Life on the "Farm"

Family life

#1 Grandson Tom turned 40 yesterday. For his 0th birthday, I remember buying him the newest novelty toy, the Teddy Ruxpin "talking" bear. I paid $50 for it. 

Today Tom is working in a job I cannot describe, but it has something to do with building and energy efficiency and compliance with government regulations, as near as I can tell. He researches, and writes papers, and presents them, I think. It's all very wonky, but he loves it and seems to be good at it. 

Assisted Living Life

I'm busy. Recently I posted a sign on the bulletin board in the mailroom saying that I would hem pants for free. Not long ago I bought a couple of pair of pants that needed hemming, and I discovered that I actually enjoyed doing it and that it was very simple. I got pleasure out of taking something that was frustrating to me and turning it into something that gave me great satisfaction. So I decided I would offer to shorten pants for anyone who wanted them. So far, only one person has showed up.

I'm enrolled in a bunch of OLLI (Oscher Lifelong Learning Institute) classes from UC Davis. I've been doing this for three quarters now and really like it. They are virtual classes on ZOOM with about 15 people in each class. Apparently, OLLI junkies (like me) turn up quarter after quarter in several classes. This time I'm taking classes on the Ocean, on AI, on Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, on reading the New Yorker, and a memoir class. I love making connections in the larger Davis community with bright and stimulating people from outside Atria. 

Friday afternoons, I lead a writing workshop here within Atria. An essay I wrote has evolved into a project to improve food and conditions in the dining room. The food quality has deteriorated precipitously, and little accommodation is mad for low-sodium diets. Acoustics in the dining room are so bad that dinner table conversation is nearly impossible because some idiot painted over the acoustic ceiling tiles making them reflect rather than absorb sound. My essay about these conditions was so well received that we formed a committee to formally approach executive regional management. We seem to have been heard and I expect some action soon.

Tomorrow afternoon I will play bridge. A group ranging from 4 to 8 players meet three times a week. The games can only loosely be called bridge. We make so many allowances for our various enfeeblements that Charles Goren would surely not recognize the game. Some can't see and mix up the suits, some can't hear, some have memory issues and can never remember what trump is, what's the bid, whose lead it is, and what has been played, some with shaky hands frequently drop their cards and few retain the dexterity to pick them up. But we tolerate and compensate for each other and still manage to have a good time. 

Political Notes

Mariann Edgar Budde

Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde at the National Cathedral during the National Prayer Service attended by Trump, Vance, and their wives directly addressed the President and asked him to "have mercy on the people in our country who are scared right now." She mentioned immigrants and LGBTQIA. He later vilified her on Truth Social. Maybe she is our latter day MLK. She Shall Overcome.

Tuesday morning, I participated in a phone bank coordinated by Indivisible Yolo. I called Senators Padilla and Schiff as well as congressman Thompson to ask them to oppose cabinet appointments of Patel, Hegseth, Vught, and Noem. Not included was Bondi whom I can't stand simply for her steadfast refusal to say that Biden won the 2020 election.

 Trump pulled out of WHO and Paris Climate Accords.

 Around 10,000 refugees have had their flights cancelled after Trump signed an executive order suspending their entry.

The felon-in-chief rescinded Biden's executive order 14087 lowering the prices on several drugs.

Vivek Ramaswamy axed from "department of government efficiency" by Musk. VR went back to Ohio with his tail between his legs ostensibly to prep for a run for governor of Ohio.

#47 signed an unconstitutional executive order that aims to deny birthright citizenship to certain children born in the United States.

Oligarchs are buying up DC property.

All federal DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) staff put on paid leave and all government publications and websites were ordered to remove all mention of DEI.

Read All About It

The house is under contract! We close on June 11 and that seems impossibly close. We are going through farewell rituals now, not knowing when and if we will be back to Missouri.
Logan went to the Jr/Sr Prom Saturday night as a goodbye to Ozark High School since he will be graduating from high school in California next year. He will graduate with kids from his attend kindergarten through second grade years. I wonder how many of them he will remember.

Going to the prom was a last minute decision. He bought a jacket the afternoon of the dance because he needed one large enough to fit around his back brace. I think he looks pretty sharp. He went stag but joined up with some kids to go out for something to eat after. It's very hard for me to let him go, but he's very considerate of my anxiety and reports in frequently.

Tonight I attended what is most likely my last meeting of my book club. I think I've belonged to this group for about three years and have really enjoyed the company of a bunch of interesting women. And of course, the books, the food, and the wine. Here we are at Cathy Gearing's house. It was very well attended. I know Martha Swick didn't make it and maybe someone else can think of others who were missing. Here we are at the end of the meeting where we talked about Mary Coin  by Marisa Silver. It's a novel based on a depression-era photograph taken by Dorothea Lange. Here's the iconic photograph:

And here we are:

I will miss these ladies!

Party On!

 Last night I crossed an item off my bucket list. I had never had Dom Perignon before and I was determined to have it for my 75th birthday. Friend Sharon thought that sounded like a fine idea and suggested a small group of my friends pitch in to buy a bottle and celebrate with me. Well, it sounded like a good idea, but I wasn't too keen on sharing a single bottle with a group of people, so I offered to buy a bottle if the group also bought one. And to sweeten the pot as it were, I had a very fine bottle of Veuve Cliquot on hand, a gift from Lindsay for helping her edit work for her masters degree.
The group also contributed some yummy food to complement the bubbly.

 Sue Walker takes her turn pouring a glass for herself.

 With fierce concentration, Sharon takes her turn. Not a drop was spilled.

 And then the bottle was passed to Molly who has a death grip on the neck of the bottle.

 I didn't think Lindsay would care too much for champagne. I was wrong.

 Andra also said she didn't think she would like it, so she brought a backup bottle of white zin. She never opened the zin and she learned something new about herself.

 Cheers, ladies!

Three bottles and about three hours later, this is how we looked. We felt fine! The wine was wonderful, the food was great and the company fabulous. Now I have to figure out how to celebrate my 80th birthday.

How I Spent the Rest of My Summer Vacation.

 Ben, Danny, and I arrived in Sacramento on Tuesday afternoon, June 11. Colleen was at the airport to meet Danny and whisked him off as quickly as she could. I kind of think she had missed him just a little. Ben and I made our way to the rental car office, picked up a spiffy red Chevy Impala, and drove to Valery's in rush hour traffic. I was nervous about being in heavy traffic after my years in Missouri, but it went very smoothly. We spent a quiet evening playing Mexican Train, well, not too quiet, we laughed ourselves silly and then went to bed exhausted after a long day of travel and a two hour time change.

Wednesday afternoon, Lisa Cardwell and I went to the Purple Place for a drink and some munchies. 

That place hasn't changed a bit in appearance, but the menu has definitely gone upscale. A friend of hers joined us after a bit and we enjoyed getting acquainted while watching the world go by. Then I stood up, announced it was time for me to get going, said my good-byes, and left. It didn't even dawn on me that I had left them with the bill until sometime the next day. I was mortified. 

Before going to the Purple Place, I got to see Lisa's kids Cameron and Alexandra. Cameron has grown so tall and is just a super nice personable kid. Alexandra is quite a talented singer and guitar player. Cameron plays guitar too, but he didn't perform for me this trip.

The second full day Ben and I were in California together, we went out to Davis to go bike shopping. We cruised the city streets looking for bike shops. We saw lots of bikes, including this beauty

but finally settled on this one. Selling points were: the color, green, which is Ben's trademark eco-symbolic favorite; the chain guard to protect against the battering campus bikes suffer; the rack, suitable for mounting saddle bag-type baskets; the absence of a derailleur, the gears are enclosed in the hub of the rear wheel, to prevent parking rack damage; the handy-dandy bell on the handlebars, ubiquitous to Davis bikes; the very sturdy lock affixed to the frame; and the overall form, fit, and function. I hope it serves him well (and doesn't get stolen!). He pedaled it around the campus right after purchasing it and it magically found its way to the Bohart Museum of Entomology where Ben enjoyed staring at exotic insects and visiting with a PhD student who worked there. I do hope Ben will be able to work there in time.

While Ben was off exploring, I was visiting with my dear friend Nancy. She took the train (and car and BART) from San Mateo to meet me in Davis for lunch. She also met this engaging bit of sidewalk art. Oh, how I love Davis. I could envision retiring there, should I ever retire. She looks terrific (I meant Nancy) and as always it was wonderful to spend even a few hours with her. We had lunch and strolled for a while. Colleen just happened to be passing through Davis on her way to San Mateo, so she was able to give Nancy a ride back to her car parked at the BART station. The day was perfect, maybe mid-80's, nothing like the beastly heat they have endured the past week. We really hit it lucky.

The next week, Ben and I drove up to Pioneer to visit my high school friends, Jack and Linda. Linda has been recovering from a difficult surgery and is taking things a bit slow. But, we had a nice, albeit brief visit. I regret not getting any photos of either Lisa or Jack and Linda. 

The day before I left, Ben and I made my ritual visit to Robin's grave and washed off the headstone with champagne, saving the last mouthful to drink a toast to her memory. It's so hard to believe all these years have past.

Many of Ben's ancestors are buried in Gold Country cemeteries.  We made a stop at Placerville's Union Cemetery where the Blair marker stands at the highest point in the Cemetery. There are maybe a dozen people buried in the plot, but not all of them are noted on the marker. The cemetery has records of who is buried there.

Dinner at a Thai restaurant with Valery's friends, Dorothy and Chuck, was a real treat. We must have sat at our table for 2-1/2 hours, but no one seemed to mind. Ben and Chuck really hit it off. Chuck is a Chemistry professor and they found much to talk about, scientist to scientist. Dorothy is a quilter and I enjoyed visiting her studio on a previous visit to California.

Foodie that I am, no visit to California would be complete without sampling some of the fresh produce I miss. So, I had some fresh Sloughhouse corn, yummy artichokes, and asparagus. We can get corn, artichokes, and asparagus in Missouri, but they just aren't the same.  

And I came home all alone. Ben stayed with Valery so he can start UC Davis in the fall and Danny traveled home separately on Friday. 

The Picnic

Sunday, the day following Bill and Brit's wedding, some friends and family members gathered at the Marshall Monument picnic ground of the Marshall Gold Discovery State Park in Coloma, California. I love this park for historical and sentimental reasons. And I love this picnic ground in particular. 

The area is steeped in family history. My great-great grandfather, Ezra Schooley, is buried in Coloma's Pioneer Cemetery where his is the oldest standing grave. Ezra didn't make it to Coloma alive; according to newspaper accounts from that time, ". . .he died ten miles short of the diggings, from the disease of the country."  Ironically, before I ever heard of Ezra Schooley, I bought a home in El Dorado Hills, which is about ten miles from Coloma, along the historical road that leads to the diggings. It could not have been any further than five miles from the spot where Ezra died.

My great grandfather, James Blair, wed Ezra's daughter, Amanda Schooley, in 1865. James and his brother, John, had established Sportsman's Hall in Pollock Pines, just a bit further east.

Sportsman's Hall served as an inn and a place to layover while wagon teams waited their turn to cross the Sierras on the one-way treacherous road that lead to the Comstock mines just east of Carson City. It also served as a pony express station. Today it is still in operation as a restaurant. My great grandmother, Amanda Schooley Blair, is standing on the porch with her two oldest daughters in this photo (one half of a sterioptican photo). 

Ernest, the son of James and Amanda Blair married my grandmother Minnie Pauline Nichols (born in Folsom, CA) in 1908. At the time of their courtship, both were living in Placerville and would on occassion take a day trip and picnic at the newly erected Marshall Monument in Coloma. 

So, to make a short story long, that is one of the reasons I enjoy visiting that picnic ground -- knowing that I am treading the ground trod by my grandparents during their courtship.

 Easily recognizable is Ben in the green shirt, cousin Robby sits next to him and then sister Valery and her friend, Jim.

 Brother Rick and his wife Kathy enjoy a moment of solitude away from the madding crowd. The picnic tables and barbecue pits are of WPA construction.

The first three people on the left are Kim, Jeannie and Jason. Kim is Jason's wife and Jeannie is Kim's mother. Jason was adopted at birth by my brother and his ex-wife. Jason reunited with his birth mother a couple of years ago in a fairy tale story that brings tears to my eyes every time I think of it. Jason's birth mother, Dianne and her husband Danny sit across the table from Kim. Dianne released Jason for adoption when she was fifteen years old and never had another child. Reuniting with Jason was for her a miracle and they have been very present in each other's lives since.

Sitting next to Danny are Tom and Nichole (Tom is blocking Nichole). Tom and Nichole along with their daughter Mallaika have the distinction of being the ones who traveled furthest for the wedding. They make their home in North Dartmouth, MA, where Tom has just completed his first year of law school.

Folks you haven't seen in other photos are Susie Lee, girlhood friend of sister Valery, standing on the left. Next to her is Jason, then Rachel and Kevin. Irene Ogawa is seated in front of Kevin. She is a friend of mine from ROLM/IBM days twenty-five years ago.

And here are the newlyweds -- Bill and Brittany Paine. To the left of Bill are Amy Schulze and her husband Bill. Amy was Ben's (and Logan's) second grade teacher in California and she remains forever in our hearts and lives. She and Bill live in the Coloma area where she has a bunch of dogs and a horse. Bill keeps bees, is a birder, and a retired veterinarian (a providential match for dog lover Amy). They are wonderful people and intend to stay active in Ben's new life in California.

Avoiding inclusion in any pictures, but making a token appearance, was Seth Matthews, son of my dear friend, Nancy Matthews. Nancy and I were neighbors at the time Kevin and Colleen were born. Kevin, Colleen, and Seth have known each other all their lives. Seth is now assistant DA in nearby Calaveras County.

All told, it was a glorious day, a perfect balance to the wedding of the previous day, and a great chance to connect with some folks who didn't make it to the wedding.

The Wedding -- Bill and Brit edition

To start at the beginning, one afternoon about a year ago, brothers Robby and Bill had stopped for a hamburger. When they were back in the car, Bill said to Robby, "I'll give you $5 to go ask that waitress for her phone number and I'll give you $10 if you get it." Robby got his $10, Bill got the girl, and so it began.

 The wedding was held in the beautiful Meadow Vista, California home of the bride's parents. When we entered we signed the guest book and then went through the kitchen where the wedding cake was displayed. The cake was baked by a Napa bakery, the same one that baked the cake for Eva Longorio. Apparently the baker is a relative and made this cake, a replica of a car owned by Brittany's beloved and recently departed grandfather. (BTW, this cake is far more clever than the Longorio cake).

 

Little touches throughout the house celebrated the couple, like this display on the kitchen counter. 

Among the invited guests (and there weren't many -- around 75 close friends and realtives): sister Valery and her beau, Jim; daughter-in-law, Rachel; my daughter and mother of the groom, Colleen Paine-Ivazes. I don't know in which of the many rooms of the palatial home they were standing for this photo. Just to give you an idea -- in a window niche of the foyer, stood a full suit of armor. Across the room, near a love seat arrangement in front of the fireplace, stood a mannequin in an antique wedding dress. I don't know if the mannequin was permanent or a gesture because of the wedding. The love seats and fireplace were part of the foyer, I guess it served as a waiting room for guests.

The harpist played everything from classical to Beatles music (or are the Beatles now classical?) to the traditional Lohengrin's wedding march. Bill and Brittany are both rather shy and preferred a simple wedding. They considered getting married on a cruise, away from all the fuss and bother, but compromised on this wedding in Brittany's parents back yard. The wedding beautifully blended tradition and casual elegance. It was perfect.

 

Mallaika was the only attendant and really enjoyed her role as flower girl strewing the path with rose petals (artificial) for the bride to enter upon.

Here comes the bride on the arm of her father. Brittany chose a formal strapless gown, that laced up the back and had an elegant train. She was (and is) gorgeous. 

The ceremony was performed by the bride's aunt who is a recently ordained Universal Life Church Minister (I believe she was ordained just for the occasion so she could perform the ceremony). She said it was her first and probably only wedding.

I'm pretty sure Mallaika thought the wedding was all about her. She didn't mind a bit that she was the only little kid there. She amused herself by wading in the water,

and giving a speech, audible to no one but herself. When I later asked her what was her favorite part of the wedding, she replied, "when I made my speech."

And that's all the pictures I took, because I turned my focus to champagne and dinner. After dinner a live band played up on the altar/bandstand, but there was little dancing. The bride and groom danced a shy slow dance for a few bars and then everyone turned to visiting and imbibing. It was truly a perfect wedding. The bride and groom joined us the next day for a family picnic (report to follow) and then left for a honeymoon cruise.

Dinner? It's Quilting Time!

 Here's the tenth of twelve table runners. Only two more months and you won't have to see them again. Unless you come to my house, because I do intend to use them throughout the year on my kitchen table. I like the way the padding serves to protect the table top from hot dishes. And in all humility, I think they look nice.

This project has been thirteen months in the making as a block-a-month program from my local quilt shop (who needs bars, when I can get my fix with fabric?). When I first saw it, I knew I had to make it for Hollis, my adorable much-tatooed  Air Force Air Evac medic niece. I customized a few of the blocks to make it more appropriate.

 The Air Force emblem and the Caduceus speak to Hollis' passions as does the block below:

Sorry, this is such a lousy picture. In the quilt as it was designed, this block represented a quilt shop. I adapted it to be a tattoo parlor. The sign over the door says "INK" and the sign over the window says "H.B.'s Tattoo Parlor" The window has a picture of an eagle.

Now I have to clean house. I'm having a bunch of ladies over for lunch (my quilting club, of course) next week and I'm still moving very slowly and carefully, so I have to get started! The Christmas tree is up, that will serve to some degree as a distraction from the state of my house, but I must put away all that quilting gear and sanitize the kitchen and bathrooms!

Reunion, Part 3

The Golden Girls reunion continued with more eating, drinking, gabbing, and sight-seeing.

 On the third evening, we again enjoyed Mel's company along with bar food and a couple of bottles of wine carried back to our rooms. Feeling more comfortable with each other, our conversation drifted to more controversial topics (I mean politics) and although we did not necessarily agree, we navigated those tricky waters with grace and respect.

The Skunk Train travels from Fort Bragg half-way to Willits where passengers disembark for a barbecue lunch in a redwood grove while the train turns around and returns to Fort Bragg (after the passengers have re-embarked, of course). We enjoyed the trip to sunny weather through glorious old-growth redwood forests. The train travels through territory inaccessible by road, so it is serene and isolated. Several cabins are situated along the route, built around 75 years ago on leased land. These cabins cannot be sold, but can be inherited and so they remain family retreats for a select few families. They can be reached only by the Skunk Train, and all supplies must come in by train. They have propane, but no generators. I don't know if they have wells and septic, or if its outhouses and imported water. Seems appealing to me as a perfect writer's retreat.

 We ran into a fellow train traveler later in the day when we walked around MacKerricher State Park and he accommodated us by taking this group photo.

 The last morning we returned to the scene of our first meal at Little River Inn and enjoyed breakfast and our last meal together before departing. We said a reluctant good-bye to Janet and talked about planning the next reunion, closer to Marilyn so that she can comfortably join us.

 We made our way south once again driving through the redwoods and the Anderson Valley, turning further inland to Clear Lake, a lunch stop in Williams and then over to Interstate 5 and the Sacramento airport where Linda and I said good-bye to Merle.

 

Jack met Linda at the car rental agency and Valery picked me up. We returned to her house and the next phase of my many-fold reunions began.