Changes

Hi everyone. I blogged yesterday at www.supershopper10.blogspot.com. I wanted to let you in on a few things. First of all we're trying to build a business so I am pushing HQ4Deals a lot to get it off the ground. But that's not all....we are also going to move our supershopper10 blog from blogspot to our own website: at www.supershopperblog.com. I am doing this today. So don't sign up for the email at the supershopper10.blogspot site yet...wait and I'll set one up on the website instead.

We are also setting up 4 other websites today. I will send you a separate email when they get running. If you add these 5 new websites to our www.hq4deals we will have 6 websites going. Now, hold your breath because there's one more: www.ghowe.getdeals.us This website is a kind of offer shopping mall. If you go there you will find categories of offers. You can go to any of those just as if you were in a mall and peek in the windows.

The www.ghowe.getdeals.us site is the one that gives us an immediate payout for visiting and buying there. I'm telling you this because just by going to the website and asking for free stuff you can help us big time.

HOWE TO LAUNCH A BUSINESS

We're in business. I'm making the official announcement here on our blog. In an effort to generate an income, we have invested time and effort into a new venture. Online marketing.

What is it?

Well, essentially it's promoting products on our website (HQ4DEALS) and our blog (supershopper10.blogspot.com) for companies, and getting paid when someone visits them, or purchases something.

How can you help us?

The enormous task is getting exposure. And visitors. If you can visit our website at HQ4DEALS and click on our ads to sign up for any offers that interest you, or that are free, or purchase anything that you already use, that would put money in our pocket.

Benefits to you

We are screening our offers so that we only put up deal makers, or BOGOS, or free stuff. We're not putting up offers for free gift cards that require you to buy other stuff in order to qualify.
For instance, there is an offer on the Sunglasses page where you can buy designer sunglasses through an auction for big savings. On the Family page there is an offer to sign up for freebie newsletters and coupons, etc. that I think Rachel and Erin and Natalie and any other young Moms could use. The sign up is free. There's also a cute baby contest that you can enter to win $2,500. They hold it monthly, and heaven knows we have some very cute babies!

If you don't want stuff sent to your main email account, maybe you could do what we did, and set up a freebie account for those kinds of email offers. (We now have 5 email accounts--2 personal, and 2 for offers, and 1 business account. Getting email accounts is easy and free, you know.)

Each of our pages has offers that are cost-cutters. I ordered printer cartridges myself from the company on the Office Supply page. It saved us time and money. Not only were they discounted, but I didn't have to drive to Billings to buy them!

About Risk-free Trials

Risk-free trials are just another marketing strategy. Not unlike coupons. Thousands of dollars of product coupons are given out and we all know how to maximize coupon use. And we are smart coupon shoppers. The same is true for companies offering risk-free trials. They offer us an opportunity to try their product and the only risk is theirs--that they are giving away their products and will not make a customer out of us.

The only caution I might add is this. When you try a risk free trial, be sure you know the last free date of the trial. If you're going to cancel, keep the info so you can spare yourself unwanted charges. It's a trial...so the company is allowing you to try their product and cancel. There's no harm in canceling if you aren't sold on it or their program. I have every intention of trying the teeth whitening product at our website....and we'll see if it is something I want to continue or not, after we try it.

Benefits to us

So, that about covers it. Neither of us wants to take advantage of you, our family and friends, by asking you to buy or sign up for anything you don't want or can't use. Quite the opposite. We are trying, specifically, to find great deals, money-saving offers, freebies, and discounts that will help us all. It's a business we can get behind and feel good about.

So, here's the pitch: Go visit our website. Visit our blog. While you're there take a moment and click on our ads. Sign up for all the free stuff you can and anything else you like. Send your friends to our website to help us spread the word. And.....wish us luck.

Fall

Funny things about the fall:

The day I bought 6 flyswatters because the flies were annoying us to death, making us twitch and go running for the absent flyswatter, swatting them with anything handy, was the last fly day. I mean by that, that it froze that night. The temperature drop frosted the fruits, the vegetables, the grain fields, and, thankfully, the flies. now I have 6 unemployed fly swatters! I should have bought those babies 3 wks ago!

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Monday (or maybe Saturday) the boiler went out at the local pool. What does that mean? The pool was too cool...and not in a good way. You know the phrase "heated pool?" those are 2 very important words, and they need to stand next to each other. Because the unheated pool is just....brrrrr! I know because I jumped in, and the other ladies stood at the side watching me, and huddling together to read the thermometer. "Too cold" they said. "We're not doing it." Instead they headed for the sauna. I didn't even know there was a sauna. I sure could have used it when I got out!

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Oh, and by the way. Monday was also the day the locker decided it was keeping my things. it wouldn't budge. Stranded in the locker room, cold and wet, i implored the ladies to help me. Sharon, ex-Navy, biker, cat-lover, lapswimmer, had a multi-tool (I forget the cool name)--it had pliers, screwdriver, wrenches, etc.---with her. Imagine that! She worked 15 min at wedging the door up and prying it open, until it gave up in defeat and bounced open. Today I left my bag and all my belongings on a bench. I trust the ladies in the locker room far more than those lockers!

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In spite of my cautiousness, I have been falling down lately. Not without cause, mind you. today the baling string on the ground tripped me just as I was about to shovel beet pulp to the waiting calves and bulls. I think I may have actually hit one of them on the head when I threw the shovel in the air as I fell to my knees!

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Saturday I was out picking apples with Dad off of those trees along the lane from the road to Grandma's house. It's pretty uneven ground there climbing through the milkvetch to the road. Dad climbed in the truck and opened the door for me, sitting watching my approach he watched as I slid, ever so gracefully down to a sitting position. We both laughed. I thought it was a pretty graceful descent....better than the one today...nothing went flying, anyway.


Oh, and lastly, here's a picture--especially for Erin---of my recent canning enterprises. We haven't had a lot to can, but we have canned all we had. So from left to right: salsa, tomatoes, tomato juice, applesauce, and in the front, apple butter. These jars will be our 2009 Fall reminders.

Montana Escapade

It's beautiful in Montana--lots more trees and lakes and scenery than in WY! If it weren't so cold in the winter it would almost be tempting to live here. Except for the fact it feels like it's almost off the map--being so close to CANADA! So, I guess it's not in the running as a relocation spot.

The resort we are staying at is a golf and ski resort--funny since we do neither. The buildings are positioned all around this beautiful golf course and hidden amidst tall pines.

Monday we went into the park (Glacier Park) and rode the free shuttle from one end to the other and back. It took 6 hours! But it was beautiful and at the top it was snowing! And at the east side, where it was lower, the wind was blowing like crazy, 25-35 mph and boy was it cold! We nearly got blown over. We tucked into the little lodge and cafe there and enjoyed it from the inside. Dad had an elk brat sandwich and I had The Hogg. The people next to us got very happy....I think they each had 3 or more beers, and apparently the 2nd and 3rd ones were very good.
They were having a ton of fun....

Dad took his camera. Here are just two of the day's sights.




The woods smell very piney, and it is crisp air fall weather. We got into the heated pool Tues night in spite of the chilly night air, and then got out and got into the jacuzzi. I dared Dad to go back into the pool, because after the very hot jacuzzi, it would feel like cold lemonade. I told him I would if he did, thinking he wouldn't take the dare. But he surprised me and jumped out of the hot, into the cold night air, and the cool water!!! I think just to make me do it.

Wednesday we went and toured an old mansion, built in 1895. The youngest daughter saved everything she could and then donated the whole shebang to the town of Kalispell. It has 90% of its original contents. Beds, drapes, furniture, linens, etc. There has been no remodeling to the house. It was a 3 story house, and it had all kinds of built ins and nooks, and hard wood floors. It was a lot bigger than our Hemlock house, but it reminded us just a little of it, because of the lawns and trees and the grounds all around it. We were sure lucky to live in that house for the 5 years we had it, weren't we!

Afterwards, we went to the movies and saw The Time Traveler's Wife. Rachel McAdams was wonderful in it. It was not an easy novel to transfer to the screen. It was quite an undertaking because it was quite an amazing premise. If you read the book and liked it you will really appreciate it.

Today we did a walking tour of all the old buildings in Whitefish, including a medical building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. I think I would like to see some of his other homes when we are in CA. There are quite a few there.

I took a rare photo of Dad. He didn't make any of those funny faces he used to pull.

Today we went to the local farmer's market in Columbia Falls and talked to the people there selling their crafts. We even bought a small jar of Huckleberry Jam! Tomorrow I think we will go back into the park. I bought a book at the farmer's market for a dollar...Eat Pray Love and Dad is going to do some photography work. Sounds relaxing to me.

Dad, the rampant writer

You know rampant, right? Ever thought about the origins or the wordstring of it? Rampage comes to mind. I like it. It fits. Except for the violent aspect of Webster's definition, Dad is on the rampage. He is writing like a wild man. Like a madman. Like a banchee. Like a forest fire on the wind. Oops, I think I am getting carried away here.

Anyhow, Dad is writing like crazy. He has 3 novels in his head right now. And he's working on each of them every day. There's the one that is very nearly finished and in need of fine tuning -- Crow Woman on Deadman.

The one that he wrote over 10 years ago, and just needs some updating and revision--Dragons of Fire. Or as I call it, John Wayne and the chinese maiden.

And the new one. The one that has no name yet, but is percolating in his head day and night. The one where he comes in and sits down and says, I'm afraid we have to kill Jesse. Rachel Rodriquez's little brother Jesse. Oh, and the horse. We have to have the old guy on the porch shoot Virgil's broken down horse. For kindness, to put the old nag out of its misery. And how about some flirting. Or, as I called it, sexual tension.

I think we are going to go to Cody today. And take some pictures. And do some research. That's our new category... for just about everything we do these days...research. If we are watching a movie, it's research. You know, listening to dialogue, noting the scenery and transferring it into words, and studying interactions. And reading. It's more than reading now, it's noticing the phrasing, the conversation, the punctuation, and chapter separations. And driving about. Dad says he has to take more pictures. His latest novel is set in Greybull, so we're going to have to go to Greybull and take pictures of the old railroad and the hills, etc, so he can get it right. Research. I like it.

Oh, it's interesting living with a writer.

Sew what? or Howe Sew?

I am really going over the edge here with this word play. But it's my blog, so I guess I can do whatever I want to here.






I have been sewing this week. Yup. After ignoring my sewing machine for almost a whole year---maybe even 4 years, if you don't count the occasional quilt seaming--I got caught by the sewing bug. I think it's Fallon's fault. She is so darn cute, and I read that she is growing out of her clothes. What better time than to see if a couple of little jumpers and a sundress might be useful. So here they are:

I got carried away in the sundress, because it was just so adorable. I think it was the ruffles in the back...can you see them? And the bow to be tied around her neck in back. Anyway, I made matching panties and a sunhat to go with it! Can you see them?
It may not be useful yet....maybe in the spring, summer to come. We will see. Because the trick is, unless you have a dress form, or a person to try pieces on, it's anybody's guess if the clothing will fit.

I know this for a fact, because I used the measurements on the pattern to make myself a shirt this week. It was huge. I took it all apart and cut the pattern pieces down 2 sizes! And resewed it. Then I decided I didn't like the pattern at all--it was too voluminous in its design, so I cut it all apart a second time, and made the little flowered jumper you see in the pictures. It will look so much better on Fallie, than it did on me. (Poor Dad, asked me if I was going to go work in a pharmacy, and he was being nice and cheery. Little did he know that it was an arrow to the heart.....and that he was right. It was a very large smock like shirt--so that pattern is now in the trash.) So, I am nervous about little Fallie's clothes. I think next time I will get something she is wearing, or something the same size and use it to compare/test as I sew.

And although this all sounds like an arduous time, with the exception of the "smock" I enjoyed myself. And the smaller the clothing, the quicker it sews up! That's why there are 3 dresses for Fallon. And I discovered that it's all just sewing a seam.( Oh, except for the buttonholes....why won't my machine make buttonholes?????!!!??? I tried 11 times to make the buttonholes on the flowered dress, and finally had to finish handsewing them.) So, I just won't make anything with buttonholes. Easy enough. But I liked the notion of taking pretty fabric and making it into something wearable. And since I have a bunch of fabric and some patterns, I was able to make myself 2 blouses and Fallie 3 dresses without spending a penny.

Hmmmm. I noticed my most often repeated money phrase ends with "spending a penny." Do you have phrases like that? That just naturally come out of your mouth? Some people would say, it didn't cost me a dime or a nickel, or a dollar. I guess I just like the sound of the word penny. Whenever I think of the word dime I think of Martha's "diamonds." Still after all these years....dimes and diamonds.


Ok. I'm back from that. I think I have been inspired by Erin and by Emily. I was reading Erin's Motherbird website entries in the sewing category. Then I started studying her sewing website. Erin, you make it all look so easy....and then, you try it and find out it can be easy! How lovely is that!

We stopped on our way home from CA to visit Emily in Provo at the Red Robin. I made Dad take pictures of her as our waitress. Isn't she gorgeous!
So, back to the topic:
So Emily, who loves her sewing machine (she told me so when I visited her this summer) is scoping out thrift stores for basic clothing to rework. What a brilliant idea. How come I never thought of that? Erin had mentioned to me that she buys men's shirts at the thrift store for their good quality fabric and reworks them also. Brilliant! The economy of their thinking is so totally brilliant!

When I get back to civilization (I think this is going to be my new phrase...don't anybody be offended, please) I think I will make visiting thrift stores for the purpose of expanding my fabric options a new game. I've visited them for so many different purposes over the years, but never this one. A new hobby and a new search.

Howe to shoot a Wedding

Oh you can't believe how hard it is to shoot a wedding! It just looks so easy. Pretty people, pretty clothes, all willing. But a good location, the right time of day, and the cooperation of the sun are all pretty hard to control! Here are a few pics from our shoot on Sunday.



I think this is cute. You may never see your Uncle Glen dancing again. He said his new leg would go in a different direction if he tried it, but apparently he kept it together!




I thought this wedding topper was adorable. Maybe you wouldn't like it for yourself, but apparently it was just right for Sabrina. She is a moving force, and Steven is pretty easy going. So I think it was a good fit.

Here I am asking Dad how he wants me to set up the shot. Just beside me sitting down is Ella. She is one of the 3 bridesmaids in this shot. Also the bride and grooms kids...a few of them. They have 5 between them. Freedom was the ringbearer and Krissy was a bridesmaid, and Lizzy was a flower girl. The other 2 children were too young to participate.

The wedding location was a Knights of Columbus hall in Billings---not great. And to make things worse there was this woman who stood up in front of everyone with her digital and shot the wedding itself. I had to photoshop her out of a few pics...she was so close she could have kissed the groom herself. Dad missed shooting the ring exchange because she was blocking it! I guess Sabrina can get those pics from her.



The outdoor pics we shot at Riverfront Park in Billings. It had a river, of course, and a little lake and a bridge. So, it was a great outdoor setting. But we shot at 1:30 and at 4:00 and we had full sun! So that was difficult. It certainly made me appreciate the photographer we used at Rachel's wedding! He was perfect. And he didn't do any adjustments....just handed us the film. I spent hours and hours photoshopping our pictures to lighten them and crop, etc. See what you think.





Dad set up these last 2 shots. He was going artistic with the black and white. In spite of the brightness, I think the bride and groom pose on the bridge is lovely.

We were exhausted by the time it was through. We started shooting at 2 p.m. and left at 7. There are lots of other shots, if you want to see more. 145 images, to be exact. Go to www.bigshotsports.org if you like. You can see the preacher, and all the men in their cowboy hats, and Tammy's cake and Tammy's kids, Ella, and Glen holding his grandson. I think it turned out allright. And it was good experience.

Howe Random

I'm sending you some pics. The usual: Dad out with the cows.... Me driving the tractor to fertilize the fields (yes it's true, I now know how to drive a tractor! A valuable skill, I am sure.)... Dad plowing...Glen and Ruth happy campers during the branding. We branded 72 calves and vaccinated 98 cows. It was great weather for it, warm and breezy. We all got a little sunburned. These are the May activities. I am going today to Karen's nursery in town to buy some tomato plants, and some pepper plants. Maybe we'll get our garden planted by the 1st. We are way behind.

Wednesday we drove the 100 miles to Billings in order to go out for dinner on our anniversary. We stopped in at the Texas Roadhouse and had some fun eating steak and ribs. We also scouted the locations for the wedding photos we are going to be doing Sunday for Steven's wedding (Ruth's son). We are shooting at Pioneer Park. I hope it's cloudy Sunday. That way the pictures won't be so bright. Wish us luck.

We've gotten hooked on Battlestar Gallactica. It's cylon this and cylon that. We are at a cliffhanger... waiting to see if Cmdr. Adama is going to get his men back before the Admiral executes them. Pretty exciting stuff!

I went shopping and bought 5 pairs of pants and 2 shirts! Hooray. That was fun. I also bought several patterns, so I can do some sewing. I'm glad the sun is up early in the morning and sets late. We have so much more time to do our projects! Dad works until almost 8 p.m. plowing and planting and irrigating. It's about 9 pm when the sun sets. I took 4 boxes of stuff to the Goodwill Wed. I am trying to clear out the garage a little so we can walk through it. It is packed! As is the porch. I have boxes to take out from the porch, but the hand truck dolly tires are both flat. So, I'm stuck til I get those fixed. I guess I'll take it down to American Car Care when I go to Karen's for the plants. I'm going to try to get Dad to go to the Hyart tonite with me to see the new X-men movie. It almost sounds like I live in a city, doesn't it?

I hope you are well. Hugs and kisses to you all!

Spring and howe!

Guess what! It's spring here....finally. I have been working hard clearing brush and piling up tree trunks and limbs and leaves so that we can burn them. You can see the stacks of brush in these photos.

We took down the fence so we could move it to the front along the road. We'll have the white picket fence to keep the cows out and the grandkids in when you visit.

We have had a brown and grey landscape for so long that it is very heartening to see some green grass, some shoots, and even buds and flowers. And because it has been so long since we have seen these things, I went out and photographed the beginning signs of spring.

There is just one problem. I took out Dad's camera and did not notice that he had it set on a light setting for indoor shooting....since that's what we did last with the wrestling. So everything I shot was completely overexposed and so bright, that I had to get very creative in trying to adjust the brightness. Hence the unusual oranges and reds. It's kind of surreal. Here you are:

Some trees and some flowers growing. One tree even grew up in the middle of our picnic table!!



We are so happy to see Spring just around the corner and warmer days in store.

Spring and howe!

Guess what! It's spring here....finally. I have been working hard

If

What would you do if....

Lately Dad and I have been playing the what if game. I stumbled across the websites of a couple of lottery winners, or near lottery winners and it was interesting to see what they did and what they learned after their wins. It isn't as if we intend to win the lottery, or are even purchasing tickets.

But what I found interesting is that the exercise of defining what you think you might do is revealing. And if you can define some of your wants, and needs, you can actually consider pursuing them, with or without lottery winnings, to the degree that is actually doable. And, it is fun to dream.

So far we have visited many foreign countries, and beautiful beaches. We have paid off all of our debts, and some of yours, and we have helped you with your financial pinches, i.e. houses, investments, etc. We have extricated ourselves from this full time job of keeping the ranch afloat, and we have relocated to Hawaii and Panama.

We have envisioned family parties, reunions and excursions to Hawaii by our children. That is a destination few people object to. We have racked up lots of skymiles so we can, as Dad said, "visit my children more often."

We have boxed up our prized personal possessions, and we have given to you children whatever else we have that you want for yourselves, and we have sold everything else. How freeing it is to own so little. We have quit our jobs: our sports photography business , our Wyoming corporation business, our writing pursuits, and we have taken up new interests, i.e. surfing, ceramics, travel photography, and cruising.

Doesn't it all sound so nice? I bet you can't wait for our new life to begin. I know I can't.

HOWE BIGSHOTS

Lately the Howe bigshots have been wrestlers. Most of them under 12 years old. Thanks to a tip from a woman in my ward, we discovered USA Wrestling. It is huge here. At first I had mixed feelings about it....the wrestlers being so young and all. But Saturday I spent 5 hours sitting at a table in the Lovell High School gym lobby selling photos from the previous week's match, and I watched, and listened and talked to many wrestlers, and many parents. They were all pretty happy with wrestling, win or lose.

Sure, the really young wrestlers have no idea what they are doing, most of the time. Hopefully they are having fun scrambling around like this one....you might recognize him, it's Freedom, Glen's grandson. He is a pretty sweet little guy. You can tell he's really not the aggressive type.

When Aunt Grace asked Freedom if he had ever pinned anyone, he said with energy and a big smile, "Never!" So, apparently he doesn't feel distressed about that, and neither do we.

The parents and coaches are like parents and coaches of any other sport for children: pushing, encouraging, teaching, and all. Some are a little more strenuous than others--it is after all, wrestling! This coach, I thought, was the dad. But when I showed him the picture he said he didn't have any kids. Looks like a pretty nice coach,don't you agree?


I'd say these parents were prettty involved, wouldn't you?








I went out and put flyers on the cars in the parking lot, and there were an awfully lot of BIG TRUCKS!! Fancy, dancy big trucks. The first effort at sales was encouraging. Everyone wants a picture of themselves, or their children wrestling! I just hope they want more than one. Here's the best photograph Dad has taken so far.

I'm working close to 40 hours a week on this new endeavor. It has about a 4 week season, so it is temporary. And I am learning a lot. A lot about editing, a lot about printing photos, a lot about marketing and sales, and a lot about wrestling.

Howe's that grab ya?

The Dark Room Materializes

Yessirree Bob! Today was the day we’ve been waiting for...for how long? I don’t even want to think how long it’s been since Dad had the bright idea of rescuing that nearly 100 year old log building and placing it behind the house for his very own personal use as a dark room. And all the prep! At least 100 hours worth if you count building the foundation and pouring the cement and moving the floor (remember my earlier pics?) and then the bracing etc. for this move. It looked like it was never gonna happen, and some said it couldn’t be done. Well, actually, only Aunt Grace. She bet him $100 three weeks ago that he would never get it moved. So, because it has been such a production, I took pictures for those of you who have invested time and energy in it. Congratulations and thanks for helping Dad achieve his goal!

We began this morning-- Dad and Glen and Ruth and I and 2 tractors– met about 8:30 a.m. It was a beautiful spring like day, except for the fact that there are no evidences of spring, beyond the temperature being hospitable. Glen had had the fabulous idea of pulling the house on a sledlike structure–cross logs and braces beneath the floorless building. Dad was prepared, having built that already. They hooked up heavy chains to the tractor and the sled and pulled the house out of the field, across the small ditch and up the dirt and gravel road.

The seemingly enormous feat of dragging the log house down the street was perhaps the easiest part of the entire day. We hadn’t imagined that anything would be harder than that task. But, that was easy. Next, we placed the house near its intended location, and rotated it so that the doors and windows faced the house. That actually worked all right too.

The hardest part was moving the building up to and onto the foundation– without the walls bending completely in and the house tweaking. If you have ever moved a refrigerator by yourself you have probably done just what we did–first this side, then that side, moving the appliance back inch by inch–“walking it” almost into position. Well, let me tell you it’s much easier to walk a refrigerator to its designated place than it is to walk a house to it. We used 3 tractors--We had to get one more tractor-- and we did a lot of brainstorming about bracing and blocking and log rolling the house.

As you can see by the pictures, we had an electrical pole to work around as well, hence the house sitting half on and half off the foundation initially.

The funniest thing to me was that I stationed myself out in the field to take pictures of the progress. The shots you see are of the strongest side, the one without a door breaking the rigidity of it. So, I thought it was all going along pretty well, until I went to the other side of the house and saw this picture! See how it looks like a cartoon house, the door coming to a kind of triangle and the end wall shoved in! It looked like a collapse was imminent.

It’s true it looks dilapidated and old, and don’t forget about the tree limb sticking out of the top of it. Earlier in the morning Ruth roped the end of that branch and tried pulling it off, until we looked inside and could see it was wedged through the gaping hole it had made in the roof! But it was built to last apparently, and in spite of all the pushing and pulling and tugging and raising and jimmying and all, we made it work!

So, here is the last photo of the smiling crew! I am there, too, you just can’t see me behind the camera.

I liked taking the pictures. I took 50 good ones. It was, after all, considering its intended use, a photographic event.

Counting Cows

I started a thought this morning about updating our cow count--really calf count, but cow count sounds more alliterative--and then my brain started playing. Since it doesn't happen that often, I have to indulge it when it does. Playing? Yep. My brain plays with words. I guess that's about all it has to work with.

So, the word of the day is count. It started like this: counting cows led me to think about countig sheep. zzz Then it went off to counting cou--as in counting scalps (You've got to be a western reader/writer to be familiar with that one.) Then, quickly, on to countdown, and no 'count, and counting for something, and on. Isn't English funny? Throw in Sesame Street so you can think of The Count while you are counting.

Ok....so back to the new calves. We have 17 now. We started off with one a day, or even two, then 5 yesterday. What do you think the chances are that we will multiply exponentially? 10 tomorrow, and 20 the next, then 40 until we reach 92?

Interesting thought, but I don't think I'll count on it.

Howe Thoughtful

Hi Everyone. Emily came to Lovell this last weekend. She drove herself all the way to Wyoming to spend 3 days with us! Wasn't that just great! It was just what we needed! It was her first road trip to Lovell, and without very much help from Wyoming's Dept. of Highways, i.e. road signs, it took a little longer with the detour to Jeffrey City.

We did the stuff you always do when you are on vacation....ate lots of yummy food, vegged in front of favorite movies, and explored the town. Yes, we made trips to the Queen Bee for chocolates, the Bank, the Red Apple, and the Conservation district to say hello to John. Add a stop at Grace's new salon, Gracie's Back Door Spa and you have a full day in Lovell!

No visit is complete without pictures. Here we are standing in our back yard next to our favorite farm equipment.




And here we are out standing in our field with the Cows.





Did we have fun, or what?

A day in the life.....

You know I like to picture you doing what you do each day, knowing what your schedules might be, and where you might be at any given time of the day. I try to imagine what Hayden and Tyler are doing at Rachel's house, and whether she is walking them to school or the park, or fixing them dinner. I imagine Martha getting up before the crack of dawn and driving to the studio to give someone extra attention, and I picture Will at the computer or on his cellphone arranging the next big buy. Em is at the Y and I can easily imagine what life looks like there, having been there many times. Jess is in his basement and life is full of surprises upstairs. These scenarios all give me comfort, because I can imagine them and feel connected to each of you.

So, in the spirit of connection I decided to give you a day in the life...a peek at our daily routine.

TODAY--SUNDAY
I got up at 6 a.m., and since Dad was on the computer I decided to update the white board schedule of games for February. I listed all the games for the month for each of the 4 high schools (Cody, Powell, Rocky, and Lovell) and for Lovell's Middle School. That took about an hour.

Then I tallied up all the games we have shot, noting which teams we haven't shot yet, or haven't shot enough of. Then, I updated the website organizing the pictures in the galleries into groups and categories. That took another hour. Dad asked me if I was having fun, or just getting things done. I told him I really didn't know.

At 8 a.m. he left to feed the cows, and when he returned he fixed breakfast, since it looked like I was not headed in that direction. Hash browns and sausage.

After breakfast and clean up we went to church. It starts at 11:30 and ends at 2:30. So, 3 hours of reflection and self-examination, and admonition. The 3 messages--one from each hour--were: think of your spouse's needs more than your own; work to receive personal revelation(and inspiration) from God; and support your leaders and be not critical. I think they were all meant for me---areas to consider more deeply. So going to church was constructive.

At 3:30, after church Dad fixed hamburgers for lunch. I talked to Vicky on the phone for an hour and Dad went to the farm and fed the cows..(again) He is reading and I am blogging and it's 7:00 now and Dad wants to know when we will be eating again, and what. I'm not hungry yet. Poor dad. He's either feeding cows or eating. And not much happens in between. I seem to be either sitting at the computer or feeding Dad. We are quite a weird pair.

I bet you were bored after the first paragraph. I know I often am bored. I know I said I was glad to be done working on Aunt Grace's salon.... but it did get me out of the house, and it was a project with a beginning and an end. Basketball, it seems, will never end. Or at least not until the end of February. I tallied up the number of games we have shot--34 games! About 6 a week. Dad is getting sick of Basketball and so am I.

And why, you may ask, aren't we out doing something more interesting? well, for one thing, it is cold and there is snow on the ground--about 5 inches of it. And the other thing is...we are in Lovell, where there really isn't anything interesting to do.

We did go to KFC last week when we were in Cody and the Girls' game was cancelled, because Rocky doesn't have a girls' team, and we had an hour to kill until the boys played. But it was a big mistake. The chicken was dark brown--overcooked--and we got the last of the potatoes and gravy, lucky for us??? The poor kid at the counter had to keep apologizing to everyone because they ran out and they were out of some other stuff too because there were just 2 of them running the place. They were seriously understaffed. So, that was obviously a bust.

We learned last week while attending the Powell Freshman Boys' game that Powell and Cody have Soccer teams. They play in March. Dad thinks that will be great. He loves soccer. I think it will be great because it is outdoors, and he certainly won't mind if I don't go with him and sit outside while he shoots. I hope that doesn't sound mean, but it is so incredibly boring going to games and sitting alone for 5 hours. The snack bars are overpriced and Lovell's popcorn is the worst!

YESTERDAY--SATURDAY
I got up at 4 a.m. and began processing and editing Friday night's Boys' Varsity game while watching The West Wing, Season 1. That took about 4 hours. (I could do it faster if the TV wasn't on, but sometimes I get bored, and I need the background stimulation. I fell asleep once with my finger on the arrow key and I thought I was 50 pictures closer to being done. Now, I put on the headphones and listen to Mozart or a movie so I can stay awake.) It just takes time. Then I fixed breakfast and Dad went to an auction with Uncle Glen (after feeding the cows), from 9 til noon. I laid down at 10:30 and took a nap. (Well, I did get up at 4 a.m., remember?)

Dad came home at noon and cooked hamburgers and we had lunch. Does it seem like Dad is doing a lot of cooking? I guess he is.

I printed out a few photographs of Uncle Glen's family and then we went to Katrina's baptism. His granddaughter. When we got home Dad went and fed the cows again, (they do eat twice a day) and I began editing and processing the Girls' Varsity game, so I could upload it. I finished that 4 hours later, while watching Hitch. Dad fixed dinner--Swanson's pot pies and baked potatoes.

Two days is enough. It's pretty much the same, just substitute going to a game for church and add in Dad writing mornings, and me editing when he gets 20 or 30 pages ahead. Right now we have the first 85 pages of CROW WOMAN ON DEADMAN edited, and he has about 50 pages he has additionally, as inserts--corollary stories. So, that's our life: Writing, Editing what he writes, Photographing, Editing what he shoots. Feeding Cows and feeding ourselves. And driving--to Powell, mostly. Twice a week, because they have the best gym.

Oh, and the first of the calves were born last week. We are hoping for 92 new calves in the next 6 weeks. I'd say we have our hands full, wouldn't you?

TIME TRAVELS

It's an interesting phenomenon--TIME. The further you travel forward in it, the more often you find yourself traveling back in time as well. I suppose it is because a well of experiences and memories is forming that you dip into unconsciously as you go. A deep well of the past merging with the present, and confronting the future. We experience deja vu often because our memories resurface, our experiences call to us.

Once when I was visiting Jess and Erin and baby Thomas I was watching Thomas playing with a puzzle. I felt like I almost recalled--a fragment, really of a memory-- putting together a similar wooden puzzle as a child, myself. And then watching the baby toddle about I was transported to my days as Jess' mother, following him about just as Erin was....putting pots and pans back in the kitchen cupboards after a musical pan kitchen cacophony.

FAST FORWARD....[or so it seems from my perspective]

Here is a picture of me now, sitting in the bleachers. Again. For the what? 100th time? But this time I take my crocheting. I don't watch the game. But sometimes I look up and I see Rachel playng. I see Emily. I see a gym filled with young people, cheerleaders, the band. I am in Lovell, Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Barbara, Thousand Oaks, Burlington, Cody. I am here now and I am here yesterday. I am a parent, a fan, a business woman. I am finished and I am beginning again. I had to buy a bleacher seat, again. I had given my old ones to Goodwill when I moved to Wyoming, thinking the bleacher days were over.



I don't feel so much older...I feel like I am 42. But I feel so much smarter. I feel like everyone should listen to me, because I know so much more now than I did when I WAS 42. It's different though. It's not like knowing something specific. It's not something I could spout out if someone were to ask me, "so what exactly is it that you know?" It's more like a general KNOWING. I have a sense of things. Sensations....I Know how they feel. Excitement, hope, disappointment, pain. Fear, frustration, fulfillment. I know what they cost. I know whether they are worth the time or not.

I guess that's what you get in exchange for your life's experiences...a deeper well, a broader experience. The urge to grab people and tell them what they don't know that you didn't know either when you were their age, but you know now, and knowing it now, wish you'd known it then. It is bittersweet. Is it regret? Is it wishing you'd had an easier path? A helping hand? A mentor? A guide? It's most certainly not wishing for a "do-over". It's an interesting thought though.

I read an interesting article Sunday morning. It was called the Law of Compensation, and though it was lengthy, it was enlightening. It was written by Ralph Waldo Emerson, and I highly recommend it. I think it puts life's ups and downs in perspective.

And don't worry, be happy. Life is short.

Howe Unsettling

Em says the blogs are boring without pictures. I will try to post some in this odd blog. I read Nat's 2008 review and Linne's too. I want to be positive just like them... it's so refreshing. But I can't. 2008 was so unsettling. The more I think about it the more it seems like a TV series.

There were bad guys...you just couldn't tell who they were most of the time. Them? Us? the thieves after us? the 'friends' using us? There were adventures....planned and unplanned. the cruise to the Western Caribbean.

















The fight or flight trip to Central America.












We saw a lot of interesting sights, and fell completely in love with Central America and the people there. We want to be able to speak Spanish the next time we go so we can explore Costa Rica and more of Panama. English is not that widespread. That will take some time and effort--learning Spanish. Si?



We reluctantly returned to the U.S. and took up residence in the desert. But 6 weeks in the desert in the Spring will make you rethink your commitment to the Arizona sun.



The Nashville bust. What can I say about this--we were working hard every day. The best part was the trip out across Texas and New Mexico and Oklahoma and Arkansas--very pretty scenery---and our night at the Grand Ol' Opry Museum and Theater.

The California quick trip turn around. We were lucky to see some of our children and to visit with Aunt Diane and Uncle Glenn for 2 weeks. There were moments of nailbiting and abject fear and tears. I'll leave those out. If you know what they are, you know too much already. There were heroes. Grover, mostly. He is a ROCK! and the subcast of heroes--kind family members who either housed us or visited us, or answered our questions, or held our hands,or offered support and understanding. Heroes with super powers of ESP. What else does a TV series have? Suspense, a tightrope walk, cliffhangers, betrayal, loss. Yep, we experienced all that in 2008. And more. We also started a photography business and wrote a book.

I'm hoping 2009 is boring. Well, not boring really, but lovely. Lovely would be nice. And FUN! Did I mention any kind of fun in 2008? There were too few moments of that commodity. It was too intense! Thankfully we wrapped up 2008 in the arms of our family and loved ones in Atlanta. That was the goal...the one I had my eye on all year that pulled me through. It's a miracle that we all pulled it off..it was no easy task getting everyone together. And Dad didn't take one single picture. Boo hoo. Martha is going to have to share--she did all the shooting.

I am looking forward to 2009 with a feeling of hope and peace. Happy New Year!