Outing With Jana +Skype +LogiTech

Dick headed out early this morning to do some more work for his new cache, and to put in some time at the Agency. He also stopped in at the Visitor Center to get details of Kathee's committee trip to D.C. so that Jana can recommend some restaurants.

It rained cats and dogs all day today. Good day for movies, shopping, and visiting Mother. So Jana and I did all of that. We went to see Eragon so that we can communicate with Dylan. It's a very nice movie if you're nine years old. Jana and I were in stitches many times when scenes in the movie were so cliched and reminiscent of so many earlier adventure movies. We saw some Star Wars, some Lord of the Rings, even a little Wizard of Oz.

After the movie we stopped at Best Buy. Jana went shopping for a LogiTech camera for my upstairs computer so we can do the Skype thing with Laurie. Kind of an end-around around the iSight/Mac combo that didn't work. She also bought a beautiful gift of truffles wrapped in a golden box/bag for Mother.

Mother is very weak and feeble today, and not feeling well. We did have a good visit - we opened her Christmas cards, read them, and looked at the pictures. We watered the evergreen tree that Laurie sent, and cleaned up some of the needles. We talked to Julius and Abby. We shared memories of Dad and the good old days. I think that Mother could hear most of it.

Back at home Dick cooked burgers on the grill and we had a great supper. Now Jana and I are watching the rest of Spanglish and Dick is on the phone with Doug.

Pick Up Something +Skype +iSight

Nice workout today at physical therapy. Kari started me on the elliptical trainer, and it's a real challenge. She's very patient with me, and she's a really effective therapist.

Went to new Oleson's to pick up something for dinner - it feels so good to be doing things by myself now.

I told Dick I was going to do that, and a lightbulb went off in his head. He said he thinks he'll call his new cache Pick Up Something For Dinner. He's "borrowing" the idea from the Bellaire cache that starts in a grocery store. He enjoyed that cache so much that he wants one of his own. He and Jana are out right now setting it up.

Later the same day...

Jana and I were watching Spanglish (really fun movie) when Laurie calls attempting to set up Skype with her video camera. The bottom line is that we now have Skype on our laptop, and she has it on her new computer. We could hear each other just fine. Jana and I could see Laurie, but we couldn't connect the iSight to the Skype for some reason. I'm thinking it was just too late for me and my brain was in neutral.

I need to find out how to use iSight with Skype on my iBook G4. Anybody? Anybody??....

JayBird Flies In

Feeling better. Went to therapy and things went well - glad I didn't cancel.

Jana's plane was right on time - just before 9 p.m. She's glad to be here (of course!) but she's disappointed that we have no snow. Right now it looks like we'll have a green Christmas.

Speaking of G-I Issues....

Oh wow - I'm so sick. Picked up a totally unfriendly bug somewhere. Was up all night - most unpleasant. Feeling very much like a dishrag today.

Family Brunch

Today is party day!

First there was a terrific family brunch at South City Limits - Barb and Sharon and all of Barb's kids. Who was there? Dick&Nan, Sharon, Shelly, Chris, Adam&Melanie and Lydia, Barb&Jim, Peter&Melissa and Autumn and Brooke. We had a couple of hours of a really great time. They gave us a gorgeous centerpiece - it's so festive and Christmasy - it looks great on the dining room table.

The Concord Place Christmas party came next. Unfortunately, Mother was not feeling well enough to go down to Party Central. so Dick made a few trips dowstairs to fix her a plate, get her some coffee, etc. She hasn't been feeling well for several weeks now - it seems to be a gastro-intestinal issue of some sort.

Whew!

Land therapy is better than aqua therapy. Why? Because when you're finished you're not dripping wet walking through a fitness center to a cold locker room, and taking 20 minutes to dry off, shiver and change. The machines are fun, the routines are not too difficult, and I think I'll really enjoy the next 3 weeks of therapy. This morning was only the second session, so I don't really notice much difference yet, but I have high hopes.

This afternoon was our adventurous trek, taking Mom to the dentist for an extraction. We were both more stressed out about this than we realized. Things went quite smoothly - the new wheelchair performed well. We rented a Chrysler 300, because it seemed like the best vehicle for moving the most easily from wheelchair to seat....our Subaru is too small and the Explorer is too big! The Chrysler was a great choice.

Dr. Whiting did a marvelous job of keeping everybody calm and happy. After it was all over, Mother didn't even realize that the tooth was already out. She's such a trooper - I know it was a stressful event for her. She kept saying "That wasn't so bad". We're all very relieved that it's over.

CacheApalooza

While we were at the Merry Bowling meet and greet, 1255 miles away, in Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Florida, Laurie, Chip and Dylan were at the camping weekend called CacheApalooza. I looks to me like they had a great time.

Dylan is in the blue T shirt - he's the tallest one. Two of the others are Lainie and Ty, and the third is mystery boy. Dylan is the cutest.

Here is Laurie's log:

Thanks to everyone who made this well organized event possible. We enjoyed every minute. Our group of kids had a fantastic time finding their own treasure cache, and I jumped for joy when my number was called for the Garmin GPS. Thanks!

Merry Bowling

Bowling? We don't do bowling! But we had a great time at the NMG meet and greet in South Boardman today. It was much fun to see everybody and enjoy some great conversations. It was great seing Tim and Susie - it's been a while since we've seen them. Tim won the trophy for the highest bowling score. Very impressive.

There was a Secret Santa gift exchange and a raffle. We got lots of goodies, the absolute best being a whole raft of chocolate chip cookies. Frank and Peggy agreed to stop by next Wednesday for cookies and coffee.

Here is Dick's log of the event:

Thanks Beth for getting us together, it was nice to see the Jedi and the Princess. Thanks Ray and Lydia for the raffles, and everyone who brought a gift or donated to the prize tables, we had a great time. Believe it or not, we bowled almost as well as we did when we were in our teens. It was great to see everyone and watch the experts in action, Katelyn is definitely a champ. We apologize to anyone we didn't get a chance to talk and wish a Merry Christmas to. We certainly enjoyed the conversations that we had. We spent the ride home sharing the stories we gathered from everyone. If anyone wants to drop in for milk and cookies, we're ready.

Mom Has Wheels/ Here Comes Christmas

This was the day we put up Christmas. The tree looks very nice! The house is as decorated as it will be. It's fun to go through the Christmas things, make decisions, and cherish the memories they elicit. Dick put lights on a tree outside the living room so we can enjoy it every evening. That tree is really beautiful. It's a good feeling to have everything finished.

We went to visit Mom today - we took her some boots, pictures of Jace's visit, and some photo Christmas cards that she can send to family. But the big item was her new wheelchair.

To assist in the transfer next Thursday, Dr. Auer, her primary care physician, wrote a prescription for a wheelchair and she will be reimbursed by Medicare and Blue Cross. Mom is very happy to have her own wheelchair, and she wants it stored in her room so no one will take it ! It's a transfer chair - it has small wheels, not the big wheels that the patient turns by hand. Her hands would not be able to turn those wheels anyway. She will always need someone to push it for her.

Springing the Buccal Plate

When I was in college one of my summer jobs was working as a dental assistant in a Kiwanis Club free dental clinic. I had no training at all, so the dentist explained everything in the office very specifically and efficiently, and even quizzed me during the down times. That's how I know that when Mother goes to have her tooth pulled, her dentist will be springing the buccal plate. Buccal means the cheek side of the tooth, and the plate is the jaw.

Mother has an appointment on Dec. 14th for her to go to the dentist and have the bad tooth extracted. She wants it out, but she is naturally nervous about leaving the building, and also about having her tooth pulled. She is expecting "agony". We have tried to comfort her, and explain that she will be numbed up, etc. We've made sure that she has her good winter coat, boots, gloves and hat in case of bad weather. Cross your fingers.

Will There Be Any Stars In My Crown?

Snow, snow and more snow. We now have snow tires on both vehicles, and it's a lot more comfortable driving around. We went to UPS today and shipped the Christmas packages to Florida. Now we're ready to put up the tree, decorate the house, and write the Christmas cards.

Mother's dentist made a home visit this evening after supper to evaluate her teeth. She needs to have a tooth extracted and some other work done. He called in a prescription for an antibiotic for her to take to help avoid infection from the procedure. We have an appointment next Thursday, Dec. 14th at 2 p.m. I think it's remarkable that a dentist would go out of his way like that for an elderly patient. His Grandma is in Birchwood, so he is very understanding and willing to help. He has another star in his crown. Will There Be Any Stars In My Crown by Seldom Scene

This week Dylan's toughest spelling word is reservation. Others are suggestion and conclusion. He has reservations about taking this test. My suggestion is that he'll be glad to see the conclusion of the test!

Michael Moore & Max in T.C.

An Old Favorite

I've been experimenting with audio and video on the blog. Rhapsody.com seems to work the best so far for audio, and YouTube for video.


City Of New Orleans by Seldom Scene

One More Day

There will be only one more day of aqua therapy. After Friday, I will graduate to "land therapy". Tom says I'll be a land shark - remember that on SNL?

Here is the lovely Premier Fitness Center, home of my therapy pool. (Oh by the way, we got quite a bit of new snow today and the roads were horrible.)


Here is our beloved pool. You were expecting maybe Olympic size?


This is Kari, my intrepid therapist. She knows everything about muscles and stretching and strengthening, and she's chock full of good tips for me.


Kari and Lisa, another therapist - they are all very pleasant.

Here's photographic evidence that I do actually have a swim suit, and I really do get into the pool, so there. The shirt comes off when I get into the pool, but for pictures, not so much.

Family Day @ Concord Place

One day after the big snow storm, it was a beautiful, sunny day with a bright blue sky. Jim drove up from Saginaw to visit Mother, and he brought along Dan, Pam and 18 month old Jace! What a treat it was to see them all!



Here's Mother holding Jace (quote "He's Heavy!) with Dan ready to grab him at any second.



While we were all there, Rick and Mary came in with Uncle Fritz and Aunt Ruth. Fritz and Ruth have moved to assisted living and aren't on the road any more, so when Rick and Mary come to town they always bring them to visit Mother. Fritz is Mother's only brother, and he's now 90.



A fun family "crowd shot" - Pam with Jace, Dan, Dick and Jim. Jace will be a big brother before he's two years old. The new baby is due in April, and Jace will be two on May 1.



Rick, Dan and Fritz:


Cousins Rick and Mary with Mother - thanks Rick, for bringing Fritz and Ruth to our impromptu Christmas gathering!


Dan's family meets Great-Grandma - Mother was very happy to meet Pam and Jace.


Thank you Jim, for bringing everybody to Traverse City! It's hard to believe that we had 11 people at once in Mom's room, but it worked out great, and we all loved it!


This little tree was a centerpiece at yesterday's Visitor Center party. I thought it would be perfect for Mother's room, and I think it looks wonderful and festive. Thanks, Kathee for letting us take it. So now the Christmas season is off and running - hang on to your hats!

Ushering in the Holiday Season

The T.C. Convention Bureau and Visitor Center volunteers Christmas Party was this afternoon. It was very festive, with great food, lots of Christmas tree decorations, and good company. To help usher in the season, we had a foot of snow during the afternoon. The party was held at the Maritime Academy, so we were right on the bay. It was interesting to watch the waves smash over the pier - the wind was strong and right out of the northwest. We sat with Jean and John, John and Penny, Val, and Jack. Dick liked the shrimp best; I liked the meatballs and the cheesecake! The coffee was fantastic. There was an open bar, but with the weather the way it was we didn't indulge. I think Dick had one glass of wine. It's always the most enjoyable party of December.

Traffic was awful on the way home, and the roads were treacherous. It took us about 45 minutes to get home, usually a 20 minute drive. The snow drifted up over our porch steps. It was good to be home by the fire.

Jim called this evening. He plans to come up to T.C. tomorrow to visit Mother. I think this will be the official Christmas visit. We're hoping that the main roads will be plowed and sanded by tomorrow.

Julius is 103 !!

Dr. Kevin put in my permanent crown today, and it went very smoothly. Dick went with me, and afterwards, we went out to lunch at Bubba's, and then for a short drive (cache maintenance). He dropped me off at Horizon and went to get a haircut. It's so nice to be out and about - it's like I was never away :)

This article was in today's Record Eagle. It's so nice that Julius can get out of his room occasionally. I hope he had a wonderful birthday. Julius lives across the hall from Mother at Concord Place. He helps her sort her daily newspaper and throws away all of the ads, etc. He has trouble with dry eyes, and he's very hard of hearing, but he's hanging in there. It's hard to believe that anybody is 5 years older than Mother!

Julius Petertyl shares life stories for his birthday

Julius Petertyl remembers when Traverse City had all the bells and whistles.

And he's telling people about them as he turns 103.

"There were churches ringing bells and factories with steam power whistling for starting time,” said Petertyl, who was born in Traverse City on Nov. 30, 1903, the year of the Wright brothers' first flight.

"There were school bells and fire drills and you could go on and on and on,” he said.

He shared his stories of a century-plus of local history with a reporter and later to about 100 people at a party hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Traverse City Monday. Sitting in his wheelchair at the front of the room, he spoke of memories both personal and of the city, including sawdust in the streets to soak up the mud, workers earning 16 cents per hour and a world champion Holstein cow at the Traverse City State Hospital barn.

"When the cow expired, they had a funeral service for the cow,” said Petertyl, who now lives in an assisted living home.

He teared up and had to stop when he spoke of meeting his late wife Dorothy on the golf course and the happy years that followed.

"I love my wife,” he said. "I talk to her every day.”

He recalled the fire whistle that would blow like a siren, which he imitated, and then a code to signify which sector the fire was in.

"When we were kids and heard that at night, it was scary,” he said.

The full-time firemen would take a horse-drawn wagon, pails and a ladder to the fire. Volunteers would leave their homes or jobs and run or ride a bicycle to the fire to help out.

"There were dry, cedar shingles on the roofs, so a spark on the roof starts a fire,” he said.

Petertyl's grandfather Victor Petertyl had come to Traverse City from Prague, Czechoslovakia, in the 1800s. He was a furniture- and cabinet-maker who sold his work at a shop on Front Street.

His father Albert owned the A.T. Petertyl Meat Market in the 500 block of South Union Street when Julius was born. That was before cars were mass-produced, so a horse-and-carriage was the most likely way to get around town. People took a train to go to Grand Rapids or Chicago.

"There were five or six horseshoeing shops in town,” he said.

Two of the town's wagon-, carriage- and sleigh-making shops were owned by Petertyls, cousins of Julius' father. The last name is best known locally because of Petertyl Drug & Gift Center on Front Street, which his brother started; it is no longer in the family.

When Julius was young, his family was one of the few in town who had a telephone, because his father owned a business. To place a call, they had to turn a crank, then tell the operator who they were calling.

In his spare time, he enjoyed making some of his own toys out of wood.

"We'd get wheels from the shops in town that repaired baby buggies and make a cart,” he said.

He also liked to fish the Boardman River off the Union Street bridge.

"You didn't need any fancy equipment,” he said, adding that he and his friends would cut a branch from a tree and tie a line and a hook to it.

The first car he owned, at about age 25, was a used 1919 Ford Roadster.

"It was not enclosed,” he said. That meant the driver and passengers were exposed to the elements.

Petertyl also remembers when snow on the sidewalks was plowed by horses and the city streets were not plowed at all.

"The milkman went through with his milk sleigh and made the first tracks,” he said. "We used to get some big snowstorms.”

In the 1970s, Petertyl helped document the histories of 460 homes and buildings in Traverse City's Central Neighborhood to help get it on the National Register of Historic Places.

"He was instrumental in pulling the Central Neighborhood together with a historic bent and getting it on the National Register,” said Carol Hale, who worked with him on the project.

He attended what is now Central Grade School on Seventh Street and later supervised bricklayers building the barn at Traverse City State Hospital in the 1930s and at Munson Medical Center in the 1950s.

He retired 43 years ago from Consumers Power.

Of course, one of the questioners at the party wanted to know how Petertyl has remained healthy and happy for 103 years.

"I just keep breathing,” he said, which was met with laughter and a standing ovation.

Copyright 1998-2005 Traverse City Record-Eagle

Bumper Stickers

Seen around town:


Who Would Jesus Torture?

and

I was Born OK the First Time

and

Honk If You're Against Noise Pollution

Have you seen other good ones?

Turkey Trot Event

Here's some real geocaching teamwork!
Basswood Bend and cohorts solving problems of the geocaching universe.
One of the cute critters along the way on the Critter Hunt. It was fun!


The event was on Portage Lake in Onekema. There were around 50 people in attendance, both old acquaintances and new folks. One couple came all the way from Wisconsin, and Craig's family came from the Soo. We enjoyed it, and we had so much fun doing the "Critter Hunt", and found 7 caches along the way. We didn't stay for the whole thing, but we did a good bit of it.

Here is Dick's log:

We had a great time. The breakfast was super, the facilities superb and the company was fantastic. It was great to see so many familiar faces as well as so many new ones.
Thanks to Jamie and Barb for hosting and prep. Thanks for the Petersons as well. Thanks also to Gary and Donna for the slide show.
A special thanks Sandrich for the activity. This was our first lengthy caching outing since mid July and to have an activity that allowed full participation, even when a little "gimpy" was much appreciated. We even picked off a few caches that showed up along the route. Sorry that we didn't make it back for dinner and prizes but our energy levels declined and we didn't think it would be a good idea to push it. We'll see every one at the Winter Social.

Gobble, Gobble

Parades, Football, Turkey, Mother, and Pumpkin Pie.

That's what America is all about.

Well, today anyway.

We did it all, and in that order, too.

Mother was felling "some better". but she doesn't look so good, and she was making some mistakes in choosing her words. She calls Bortz "Knox" for some inexplicable reason. She has trouble remembering the names of those around her. She often refers to Julius as "Luther". She has been on an antibiotic for the past week - the last day will be tomorrow. Maybe that medication contributes to the problem. We're getting the feeling that she may need some major dental work and we're trying to figure out how to best accomplish that without making her too uncomfortable. She really doesn't like to move out of her room. 'Tis a problem.

She ate shrimp, and some homemade dressing and gravy, and a couple of olives. It was good, because she hasn't been eating well for a week - mostly just soups.

Spoke to Jana last night - she's feeling much better. Spoke to Laurie and Dylan today - he eats his pumpkin pie with ice cream instead of whipped cream. It's his favorite part of Thanksgiving. Tom had spoken to Laurie and he plans to spend Thanksgiving with Kevin and Amy's family. They have really welcomed him into their family circle. It's a Good Thing.