STAYCATION DAY 8 -- THURSDAY

IF ANYTHING CAN GO WRONG, IT WILL – ESPECIALLY WHEN MIKE IS OUT OF TOWN.

Staycation 2016 venue

When Mike traveled as a function of his job, we used to laugh that the worst problems came up while he was out of town. For instance, just before Hallie was born, a water line broke (not mine) and flooded the back yard while Mike was in Boise. Now that he’s retired, it seems this “Murphy’s Law” is still in effect. The new and problematic wireless printers have not worked in his absence, so I coped by getting out the little HP1600, which we kept “just in case.” Tuesday I learned about resetting the modem and restored my internet connection. And last night I had a live chat with “Kevin” (first language not English) at Dish because the remote quit working. Long story short, they’re sending us a new remote to replace this defective one. It’s just hard for me to accept that it could be working one minute and dead the next.

Vance -- one Christmas Eve

Sometimes these simple yet frustrating problems are just opportunities to be grateful for our blessings. It’s just not right to let these things upset me, I tell myself. That said, we all know the problem. We’ve come to depend on our electronics and when they fail, we’re stuck.

Nina and Charlie Portfors, Red River Hot Springs, c. 1950

Today I reorganized, made new lists, and puttered along with this and that, but tomorrow I’ll have to work faster. The scanner and the slides are already put away. Hopefully I won’t let another four years go by before I tackle it again. Perhaps I’ll just take a day and get it done.

It was 81 by noon, then dropped back to a pleasant 74 for our afternoon walk. No rain, though.

I’m sure the dogs miss Mike, but today I sensed their concern more keenly. Bess kept whining at the door with her old tennis ball, wanting me to come out and play. This evening she whimpered and crawled into my lap for a little cuddling. She often curls up with Mike on the sofa, and I suspect she needed more human contact. Nellie, too, was restless and not content to stay in the house. She wanted to be outside, which was difficult because I have to watch her. The old dog always becomes my dog.

Mike called this evening from Lakeview, OR. It was an easy day, and he said he would have traveled further except for the lack of accommodations in central Oregon. Not much there. I’m sure he’ll get an early start and make good time tomorrow, what with the anticipation of getting home. And that makes it all the more important that I accomplish my list. KW