacking, but salads are nearly perfect, made to order by us.  And, now that the receipts are recorded and the blog is updated, Ron can return to appointed work.

24 Apr:  The Drain Man is Here! and opines that tree roots are causing the drain to back up when laundry follows shower.  Ron and Cynthia are hard at work in the Archives.  (Ron is finally recording receipts into his spreadsheet after a month of intentions.)  We took a two-hour lunch break to walk to Fresh Market.  Pastor D. Made Spaetzel with water and no salt for our dinner.  It is tasty and white, like fat rice.  Ron and Pastor added beans and lentils to theirs; Cynthia added only enough to cool hers down from scalding to warm.

23 Apr:  Repeating Monday in the Archives.  Ed R., Terry B. and Kim-Eric also worked in the Archives.  John P.  joined Kim-Eric, Ed and us for lunch at McMenamin's.  (Ron loves to drink lunch there - 22 oz Hefeweisens.)  Terry brought her own sack lunch.  Pastor David returned from his road trip to Cleveland this evening, but tells me that he leaves again on Thursday to Minneapolis.

22 Apr:  Ron spent the day in the Archives, while Cynthia cleaned and supervised both the window washers and the installer of a mini window air conditioner in our bedroom.  After Cynthia's jobs were complete, she showered and started a load of laundry.  The wash cycled fine, but during rinse, disaster struck; the kitchen floor flooded with water from somewhere.  Cynthia used a million rags or two to soak up the flood.  As soon as Ron returned and asked about the damp rags draped over everything, Cynthia told her story, and Ron immediately went to the guest bathroom to discover that the downstairs commode had also backed up and flooded that room with water and unidentified detritus.  Ron insisted that he scrub up the mess (after a bowl of oat meal, evening pills, toothbrushing, etc.) and used the last bits of the Spic & Span water to do so.  The worst part was water under the wood flooring - now drying out with big fans.  WEll! The house is mighty clean.  As Ron is wont to repeat far too often, "If this is the worst thing that happens this year, it won't be a bad year."

21 Apr, Easter Sunday:  Happy Easter!  We hope your Easter was a joyous celebration!  We walked into Chestnut Hill to the Lutheran Church, amidst springtime delight!   The dogwoods, redbuds, were bursting with blossoms, and the cherry blossoms looked like pink cotton candy!   Spring is greening beautifully, too.  The service was a very ”high church” with all of the whistles and bells. The congregation had a reaffirmation of baptism, and the choir was magnificent.  The neatest part was leaving with church bells ringing from many churches.  I felt like we should be singing, Easter Parade!  Cynthia felt like she was in the musical Easter Parade...!  After lunch at Fresh Market, we shopped at Walmart.  Once home, Ron scrubbed the kitchen and bathroom floors.  Cynthia transplanted flowers into the newly weeded bed; they could be flowering weeds?  If so, they look better than the weeds that were there.

20 Apr:  We worked in the Archives all day, Cynthia left early enough to prepare a flower bed next to the front entry.

19 Apr:  Yes, even on Good Friday, our work in the Archives continues.  We started at ten AM. Ron finished at eight PM.  Cynthia ordered Easter Lilys delivered and mailed Easter cards.  Dinner at Jansen was delicious.  As soon as we arrived home, Cynthia stripped Ron of his clothing!  Imagine!  She insisted on doing laundry despite having washed Ron’s clothes just last year!

18 Apr:  Joel G, an MIT alum, walked from his house to join us for lunch at Fresh Market.  We plan to join him in a 5K walk/run a week from Sat.  As usual, Ron climbed on the Pritikin healthful eating and exercising band wagon.  Thanks to a new puppy, Joel is already walking quite a lot on a daily basis.

17 Apr:  New Sweden, PA,  United Lutheran Seminary Archives.   Kim-E, John T. will lunch with us at McMenamin's. We are working intensely from 9:30 to 7 PM, taking a two-hour break for lunch; we walk to Fresh Market and back.

16 Apr:  The AC arrived; the installer arrives next Monday.  The regular archivists are working in the Archives; they need to move the shelving for their projects, preventing Cynthia from the book inventory until they leave at six PM.  We had lunch with John T. at McMenamin's and dinner at the
Trolley Car Diner with Jim Z.

15 Apr:  The massive fire at the Cathedral of Notre Dame is heartbreaking.  Spring reverses once again, presenting us with a very chilly day!  And Cynthia’s air conditioner was scheduled to arrive within the hour.  But, it did not arrive.   Do we need an AC?  John T. came after lunch to help in the Archives. It was a long day’s journey into the night.  We finished work in the archives at 9:00 PM.

Dogwoods

Wisteria

14 Apr:  Passion Sunday, we walked a mile plus to Christ Ascension Lutheran Church in Chestnut Hill, and we lunched at Fresh Market afterward. Cynthia’s FB post...
Sunday Offering...
The passion story from the Gospel of Luke grips my soul with Thanksgiving. Thank the Lord, the Almighty, for the bread, the wine, the body and blood of Jesus given for me! For ME! How wonderful to worship with palm branches and sing Hosanna! How incredible to grasp the ultimate reason, the justification, for why we are Christians, played out during the next seven days of the holiest week of our lives. Do you get it, too?

13  Apr:  The landscape is changing daily.  Tomorrow we must get photos of the 50’ tall ethereal white dogwood trees!  The tulip trees are equally magnificent.  After hours in the Archives, it is exciting to see the kaleidoscope of change outdoors.  Jean C.  joined us for a lovely dinner tonight at Scoogi’s.  She looks so happy.

12 Apr:  Spring is springing again.  Walking to Chestnut Hill was a feast for our eyes.  One street was flooded with green, pink, yellow, gold, lavender, and purple flowers - plus rows of white dogwood trees floated down the street.  It was quite warm walking in the bright sunshine to Fresh Market, but we felt cooler returning because of cloud cover.

11 Apr:  Spring retreated.  Winter returned and Cynthia is NOT a happy camper.  On the other hand, this was the first day thatRon looked out the bedroom window and saw obvious hints of green on the fingertips of the trees.  However, she is now closer to God, atop the rolling stairs that allow access to the top shelves in the Archives.  Ron has written and responded to e-mails, so it is time to sign in as his alter ego, JamesLeaCobbsCreek, to continue editing Cynthia's next book.  We walked "home" to eat our leftover salads so that now there is room in the refrigerator.  (Did Philco make refrigerators?  Google says Philco started producing refrigerators in 1939.)  Ron should think about going on a TV game show.  We walked to Fresh Market for groceries, stopping for a disappointing meal at the Trolley Stop Diner.  Ron's omelet was slathered in Oil!

Gov. Printz Park in Essington, DE.
The New Sweden Farmstead relocation progresses.

10 Apr:  Larry again showed up at the Archives and we walked to Fresh Market for salads for lunch, our favorite.  Ron spent the day restoring the Yocum folders from the file cabinets to the storage boxes they fill.  Cynthia planned a birthday dinner for David including Jim Z, and our dinners at Jansen were again phenomenal.

9 Apr:  Ron attempted to help Alex, the maintenance man, by holding the plumbing snake steady, while Alex wound 60' of hose down into the drain.  Pulling the snake back out of the drain was a problem because the snake would fly loose causing Alex to cry out for help, ”Oh, Jesus!”  Ron thought it best to give up being assisting plumber.  Ron's next AM job was a surgeon.  The splinter in Cynthia’s heel became a big problem overnight.  Ron operated in the archives, with Cynthia on the floor, holding her heel high in the air.  Thanks to good lighting at the Archives, Ron was able to employ one hand to hold a magnifying glass and the other hand to the needle from his sewing kit, and worked wonders.  The patient survived despite the odds.  Kim-Eric joined us for lunch at McMenamin’s to discuss theology and political correctness.  (Ron drank his favorite lunch hereabouts.  They actually provide us a good salad too.)  John T. had just arrived at the Archives when we returned.  Cynthia turned into a sugar addict, eating an entire bag of bite-size cookies.  Ron caught her in the act of eating contraband.  John stayed late to finish adding one more forefather application to his Family Tree Maker files.  Now it is Ron's turn to consolidate all of those.  The snake was deemed successful, so we can again use the water in the house.

8 Apr:  After yesterday's rain and today's sunshine, the flowering trees are quite magnificent.  We walked to Fresh Market for lunch, returning to discover that our house has plumbing issues. The pipes are clogged someplace, backing up the washing machine and plumbing.  We are unable to use the water until it is fixed.  Who knows, we might have to go to a hotel after all.  At least, the laundry is done for this week and we returned to the archives for a fierce attack at our many projects.  Night came, we didn't have to go to a hotel, yet.  Alex, the maintenance guy is returning on the morrow with a sewer roto-rooter.   And just before bed, Cynthia got a large wood sliver of wood on the bottom of her heel.  She broke it off removing it.

7 April, Sunday, a day of rest and walking and buying groceries!  We rode the motorcycle on back roads to King of Prussia to a Walmart and were disappointed that it is not a supercenter with great groceries.  On the upside, we were delighted to re-discover a Ruby Tuesday’s Restaurant nearby in Plymouth Meeting.  YAY!  For those interested, the back way from Mt. Airy to Plymouth Meeting is the epitome of simplicity; take Stenton Ave west through its many turns, but do check it out in advance because several of the turns are unexpected..

6 Apr:  Kim and Ruth gave us a ride to the Swedish Colonial Society Forefather's Luncheon, a great success.  It was located in Essington, PA, near Governor Prinz Park, which we toured after the luncheon.  Cynthia ate contraband.  Ron was delighted that the staff found a big plate of vegetables and fruit for him.  Great job, Ron.  That evening, several seminary students joined us at David's house to celebrate Jim Z’s birthday.

5 Apr:  The great news of the day: the economy is booming, the March jobs report is remarkable, and the stock market continues its climb.  On the downside, it rained/ sleeted lightly before noon and changed to a cold, light drizzle by evening.  On another upside, Ron finished another Swedish Colonial package today about the Steelman family.  Jim Z. and John P. joined us for dinner at Jansen’s, the new restaurant in the stone cottage vacated by the Caribbean restaurant that closed four years ago.  We sang happy birthday to Jim.

4 Apr:  After the usual morning activity, we are on a roll this gorgeous day.  Cynthia's first AM  project was placing an Amazon order for a hairdryer, Fiber D’lish bars, and misc.  Her second project is working on a DNA  essay (with a shout out of thanks to a dear friend in Iowa who helps her with edits!). Two lovely archive volunteers, Linda and Phyllis, are quite a delight. We walked to Fresh Market, bringing back lunch for Jim Z.  We attended the seminary student dinner and worship service, but we didn’t stay long because of the noise and acoustics.

3 Apr:  In New Sweden (aka Philadelphia) ... slept late, stretches done, oatmealed and now getting back to work!  Ron has three projects going: the James Lea Book, the Swedish Colonial Society family group sheets, and verifying the Craig Collection source notations.  We achieved our 10,000+ steps by two PM, walking to Fresh Market in Chestnut Hill for lunch.

2 Apr:  New Sweden, PA, where the Swedes first landed, is famously known as Philadelphia.  United Lutheran Seminary is located in a suburb of 'New Sweden.'   We are back at work in the Seminary Archives, and we enjoyed lunch at McMinimins Tavern with Kim Eric.  Ron refers to our escapades here as "drinking lunch." (He orders a large salad and a 22 oz. Hefeweizen.)  Our host, David, prepared an awesome salmon dinner for us last night.

1 April:  No fooling! Negligence reigns!  We haven't blogged in a few days.  The weather forecast wasn’t fooling, either.  The ride was really cold from Rehoboth Beach on Highway 1 north to a Ruby Tuesday’s restaurant near Wilmington, Delaware.  No fooling.  Warmed with food, and with only two hours remaining to ride, our spirits were lifted.  Ron forgot DE 1 is a toll road north of Wilmington, but it was too late and too wet to change plans, so we took the toll road north until turning northwest onto I-95 until exit 8 onto US 202 north to West Chester (where we espied many familiar sights.)  Then we meandered around through Conshohocken to Mt. Airy as directed by the GPS (including Matsonford Road, Fayette, E. Elm, Apple, E. Hector, Barren Hill, Harts, Church, and finally Germantown Pike with its cobblestones.  We arrived at the United Lutheran Seminary in Mt. Airy, Pennsylvania, our home for the next few months.  We are sharing a house with another pastor.

March is Springing or Spring is Marching

Can you tell that it was cold this day?

31 Mar:  Chesapeake, Virginia to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware was 169 miles of breathtaking scenery that included the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnels.  A whole lotta bridge goes over a whole lotta water.  Traveling northwards on US 13 and US 113 we enjoyed seeing Spring newly springing all over again: crocus, redbuds, dogwoods, and  cherry trees are blossoming.  The forecast rain fell briefly halfway into the day’s journey.  A covered carport, at a closed medical care center, offered shelter until the rain abated.  More, and heavier, rain fell further on, but it was brief.   We were quite happy to make it to the hotel dry (although the GPS routed us on DE 24 instead of the scenic route 1 up the coast.)  Thanks to Dean and Janina for picking us up at our hotel in Rehoboth Beach, DE so we could enjoy seeing the spectacular views of Dean’s playground, the Delaware Bay!  He is an avid surfer, biker, runner, participant in triathlons and marathons.  We saw surfers in 45 degree water, a cyclist or two, and many runners.  We thoroughly appreciated the camaraderie.  We topped off the day with a three mile hike on the Gordon Pond Trail.  

30 Mar:  Roxboro, NC to Chesapeake, Virginia, was a four hour ride on a pleasant day, pleasant roads: NC 49 east to US 58 east to I-64 to the Hilton Garden Inn.  (Ron remembered an impressive HGI near Norfolk (actually in Suffolk, VA), but Cynthia booked the HGI in Chesapeake.  Ron's memory fell short several times on this trip.  He really needs to consult his computer more diligently in the future.)  A Ruby Tuesday restaurant was conveniently located (in Suffolk) 25 miles before Chesapeake, accented by pink cherry trees that looked like giant cotton candy.  We are indeed sleepy, but somehow we managed a fast three mile walk before Cynthia compulsively tore into laundry before sleeping!

29 Mar: Roxbury, NC meant a day in the library, followed by an hour in the courthouse.  It was surprising to discover photos of the abstracts taken today were already on the computer.  But, a discovery of a needed document in the courthouse was just in the nick of time to race to the courthouse, Registrar of Deeds.   We walked the .8 mile uphill to the library.  After not eating all day, it will seem like an uphill returning to the hotel.  Our experience with restaurants in town strongly  suggested we make that return to the hotel and eat oatmeal.  On our evening walk, which took us past Brookfield Eats we checked out the menu, and the baked sweet potatoes sounded good. So did the grilled salmon.  It was delicious.  Ron is eating soft foods.

28 Mar:  We left Lake Wylie around 1 PM and arrived in Roxboro about 6 PM.  The first several hours were on I-485, I-85 and I-40, so the only redeeming quality was the Ruby Tuesday that we found near the Charlotte Speedway.  Once we exited onto North Carolina highway 119 and then turned onto NC 49 we were much more relaxed amid the pleasant early spring scenery until about 15 miles from Roxboro, when some hard object hit Ron full in the face just below his left eye.  It hit so hard that it felt like a rock, and it cut his cheek below the eye, but the bone seems OK since the swelling is not significant.  We stopped at a gas station soon afterwards and mopped the blood from the cheek.  Ron is still taking blood thinners, so we are quite happy that the wound didn't bleed excessively.  No telling whether this will make for sleeping problems tonight.  I guess time will tell.  Due to our late departure from Ed & Mary's, we arrived just after the library closed at 6 PM, so genealogy and mapping properties will have to wait for tomorrow.

27 Mar,  I LOVE YOU SMOOCH! Loris, SC onward to Charlotte, SC to visit Mary and Ed.  We again enjoyed quiet ride until we found more traffic closer to Charlotte, NC.  We were on US 701 north briefly to SC 9 west until detouring five miles west to a Ruby Tuesday on I-95 in Florence.  After that welcome salad lunch, we endure a bit more traffic on US 52 past Darlington race track.  Then traffic vanished on SC 34 to  SC 151 north towards Lancaster, SC to US 521 north to SC 5 west through Rock Hill to SC 274 north to SC 49 east into Lake Wylie.  Thus we avoided North Carolina so that Ron could avoid wearing a motorcycle helmet.  (He contends that those things cause accidents due to limited sight, additional fatigue and heat.)  It was great to see Ed and Mary in their new home, only five minutes away from their daughter Anna.  We were fortunate that Anna was able to drop in to see us, as she is studying full time for an advanced degree.

26 Mar at Loris, SC:  Today started with a bit of rain but dried out early enough that we enjoyed a fine 7,000 steps walking with Hans along the main drag of Loris.  Hans enjoyed showing us the town and naming neighbors right, left and sideways.  He is becoming quite the home town resident.  We also kept eyes out for any loose change on the ground, especially around the car wash.  Ron was delighted to find three dimes and a penny for his contribution to Hans' estate.  Hans showed us the locations of most of the public restrooms that provide necessary relief for us older walkers.  After lunch of oatmeal with berries for Cynthia and Ron, Hans drove us to sightsee at Myrtle Beach.  Hans first showed us the boardwalk, including the 187' high ferris wheel.  Then we wandered extensively through the Gay Dolphin Gift Cove (click here) with its endless displays of kitsch.  We drove by the baseball stadium, the high school, and Broadway at the Beach (click here), including its famous upside down museum, on our way to the Tanger Outlets.  (Did you know that there are 42 Tanger Outlets?)  Myrtle Beach is much larger than I had realized. We all enjoyed becoming fabulously full at Ruby Tuesdays and are now sitting comatose before bedtime.

25 Mar:  We rode from Columbia, SC to Loris, SC to visit Hans and Audrey via I-26 southeast to I-77 north to SC 768 east to US 378 east through Mulberry and bypassed Conway via SC 5/26/24 to US 701 north through Loris to Russ Rd.  It was a lovely quiet ride through South Carolina in early spring.  It is a bummer that Audrey is not home.  But we will enjoy Hans and their lovely home.  Hans enjoyed showing us around his 4 acres with all of his horticultural projects sprouting.  He plants fruits and veggies amongst his flower beds.

24 Mar:  Columbia, SC until the morrow. Ron joined our friends at Lizards Thicket for fish and grits, then he returned to our hotel for a second breakfast and to walk a few miles.  Ron spent the remainder of the day processing financial reports, then taking the records to Greg’s to gather dust, along with the rest of his stuff.  Our wonderful friends once again gathered at Zorba’s for dinner at 6:00 PM. We were an hour late because of a side trip to Urgent Care.  All is well.   The group stopped eating at the local Ruby T’s because of a poor manager,  so it’s off the list for group gathering.   We are still full from Friday night.  A hugely hilarious side Note: At Urgent Care, Cynthia got a shot and had to wait 20 minutes to be sure she wouldn’t have an allergic reaction.  The nurse asked if she wanted her husband to come back to sit with her.  Yes! She did!  What was his name?  Cynthia said, “Smooch!”  So the nurse called out “Smooch” ... tooooo Funny.

On lovely yard among many this lovely spring moring.

23 Mar:  Dogwood, Japanese cherry trees, blooming flowers and pleasant weather made this morning’s walk a joy.   On a walking roll, we hoofed it again to Ruby Tuesday’s for lunch.  Ron’s 17” Mac Book Pro 2012 might be dying, but it was fully backed up to the Airport when we left Texas.  The Steelman package is nearly complete and safe on a flash drive.   Cynthia should know Ron better than to think, "Might be time to buy a new ultralight MAC?"

22 Mar:  We didn’t get enough sleep, but we arose, did our stretches, got oatmealed, and walked 4 miles with Dick.  Cynthia went back to sleep for an afternoon nap!  Ron spent two hours opening his mail!  The Columbia gang joined us at Zorba’s for dinner.  Mary was committed to baking a very special wedding cake, so she could not join us, but sent a humongous carrot cake to lighten our disappointment.  Ron and Cynthia, being hungover from eating sugar, walked the parking lot for ten minutes after dinner to encourage a drop in blood sugar.

21 Mar:  Cynthia’s flight to Columbia, SC arrived at 9 PM! YAY!  She was expecting Ron to arrive on the hotel shuttle, but instead, he was on the bike with her heated gear.  The ride to the hotel was lit by a gorgeous super moon.  She has been wildly busy in Texas, getting one of our storage units cleared out by gifting to children and grandchildren and getting taxes done.     We are one  happy Smooch family to be together.

Cynthia loves this picture of bluebonnets

20 Mar:  Was today the first day of Spring?  Methinks so.  The trees and fleurs are bursting with color!    The bluebonnets are spectacular.
  Cynthia had an early AM 2.5  hour drive in rush hour to the Houston medical center.  All tests are good.  The ride home was only 1.5 hours.  Ron, is in S.C., helping Donna and Greg take used TVs and appliances to recycle, then aluminum cans to sell to a metals recycler.

19 Mar:  Columbia, SC:  It was another chilly night which encouraged Ron so that he slept well.  At 6:30 he came inside for oatmeal.  7:30 Dick & Clark joined him for the daily walk around the neighborhood.  Ron called Florida DMV and was disappointed to learn that they will not change or remove a mailing address over the phone.  Now he is back to work on the Steelman package.

Thank you cousin Angi

18 Mar:  On this Monday in Texas, Cynthia burned rubber on the roads (rushing to Bryan, Texas) getting lost coming and going. The directions to Corrie’s house were so simple, how did Cynthia take a wrong turn?  And returning to Montgomery, she wound up in Anderson, Texas.  Now, Anderson is a great little town, with a famous courthouse featured in  several movies.  But, that wasn’t where she wanted to be!  Yet, the day and scenery were so lovely, that it was actually a pleasant time.  Upon arrival home, delightful surprise came in the mail from Angi, our cousin of a cousin: lovely dessert plates with Swedish folk dancers in costume.  How precious is this?  THANK YOU Angi.

17 Mar, Sunday:  Top of the Mornin’ to our Irish Friends!  Love to my Irish Smooch!  On this St. Patrick’s Day, the sweet sights and sounds of spring have arrived in Southeast Texas.  Birds are singing like crazy; azaleas are lush and wild with color; boulevards are lined with blossoming pear trees; and tulips, crocus and forsythias put forth the clarion call, “The earth is alive!”  In Columbia, SC, it was cold overnight (37 degrees); Ron was chilly at 3:30 AM and came inside to finish the night at 5 AM.  After breakfast at Lizard's Thicket with Dick and Clark only, Ron and Dick walked the neighborhood for four miles.  Here too, the red buds are gorgeous, and pears, etc are blooming in profusion.


16 Mar:  Ron awakened early this morning after another long, uninterrupted nights sleep, and left this message on the blog, "Love you my little Smooch."  Dick and Clark don't walk on weekends, so Ron walked the "Mungo Trail," the repurposed golf course cart path.  He is realizing that his blog posts will be posted behind Cynthia's unless he gets in gear earlier in the day most days.  Ron is already enjoying his frozen mango & pineapple again and anticipating a nice little sugar boost soon.  Last nights short sleep caused Ron to become lethargic and eat much more often than usual.  Eventually he took another couple of long walks during the day.  Cynthia and son Jon celebrated Jon’s recovery from a week long respiratory infection with dinner at Cedar Lodge (as pictured above - Jon is great at selfies.)

15 Mar:  Cynthia took Easter gifts to Fyn and Zoe.  Later she and Julie planned a major remodeling project on Julie’s house.  Is there anything more fun than tearing out walls?  Ron is apparently not the only one in need of continual adult supervision.  Today Ron polished off the pineapple.  The spinach is still untouched in the refrigerator.  He and Donna got in gear "early" and drove the SUV full of electronics junk 20 miles to the state-mandated electronics recycling center.  On the return trip they stopped at Lowes for pretzels and salad then at WallyWorld to replenish frozen fruits & berries.  Friday evening tradition is Columbia is dinner out.  This time Mary, Donna, Ron, Clark, Dick, and Greg gathered at Zorba's for salmon, baked potatoes, etc.  Conversation at these dinners isn't quite the same when Liz is out of town.  Ron stayed up til nearly midnight walking and talking on the cell phone after working too long on the Steelman package.

14 Mar:  Meantime, in Texas, Cynthia had an appointment with Bambi, dinner with Rachel, and an overnight with daughter Julie.  Grandson Eric came home to celebrate his birthday turning into a very late night.  Ron’s renewed drivers license was not delivered to the house but was returned to the DMV, because it was sent to the closed PO Box instead.  For Ron and Donna, the big accomplishment of the day was loading defunct electronics into the SUV, starting with the old, heavy, heavy, heavy TV and continuing with a similarly old, large and heavy computer monitor, two computer towers, a laser printer, dot-matrix printer, another printer, a laptop, a scanner, and a box of assorted smaller things.  Ron was careful while lifting the heavy TV and monitor; they were "trucked" out to the car and lifted from the hand truck.  Today Ron polished off the mango.

13 Mar:  After two foggy, rainy days in Houston town, Cynthia had hopes for sunny skies, but the sun did not appear; instead, it rained heavily all the day long.  Some businesses are without internet, Jon’s is down too.  Sasha, Cynthia’s hairdresser, missed seeing Ron, and he asked, "Where's The Governor?"  He wished him a quick ‘Get Well.’  Cynthia misses Ron, too.  After running errands, she is hibernating in the bedroom because son Jon is sick with a bug that required antibiotics.  Ron has already fallen back into old habits: walking with Dick & Clark, working on the SCS Steelman package, keeping Greg & Donna company sitting in front of the boobtoob ... all the while ignoring the blog.  He has found his earphones and is happily listening to 57ChevyRadio.com again.  Similarly happily snacking on frozen mango & frozen pineapple.

12 Mar:  Ron awakened at 7:01 AM after a great nights sleep under the stars in Greg & Donna's back yard.  Unfortunately his cold has rendered his voice too croaky to understand.  Fortunately the other symptoms seem to have moderated already, perhaps from the steady diet of porridge that he is consuming now; no doubt the frozen pineapple and mango are assisting.  Dick and Clark and Ron walked around the neighborhood for 1.5 hours this morning and returned just in time for Ron's 9AM pill alarm and the call from his weefee to remind him to take his pills.  He has been steadily working on the next Swedish Colonial Package about the Steelman family of New Jersey.  As he discovered the need for a bit of internet research, he discovered a need to update the blog in February with routes and more descriptive commentary. (Thank you Smooch, from your beloved wee-fee)

11 Mar:  Ron awakened at 3 AM and was delighted to realize that he could safely fall back asleep and still get Cynthia to the plane on time.  Unfortunately he did NOT fall back to sleep, so he is now overtired.  On the good side, we did get Cynthia to the plane on time, and she has already called from Houston with delight, anticipating an egg white veggie omelet from the 105 Cafe.  Ron did manage to drag himself through packing and rode over to Greg and Donna's house where he will be for the next 10 days without adult supervision.  Greg & Donna abandoned Ron to his own devices whilst they traipsed off to visit a doctor.  Ron did send off a couple of e-mails before riding over to Wally World for foodstuffs.  'Lizabeth dropped in to see if Ron wanted to borrow a tent, as yet unfound.  He declined the offer and might regret that as it just started sprinkling.  Since the TV is showing NCIS as usual, Ron is ready to begin work on another family package for the Swedish Colonial Society.  (An aside to mee beloved: I love you.  SmoochSmooch.)

10 Mar, Sunday, Columbia, SC:  We sprang ahead very slowly this AM, relishing these mornings when we can rise leisurely.  Noise in the hotel breakfast room was deafening even to the deaf among us.  A mid morning nap was a brilliant idea, too.  Severe thunderstorms were anticipated this afternoon, but they did not materialize.  At four PM our SC friends are meeting us for dinner ... a fine, fun time was had by all the survivors: Greg & Donna, Tom & Cheryl, Clark & Liz, Dick and Mary.

9 Mar:  The ride from Lithonia, Georgia to Columbia, South Carolina on I-26 was uneventful but rather boring, with a luncheon stop at Ruby Tuesday's in Augusta, GA.  For some peculiar reason, the southern Hilton properties and the Ruby Tuesday restaurants are less desirable than elsewhere.  The hotel rooms are clean enough, but they seem very run down; so, too, the restaurants.  We are simply grateful to find restaurants that have fresh garden vegetables and a baked sweet potato.  We may have been the only Caucasians in the hotel; evidently their clientele are asked to sign an agreement verifying a one strike and you are out for making excessive noise after ten PM.  The first order of business upon our arrival in SC was a visit with Ron's MIT freshman roommate, Greg and his lovely bride, Donna.  We are ensconced at a Hampton Inn near the airport for Cynthia's flight early Monday morning to Houston.

Ron Beatty and cousin Don

8 Mar:  We kissed our wonderful cousin of a cousin Angi goodbye and rode off to visit Don Bankston, a walking historian/ encyclopedia.  From Angi's house, Northside Drive winds peculiarly past amazing mansions down to the I-286 circumferential highway.  Once we got onto the Interstate, a light rain sprinkled us from time to time over the next twenty minutes until we neared Lithonia.  Fortunately the rain ceased as we exited onto smaller roads.  By the time we arrived, Cynthia was famished!  Uber doesn't deliver in Lithonia.  But there was a taxi service!  It took a few phone calls and a lot of time,  but we finally had a ride to the Ruby Tuesday's in Lithonia.  Neither one of us carries much cash, but fortunately Ron remembered having a larger bill; the restaurant was willing to give us change to pay the taxi.  The taxi driver must have been pleased because he was willing to pick us up after dinner.  We are up too late and too tired to be worth a plug nickel tomorrow!

7 Mar:  Ron and Angi are making progress, but a file or two is missing.  After another trip to downtown Atlanta, Ron discovered one missing file on the old computer is corrupted; the other one is nowhere to be found.  Cynthia walked the mall trying to reach 10,000 steps, but shopping superseded steps.  We again enjoyed a delicious baked sweet potato at Jason’s Deli.  Packing begins for a late morning’s visit to see Bankston cousin Don in Lithonia, Georgia.  Saturday the temperature is forecast to be warm enough to enjoy our ride to Columbia, South Carolina.

6 Mar:  Global freezing causes our brains to freeze, and we forgot to blog.

5 Mar, Atlanta, GA:  35 degrees this morning!  Ron and cousin Angi were working in her husband Michael’s office on Dorothy’s thirty or forty year old computers downloading old files. They dropped Cynthia off at the Lenox Mall to get 10,000 steps.  About three hours later, when she hadn't heard her cell phone ring, Ron and Angi restored to cruising the mall and succeeded in finding little golden haired Cynthia on their first go-round.  The mall security kept asking Cynthia if she needed help.  Angi shepherded us to Jason's Deli for a enjoyable lunch.

4 Mar:  We are in Atlanta, GA enjoying cousin Angi and her husband Michael.  They invited us to stay in their lovely guest house.  Ron spent the evening sorting papers at Angi’s; Cynthia planned to walk a lot, but the bitter cold front kept her inside.  She tried to exercise by marching in place.  That became quickly tedious.  After a month of serious heavy exercise, this inactivity is very hard on our bodies.  Angi prepared a lovely dinner of roast chicken and rice.  It really was delicious.

3 Mar, Sunday:  In Marietta, Georgia the March lion is roaring.  Ron and Cynthia rode on Alt. US 27 north from Columbus to Newnan, GA, but his notes didn't mention leaving town on US 29, so we rode 50 miles on I-75 to I-285 to Marietta, GA, where we are ensconced warm and feeling fat/full at a Ruby Tuesday, watching God blessing the earth with abundant rainfall at one PM.  The weather service forecasts that the rain will end at five PM.  (It ended at four PM.)  Our hosts have returned from central Florida.  We will be staying with DeHaven cousins in their Atlanta guest house for three days while Ron helps Angi start preparing deceased cousin Dorothy’s book for publication.

2 Mar:  From Quincy, FL we headed north on FL highway 267 which turns into GA 302, turned onto GA 97 N which eventually merges into US 27.  In Pensacola, FL the redbuds and pear trees are beginning to bloom and that continued along US 27 as it winds east, west and north through Georgia.  A light rain fell sporadically as we rode.  We continued to be surprised at the wide swath of damage by last October's hurricane all the way to Columbus, Georgia, where we found lodging and food!  Entire forests of trees were toppled over or snapped off at a height of twenty or thirty feet.

10 Years Ago On the CO River in the Grand Canyon

1 Mar:  We left Pensacola, Florida after shipping a box on to Philadelphia and after stopping at Jason's Deli for lunch.  Cynthia was surprised and very disappointed to lose her favorite sunglasses there.  Consequently it was and early noon hour before we headed south on I-110 towards Panama City and Mexico Beach to see for ourselves what hurricane Michael did to the area last October 10.  Unfortunately Ron hadn't checked the route closely, so we rode east on the crowded highway FL 98 instead of the much more scenic highway FL 399 that runs among the dunes on the beach.  One we arrived in Panama City we saw Devastation !!  We were surprised that the severe damage started in Panama City, and it looked like a war zone.  By the time we reached Mexico Beach we were pleasantly surprised to see so many Gulf views, apparently because entire houses are gone, either washed away entirely or the debris has been cleared.  Sharon's Cafe and Toucan's Restaurant are empty lots.  The El Governor Hotel is fenced in for construction; apparently they plan to remodel.  One  business is open... an oyster restaurant.  We were surprised to see more houses standing than we expected, although they are all damaged.  We were surprised and unprepared for the light rain that fell as we approached town and more as we left east on county road 386 (trying to skirt the apparent rain clouds north of us).  That worked well for several miles, but then we rode through drenching rain approaching FL 71.  We stopped there because Cynthia was very cold after her sweatshirt got wet in the drenching.  She put on her heated gear, which helped, but Ron hadn't packed our rain gear where he could find it easily.  We turned east at Wewahatchie on FL 20, then northeast on FL 12 towards I-10 to reach a Hampton Inn at Quincy, FL fo another unpleasant surprise ... it wasn't very clean.  Because the hotel was not near restaurants, we cooked oatmeal in the microwave.  The day was full of  surprises.  At least, the person who found Cynthia's sunglasses must have been happily surprised

Feb. A Merry Heart Does Good Like Medicine (Prov 17:22)

Ron's K1600 GTL is all repaired and ready to ride

28 Feb:  We arrived in Pensacola, FL, and this short month ended happily.  We experienced more rain today but it wasn’t as severe as yesterday.  After checking into our hotel, we fed our hungry bodies at Ruby Tuesday’s, then turned the rental car into Enterprise.  Adventure Motorsports was immediately next door, so we walked over to reclaim our abandoned the bike; the poor thing has languished this past month after replacing the broken drive shaft and replacing the damaged swing arm.  Ron was delighted to discover that he still knows how to ride.

There were times we couldn't see taillights of the truck ahead

27 Feb:  Jan prepared delicious steel cut oatmeal for our breakfast.  After hugs and goodbyes to dear friends, we immediately stopped for lunch at Ruby Tuesday’s, always a good idea.  It was a relief that northbound I-75 wasn’t as crowded as the southbound trip had been a month ago.  However, an hour north of Sarasota torrential rains fell, reducing visibility to nil and appearing to be exceedingly treacherous at times.  After the rain, the sun came out and shone directly into our eyes as we approached Tallahassee.  The Quincy, Florida Hampton Inn was not great and neither was the nearest Jason’s Deli.

Ron is just ALL heart

26 Feb:  Did you notice we are three days behind in blogging?  Pat and Larry treated us to an egg white veggie frittata at the Skillet before we took off for Venice, FL (sixty miles up I-75) to lunch with Drew and BD, always a fun duo!  Late afternoon we arrived in Sarasota, FL to overnight with Jan and Dorothy.  They live close by to a Jason’s Deli, so we treated them to our newest favorite wide-spread restaurant chain.  Cynthia marveled at their lovely home, especially the tranquil view of the pond and golf course outside their patio wall of windows.  We were a bit surprised to find them still in Sarasota because they had been considering a move back up closer to New England.  They have been unable to find an attractive city with comparably pleasant weather in any of the northern locales that they have considered.  They may decide to move to another community within Sarasota.





25 Feb:  We said our final goodbyes over our last Pritikin breakfast and collected a box lunch for our ride.  The car rental arrived late, but we thoroughly enjoyed the ride on the Tamiami Trail (old US 41) west from Doral, FL, stopping for our Pritikin box lunch at the Oasis Visitor Center at the entry to the Big Cypress Preserve.  Cynthia captured a photo and video of the alligators but didn’t get one of Ron walking across the river on the backs of the alligators.  Because of our late start, we were late arriving at our new friends lovely home in Naples.  We met Pat at Pritikin, and her husband, Larry is battling Alzheimers.  Pat had prevailed upon Ron to visit so that she could have company on a motorcycle ride, using one of their five, beautiful Harleys.  Ron was happy to comply, but Pat had been on a long ride with a daughter the day before, so was not interested in an afternoon ride today.  Pat is originally from LeMars, Iowa, and Cynthia once lived in LeMars, so they had many things and people to discuss!  Dinner was at the Dock Seafood Restaurant with other Iowans including Dave and Annie, Jeff and ??.  The meal was delicious and surprisingly Pritikin perfect.  A fun time was had by all of the survivors. We spent the night in Naples with Pat and Larry.

24 Feb, Early AM labs are way too early! We needed more sleep.  The good part as getting breakfast early.  And Cynthia was elated to have lost three pounds! The Sunday brunch was divine, especially the pumpkin pancakes.  Ron's blood pressure was quite low before and after cardio.  The jigsaw puzzle is most compelling!  Cynthia packed while Ron puzzled.  And tomorrow we leave our favorite place!


23 Feb, We were too busy to blog!  Whew!  Observe what keeps Ron so busy to the left.

22 Feb, Cynthia's sister Merrilee’s surgery was successful!  I enjoyed a visit with Jim Cummings, friend of Ambassador Andrew Young, about how MLK,Jr and he met.  "About 1952, 22 year old Andy was in divinity school, traveling in the south, unable to stay in hotels because of segregation, so he stayed in a church.  A young 25 or 26 year old speaker named Martin Luther King, Jr came to speak. Andy was the mesmerized by King and they became fast friends.  King shared the hope that segregation would end. At first, Andy didn’t believe it was possible, but they soon recognized the power of God at work."

21 Feb, Happy Birthday Sister Merrilee! Lookee at Ron doing cardio!

Ron is the Entertainment!

20 Feb, Wednesday, another day of yoga, cardio, weight training or core strengthening, plus  lectures and eating three meals, three snacks and long walks.

19 Feb, Tuesday, Cynthia had early morning labs. Ron is captivated by a another jigsaw puzzle, this one is all blue.  We continue to get healthier!

18 Feb:  The Smooch Duo is starting the fourth and last week at Pritikin Longevity Center in Miami, FL - we are thinking of ways we can return here, sooner than soon,  But, too soon we leave for Philadelphia.  A couple of celebrities are here... Don Francisco, TV fame, has been here the past three weeks.   https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Francisco_(television_host)  Andrew Young, former mayor of Atlanta, arrived Sunday.  We will travel north, slowly visiting friends en route.

17 Feb:  Sunday Offering From Cynthia's FB Post:

Practicing The Presence Of God Today

How are you transforming your life?  A pastor gave me a book that changed my life. It was called The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.

This small book is about a monk who decided that the presence of God shouldn’t be reserved for church services or prayer times. It was about all of life.

Whether he was washing dishes, going for a walk, or performing other duties, he was focused on communicating with God.

Transforming your life ...

The key, he said, was to turn daily activities into prayer. I know what you’re thinking: “Well, that’s great for a monk! But my life is too complicated, too busy, too intense.”

4 Helps For Practicing the Presence of God

Practicing the presence of God is about turning all of your life experience into a prayer. Nothing you face in life is exempt from surrender to Jesus.

Every victory, every trial, every annoyance, every disagreement. Turn it around. Bring it into the presence of God.

Here’s how:

1. Begin Your Day With Intentionality – It’s been proven that your morning routine sets the tone for the rest of the day. Rather than being stressed and rushing around, begin your day with God. Start with a prayer, “God, this day is from you and for you. Use me to bring glory to Your name.”

It’s amazing how this perspective can set the tone for a God-centered day.

2. Turn Complaints Into Cries Of Praise – When you find yourself complaining, train yourself to praise instead. Rather than focusing on what’s wrong with your situation, find something you can be grateful for. Truth is, a thousand eternities wouldn’t be sufficient to express our gratefulness to God. His worth far surpasses our ability to praise Him.

Time is short. Stop complaining.

3. Turn Suffering Into Surrender – There’s nothing that rocks the boat more than a prolonged season of intense suffering. When I walked through my 15 months of physical illness, I wasted a lot of time being angry that could have been spent communicating with God. Eventually, I pressed into a deeper place of worship.

Suffering will always be a part of your life on earth. Draw closer to Jesus.

4. Turn the Mundane Into A Holy Moment – There are mindless moments to your day. Boring tasks at work. Routines you could perform with your eyes closed. Rather than just “getting it done,” invite God into your experience.

Practicing the presence of God can become a habit for you. It just takes some intentionality.

16 Feb, Saturday is usually a slower day at Pritikin.  Today was no exception.   We slowed down the pace of our exercise, but not eating... We leave here in a week, then we are faced with daily foraging to stay  Pritikin perfect.  No fat, added sodium, or sugar is allowed.  As long as we can find veggies, fruit, beans, legumes, and oatmeal, we are happy. Mid afternoon, we walked to the Runners Store to buy new Hoka's for Cynthia; the new Gaviote are doing the job.  By evening we totaled walking  7 miles.

15 Feb,  Medical Records phoned Thursday to report the loss of Cynthia’s blood drawn on Tuesday, saying they needed extra blood for the Vit D test .  But the lab tech confessed Quest Labs lost the blood.  We can only believe that a thirsty vampire sneaked into the lab and guzzled it down.   Poor girlie had to fast once again, arise at the ungodly hour of six AM to do another draw.  Thankfully,  the results were back in time for the rescheduled appointment with Dr. Fruge who gave her a gold star for such outstanding blood.  Cynthia lost two pounds.  Ron's weight is the same as when we arrived three weeks ago.  His heart is staying in sinus rhythm.

14 Feb, Happy Valentines Day to our families and friends.  Someone sneaked into our room to hide a valentine in plain view.   Thank God, thank God,  for our life together!



Read Cynthia’s blog on Love:  https://www.treesfrompeopleseeds.com/2019/02/52-ancestor-challenge-2019-week-7-love.html   Dinner tonight was romantic with wine and Roses. We walked through the golf course jogging trail after dinner. Zzzzzzzzzzz!

13 Feb, Cute baby Hudson with his momma:



12 Feb, Hey, Peter, Ron won the chess game! Cynthia has labs.

11 Feb:  We can’t keeo up with our hectic schedules and the blog until after 25 February.

10 Feb, Sunday:  Pritikin Longevity Center in Miami.  Goodbye to Peter, who flies back to England tonight.  We expect to hear from him with an inquiry about the winner of a chess game Monday evening.  Well, Ron went back to play chess after our evening walk but the other chess player had gone to bed.

9 Feb, Saturday, means saying goodbye to many new friends who are leaving Pritikin.  We meet the loveliest people here.

Dean and Ron Always Smiling

8 Feb, Happy Birthday Daughter Roxanne, pictured with son Jon.   We had such joy hosting Ron’s brother Dean and family to dinner at Pritikin; they were in Miami for a cruise and sight seeing.

Son Jon and Daughter Roxanne

How fun is that?


7 Feb, Another day filled with medical appointments, exercise, yoga, eating eating eating and lots of socialization.  Another lecture by Dr. Fruge on preventing heart attacks was excellent.  Ron’s cardiologist said he is doing great, weight is good, and the T3 and T4 are normal.   Cynthia’s medical report earned a gold star!  Yay! WooooHooo!  We walked 6.61 miles

6 Feb,  Breakfast topic was the SOTU, who liked it and who didn't.  We didn't watch it because we don't watch TV, nor do we want politics in our heads.  Here are photos of better things to fill our heads -

Ron receiving Swedish American Council Award 2015

6

Ron in VA after hiking Sept 2007 

Our wedding photo displayed in the Swedish Museum in front of Ron's books

5 Feb, Ron had a blood draw to test his T3 and T4 at 7"15.  Cynthia's blood draw was at 7:30 AM.  Ron was wired to the heart monitor first hour followed by yoga and then weight training.  Cynthia did yoga first followed by cardio for two sessions.  Dr. Arvon offered three lectures on emotional care, relationships and stress management.  She uses us as examples of a loving relationship.  We walked after the evening lecture achieving 5.5 miles for the day.  There are lots of Texans here along with a Spanish channel TV star named Don Francisco,  a cookbook author from NY, called the BreadLady who looks like Roseanne Barr.

4 Feb, Blogging is challenging with a Pritikin schedule.   Life is good at Pritikin.  The food is awesome, our weight is maintained; the lectures are always inspiring.  Mondays are quiet days because so many new guests arrive and we don't have exercise classes as usual.


3 Feb, Sunday:

Proverbs 17:22 New King James Version (NKJV)

22 A merry heart [a]does good, like medicine,
But a broken spirit dries the bones.

Ron’s lost a pound; his weight is 174, so, obviously he needs to eat more.  Cynthia’s weight hasn’t changed.  Fascinating to see 91-year-old Dr. Laszlo zoom up the stairs.  The staff’s energy level  is inspiring.  So exciting to talk to so many motorcycle enthusiasts; Ron said, “motorcycling is my home, I just wish I could invite my friends into my home.”

2 Feb, Cynthia’s daughter Julie arrived in snowy Denver to meet Hudson, Brett’s baby.   We are in chilly but soon hot Miami at Pritikin; we don’t miss a lecture despite having heard them before.  We walked to CVS to buy valentines and MSM.  Venezuelan protestors could be heard calling for Maduro’s resignation.



1 Feb:  Our schedules give us nary a moment to blog.  Our days are filled with 3 or 4 lectures a day, yoga, cardio, core and weights plus eating three incredible meals.  Ron learned the hard way not to eat until he is full at breakfast since yoga comes next.  Yoga on a full stomach is not a pretty sight.  There are several motorcyclists here, providing lively conversation.  Ron is the story teller.  They all agree Ron is unique.  So does Cynthia.  Feb is for healthy hearts and for happy lovers.  And here we are,  happy and so much in love.

2019 January Joy

31 Jan, We walked into an empty dining hall for breakfast.  Ron said, OMG, we’re the only ones that survived.

Ron rocks out to Rock & Roll on the ARC trainer

30 Jan, lots to blog about today and no time.

29 Jan:  3 lectures, 3 exercise classes, 3 meals.  Ron is hilarious during cardio, rocking out on the arc trainer.  Not such good news from several sources, our friend, the bio mechanical specialist, lost his wife to cancer last year.  Tony A. called to report June passed away two days ago, Dr. Scheib, Ron’s cardiologist passed away.  We are sooo busy we aren’t finding time to post.

bad posture causes low back pain

28 Jan:  It is hard to keep our eyes open after a rather sleepless night because we had to do blood work at 6 AM this morning.  But we woke up in time!  Cynthia was proud to have passed the stress test on the treadmill by going for the full nine minute at the maximum speed and incline.  We were happy with our weight and blood pressure results.  Ron attended two lectures; Cynthia managed only one because of medical appointments.  The online renewal of Ron's FL drivers license was a success.  (But now, six weeks later, the new license has not arrived.)  The rental car  bill was successfully corrected.  The food is just so delicious our stomachs hurt.

pumpkin pancakes, delicious

27 Jan, Sunday:  Once we are oriented I will begin posting photos and recipes.  Great day... the food is a joy.  We are super full.  The pumpkin pancakes are yummy.

26 Jan, Miami, FL now recovered. The part hasn’t arrived yet but we have arrived at the Pritikin Longevity Center thoroughly enjoying the food.  The rain has been constant apart from intermittent breaks.

25 Jan.  Long day’s  successful drive to Miami.

24 Jan:  Ron awakened feeling clear headed.  Wonderful !!  The swing arm has not yet arrived.  It is likely being shipped from Germany.  We immediately decided to rent a car and drive to Miami.  It was a delight to discover a Ruby Tuesday’s Restaurant which was worth the delay.  Our stop for the night was a Comfort Suites in Lake City, FL.

23 Jan:  The bike's extended warranty will cover the costs of the repairs; it should  have been  ready this afternoon, but a part has not arrived.  Supposedly the CA company had it in stock.  We are awaiting wellness to arrive.  Ron still has an elevated temp, but Cynthia's is normal.  Neither of us feel like dancing yet.  We took the hotel shuttle to Jason's Deli for the usual and crawled back into bed.  Turns out the fraudulent AX charge was the failure of the Marriott Hotel to cancel rooms.  We had the confirmation  cancellation numbers so they refunded the credit card, but unfortunately, this is after the card was cancelled.  Cynthia spent the afternoon updating the credit card data and going through the end of the year summary.  Likely we check out tomorrow.

22 Jan:  We have been sleeping through the day and night.  Parts are ordered but not all have arrived. A possible fraudulent charge was noted on our AX bill;  they cancelled the card and are sending a new card to our hotel.

21 Jan, updated. We are two sick puppies.  Bad colds

20 Jan:  They say that the drive shaft and swing arm need to be replaced because a rubber seal vanished and those parts are badly damaged and unusable.

So here we sit for a couple of days while the parts are on order and the shop is closed until Tuesday.  Looks like we are likely to arrive in Miami a day or two late.

19 Jan, Pensacola, FL - Hilton Garden Inn.  The motorcycle shop says that the drive shaft and swing arm can be replaced for about $5,000 so that we can resume our trip to Pritikin.  They have ordered the parts delivered (10% premium for rush delivery) from Pennsylvania and California, so we can hope that those parts suppliers will be working on Martin Luther King day so that the bike might be fixed and ready to ride late Wednesday.   Cynthia has been in bed with a cold all day but we did get her up to walk to Jason's Deli for dinner and then onto Publix to invest in cough drops and cough syrup. ZZZZ

18 Jan:  The plan was to drive from Baton Rouge to Pensacola by evening.  The forecast of rain all day Saturday, Tuesday and Wednesday changed our original plan to stay for a day in Baton Rouge.  We are very happy that we saw Pat yesterday evening.  We left Baton Rouge at 11:30 on I-12 East and rode about 100 miles to stop for a fine lunch at Don's Seafood in Covington, Louisiana.  We resumed on I-10 East until exiting at Mississippi 607 and then turned onto US 90 into spooky, dense fog that shrouded the view.  We couldn’t see the water at all even though it was not distant.  Gradually the fog lifted as we rode along the Gulf Coast through Gulfport and Biloxi.  The white beach stretches on through many communities; many palatial antebellum mansions grace the opposite side of US 90.  Nice, huh?  The trillions of stoplights were not nice.  Turning north, we returned to I-10.  And then kaboom!  25 miles east of Mobile, Alabama the road surface seemed to get uncommonly rough.  Ron pulled over on the shoulder of I-10 and inspected the tires and brakes.  When we resumed riding, there was quite a loud clanging after shifting into 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, or 6th gears.  So we limped along on the shoulder to the next exit, Highway 39 to Pascagoula.  Ron phoned BMW Roadside Assistance, enjoying a pleasant chat with the representative, who assured us that a tow truck would pick us up soon to take us to the BMW dealer in Pensacola.  Ron called Adventure Motorsports of Northwest Florida (850-466-5324) and spoke with Darien to let them know the bike would arrive tonight.  And we waited.  And we waited some more.  After 2.5 hours Ron phoned Roadside Assistance and learned nothing had even been done on our ticket.  An hour later the bike was loaded on the truck, we were loaded inside and off we went, leaving our helmets behind.  Thankfully, the driver remembered the helmets, so we turned around and retrieved them successfully.  Dropping the bike off for service was simple enough.  But, this the first time we have ever gone to a hotel in a tow truck.  Cynthia hopes it is the last time, too, but Ron always suggests that you be careful what you wish for - it may come true in a way you didn't want - and Ron wants to keep riding for a long, long time.    

17 Jan:  Lets’s ride!  Will we  be on the road by ten AM?  Maybe.  Nope!  At 11:30 noontime, we rode off with another load of Ron’s treasures to the storage unit, dropped off our condo keys, returned the rental car and dropped off paper to be recycled at our church.  It was 12:30 (past noon) when we hit TX 105 eastbound to US 327 north, to US 96 north, to FM 2246 east, to TX 62 south, to TX 12, crossing into Louisiana  on LA 12 which merged with LA 190 (For Wynn).  Cynthia did not need her heated gear until five PM when we both agreed we needed warmth.   Ron is a chronic hypothermic who rarely wears gloves, but he donned his balaclava.  That was a six-hour ride on back roads, allowing for stops.  Great ride!  Pat met us in Baton Rouge for dinner at the Hilton Garden Inn.

16 Jan:  Errands today include dry cleaners, alterations pickup, bank, post office and dermatologist.  The bike isn’t packed either.  It is cold with rain forecast so tomorrow is the day we begin riding towards Miami.  I hope  we make it to FL before the bitter freeze hits.  Jon wrapped the pipes on the beach house.

15 Jan:  Each day of running errands, cleaning out the storage unit,  is like the previous day! Today, we moved a chair out of the storage unit to be picked up for consignment.  We continue with our frantic pace exceot today we had to include a trip for Cynthia to see Dr. Siddiqui at the medical center in Houston.  It was a most successful visit with a good report.  Sunglasses that were sent to be polarized are back in time for our ride to Miami.  Fiber DLish Bars arrived! A very successful but busy day was had by all of the survivors.  Ron completed a Swedish Colonial Society package that has consumed him for two months.

14 Jan:  Happy Birthday to my oldest friend Ann J., my playmate at age 4!  On this day we are off and running again, returning items to the storage unit and packing our gear to depart Wednesday.

13 Jan, Sunday:  From Cynthia’s weekly FB Post:

 Sunday Offering:

Grace Lutheran Church of Conroe, Texas is the most delightful place to worship because children are seamlessly incorporated into almost all aspects of the service. Their involvement is thoughtfully planned. Then comes an occasional surprise. Today, an adorable, curly-haired, three year old decided to roll  around on the floor and explore the bottom of the pastors alb during the Greeting.   When the pastor moved into the Chancel the little tot followed her. And with amazing graciousness, Pastor Diane Roth took her hand allowing the little one to sit behind the pulpit with her during the lessons. Quietly, she sat until time for the children’s sermon. 

Jesus said, "Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven."
Matt.19:14 RSV

Julie and Jon, Cynthia's kids

Jon, Lauren and Kiira

Dinner at Perry's.  And a fun time was had by all

12 Jan:  The plan is to catch up on sleep, walk, and celebrate with the family at a party at Perrys Steakhouse.  Most everyone was there except for Paul’s family, on vacation in Mexico, and Roxanne’s sons out of state.  We certainly had a great evening.

11 Jan:   Carlos met us at the storage unit to pick up the four bar stools his mom bought from us.  Slowly, ever so slowly, we are making progress emptying out the storage unit.  We walked to the caddy shack for lunch.  Cynthia went on to get a pedi, mani and load the car with a large pastel portrait, a watercolor and a pencil rendering she gifted to Julie.  Tonight we met Cheri and Sam for dinner to discuss investing in Cheri’s medical device that will end incontinence in women, Floelle, Inc.  it will be a miracle for millions of women.  We are eager for the return of our quiet lifestyle once we leave Texas next week.

10 Jan:  In 40 degree temps Ron rode the bike to West Side Honda to have new tires put on the bike.  He forgot his cell phone at home on the kitchen counter.  Hence, he could not call to find out where to join Cynthia and Julie for lunch.  Cynthia had a girlie appointment with Bambi and enjoyed a delightful lunch with daughter Julie at Salata.  We managed a four mile walk;  and Ron was in bed by 7:00 PM.

9 Jan:  We passed our good tooth brushing test at the dentist today.  Dr. Anderson is such a good dentist and a great guy.   After baked sweet potato, baked potato and humongous salads at Jason’s Deli, Cynthia had a doctor appointment with Cheri.  We returned batteries, stopped at Riverbridge Consignment, another stop at alterations, then Wally World for groceries!

8 Jan:  We ate a lot today. Burp!  Ron is elbow deep in cutting identifying information from paper for recycling.  Cynthia is buried in writing essays.  We surfaced to complete two good walks totaling seven miles.  And we are happy that the furniture in the storage unit is gradually being given away or sold.

7 Jan:  it is really January!!!! ??  It is!  And it was a good day for running errands; we did run to the post office to mail Cynthia's class newsletter, fax our medical records to the Pritikin Longevity Center, stop at the bank, the storage unit, the pharmacy, Walmart, and we lunched at the Magnolia Diner.  It looked like it would rain,  but we managed a four mile walk without getting a raindrop on our heads.

6 Jan:  I am tired, so tired I have been writing Dec, instead of January on this blog! The combinef children and adult worship service is always delightful.  We had brunch at the Yacht Club before we attended granddaughter Zoe’s high school graduation party, a BBQ at her home.  After returning home we picked up our pastor and her husband for a most enjoyable dinner at Pappadeaux. The salmon was yummy!

5 Jan:  Pleasant weather made running errands most enjoyable.  The 2019  RX were dropped off at the pharmacy,  and we are back to our hectic schedule, but we did have a five mile walk late afternoon.  The absence of deer made us wonder if Santa was recruiting.   But eventually the cutest little fawns, maybe triplets, apoeared withbtheir momma, along with many others.

4 Jan:  7:40 A.M. right on the money, we walked down 15 flights of stairs and six blocks to the doctor.  It is always good to get a professional opinion we are still alive.   The view from our room of the Houston skyline at sunset was spectacular.  We arrived back in Walden about 3:30 PM.   Cynthia dropped Ron off at Jon’s to get the bike out of his garage and run errands.  Now we are on the third floor of the unit.  It will take getting used to climbing that extra floor.  Cynthia spent the evening hand addressing her class newsletters.  Ron is back at work wired to 57 Chevy Radio Rock and Roll while working on the current SCS project.

Houston skyline from our hotel room

3 Jan:  YUP!  Three, Tres, and now we are on a roll into January at the Houston Medical Center going through our annual medical checkups.  Have you noticed the scales at the doctors offices are set extra high to frighten us into losing weight? Yup! Trust me on this one.  Cynthia had a morning hair appointment with her long time hairdresser, Sasha, who encouraged Ron to let the sides of his hair grow out last November.   He did.  Cynthia accidentally told Sasha the hair was dutifully grown out, and Ron was actually willing to let him cut his hair this time, if Sasha offered again.   Of course, Sasha agreed to do it.   Now, Ron has a professional hair cut to last for the next 30 years.   Lunch at the hotel was delicious, baked potatoes for Ron,  and a soybean veggie patty for Cynthia.   The rain stopped allowing us walk in subzero temperatures for the afternoon medical appointment.  We walked fast and stayed warm. Cynthia’s jacket is battery operated for warmth.  Tonight,  we fast for early morning labs.

2 Jan:  TWO! DOS! TOE! Second.  And so begins the second day of this new year. We are filled with hope, enthusiasm, and joy in our life together as we turn the page into 2019.  Mostly it is a joy to feel so healthy.  Being deeply in love is an amazing thing.  It is life transforming.  The housekeeper arrives,  so we finish our packing and depart promptly an hour late.  It was fun talking to Louise.   The moderate rain did not prevent the mandatory stop at recycling.  Our trip into the Houston medical center allowed for a pit stop at Pappadeaux on the 610 south loop for salmon. Our home for three days is the Hilton Medical Center.

1 Jan:  ONE! UNO! EIN! FIRST! This is the first day of 2019, it is the first day of January!   

Sad to say, we left the outside door closed and were able to sleep through the midnight crescendo.  Yes I took my 3rd 4-mile walk of the day around 9:45 to 11 PM last night, and the crazies were setting off so much fireworks on the beach that I decided it was safer to walk a block inland.  Besides the ear-shattering BANG fireworks, there were some spectacular flowering varieties and one amazing multi-colored fountain 40 feet high.

We both woke up and consider this a wonderfully promising start to the New Year.  Let's hope that trend continues for the entire year.