Saturday, December 26, 2020 Hail to a New Year in 5 days!

What will I be doing on New Year’s Eve? Well, I’ll be home with my animals, maybe sipping a little wine and anticipating a midnight racket–sudden noises that frighten my dogs, turning them into cover-seekers. My long-ago Cattle Dog, Cassie, always disappeared at midnights, on July 4th and December 31, by hiding in the bathtub, a choice understandable only to her.

Without making much noise myself, but celebrating with the entire world, I’ll hail the ending of this complicated, difficult year. And for sure not a second-place celebration, I’ll cheer the near-finish of our country’s destructive Republican-led administration. I will count eagerly the days until January 20, when Biden, et al, officially will become America’s leaders.

New Year’s Day will be great for celebrating twice. In the early morning, by taking the dogs to the country and letting them run happily. In the early afternoon, if weather permits, by riding horseback, or otherwise, leading my equines and walking through our streets.

Through 2020, I’ve held two fervent wishes. One became realized upon Joe Biden’s election. My other huge-want actually has two parts, (1) a real solution and (2) an efficient process, for stopping the virus that cripples our social-physical opportunities and the world’s economy.

Dear Friends: Let’s think and hope bigger, about a world larger than we once imagined. Diana

Christmas Day, 2020 (7 days until 2021)

For yesterday’s Christmas Eve afternoon, my neighbor and friend, Susie, and I, had planned a Happy Holidays event. We’d stroll with the horses and greet neighborhood friends.

We did for a bit and met neighbors with their little sweet dog.

Soon though, Susie and I became sidetracked. We decided to leave the horses in a neighbor’s pasture. Before we left, I had the heavy job of chopping ice in a trough.

Susie is a founder of and employee of HeliLadder [www.heliladder.com]. I needed her ladder expertise to analyze how to use my new Little Giant Ladder, needed to reach and adjust a bedroom ceiling fixture. After understanding the ladder’s components, Susie climbed it and fixed the fixture.

Meanwhile, I stared at a treadmill. It had stood, unused, in my bedroom for years and swallowing valuable space. “Susie, could we somehow manage to remove this treadmill from the house?” Now, I’ll add that Susie, along with her whole family, is an athlete.

Without hesitating she grabbed the treadmill, wrested it into an appropriate direction, but found it too wide to move through the bedroom door. By now into the project, I went to search the garage for a dolly while Susie removed the bedroom door from its hinges. The dolly was small, but we managed to get the treadmill onto it. We then wiggled that bulk through the too-narrow doorway, pushed it along a carpeted hallway, and then out the front door. Once outside, we paused beside it.

Where to now? Just leave it here?

Really, never had it seemed that my old treadmill could be standing outside. We considered options and I remembered an old trailer down by the barn, standing empty and large enough to accommodate the machine. Our challenge would be hefting the treadmill, somehow, from the dolly and onto the trailer.

We piled into my Jeep and (in another long story) managed to hitch the trailer, which amazingly still had working lights. We hauled the trailer up to the house and paused to plan how to tackle the transfer. Together we pushed and twisted, trying to make appropriate the treadmill’s weight and position, so we could shove it into the trailer. We did succeed.

What next to do about this on a Christmas Eve afternoon? Susie contacted the city recycling center, discovered it was open, and would be for another hour. Off we went in Jeep, hauling trailer. A worker at the Center kindly helped unload the machine, and also, took our picture.

Susie offered to help with ranch chores, and so, we moved hay! Numerous bales in storage needed relocating to be nearer the horses. Susie’s strength made the process efficient and quick. Now, beside the horse area is a hay supply, ready for feeding in the upcoming, colder winter weeks.

While at the barn, we strung colorful Christmas lights. They’re happy, and best, visible from inside my house.

Susie had driven her car and gave me a lift to the horses. She watched them coming in from far pasture and captured their sheer beauty.

We had been stoked by having accomplished heavy work, particularly the treadmill’s moving and disposing. While t’was impressive “girl strength”, still and amazingly, we could tackle and overcome that seemingly-impossible challenge.

What especially touches me is Susie’s generosity, and especially on a Christmas Eve afternoon, in lending her brain and strength. I can’t imagine any gifts lovelier or more welcome. Thank you, my friend!

(Plus, a shout-out of hearty thanks, to California and Linda (another special, forever friend), for today’s blog title!)

Dear Friends: Hope your yesterday was wonderful, and today, your Christmas Merry! Diana

Thursday, December 24, 2020 (7 days more of 2020)

Christmas Eve! Central Oregon today will be lovely, as was yesterday, and especially around my place because the Gilberts visited. They brought their 10-year-old granddaughter, Abby, who was eager to meet (and maybe ride) Pimmy.

Ride Abby did. Dave lifted her onto Pimmy’s back. Abby settled into the” sweet spot”, and although an inexperienced rider, she sat straight and easy–a natural. Dave led Pimmy as we headed off to a neighbor’s pasture, a quarter mile away, to leave the horses all afternoon.

Julie had charge of Sunni’s lead rope (and for a photo Rosie’s, too). We continued and I led with always vigilant Rosie, ready to alert and protect her herd.

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This trip was fun, more than my usual journeys with the equines, because each moves differently. Almost always Rosie steps slightly ahead; Sunni is accommodating and will adjust; but Pimmy is a problem–always reluctant to step-it-up without encouragement. In our travels from home to pasture and back again, I’m tugging constantly at Pimmy. What keeps me in this game is telling myself that she keeps me strong.

My camera captured from way high a young hawk. Even through distance the bird disliked my attention. It flew away but not far. I couldn’t capture it again but kept an eye on it. The hawk moved several times, at one point was chased by smaller birds and soon it’s mate (or a parent) appeared. It took me time to figure out the kind of hawk. To my best guess, a beautiful young Red Tailed.

Dear Friends: Simple circumstances with happy kids and animals are great fun. Diana

Wednesday, December 23, 2020 (8 days to wait….)

Planets are nearby and in sight, and today will add another star, Pimmy. My friends, the Gilberts, are bringing their granddaughter to meet, feed carrots to, and ride her (above, nosing for treats). It’s too bad I lack tack that fits her unique (mostly too-fat) shape, for in the past, children have saddled, bridled, and ridden Pimmy. Small donkey-happy people should have opportunities to experience the full Monty.

I’ve a job, too, for the bigger Gilberts. I’ll ask their help to haul over to my neighbor, John, a case of Bud Light, his drink. (I wondered, aloud to John, Who, in Bend, Oregon! drinks Bud Light?) Anyway, the horses are thanking him for letting them hang out in his pasture. And, far back on a Costco shelf, his beer was waiting.

Being a manager is kind of cool, and in that spirit I’m allowing myself days off from work. The short December daylights rob me of sight needed to care for my large animals. After several days of working inside from eight to five, I felt the disheartening burden of a midwinter sense of nearly-constant darkness.

Today will revive my pleasure of being more in natural light. I look forward to this, while yet, my sadness from too little light clues as to why early humans created megaliths, like Stonehenge, to represent such as calendars and clocks.

Dear Friends: Human creativity can offset the dimming of natural light in winters. Diana

Tuesday, December 22, 2020 (9 days left in 2020)

Throughout my fifteen years living in Central Oregon, there’s not been a winter like this–so warm! Yesterday, early in this Christmas week, our noonday outside was what’s considered “shirtsleeve”. Last evening, I was feeding horses in a wind that had kicked up. The thing is, working in wind isn’t pleasant, but that one was not wintery-cold.

Today will be my third in a row of having to be at work for eight hours. Of course, that again kills daylight time before and after work. Darkness prevents my walking the horses early to a neighbor’s pasture. An option worth considering might be going late in to work.

Writing this morning clues me as to feeling empty-headed, tired, and grumpy. I’ll be kind and spare readers and myself. Tomorrow will be different. As a welcome day off, it’ll point my head in another direction by providing both daylight and quality time for attending to homestead matters.

Dear Friends: Among the Laws of Compensation: “Up periods” precede “dive bombs”. Diana

Monday, December 21, 2020 (10 days remaining in 2020)

This morning, I hope to move more quickly, having learned that tomorrow as well as today are eight-hour working days. Usually, Tuesdays are the beginning of “my weekends”, but sudden changes mean going with the flow.

I dislike leaving the horses here at home, through yesterday, today, and tomorrow. This warm weather would let them be grazing in a neighbor’s pasture. My having to be at work very early erases time to walk the equines across the street. It’s not a quick gig. The horses must be haltered, arranged for leading, and then taken across the road. After entering my neighbor’s place, we cross his property to the pasture in back. On a good day, this horse transferring eats away twenty minutes.

I want it outside to be nearly light before going to feed horses and to give them an hour in the stalls. The lack of early light deeply cuts my free time. And worst, today will be the year’s shortest, and tomorrow also will be short of light. That means the horses must stay home, and at lunchtime, I’ll briefly return and toss hay to them. This, too, will pass.

Otherwise, Thursday will be Christmas Day. The mood of shoppers is friendly and open. They’re rushing to handle last-minute needs. It’s too near Christmas to find goods, now often scarce or missing, and shoppers are seeking alternatives. My workplace, Central Oregon’s only Costco, is crazy, busy, and now, even fun.

On Facebook, musical artist, Janis Ian, posted this cartoon. It sums-up 2020 about right.

Dear Friends: Oy, Great Britain has been hit with a more virulent, new Corona-V strain. Diana

Sunday, December 20, 2020 (11 days remaining in 2020)

Approaching this year’s darkest, shortest day–Oh, yes, there’s one that’s real!–as a couple of planets approach one another, we’re eleven days prior to the New Year. I am reflecting on 2020 and its lessons for me.

I learned that one can semi-isolate and find ways to be okay. For me, this year’s early months of self-isolation meant purchasing and more purchasing. First of all, books for reading; and too, purchasing art products and learning to use them; purchasing materials and practicing knitting skills. There was endless purchasing and practicing, or purchasing and ignoring. In 2020, online shopping became a biggie.

I learned during self-isolation the bonus of having some property and private space. One could go outdoors unmasked and be alone. I purchased battery-operated power saws and practiced using them. The gift of private space let me spend weeks outdoors trimming long-neglected trees. That might not sound like, nor was it fun, but I was outside and physically active in a safe space.

Pets can be saviors, and especially horses. They need constant attention and care but give much in return. Horseback riding in a local forest transported me from home, allowed my dogs to run for miles, and gifted me with lovely, memorable spring and summer views.

It’s no small accomplishment that a focus on getting through 2020 helped me recover from having lost my very influential big sister toward the end of 2019.

At summer’s ending, my old job revved up again, called me back to work, I felt ready to be among others. My workplace, the local Costco, paid great attention to cleanliness and mask-wearing, and I resumed work as a sample-server which felt good enough. But in the unusual circumstances of these times, I was offered a promotion to Shift Supervisor.

I accepted while feeling terrified. That new position called for learning a large organization’s highly-time-driven and complex computer-reporting system. As a long-time retiree, I’d not thought about anything similar for years. It was scary, having to tackle a left-brain challenge, but I had to discover if my brain still could handle it. In short time, it did.

Now, in these final days of 2020, I’m revived, with confidence in being able to process a variety of complex information. It’s been a year of testing–with reading, creating art, tackling knitting, sawing limbs, and demonstrating foods–to returning among others and enjoying them. And the surprise of being able to navigate a giant organization’s complexities.

Twenty-twenty: “T’was the worst of times and the best of times.”

Dear Readers: All, despite 2020’s political traumas which altered known-world orders. Diana

Saturday, December 19, 2020 (12 days remain in 2020)

On a recommendation by Jane Brody, Health Writer for the NYT, I’m reading a book published in early 2020, entitled, “Falling is not an Option”, by George Locker. It’s subtitled, “A way to lifelong balance.” Brody writes periodically about the losing of balance as people mature. She finds that Locker’s book explains and illustrates exercises appropriate to re-strengthen human balancing muscles. Locker’s exercises, designed for maturing adults and seniors, are to rebuild self-confidence in the ability to balance.

I’m interested, because of living on a small rocky acreage and being active with horses. Maintaining balance while navigating the property on foot, alone or leading a horse, is a concern. Our local hospital offers a popular balancing program, to which I’ve been referred, but always too busy, or something.

Locker isn’t a physical therapist, but a forty-year practitioner and teacher of T’ai Chi. In teaching, he offered seniors exercises not otherwise available to improve their balance. His teaching reflected the science and biomechanics of T’ai Chi balance and stability. His book is about “postural retraining”, by following assembled exercises, and illustrated postures and movements, based on his long study and experience.

The book is readable and understandable, the exercises simple, but powerful, and focused on holding times, instead of active repetitions. They’re designed to re-strengthen feet, ankles, and weight bearing muscles. Locker asserts that balance isn’t mental, cannot be willed, is neither a skill nor a sense. Instead, he says, balance is knowledge, pure muscle knowledge from doing the balancing. Essentially, it isn’t the mind, but the body that learns balance.

Locker’s recommended exercises that appear simple aren’t so. For example gaining the strength to stand, with slightly bent ankles and knees, while maintaining relaxed arms and a straight back, is a slow process. An exerciser’s goal would be standing this way and unmoving, say, for fifteen minutes.

I’m on board with what seems an appropriate way to practice daily, and in time available, focusing on self-balancing. I’ll begin this morning.

Dear Friends: Locker’s confidence is catching, his methods seem worth trying. Diana

Friday, December 18, 2020 (13 days remaining in 2020)

A Costco customer introduced himself to me as Scott. He purchased electrolyte and energy products and explained that he’s an extreme bicyclist who annually rides a couple of California courses. One is “the death ride”, a timed race through 129 miles of “California Alps”. Another he rides (I forget its name) covers more miles, is more difficult. Scott seemed happy, pumped, and about to start preparing for the 2021 competitions.

In our local Costco where I work, I’m on the lookout for interesting customers. It’s easy to spot those in fit-condition and they’re inspiring. I peer into their carts carrying “Scott-like” endurance essentials, and other items trending toward high protein, low sugar products. Increasingly, carts carry plant-based foods, a preference-trend Costco has noticed. Our store has begun stocking vegan cheese, vegetable-olive oil butter, and increasingly more products plant-based. I’ve tried many new ones and they taste good enough to swing an experimenter to a vegan perspective.

Having worked in our Costco since 2007, I’ve witnessed changing food-buying trends. Back when I started, most customers (long-time locals and often farmers and ranchers) were enthusiastic meat and potato eaters. This Costco’s food selections noticeably began expanding when first we demonstrated a new product, humus. Most customers claimed intensely to dislike humus, mispronounced the name, and after tasting just turned up their noses. I wasn’t happy having to try promoting humus. Eventually that changed, and one began seeing humus in shopping carts. As varieties expanded, many formerly humus-resistant customers willingly sampled and purchased.

That’s when first I understood the power of effective marketing in an unreceptive environment. That’s when first I recognized how Costco and similarly-aware suppliers influence shopper preferences toward differing product lines.

Athletically-aware Central Oregon is receptive to increased opportunities to purchase plant-based and vegan-oriented foods. As a sample-server, I notice fewer customers refusing to consider anything but meat and potatoes. But its hard to change old habits and some folks stand firmly by theirs. But today, even carts pushed by long time farmers and ranchers might contain alternatives to meat, because they taste like products they’re representing and promoted as healthier.

My new friend, Scott, after explaining why he buys electrolytes and energy products disappeared to continue shopping Now, I’m curious about the products that might have landed in his cart. He promised to return and update me on his progress in preparing for rides. I’ll take the opportunity to ask about his various routine purchases. Maybe I’ll learn, again from a customer, more about healthy-eating.

Dear Friends: As with other shoppers, information and experience alter my preferences. Diana

Thursday, December 17, 2020 (Fourteen days remaining in 2020)

I continue wanting to be done with 2020. The election is past, except for the Georgia runoffs. Some Republicans are slipping from the despot’s grasp and the nation seems slightly calmer.

I’m reading Isabel Wilkerson’s book, CASTE. She explains in a clear readable way how historical attitudes toward the differences among people have defined status, been unjust. She speaks to India’s caste system with the rich and the untouchables. She correlates the early philosophy of Nazi Germany to America’s divisions of people, categorized by power versus helplessness, money versus need, good versus bad, worthiness versus unworthiness.

She suggests that these histories reveal how Trump’s blustery and domineering nature has won passionate support from millions of followers, and also support from a majority of Republicans in high places. This nation has verged on being overtaken by power players focused on accumulating wealth and ignore needs of citizens less affluent. Trump’s government has supported a caste system, by denying entry to immigrant parents and removing their children, denying citizenship rights to many already long living and working in this country, and raising ever-higher the evangelistic flag of sheer Christianity.

Even after a national election ousted Trump, those in power and their followers tried to deny the outcome. They attempted to reverse election results to keep Trump in power, to maintain power themselves. If they’d again become America’s ruling majority, heaven help we who once were middle class, and worst for individuals with different skin colors, and those disabled.

This era of nearly-uncontrollable pandemic has been awful, but thankfully did rid us rid of Trump. He and his minions didn’t handle the dangers and ignored them, instead focusing on international strengths and the higher-echelon’s wealth.

This has been the world’s year of learning, and of threats. People have learned that long-lived organisms may disappear and recur; that the larger environment has supremely critical needs, that over-populated areas led by despots are hotbeds of angst, and that imminent threats exist to our long-held confidence in democratic processes.

Dear Friends: May 2021, with thoughtful, fair leaders revive farsightedness and hope. Diana