Daily Archives: January 21, 2011

Aging, Family, Retirement

The Hereford Queen

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Winter                                                               Full Moon of The Cold Month   0 degrees

Here’s a picture I took with my cell phone at the Great Western Stock Show.  That’s the Hereford Queen in white, all white.    Hereford Queen

Confusing.  Yesterday I had cold symptoms that I had to knock back for Kate’s party.  Thank you Dayquil.  Today most of the symptoms are gone except that nagging, worn out feeling, the sort you get when your body has other things to do than help you be alert.

Today marks the end of Kate’s second full work week of retirement, one in Colorado and one in Minnesota.  We’re still sinking back into it, realizing the nuances.  Probably won’t be clear for a year or two.  We need a full garden and holiseason cycle, too.

This has been a cold winter already and it will get yet colder tonight, though not as cold as last night.  A fire, a book, supper, TV and bed.  That’ll put this cold back in the bottle.

This was a busy week with the Target tour on Monday, the Woolly Meeting at Scott’s in the evening of the same day, getting ready for the Legcom and holding the meeting, then the last minute prepping for Kate’s party, the Expressionist tour yesterday morning, then the party in the evening.  That’s a lot for this guy in terms of outside obligations.  Next week looks a bit more subdued, though Monday looks like a lot going on, again.  This means I can get back in the Latin groove, push myself toward finishing Vanished.  It’s a keeper and I’ve a good bit of it done already.

Aging, Family, Retirement

Kate Has Other Things To Do

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Winter                                                                         Full Moon of the Cold Month      -18 outside right now

Woolly Mammoths on parade.  The herd came to the event last night.  Docents came, too.  Tom and Allison and Kathleen and Wendy and Joy and Carreen and Grace and Jean-Ann 6702011-01-20_0607and Paul. Paula came.  John Pastorius came.  Suwy came, not once, but twice, at the beginning and at the end.  From Shoreview.  Before and after work.  Kate’s nail lady and hair dresser came.  The Perlichs came, Lydia and Pam.  Greg and Ana came.  Nurses and docs and lab techs from the Coon Rapids Clinic came.  Jane and Dobbie West.  Around 100 over the evening.  Lois and Hank came.  Jettie Ann, Jean Ann, Mingjen and a couple of other CIF folks came.  There was even a woman who wandered in, not sure what was going on.  Once she realized it was a retirement party she went to the gift shop and bought Kate a small beaded purse that matched her jacket.

We gave away fabric bowls, a pillow, a purse and a pint of Artemis Honey.  Conversation ebbed and flowed.  Servers passed sparkling cider and champagne, appertifs, too.  One, a Kobe beef with shrimp in truffle aioli sauce got rave reviews.  The Turtle Island String Quartet played through the speakers and the buffet always had a few folks at the counter.

Some wandered off into the museum and came back.  Many had not been to the museum before.  Many had.  Kate wanted the event to provide closure.  She said it did.

Then we loaded up the truck and drove home, the temperature dropping degree by degree to -13 as we got home.