Uinta Mountains Blog

Winter today, but more fall in the forecast

2011-10-06T08:56:00.002-06:00

We woke up to less snow than the weatherman predicted, but snow nonetheless!

A friend called this morning and reported snow in the Tooele Valley and it sounds like they have a lot more there than we have here at 8,200 feet.

Good thing we got all that wood split!

We had to turn on some heaters today too though, the fireplace isn't keeping up with the cold snap.

Fall Today Winter Tomorrow?

2011-10-03T17:49:00.006-06:00

Today is the first Monday of the rest of my retirement. Ray and I split more wood for winter and then took our walk. The mountains are beautiful the time of year. The aspens are brilliant with yellow and orange leaves.

As I write this a few visitors stopped by to say hello.

Here's a picture of them from my window.

A Beautiful Sunday Morning

2011-10-02T16:42:00.007-06:00

My favorite thing to do on Sunday Mornings is to grab my cup of coffee and hop back in to bed to watch the CBS Morning show. The most exciting part of that routine this morning was when Ray told me to look out the bedroom window.

This calf moose wanted to watch too I guess.

He was in the yard yesterday with the bull and cow. The bull was around for quite a while before the calf and cow showed up yesterday. Later today when we were out splitting wood and hauling it to the porch we could see the calf and cow watching us closely.

Have I told you lately how much I love living in the mountains?

Here are a few photos of the results of our wood splitting today.

2011-10-01T17:17:00.000-06:00

Here's hoping I'll have more time to blog now!

Maui Nov 13, 2010

2010-11-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

We bought fresh pineapple from a guy standing in the road and dried mango from a green roadside stand.

I took one last dip in the ocean and got sand in my suit!

Ray and I had dinner at the Plantation House to celebrate the anniversary of the day we met. They gave us a nice card and champagne.

Binary

2010-10-10T10:10:00.000-06:00

101010 Converts to Happily Ever After for Ray and me. Today is our 25th wedding anniversary.

Here Bigger Kitty

2010-10-07T17:22:00.001-06:00

We took possession of our snow cat today.

This should get us through the winter.

Snow Cat

2010-09-30T17:54:00.002-06:00

We got news today that our Snow Cat should be delivered next week. Is it crazy to get excited about a snow cat?

It's going to be pretty cool though.

Photos to come--oh and the Snow Cat will be named The Ark--Why?

Because it used to be owned by NOAA

:) (Wil's idea)

Oh and Happy 50th Birthday to the Flintstones!!

Indian Summer?

2010-09-29T17:41:00.000-06:00

The temperatures have been in the 70s for a few weeks now and I'm loving it. I'm getting kind of spoiled and I'm afraid I'll be disappointed when the weather turns cold and then colder.

But for now it sure is nice to be able to sit outside and eat outside and go for our afternoon walk without worrying about bundling up.

Here Kitty

2010-09-28T17:43:00.002-06:00

Believe it or not we have a kitty in our yard. He must be really lost. I wonder where he came from? I hope he sticks around. It's kind of nice having a domestic animal around.

We also saw several piles of elk doo on our walk today, so that means the elk are coming down and we'll probably start seeing them soon.

Oh and I almost forgot to mention the moose. Jeez we see so many of them lately.

Backblogged

2010-09-25T14:46:00.003-06:00

Is it legal to backblog? I felt a little backlogged on my blogging so I've posted a few new blogs that happened earlier this month.

Little Miss Muffett has Nothing on Me

2010-09-11T15:21:00.002-06:00

For a week or two now Ray has been monitoring the progress of his new pet. This one is right outside our bedroom Window.

I hope he doesn't find his way inside.

First Snow and a Fox in the Yard

2010-09-09T14:57:00.001-06:00

When I got up this morning it was cold outside, so I went out on the front porch and got some kindling to start a fire. I thought I heard a dog barking, which in a normal neighborhood is not uncommon, but in mine is rare except for weekends.

It was still dark outside and I was half asleep, so I was really surprised when the sun finally came up and I realized it had snowed overnight.

The other really nice surprise was the pretty little fox that was running around just below my office window.

Roh-Day-Oh

2010-09-06T17:32:00.001-06:00

Ray and I decided to participate in local festivals and events when we moved here. The nearest town is 30 miles to the North, so that's where we shop and eat out. We invited our kids and grandkids to come and go with us to the rodeo and I really enjoyed it.

It had been years since I had gone to one. I took a lot of photos and found new features on my camera that were pretty cool.

2002 East Fork Fire Still a Big, Ugly Mess

2010-06-15T17:50:00.010-06:00

The fire started June 28, 2002, inside the East Fork of the Bear River Boy Scout Camp. It blackened 14,200 acres of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest and caused an estimated $150,000 in damage within the Scout camp itself, but the devastation to the Forest and surrounding area was estimated at over $14 Million.

In 2002 while I was mourning the first anniversary of the death of my son Mathew, flames forced evacuation of the Scout camp, nearby campgrounds and caused me and my family to pack up what we could and leave our mountain home. Officials were forced to close most of the north slope of the Uinta Mountains to the public.

Lawsuits were filed against the Boy Scouts of America and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2004. The state of Utah sought more than $600,000 in damages for putting out the fire that spread over state, federal and private lands. The Federal law suit saught $13 million in damages.

So why am I bringing all this up now, so many years later? Because Ray and I decided to drive up to the area where it all began and take a walk today.

We Killed The Mouse

2010-02-11T16:43:00.000-07:00

Our little mouse friend kept stealing the cheese from the mouse traps we set, but the little guy was so small he wasn't setting them off. Finally we got the bright idea to push the cheese down a little harder on the trap so he would have to work for it. We caught him in less than an hour. It was actually kind of sad. He died instantly from what looked like a broken arm.

I hated killing him, but what other options are there?

Mel, the Sears technician--

2010-01-19T18:30:00.000-07:00

A month or so ago I got a letter from Sears telling me my brand new washer needed a circuit board replacement due to problem they had discovered with one of the rinse cycles. The instructions said to call and they would mail out a new circuit board and schedule a technician to come to my home to replace it.

When I called I spoke to a really nice lady in Texas and explained that we would love to have the technician come to our home, but did she realize it would require a snowmobile ride for part of the way? She assured me that my address indicated I lived in a remote area and she was certain the technicians were used to getting in to places like mine.

I was doubtful to say the least.

As is often the case, when the circuit board was sent, the address they used on the package was our physical location rather than our mailing address. Thank goodness the UPS guy called and asked me where I lived. He was kind enough to put the correct address on the box and route it to Wyoming so it could get delivered to me. Sure enough the package showed up two days later.

This morning I was doubtful (due to our experience trying to get the Dish Network technicians to show up) that the technician would really come as planned.

He called around 8:30 or so and spoke to my husband who explained where we were, gave him very specific instructions to call when he reached the nearest town so we would have an estimated time of arrival and Ray could meet him out on the highway to bring him in.

AND (drum roll please) Everything worked as planned.

So here's to Mel the Sears technician from Salt Lake City. You're on my list of great service providers.

2010-01-12T17:54:00.000-07:00

My very ambitious husband decided the wood stack we had was dwindling and since the high temperature today was 44 degrees he went out and spent the day cutting some more wood and stacking it.

The weather here is beautiful and sunny, but I wish it would snow. Is that strange? I used to hate the snow, but not having to commute in it has made a big difference to me.

Friends lunch, no shows and eek!

2010-01-11T17:26:00.000-07:00

Where do I begin? We took a trek down from the mountains to have lunch with friends on Friday. That was fun and really good food. If you ever go to Tooele for anything-- eat at Sostanza. Great food and great service, reasonably priced.

Saturday we cleaned like crazy because we were planning to show the house to at least two or three interested buyers who had called and said they would like to come by on Saturday. All were no shows. :( So we have a nice, clean house still for sale.

We visited with Mom on the way back to the mountains on Sunday and got in pretty late, but it sure was nice to be home.

First thing this morning as I came up stairs to get to work, I stopped in the bathroom to wash my face, etc. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something small and dark, dart across the floor, run around the room and run out the door. EEK!!! It was a mouse. I guess the little critters have finally found their way in from the out doors. Dammit. Want to lend me your cat?

All in all though today was a beautiful day in the mountains. The thermometer got up to 39 degrees today and the sun was out all day.

We could use some snow though, otherwise the ground will be bare in no time.

Wine, bubbles and candles

2010-01-06T17:41:00.000-07:00

Day two as full timers was another day in paradise. Ray and I met in the kitchen for lunch and then after work we took our walk down to collect the mail. We're always excited to receive mail from friends and family.

After our walk I took a nice bath with the candles lit and the bubbles up to my chin. Ray brought me a glass of wine and I was in heaven.

Full timers

2010-01-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays. We sure did. It was great having Wil visit from school for a few weeks. I sure have missed having him around. He provides so much entertainment and I just love his sense of humor.

Ray and I are now full time mountain dwellers. Yesterday was my first day working from my mountain home and it was delightful.

After I got off work Ray and I went for a walk and made an event out of retrieving the mail.

Some friends and family have been concerned that we'll feel isolated up here in the mountains.

I'll keep you posted on that.

Brrrrr

2009-11-15T08:45:00.000-07:00

It snowed a bit yesterday and this morning-- the sun is out and the sky is blue . . . AND the thermometer is reading 1.4 degrees F. I'm thankful for a reliable power source and a nice warm fireplace and lots of wood to burn.

Friday Ray took me with him to the new SnoTel site at Burts-Miller Ranch. That was fun and interesting. I've been passing the ranch all these years and seeing it from the road always wondered what it was like. I imagine it is a haven for the Moose. Ray had to point the antenna toward the new master station at Dugway. If you're interested in what the snow situation is in the mountains of Utah, you should visit the Utah Snow Survey web page:

http://www.ut.nrcs.usda.gov/snow/

Oh and on the way in to our place we saw a herd of elk! No pictures this time.

Fall is in the air

2009-10-02T18:07:00.000-06:00

The drive through the mountains today was beautiful. There is a skiff of snow on the ground and frosting the trees. There is still some yellow and orange on the quakies and the willows are a deep maroon. I love the smell of autumn. I got out of the car to check the mailbox and there was that smell in the air. I got back in the car and asked Ray how he would describe that smell of autumn. "It's kind of sweet", he said. That's true, it is kind of sweet. Is it the leaves on the ground that have begun to rot? It seems like that would be stinky doesn't it?

We arrived at our Little Sweden to find a beautiful bull moose sauntering through the yard. It's hunting season, so I imagine there will be a lot of critters taking refuge in and around our place for the next few weeks. They sure welcome here.

five bucks a doe and a spotted fawn

2009-08-09T13:11:00.000-06:00

Friday we saw a spotted fawn and a doe wandering around our place and then this morning they were down by the pond along with five small bucks. I always thought bucks traveled alone, but these five were all hanging out together, no fighting, just easting the green leaves on the small aspen. They're young and still have velvet on their antlers, so maybe that's why they're still hanging out together. I had to take the pictures through the window and the screen on the back porch because I didn't want to go outside and scare them away. The pics turned out pretty good considering. Ray first spotted the bucks while I was getting my second cup of coffee. I grabbed my camera and shot some pictures through the window looking down at them. Then we went out the back door and on to the screened porch where I took a few more.

We've had a busy weekend. Ray cut down a couple dozen trees yesterday and then he cut them to length and we stacked them. The smaller ones are now on the porch ready for fall and winter and the rest will need to be split. It's a good start though on the winter supply. It is sad to see so many dead trees, but I guess that's life. The beetle kill is still raging and before you know it all of the larger pines will be dead. There are a lot of little ones sprouting up to take their place, but it takes time for them to grow. The aspen are thriving though with out the pines around to steel the sun.

Midsummer

2009-07-10T17:27:00.000-06:00

Midsommar brings the summer solstice. It is the time of year when Swedes move out-of-doors. The symbolic, family coffee table finds its place in the shade of a tree outdoors and it is time to celebrate nature. Doorways and hearths are decorated with freshly cut birch branches. May poles are erected and decorated with birch branches and freshly cut wild flowers and often with the Swedish flag.

We celebrated Midsummer on two different visits to Sweden and loved every minute so now we make an attempt to celebrate every year at our own Little Sweden.

Ravens on the Roof

2009-06-30T22:13:00.000-06:00

This weekend while I was upstairs making beds, I could hear something outside on the roof.
It sounded like Santa Clause's reindeer, but it's much too early for that so I had to go outside and take a look.
It turned out to be two really BIG, black birds. I didn't know the difference between a crow and a raven so I had to Google it.
It turns out the big ones like these are ravens. They like unpopulated areas and, did you know that ravens can mimic? They can actually learn words!
My raven couple hung out all weekend and Ray tells me there was a third bird in the yard.

My ravens haven't spoken to me yet, they just make a terrible screeching sound.

I hope they learn to talk or sing.

Today is a brighter day

2009-05-13T15:14:00.000-06:00

Well obviously I was very down yesterday which is unusual for me, but considering the circumstances I'm going to cut myself some slack. I got some insight from friends and family and it is always helpful for me to stay in close touch with those of a like mind when it comes to the hereafter. I have a friend who is very psychic and she let me know yesterday that she could sense Matt was with me and had his hands on my shoulders. She said he knows how important his birthday is to me. That's really encouraging and helpful to me.

We're looking forward to entertaining my husband's cousins this weekend at our place in the mountains and I'm going to make homemade barbecue chicken pizza. If it turns out good and you're interested, leave a comment and I'll post the recipe.

Today is Mathew's Birthday

2009-05-12T10:32:00.000-06:00

May 12, 2009

Dear Mathew,

Today would have been your 32nd birthday and for days now I’ve been looking at the date on the calendar and thinking, “Mathew’s birthday is coming up. How should I spend that day? Should it be treated like any other work day or should I do something special that day?”

Over the years since you died I’ve thought those same thoughts and treated the day differently from year to year. Some years I take the day off work and visit the place where we buried your body. I know you are not there, but sometimes going to that place and sitting on the grass and looking at the American flag that waves in the distance and the beautiful mountain behind it makes me feel close to you. You loved those mountains. And as I read the verse Jodi had inscribed at the bottom of the head stone . . . “We Shared a Special Love.” . . . it makes me happy to remember how much you loved each other and how you hated the thought of going anywhere without her and even though you were so young you married her and took her to North Carolina and then to Texas. And as I sat there I would think of your beautiful children. Blue eyed Cody whom you adored and read to and played music for and rocked and fed and diapered and then little Mathew who was born after you died and how those first few years of his life,he looked so much like you did as a little boy-- so much so that I would often stare at him until it made him uncomfortable and he would look at me with your eyes and I could tell he was wondering why I stared at him that way.
I think about how you called me just a few days before you died, so excited to tell me about the names you were thinking of for your baby and how on that last night of your life I had left you a phone message with an idea I had for a name for your son. And I think about Nathan and wonder what would you have done about Nathan? How would you have dealt with that situation once it was there full on?
And then I come back to the day and the celebration and I remember all the crazy birthday cakes I made for you when you were a kid. One year I made you a Christmas tree cake and wrote Merry Birthday Matt on it and another year a school bus cake. No wonder you preferred cheese cake on your birthday.
Some years I’ve listened to the audio tape from your funeral so I could hear again the things that were said about you by family and friends and listen once again to Kelly and Heather and Chris and Stephanie singing some of your favorite songs or songs that reminded us of you and of our loss.
June 30, 2001, the night you died, I had been trying to reach you on the phone and the next day I called to see if you got my message and Josh answered. What was he telling me? That you were killed? and I recall the disbelief and the sudden grief-- It has been almost 8 years now and the disbelief and the grief are still fresh.
I think about the Marine escort who stayed with your body as they flew you home and how serious and respectful he was –such a hard job for such a young Marine. And I recall seeing your body at the mortuary and how I touched your hands, your long fingers, so much like mine, and your beautiful, thick hair. And then later, at the funeral, there you were in your dress uniform lying there so still and white gloved. And I remember all those Marines that flew in for your funeral—what an out pouring of support from the Marine Corps for someone who did not die in combat—It is still so touching and meaningful to me. All those Marines lining up to talk to me one by one and sharing a story about you or telling me what a good Marine you were, what a good friend you were. Are they trained to say those things to comfort the mother?
I think about how Wil had a terrible sun burn because I was too distracted and grief stricken to care for him and how people kept patting him on his sore, red back during the funeral. And Amanda, how I hurt for her that day. How I still hurt for her and sense how deep her grief is over your loss.

Today I read a passage in Carol Lynn Pearson’s book looking for inspiration to guide me this day. Carol Lynn had a daughter that died suddenly of a brain tumor.
The chapter is titled Death and Beyond and here is what she wrote:
A tiny rip in the curtain that covers mortality, just big enough for a synchronistic message to get through. Death. The huge and final mystery.
How I wished I could have a near-death experience without nearly dying. How I have envied those who have had their loved ones appear to them in a vision. How I yearn to believe everything I read from those who visit the other side for a moment and come back with thrilling tales of light and incomparable love.
The curtain is solid as I reach out and finger it, except for tiny rips just big enough for a synchronistic message to get through, sometimes a message about life that we call death.

I can name a few things that could be taken as synchronistic messages since you died. But I do wish there was something more to prove that you still are. Some days I believe with a belief so strong I could argue the point with those who tell me there is no life after death, but other days I doubt with a doubt nearly as strong.

I can still hear your voice in my head with the way you always began phone conversations with me . . . ”Hey Ma” ---

I have a recording of your voice when you left a message on the answering machine after you and Josh visited that January the year before the last time I saw you. You called to thank us for everything. I loved that visit. I loved that you brought your friend to our house to stay on that trip.

And I think of the voice message we got on our answering machine soon after you died. It just said “hey”, but it sounded so much like you that Ray called me in to the room to hear it. Was that a rip in the curtain or someone who sounded just like you calling our phone and leaving a message that said “hey” just like you used to say it and then hanging up?

So, today I sit in my office attempting to work as if it were any other work day and I find that’s not possible, so I stop and I light a candle for you and I write your name on my Reiki grid and in my heart I say a prayer that I hope you can hear and I wish for a rip in the curtain big enough for you to send me some kind of sign. A sign that you can hear me and hear what is in my heart and heal this hole that never heals because you are gone.

And now tears cloud my vision and I can’t see to type this anymore. But I want to continue writing. I want to write a tribute to you, to your life and put it somewhere to share. I want people to know that I had a son named Mathew and that I loved him and he made me proud. I want the world to know that he lived and then he died. That we all die and what happens after that nobody really knows for sure. Life after death can’t be proven, but sometimes we have to hold on to the belief that there is something more, because without that belief, how do we go on living with the loss of a child?

*footnote: I just got an email from a co-worker in another state who has no idea that today is Mathew’s birthday, but for some reason in almost the same instance that I wrote about wanting some kind of sign, he wrote that people were meeting today and enjoying birthday cake.

Gratitude and Attitude and the Law of Attraction

2009-04-19T09:35:00.000-06:00

I have kept a gratitude journal off and on through the years and I like to read through the old ones now and again. Some of the entries make me smile while others bring tears. Even the tears though come with a sweet memory, so it's not that gratitude is no longer a part of it.

The reason I keep a journal is that I believe being grateful for the wonderful things in your life is the way to attracting more of these things.

Today I'm grateful for the warmth of the wood fire, the bright blue sky, porch rockers, and a pleasant and loving companion.

I'm grateful every morning for good health and for being a positive person by nature. It just makes everything so much easier when you can start each day with those two things going for you. Carol King sang "You're beautiful as you feel" and I believed her. If I have a theme song, that's it.

I have a note posted next to my treadmill that says "Focus on what you want and NOT on what you don't want." This is a reminder to myself that I need to focus on being thin and healthy and forget about the imperfections that my mind wanders toward . . . if I let it.

Today I read an article in the Catalyst written by Jeannette Maw. Here's a quote from the article that I really like. "Our attention is powerful. What we focus on grows. And it's really easy to think we're focusing on the solution when we're actually dialed directly on the problem."

Think peace, think health, think prosperity, think beauty.

Measuring the Snow

2009-04-04T16:11:00.000-06:00

I assisted Ray in measuring the snow today. The grand total is 49 inches. We have 13 inches of new snow.

Notice the weather instrument shelter behind me.

New Record Totals

2009-04-04T09:16:00.000-06:00

Ray has been keeping snow measurements at our place in the mountains for several years and he is pretty excited about the record snow fall we're having in April. I'm posting an updated video taken this morning from our front porch.

2009-04-03T19:29:00.000-06:00

Snow At Our Place in the Mountains

2009-03-31T16:03:00.001-06:00

Thank you Connie, for giving me the idea for today's blog!

My husband loves snow and it is his job to know snow. Until I met him I hated winter and I hated the snow. I spent my time avoiding the outdoors. And then Ray came along and taught me how to play in the snow.

He introduced me to snowmobiling and I've been riding now for over 20 years and a few years ago we bought some snowshoes.

I wouldn't say I love snow they way my husband does, but I do enjoy riding on a nice sunny day or going snowshoeing and stopping for a picnic lunch along the way.

One of my favorite things now is to wake up to a beautiful snowstorm in the mountains knowing I don't have to venture out if I don't feel like it.

Winter at our place begins in late October or early November and lasts until well in to April and May. There are some drawbacks. For example, we would be hard pressed to grow a garden!

Thanks again Connie and tell your husband the snow is somehow different in the mountains.

No Politics In The Mountains

2009-03-30T15:37:00.000-06:00

One of the reasons I love being at our place in the mountains has to do with the slow paced, no hassles life style. It's like living a meditation. Your mind is clear, you feel rested and at peace. There is just no way to achieve that sense of balance living in the city other than meditation and other like techniques.

Could there be anything better for the soul than waking up and looking outside and seeing nothing but nature--Walking outside and hearing nothing but nature--Breathing in the cool mountain air and exhaling all of the stress and tension?

Living in the mountains means leaving politics and war and religious arguments behind.

It means chopping wood and hauling it and stacking it in to neat stacks to use all winter--hard work that feels good. It means enjoying the planning and preparation and serving of a meal and watching as your friends and family enjoy every bite. It means sleeping in if you feel like it or spending the day reading a good book or just sitting and listening to the wind in the trees.

And when evening comes you sit by the fire and enjoy a good conversation and maybe relive some of the day's events and then go to bed feeling that everything is right with the world.

Welcome To The Mountains

2009-03-29T11:24:00.000-06:00

This is the first blog of what I hope will be many from the beautiful Uinta Mountains, Utah.

I intend to share information about the weather, furry visitors to our yard and what friends and family are up to.

I'll ask some of our guests to share their experiences and hopefully they'll allow me to post some photos of their visits to our mountain home.

My first photo to this blog is one of many Moose visitors we've had at our place. What you are seeing here is our moose friend standing in the middle of our man made pond. Ray, Wil and I made a stream that runs down the hill near the side of our house into this small pond. We did this because we love the sound of the running water and we don't have a natural stream on our property. We didn't realize at the time how much the deer and moose would enjoy it. I love it that they feel safe and welcome in our yard.