Hello everyone,
Well, I did have surgery in July on my left wrist. The procedure is called “Release of deQuervain’s”. My surgeon was on vacation when the stitches needed to come out and I told the attending doctor that some of the problems that had been bothering me had gotten better, but that my thumb still did not feel right. I made another appointment for the end of August. Dr. Cavanaugh came in and said I had another problem. X-rays were taken, and then a CAT scan.
It was found that there were two bone fragments on either side of the thumb bone at the base of the wrist and that the two bones at the joint were on each other with no cushion between. The first suggested treatment was a shot of cortisone between the bones at the joint. (Felt real good! Ouch!). I will call him in three months time.
Something I have wanted to do is enter the Poster Contest for “Rhythm on the River”. Since I wanted to paint authentic locations on the St. Vrain River, I called three neighbors and asked for permission to walk their property and take photographs.
This introduced me to Gayle Zweck. Her family has been in
Walking the Sadar property a little later was also quite difficult. After a bit, I decided I needed boots, long sleeves and after seeing the snake, needed Ken with me. Just recently the Sadar’s neighbor had a bear rip apart the fellow’s bee hives. The bear sure enjoyed the honey. After hearing that I thought I should also bring along a whistle to alert the bears.
I contacted another neighbor who knew how to get a message to Stu Golden. Stu Golden is a wealthy fellow who made his fortune mining the land near our home and reclaiming it. He has given some property that has been mined to the city/county for open space. There are some lovely ponds with great water fowl and wildlife.
Well, I hadn’t heard from Stu for a few days and was in my studio painting when the phone rang and he said “this is Stu Golden; you want photos?” I was so engrossed in what I was doing, I didn’t remember trying to get in touch with him, so he said it again and then, voila, it triggered my memory. Well, I drove over to his place soon after, met Stu and his bull dog and got instructions on how to get down to the St. Vrain River. I had to cross the river and did not feel as if I wanted to get my vehicle stuck in the river so I walked across the river gingerly only to find the place barb wired, so back I came because I didn’t know if I would be walking on another person’s property. Certainly did not want to be looking down the barrel of a shotgun. (You don’t want to trespass out here.) Well here comes Stu Golden in his old white pick up truck. He stops and asked me if I crossed the river. I told him not in my vehicle and his reply was, “I only know one person who can walk on water”. I told him I didn’t walk on it, but I walked in it. He also said it was safe to drive the car through the water. I asked about the barb wire and he said it was ok to get thru it. Back I went across the water – this time in the car and in the middle of no where got on my belly and crawled under the barb wire fence.
This land is eventually to be given to the
I now have authentic photos of the St. Vrain River and have
given each of these helpful neighbors a small painting and an invitation to our
reception for Longmont Open Studios at the
This year we replace our old deck with a new one made of recycled material. The stuff looks like wood but uses recycled plastic bottles. Is this Boulder or what! We also designed the deck to make it friendlier for visitors to enter the house. You now can drive up, hop out of you car, walk up a set of 5 stairs, turn 90 degrees and walk up 5 more stairs to get to the cat walk along side the house and reach the back deck and enter the house. We also have another set of stairs coming directly off the deck in the back. These stairs are far superior to the original stairs which I considered steep and dangerous. What a difference! It also has made an attractive appearance to the south side of the house.
Two of Ken’s grandchildren, Katie and Jackie, both age 12,
visited us in August. It was their first
flight alone – a major adventure. They
had great fun swimming in the St. Vrain River at a town park and enjoyed a
night at the rodeo in
We visited
The second night in
The next night we had dinner with my godchild, Norman, and his wife, Donna. Once again, it was good conversation and wonderful to see them.
Ken had a chance to visit with his children, and grandchildren and even celebrate daughter Jennifer’s birthday.
One thing was evident when visiting
We went to
We feasted on whole belly clams and lobster fresh from the ocean. That is one thing I do miss - the fresh sea food.
We shared two delightful dinners with the Hevenors and the Pavones. We are blessed to have such wonderful friends.
Of course, one of the visits had to include a mountain bike
ride with Ken’s bicycle friends in
Tuesday we headed up to Great Barrington, MA to visit Dave Logan. The lake is always so serene and peaceful. It was the greatest way to spend the last couple of days. Wine in the evening is even more special when you are outdoors with the sun setting watching the water and the birds and being with special friends.
Upon arriving back home, we really appreciated our low humidity
and our bed. The flowers needed
attention. Our dog, Zeus, was happy to
have us home with him. We were happy to
be back in
Love to all and thanks for everything,
Diane and Ken