MORNING HIKE AND OTHER TALES

Before I talk about the morning hike, I just want to say that yesterday Mike discovered that daughter Hallie posted an instructional video on her blog. It’s been up for a month, and since I knew she was working on it, I’m embarrassed that I overlooked it. You can see it here.

The promise of a good 2019 Elderberry Fest

Now for the hike. Mike and Bess often go for a hike in the morning, and this morning they went behind the house to the canyon rim. He said he was struck by the beauty of the morning scenes. He took the pictures on this post with his iPhone. 

Once they returned from the hike, Mike donned his cycling gear, loaded his bicycle in the Dakota, and left for his exer-cycling. He parks the Dakota where the paved highway begins and cycles into Nezperce. Once there, he refreshed himself with a cold drink and snack at the store and then pedaled back to the Dakota. That’s 26 miles round trip.

So, while he was gone, I suggested to Bess that she and I take a walk. She seemed a bit reticent, but she came along – until we reached Plank’s Pitch, that is. Then she hesitated, turned around, AND WENT HOME, leaving me to conquer the pitch on my own. No treat for her. I trudged on up the Pitch – huff, puff, wheeze – to the neighbor’s driveway before turning back, so I got a treat – a refreshing glass of iced tea with just a touch of lemonade.

Thursday (June 13), the UPS man delivered my handy-dandy gopher bait applicator. I had it out of the box before he even drove out of the yard. I love it! It’s so much better than bending over – or crawling along the ground – trying to find the rodent hole with the handle of a spoon. It looks a bit like a pogo stick. (Remember pogo sticks from days long ago when we entertained ourselves outside?) You locate the hole with the pointed end of the applicator and then release the bait down the tube so that it lands well into the hole. Mike observes that now that I have the burrowing rodent situation under control, I finally have a good tool. Well, I figure they may be quiet for the time-being, but like any rodent situation, it never really goes away.

Our new receiver/DVR came on Friday, and Mike wasted no time opening the box. By following the onscreen instructions, we had it up and running by ourselves in 20 minutes. Previously, new units had to be installed by a tech. The rep we talked to on Tuesday told us that we were required to return the old unit within ten days to avoid a charge of $350, so we carefully packed the old unit for shipping. However, no return label was included, so Mike called the company for instructions. Just throw it away, they said. We decided not to be in haste to do that. KW