January 31, 2008, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

At the farm in Pennsylvania we have 31 cows ready to have calves this Spring.  What a sight it will be to see the hills dotted with these black Angus cows and calves wandering up and down. Makes you smile to think about it.  One good reason to own country property is that even when you can't be there to enjoy the clean air and isolation, you can see in your mind's eye all the beauty of the place.

The brain is a wonderful thing.  I do not know how the brain does it, but, in your head is a picture of everything you have seen.  And you can click, and a new picture comes to mind.  It's a wonderful thing.  I have been restricted in my ramblings this past week.  But not my brain.  So I have rambled here and there, while I stay all day in Ken's room keeping busy with my magazines and my memories.

I was remembering one Christmas at our home in Kensington with my brother David and sister-in-lay Irene, along with some of their children and ours.  Our Andrew loved jokes and could tell  one at the drop of a hat.  Irene gave Andrew a joke book, edited by Isaac Asimov.  Andrew proceeded to read from the book.  The section Andrew choose to read was from the  slightly risque jokes.  So picture these proper conventional families sitting around the Christmas tree  listening to these off color jokes told to Andrew by his properly conventional aunt Irene.  She has newer been able to live this down.

January 30, 2008, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Susan Kilborn once gave me some good advice.  I was preparing to go through a series of difficult and irritating medical procedures.  She brought me a juicer,along with what looked like twenty pounds of vegetables, and she proceeded to demonstrate the machine.  She juiced every last vegetable.  Then we sat like ladies in the living room and drank a glass of juice.  As she left, she look both of my hands, and gave me this admonition.  "Now Ruth" says Susan.  "While you are marching down this road, be sure to look for the gold on the side of the road.  Because you will find this gold that you would never have found with this ordeal."  

Now this is a whole new attitude to adversity.  I was prepared to get through these procedures as a good soldier would.  But it never crossed my mind to took for the pleasures specific to these tasks.  Over the coming days and weeks, I looked for these bits of gold, and bless my soul but she was right. Many blessings came my way.  My work friends  sent me notes and cards.  My children called me many times a day and visited me at home and hospital.  My relatives paid a lot of attention to me.  I read lots and lots of books.  I stayed in place in the apartment many days in a row. Since we moved in to this lovely apartment I had never stayed a whole day there and I enjoyed the views in the daylight.  And my good friends cooked for me and called me and visited me. And every night before dinner Ken and I drank a glass of juice.  Of course Ken put vodka in his glass of juice.

Susan was very wise to give me this admonition.  And I am grateful.

January 29, 2008, Chevy Chase, Maryland

It has been astonishing and wonderful these past twenty years to watch this office grow.  The 37 agents with me, the new manager ,made the decision to look forward to see what we really wanted the office to be in ten years.  We knew the office needed to grow.  They wanted to have a high tech office with all the tools available for them to do their job.  They wanted to be proud of their fellow agents.  With this in mind they developed the criteria for any agent who joined us. I was charged to be sure that all agents  cared about ethics, professional standards and productivity.  In addition, and perhaps the spirit that binds us together, we wanted to have agents who were connected to the community.  We did not want agents who lived and breathed real estate. And that is how we got from there to here.

But the really remarkable thing about these agents is that all though they are in truth competitors, they help each other get better at their job.  The whole extensive training program is run and taught by the top agents.  All agents at one time or another have taught a class, or chaired a panel or run the whole new agent training. Each agent is pulling along every other agent.  It is truly a wonder to behold. If a new agent meets a new wrinkle, another  agent in the work room will help out with the issue.  And an expert in one subdivision will help another agent price a new listing in that area.

The result of this shared responsibility and expertise  was a 1.33 Billion Dollars in 2007 beating 2006.  I is a wonder.  But it is really not.  Because this was all planned out, many years ago. And bit by bit like minded agents joined us, and we merged with another like minded office, and here we are now.It is amazing when you start at the end, and then work backwards.

January 28, 2008, Chevy Chase, Maryland

I don't know if it was the best solution to the problem of a  husband who has an illness, but it was a system that worked for this wife.  My solution  was to only pay attention to Ken's health when I was required to be helpful.  The rest of the time I let Ken take care of himself.  Of course Ken does not like anyone to remind him what to do, or to monitor his activities, so for me the better part of valor was to say or do nothing, until such time when Ken needed help.  I never worried .  If there is something that I can do for Ken I have been there to help in a heart beat.  The rest of the time I put his health out of my mind, in a special box that I only opened when I am needed.  

I see other wives reminding their husbands to take their pills. I always wonder if the husband likes to have someone else be in charge of their health, or if they are secretly irritated by being treated as a child.  But no matter, in our family, Ken is in charge of his health, and I leave it all to him with pleasure.  This for me is a great survival technique, which actually will help in any difficult situations.  Just put it in a box until you have to deal with the issue, then deal with the problem, then put it back in the box.

Again, I don't know if this the best solution  for dealing with a sickly husband, but it has worked for us. 

January 27,2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

When Ken and I married, he had a life expectancy of 42.  When you are 20 years old, 42 seems like a long way away, so I never thought anything about it.  We just lived our life, Ken at medical school and me teaching physical education.  One major differences between the two of us was that Ken paid attention to his body and his health, while I took my body and my health totally for granted.  That attitude and modern medicine has allowed Ken to be 71 years old.

Ken was a sickly child and had many bouts of pneumonia before school.  For a time he lived in Sudbury, before  scrubbers on the smelters, so between the constant infections and  polluted air he developed bad lungs.  This left him with chronic bronchiectesus, [ Ken will not be pleased with the spelling ] which he has  to this day.  He always has  a productive cough, and gets infections frequently, so for the  past 50 years he has been on and off antibiotics.  But he has survived and thrived.

His first serious surgery was in 1963, and had a major impact on our lives.  We moved to Texas for the warm weather.  His fourth year  of medical school, he had a lung abscess, resulting in a collapsed lung .  After the he recovered after the surgery, his Doctor gave him some good advice.  The surgeon told Ken that his lungs were never going to be any good, but Ken would stay healthier if he moved somewhere warm.  We choose Texas for his Residency and Fellowships.  And we loved the warmth.  As an aside,  to help Ken recuperate after the surgery, we took a freighter out of Montreal for a month and travelled up the St. Lawrence River, to Bermuda, and then to 15 islands in the Caribbean.  So something good came out of that difficulty.

The next surgery was a repair to his kidneys. It was an awful mess, trying to repair the congenital defect  in the tube between the kidney and bladder.  After the first operation we elected to do nothing to the other kidney.  This was done in the mid eighties.  It was a bid deal, but not as bad as the lung surgery.

Next comes his farm accident, in truth a life threatening accident.  His leg was repaired and he recovered.  During the accident or surgery, Ken had a heart attract, which left him with a Cardiologist to check out his heart.  He was treated with medicine for two years, but finally the Doctor insisted on the stress test, leading to the angiogram, leading to the five bypass surgery.  In retrospect, Ken was fortunate he had the accident, because he had no symptoms of coronary disease.  He is thin, has normal cardiac output, no pains, lifetime non smoker, drank red wine, got plenty of exercise and has no family history.. But there he is, two days after his surgery and eager to get past the weeks of recovery.  And isn't he lucky.

January 25, 2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

What a difference a day makes.  Ken is in a deep drug induced sleep at Surburban Hospital in Bethesda, after a six hour surgery to repair the blockages in his arteries.  Five new grafts were stitched in to by pass the blocked arteries.  This is one of those times that you have to feel badly in order to get better.

One month ago Ken had a stress test as a follow up from his accident three years ago.  The cardiologist at that time thought an angiogram needed to be done and perhaps a stent , because the heart did not seem perfect.  But no rush.  Ken had the test last Thursday, after we were home and settled after Christmas.  Much to  every ones surprise Ken had several blocked arteries.  So the surgery needed to be done sooner than later.  Fortunately Ken's hears works like a champ, but the pipes were blocked.  But no longer.

We are told the recovery is a bear.  And a bad part  is Ken can't drive for four weeks.  Before Ken had his cataracts removed, he could not drive at night.  The problem was when Ken drove at night his eyes hurt.  When I drove, his stomach ached.  Now he will have four weeks of my driving.  There are blessings in everything.

January 24, 2008, Bethesda Maryland

Today was the first of an annual event. In the office we have an agent council. The committee has been in place for twenty years,which has been all the years I have managed an office. The system is easy. Eight agents volunteer for a two year stint, with four agents rotating each year. This group serves as an advisory council for the manager. Over the years they have set policy, made recommendation for staffing, and general keep the office operating at a peak of performance. The group meets once a month, for about one hour. The group has been invaluable to me. In the past, when the agent's two year term was over, I thanked them publicly in the sales meeting, and I wrote them each a hand written letter of thanks. This has gone on for twenty years.



Two weeks ago, while in conversation in the kitchen about the up-coming dinner for the staff, it was suggested that it would be a very nice gesture to take the Agent Council folks out for lunch. "Why didn't we think of this sooner", says Ruth. So we went for lunch to Gaffneys, a new restaurant in Bethesda, and we three Managers said thank you to the agents that have served the office so well last year. So this is the first of a new tradition at the Bethesda Gateway Office.

Who ever said you can't teach old dogs new tricks.

January 23, 2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

Now here is another tradition, or custom, or groove.  Today at work we held our annual all office seminar.  Normally in the office our training sessions are segregated .  Three different classes are held each week, one each for beginners, intermediate,and experienced.  But once a year in January we all get together, the purpose being to learn something new, to get to know other agents , and of course have a bit of fun.  Today's seminar was a great success.  I can say this because for the first time the whole day was orchestrated by our Ned Rich, the Manager who joined us one year ago.

Holding a training session for our group of agents is difficult, because we have brand new agents along with those with 30 years experience.  Today's topic was dealing with systems, so it became a refresher for the 30 Million agent and new information for the 2 Million agent.  This was followed by an agent panel, which is always well received.  Learning from your peers is the best way for adults to learn.

This event was held at the Bethesda Country Club, a great facility.  Full breakfast came first, followed by the speaker and the panel.  We were gone by 12:45.  Everyone left smiling, and I hope learned at least three new ideas.

January 22,2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

This weekend we were at the farm.  It was cold. Very cold.  But the farm is wonderful so we put up with the cold.  But now I have another problem in my life.  We have no computer or Internet at the farm.  So once again my anxiety goes up because I can't do my job  Already my sister-in-lay has e mailed to ask why I'm not doing my job.  These remote places are lovely, but  they give me trouble too.  So Ken is working to find a solution.

Ken and I live at the farm in the Hill House, a home we built as a guest house and then decided to move in to it ourselves.  Glass every, with views in all directions.  Very modern inside, but looks a bit like a barn from the outside.  The old farm house is a wonderful example of a turn of the century farm house, with porches on three sides.  We purchased this farm in 1997 and we love it.  The first thing we did was pull up the carpet and refinish the Georgia pine floors.  And then we painted and wallpapered.  Then a few years later we finished the third floor as a play room, and also re-furbished the kitchen, adding four windows and moving the cabinets and counter tops.  So the house is modern on the inside but looks like a vintage 1914 home from the outside.  Andrew and Christina and the girls live in the farm house and Ken and I as I said, live in the hill house.

Fortunately for us, everyone loves the farm.  I am not sure why, but perhaps the clean air and never crowded.  We own 315 acres at this farm, and we keep Angus cattle.  Our good friends Alan and Helen Jay, and their son Brian and wife Tammy work our farm.  So we have a working farm in both appearances and fact.  They grow corn, sorghum, and hay, along with the raising of the cattle.  It is very pleasing to the eyes to see these black calves up and down the hills. In addition, the  grandaughters have a freedom they never have in the city, and they love it.

We purchased our first farm in 1973.  We could not afford it so my brother bought half, and then we bought them out when it was clear they were only helping us out.  So we bought 55 acres of an old farm  that came with a house that had not been lived in for 15 years, and had been taken over by the birds.  But we had camped all over North America in a tent, so we were thrilled to have our own rustic retreat.  Our standards were low, but we loved it, and Ken and I and Andrew and David went there every other weekend.  We met all the local farmers.  Now Alan and Helen are the last folks farming in the area.  So what started all those years ago at our old farm has transferred into our wonderful farm of today.

January21,2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

Routines and customs bring me great pleasure, as I mentioned before.  Thursday night we had Kennel Club.  The event occurs once a year, for those agents who made Top Dog ten times in the year.  It sounds as if we are all fools.  But really, this is the real deal and actually is the hardest ticket in town, to get to go to Kennel Club. So here is how you get invited.

When I was a new manager, in 1987, I wanted to do something to say thank you to the agents who were working very hard, so I started Top Dog Lunch.  I took out for lunch the agents who had three transactions that month.  We went to a new restaurant every month, and of course the group was different each month, but it was fun.  Kind of silly, but fun, and the agents appreciated the gesture.

A couple of years later, Eleanor Balaban, one of the agents on the E.&O.Committee (Efficiency and Organization Committee) suggested that there should be something for those agents who have made Top Dog lunch every month.  It is very difficult to do  as an agent every month.  We committee discussed the question and we decided to hold a dinner in January every year for those agents who had made Top Dog ten times in the year, for the agents only.  In addition I ordered gold dogs, so be given to the agents at what we called Kennel Club.

The first event was just like magic.  They were not aware of the dogs, the dinner was held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown,  and the food and ambiance was wonderful.  It was a very special event the first year and it continues to do so now.  This was the seventeenth Kennel Club, and the agents love to be invited. This year we had 38 agents qualified for Kennel Club.  For me this is one of my very favorite events in the year.  It is so festive and joyful an event.

Now the real question to ask is...when does a custom or routine become a rut?. 

January 16,2008, Chevy Chase, Md.

Customs and traditions are so comforting.  Tonight we had dinner with Andrew and Christina, Kate, Mary Frances and baby Molly.  I stole this idea from my friend Alana Lassover many years ago.  When Alana had her first grandchild, she wanted to see the baby regularly but she did not want to be a pest to her son and daughter-in-law, who lived in Bethesda.  So she asked them if it would be alright to bring dinner over once a week.  They were delighted to have a free dinner, Alana got to see the child, they all got to visit together, and then when the baby went to bed, Alana went home.  The visit lasted about 2 hours.  When Kate was born, I asked Andrew and Christina if we could bring dinner over once a week.  They were pleased as punch to have a break from cooking once a week, and also to visit with us.  We have been doing it every week for the past 10 years.  We either bring carry-out of chicken, Chinese or pizza, or bring food from Ken's kitchen.  Tonight Ken cooked roast lamb, potatoes and carrots.  Delicious.  We leave just before the girls go to bed.  The benefits to us the old folks are enormous...and the children and grandchildren  also enjoy the routine.

Another custom that brings pleasure is our dinners with our good friends Freddy and Phyllis Ross.  They too have a wandering life style.  Their home is in Potomac,but they live two months in Switzerland in a small town in the mountains, and then five months in Florida.  During the winter in Florida, they return home twice for a week each.  Our routine is to have dinner together once when we are both in town, either in our apartment or their home. We book our next date at the dinner, because both Phyllis and I carry our travel calender with us. It is actually difficult to find a date when we are both in town.  We enjoy their company, and again it is a pattern or custom that gives us pleasure.

Of course Ken and I have said that when he has cooked for 25 years, he is quiting cooking, so I guess we will have to develop a new pattern.  His 25 year stint will be over in August.

January 15, 2008, Bethesda Maryland

I am fairly disciplined and peculiar with my readings. I never read fiction before going to bed. It took me many years to know that I am prone to finish the book before I turn out to light. And as my responsibilities increased I has to fore go the all night reading. I never read political periodicals before bedtime either. They make me irritated and keep me awake.

Fiction I read at the farm or in Texas or Nova Scotia. During breakfast I read political magazines, usually for half and hour. If I complete them I read non fiction for the half hour. Ken keeps half dozen book on the go at all times, while I finish one before I start on the next. That has always my pattern, and it still works for me. The evenings we are at home I read for about an hour, usually fiction, but when nine o'clock comes I switch to Science News.


Every month I read the following magazines: Smithsonian , The New Criterion, America Heritage, Popular Science, Wilson Quarterly, Bethesda, Co-op journal,Commentary,National Review, National Geographic, History, The Beaver. Weekly I read Science News and Weekly Standard. Notice I read no newspapers, nor do I watch T.V. news.

I have encouraged my grandchildren to keep a list of the books they have read. I wish I had kept a list of all the books I have read. As our literary memory fades with age, it would nice to look up the list of books you read in 1965. I heard a radio program where John Updike reported that he had never felt that he was loosing his literary memory..until he began to read a book unknown to him where he found his hand written notes in the book. Horrors.

My system is disciplined , that is true. But it lets me sleep at night, and also gets me enough time to read.

January 14,2008, Bethesda, Md.

Now I am home..at least I am at work. I will be interested to see how diligent I am with my log when I am working. We will see.

Our journey home was uneventful. One couple in the airport caught my attention. She was beautiful, and he was not even close to handsome. So they kind of didn't fit together. But they were married and they clearly were enjoying each other. The only problem was they did not speak loudly enough so I couldn't tell what they were saying. I felt like telling them to speak up. She was crocheting a hat for herself while he watched both her working and the football game. But they talked and laughed all the while I watched them. They were about 40. Very unusual to see grown up folks clearly enjoying each other while they await the time to board the plane. Often you see children have fun at the airport, but seldom the adults.

Several folks have suggested that I say something about work, while I am working. At least say something about the real estate world today, they are saying to me. One comment I heard today that many agents in other companies and other offices are moaning and groaning about the market. We have assumed that today's real estate market is the best market we have right now, and we go about figuring out how the be effective today. Moaning and groaning is not helpful to anyone, most of all you.. so we say "get over it and enjoy".

January 12, 2008, Texas Lake House

Today I am a happy camper.  David and Suzanne, Saral, Abigail, Allison and Samantha are all under one roof at the lake.  It makes a grandmother smile.

My days at the ranch are full of self directed activity.  Every day I walk on the property for an hour or so.  Every day I read.  Every day we feed treats to the longhorn.  I look to see how many fish we have in the water tank.  When we bought the ranch the old windmill did not function. Now it does, so the water that the windmill pumps runs into a large water tank.  It is old too, and it also did not hold water.  But Ken fixed it and now the tank holds water, and the water runs over to the trough for the cattle.  When the weather was very hot in June one year, I and our friends Pat and Mal Allington swam in the water tank.  It is about 20 feet across and 8 feet deep,so there is plenty of water to cool down.

We first put 8 fish in the tank...4 gold fish and 4 grey perch.  The after a year we counted 24 fish.  Six months later we found 7 goldfish and 1 perch.  And  six ago we found one very large perch in the cattle trough.  What is going on with these fish?  Now we have 7 goldfish and one perch with one very large goldfish.  I do no longer swim in the tank.  I do not go to Texas so late in June.  The fish are too big.

Every night at the top house I read the writings for that date from this book given to me by my cousins husband.  It is an anthology of the greatest diarist's, edited by Irene and Alan Taylor.  "The Assassin's Cloak" is the book.  Great read, but I only allow myself to read from that date.  I have just read "The Kite Runner".  And finished another Christmas book, which I will not recommend.  I catch up on all my periodicals.  We have all the Hornblower series so when I run out of new I turn to our library.

We have dinner with our friends at the ranch.  And we do like all good Texans, we drive to Junction or Kerrville or Fredericksburg just for lunch.  And of course we have to get our mail at the post office in Harper.

It certainly does not seem to make for a full day.  But It keeps me happy.

January 11, 2008, Canyon Lake Texas

Many blessings come my way as a result of owning the ranch.  The big things are well known and well documented, but the extra benefits are often overlooked.

Had we not purchased the ranch in 2001 we would never have met Lorin and Royce Anne Baethge, friends who live outside of Fredericksburg.  At settlement,  I asked the seller,Mary O'Sullivan all about the building of their home, and she told me the story.  The builder and his son built the house , designed by the O'Sullivans  and was completed in 1982.  They lived their until Pete O'Sullivan died in 2000,when Mary moved to be near her children in Bay City, Texas.  I asked for the name and numbers of the builder.

Lorin worked with his father in the building trade, Lorin living in Harper and his father in Doss. I contacted the number, as we were wanting to do some minor changes to the kitchen.  Lorin's father is no longer able to work, but Lorin and his wife Royce Anne came out to see us on a Saturday night, the first weekend we spent at the ranch with David and Suzanne and the girls.  The twins were just a few months old, and I remember that Royce Anne helped to amuse the twins while we did our business.  So Lorin worked on the old house and painted the old house and out buildings.  And He did a very good job.  He told us right off the bat that he was not  speedy but he was thorough.  We were happy.

The ranch house has no good views, and is too small if we are all together.  So Ken and I decided to build a house on the top of the property, where all the views are spectacular.  In one direction the water flows to the Pedernales River, and in the other direction it flows to the Blanco River.  And we designed a very selfish house.  One room on each floor  with porches both front and back and on two levels.  Lorin built it and it is spectacular.  Over the course of one year you get to know your builder very well.  When all was said and done, the punch list had nothing on it.  Everything done properly.  Everything in order and complete.  By the end we were fast friends.

On Tuesday, they invited us to their home in Fredericksburg.  They moved 2 years ago to renovate  Royce Anne's grand parents property.  While the renovation is going on, remember he works as a builder all day so renovates weekends and evenings, they live in an apartment that Lorin built at the back of his very large metal workshop.  When they move into the renovated home, the apartment will work as a guest room, and perhaps will work for Royce Anne's parents, who now live on the property.  The property has 278 acres, where they keep cattle and horses.  It's a great story.  The apartment is large and lovely, the renovations are moving along, and we were delighted to enjoy the most wonderful meal together.

So one of the benefits of owning country property is having dinner with our friends Lorin and Royce Baethge.

January 10, 2008 # two. Texas Lake House

It is  kind of interesting how it all came about. Ken and I wanted to own property on water. Also we wanted a place to stay when we visited David and Suzanne.  David was brought up having a country home for weekends.  One year after they married they purchased their first home. One year after that Ken and I asked if they would be interested in purchasing a lake house.  Both had good jobs so they said yes.  So Suzanne and Ken and I went looking at all the properties for sale. An agency in Canyon Lake gave me a list of everything for sale and with my Bethesda card we went knocking on the doors and asked to see the properties. Fortunately most housed were empty so we just peeked in the windows and looked over the yard, looking for an easy slope down to the lake.  Canyon Lake is in a canyon after all.  We selected three properties for the three of us to inspect and we purchased  this little tacky home on this great lot.  David and Suzanne had no children yet so they could afford the purchase.  We bought the place 50\50 and it has worked spectacularly well for everyone.. Two years after the purchase Ken and I paid for the renovation's  while David took over the mortgage.  We still keep $500. a pop in an account where Suzanne pays the utilities.

Our rule was that anyone could buy an object for the lake house for under $100. and get compensated from the kitty.  Anything over needs a vote. If you buy prior to consultation you have bought the object yourself for the house.  We had such fun together working through the renovations.  And everyone has enjoyed the property a lot.  Two of their friends also have purchased on the lake .  So the whole project has been a success, from the time we purchased in 1955 until today.

In September, 2001, Ken and I were visiting the family at the lake.  David asked if we would be interested in purchasing a ranch in the hill country because in two years or so he would like us to both buy a ranch no more that one hour from their home.  The lake is 45 minutes from their home in San Antonio.  Ken got on the computer and discovered that the cost of ranches was already beyond our means within the one hour span, but if we went west of Kerrville and Fredericksburg the land was affordable to us right now.  So Ken and I went looking right then and we purchased on that visit.  Remember this was just after 9\11 and no one was flying let alone purchasing country property.  So we did what we usually do and that is we bought what we could afford at the time.  And a good thing too.  Ranch land now sells for a lot more money now.  And that is how we bought our small ranch in the Hill Country in Texas.  We have 150 acres and a 20 year old ranch house, where David & Suzanne stay, and Ken and I build us a house on the top of the property.  But more about that the next time.

January 10, 2008 Texas Lake House

The little girls were not the only girls who objected to the calves going to auction.. The heifers and the bull were bawling long and loud.  But by Tuesday they had forgotten the whole thing and were back to worrying about their special treats.  We have the cheques deposited in the bank.  The calves sold at an average  $1.30 per pound  at a total of 1600 pounds.  I'm certainly glad I don't make my living  in the cattle business.

We have no Internet connection at the ranch, so no little epistle these few days.  It is very interesting how we acquire a habit so quickly.  I have been writing these small web logs for 30 days or so, and already I feel somewhat anxious if I don't complete my 500 words at the computer.  My best character trait has always been my work habits, and I suppose once I have decided  that my task in my 70's is to write this small log, this task has become a priority for me .

I am often asked these two questions.... where on earth how did you find this out of the way place? and what do you do there all day?  Both two good question, which I will answer at a later  date.

January 6, 2008, Texas

Today the calves go to auction in Junction Texas.  The four little girls are not pleased.  We have 8 cows, 2 steer and one bull. This year these cows produced 7 calves, so the girls have had the fun watching these calves grow up, which any  are fun to watch.  They jump straight up in the air and frisk around their mothers.  Of course all the cattle have names.  Their favourite is Rachel, also the friendliest.  She will eat right out our hand.  And the 7 calves also have names.Rachel is named after one of their cousins when she came to visit the family from Hamilton one summer.  The girls liked her, so their favourite cow is Rachel.  She is pretty in color brown and spots of black, and she makes good looking calves.  Big Tex is their next favourite.  He looks and acts as a bull, and everyone gives him wide space.  These cattle are Texas Longhorn cattle, and they look as they are named.  Their horns are big and long.  Both sexes have long horns so you have to be careful to watch out for their horns whenever you are close to them.  David stays on the opposite side of the fence from the cattle at all times except when to is driving through the pastures.

But today the calves have to go to auction.  The size of the land determines how many cattle will survive without supplemental feeding, and as we are not here all the time, the calves have to go.  In Texas, country property is taxed lower if you are in the agricultural business, and not being totally stupid, we went into the cattle business.  We choose longhorn cattle because they were bred to survive on their own, out in the pasture.  Also they seem to fit with a small ranch in Texas in the hill country.  So look it up on the map.  Our ranch is just east and north of Harper Texas.  So the calves go to auction on Monday and we will find out how much money will come from those 8 cows.  We'll let you know.

Januart 4, 2008, Mexico

Four little girls and an afternoon and evening in the town of Puerto Vallarta provides a whole years memories and laughter.  First we took the water taxi which is an experience in it's own right.  The last time we took the water taxi all 12 of us went, the water was very rough, the girls almost got sick, but a school of dolphins swam beside us for a long time.  The upshot is that the girls only remember the dolphins and have forgotten the miserable trip.  What they do remember was that Grandma couldn't got out of the boat at the public dock in Puerto Vallarta.

The dock is ancient, looks like an Elizabeth Taylor vintage, the tide was very low, the boat was very small, and the boat was way way below the dock.  As we approached the dock I told Ken that I would never be able to get up to the dock. Of course every one said it would be no problem.  But they were wrong.  Everyone else leaped up to the dock, with the help of the three strong men lifting the six children.  First of all , you had to leap this three feet up, then you had to walk about six feet along a very narrow walkway that was only two feet wide.  I wouldn't do it.  So the men hailed a fisherman  in a small dugout fishing vessel.  He brought his very primitive boat alongside out water taxi where I carefully transferred to the dugout for transport to the shore where they beached me. Like a whale.  Of course all four adults and six children cheering me on.  Ken stayed back with me until I beached.

This taxi ride was uneventful but beautiful.  The waterfront in the town has a wonderful stone boardwalk, which is dotted on it's length of the most wonderful and whimsical bronze statues.  Every 200 yards or so another statue.  The girls loved them,and wanted their pictures taken by every one.  In between the statues are sand castles,one more marvelous than the last, done for a competition at the Christmas season.  So there is a full nativity scene in sand,and a large Santa, and several scenes of tropical animals.  Between the sand sculptures and the real sculptures the children wiled away the afternoon.  Of course a visit to the flea market for gifts followed a most wonderful dinner at the Barcelona Tapas restaurant finished up the lovely day.

Tomorrow we all go to Texas.  I always enjoy a trip to another  spot.

January 2, 2008, Mexico

Here is another good Christmas book..."October" by Richard Wright,given to me by Dave & Irene.He is another Canadian author worth reading.  He also wrote "Praise for Clara Callan".  And of course, if you have never read any Robertson Davies, start now and you'll be in for a treat.  Of course he is not  a contemporary writer but he is wonderful.  And then there is Alice Munro.  She is the only writer who has made her career writing short stories.

I have no recollection of not being able to read or swim.  My parents would be the only people who might likely know both pieces of insignificant information, but they are not living.  My brother and sister were more involved with their own lives so have no clue about my reading or swimming.  But I can not recall a time when I could nor read or could not swim.  Both activities have been important to me all my life, and both now provide immense pleasure, so I am grateful for whomever taught me .  Now I wonder if I have a faulty memory or did I learn to read or swim prior to memory being developed as a child?  That is yet another of those unanswered questions.

January1, 2008 Mexico

It really all began January 1, 1956.  That day a group of us, organized by me and Gord Fairbank, spent the day skating on the frozen canal in Peterborough, Ontario.  We  were a group of about 20, and the  plan was to visit the Gibson Family for dinner and skate , leaving for home about 9 o'clock.  We played hockey, skated, played hockey and skated,ate dinner and drove home.  Nothing seemed too significant.  But everything changed for both Ken and me.  Before that day all I knew about Ken was that He was skinny kid from Parry Sound who was working for a year before he went to University and then Medical school.  Several days later I received

 a letter from Ken telling me that I had the qualities he wanted in a wife, and that I should get read, because some time he was going to ask me to marry me.  I laughed out loud, and couldn't conceive of the audacity of this young man.  But we have been a pair from that day to now.

The celebration last night was wonderful in every direction.  Now I wish every one of you a happy and healthy new year.