Ciaobella...
..." yes like having an extended family "   although just been 3 years for me...

Ciaobella,  I'm afraid my last message was misleading?  We did not have frogs and snakes and lizards, living inside our house.  There was only one time that our younger daughter came inside to show me a small red garden snake - about a foot long.  He slipped out of her hands and slithered away, but was so fast that he quickly disappeared from sight. I don't remember how long he was loose, but the entire family was constantly on the lookout for a few days.  He eventually showed up, in the middle of the night, in the bathroom!  I wasn't about to try to catch him, so I closed the door and woke her up.  She caught him quickly and put him outside.  I remember that she had named him -but I can't recall his name?

LonelyMountain -  I'm so sorry you got the pesticide poisoning and as a result,  you had to change your entire lifestyle.  It's good that you found your  mountaintop, and that you've learned to make the best of a sad situation.   Did you ever consider moving to the coastal area of Oregon, instead of the mountains?  There is something about the salt water breeze that blows off the ocean, that seems so clean and pure.  Lots of space and lots of solitude, if you stay away from the seaside towns.   

When I saw you were from Oregon, I thought,  "Finally,  someone else  in Seniors and Friends, living in the Pacific Time Zone".   I've always been alone out here in the far West, with everyone else living more than a thousand miles from me.   Now I'm wondering if you might be in that small area of Oregon that's part of the Mountain Time Zone?

Good Morning Marilyne!
I'm in the Pacific time zone: NE Oregon, behind the cantle of the saddle. I did look at the coastal communities. Many people with chemical poisoning were being sent there from all over the US. Unfortunately by people who thought it would be safe, but were not aware of the hidden dangers.

I volunteered for 10 years with a 501(c3) that helped people with this disability. I did education and awareness, lots of research into toxins and safer products, locations. I also did phone support, counseling and outreach. I'd learned that there is a toxic smog band that winds like a ribbon and covers the entire Pacific Ocean. It comes from China. The USCal- Davis Air Quality Research Station said, back then, that on any given day 1/3 of the air pollutants in Los Angeles air samples came from China.

I was contacted by a forced into retirement drug enforcement officer from Florida. She was injured in a meth lab bust. Her doctor told her she had to move to save her life and suggested, "Maybe the Oregon coast." Nobody knew where to go. She moved to a coastal community and found nowhere safe to stay. She spent her first night in Oregon on the post office lobby floor. She started a safe space for any chemically injured refugee that showed up. And then the timber industry got wind of it. They use a lot of pesticide in the coastal range and its dispersed mostly by helicopter. That contamination radius is 2 miles! She protested and got targeted. The timber companies began harassing and spraying her group. It was pretty awful. Last I heard from her she had an upcoming court date against them. She was representing herself, pro S,e as lawyers won't touch our cases. Then she went dark. That happens a lot in our community.

The pulp and paper mills are pretty bad too. One of my other contacts was a woman who was injured while working in a paper mill. She told me that the regular people have no idea how horribly toxic the chemicals they use in paper making are.

There's a lot they don't disclose to the public!

But on a lighter note, I'm glad you're so close! Howdy neighbor!!

OnLonelyMountain - Marilyne
...we once had a factory behind my family home called The British Moulded Hose Factory...and as you can guess some assumed it was a hosiery factory but, it was an asbestos factory which caught fire when i was in our school playground at age 10, the playground was in-front of my family home...Back in the day this was a big thing, many fire engines attended...Of course the innocent men back then i am assuming did not know of the dangers of asbestos, one of my school friends father worked there at the time...

Yikes Jackie! I'm cringing just imagining it! My mind immediately started wondering how many people got injured by the asbestos (and other toxins) in the smoke and never connected the dots. Smoke travels a long way. Up here where I live wildfires are the issue, like tornadoes are in the midwest. When it starts getting smokey I check the reports to see how close the source is. A couple of years back the smoke was coming from California and Canada. It was so thick here my pictures came out like they'd had a sepia wash.

Good morning to everyone looking in.  Still early here  - just turning 8:00 AM. 

Callie -  I saw your message in SS yesterday that you had a trip to the ER, after falling in the kitchen.  Glad that all is well, with no lingering after effects?  I had a similar fall on Christmas Eve, 2023, at son and dil's house . . .  difference being that I wasn't alone. I had the entire family there to witness the scene!      I landed on my back, and was unconscious for just a few minutes.  I didn't want the EMT's, so AJ and I drove directly to the ER, and sounds like you got the same excellent treatment there that I got.  Like you, I had a big sore bump on the back of my head, and also on my tailbone.

It's a beautiful morning here . . . cool and sunny.  So far no wildfires here yet, although it's inevitable.  Last year wasn't as bad for us as in previous years, because we had had a rainy Winter.  Not so much this year - no measurable rain since March.  A few showers and drizzly days this Spring, but  not what we were hoping for. 

OLM - I think I'm familiar with where you live in Oregon?  Is it anywhere in the vicinity of the Columbia River?     

Marilyne, yes, our farm is near the Columbia. The mountain is further east after the Columbia turns and heads into Washington. Are ypu in the SW part of Oregon?

Sibling Rivalry;

https://youtu.be/YTnIUMxE6n4

OLM . . . I live in California - native daughter.  We live about  45 miles S/W of San Francisco.  I've lived in both Oregon and Washington in the past.  My Dad worked for a paper company located in Oregon, and at one point, my parents and brother moved to Portland, and lived there for a little over a year.  I was in college at the time in CA, but spent my Summer vacation with them in OR.  I loved it there!! 

Got  married in 1956, and my husband was drafted shortly thereafter.  After basic he was sent to an Army Post in  Eastern Washington, Tri-Cities area, where we lived for over a year.  That's why I'm somewhat familiar with your area - or what it was like then, so long long ago.  I'm sure you know the Umatilla Bridge?  It was brand NEW - had been just recently completed when we lived there.       

Patricia - I've been neglecting Shadow and Jackie and their two babies in recent months.  So good to see how healthy and big they look.  Thanks for posting the link again!

Appears I've also a connection - the only time my son, with his young family ever lived outside of Texas was for 3 years in Beaverton Oregon - Of course I flew to visit - back then always visited both sets of grands 4 times a year - alternated Christmas and Thanksgiving with Paul and my daughter and then for each of the boys birthdays. 

Paul having twins and Chris it was the same 2 Birthday visits as Katha having two boys and then a visit in the Fall to see the leaves with Katha in NC and a visit in Oregon late summer that included a trip to the ocean and now Ty, my daughter's eldest is a professor at Lake Washington Institute of Technology in Seattle Washington.

I got too old and have not been able to visit Ty in Seattle but years ago, back in the late 70's, I was there and also in Vancouver sharing the new Girl Scout training program for leaders with Girl Guides in Canada, stayed with a local family in both cities as they proudly showed me the sites including a wonderful trip to Victoria with the couple from Vancouver.

I do remember the Thanksgiving visit with Paul and Sally in Oregon included a trip into the mountains where they knew of a tree farm where they chopped down their family Christmas Tree - the boys were only 5 and 6 - to get there we followed a road adjacent to the Columbia River. The tree farm was high on the side of a mountain where you could see for miles - there was snow on the ground - not heavy but it covered the ground till we got back to Portland and Beaverton - One part of that trip I looked forward to was coming home - in the airport Powell's had a wonderful book store that I never left without at least 5 books - This was way before all the limits on bags accompanying a passenger onboard that we tucked under our feet.

Hiked many locations including several times in Europe and Mexico but for whatever reason never did hike in Oregon or the state of Washington nor did I ever really hike in NC - long walks and tubing down the Green River in NC but no hiking.

And so my memories of the Northwest are from years ago but I have some familiarity with the landscape - not intimate but at least not a blank slate either.

Patricia never visited Alaska and Marilyne, and this I can't believe either but, never visited California - as a young teen Sally visited the Wine Country with her Mom and Dad and I thought often of the Redwood Forest but never did make it.

Marilyne, 😁 I was born in San Mateo. We lived in Hayward for several years. My parents moved to Springfield, Oregon when I was 6. Then to Portland, and on to Hillsboro. My husband was the engineer on the I 82 cutoff to the Umatilla Bridge! I know Tri-Cities well. The name of that base escapes me at present but I spoke to them just last year. You certainly have covered Oregon and Washington.

You both have so many wonderful memories!

Barb, One of the places I loved best in downtown Portland was the main Powell's Bookstore. I'd get lost in there for hours! I always wanted to visit the Redwoods as an adult. I think we drove through at night when I was 6. I don't remember them at all. I had a whole list of places I was planning to go. I was only 36 when I got poisoned. I told my kids follow your dreams while you can and don't put them off until later. My daughter takes that to heart. After she graduated with her BS she spent a month crawling through the jungles of Taiwan collecting insects, and just last year finally got to spend 2 weeks on the Amazon river. A dream she's had since she was 5 years old. Yes bugs were involved, even though it was a missionary trip. My son's dream was always to live in Texas and scuba dive in the Gulf. His second job is as a scuba instructor. They are doingnwhat they love. 

Hello to all those looking in today:  Hope it's as nice wherever you are, as it is here.  A beautiful day!

MarsGal . . . I saw the Memorial Day poem you posted this morning in 'Library'.  I like it, and plan to post two of my favorites there, later today.

OLM . . .  I remember going to Powell's Bookstore in Portland, with my Mother and spending most of the day there.  This was in the mid 1950's, and it seemed huge to me then. I've heard that it's much larger now, and takes up a whole city block?

How wonderful that your two adult children got to fulfill their dreams.  Most of us dream big when we're young, but have to eventually accept reality.  So many things can come long that demand a change of plans. 
Of my three kids,  I would say our son and his wife, have done a great job of fulfilling their goals of a successful and happy life. 
Our two daughters . . . not so much.  Too many roadblocks got in the way of their dreams.  However, they're both doing okay, and far better than many others, so not complaining. 

Hey Marilyne, I've stopped for a lunch break and am checking in. Its still a beautiful sunny day here and 60°. I got most of my list knocked out (posted in SS) and I've clipped 1/2 a poodle. Both of us are getting too old to do it all at once. She's 14.

Yes, it was a full city block back when I visited it in the early 70s. Not much parking to speak of but I didn't drive then (too young). It was a time when a child could safely wander from Sandy (where the giant 7up bottle sign was) to the depth and breadth of downtown Portland. I did. Plus Tri-met was great for kids then, and safe. I could take Tri-met to the zoo and OMSI. They later moved OMSI to the east side of the Willamette across from downtown.

My son originally wanted to be a marine biologist. When he graduated from highschool he got a job counting migratory salmon on a river in SW Oregon. He would scuba into schools and do visual counts, fly over rivers and radio track, and wade into the catch pools on the fish ladders, waste deep in squirming salmon. His job was to grab a particular one of a set (tagged or untagged) and wrestle it out of the teaming mass, then toss it onto the deck where other team members would take measurements etc. It was not uncommon for the guy doing that job to get "fish slapped." Some of the big ones really packed a whollup.  It was his dream job. But in biology, funding is iffy. He said it felt like being perpetually unemployed. So he changed majors. I was relieved. His next job was on an Arctic research vessel. 😬 I was biting my lips!

Glad your kids ar doing o.k.🙂

MaryPage  -  Happy Birthday to you!   So sorry I missed the correct date this year.   Hoping you spent a nice day celebrating with your loved ones.  Also hope that you're feeling well, and that you'll post a message to us here in Bait and Tackle, whenever you feel like it.   We always look forward to hearing from you! 

What had stayed east of us, finally came for us! Suddenly, the partially sunny skies turned black and lightening bursts and sounds of thunder ripped continuously through the skies. Then came the sheets of rain and hail. It's been 53 minutes and what I thought was a cloudburst has settled in to stay for a while.

I know there are many, disgusted and discouraged picnic and party goers, including those here prepping for a huge block wide, bring a dish barbecue They should have known, those storms wouldn't hang around east.

Thunderstorms Again Possible This Afternoon and Early Evening Across Parts of the Eastern and Southern Interior...

More thunderstorms are expected today, but they will be potentially stronger and more widespread than Sunday, with additional instability. This means storms may produce locally heavy downpours with frequent lightning and small hail. Winds aloft will be from the east- northeast, so storms will likely form over the higher elevations of the White Mtns, Yukon-Tanana Uplands, and the Upper Chena Basin then drift southwest into lower elevation valleys. As they fall apart, also expect the potential for brief strong and gusty, erratic winds.

In addition, locally heavy rain amounts are possible over the Western and Central AK Range with a northeast steering wind pushing storms into the AK Range slopes. Streams in steep terrain may see very rapid rises.

Recreators should be alert for areas of heavy rainfall, lightning, and for rapidly rising creeks and streams..

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

Good morning after Memorial Day!!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend of fun.  We had two cookouts and then went to the casino for some adult time. lol Today I intend to do absolutely nothing and just enjoy the quiet time to myself with hubby & Brinkley (my Australian silky terrier.)

Patricia, those storms sound horrible!!  We had mild temps around high 60s no rain in my northeast section of Ohio.  Certainly not swimming weather so everyone had sparkling pool water waiting for splashing but the only activity was my 3 yr. old great grandson filling up his squirt gun to get us all wet.

OLM, your posts are more and more interesting each time I read them.  Your means of survival with this toxic condition amazes me.  I remember watching the movie with Julia Roberts years ago called Erin Brockovich a 2000 American biographical legal drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Susannah Grant. The film is a dramatization of the true story of Erin Brockovich, portrayed by Julia Roberts, who initiated a legal case against the Pacific Gas and Electric Company over its culpability for the Hinkley groundwater contamination incident. This movie may have been one of the first to expose how regions are being poisoned by companies for their self-gains.  Today there are a lot of questions about the chem trails that are being released into the atmosphere and how they can affect people and weather.  It's one thing to fight science and another thing to fight government.

Okay, you all have a great day! 

Hello everyone!  This will be short four day work week for those who still get up early and go through the morning rush of getting up and ready, and then driving to their work destination.  In my family, the only one left who still works the old fashioned way is youngest daughter.   The others are either retired, or work from home.   Working from home is the new normal, here in the Silicon Valley tech area.

Ciaobella - looks like you had a good weekend, with with nice outdoor weather and cookouts.  Your weather sounds about like ours here in Northern CA . . .  bright and sunny, but still too cool to enjoy swimming. 

Patricia - Sorry the storms have returned and you're set back again to
Winter weather.   With your long 24 hour day on June 21 approaching,  I hope things will warm up so everyone in AK can enjoy the fun and celebrations.

OLM - What's the elevation of your mountain home?  If it's high, then you likely won't warm up for a while yet, and will always have cool nights.  I'm impressed  with all the work you do every day!  Is there  a river close enough, that you can swim or fish during the warm months?    Interesting what you said about your son, swimming with the salmon!  Lots of constant vigilance here in CA, when the count gets low.  Just  announced last week that the salmon fishing season  out of Santa Cruz, has been cancelled again this year.   
I feel bad for the commercial fishermen who depend on it every year.  No party boats either.  Those of us who love fresh caught salmon will miss another year without, but I know it's for the best.

Out of bread and other staples this morning, so time to get ready for a trip to the grocery store!  Thinking about everyone in S&F, and hope you all have a nice day.

Good morning after Memorial Day to you too Ciaobella! I had the same plan, only when I went out there was the grass sprung up and the drive a dusty flour pile. We have fine, volcanic clay that quickly breaks down with light traffic.   I have the mowing (wheeled string trimmer) done. Aiming at the flour drive way next!

Brinkley sounds sweet!

I read Erin Brochovich's book. I also read "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carlsen written like 60 years ago. Its the DDT exposure. Sonething not covered in that book is the connection between DDT usage and the advent of polio. A number of vaccinologists and a nephratologist document the alarming correlation and posit that the polio virus was actually not the cause of the polio pandemic, rather it was the pesticide and the vaccine damage. Pretty mind blowing stuff. They give very detailed, rarely heard histories and facts. I've read and viewed a bunch of the chemtrail stuff. Its moved from "conspiracy theory" to "conspiracy fact" now. Bill Gates, himself is a proponent because he wants to dim the sun "to slow global warming." Wild, but factual. He does a number of TED talks. 

QuoteIt's one thing to fight science and another thing to fight government.

True!

Re: interesting stories, sometime I'll tell you about my wolf encounters😁

Hi Marilyne, I'm at 3500 feet. Its supposed to get up to 79° again today. I can't go to any rivers or lakes. I used to try that, even hiking into the Elkhorn Mountain lakes. People would show up wearing mosquito repellent that would wipe me out at 200' down the trail! On rivers there's motor exhaust. Not safe for me in the real world. We have ponds, but they have leaches
I've been trying to come up with an activity that my husband and I can share, that we can do here. He's a big hunter and a fisherman. (I used to love to fly fish, but same problem... people show up with skeeter dope.) I've proposed we get landowner deer tags for next season and in the meantime we learn compound bow hunting. He said shooting them with a rifle will be too easy. This way the deer will have the advantage.

Ron's due for another Alaska or Vancouver Island salmon fishing trip. When he doesn't get to go one of his clients delivers a box of fresh caught, fresh frozen salmon. 

Hope you're having a great day too!

An early good morning to all who look in today!  There is so much going on in The World right now,  that I don't know what to read, watch, or believe anymore. Too many websites,  newspapers and TV programs out there, and they all tell a  different story about the same event?   We're all in a sort of "information overload".   

OLM . . .  Sorry you don't have better access to a river/stream, so you could go fishing for some trout.  That was what my father liked best about the year they lived in Oregon.  Every weekend during the season he and my brother would take off for a different section of the State, and always  come home with a big enough catch to feed the family, as well as to share with friends.

My husband and some of his friends got interested in bow hunting about 30 or so years ago, so I know what those heavy bows look like.     I could barely lift the thing, much less pull to shoot.    You have to be strong, and you have to practice.  They used to go bow hunting in         N/E Nevada, near the Idaho border for a couple of weeks during bow season.  His favorite  sport was duck hunting . . . he and a neighbor friend had a cabin and a blind at a duck club in the Central Valley here in CA.     Duck season . . .  I remember it well.   From early October to mid January.

Good afternoon Marilyne,
I got an early start as its already over 80°F. I get heat sick, so I do the heavy stuff in the early morning. Ah, I had great plans! Didn't go the way I expected. My well generator's battery died. So then I had problem solving attempts. Eventually with clues from my husband by text, I got a really heavy RV house battery, wrestled it into the back of the UTV and the jumper cables and got them hooked up to the tiny generator battery. I pressed the fob and the generator darn near took off like a rocket! I think I jumped a foot! Once I had that running I went back to the tiny house to figure out how I could possibly get those seams adjacent to the crown calked. It was already much later in the day than I wanted. It gets hot up there and I get dizzy. But I channeled my inner circus performer and balanced on the 2nd from the top step of the 12' ladder to get the job done. Pretty shaky. Definitely not a tidy execution. But its done. Thank the Lord!

I do love fresh caught stream trout: brookies, brownies and rainbows! Both my husband and I used to hunt upland game birds. His favorite were Huns, mine were pheasants. He loved duck and goose hunting, as well. The upland game birds were especially delicious smothered in bacon or larded. Ducks always tasted a little bit "muddy" to me. Perhaps it was the type of duck? Maybe I wasn't fixing them right? We've had a very delicious Christmas goose, or 2, over the years.😀 From the time we were dating we only ate meat we caught or shot. After we bought our farm we began raising beef and lamb to supplement our fish, birds, venison and elk. My husband was the one that taught me to hunt. When I shot my first deer he gave me an engagement rifle. I looked at a woman's fiberglass compound bow a few years ago. They are way lighter and the required pull is 30lbs. to bring down a deer. I will probably have to work up! 🤣

What do you remember most about duck season? How did you like them best fixed to eat?

Thanks Barb!  I try, but I think it's in my blood! ha ha!  I'm a "News Junkie", and have been since I was a little kid during WWII. My mom would listen to the news on the radio every night at 7:00, and I was  right there with her and I read the daily newspaper as well.  We also had "Current Events", as a class in elementary school, and I loved it.  Later, I worked  on the high school newspaper, and then majored in Journalism in college.  Had a few good jobs writing for local papers, but  that ended after marriage and kids. 

The difference, in then and now, is that the country wasn't divided back then.  There was no abject hatred between the two parties, and the politicians who were in office at the time.  You didn't have to worry and wonder as to what was truth and what was lies?  People didn't judge you . . .  your friends were from all political parties.  Nobody asked - nobody cared.

OLM - You made me laugh . . . "When I shot my first deer he gave me an engagement rifle."   Did you carry it around and show it off to everyone, as if it were a ring"?      It does sound like you enjoyed the fishing and hunting from early on, which is a good thing.  I was never a part of my husband AJ's life, when it came to his various hunting pursuits.  Never fired a gun, and never went on any of the hunting trips to faraway places.  As to the cooking of the ducks and geese: we had a rotisserie, and used to put the ducks on it, after they were marinated for a long time.  As you know, they tend to be dry - very little fat on a migrating duck!  The geese were tastier and bigger, so there were a lot more possibilities for cooking.  AJ was usually in charge of cooking whatever he brought home.
 

  Glad I made you laugh. Laughter is good for the soul. My husband took a picture of me skinning out that deer and showed it to "everybody!" He liked that event second only to the time I was riding shotgun and we were guests hunting on a friend's farm in the Columbia Basin. Its high desert, reclaimed for farming with irrigation circles. Its wide open. The deer can see you coming from a long way off. So my husband is driving, I'm in the front passenger seat, my father-in-law and Jim (farmer) are in the back. We see this heard of deer on the other side of a circle (1/2 mile away). Ron says to Jim, "what do you do, just drive straight at 'em and roll out the door and shoot one?" Jim says, "That sounds like it might work." So Ron starts driving straight at 'em. Since I'm in "the monkey seat" I'm starting to get a little anxious. Ron says, "Get ready dear, I'm going to slow down a little and you roll out and shoot! They'll be watching the rig so they won't even see you!" He's so excited he's practically bouncing in his seat. Presently he slows this tiny amount and hollars, "O.K.now! Go!" I lean over and look at the speedometer: 30 m.p.h.. "You're going too fast! Slow down more!" I say. "No, this is perfect! Go, now!" I start to protest, he leans over me opens the door and boots me out! I hit the ground, bounced, remembered to roll and when I came up right sided as my visual field swung wildly I fought the urge to shoot Ron through the back window of the Jimmy. The fact that my father-in-law and Jim were back there were the only things that saved Ron's life that day. I did try to take a couple of shots at the deer but they were much farther away than I was used to and I kept shooting low. Ron was ecstatic and thought that was the coolest thing he'd ever seen. He kept saying how he wished he could do that. I offered to kick him out next time we were driving down the highway so he could experience it for himself. He never would take me up on it. Go figure.

The next hunt we made on Jim's farm,  we came around this corner and a doe sprang up in front of us and ran straight away. I could see Ron getting excited, his right hand starting to leave the steering wheel and his knee starting to lift! I bailed of my own volition, ran a few steps, planted both feet in the dirt and my rifle butt in my shoulder and shot her in the back of the head. She dropped right there. Jim was gobstopped! He'd never seen anything like it. He started calling me Annie Oakley, and that story got all around the community. 

My computer crashed yesterday morning, so
I was without internet access or email for most of the day.  Switched browsers from Safari to Firefox  and finally got it working by late afternoon.  Seems to be okay so far today, but I'm afraid this old machine is worn out and tired, and needs to be replaced. 

Today is predicted to be a hot one . . . the start of our first heatwave of the season.  Supposed to hit 100 in some areas.  We had some "rolling blackouts"  last summer  and lost our electrical power for about six hour each time.  These were planned outages by our electrical company,  PG&E, so we were warned ahead of time.    Hard to deal with, but necessary when you live in a congested area like the SF Bay Area.  Too many people packed in here now, and apparently the "grid" is not powerful enough to provide electricity to everyone at the same time.

Younger daughter is coming over today, so I hope the power will be on while she's here.  We are  all so spoiled now, that it's difficult to carry on without the AC.     

Our heat wave was short, but gave us a preview of what's to come this Summer.  It peaked today at 100 degrees, here where I live.  Now a fresh ocean breeze is blowing in from Santa Cruz, to cool things off.  We didn't lose  our power, and as far as I know, there were no outages anywhere in the Bay Area. Tomorrow is predicted to be a beautiful day in the mid 70's. 

For those of you watching or had been watching, The two 13 week eaglets, both determined to be female, have been active lately, with Sunny, the firstborn, taken her first flight, or "Fledging," this morning.

https://youtu.be/i3TUtdO_vsU

https://youtu.be/hGT2T7adF2I

Marilyne, I too am a news junkie and for probably the opposite of you...I grew up with NO news on the tv until I think around my high school years late 60's. Neither my mother nor my step-father had the least bit of interest in politics and the only news I think they caught was the local channel, we got no newspapers or magazines delivered to our home, and no reading material whatsoever, so once I got access to a library after marrying at 18 yrs. old, I became more and more involved in wanting to know what was happening in politics and the world. Now with so many sources available I constantly am researching or just searching for information.  Yes, it can make your head spin at times, but I do limit myself.  My tv is off the entire day unless there are major events happening and then my hubby and I watch our certain newsworthy programs in the evening. I do use my computer for news headlines during the day but it's mostly skimming. Nothing at all on the weekends. That heat sounds miserable, I can't imagine dealing with it with no AC.  Oh, heavens don't wait too long before replacing your computer if you are anything like me, I can't live without my laptop.  I have an iPad, and iPhone but nothing beats my laptop for typing on and saving all my photos to.

OLM, you gave me a fright just imagining you up on that ladder.  I truly admire your fortitude and capabilities to solve your problems. It's so nice to get up and outside early to get things done before the heat.  Do you read in your spare time? 

Patricia, thank you for the link to see Sunny take flight. I can't imagine how Gizmo felt being left behind.  At least they report Sunny will return to the nest.

Okay gotta run, hope to hear from the others soon.

Hello Ciaobella, Thank you. I am an avid reader though right now I'm reading for "problem solving." Like you mentioned, I too read research, and current events. I also read how to's. I've taught myself how to knit, crochet and weave from books. I've taught myself electrical wiring, construction skills and even appliance repair, to name a few. I'm working through identifying edible and medicinal plants here and their uses from several books. I'm studying homeopathy from books and Materia Medica sheets online. I used to love to read mysteries. I have a bunch on my ipad, but I've read them so many times that I have them memorized. Its like that prison joke, "#15" and everybody laughs.

Fun seeing you try out the various fonts OLM... many still to go  Actually I'm so glad you have decided to add dimension to your posts - the older posts were hard to read...

I've really become bored with the news - 90% political and someone is always bashing another - here of late the bashing has become more brutal then any of my nightmares and every viewpoint is up for grabs in that even truth has become political along party lines. Just as boring is TV entertainment - even PBS has been showing some dud shows. I'm finding that the French, Italian, some British and some Spanish films are more original and their comedy does not seem to be based on sarcasm but rather human foibles that I can identify with and makes me chuckle or even laugh aloud.

With so little on TV that interests me my reading has picked up and I'm thinking a series of some swashbuckler type stories would be just the thing - I used to love reading that kind of story when I was in my young teens - now to decide  - will it be Robert Louis Sevenson or Sir Walter Scott - Burns would be interesting and his stories are full of action and adventure however, and the however to me is a biggie - he writes using the Scottish vernacular and after a bit I get tired of looking up words to understand the story - I usually love research but not while reading an action adventure. Of course there is always Dumas - oh or Woodhouse would be a romp of English manners and protocol - Dickens as Hawthorn are too dreary - No it has to be swashbuckling action. Could be Sabatini or Shellabarger.

I was better off trying to choose from two and now I've too many to choose from - well this is exciting - used to be this kind of fun 'what shall we watch tonight' while looking at the TV Guide - I wonder if they even publish the Guide anylonger?