The weather has turned a bit warmer, thankfully. We had 32 days with high temperatures below freezing and 13 consecutive days (plus others mixed in) with highs below zero. A couple “record lows for the date” were recorded during the most frigid of those days.
Recently, though, temps have climbed to near 40 degrees. Snow is melting, which creates pooling water problems, but we’re happy to cut back on our heating costs and have sunlight coming through the windows. Even the dogs and outside cats are enjoying the (relatively) mild weather.
NE Iowa did receive about 8 inches of snow a few days ago. Low in water content, the snow was very light but there was a lot of it. I was able to use the snow blower (which ran pretty well after my recent repair) to clear the walks and access to the mailbox. Now routine, I cleared the ally access to the garage with the John Deere lawn tractor. Clean-up took most of a morning.
I should note that we have several pathways used by the outside cats. These generally provide access to the catio ramp, outside water dish, outside feeder, and access to the east porch. These needed to be cleared again after the recent snow, and Pam helped in this effort.
The dog run also gets attention in the form of shoveling back space for the dogs to run. Poor Bru is the shortest of the dogs and had to bunny-hop through new snow so Pam decided we needed to clear some space.
Inside the house, Pam has finished the library’s art deco paint job. Here are before and after photos of the east wall.
Pam tells me another step for that wall will be to sew valances for the tops of the curtains. She plans to rearrange, and possibly replace or upgrade, the library’s furniture. Flooring, which is now a somewhat older carpet, will be removed and be replaced with area rugs where possible. We don’t know (but can imagine!) the condition of the floor; once we pull up the carpet we’ll decide on a flooring approach.
A trip to Rochester, MN, took up some of our time last week. I wanted to identify where to go for my March 3rd appointment and find the 2 Mayo Clinic buildings I need to visit and identify surrounding parking places. Pam went along this trip and we made it a multi-function event, stopping at a Walmart to pick up some supplies and of course Culver’s drive-through for lunch.
Yesterday Pam went to the dentist to get a root canal done on one of her molars. She is in pain today. The dentist had trouble finding one of the roots and the procedure took a bit longer than average. Pam is handling the pain; hopefully she is over the worst of it. A return trip to prep the same tooth for a crown is on tap in March.
I finished our 3 tax returns — Colorado part-year, Iowa, and federal. What a pain. We’ll do a final review to make sure I have not made a calculation mistake or missed an entry before we send off the forms, but the bulk of that job is over and I am glad of it. We owe money to both states but will get something back (eventually) on federal. Next year’s returns should be a lot simpler!
Photo Archive
We had moved to Colorado in 1977 and spent many weekends exploring the high country. These next two photos are from one of those trips.
I often took off on my motorcycle to visit different areas.
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!
Pam’s Penny
London, our oldest rescue cat at 16-going-on-17, is experiencing a decided health decline this month. He’s been losing weight and energy since the relocation from CO to IA. London’s a Flamepoint Siamese; he’s one of the cats I acquired while working for the animal rescue in Colorado. I began my somewhat-prolonged Crazy Cat Lady period slightly after London joined us.
I’ve been reflecting on London’s time with us this past week, and how different we are now compared to 17 years ago. The biggest changes aren’t location, or working vs. retirement, income, or what the kiddos are doing. Nope, the biggest change is how much time-energy-money we now devote to thinking about and planning for health care. How totally boring it is.
Be well. Happy Trails.