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About this blog

Gizmo's,Gadgets and other musings

Entries in this blog

The hill is getting a little steeper

I have noticed as of late it is getting harder to stay motivated to do the things I know help me and even those I enjoy doing. I still exercise often, but not as much as I should. It just seems to be harder to get it done. I don't do well in crowds anymore, and prefer to be alone or just with Lesley. Even getting ready for the fishing season this year was tougher than it has ever been before. However since I have had some success the few times I have gone fishing this year, that part seems to be

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Pictures of our recent canoe trip

Well I finally got the pics of our canoe trip in July along the US/Canadian border posted in an old album I created longer use. So the album title makes no sense but here they are. We are already planning at least two similar trips next year. Well Lesley is still in NZ, mum's birthday party is next week, so she is a flurry of activity. I have been out in the garden picking beans and snow peas, blanching them per Lesley's instructions and putting them in the freezer. That is about the extent of m

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Short, busy summer

Hard to believe that our summer is coming to a close, but it is. Biggest news for us here is the canoe trip Lesley and I took in July along the US/Canadian border. We allowed 8 days to paddle about 30 miles and do 9 portages which is the land between lakes you must carry all of your gear between. A few of them were most challenging, hilly, rocky, long, one was called Monument portage because it had three official monuments showing the US/Canadian border. We really don't need to see that one agai

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

All the air is out of the room

I don't know how the rest of you feel, but I feel like all the oxygen just got sucked out of the room. This horriffic tragedy in Conneticut as just made me realize how insignificant any of my "problems" are. Hard to think or write about much else, but maybe a theraputic blog might help. so I'll try. Life here is good, winter is coming on, snow has arrived with more coming. The leanto I built this fall for the ATV while Lesley was in New Zealand is working out very well. After plowing snow I park

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Back on track

Well the MRI is done and all is well. The spot on the liver is harmless according to the dr. Just a broken blood vessel. So all the travel plans have been reset and modified. We are now leaving the day after the Super Bowl. Lesley has reset her driving lesson and rebooked the campground for us. It is sooooo nice to have her helping to do such details without me having to do it all. She is now more computer literate than I am in some areas. The trip had to be shortened to three weeks because Lesl

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Mum is here and well

Lesley's mum is now here and settling into life in North East Tennessee. She handled the long flight from New Zealand to Los Angles very well. She and Lesley spent 5 days there resting and spending time with relatives. A 5 hour flight here and all is now going very well. The paperwork and medical exam are in the hands of the immigration lawyer and mum's health is good. She has a nanny nap once or twice a day and awakes bright and cheerful   What a joy it is to have her with us at this

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Hummm?

Musings, what if's, wondering what could have been, woulda, coulda, shoulda, maybe taking the other fork in the road...... WARNING, I have not a clue exactly where this is going, but here goes. Put on your helmet and goggles. A few nights ago Lesley and I went to a local concert put on by local musicians doing much of their own written music. Then the same feeling came on me that usually does at such events. I hate to say it but at such times I confess to having a touch of envy watching musician

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

One more battle....

As I mentioned before I now have Colitis. The good news is that it is gone thru a diet our son found for me. As all things in life can be, it was a struggle, but Lesley and I have overcome it. My gut is now better than it has been in my adult life. I used to always have a Tums or Rolaid in my pocket, now we don't even have them in the house. We have both dropped 15 lb or so without even trying. The thought of selling the motorhome because I would no longer be able to use it has passed, and as I

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Reality check

The last blog entry I shared my dreams and fanticies. Now reality has set in. Lesley and I spent two days shoveling 3-4 ft of snow off our roof. The forecast of and additional 1-2 ft of heavy, wet snow sparked us into action. The snow we shoveled off the garage then had to be reshoveled from the door, or our car would have been trapped until spring whenever that may come. Our roof is about 2300 sq ft. I doubt we will do that again! We did save about $500 by doing it ourselves vs hiring it out. N

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Small voices in the head

Anyone ever have two competing small voices in the mind each trying to make it's point? Speaking of point I'll get to mine. During the recovery from my recent knee surgery, exercise was not possible. OK, now that the recovery from the surgery is done I decided it is time to start exercising again.   You would not believe the reasons the voice in my mind came up with to put it off. I started today expecting lots of strength loss because of the layoff of 2 months. Happily not much loss, but one

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Cold winter update

Well it has been a real 1950's style winter here in Northern MN. We have had 93" so far this season. Did I mention the cold? A few weeks ago the local airport, which is just a few miles from us measured -61 below 0 wind chill. The actual air temp was -31. I measured -30 the same day. The dogs go out and do what they have to very fast! No sniffing everything like they usually do!   I have never plowed so much snow as I have this year. Seems like that is mostly what I have been doing. A few wee

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

My "family"

A bit of news here first, then an entry I hope some get a smile out of. We bought a new car yesterday, Lesley is thrilled. She is "vertically challenged" (short legs). In most cars, when she adjusts the seat so she can comfortably reach the pedals, she is too close to the steering wheel. The new Honda we just bought solves that problem with a tilt/telescoping steering wheel. She says she has never been so comfortable driving in any other car.   Now I will take my literary promiscuity to a new

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Missing man found

On my last entry I told of a man who had gone missing while picking blueberries. His body has been found. It was about a mile from his truck. He apparently fell down a rocky slope and died. Don't know if a medical reason caused his fall or he just slipped. The autopsy should reveal the facts. The area he was found in had already been searched three times. The spot is so difficult to get to that when the people that found him tried to lead the sheriff back to the spot they had trouble finding it.

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Just the two of us....

Lesley and I are realizing it is just the two of us in the end. I have no family to speak of. She is learning that her family is changing and our lives are changing so there is a divergence of wishes, thoughts, and goals. Her mum is soon 94 and her life revolves around the day she finds her self in. Her health is deteriorating some but she is still amazing. Living on her own but no longer driving. A great spirit still wells up and out of her. Our son just finished 6 months here in the States tra

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Busy, busy, busy

We have been so busy I just have not had time to even think about blogging, But here goes. First the frustration of trying to post a new gallery here. I have some pics I would like to post of our Alfa but could only get one to add to an existing album. So you may have to look at previously posted pics as well. I cannot make a new gallery, and I just don't have the time or mental energy to fight it now. I have never been able to easily add photo's here and I just do not know why. When I try to f

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

General ramblings and news update

Well winter is on the way, hope we get more snow this year than we did last. Lesley is sitting in her deer hunting blind as I write this, today being the start of deer hunting season. She and I sighted in her rifle yesterday. I hadn't shot a rife for about 40 years, but did make one shot. I hit about 1" away from the red bullseye at 75 yards. It felt good, I may try deer hunting next year. I told Lesley I could do blind or tree stand hunting, but walking thru the woods flushing them out would no

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

I wore it out!!

I got a Bowflex exercise machine about six months before my stroke. For six months it made a nice clothes rack and one more thing to dust. Then my stroke in Dec 2006. As soon as I got home from the hospital and was able I started to use it. Just a little at first, then as I was able I used it more.   Now the good news. The roller seat no longer worked because of wear. The resistance rods also lost all their resistance and now sag uselessly. So a new seat has been installed and I turned the rod

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Sad news

Some sad news today to report. Regular readers will recall me mentioning my friend "Mike" I met while in rehab. We stroked about the same time, and our recoveries were similar. Mike rode his bike up to 20 miles a day after his stroke and was never satisfied with his progress, always striving for more. Mike has passed away unexpectedly. He developed a bleed in his brain, not a stroke, but the result was terminal. I went and saw him in Duluth hosp (125 miles away) while he was there I'm glad I did

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

One phone call

My oh my how one phone call can change things. Last week I had an ultra sound of my liver. The local va has been watching a spot on my liver for almost two years now. This last six month check showed it has grown a bit. My doc called 4 hours after the test and said he wanted an mri to be sure. He does not feel it is serious but wants the mri to see exactly what is going on. It is scheduled for January 18th.   Soooo, all the travel plans due to start this week are out the window. The driving le

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Exciting news! For us anyway

Lesley is preparing to go back to New Zealand next week, April 3. She will be there three weeks. Then, surprise, surprise, she will be selling the house and bringing mum back to live with is permanently! Mum has initiated the conversation this time all by herself. She is now lonely and feels deserted. The two great grand daughters have both passed thru her house on short term stays in the past 8 months and both are busy living their lives. One is 20, the other 18. So, school, jobs, boys, etc are

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Here at last in Tennessee

Sorry for the long gap in postings, life has been busy to say the least. The saying goes that old age is not for sissies. I can now say that moving across country is not for sissies either. As previously posted we were planning to move from MN to TN. The move is now done, new to us house and all furniture shipped and accounted for.   Nearly finished with the endless address changes, insurances, vehicle registrations, etc, etc. The new house is fine but as expected some changes needed to make

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Life with mum

Lesley's mum now is settling in with us. She is accepting her new life here in TN, a big change from 94 years of living in New Zealand. We can detect some homesickness, but she knows that moving here was her only alternative other than a NZ nursing home. She is very bright, mentally amazingly sharp, no memory issues, and still able to get around with a cane and walker. A few naps during the day and she is refreshed and active all day. Amazing.   We just completed a month long trip in o

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

June camping trip pic's

I finally got the pic's downloaded and published. It is a very complex procedure here, at least it is to me. I nearly gave up but finally got it done, don't ask me how.   Anyway, not many pic's but enough for you to get the idea. We are planning next years trip already. Great new friend.   We are off to Cleveland, OH for modifications to our motor home. About a ten day trip. I did get the portable satellite working a few days ago, now when we are on long trips we can watch TV if we choose to

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

Where do I go from here?

Another long day to Duluth yesterday. Caused me to ponder on my future direction of treatments. We all here of things that will supposedly make us better, even promise to make us what we were again. Now that I have passed the four month timeline, I wonder. Am I starting to plateau or not. The "experts" say so. But is it a self fulfilling prophecy? We hear it from people smarter than ourselves. Also after four months it is easy for motivation to wane, so does it happen because we think it will? I

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley

I have been bad

Well folks, I have to confess I have been bad. I had a fitness goal in mind to reach this winter. Well last week I was able to do the weight and repetitions I wanted to without too much strain. I then proceeded to take 6 days off, since now that I have reached my goal, I can drop from 3 sessions a week to 2. I intended to take a 3 day "vacation" from exercise. My how easy it is to get lazy. I took six days off. Today I got back with it and punished myself by adding another new exercise to the se

GeorgeLesley

GeorgeLesley