I am moving the blog to Wordpress - I think. Visit colbyjramblings.wordpress.com to check it out.

Another Try

I am going to switch to Wordpress eventually, but in the meantime I need to find ways to deal with Blogpad Pro’s growing bugs. I suspect the problem with Blogpad Pro is that it has not been updated to keep up with iOS changes on the iPad. The developers took their money and ran. I the meantime I will do my editing in Notepad and then past it into Blogpad Pro. That way I will not lose text. Photos are another issue and I will have to live with those problems. 

In the blog post that vanished on upload yesterday I wrote about how ColbyJ’s Ramblings sometimes reminds me of an old Road & Track column that I enjoyed for years; Miscellaneous Ramblings. That’s what I do in this blog, ramble about miscellaneous thoughts.

In mid-April I bought an Amazon Fire 10 when they were offered at $40 off. $109 down from $149 was a deal I couldn’t pass up. Since then I have been learning to use it and filling it up with music and books. I have also been learning its uses and limitations. It is not a tablet for multiple uses such as an iPad. Stick with books, music, and videos and you have a really good tool. Not so much for other things. A number of available apps just don’t seem to work on the Fire 10. For example, OneNote from Microsoft. Just doesn’t work, though it is great on my iPad. I think the lesson is to stick with the iPad for “serious” needs and use the Fire 10 for music, reading, and video.

Well, Blogpad Pro did it again, uploaded a blank page to Blogger. Arggggghhhh!

Miscellaneous Ramblings

Damn Blogpad Pro. Four paragraphs and about an hour VANISHED.

Beautiful Spring

A beautiful spring day here in Longmont and we had a wonderful day. Sharon sprayed weeds in our yard with here mixture of salt and white vinegar, I did some pre-packing for our trip (and found two shirts in a suitcase I hadn’t used in two years.) Then we showered and headed off for brunch/lunch at Longs Peak Pub and Taphouse. I had a really tasty breakfast burrito and Sharon had wings and fries. Both were very good and washed down with a beer and a margarita.

Then it was off on errands. The biggest one was finding a swimsuit for Sharon. First we picked up some earrings at a local jeweler. Sharon wanted to replicate some she had lost years ago. She designed them with the jeweler and picked them up a couple of weeks ago but they weren’t quite right. Back to the drawing board and this version is working for her. Then it was off to Boulder. We both had things to pick up there that they held for us and charged when the latest sale started. Pretty handy. While there I found a pair of shorts and they left the store with us. Then off to Nordstrom Rack, but that was a bust. Next door to Nordstrom Rack was a BC Surf and Sport. Sharon looked for swimwear there but struck out. I on the other hand found another pair of shorts. Score! Next was Changes in Latitude - a travel store. Sharon didn’t find a swim suit but did score a couple of tops and some leggings. I got a belt and a couple of luggage tags. And, they told us where to go for swimwear just a short ways away. We hit the jackpot on swimwear and Sharon found a really nice outfit. I found some new flip flops! 

This day was on top of getting together with friends the afternoon before for happy hour at 95a Bistro. We had a great time. Last night and today were were enjoying top down weather in the Camaro. Right now I am enjoying a Negroni as I type this.

 

A Bunny Drinking At Our Pond

 

Ducks On Our Patio

 

L.C. On The Patio

 

What We’ll Be Doing Soon

 

 

Travel

”Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” 

 Mark Twain from Innocents Abroad

The Winds Came

Yesterday the winds came to Longmont. We had sustained winds of around 35 mph and gusts to 62mpf. Everything was blowing, including our furniture and grills. Our Weber grill left us twice and I turned it upside down next to the house out of the wind. The Traeger was upset and pused into the gas grill. We had to tie it to the pergola. The gas grill was up against the back door and blew to the 2x4 I had bolted to the concrete. We have seen high winds here before but not as fierce as yesterday. Trucks were blown over, trees were downed, and it was generally uncomfortable outside chasing items.

Yesterday morning before the winds Sharon and I each spotted our first yellow headed blackbirds. They were back today and they are pretty things.

       

 

   

Springing In Longmont

Today was lovely in Longmont. Mid 60s and sunny. Sharon sprayed weeds with salt and vinegar and I pulled some. I trimmed and pruned plants and cleaned up the pond. We visited new neighbors and generally had a very nice day, though Sharon is in pain from a combo of her workout at Orange Theory and pumping the weed sprayer. I worked on my tan and read

The ducks were swimming and dining in the pond. Hopefully they were dining on algae and not young fish.

In years past I would have been finishing my tax returns this weekend. Not this year, filing was simple and easy. No rental property, no business income, only lived in one state, one job, no estimated taxes, easy peasy. Filed over a month ago and even got refunds. No payments to make. Life is good.

Three weeks plus a couple of days and we will be in Sitges!

 

Ducks Came To Visit

 

And A Rabbit

 

Sitges

 

 

Around Longmont

We have a wall of book boxes in the garage, moved from Glen Ellyn the first of June 2016. I have been working on many projects in this house and this is one of the big ones - cabinets and book shelves for Sharon’s office. The shelves are now in and Sharon is unpacking that wall of boxes from the garage. I am now working on the doors for the lower cabinets. Next I will build some cabinets in the basement. It seems there is always something to do here but it keeps me off the streets and out of trouble.

I love listening to the sounds of birds from our patio. Because there is a creek filled with cat tails running behind the house we have an abundance of redwing blackbirds. I also hear doves, finches, ducks, robins, and others. It is very relaxing.

Drove around town today with the top down on the Camaro. Top down time is my favorite time of the year!

Unpacking Cookbooks

 

Found While Unpacking Books - 2013 Birthday Bourbon

 

A Neighbor Comes For Dinner

 

 

Homeland Security To Track Bloggers

Journalists and bloggers are all subversive I guess. It is seeking a contractor that can help it monitor traditional news sources as well as social media and identify “any and all” coverage related to the agency or a particular event.

Big Brother is watching me, and you. 

https://biglawbusiness.com/homeland-security-to-compile-database-of-journalists-bloggers/

Blogger, Wordpress?

My research into blogging editor options is leaving me confused and frustrated. When I started blogging I used Blogger. Blogger still works but it is not an offline option when I am traveling and also does not work well on an iPad. On online PC yes, iPad no. My editor of choice on the iPad has been BlogPad Pro. But, it has not been updated in over three years and apparently changes to iOS have made it unstable, crashing at inopportune times.

Blogger is a Google product and works in conjunction with BlogSpot. I am happy to user Blogger on my PC but I want to use my iPad dammit. I like the ability to upload photos from my iPhone/iPad. I like the ease of using the iPad.

Lots of bloggers are using Wordpress, but that is a subscription service at $8.00 a month. I can use ColbyJ.com which would be nice, but I am not sure I really want to use Wordpress. More research is in order. I do know it will be a pain to convert my BlogSpot blog entries to Wordpress - and I have eight years of blog entries in two blogs starting in 2010.

Vaccinations

Blog Pad Pro has done it to me again. I finished a post, saved it and then published it - and it came up empty and then overwrote my saved version with a blank post. I need a new offine blogging tool.

As a side effect of my bone marrow transplant/stem cell transplant I must retake all of my childhood and adult immunizations. This is because the transplant wiped out all of my immunity. Yeserday I visited the UCHealth Longmont Clinic to begin the process. Dealing with the clinic to get this appointment was a terrible experience. I had taken paperwork to them over two weeks ago and they misplaced it. Then they asked questions that they shouldn’t have if they had read the paperwork. “Why do you need the immunizations?” “We need your immuniztion history.” However, once I got to the clinic and met with the Nurse Practitioner, I knoew I was talking to someone who knew what she was doing.

• Hib Vaccine - Haemophilus influenzae type b
• Hepatitis A and B Vaccine combined
• Tdap Vaccine - Tetanus, diptheria, and pertussis
• Polio Vaccine
• Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV13)

Five injections, three in my left arm and two in my right. I didn’t cry but they did not give me a sucker. A day later and my arms are still tender. My shoulders hurt. I didn’t sleep well and Tylenol helped little. But, this rounbd is done. I get more in June. I the course of this I contempleted the “anti vaccers” those misguided people who don’t believe in vaccinations and by doing so put the rest of us at risk - the young, the old, those with compromised immune systems, and those like me with no immunity because of bone marrow transplants. They anger me.

 

And More Spring Break

Kristie’s Birthday

Argh! Blog Pad Pro is giving me fits and crashes when I am adding photos, thus the Spring Break Series.

I had a nice visit with the Jordans of Redmond Oregon. Kristie and I had a couple of lazy days together and then on Sunday evening Avery and Anika joined us. John had to work through my visit except for Wednesday. Wednesday was a big adventure as we took Bob out into the hills and road up steep hills and splashed through puddles and explored narrowing trails. Lots of fun.

It was a good visit and then I headed back to Colorado. I felt that the scenery was better west bound than east bound. Odd, same country but from a different direction. Crossing Oregon on Highway 20 was easier than Highway 26 - faster and straighter most of the way. Weather was pretty darn good both ways. On the way to Oregon I had about an hour of rain in Idaho as I approached Twin Falls and then the last hour as I neared Redmond a combo of rain, sleet, and snow. On the way back I had sunny skies until I approached Laramie Wyoming. Then, clouds built and I could see snow in the distance. Eventually I had sleet then snow and high winds. When I turned south onto I-25 towards Longmont I drove back into sunny skies.

I stayed at Hampton Inns on the way to Oregon and back. Twin Falls Idaho heading west and Brigham City Utah heading east. Dinner in Twin Falls at Jaker’s was great, dinner at Brigham House was not. But, the hotels were comfortable and Hampton Inn breakfasts are passable and reliable.

I didn’t have to deal with too much craziness on the drive either way. There was the guy in rural Oregon who turned left in front of me and the guy who passed me, pulled in front of me then hit his brakes all while hand holding his phone. I do wonder why drivers have not discovered cruise control or or turn signals or hands free phone options in their cars. Too much technology for them to handle? Oh, and when you pull into a rest area, use the parking spaces, not the traffic lane or the truck parking. I’m surprised some of you can find your way home.

The Camaro is a wonderful long distance cruiser. So much quieter and more powerful than the Miata. It was a joy to drive, comfortable, great gas mileage - about 28.5 mpg for the trip. I wish the weather was warmer so that I could have the top down! I doubt I will drive out to Oregon again unless it is part of a bigger trip. We will in the coming year visit Mt. Rushmore and spots in New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah. Taos, Monument Valley, Grand Canyon, Bryce, here we come!

Desert Scenery

Bob

Brigham City Utah

Where’s Colby?

Continental Divide

Spring Break Continued

Spring Break

Avery and Anika are on Spring Break this week and I drove to Oregon to spend most of it with them. The last time I drove to Redmond was in the Miata and I have to say the drive is much more comfortable in the Camaro. Quieter, cozier, faster, and many more electronic diversions. Built in navigation and SiriusXM and heated seats and a steering wheel heater make for a very comfortable drive, and surprisingly enough, the gas mileage in the Camaro is as good or better than the Miata. 

Longmont to Twin Falls to Redmond. I took the scenic route across Oregon and got tired of all the turns and ups and downs. This is my last time doing this. I will take a more direct route for the return. The scenery in Wyomings and Idaho was pretty good. Utah doesn't;’t waste much money on their rest areas. Pretty spartan - or is it pretty Mormon? The Temple I saw in Twin Falls was huge. No lack of funds for this. 

 

Mormon Temple in Twin Falls

 

Shoshone Falls, Idaho

Scenic Oregon

 

Goodbye To An Old Friend

 

 

 

Living Three Months At A Time

 

Driving to Iowa

I’ve been pondering the fact that I now seem to live my life three months at a time. I am on a three month schedule with my oncologist. I have a bone marrow transplant, then three months later a scan and blood tests, then three months later a scan and blood tests, and three months later (tomorrow) no scan but more blood tests, and three months later more tests. I am expecting good test results tomorrow, but still it is a bit nerve wracking. I wonder what my schedule will be going forward for the next few years? Have I ever said that cancer sucks? Well it does.

Last week we drove to Davenport Iowa for Brady’s Seventh birthday. She is quite the princess. We had a nice visit and Brady enjoyed her birthday weekend and skating party.  The drive there was easy with good weather. The drive back home, not so much. Rain, fog, snow kept us occupied. Good to be home in Longmont.

Today Sharon and I booked our flights to and from Barcelona for May. We will be there over three weeks and are excited already. We are flying in Premium Economy on the long flights - this looks pretty nice on both American and British Air. Denver to Miami to Barcelona on the way there and then Barcelona to London to Denver on the return.

Brady Seventh Birthday weekend

 

Team Knox

 

I don’t think they missed us.

 

Chicken Scalopini from my new Nick Stellino cookbook

 

Goat cheese stuffed Anaheim peppers at Cyclehops