Remembering Lee Jacob Huber

February 19th is my grandpa Huber's birthday.  He'd be 117 today.  He used to say "it's heck to get old."  I bet he's not feeling that any more.  I loved my grandpa because he was a real MAN.  He used to let me put my little feet on his big ones and walk.  He always had pink peppermints in his pockets at church.  He had false teeth that he liked to tease us with and he told the best stories about his childhood in old Mexico.  He liked to tell about being a scout for the Mormon colonists to tell them the whereabouts of Poncho Villa.  Grandpa loved the earth.  He loved animals and growing things.  He was a farmer. 

One of the things I loved to watch him do was kill chickens.  It wasn't gross, it was educational and entertaining.  The smell of scalding the chicken before plucking the feathers off is still in my brain.  This week I bottled 40 pounds or 34 1/2 pints of chicken and had flashbacks of when Grandpa would "do" chickens.

Thanks for the education, entertainment and all the love Grandpa.  Happy Birthday Lee J. Huber! 

Seems like Summer in San Diego

So I sat by the pool in San Diego and read "Roots" by Alex Haley.  The weather was so lovely that it felt almost like summertime.  I could see the harbor with the naval ships that looked so amazing, the sky was blue and we decided to go to the zoo. 

The zoo was great fun, but we didn't have enough time to spend to make it worth $84.00 

so we opted to go to the very cool Natural History Museum instead and out to eat afterward for less $. Did you know that we love Mexican food?  Well, we highly recommend Coyote Cafe in Old Town. Yum, Yum!

 

 We didn't see snow until we were almost home.  We made a bet about how much snow was in our front yard. Mel said whoever lost was going to have to roll in the snow, like after a sauna in Finland.  My bet was that there would be a small patch in the front by the mailbox and Mel bet that there would be just a couple of feet up by the house.  As we pulled into our neighborhood, there were still piles of snow everywhere in cul de sacs and everywhere.  Our front yard was covered with snow. 
Um, so who lost that bet?  I can tell you one thing- I rolled up in a blanket and finished "Roots" and "The Book of Mormon" and I'm waiting for the snow to melt before I even go out in the yard.  Yup, I'm wimpy!

As a smoker

Mel and I went to the Natural History Museum this past week while we were in San Diego.  We loved the place.  It was like going to the biggest, most wonderful science fair ever.  More projects than just the carnations that you put in blue food coloring to show water intake, or whatever.  One of the cool exhibits, showed you what you would look like by the age of 70 if you didn't have UV protection, if you were obese, and if you chose to smoke.  Well, the picture of UV damage looked like I just cleaned out the fireplace with soot all over my face.  The obese photo looked really close to what I already look like, so here is what I'd look like if I decided to take up smoking.  I've got enough wrinkles already, thank you very much. Probably won't choose that one.  I'll stick to over eating in the sun.  Thank you very much!

Snow Blower

We've been wondering what kind of snow blower to get.  Shoveling, apparently is for loosers, and our neighbors make us feel really lazy when they get out there and do OUR driveway before dawn.  Today, however, there is no need, because we are in the, what Wayne calls, "bent tree district" of town.  The proof would be the pine tree in our back yard that hasn't blown over yet.  Good thing it was taken care of naturally. There is no need to buy a snow blower today.

Hey Phil, Six More Weeks of Winter?

Happy Groundhogs' Day!  What do you say? Do you think I have six more weeks of snowshoe possibilities?  Here's my proof that I have mastered back yard snow shoeing.  Now for the trails on the hills.

 Mel has been going out on his bike---yah, he's pretty quick and it's hard to catch him with a camera.

So it snowed last night, so I'll be staying inside today with the goody box and recipe books, baking and eating to keep warm.  And yes, Jake, it does seem more like home with our stuff in it. 

Poor Goosey Lucy is staying in the basement 'til we find a spot for her. 

                             Here's the sunshine room and that makes us happy on the gray days.
                                  
                                         And don't you love the poppies over the fireplace? 

So whether we have six more weeks of winter, or Spring will be here in six weeks, it's a good day because the snow is white and the sky is blue. None of this gray on gray business. Six more weeks, nonetheless!