Happy Trails to You

I went to the funeral of my friend’s brother today.  He was 58, developmentally handicapped, a kind, hard working man.  He made the decision in life to be a Democrat… in Idaho.  He worked on every campaign.  Frank Church and Cecil Andrus knew him by name.  He also decided to be a Bronco, way before there was a reason to cheer.  He had season tickets to football and basketball games for almost 40 years.  He never missed a game.  He missed his sister’s wedding, but not the game.

It was a beautiful service.  His brother gave a thoughtful eulogy, very wise and witty.  The displayed cowboy boots and the Bronco balloons just fit.  So did the music, Morning Has Broken (my favorite Cat Stevens song), Let There Be Peace On Earth, and Happy Trails to You.  The music was happy, sweet, and perfect.

Happy Birthday to Me

I’ve had several birthdays on the first day of school, and those are my favorites, because it’s always a fun and exciting day – one of the best days of the year. My second favorite birthdays land on Sunday.  I never want a lot of attention or a big gathering, or a celebration.  I want a day when where I can do anything I want, and that’s usually not much.  I want a good meal, some cake, simple presents, and time to relax.  The day of rest is good for relaxing.

This year was great because church isn’t until 12:30.  I slept in, relaxed, read the paper, took time getting ready.  I taught the lesson in Relief Society and I was nervous.  It’s been many years since I’ve been in RS.  Everything went well and everyone was nice.  I heard an elderly sister say to her neighbor, “she’s so cute”.  That made me feel a lot younger than 54.

We came home from church and had a pasta dinner.  What can be better than pasta.  After dinner I made cupcakes for my school class, with caramel frosting.  Yum.

To top off the day there were visits from my parents and a couple good friends.  It was the best.  I like being 54.

Kuna Adventure

Entrance to the Kuna Cave, formed by a big lava tube.

It’s just a small town south of Boise.  You wouldn’t think there was much to see except farmland.  But my brother and sister-in-law moved out there with friends, who have explored the country for decades.  They invited us out for a picnic and grand tour.  It was fun seeing the sites with enthusiastic guides.  I hadn’t been four-wheeling since high school.  We went in two rigs – women in one, guys in the other.  It really is beautiful country – plateaus, the Snake River, the Owyhees.

We had to four-wheel up to Initial Point.  This is the point where they surveyed the whole valley.  You can see everything from on top of this hill.  There are medallions embedded in the rock that mark true north.  You can see all the way up Meridian Road, which cuts up the middle of the valley.

Last time Zella, our guide, came up here, she brought a bunch of cub scouts and a couple moms along.  She killed a rattle snake with a rock.  Pretty entertaining.  It was big too.

Overlooking the Snake River at the Birds of Prey Center.

Beautiful.  The Snake River just below Swan Falls power plant.  I wish I had a picture of the dam and the plant.  It brought back a lot of memories of the power plants where my Grandpa Cowley worked most of his life.  His family lived in the houses provided and we visited him "at the office" and saw all the big loud machinery.

Bill spotted an owl in the tree by our picnic spot.  We were at the Swan Fall dam.  He spent quite a bit of time getting pictures.

I did not spend much time, but I also didn't get a very good picture.  I think owls are cool.  It's pretty special to see one.

Terr, Blair, and Jo picnicing

First Day of School…Again

We started school on a Wednesday this year.  I’ve been going back to school every year since 1963.  The only time I didn’t have a first day of school was in 1992 when I substituted here in Boise, but didn’t have my own classroom.  They blur together, but it’s always an exciting day.  High hopes!

  Here’s my empty classroom.  It’s looks better when the kids arrive, in their new clothes, with new school supplies, and all their excitement. 

This year I have a BSU intern for the whole first semester.  She’s darling and will be a big help.  I have 19 boys and 10 girls in my class.  It might be a little more active.  Good thing there will be two teachers.  We hit the ground running.  We’ll be changing classes for language, writing, social studies, and math within days.  I have 90 names to learn and 90 kids to get to know.  It’s always fun.  Everyone is on their best behavior in the beginning.

Frisbee Fame

The Idaho Statesman had an article on Ultimate Frisbee that featured Ty.  It was a big article, 1/2 page on the front page of the sports, and a full page on the inside.  I was soooo proud.  It gave a good feel for the “spirit of the game”, the league in Boise, and told the story of the intense ending to a game in Minnesota, where Ty and his friend Josh saved the day.  There was a bad picture of Ty.  This one is better.

Ty (center red) playing on the Swordfish Team in Minnesota.

TyMez after Timberline won the state championship 2010.

Blessing of Cleanliness

I am thankful to live in a time and place where clean water is readily available and modern conveniences make it easy to live clean.  I love bathing every day, washing my hair, washing my hands (a lot), and brushing my teeth.  It’s refreshing.  It’s a blessing.  I love crawling into bed with clean sheets, clothes that are ironed crisp, scrubbed bathrooms, and the shine on newly mopped floors.  I like the tracks left from vacuuming, shampooed carpets, and washed windows.  I like to sweep the front porch and spray off the patio.  Being clean and being surrounded by clean, feels so good. 

I didn’t do much spring cleaning, but our houseguests moved out on Friday, so we moved back into our own bed this weekend.  I enlisted the help of Terr and we did two days of summer cleansing before we settled in.  It was good to move things, go through things, eliminate clutter, and organize.  I’m thankful for my home and all my things.  I appreciate everything more when it’s dusted, wiped, scrubbed, and polished.  We’ve worked hard and slept well the last few nights. 

Brand New Pair of Roller Skates

My sister-in-law got a pair of 1961 Sears and Roebuck roller skates, with a key, for her birthday. 

Hers were in better shape.  They had the original leather straps that went around your ankle.  For any youngsters that are reading this, you used the key to loosen and tighten the bolts underneath, so that you could adjust the size to fit your shoes. We put the key on a piece of yarn and wore it around our neck. 

I don’t want a pair of vintage skates for my birthday, but I saw her skates displayed on a trunk in the living room, and was immediately transported to summer days in the sixties on Cherry Drive.  I was a pretty good skater.  It wasn’t an easy feat.  There weren’t sidewalks, just rough blacktop, and the four metal wheels were a far cry from the rubber wheels on the roller blades that would be the rage 25 years later.  I’m sure I scraped knees, but seeing the old skates this week, made me smile – all happy memories of neighborhood friends and summer days on the best street ever.