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Published: July 17th 2009
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A volcanic eruption in Russia
caused this sunset to be red and violet. It was beautiful and haunting at the same time. Jean’s House (aka: Antelope Creek Kennels)
It’s the middle of July, we’re half way through summer, and this is the first time I’ve blogged since we left project; it’s like starting a Christmas letter~~I’m wondering where to begin!
Since leaving Ohio we’ve visited all our kids (they’re all great, and the grandkids are extra-great!), had a family reunion on Bob’s side of the family (a remarkable time to see the young kids, now married with kids of their own~~which leaves us as the older part of the family…how did that happen so quickly?!), visited my dad and brother (fun to see them again), set up in our summer home in Jean’s yard, in Dickinson, ND (where she and Bob are tearing down the old kennel and building a new one so she can board more dogs), and have been back to Billings for Fourth of July and a get together with friends, and visited my grandmother! It’s been a very very busy summer, and now it’s half gone.
Between the trips, Bob and Jean have been trying to get some building done. Last year they were building a kennel inside a building, with just the runs on the
You get to see this one
just because I like it! It's from the same volcanic ash sunset. outside, so they weren’t ever held up by rain (although I'm not sure it did rain last year), but this year the whole project is outside, and we’ve had rain more days than not. Sure, it’s very green here, and gorgeous, but the weather is complicating things. And as I’m writing this, I’m wearing jeans, a long sleeve t-shirt, wishing I had a sweatshirt on, and willing Al Gore to show up in North Dakota…”global warming” is about as evident here as an “unexplained weight loss”! It was 48 degrees this morning, and is predicted to 46 tonight. IN JULY??? Yes. Bizaare.
One week ago several tornados hit the south side of Dickinson (we’re 10 miles south of Dickinson, and were spared all of the devastation); the estimated damage costs are $20 million, with more than 560 homes and businesses damaged (Dickinson has a population of 16,400). The National Guard moved in to shut off the intersections into the damaged areas to anyone without an ID saying they had a reason to be in there, but the parts we can see from the highway are just overwhelming; I can’t begin to imagine what it must be like to have
your house and furniture reduced to a pile of smelly trash. Bob and Jean spent Sunday afternoon on one of the cleaning crews (I couldn’t because our granddaughter Hannah is staying with us, and you have to be over 18 to go into the area~~I am, but Hannah isn’t. We went to visit my grandmother instead) and the stories they told were surreal. I haven’t heard the plans for the displaced families, but when entire apartment buildings had to be evacuated, you know there are more families needing than there are places available. One of the miracles of the whole thing is that two people were taken two the emergency room, treated and released, and that's all the accidents that required doctoring! Isn't that stunning? But as far as the personal destruction, I don't even know what to say about it, except this is just a tiny sample of what the Katrina area must have been like, as well as other areas hit by similar disasters every day. I have so very much to be grateful for.
I probably won’t write again until the end of the summer. We’ll be heading to Kansas the beginning of September for our
The old kennel...
now you see it, later you'll see it revised. The building had to come down to the studs, which had to be spaced in an orderly manner, and then the roof extended and the walls rebuilt. Also, the fences around the runs were taken down because they'll have a different layout. next project. Until then, stay safe, and have a sunny summer.
On a much lighter note, here are some points to ponder:
• Have you noticed that if a place offers free refills, the straws are very narrow, but if they have takeout, the straw is big enough to suck a small bird through?
• And how big the hole is in a tube of toothpaste? You can almost stick your brush into the tube to put the stuff on.
• And how small a bar of bath soap is~~that’s the size hotel soap used to be.
• Don’t even get me started on the size of a Hershey bar...
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Bev
non-member comment
Why is it that summer can go so quickly. We have moved thru the cold and on to the 93 degees. I loved the picture of Hannah and Dolly. I do have to say as an"old person," all I could see was Lisa pushing. The side view of Hannah looks like her mom. Hope the builders are making progress. Love to all