Saturday, December 3, 2022
Ray and I are in the Texas hill country this week. We went to the Texas Farmer’s Market this morning and tasted and bought lots of goodies. We bought a dozen tamales and ate a couple before getting in the car to leave. I liked eating them in the parking lot because they were so messy.
It’s been cloudy most of our trip. The drive down I35 is very different than coming south on Hwy 281. It felt like an unending city instead of a leisurely country drive. We stopped in West and got some barbeque and kolaches.
Tuesday, December 13, 2022
We returned from our fun trip to Texas on Saturday.
Today was cold and rainy. The rain—or something—has our internet down. So the guys are out working and I am writing. Nothing increases my productivity like no WIFI.
Covid is making the news again. Soaring numbers of cases have hospitals nearing full capacity, and the flu and RSV are still around. There are over sixty confirmed cases of measles in Ohio. I had a check-up scheduled for this morning but the office called to reschedule me due to the doctor being out.
Christmas will come early to the cabin on the ridge this year. Stephanie and Hayden will be here next week. I hope we have some nice weather during their stay and can visit Silver Dollar City to see the Christmas lights. I need to wrap gifts, and I’ve been working on menus, shopping, and cleaning this week.
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
The internet repairman will be here next Tuesday. Ray’s been watching DVDs all day. Stephanie says they will still be able to visit and work here because she has a hot spot that allows them to connect to WIFI.
Monday, December 19, 2022
Stephanie and Hayden are here. We went to Silver Dollar City last night and saw Dicken’s Christmas Carol performance. It was a great show. Even though it was the warmest day of the week, it was still cold for a theme park. Winter has arrived on the ridge with a vengeance. Snow is in the forecast along with a high of 9 degrees on Friday. The guys are worried about water for the livestock, but I plan on staying close to the fire.
Ray checked out the first two seasons of The Waltons from the library and we’ve been watching it since our internet is still down. That show brings back memories.
Saturday, December 24, 2022
Snowflakes swirled for the better part of Thursday and we lost the internet and phone service around 11 a.m. lasting 24 hours. About two inches of snow fell and Stephanie and Hayden couldn’t work because even their hot spots couldn’t find a signal. Temperatures here dropped to seven below zero and we were concerned about the livestock, but everything survived. Today’s high was 24, so we’ll see if our pipes all made it tomorrow. The locals say this is unusual. I hope so. Ray’s been filling my bird feeders and we have lots of birds. I haven’t been outside the house since Tuesday.
We had our gift exchange Wednesday night so any exchanges could be made before Christmas and while Steph and Hayden were still in town. One of my gifts was a jigsaw puzzle. Stephanie and I spent most of Thursday assembling it. This holiday was the calm before the stormy flurry of meeting the needs of an infant. A baby changes everything. She and Hayden headed back to Texas this morning.
Matt got Ray the entire series of The Waltons on DVD for Christmas. We’re still on season one, but I feel I know more about the Walton family and the Depression than what’s going on in the world today since our WIFI’s been down so much recently. I did hear that there’s a shortage of cold medicines and pain relievers (especially children’s) due to the Corona Virus, flu, and RSV.
I’m sure John Boy’s writing is influencing my own: The gifts are all put away and it’s quiet here at the little cabin on the ridge. This morning’s sunshine was blinding on the snow, but the sun has set and enough snow remains that we will wake up to a white Christmas and the smell of a big country breakfast cooking in our warm kitchen.
Monday, December 26, 2022
All our pipes and animals made it through the arctic blast!