Dear Paul,

I agree ~ very sad.  Lest we forget ~ I worry about that.......  Who knows what this crazy Putin is up too.  Crazy enough to start a nuclear war??

Sunny now and working outside with my flowers.  My therapy and my enjoyment. 

Susan

Good morning Kitty, Paul, Susan, and all.  47 here this morn, plan on going to the farm Friday.

Best weather this week here, in the 60s during the day.  The morning will be chilly but I have

leathers to wear.  Think we will be getting all the garbage on the trailer and using dad's old

pick up truck to take it to their transfer station. 

It's the bay window we decorate.  We haven't got the Fall stuff in it yet this year. 

Think Belle dog hurt her throat in the pups playing rough last eve, might have to go to the doctor

for a cough, don't know yet.  Wife is out here sleeping with the pups. 

We have a mum plant in our welcome holder out on our main deck, no pumpkins yet.

Last year Brian was building the rock wall right up until Winter.

The outer fringe of some of our trees are changing color and other trees it's spots here and there.

Paul, you were jogging through the tunnel in a 911 event.  Good for you. 

Hope your trip is fun Susan.  What is HHI?

We went and got groceries yesterday.  Was showers on ad off.  I worked a little on a small rotor, for a

small beam antenna, in the basement.  Then when not raining got a little done on the large beam and

large rotor outdoors.  Still not ready to put up.  Have the pulley mounted on the mast ready to put the

rope in.  Antenna is about 20 feet long and 20 feet wide. 

Have a great day all.

Ernie

Will restock our bird feeders soon.  We were being overrun with many chipmunks when feeding in the non snow seasons. 

Good morning, Kitty, Paul, Ernie and others ~

I have spent a good bit of my day watching Storm Ian.  I've been thinking of Kitty and her beautiful home on Sanibel Island.  Praying that all who are in the path of the storm will stay safe.

A gray sky day but the sun may be just now appearing.  I plan to return home to visit my friends.  It's an hour and a half drive one day ~ lunch and return home.  

Enjoy the day.    Susan

we have been trying to catch up and find out what happened with our lovely island......I guess we sold and left at the right time....altho we loved it there....

Good morning all.  44 here this morn.  Have watched Ian some, remember Kitty's previous home there,

though don't think we visited that area back in the 60s.  I have a high school classmate lives there. 

We had rain on and off again all day yesterday.  I did manage to get some outdoor things done.  Supposed

to be gone today, just looked at the forecast and didn't see any rain. 

Something happened to my Baja exhaust while taking care of everyone's garbage, probably the donut on the

rear of the catalytic blew out.  Have another used one I can try.  I mostly use the Monte Carlo SS or when wife

and I travel we use her newer car so the Baja sits most of the time except for Winter.  A donut came with the

new exhaust but had a small leak when installed.

Got my hugh beam up with it's rotor, with some help from two winches, backhoe, and my grandson.  We

managed to not damage any elements, they can still be bought but get expensive.  Already had to use 150

feet of coax transmission cable and 150 feet of 8 conductor rotor cable.  Also, spent $54 on a part inside the

rotor to repair it, used part. 

We are working on getting wife's cataract surgeries.  She had lasic surgery in the past and has a astigmatism so

still going to be $6k for what the insurance won't cover.  After that she has a hearing problem so have to see to

that.  She's still healthier than me with my diabetes and all that goes with it, also my aortic aneurysm.  The medical

industry is everywhere here just waiting for us.  Places where there used to be auto dealerships and other stores

are now medical clinics.  Guess it's the most profitable while us baby boomers sift through, then after will be all the

2 child families and many of these clinics will be vacant.  Last time I went in for a blood test I was there about 20

minutes before the clinic opened, by 7 AM there were about 30 or 40 people behind me in line.  Nothing like what

the Army puts you through but still a long wait. 

Glad you get to travel to see your friends Susan.  It's about 1 3/4 hours back to the town I grew up in where the

farm is.  Seems like every friend and relative I have back there has severe medical problems, much worse than me.

I usually only see my brother because he needs help to live.  Sometimes I stop to see someone else briefly.  Hope

you enjoy your time with them. 

Enjoy the day all, finally a sunny day with no rain.

Ernie.

Dear Kitty,

I think Ocean Spirit was very much with you and Brian.  The pictures are quite devastating of Sanibel and now cut off from the mainland.  Prayers to all of the people who stayed ~

Enjoyed a lovely lunch with longtime friends.  The three hour drive back and forth I didn't enjoy so much.  75 mph and construction!

Take care.  (( ))  Susan

Hi Ernie and Paul.

I sent Miss Kitty a separate note.  A balmy 56 degrees here by Lake Erie.  Fall is definitely here.  I miss the 70 degree days.  Need to have a few days to cut back my plants......not fun to do it in the Spring of the year.

Ernie, HHI is just an abbreviation for Hilton Head Island in South Carolina.  I stupidly signed up to look at a time share to gain 15,000 Hilton credit points.  We will drive down and spend four days and three nights.  That is IF, Hilton Head is not crushed by the ongoing hurricane.

We will see.

((hugs))  Susan

Enjoy HHI, Susan.  I looked at a time share in Nassau for a free stay years ago. I think when Atlantis was being built. It wasn't bad. About 2 hours of sales pitches a day. Not like they constantly bothered you.

I like 70 but I like this weather also. If it could stay in the 50s until Thanksgiving, it would be nice. 

Good morning all.  I've seen some of Ian on the news, glad to not be in it.  We were wiped out by a

tornado May 3, 1983.  Took us until end of August to move out of our truck camper into a modular.

We borrowed the camper from a relative, there isn't all that help when it's a hand full of families

displaced.  Red Cross brought sandwiches while we rebuilt and bought us a couple dressers and single

beds for the kids after we built a basement and put a modular on it.  In the widespread disasters they

complain they are still living in a supplied mobile home 9 years later.  We got a Small business Disaster

loan but only for the damage, got another loan and the insurance money, along with some help from

the church.  A tornado is hit and miss especially in the northeast.  At the time of the tornado the SBA

said we could borrow to rebuild or move but when we finally get the insurance company to pay SBA

didn't really want to help us.  Our insurance money was only around $13k.  Red Cross did pay for us to live

in a motel for the rest of the week after the tornado.  I had to spent the nights in the car at our residence

because our home was open.  No fun no matter what kind of disaster.  Feel bad for the families in the

hurricane path and we are certain to have more.

Don't know if Kitty is working on the jigsaw puzzles with Brian.  Brian probably trying to fit some outdoor things

in before the temperatures completely drop out. 

I talked with some time share people with brother in law down in Myrtle Beach to get tickets to the Dolly Parton

Wild West Show or something like that.  When they said the offer was only good for that day, they lost me and that's

what I told them.  Think that was 13 years ago.  These days all I hear is ads about getting out of time shares on the

radio. 

Heading down to the farm in a few hours, think it's supposed to be 50 degrees around 10.  I will take the dogs up

through the woods for their walk after my exercise session.  The Turmeric Root caplets and chewing on cinnomon

sticks has dropped my glucose 20 units for now.  So great, it's hard to get good readings without the synthetic

prescriptions.  I was on those for 7 years and your readings keep drifting upward closer and closer to insulin injections.

I'm hitting around 110 for now, much better than 130.  You guys are regulated below 100, like I used to be. 

Beam antenna and rotor are up and working.  Subaru repairs are done. 

Have a great day all, we are supposed to be slightly brushed by Ian's rain tomorrow morning.  Lucky this high just

moved in to keep Ian at bay.  If that rainy low we've had the last 3 days was still here we probably would have gotten

many inches of rain. 

Ernie.

Happy smoke free October....fall is always followed by winter....not bad unless you have to go out....