breakfast in missoula

Posted on October 5, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Yes, we made it this far.

Believe when I say it wasn’t easy. There is so much to do to leave the house ready for the winter and, despite giving it our all on Tuesday, we still didn’t leave the lake until 1:00 Wednesday afternoon.

Banjo Man managed to drive for an hour before needing a nap, so I bought coffee in Plains and took the wheel.

He slept for almost two hours.

The highlight of the day was having dinner with old friends Gary and Judy, who baked chicken pies for us. So much fun to visit with them, as always.

Once at our hotel, things went downhill in a hurry. I am never at my best when deliriously tired, so when our room’s thermostat was stuck on 67 degrees and blowing frigid air, I begged Banjo Man to go down to the front desk for help. He returned with a helpful maintenance man who unlocked secret closets and adjusted the temperature so we could have heat.

Once cozy and warm in bed, I reached for the little plastic box that holds my retainer only to discover it was EMPTY.

I’ve worn that retainer since 1991, after wearing braces at the age of 39. I have carefully packed it over thousands upon thousands of miles of road trips, writers’ conferences, and eleven trips to Great Britain and Europe.

So…where is it now? I’m stymied. Somehow it never made it to its container and fell on the floor in my rush to hop out of bed and get busy with my list of chores? Maybe it is under my nightstand or under my bed. The little blue plastic case never left my bedroom until I put it in the Zip lock bag that holds essentials like my toothbrush and lip gloss and moisturizer. Could the retainer have fallen off the bathroom counter and is now wedged between it and the tub?

I wish I knew, even though it doesn’t matter now.

I am aware that I am whining.

I will rally any day now. I will find an orthodontist who will create a replacement, no matter how long it takes. I will even eventually forgive myself for being too distracted, too busy, in too much of a hurry to pay attention to personal details.

We have been so busy.

So…change of subject….we are looking forward to a beautiful drive across Montana today. We don’t know where we will stop or how many miles we will travel. But we do now that the scenery will be gorgeous!

Posted in friends, lake, personal female whining, road trip | Leave a comment

it’s that time of year

Posted on October 5, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Do you know what I love about October road trips?

I love my afternoon caffeine fix when it’s flavored “pumpkin pie.” The gas stations and truck stops will have versions of pumpkin cappuccino available as needed.

And come mid-afternoon I definitely need help to get me through the rest of the day as we speed towards yet another hotel.

Cheers!

Posted in food, just for fun, road trip | Leave a comment

cabin fest 2023

Posted on October 4, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Oh, my, what a time was had by all!

Joe (seated on the left on the bench) put together another musical extravaganza. And everyone who ever had anything to do with the band gathered to play some tunes.

Dancing Mandolin Player, Bruce, and Retired Mountain Lady
Music under the quilt.
The younger generation gathered outside. And with the addition of a beautiful baby girl, four generations attended Cabin Fest.
Brother George and Bruce.
Tim, Joe, Mark and Linda.
Retired Mountain Lady gets her equipment. The porch made a great “back stage” area.

So much work went into getting the cabin ready. The bunkhouse had to be cleared and organized, as did the cabin. Brother-in-law Ned built shelves, sister-in-law Nancy vacuumed and delivered four chairs.

George worked for hours every day. I think he will need some rest when he returns home.

As you read this, we will be packing up the car to head eastward. It’s never easy to leave the lake house. I will make one more attempt to find an arrowhead on the beach. And we will say goodbye.

What a joy to live in this beautiful place!

Posted in family, friends, lake, music, road trip, the band | 2 Comments

last days on the mountain

Posted on October 3, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Poor Banjo Man. He hates to say goodbye. We spent five hours up here on Monday.

We had one last fire in the stove.

We cleaned. We ate apple pie. We rested a bit.

We put up the sign.

We have a caretaker, someone who will check on things often. The cabin won’t be abandoned for the winter.

And we’ll be back in the Spring.

Posted in lake | 2 Comments

a little bit of home

Posted on September 22, 2023 by is there any more pie?

These spindles, painted by George and installed into the bunkhouse by Banjo Man, came from the family farm in Nebraska. The guys remember standing next to them on Christmas morning as they and their sisters waited for their mother to give them permission to come downstairs and see what Santa left them.

Putting them in the bunkhouse loft was a labor of love.

Cutting the railings.
Planning out the project.
View from below.

As you can see, this has been a huge undertaking. You’re looking at Banjo Man’s summer and the reason why he is one happy guy.

Posted in family, lake | 1 Comment

from my window

Posted on September 10, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Is this what heaven looks like? If so, I’m happy with those glorious shades of yellow peeking over the clouds.

I was on my way to Denver.

And then…to Austin.

My boys surprised me by waiting for me at the bottom of the escalator!! Ben had driven all the way down from Round Rock to pick me up so I wouldn’t have to trudge through a parking garage to get a taxi at 11 PM in 98 degree heat. Will is still car-shopping and waiting for his van to be repaired.

Will had planned to Uber to the airport, get me and Uber us home. Ben saved the day.

I was pretty darn thrilled to see them.

Meanwhile, back at the cabin…

Banjo Man traveled up the mountain to spend the night in his own version of the wilderness.

I’d rather be in Texas.

Posted in austin, family, texas, travel | 1 Comment

texas awaits

Posted on September 7, 2023 by is there any more pie?

I am leaving Banjo Man. For five days.

This will be the first time we’ve been apart for two years, since the cancer diagnosis and all of its resulting operations, procedures, tests, etc.

We’ve been glued to each other’s sides.

And now? Well, I have decided to no longer hover. I am very, very good at hovering. But my husband has assured me he won’t exhaust himself working on the cabin (there are 8 more chunks of siding to paint) or readying the place for Cabinfest. There are plenty of individual meals in the freezer for him.

Deep breaths for me. It’s going to be weird leaving him behind while I jet off to Austin to see The Funny Grandson’s first football game on Monday evening.

I will be calling home three times a day. This is going to be more stressful for me than it will be for Banjo Man, though I think he will be a bit lonely with no one to talk to morning and night. He enjoys his quiet mornings working in his office, his afternoons at the cabin, but the evenings might be a little too isolating.

Wish us luck.

By the time you read this, we will have spent a luxurious night at the Davenport Grand Hotel, enjoyed dinner with Dancing Mandolin Player and Bob, attended a Bonnie Raitt concert and gobbled up breakfast in the Grand’s dining room. It’s the happening of the summer!

Banjo Man will go home with DMP and Bob, and I will drive myself to the airport for an afternoon flight to Texas.

I actually have a blueberry cake in my carry on.

Posted in family, food, friends, music, texas, travel | 2 Comments

ah, september…

Posted on September 6, 2023 by is there any more pie?

Perfect temperatures on the dock right now. Banjo Man took this picture the other evening. We enjoy sitting on the dock looking at the lake.

We don’t do it often enough. But September is the month for it!

Posted in lake | 1 Comment

meanwhile, back at the lake

Posted on September 4, 2023 by is there any more pie?

While Banjo Man is up on the mountain working on the cabin this Labor Day weekend, I’ve pulled out my zucchini plant (it gave me three zucchinis), my cucumber plant (produced one cuke), one of my basil plants (chomped on by grasshoppers) and the parsley (don’t need it any longer). I have clipped stalks of sage and have hung bunches of them to dry for winter.

I’m drying pears, which may or may not be successful. Stay tuned.

I’m slowly working my way through the freezer as I prepare to empty, defrost and shut it down in a few weeks. Same with the pantry fridge. The kitchen refrigerater needs to be cleaned, inside and out, and my outdoor grill will be taken apart and scrubbed.

I’ve learned not to wait until the final week to do these things. The freezer is always a challenge, but next spring it will be empty and ready for me to fill it up with meals again.

Believe it or not, we ate them all.

With gusto. And Stubb’s BBQ sauce.

This seems like a very long time ago:

April, 2023

I’m already looking forward to next year.

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where’d he go?

Posted on September 3, 2023 by is there any more pie?

One of Banjo Man’s favorite helpers has fled across the country to the quiet of his own home where there are no construction jobs.

Brother George was a HUGE help these past couple of weeks. Thank God he likes to paint. And move stuff. And build stair railings.

There always seems to be new boards to paint, so Banjo Man will be back at it with a paint brush in hand this coming week. He is joyous.

The Cougar Creek Band is coming again to play and sing and eat pulled pork sandwiches next month. We have named it “Cabinfest 2023” and everyone is practicing their songs. It’s a real treat to get together once a year and jam.

This means that Banjo Man is very, very busy getting the cabin and the bunkhouse ready for company.

Yesterday he bought a bookcase. And some more pipe for stair railings. Check out the brick of cedar shavings. That’s for the outhouse.

I hear it’s crucial.

Posted in family, lake, shopping, the band | Leave a comment