Ramblings from Nebraska

More Ramblings

2011-07-07T22:40:00.004-04:00

July 7 2011. I cant't believe that it has been over 18 months since I last wrote on my blog. It isn't that I am so busy, it is just that I don't take the time to write. except for adding another dog to our little nest out in the west,Nothing much has changed. Griff is a Brussels Griffon and lives in our house with us. We have had rain this week, at least 3" in the last 24 hrs. It has been hot & humid. Good for the garden & also the weeds. Mowed part of the lawn today, will probably finish tomorrow. Provided it isn't raining. Didn't go anywhere or do anything spectacular to celebrate our nations independence day. We just stayed home and took it easy. Seems like I do that alot these days. Celebrated 82nd birthday by going to Omaha for an eye exam. Have to go back on the 21st for more tests. Rebbeca took me on the 26th & we had lunch together. Becca is in Haiti now, so will have to work out something else. They will be dilating my eyes so I won't be able to drive. We are both slowing down. The ravages of age are catching up. Do a lot more resting now than in previous years. If the size of my squash plants is any indication it looks as if we will have an over abundance this year. Tomatoes are doing fair. Will have more than last year. Accoring to the stuff that Becca puts in her blog, God is doing great things amongst the Christians there. You should check out her blog. Maybe all of the teams that are going from here to there will make a difference among Christians here. End of story time to quit. Until next time May the God Lord take Liki'n to you. Gramps

Blizzard of 2009

2009-12-31T22:23:00.002-05:00

The blizzard of 2009 is history,but the cold & snow will be with us for weeks to come. We were house bound for 3 days. Praise God we did not lose electricity. I was able to get to the kennel to take care of our german shepard dog, but with wind chills of 30 below I did not stay out any longer than was needed. The roads were opened on Sunday by farmers with huge tractors & frontend loaders or blades on their tractors. I still could not get my pickup out of the garage until Monday (28)when a neighbor came in with his big tractor & loader & cleared an area big enough for me to get out. I just had to shovel a little snow away from the garage door. There are stll 8-9 foot drifts on the north side of our house & 2-3 foot drifts out by the barn. According to the long range forecast the cold will be with us for sometime, which means the snow will not melt. we spent christmas cuddled up in our chairs reading or talking to children on the phone. Our internet service was not interrupted, so that we were able to keep a check on what was happening around the area. As I am writing this 2009 is coming to a close and a new year is just a couple of hours away. I want to take this opportunity to Thank God for all that He has blessed us with this past year. We have children who love us and care about us. We have plenty of food, a warm house,& our health. What more do we need. My prayer for 2010 is that all of our children, grandchildren & great grandchildren will be healthy & safe. Especially those who are in areas of bitter conflict. I pray for all of our young men & women who are fighting to keep our country safe from those who are determined to take our freedoms & our libertys from us. I pray for the leaders of our country that the will stop their petty bickering & work together to bring our great country back to the position that it once held in this worlds eyes. I also pray that we all might work to bring the message that Jesus Christ gave us and that peace on earth will be a reality. May God bless everyone & may you prosper throughout this new year. HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

Is it winter yet?

2009-12-19T22:08:00.002-05:00

Is it winter yet? Not according to the calendar. But what do calendars know about weather forcasting. We have certainly had a taste of winter weather with 10+" of snow and below 0 temperatures with 25-30 mph winds,sending the wind chills to -25 and-30. Makes our new electric heat furnca/air conditioner run all of the time. At least it is a lot more energy efficient than our old one. We still have to use our space heater when the north wind blows. But we are keeping warm. We have been reading a lot during this cold snap. Its too cold outside to do anything more than run out and make sure the dog has food & water and to get the mail. I just finished reading Sarah Palin's book,Going Rogue,and I have to say that I am very impressed with her writing. She gives a lot of insight into the political process and what happens in the aftermath a a failed run for president. This book should be required reading for all American citizens who are interested in the diraection that our country is going. Especially if you think that changes need to be made in the path that our elected leaders are taking us down. I will get of of my soapbox now and talk about more important things. Since I last wrote we have added 3 new greatgrand chidren to our ever growing family. We now have 35 grand children & 18 greatgrans. Also Micah & his family just moved to Nebraska from Bellingham,Washington. Micah is working with Josh in the building trades. If you haven't checked Chip's blog you are missing out on some very good comments about what he has been reading. We trust that everyone has a very Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year. Never forgetting the reason that we remember this special time of year to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior,Jesus Christ. God Bless us everyone!! gramps

August 2 2009

2009-08-02T12:36:00.003-04:00

As most of you know we lost one of our brightest last month. Scott Burkitt was killed in a one car accident & as he requested his organs were donated to help others. According to the doctors,Scotty, by his donation helped to save 6 lives. The memorial service was July 25th & was a great tribute to Scotty. All of our children & most of their spouses were able to be there. It was a time for all of us to visit & to renew our faith & to realize that we never know when God will call us Home. Mark, Amy & family still need our support during this trying time. Everyone has gone back to their various homes & jobs & the tendency is to get all involved in our lives & forget about the things that have happened. I urge you to remember that it could just have well been one of your own that this unfortunate accident happened to. So praise God for His blessings & remember to pray for Mark & Amy. Since I last wrote to you spring has gone & we are almost half way through the summer months. It has been unseasonably cool these last few days & my tomatoes aren't ripening like the should. But the weatherman says that we it is going to be warmer this next week so they will probably ripen fast now. I have dug about half of my potatoes & have over 100 pounds. I will have sweet potatoes later & maybe a few carrots. We have seen deer & a groundhog in our front yard as well as the many birds that flock to the feeders. There are rabbits & ground squirrels & occasionly I get a whiff of a skunk when I go out in the evening. All things considered it has been a great year. The Yankees & the White Sox are winning & Tiger is back on the golf course. I think that I will close & go watch him play. So long until next time and Gob bless all who read my ramblings. Gramps

Spring 2009

2009-07-06T21:53:00.002-04:00

March came in like a lamb and went out like a lion, But overall we had a great spring. I was able to get my garden tilled early but then had to wait for it to quit raining long enough to plant. I did get my potatoesa in early and we are now enjoying potatoes from our garden. I picked enough green beans that we had green beans and new potatoes for the 4th of July. I had a problem keeping ahead of the weeds due to trhe weather, but am now keeping them under control, Had a great Memorial Day weekend. Kathy and Kent came in on Friday and stayed a couple of days. My 80th birthday was the 26th so we celebrated during the weekend. K & K gave me a gift card to Home depot & Lane sent me one to LL Bean. Had phone calls from everyone plus lots of best wishes on facebook. Marsha & Scott got me on of those traveling sprinklers. It works great. I just lay the hose down & put the guide wheel on the hose & turn the water on, It follows the water hose & waters the lawn as it moves. Due to all of the rain this spring I have had to mow the lawn at least once a week. I just mowed it today for the 4th time. Sure am thankful for a good riding mower. June 30th was Iva's 78th birthday. We didn't do anything special. I had ordered her a Kindle DX from Amazon. It arrived early, so by the time her birthday arrived she had already downloaded several books & is really enjoying it. For those of you who do not know what a Kindle DX is check it out on www.amazon.com. A couple of weeks ago I looked out our patio door & saw a deer in our front yard. She just wandered around like she was looking the place over. We saw her again the next day in the cornfield that is west of us. We have lots of birds at our feeders & like to sit here & watch them. The other night we had a whirlwind go through our trees & it dislodged a robin's nest. The next morning it was on the ground along with 4 baby birds. The mother robin fed one of them until it was able to hunt for its own food. I don't know what happened to the other 3. I didn't see any sign of them when I mowed that area today. Robin was here for part of the weekend. She had her grandson (zamen) with her. He is 2 1/2 & is quite a handful. I took him for a ride on the mower & he liked that, but he kept turning the engine of & then didn't know why it stopped running. The first 2 weeks of summer have been pretty nice, not to hot in the daytime & cool at night. I think that will change next week though. I expect to see some triple didit temperatures before we get through this summer. We have had 2 more greats added to our family. Both boys & both born in June. About a week apart. We also added another granddaughter with Lane & Karla's adoption on a little Chinese girl. So our family just keeps growing. Melody is expecting & Chad & Sarah are getting married when he comes back fro Afganhastan. I am about to run out of space so will have to close for now. May all who read this be blessed of God & enjoy the riches of His blessings. Gramps C

February 28 2009

2009-02-28T22:27:00.004-05:00

Winter is still with us. We had 2-3" of snow yesterday and 30+ mph north wind. There have been enough warm days the past 2 weeks to cause the trees to start budding & I am thinking seriously about ordering seeds to start plants for my garden. We now have a new granddaughter. Lane & Karla just arrived back home from China where they picked up their adopted daughter. Her name is Genvieve & she is 2 years of age. Lani & part of her family met them at the airport. Lane & Karla's boys were there as well. lane called today & filled us in on their trip. We had our first visitor to our birdfeeder today. A pair of goldfinches showed up this morning for a short visit, then I saw the male return this afternoon. He still has his winter coat and is not as colorful as he will be later on. Marsha & I pulled up the carpet in our dining room & relaced it with a cermic coated tile. we will do the kitchen next & maybe the bathroom. Scott hired to men to put in our sliding glass door in the dining room. we now have a well lit room & a great view to the West. Becca & Kristi rode their horses into the yard to get a good look at our new sliding glass door. We love it! That's all folks. time to say goodnight and may God be your friend & guide through the coming days. He will never let you down. Love & prayers Gramps

Winter on the plains

2009-01-13T22:45:00.002-05:00

Winter has come to the plains of Nebraska, and to the rest of the country as well. We haven't had the snow that Chip and Chelly have had, but we have had wind and sub zero temperatures. I don't venture outside any more than I have to. I also don't stay out any longer than I need to. A lot has happened since I last wrote any news. Another granddaughter was added to our family last year and there will be at least 2 more grandchildren this year. My garden supplied us with lots of tomatoes, potatoes,sweet potatoes and a few green beans. Marsha supplied us with enough sweetcorn so that we were able to put some in the freezer. There is nothing quite so satisfying as setting down to a table and eating food that you have grown. We were looking at the seed catalogs yesterday to decide what we will be growing this year. During the cold winter days we spend a lot of time reading. Central City has a good library and we take advantage of it. I visit it about every 2 weeks and we uaually manage to read 5 or 6 books in that length of time. I hope that you have Rebecca's blog on your computer. Her stories about her time in Africa and the time that the choir was here in Nebraska are really good. She has a way with words that is truly a gift from God. I just read her latest entry and am truly amazed at what she has to say. Lane is in Toronto this week and will be going to Shanghi. The client that he is worling for has plants in Totonto, Shanghi and Luxembourg. He will be viaitig all 3 plants during the next 2 weeks. He is hoping that he will be able to be home the weekend of the 24th. I suppose that everyone is healthy and busy. Robin calls almost everyday and Lani usually calls on a weekly basis. Mark, Amy and kids visited after Christmas. David was home over the holidays and wanted to visit. He is considering going back to collage and getting an engieering degree, which we encouraged him to do. We are always happy to hear from our children and grandchildren. It is time to close this letter, so I will say goodnight and May god's richest blessings be yours. Dad/Gramps

More ramblings

2008-03-31T22:29:00.002-04:00

It has been almost 1 year since I last wrote in my blog. It isn't because I don't have the time, but it is mostly due to the fact that I haven't taken the time to write. I enjoy reading my son Chip's blog as well as those of some of my grand daughter's. last week when I was talking to Chip he wanted to know when I was going to write some more. So Chip this is for you. We are glad that winter is over and that spring is putting its new face upon the earth. we enjoy seeing the birds flock to our feeders, especially the finches. It is fun to see the male goldfinches chang from their dull winter coat to the shiny golden spring feathers. They don't loose all of their winter feathers at the same time, but every week we have noticed the change in their color. The trees are getting their new leaves and I noticed today that the lawn is starting to show some green. I think that the inch of rain that we had last night had something to do with that. I have my tomato plants ordered and am planning to plant potatoes this week, weather permitting. Our German shepard puppy is growing by leaps and bounds. She is 4 months old now and loves to be outdoors. I guess that I am about rambled out for tonight. so will sign off by wishing all read this the very best of times and may God and his angels watch over everyone. Gramps

Deer in the yard

2007-05-24T22:12:00.000-04:00

We had just finished eating and were cleaning up. I had just turned my computer on when my wife said "honey there is a deer in our front yard". Now this may not seem like a big thing to some of you, but for someone who has lived in Lincoln & the vicinity for the last 30 years, it was exciting. I ran to the window and looked out to see this big doe eating out of the bird feeder that I put out for the blackbirds & starlings. Now I know what happened 2 nights ago. We had a storm & it rained most of the night. The wind had been blowing all day and we had some gusts of 30 mph. I didn't think much about when I looked out the next morning & the tray for the feeder was on the ground, actualy it was leaning up against the base just like someone had put it there. We thought that it may have been a deer but I couldn't find any tracks. I dismissed it as a freak of nature. Now I have changed my mind. We have a deer in the area that likes bird seed. I have my tomato plants in & thet are doing great, Potatoes & beans are growing & the rain came at just the right time. I will have to rethink my fencing of the garden though. Chicken wire will not keep the deer out. With those long legs she can just step over my fence. I will have to do some research on keeping deer out of the garden. My workshop is coming along. I moved all of my power tools in last week & have started the process of deciding where the tools will be located. I purchased 4 flourescent shop lights & have 2 of them up. I think that I will have to put in some more outlets. I am considering putting in another circuit just for the saws. We put up finch feeders & have been enjoying watching the finches vying for positions on the perches. We have seen as many as 6 at one time at the 2 feeders. We also have orioles coming to our feeders as well as sparrows & blackbirds. Chelly told us how to really attract the orioles, cut an orange in half & put it on the feeder support. The orioles drink the juice & eat the pulp. The other birds don't bother the oranges. We are constanly amazed at God's goodness. We are so blest. I think that I have about rambled down, it is time for this old man to fold up his computer & think about hitting the hay. Goodnight & God bless each of you. Gramps

2007-04-19T21:36:00.000-04:00

April 19 2007 Well April is more than 1/2 over & I still haven't planted my potatoes. I did get the garden spot tilled, but I need to go over it again after I finish spreading the compost on it. I hauled 5 wheelbarrow loads yesterday & am not finished yet. I mowed the lawn & discovered the site where the previous resident deposited the grass clippings. I now have plenty of mulch for my tomato plants(when I get them planted). I did put out my onion sets & rhubarb. There doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day and enough energy in this old body to accomplish all that I want to get done. I usually run out of steam about 2 in the pm & have to take a break. That usually mans a short nap & reading a couple of chapters in my current book. Then it is time to think about what we are going to have for supper. Maybe you call it dinner, but it has always been supper to me and i am too old to change now. The friendly neighborhood gophers are still around. I have eliminated 3 of them so far, but I don't believe that is all of them. There are too many tunnels for just 3 gophers. I went on line yesterday just to see what other people are doing about the problem. After reading several suggested methods of disposing of the varmits I have come to the conclusion that whatever works for you is the best method. The farmers are out in full force now that the fields are dry and the weather is a little warmer. Huge tractors pulling even bigger tilling equipment and planters are either in the fields or going from one field to the next. If you are unlucky enough to get stuck behind one, just slow down and wait for it to go into the field. It is too big to go around it. Another windy day. I guess that I shouldn't be surprised, after all this is the plains of Nebraska and the wind is a constant source of conversation around here. God must have decided that we needed something to complain about so He sends the wind. I just wish that it didn't blow so hard sometime. Speaking of God seems like we need to be constantly praying for His help. Between the politicians and someone taking out his hate on fellow students and teachers, there just is no end of things to pray about. I think that it was Paul who said we are to pray without ceasing and that sure is true in these troubled times. But Praise God one of these days He will say it is enough and will set in motion the events that will finally complete His plan for His people. I look forward to the day when there will be a complete and perfect peace and there will be no more war or sorrow or suffering. God will take it all away. I will get off of my soap box now and stop my Rambling from Nebraska for this time. Until next time remember that God loves you He really does. Gramps

Spring on the Plains of Nebraska

2007-04-10T21:40:00.000-04:00

4/9/2007 Spring on the plains is so much different than in Lincoln. One would not think that 100 miles could make so much difference. In March we enjoyed above normal temperatures and sunny days. We had a couple of good rain storms, which was good for the ground. So far this month we have had below normal temperatures and killing frost and the North wind has been blowing 8 of the first days of April. Today we have a cool south wind with rain. The blackbirds, starlings & robins were out after it stopped raining. I watched them from the kitchen window, drinking & bathing in the standing water in the driveway. There must have been several insects brought to the surface by the rain, for the birds seemed to be having a feast. We have a pair of rabbits living in a brush pile that we inherited & haven't had time to remove. Now we will probably have more than 2 rabbits in the near future. I also have what my wife calls my nemisis. It is a gopher in our yard, more than likely there is more than one. So far I have found & plugged 5 holes, but he just keeps making new ones. My wife says that he is in his underground home laughing at my efforts to eradicate him from my lawn. I am hoping for some nice days before my grass gets too much af a head start. I will have a lot more lawn to mow here than I had in Lincoln. I am retired so that means that I will be able to work at it on a daily basis instead of saving it for the weekend. I have been looking at riding mowers, but haven't decided yet to give up my walk behind push mower for a rider. Maybe I will change my mind later in the season. We have been planning what to put in our garden. So far I have seed potatoes, rhubarb & onions. we will be planting green beans, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, eggplant & maybe some sweet corn. If the weather doesn't cooperate the garden could just be a figment of my imagination for this year. All of this talk about work has made me tired so I think that I will stop my ramblings & go take a nap. Romans 3:23 for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ. Gramps

Shades of the Wild Wild West

2007-03-13T21:35:00.000-04:00

You know that you are living in central Nebraska when you hear cattle lowing and calves bawling. My wife said, honey look out the window. There were 5 or 6 cowboys on horses and swinging lariats, shouting and whisting at the cows nd calves that they were moving to a new area. There must have been close to 300 head altogether. We watched them until they were far enough down the road that we could not see them from the kitchen window. That was a first for us, but I am sure that living where we do, surrounded by large ranches that this will not be the last of this sort of thing that we will witness. Ethan (3) our great grandson would have loved it. He would have wanted to be right out there with them. The cowboys had their hands full trying to keep all of the herd on the road. The calves were running all over, and the cowboys would have to break away from the drive and chase the calves back into the road. We are still working on getting our house in order. Sometimes it seems as if we will never get it done. Marsha and I moved the range and the refrigerator to oppsite sides of the kitchen. The power cable for the range was not long enough, so I had to put in a new cable. We also turned the counter 90 degrees and then installed the dishwasher from our old house in Lincoln. I certainly was glad to see Sunday come. A day of rest and relaxation. I still need to hang the pot rack in the kitchen. there is not enough cabinet space for all of our pots and pans so we are going to hang some on a rack. Started work on a ramp for the back entrance to make it easier to get into the house. I thank God every day for His blessings of strength and energy, so that I am able to do all that needs to be done. Marsha helps when she can, but she has a full day most of the time. I have been reading an article on Spiritual Growth by Don Hooser. I find that i am prone to putting of things that would help me to grow spiritualy. I don't read my Bible as much as I used too, and I don't pray as much as I should. I find myself coming up short in several areas and realize that I need to be doing things differently than I have in the past. The times that we are living in are troublesome times And God could say at any moment that Time Shall Be No More, and when that time comes I want to be certain of where I will spend eternity. Goodnight and say aprayer for me before you go to sleep. Gramps

Update on the move to Central City

2007-03-04T20:26:00.000-05:00

March 4 2007; February is now history & what a month it was. For the most part the first half of the month wsn't too bad, But then old man winter raised his ugly head during the last half, we had snow , wind & cold all at the same time. Some areas had ice storms that left them without power for days. We made our initial move to Central City on the 17th & what a long day that was. We are thanful for all of the good help that we had, both loading & unloading. We are slowly getting things put away & making this house suit us. God has been so good to us through all of this,blessing us with helpful children & grandchildren. We are constantly amazed at how everyone is so willing to help in ay way that they can. We are now able to be online. The satelitte dish was installed on the 26th & our email addresses are still the same. We have a new phone number which I believe most of our family has received. If not, send us an email & we will see that you are updated. I have not worked on the Dear Family email for a couple of weeks. Not enough time & then I came down with the flu last week. I am much bettr now & hope to get back to the letter soon. Goodnight from 2595 15th Rd and may the good lord take a liken to you. Gramps

Its a done deal

2007-01-29T21:20:00.000-05:00

It is a done deal. The closing on the property was today. Harry is moving out and we are going out tomorrow to look at the property and make decisions as to paint color and decide how our furniture will fit in this house. We will be moving soon. Have a lot of packing to do. The Saints couldn't get it done, not for lack of trying though. The Bears will take the Super Bowl. An Artic front is moving across the state and we will see colder temperatures than we have had so far this winter. Hopefully it will pass through the state quickly. I don't tolerate the cold as well as I did 20 years ago. Seems like my feet are cold all of the time now. Looking forward to spring and getting a garden ready to plant. We will have a better area for a garden. Lincoln has never been good for gardening. Worked most of the morning sorting and repacking yarn that has been in our basement storeroom for several years. Suprisingly in excellent condition. Found several unfinished projects that will get worked on once we get settled in. God continues to poor out His blessings. We are constantly amazed at how fast and smoothly everything has come together since I retired. Goodnight. Pleasant dreams and God bless you

Winter has arrived

2007-01-22T18:06:00.000-05:00

We have had snow the last 3 weekends. The latest dumped 8 - 10 inches of new snow. Temperatures aren't too bad. Some single digits at night, but mostly in the mid to upper 20's in the afternoon. As too the unusual temps in Europe I can only say that as we approach the end times I believe that there will be unusual temperature swings. Like Southern California citrus crop and seemingly milder winters in the midwest & plains states. I don't believe it has anything to do with global warming. To change the subject, we are getting ready to make a change. We will be leaving Lincoln and moving 100 miles west. The house is nice and a little larger than the one we are in at present. It is situated on 5.22 acres and is a corner lot 1 mile west of Marsha and Scott. We are looking forward to getting out of Lincoln and being out where we can see a sunrise and a sunset. We are so blessed to have this opportunity. We give all of the praise and glory to God for bringing this about. I am especially looking forward to having a garden and having room to grow more than I could here in town. That is enough rambling for this time. Check in again soon and see what the next few days or weeks will bring. May God richly bless all who take the time to read my ramblings. Gramps

January 13,2006

2007-01-13T22:12:00.000-05:00

Good evening to one & all. It is a typical winter day here. I woke up this morning to single digit temps & snow covering the ground. This is the first really cold weather that we have had. We have had more snow, but not the bone chilling cold. ince I am now retired I don't have to be concerned about getting the pickup started and the snow and frost cleared from the windows & windshield. So about 10:00 I thought that I had better clean the snow off of the front steps & the sidewalk. The snow was light & dry so I just swept it off with a broom. Someone had already cleaned the sidewalk for me. I think that it was probably the neighbors to the east of us. Yesterday was not our typical lazy day. Melody & her 2 little ones arrived about 9:30, and the proceeded to get out something to play with & their attention span is short so the go from one thing to another. They are good kids, not to noisy or screaming. Melody worries about them because the seem, to her, to be making a mess of Grandma's house. But it isn't as bad as she thinks. I have been reading from a magazine called The Good News. It is published by the United Church of God. There are some very timely & interesting articles about Iraq, Iran & the other countries in that area. There are also some interesting sidebars. The magazine is free, just go to info@ucg.org & you will be on their mailing list. I think I am about out of space so will close with Psalm 119:148 God bless all of you. Gramps

Children of Abraham

2006-11-18T16:38:00.000-05:00

"The promise comes by trust, so that it may be by grace and may be guarenteed to all Abraham's offspring- not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: 'I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed-the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that were not as though they were" (Romans 4:16,17) Can we, who are saved by faith in Jesus and belief in His dying on the cross for are sins, be any less trusting than Father Abraham?