Ever feel like you're being watched? While on my walk, I saw a bit of movement so I started taking random pictures into the woods. After unloading them, I discovered it was this guy who had been observing me.

January 21, 2014 – Tuesday

-9 degrees/cloudy/breezy

Pentoga Road

I wish the wood stove would get hot. Right now, there’s a happy fire crackling away; as we call it, a Charlie Brown fire. It’s pretty, decorative, but gives off little heat. I want a mean fire, one that roars and quickly warms the house. I should have had the butler start the fire earlier this morning when he arrived for the day. Right now, it’s 51 in the house and I’m having to periodically stop writing to rub my fingers together. Sargie’s off today and will stay in bed until the house warms enough that she can comfortably take a shower.

Burn baby burn!

The weekly onslaught of students’ papers continue to digitally appear in my email's inbox. If these were salmon swimming upstream, I’d predict a very good seasonal spawn. I’ve spent much of the past two days in the cycle of reading, assessing, and commenting, stopping to do some other activity, then reading, assessing, and commenting again. So far, so good. I’m keeping abreast of the activity.

Sunday was spent much in the same manner and listening to the NFL playoff games. I’m going to pull for the Broncos in the Super Bowl; if for no other reason than I like Payton Manning. Next to Brett Favre, he’s an all time great and unlike Brett, he’s modest. I’ve always liked Seattle, but that outbreak in a post game interview by one of their players tilted my who-do-I-like scales in favor of Denver.

I walked the usual five miles Monday morning. Returning home and beginning the task of reading papers,  I found my coffee cup was empty and sat the computer on the floor so I might go to the kitchen for a refill. When I returned, I found Brutus had laid his Volkswagen-sized head on the keyboard, using it as a warm pillow. The machine gets quite warm, so much so, that an insulated board sits between it and my lap when using it for any length of time.

It was warm and certainly as soft as the floor, so why not use it as a pillow? I pried the computer from under the dog’s head with the admonishment to never do that again… I’m sure… until the next time my back is turned.

Who? Me?

I took my ice auger into town on Monday morning to the local small engine fix-it man, Larry. I’d talked to Yooper Brother Mark earlier about taking it elsewhere and Mark had suggested I visit Larry in Caspian. I’m glad I did. We talked a bit and I found he has a married granddaughter who lives in Anchorage. Ten years my senior, Larry says he ought to retire someday, but he said that he likes what he’s doing and is going to continue as long as he can. I mentally placed Larry on my list of good guys.

I attempted to fix the starter rope on the auger, but decided to let someone else have the pleasure. Sargie loves when I put the ice auger on the kitchen counter. It's there to let any ice thaw and drip into the sink.

I stopped at the plant to wish Yooper Brother Mark and Ann a happy Martin Luther King Day. I figure any national holiday deserves well wishes to all.

One of yesterday’s chores was to call ATT to find out about a rate reduction for our home phone plan. I was going to have it disconnected a few weeks ago and continue service with Verizon, but at the time, when I called ATT, they said they could match Verizon… then the line went dead. I called yesterday to see if indeed, they would. They did.

I’m assuming that the cellular plans are cutting into the land line business and desperate to keep what customers they have, ATT will negotiate. It’s about time. Seems I’ve paid a monthly bill to them for the past forty years.

It’s time to begin the process of contacting the Maine Teacher Retirement System and Social Security to secure the other half of my pension. Since I turn 62 in June, both should begin in July. If they are anything like Alaska, it will take them six months to get the wheels in motion. I waded into our two-drawer filing cabinet and finally found the papers I needed with the correct phone numbers.

My first call was to Maine. Oh, of course, it was a holiday, Martin Luther King Day. Plans for beginning the process were delayed.

A two-drawer file cabinet was adequate when I lived by myself. One drawer contained tax and retirement information; another important papers that are deemed too valuable to be lost. When Sargie joined me, she brought her important papers and suddenly two drawers were woefully inadequate.

While in town, I stopped at one of our second hand stores and found a nice two-drawer cabinet for $10. I’ll begin sorting who’s who and what’s what tomorrow when Sargie returns back to work. We’ll keep one in the basement with papers that are important, but seldom needed. The other will remain by the desk in our bedroom.

Sargie called last night saying she was on her way home. The call began a series of  nightly routines. First, I put away anything that has been carelessly placed during the day, usually my boots, winter coat, cap, and gloves. What few dishes that might be in the sink are washed and dried, and finally, I swipe the tops of the furniture in the living room with a dust rag to remove any ashes that might have settled during the past twenty-four hours and lastly, I run the vacuum over the carpet and sweep the laminate floors.

I was finishing vacuuming the living room floor when I heard a “POOF” and dust flew everywhere. I’d seen something shiny fly from the sweeper, but was more concerned with the dust. The bag in the vacuum had gotten too full and burst.

It’s amazing what one picks up with a sweeper… there was one of my favorite pens I’d been missing along with a few large pieces of bark and some chips of wood. And lying at my feet was Sargie’s beautiful chain on which a cross hangs that she always wears around her neck. 

When Sargie arrived home last night, obviously upset, she'd discovered the necklace missing during the day and asked if I might have found it. I told her the story of how it found me.

God is still alive and well on Pentoga Road.

Sargie’s off today and we’re going to head to the south and west to visit the big city of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. They have a JC Pennys, a Kohls Department Store, and best of all, a Menards Lumber Yard. There’s really nothing we need (versus what we'd like!) and since it’s just before payday, my check book dictates all I do is window shop, but that’s okay. I’ll look at goodies I’d love to buy, dream, and for a few minutes, it will be summer between my ears and I’ll be in the middle of a gajillion projects.

But first, it’s time to refill the coffee cup and try to play catch up on the assignments that have arrived via email overnight.

As we all know, a man’s work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…