My New Dehydrator!

For my birthday this year, Bryan got me a new Dehydrator. 

I finally got around to trying it out this past weekend and I absolutely LOVE this thing! It’s so easy to use, and the results are just perfect. The first food item I did was a bunch of mushrooms that Mother brought home from the Senior Center. 

First I cut them all into ¼” slices. 

Then I arranged them on the wire racks. 

Then I set the timer & temperature gages and just walked away! The machine did it all, while I got to move on to other chores around the house.

The next day I unloaded the trays and put the mushrooms into a jar for the pantry.

They are quite beautiful, I must say. I have since dehydrated some Basil and some Parsley as well.

Seward with Mother

My brother Reed let us borrow his toy hauler for a week in Seward a few weeks ago. Bryan drove down on Tuesday and set up camp, spending his days working remotely, and his nights fishing for silvers.

I can’t do my job remotely like he can so was not able to join him until that Friday (my regularly scheduled day off), and since we had the trailer, we decided it was a great opportunity for Mother to join us! She loves Seward and has gone on numerous camping trips in the past. So early Friday morning, Mother and I loaded up the car with our gear and headed on down the highway together.

She had a great time watching the scenery go by. We stopped a couple times to stretch our legs: once in Girdwood where we got a cup of tea/coffee and a donut, then once again at Summit Lake where we threw some rocks into the lake and worked the kinks out of our hips. We made good time, getting into Seward just in time to join Bryan for dinner at our favorite pizza joint downtown.

Reed’s trailer had plenty of room for us, giving Mother her own “bedroom” with a door for privacy even. Her bed was comfy with plenty of blankets to keep her warm, although it did require a little stepstool to get up into. Bryan and I slept in the bunk bed over the top of the table in the “dining room” with a curtain for privacy. The kitchen is well equipped, so he was able to cook our Sunday Sourdough Pancakes! We even had a “real” bathroom complete with a shower and everything!

The weekend turned out to be quite rainy, however, so on Saturday Mother and I chose to wander through the Sea Life Center rather than walk the streets window shopping. We have gone there almost every year since it opened, and yet there is always something new to see. We enjoyed our time there, but decided we needed a nap afterwards so headed on back to the camper.

Sunday morning saw us back on the road after a hearty breakfast, with Bryan packing up the camper and following us home a few hours later. All in all, it was a good trip – and Mother had such a good time.

Deconstruction Has Begun

The big windstorm back in 2022 took a lot of shingles off our roof, so we had to have a roofer come and replace them once things settled down enough for him to be up there. He discovered that all our shingles needed to be replaced (they are well over 20 years old) so we put that at the top of our List Of Things To Do.

Our roof is quite large, with something like 6,000 feet of acreage up there - so the job is not a small one, and the price tag definitely reflects that. Thankfully the sale of my home in Anchorage gave us a little bit of a cushion in our bank account, so we went ahead and started getting quotes.

We were at first a bit over-zealous, I think. We thought “Hey, while we’re at it, why don’t we go ahead and get solar panels! That would be cool.” Unfortunately that added another $20,000.00 to an already steep price, so we had to give that dream up. We are, however, still getting new rain gutters and a new TV antenna. That we have NOT given up on.

Today is the day that the deconstruction begins. The roofers are up there now, tearing off the od tiles to get a look at the sub-roofing. Hopefully they will not discover any damage and will be able to simply put on the new roof. They have laid tarps down all around the house to protect mother’s plants – but will need to trim back our lilac bush a bit. And they are making quite a bit of noise tromping around up there; but that is to be expected.

Viktor and Naldo are not impressed.

Happy Birthday to Me!

It was my birthday last week, and I have to say I have had a great birthday this year! I am quite proud to admit that I am 58 years old. I worked hard to get here, and I earned each and every year.

The celebration of my birth started with a visit from my best friend Kathryn. I have known her since the 2^nd grade (admittedly she thought I was stupid back then) and was so happy to be able to spend Friday afternoon with her and her family. Kat moved down to New York over 10 years ago, but since her entire family lives here she makes a point of coming up for a visit at least once a year. This visit just happened to fall on my birthday, so I’m counting it as part of my celebration.

I didn’t get a picture, since I had put my phone away so as to just enjoy her company without that particular distraction – but here is one from 2018 (not the greatest shot ever, but at least you get to see us both).

On Saturday I went out to dinner with Mother & Bryan to the Raven’s Perchrestaurant, up at the Knik Glacier. Or at least, I thought it was dinner with Mother & Brayn: turns out, Bryan had organized my whole family to surprise us by joining in! We had over 20 people (from age 1 up to age 86)! I was completely surprised’ even though my sister Kelly did kind of let the cat out of the bag earlier by telling me she might be able to come (thankfully I am rather dense at times and completely missed it). The restaurant was a bit overwhelmed by us all as they only had one waitress & one cook and their credit card scanner was being fussy – but they did a great job despite all that stress. The food was good, the company was even better, and you just can’t beat the view out there!

Tuesday was my actual birthday, but it was also a workday – so I headed up to my office early morning and started working away. Around 8:00 Bryan called up asking if it wasn’t Teatime yet, and wouldn’t I like to come downstairs to get some? Who can say no to that? When I got to the kitchen, I found a ginormous box wrapped up in a blanket on the counter! It was a Food Dehydrator – one that I’ve had my eye on for quite some time! I’m very happy with it and am looking forward to dehydrating all kinds of goodies: herbs, vegetables, fruits, even perhaps some jerky!!

Mother then invited us both out to a special Birthday breakfast at the (relatively) new restaurant in town called the Feather & Flour, so we both took an hour or so off work and had a lovely meal. Bryan had the BISCUITS & GRAVY, I had the ORANGE-CARDAMOM WAFFLE, and mother had a cup of their SOUP OF THE DAY (shrimp bisque).  The restaurant is in an old house that they have remodeled with a very European look – very clean and simple.

That evening we got a call from Bryan’s father wanting to take us both out to dinner, so we headed off to the Basil Ginger in Wasilla. Their food is always good, and this time was no exception. I had a yellow curry with tofu, Bryan had his sashimi, Bob had some coconut prawns, and Brenda had the kung po chicken. Again, I did not get a picture because I had put my phone away – but here is a shot of Bryan and his Father from last year.

Believe it or not, the celebration continues! It does end tomorrow, however – one can’t celebrate one’s birthday all year long, I suppose. Anyway, Sunday is another edition of our Family Craft day. I’ll post pictures of it later on, so keep an eye out for that!

Sandhill Cranes!

My Friend Tammy has decided that she really likes big birds, so wanted to get some pictures of the Sandhill Cranes as they come through on their way north. She had heard about the Dale Saunders Crane Sanctuary up in Trapper Creek that in the past has had hundreds of the birds in their fields. She asked if I would take a drive with her to go check it out, and I agreed.

On the actual day we planned our little adventure, she called me and said “I was just now plotting our course and realized that this is a two-hour drive! Did you still want to go?” Mind you, that’s 2-hours one way, so it’s a 4-hour trip all together, and we weren’t even sure there would be any birds!

But, I had nothing else to do that day, so we climbed in to her car and off we went. We stopped at the Subway there at the junction of the Parks & the Talkeetna Spur to grab a sandwich we could eat at the sanctuary, and still had 14 more miles to go. We did eventually find the place only to discover it was still buried in snow up to our waists. However, just as we were turning around to leave, she noticed something in the sky and asked, “Wait, is that… is that a crane?”

It was! It was a crane. As in, one (1) bird. We drove 2 hours - over 114 miles – to see one bird.

Oh well; we had a good drive and got caught up on each other’s news.

----

So today, I’m driving around in Palmer and happened to see 10 Sandhill cranes fly overhead. I quickly texted her and then headed off to the cow fields to see if I could find any more.

Oh boy, did I find more! There was maybe 50 or 60 of them – and even a few swans, too!

Happy Birthday Stewart

It’s Stewart’s birthday today, so I decided to bring him some flowers. He would have been 63 years old.

I wanted to get one of those gorgeous Star Gazer Lilies or something like that, but the flower shop was closed and Carrs only had yellow ones. I opted for a prettly bouquet of white carnations: simple, pretty, and long lasting.

The cemetery is in rough shape right now. This time of year is always so ugly, with dust and winter debris everywhere. Soon enough it will green up and the city will clean up all the trash – I will go again in July to acknowledge his death.

Hard to believe it’s been 6 years already. There's so much he missed, so many milestones he didn't get to share with us. He didn’t even get to see our new house or know that we’re taking care of Mother. I really do miss him.

Tell me a story about him! How did you first meet him? He’s my older brother, so of course he’s always been there for me, but maybe not for everyone else, eh?

Not a Torn Rotator Cuff After All

I went in for my follow-up visit with Dr. Anderson yesterday and can report that everything is going well. Recovery is right on track! 

First the stitches were removed. The nurse snipped the knots off and then tweaked the threads out with what looked like a pair of pliers. The one in front and the one on the side did not hurt much at all, but (as I expected from last time I had surgery) that back one really stung. Thankfully that only lasted a few seconds and I was fine.

Then Dr. Anderson came in and took a look at my shoulder to make sure things were as they should be. I asked him about the 4th incision (the one I did not expect to receive) and he told me something rather surprising.

Turns out, I did not have a torn rotator cuff after all! Basically, my right bicep got torn off the joint and caused quite a bit of agitation. He had to detach the bicep and reattach it lower down in a new location. Then he went back up to the original location and "cleaned things up a bit". He showed me pictures while explaining things, which was really cool. 

The good news is that recovery should be a lot shorter than what we thought it would be, taking only 3 months instead of 6. The pain is a bit worse, but I can handle that. And (thank god) I only have to wear that sling for another week or two rather than the 3 months he told me at the beginning of all this.

He sent me home with about 6 stretches to do, to get my arm ready for strength training with the Physical Therapist. I start that at the end of April.

Torn Rotator Cuff

I somehow managed to tear some ligaments in my right shoulder which required surgery to repair. Trust me, I was not looking forward to this, having gone through something quite similar already not 10 years ago. But, I do want to be completely healed and healthy by October so I can do my volunteer thing in Argentina – so that at least provides me a “carrot” to aim for in my recovery.

I was pretty nervous the day before, of course (who wouldn’t be) and ended up with a killer migraine to the point where I actually spent the night throwing up all over the place. Poor Bryan followed me around with a bucket and some rags trying to keep me – oh, I don’t know… healthy? Whole? Sane? I was pretty far gone…

I made it through the night however, and showed up at the surgery center on time albeit extremely exhausted and wrung out. The doctors and nurses were all very kind, each one explaining what their roll was going to be in the coming surgery and what I could expect.

I got there at 12:15, pre-op took about an hour or so, I was wheeled in to the surgical room about 2:00 ish, and woke up around 4:30. By 5:30 they released me and Bryan drove me home. Not bad, all things considered.

Recovery has been a lot worse than I expected. I had a nerve block in my shoulder initially, which always messes with me. My skin was super sensitive and as the nerve block wore off my arm would randomly flop around. I was supposed to wear this sling with a big block to position my arm just so – but it really bothered me so I have to admit I didn’t wear it much. I do wear it when I go out, but not if I’m at home.

The bandages they sent me home in had to stay on for 3 days: very itchy and uncomfortable. When we finally got them off, we discovered that I not only have the three little incisions they told me I’d have but I also have a real gnarly looking 2” long incision in my armpit. That one really hurts!

Sleeping has been almost impossible as there just is no such thing as a comfortable position. The first week and a half were spent in my wing-back chair, which Bryan thoughtfully moved into the TV room so I could watch movies. Eventually I felt up to trying to sleep in our actual bed, rolling up a blanket for under my knees in an attempt to keep me from rolling over onto my side. That worked the first night, but by the second night I rolled over anyway and spent the next day in agony.

I’m doing a lot better now. The neve block is completely worn off. My stitches are due to be removed tomorrow. The cut in my armpit is looking better. I may even be able to drive soon!

This last set of pictures was taken just a week after the first set, and you can definitely see improvement!

Family Craft Day

While Bryan was in Australia I decided to host another Family Craft Day, so I invited everyone to join me at my house for an afternoon of crafting. I think we all had fun!

Tara came and worked on the buttons of her jacket and then on a embroidery project she’s in the middle of.

Heather, Tabi and Kaylee came. Heather had her beadwork with her, so she and Kaylee made zipper pulls while Tabitha worked on an art project involving lots of colored pencils and paper.

Laurel came with her daughter Autumn. Laurel had a crocheted lap blanket she wanted her mother to help her on, while Autumn joined Tabitha with their coloring project.

Kelly had her knitting to work on, but spent most of her time helping Laurel.

Noel brought her crocheting with her, but ended up spending most of her time with her grandson.

Katy even joined us but did not bring a project to work on since Henry is little still and requires all her attention – even with Grandma there to help.

We had lots of snacky things to munch on, with plenty of tea & coffee as well. All in all, it was a success! We decided to we should all get together once a month – so stay tuned for more craft days!

The Denali Overlook Inn

Bryan was gone for the last three weeks in February visiting his friend Leigh Anne and going fishing in Australia, so when he finally got home I took us both for an extra special Weekend Get-Away at a Bed & Breakfast in Talkeetna called The Denali Overlook Inn.

What a fantastic place that was! I splurged on the costs a bit, spending at least twice as much as I normally do on our little mini-vacations. But it was so worth it, if only for the view alone!

Our Suite of rooms was up on the third floor offering THE BEST view of the house. We could lay down in our bed and look out over the river to Denali – it was spectacular. We had plenty of room for Bryan’s fly tying and my card making. We even had a clawfoot tub for Bryan to relax in after a hard day of being pampered and doing nothing.

March being in the “off season”, the Inn was not providing breakfasts as they normally do – but for an extra $25 each, our host went ahead and cooked a very tasty breakfast for Saturday morning. We fended for ourselves for the rest of the meals – which is hardly in imposition as Talkeetna has several really good places to eat. We also brought snacks to munch on as we worked on our projects in our room, and our host baked the most scrumptious chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies. We were well fed, that is for sure.

The room did not come with a TV as they showed in their pictures online, but thankfully Bryan had packed our portable DVD player along with the monitor and all his cords and what not – so we were able to watch our movies all weekend while working on our projects. The theme this time was: Outer Space. All the movies I chose had that in common: Apollo 18, Pandorum, The Europa Report, Galaxy Quest, Event Horizon, and Interstellar, to name just a few.

Botox

In my never-ending search for some relief from the Migraines that have plagued me since childhood, I recently decided to try Botox. My doctor was quite hopeful as she has seen a lot of her other patients respond quite favorably to it.

First, however, we had to convince my insurance company that I actually did need it. Thankfully my doctor went to bat for me, taking several months of phone calls and lots of paperwork. Eventually they agreed to pay, so my first session was scheduled for a Saturday morning, giving me the rest of the day in case I reacted to it.

Botulinum toxin, or botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT), is a neurotoxic protein produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum and is used for both medical and cosmetic purposes. For migraine prevention it is injected directly into the muscles around the face and on the head. The location of those injections is different for each patient based on their particular migraine experience. The procedure is repeated about every 6-9 months.

For me, my doctor injected about 5 doses around each eye and another 10 or 15 (I lost count) in an arc from one temple up over my head to the other. The needle she used was very tiny, so it didn’t hurt much at all. But it is poison and my body did not exactly enjoy the process. The whole procedure took maybe 15 minutes, so I headed on back home with a brief stop at the donut shop for an apple fritter, because Hey – I earned it!

I was hopeful, but sadly I did not respond well to it. I had no change at all: my head still hurt just as bad and as often as before. Unfortunately Botox is now added to the ever-growing list of treatments that don’t work.

Once I got my bill I was actually quite happy it did not work for me. The treatment cost well over $4,000.00 of which my insurance company paid roughly $200.00.