Peg Inspects Rose Way

Peg checked out the assisted living apartment after her furniture was moved in today. She did a fine job of positioning her furniture. Only one small table needs to be removed - forgot to allot space for the rolling walker near her chair.

view from door into apt.

The kitchen is smaller but seems comfortable. The "L" shaped counter adds  nice work space  and  helps separate the  kitchen from the living area.

The bedroom area is around the corner from the living area and cannot be seen from the front door.

Bedroom area

Bathroom and closet area

The unit is on the end of Rose Hall and is very quiet. The Bird Count and watching sessions start Friday morning. I expect she'll to be there!

Peg's R & R

Peg's days are busy. Yesterday she went over to Jenner's Pond twice. Once to scope out Ruston in the late morning and then back to my house for lunch. Peggy arrived in the afternoon and Peg worked with her to clear out some clothes and books from the apartment.

Peg works on Times crossword

We had an excellent Chinese take out dinner with wine in the sun room under twinkling LED lights. Very festive. After a little more quality time with Peggy, Peg retired for the night tired but in good spirits.

The visiting nurse came late this morning. Peg is doing so well, the nurse does not expect to be back. In the afternoon, the PT arrived and really worked Peg doing exercises, several trips walking from the sun room to the mudroom door, and to Peg's dismay, a few steps. It took a lot of effort and support but she did it. She made me swear on the Bible that I would continue to bring her meals down to the sun room, after the PT left.

Peg emails

The rest of the day she worked on cleaning up her emails and composing a few new ones. The weather turned cold and snowy and she enjoyed watching the birds outside her window.

My Big Brother Bob

Bob with Gma Macknik, ca. 1949.

I always loved George Thorogood and The Destroyers' Get A Haircut. I can still hear my father, while sitting at the dinner table, telling my big brother Bob to get a haircut!
Well, even though he fought the haircuts, he still turned out to be a great person to grow up with, learn from, and just someone whose company I really enjoy.

Bob at 2

Barbara, Bob, and Suzy
It wasn't easy. Dad and mom had high expectations for him from the start. It was much easier being the little sister. I am sure I drove him crazy, tagging along, always needing to be looked after, as well as contained. I know I amused him no end because I could make him smile. He always made me feel loved, no matter what I did. 

Bob and Margaret

Golf at the Dells

Margaret was a great find. She keeps him on the straight and narrow. A Wis-consin native and someone who works as hard as Bob. Their pro-fessional careers made family life challenging but they've managed to persevere. I don't envy them but I do admire their commitment. Its obvious what is IMPORTANT in their lives.

Bob is a third generation environmental conservationist. He has big shoes to fill. Dad and Granddad set the bar high. Mom and dad would be so proud of him today. I am.

Bob Testifies

CARSON CITY, NV (08/04/2011) – Governor Brian Sandoval today announced the appointment of Robert J. Halstead as Executive Director of the Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, the agency within the governor’s office responsible for overseeing the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository project and other nuclear activities in the state. 

Halstead has also represented Nevada in complex technical proceedings with the U.S. Departments of Energy and Transportation and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; testified before congressional committees, National Academy of Sciences boards, the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, the NRC Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste, Nevada legislative committees and Nevada county commissions; and advised affected individuals, community organizations, and Indian tribes. (http://gov.nv.gov/news/item/4294971886/)

Bob - Don't forget, we have a date. Those Nevada fish are calling. I can hear them. John can hear them. I hope Margaret can hear them too.

Charlie's Wonder Worm at Work

1971 Pike

Happy Birthday Bob! I am so blessed to have you in my life. I love you more than you will ever know, brother mine. Many happy returns. Your loving sister.

Peg Comes To Visit

Peg came home with us from Rehab today. Seven weeks to the day, since she left the hospital. The immobilizer still makes getting in and out of the truck a little tricky but she made the trip in good form. The bird had a near death experience but proved to be an eagle in budgie feathers, once again. She is adjusting and was VERY happy to be around people!

The Sun room will also give Peg a nice space to dine, use her computer, watch birds, or work on crossword puzzles in the sunlight. Tristan, we dined tonight under your party lights. Pasta, salad, wine and homemade rice pudding. She even watched Lawrence Welk. Peg  gets to use the new accessible bathroom. It seems to work well with her rolling walker. So nice when something works the way it is suppose to.

 It's the first time Peg has slept away overnight in many years. Hopefully, it will be an uneventful!

Peg Arranging Flowers

Unexpected Pleasures

Yesterday turned into an amazing experience for John and me. While working at the Pond House, we were suddenly in the mist of a close encounter with several large birds.

Much to our delight, a Bald Eagle appeared. Us gawking on the deck did not seem to phase him at all. He flew low to the pond's surface, perched himself in a tree across the pond, and then fished in front of us.  Our resident Kingfisher loudly protested, while diving for his own dinner.

The Green Heron quietly fished from his broken cedar tree, not far from the eagle's perch.

 Finally, the eagle left us and the pond. Shortly after his departure, another local resident appeared across from the house.

Days like this make the massive commitment of energy and resources needed to keep the Pond House worth doing.

Ginger Dog Hoffmann

Ginger

(1996 - 2011)

Baby Ginger

Most labs do not live to be 15 years old. Ginger was special. She knew it. We knew it. We always attributed her royal attitude to her father, who was English.  She ruled the house - both of them. 

Nothing pleased Ginger more than time at the Pond House. She loved to swim and fetch toys from the pond. Exploring the trail near the stream made her feel like a real dog. 

After a good meal and interacting with her pack, nothing was better than a little rest in the sunshine on something soft.  

Every queen needs a throne and Ginger had hers. She often held court in the living room while visitors mingled with the rest of the pack. She loved everyone but favored those with treats. We will miss your smiling eyes and wagging tail. Best Hoffmann Family Dog Ever!

Fishing in Southeastern Alaska

Gustavus is a small place (by any standards) and served as our home base.  It is a short flight from Juneau and only accessible via water or air transportation. No banks, no shopping. No need for a rental car, just hip boots, deck boots, fishing rods, and rain gear.

 The Annie May Lodge was fun - great food, wonderful people, beautiful scenery along a tidal river. No phones, no TV, and spotty satellite Internet access. The staff and other guests helped us celebrate Eric's birthday at dinner one night! We really enjoyed it.

Everyday we got up early, ate a hardy breakfast, were delivered to the dock (with lunch for a small army) and spent about 10 hours on the boat. Back to a dry room, hot shower, and gourmet dinner. Conversations about the day's events with other guests were always interesting.

Most people choose to see coastal Alaska from large cruise ships which make it easy to combine sight seeing, luxury accommodations, good food, and socialization all in one easy package. We chose to seriously fish and only sight see from the deck of a smaller vessel. It was really special to have the boat all to ourselves. Captain "Bud" Rosenbruch really was "our new best friend" (thank you Stan for the recommendation!). It rained everyday - cloudy and cold - often foggy. So glad I packed my long underwear - wore it all week.

 None of us will ever forget fishing in the fog while listening to Humpback whales talk to each other and loudly blow jets of water like geysers, as we hauled in halibut and salmon. We caught so many fish that we were exhausted by the end of day.

Sleeping on board the AK Hunter next to a glacier, listening to ice falling all night, was really unique. The boys slept on deck in sleeping bags, waking to find us floating in a field of ice with eagles and other birds sitting on the larger pieces riding them in and out the fog.

Fishing Slide Show
Fishing for us will never be the same. Future trips will be compared to this experience. We all caught amazing fish, in the most beautiful pristine wilderness areas, and spent wonderful time together as a family. As a bonus, Captain Bud's young sons joined us for two days. Thanks for sharing - fishing is so much more fun with children! For our fishing videos, go to channel shoffmann54 at youtube.com.

 This was Dad's trip. He helped me plan it. He wanted us to experience the fishing and scenic beauty of his early life. We are forever blessed! Thanks, Dad.