Greetings from Montana!

So, here I am in southwest Montana, in what is called “God's Country” by some people. It is a gorgeous place. But I must say, there are many areas of this nation that can easily be referred to as God's Country. Our nation is, to put it mildly, a fantastically beautiful place. I've seen much of it in the last 10 months and, the good Lord willing, will see more of it in the future.

However, I'll be taking a short “vacation” from traveling for a few weeks. (It is hard to believe that I've been here over a week already!)

The Agenda: Simply relaxing and taking care of a few “chores” such as sorting photos and deleting duplicates from my hard drive, which is rapidly filling up. Never fear, ALL photos (except the obvious duds) are also stored on two external drives. The van is in need of a good cleaning too so I'll be removing everything from it as well as doing some sorting and discarding of things I think I no longer need, which I don't think will be all that much.

The local library has wifi (Yay!!) that is not “fast” but isn't too awfully slow so I've spent an hour or two there nearly every day (they are closed on Sunday and Monday). But most of my time has been spent working on the computer. I have made some headway with sorting and deleting images from the netbook but it is a slow and somewhat tedious process. However, seeing those pictures again has brought back some wonderful memories as well as more than a few “Huh, what is that? Why did I take that?” moments. LOL.

Now, Susan, if you're reading this, I just want you to know that I'm not complaining... but television reception is nearly nonexistent (one channel comes in but it's fuzzy) and NPR is the only radio station that comes in clear. Luckily they have a collection of DVDs and VCR Tapes (remember those?) so I've been watching a few movies (most I've never seen and some I've never heard of). It's almost like leading a “normal” life!

I haven't done much sightseeing yet, but that too is on the agenda. After all, Yellowstone National Park is only two hours away! The day after my arrival I visited with an acquaintance who also has a place here (he influenced Susan and Don's choice of vacation homes) and he gave me a list of “must see” places in the area. So Sunday afternoon (July 4th) I went for a drive along one of the area highways. Soooo pretty. I think I'm going to like it here...




I will be forever indebted to my friends Susan and Don for their generosity. I know I've said it before, but it truly cannot be said often enough – THANK YOU!

Attempts at Family Pictures

I like to do group shots of us at least once a year. And every year I remember why we hardly ever took family portraits when I had all five kids at home. It's just fine when it's me and the girls. My girls are focused and ready for action when it comes to taking pictures!





Somehow when the boys enter the mix, it just isn't quite as easy though. I'm not quite sure what the problem is. I can't quite put my finger on it.



Notice the super model who stays spot on, regardless of the distractions!

She's a pro!



Can you guess the drama star of the family?



It doesn't help any when Dad is on the other side and I'm taking the pictures.







That's ok. Someday they will have kids and I can always teach them to do the same!



At least they are old enough to take pictures of us now. That is one sign they are growing up. As for the rest, I have to laugh because they are still such kids at heart at times. I hope they never lose that. Even if it does mean I can't get great family pictures of us all.



Ashleigh, we missed you today! It's just not the same without you. Although as you can see, they can act just as silly without you! Happy Holidays from the silly family!

Fiddle-Dee-Dee

My garden is in Austin – I’ve been an Austin gardener for years. Why, oh why did I buy this Gardenia jasminoides ‘Veitchii’? I knew it was dumb even before I read ”the infamous gardenia thread”.
So why? Well, for one thing, it was on sale at Red Barn, and cost less than an ugly bouquet at the grocery store. And the plant was already budded, ready to pop. There’s even a chance it’ll live, since a fairly large gardenia shrub grows about 6 blocks from here, blooming on the East side of a brick house. Miss Scarlet made me do it. On June 30th, seventy years had passed since Gone With the Wind hit the bookstores, and I decided to reread the book. Although the romance seemed the same, there were aspects I hadn’t noticed when I was younger. Had Margaret Mitchell always talked so much about the landscape? The pages are full of pine trees, peach trees, apple trees, magnolias, oaks, cedars and dogwoods. People gather on porches, rock on verandas, sit in arbors and stroll in rose gardens. Mockingbirds & jays make noise, while Scarlet passes over lawns made of clover and Bermuda grass, and remarks upon daffodils and jonquils, yellow jessamine, Cherokee roses and violets, blackberry brambles, crab apple trees, honeysuckle, sweet shrubs, hills of sweet potatoes, rows of peas & beans, fields of cotton, palmettos, wistaria, crepe myrtles, bald cypress, live oaks covered in moss, ivy, smilax, moss, and grapevines, coleus, geranium, oleander, hydrangea, elephant ear, rubber plants, nasturtiums, hollyhocks, crimson, yellow & white roses, ferns and gladioli. The young women wear fragrant Cape jessamine & pink tea roses in their hair or pinned at the bodice. Most of these plants summoned some sort of mental image, but ‘Cape Jessamine’ was unfamiliar. This turned out to be another name for Gardenia, loved for scented wrist corsages. So when that sale plant beckoned, to own my own fragrant Cape Jessamine was irresistible.

Dinner With Friends at Oakwood Smokehouse

This past week has been quieter than normal as far as doing activities here in The Villages. Rich and Donna have been house hunting and are now the owners of a beautiful house in Lake Placid! That means I have had more quiet time at home. I have been able to do tons of scrapbooking, so I have been quite content.



We have managed to get out and play pickleball, deciding after a day at Mulberry to return to Churchill. They are very friendly at Mulberry, but nothing beats the fun level at Churchill.



We also managed to fit in another dinner with Buddy and Diane who are still in the area. This time we chose Oakwood and took advantage of their rib special. They offer a full rack of ribs, two side dishes and garlic bread for $10.99. All of us did not have the ribs, but we all agreed the food was delicious.




We are winding down here for our time in The Villages. We are enjoying every minute we can in the next few weeks, being sure to not waste any time before we do have to leave! We have not had rain every single night for this past week also, so knocking on wood that it stays that way until we leave. When it doesn't rain, we can sneak in pickleball at night and play twice a day!




Living the life in wonderful Florida!

Anniversary Fashion Friday

It has recently been revealed on facebook that jjobrien is "in a relationship".

Climbers, this one snuck up on me sideways on a Tuesday afternoon.

I get this "confirm relationship" message, I hesitate for a moment, start considering the ramifications, I mean we have children, grandchildren, a house, cars, but this facebook relationship thing is looking more official than anything I've been used to up to this point.Having not officiated this relationship through achurch orstate registration, I think facebook might be the highestauthorityto recognise us.So it's time to come clean. But what facebook doesn't say is that this relationship started in 1972.It's true, I fell in love with Sandra Phoenix. Sorry, Dr. Phoenix phdHere's a few photos I have on hand this relationship anniversary day of March 4th.

Juice Alley, Mong Kok

Nice shirt jj, embroidered eagle on white cotton by Jag.

Those sunnies are mine now.



photo: Lee Cujes



Gearing up for the Chinese coldness in Mee and Gee store HKThis is where I first met mynew coat "Wolfie". Remember "Sheepy"? I still miss Sheepy.







Dressed for the chill at YangshuoSandra wearing "Peak" in black.













She also climbs.

A bit.

Sometimes.

Like this, on her 50th birthday in Ton Sai.













By the power invested in facebook, I do take this woman.













Our Satchels: a Review of Two

The Co-Habitant and I are often asked about our satchels. And as they are bike related (we use them to transport our laptops while cycling), I thought I'd review them here.

Mine is a brown leather satchel from Scaramanga. His is a black leather satchel from the Cambridge Satchel Co. Both are from the UK and both were purchased last summer.

The bag from the Cambridge Satchel Co. is technically not a satchel, but what they call a "batchel" - a satchel with a handle on top, so that you can carry it like a briefcase in addition to messenger style. The Cambridge Satchel Company offers traditionally made satchels, batchels and music bags in a variety of colours ranging from classic black, dark brown and navy blue, to eye popping red, yellow and purple. Their logo is a very cute bicycle, which is appropriate, as Cambridge is one of the few towns in England where bicycles rule the roads. The bags are handmade by skilled artisans in the North of England using traditional methods. I have to admit that I am biased in favour of this company, because the owner and I have a common alma mater and she generally seems like such a nice person. I wish her all the best, and definitely see a batchel of my own in the future once I have a smaller laptop.

This bag is the 15" size, measured on the outside. They come in a variety of sizes, but this is the largest. It accommodates a laptop that is 13" across (such as the smaller MacBooks) but will not fit a larger laptop. All satchels and batchels are available messenger style or backpack style, which I think is great. And notice the cute bicycle logo at the bottom!

Our favourite thing about this batchel aside from its beauty, is that it is structured. The leather is thick and stiff and retains its shape perfectly when the bag is empty. You can place the batchel down on a flat surface, and it will stand up on its own. This is great for carrying a laptop, because it provides support. The bags are unlined, but given the way they are made, I feel that lining is not necessary.

Closure is via the beautiful chrome coloured buckles you see in the photos. Everything is very sturdy; very well made, with beautiful forms and stitching.

Here is what the batchel looks like from the front, worn messenger-style. If you are male, the 15" size is really the only one that will fit your proportions, unless you are very short. If you are female, the smaller ones can be worn as a purse. And of course for children the smaller sizes are ideal and absolutely adorable in the red, yellow and purple colours.

I do not have any photos of the Co-Habitant wearing this bag while cycling, but he says it's great. The one alteration we had to make (to this and to my Scaramanga satchel as well), was to punch extra holes in the strap to allow us to shorten it - otherwise it is too long for cycling. Everything else was marvelous and perfect out of the box.

Now for my satchel! I do not know as much about Scaramanga Co. as I do about the Cambridge Satchel Co., but they sure make beautiful and comfortable bags. Available in a variety of sizes and styles, they offer purse-sized bags, laptop-sized bags, and enormous travel bags, in a choice of messenger style (the front flap is longer and has no buckles) or satchel style (shown in these photos). The natural, slightly distressed leather of my bag is the only material/colour available. It is a similar colour to Brooks "Honey", but perhaps with more tonal variation.

I love the way this bag is made - from the natural look of the leather to all the beautiful hardware, such as the rivets around the handle and closures. My bag is the "large, wide satchel" model, with handle (which is an optional add-on). It accommodates my 15" MacBookPro with room to spare. This is a very different bag from the Co-Habitant's batchel. The leather is soft and slouchy and the bag does not retain its shape when empty. Also, the leather does not provide enough thickness to support or cushion a laptop. If this is an issue for you, you will need to keep your laptop in a protective sleeve.

The sea green lining is beautiful! Inside, the satchel has two main compartments - each of them large enough to fit a 15"+ laptop or some books. There is an additional, smaller zipped up compartment in the front. However, as with the Co-Habitant's batchel, there are no small inner pockets for a mobile phone or camera, no pen loops, etc. For me that kind of stuff is actually important, but the overall quality of the bag nonetheless won over other bags that did have the small inner compartments. Perhaps some day I will make some pockets in it myself.

View from the front. As I have mentioned, we had to punch extra holes in the straps of both bags in order to make them short enough for cycling. So this is why you see the excessively long folded-over strap here. It is not entirely convenient, but not uncomfortable either. My only problem with this bag is that when I put my laptop and books in it, the overall weight is too much on my shoulder and back for cycling in the summer when I am wearing no extra padding over my skin: I get sores if I cycle with any bag other than Chrome worn over my bare skin. So if I am carrying something heavy, I can only wear satchels like this one once Fall begins and I have a sweater or a jacket on. However, with a smaller and lighter laptop this would not be a problem.

You can see some photos of me cycling with this bag here and here. I keep it either in the front basket or wear it, depending on the bike. Hope these reviews were useful - satchels are such wonderful things!

It Sounded Too Good to Pass By

Last week, driving along Alabama Highway 72, on the way to Springfield, Missouri we noticed the signs announcing “Coon Dog Cemetery” but didn't have time to stop just then. However, on the way back to Huntsville we made time for a little excursion. Of course, we took the long way around and thought we'd never find it, but eventually it appeared alongside the back-country road.



To be honest, we were laughing and joking about going to a dog cemetery. Now, don't get me wrong, I love dogs and several years ago had to put old Bootsie to rest. It was one of the most emotional things I'd had to do up to that time. So I know how deep the affection can be.



The truth is, we were totally blown away by what we saw when we finally arrived at the cemetery. Nearly 200 coon dogs have been laid to rest in that small plot of ground. Most have markers of some kind – from rustic wooden crosses to fancy stones. And nearly all have flowers, albeit artificial, decorating their resting place. I think my friend Lorene would have enjoyed a stop here...





Only Cemetery of Its Kind In The World.Only Coon Hounds are allowed to be buried.Troop First Dog Laid to Rest here Sept. 4, 1937Please Be Careful With Fire!



Nearly all of the graves are lovingly decorated.



Coon Dog Cemetery came into existence on Labor Day of 1937, when Key Underwood sadly buried his faithful companion “Troop, who was half redbone coonhound and half birdsong, and who was known through out the region as the best. He was "cold nosed," meaning he could follow cold coon tracks until they grew fresh, and he never left the trail until he had treed the coon.”





Track “wasn't the best but he was the best I ever had.”



Ruff Redbone.



Black Ranger “was good as the best and better than the rest.



The variety of styles of markers was fascinating.



Train's grave was originally marked with a brick wrapped in butcher paper.



A traditional marker now marks the spot where Train was laid to rest.



Easy Going Sam was the “Last One on the Wood.”

That's his collar wrapped around the cross.



Looks like the Coon won out over Loud.



There were several markers like this – with the information punched out of metal.

For more information about Coon Dog Cemetery see the “official” website. Also, Travels With Ace has a nice writeup about their visit.