Back in Vermont.

12-18-24 VERMONT: We came up Saturday on a bright sunny day. The house was very clean and warmed up quickly. We were last here at the end of August. Things look very different now. 

There was light snow cover and frozen ponds, but the last few days gave us warm rain and temps in the forties, which ate away some of the snow. The horses both are shaggy with winter coats. It’s going to get cold over the weekend and some snow is predicted.

We went for our tree on Sunday. Usually we cut one down at Nichols, but not this year, they are not letting customers cut their own, saving me from making excuses. We drove it home, and Scott helped us mount it and bring it into the living room. Judy decorated, while i tried to get the TV working.

We have had visits from the Listers, property tax assessors, the mouse hunter, who left poison bait and assured us the dogs were safe. Same Sun, the solar people were supposed to arrive today to fix a glitch in the system, but didn’t show. They said that they’ll try in February, but the system is working.  

We are doing the usual Xmas day party with the usual attendees invited. Judy is making the menus, lists for the marketing and other party planning. We did go and buy wine and beer. I have assisted on a lot of the errands using my cane, and the knee has held up well. 

The lower pond before the rain.

Horses in the sun.

The upper pond and brook between the ponds after the rain, still with snow.

Nice sunset after the rain. The pond is covered with rain.

Afraid that the freeze would turn the driveway into a skating rink, we went for buckets of sand at the town yard. The Sayre bridge is getting repairs this week.

The tree with St. Chelsea on top. This one is smaller, by a little, than usual.

The Parade of Misfortune Continues.

12-11-24 SHORT HILLS: Well things get stranger and stranger. First we lost heat here. The house temp settled at 65° and wouldn’t go higher. The problem, of course, happened on a weekend. Our calls to the installer were unanswered. A man from the gas company thought both the pumps of our tandem burners were dead. An agent from Pipe Works Services arrived next and was able to rig the pump that was working with parts from the other furnace to give us some heat. We decided to go with them for the repair, which turned into replacing the 22 year old units with new ones, which happened yesterday. We are now toasty warm.

Next problem is Facebook. All my posts are missing. Restarting, logging out and back in, FB help were all unable to restore the posts. I spoke to Val, who said that she could see my posts which was some relief. I’ll try it again tomorrow. 

Did I mention that I was hospitalized for pneumonia complicated by pulmonary emboli? I looked back and saw that I covered that episode. Rehab continues with walking and leg exercises. I’m still using the cane, but can do a few steps without it.

 

Emmett and I are both fans of grilled cheese sandwiches.

Turkey Weekend.

12-2-24 SHORT HILLS: Dr. Lee said that the clunk syndrome happens with de-conditioned muscles, so I’m trying to get reconditioned, walking with weights and doing leg exercises. I’m anti-coagulated with Eliquis, now taking one twice a day.

We decided not to go to the family T-day at Anna and Gardner’s, but had a miniature here with guest Bill for hors d’oeuvres [spelled it right first shot] by the fire. Lily and Danna visited after dinner. Friday Alison and Dan visited for most of the day, bringing Joe’s [popular sandwiches from the Millburn Deli.] Saturday Anna, Gardner and Emmett visited in the morning, also bringing Joes. Emmett loves Blanca and Blue and toys from our kids and grandkids, which came out of drawers and closets and trunks. Emmett has a sweet disposition, is almost ready to walk alone, and can say ‘bubbles’. We also had a long call from Val.

Lily and Danna and a bunch of friends went to VT for the weekend. They were greeted with many mouse droppings, which they cleaned up and set traps and killed several of the rodents. They all said they had a wonderful time with about six inches of new snow. We hired exterminators for the mice and a cleaning service for the house. We go up in a couple of weeks.

The horses Mom and Dad had acquired a third horse, but had to return her because she picked on Raven and even knocked her down at one point. Raven was unharmed, but such aggressive behavior is unacceptable.  

Let the party begin.

Blue, Emmett, me, Judy.

Me, Emmett, Blue and some of Judy.

Three horses--Raven in front, Peachez in back and the reject is on the left. Pix from the weekenders below...

Most of the gang.

Wish I was there.

Alpaca visit.

Somebody remembered a camera.

Two of my favs--Danna and Raven.

Knee Saga Continued.

11-24-24 SHORT HILLS: That’s quite a gap in the record. I’ll try to fill it in. I started getting sick about 11-15 with weakness and fever. Going upstairs I fell at the top and needed a rest before being helped to bed by Judy, my guardian angel. I had cough and fever and weakness, and a visit to the ER confirmed ‘walking pneumonia,’ and they gave me Rx’s for Z-pac and augmentin. I used them at home a few days without any benefit and worsening symptoms. 

A second visit to the ER resulted in my admission to St Barnabas. I received a myriad of scans—CAT, isotope, U/S, inhalation—to get to a diagnosis of pulmonary emboli in both lungs as well as the pneumonia. The antibiotics were changed a couple of times, and I was anti coagulated with heparin. I was discharged 11-22 on oral anticoagulants. 

At home we’ve been coping with being back on the walker, living on one floor. The first day I had a shower, shave, tooth brushing to make up for the week in the hospital.    

Today was the day for the visiting nurse to do her assessment. To prepare for the visit, I started to get up from the sofa by putting my feet on the floor, just as I had been doing since I was home. My new knee was suddenly, severely painful. I couldn’t move it a centimeter in any direction. To lie back down on the sofa, I moved the left leg and Judy carefully lifted the new knee so that I was lying flat with the legs on a pillow. 

Judy went to let the nurse in the house, so I was alone in the den. Suddenly there was a loud ‘Clunk’ in the knee. The pain was gone, full mobility was back in an instant. The clunk would have registered at three or four on the Richter scale. 

Now we’re trying to figure out when see Dr. Lee and get back to rehab.

 

New Flag.

11-7-24 SHORT HILLS: Our high hopes for Kamala have crashed, the second Democratic woman to be beaten by Trump. He lost to the only man he ran against, Biden. I expect a disastrous four years. 

Our flagpole has not flown a flag since the early spring because the pulley that allowed the flag to be raised and lowered broke and fell to the ground along with the rope and flag. We had contacted a prominent flag pole company to do the repair, but they never followed through after the initial contact. 

This fall we contacted another company, who showed up in less than a week. The pole is in our back yard isolated from the street and surrounded by trees and shrubs, and so cannot be reached by a bucket truck. Mel, who works for A & A Industrial LTD, climbed the pole and replaced the top ball and pulley housing with a new, shiny ball and pulley, and a new rope and flag. We are very pleased to have the new flag waving in the breeze. 

I have been doing more walking the street. The new knee is progressing slowly.  

Mel climbing the pole with a harness device. Judy took a picture.

Mel is removing the old ball and pulley.

Coming down after the new rope and flag were installed.

Waving in the breeze under the shiny new ball topper.

Party Time.

10-27-24 SHORT HILLS: Emmett had his first birthday yesterday. It did not go unnoticed. About seventy people attended the party, including a ton of kids. It was at their home, there was a musical performance, lots of food and cakes, balloons, plenty of beverages. Lots of family including aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and us, the only great grandparents. I counted 17 kids at one point, but I’m sure I missed some. There was no crying that I heard, not even from parents.

Emmett digs the music as many family look on.

The family unit and the music man.

A music sample.

Personal BDay cake. The occasion is recorded.

Yum.

After all that excitement yesterday, Judy did a dog walk with Bebe and Ronnie and Sonny today. She saw a lot of birds on one of the lakes in town, so we went back to get a couple of pix. The birds are taking a break from their commute, resting and feeding. We saw Canada geese, wood ducks, and black ducks. 

Wood ducks, two males and two females.

Canada geese.

Black duck females in back and a wood duck male in the foreground.

A pair of wood ducks in front of a bunch of Canada geese.

New Knee News.

10-17-24 SHORT HILLS: I had an appointment with Dr. Lee this week, and it’s all good. New X-rays fine. No more bandages on the incision, wean from walker to cane, next visit in six weeks. It’s still painful, walking with the walker at three plus weeks. 

Visitors to the knee include, Lily and Danna, Alan, Bette and Lonnie, and Valerie and Maggie. Gardner , Anna and Emmett were in London for the Jaguars football game [they lost] and came home Wednesday. 

We have pretty good color here. 

Anna and Emmett at Fortnum and Mason Tea room.

Nice color in the driveway.

The Pumpkin Patch.

10-11-24 SHORT HILLS: The latest excitement started on Sunday. Gardner, Anna and Emmett were here. Emmett met the dogs for the first time and was very enthusiastic climbing all over them, especially Blue. Blue and Blanca were both very tolerant.

We all went to The Farm to see the birds, plants and especially the pumpkin patch. One of the staff saw me with the walker and gave me a motorized scooter/gadget so I could keep up with the kids while we explored. They have so many pumpkins, all sizes and shapes and colors, gourds of all shapes and sizes and wartiness, as well as skeletons, etc. Gardner and Anna bought a cartload of stuff to decorate their stoop.

Later we all went to Creekside Nurseries, quite nearby, to take Emmett to the petting zoo and for baked goods. They have the best ‘sand tarts’, very thin sugar cookies in seasonal shapes and colors—delicious. Judy went back for more the next day. Emmett fed the goats some leafy greens. 

It was a great afternoon except that the brace I was wearing and the bandage on the wound both slipped down my leg and the brace was rubbing on the area of the incision. The abrasion raised a blister like one gets from new shoes. After sending out pix of the knee, Ashley and Geralyn, from the VNA, suggested ditching the brace and using Betadine on the incision and blister with every dressing change, which is what we’re doing. 

Emmett and pumpkin.

Emmett and Blue and parts of other people.

 

The decorated stoop.

A New Knee.

10-3-24 SHORT HILLS: I have a new knee, inserted between and into the bottom of my right femur and the top of my recently broken right tibia, capped by my own patella. The surgery was 10 days ago at HSS, done by Dr. Gwo-Chin Lee. We stayed at the HSS hotel the night before to be on time for our 6:30 AM admission. We were in pre-op and met all the 

Docs, RN’s, and staff for prep, etc. I remember getting the twilight shot and being sat up for the spinal anesthesia—and then the recovery room.

I was an inpatient that night while Judy stayed at the hotel. We left the next morning to pick up meds at our local pharmacy. That night I had a slight fall that was followed by bleeding from the incision. We went to SBMC ER to have the wound bandaged and wrapped. The ER staff talked with HSS associates of Dr. Lee. 

We were back at HSS the next morning where we saw Dr Lee’s associate, Ashley, who took us to wound care where the wound was fitted with a blood draining/suction devise, a brace, and X-rayed. Nurse Ellen placed her hands on the incision and everything was OK afterward. While Ellen was working on the wound, Ashley took pix and texted them to Dr. Lee, who was on a flight to Bangkok to give a lecture. He texted back advice and instructions. We left HSS for home with no bleeding. 

We were back at HSS a week later [two days ago] for an exam by Dr. Lee and Ashley. They took down the blood draining suction device and redressed the wound. The knee incision is swollen, red in places and purple in others crusted, blistered, but was diagnosed as ‘fine’.  Next appointment—two weeks. 

At home I am hobbling around using walkers and using a cane to go up or down stairs. The brace is still on for walking, but not for sleeping or for the shower. Hopefully only uneventful healing and rehab from now.

The New Knee and the Old Knee.

Monday is New Knee Day.

9-17-24 SHORT HILLS: Truthfully, it’s been more of the same as the last post. More doctor visits, more chores, the wasps survived the attempted extermination. I have had my pre-op exam with blood work and X-rays—apparently all OK. Surgery for installation of the new knee next Monday at HSS. 

We had dinner with Bette and Lonnie at Lorenas and dinner here with Lynn and Bill—Judy dazzled us with king crab legs. We’re looking forward to a visit from Siobhan this weekend. Judy has done more dog visits. The pool cover pump is not pumping. I tried to get it started today but will have to try again.

I was very impressed with Kamala’s debate performance. We should have expected her to do well as an ex-prosecutor, but she was brilliant.

Burning Bush are turning early, which makes we worry that they're not well.

One of several flower clusters at the top of the crape myrtle.

White snake root is growing all over the yard. It spreads widely and grows in any conditions, but has no stickers or burrs or thorns, so I am not calling it a weed.

Abelia, a nice shrub that slowly gets bigger each year, but blooms in the fall with lots of white flowers. Definitely a keeper.

I saw something pink in the midst of snake root. It's a rosebud. I think the rosebuds are prettier than the roses.

Opening Up.

9-6-24 SHORT HILLS: We’ve been back for a week yesterday and have been busy seeing docs doing chores in the house and yard, had the plumbers over for a water heater flood [not fatal] in the basement, had dinner with Lynn and Bill, and had dinner with Bebe and Ronnie, got flu shots. Judy has done a dog visit. We both have more medical visits up coming. Monday I have pre-op evaluation at an HSS extension in Paramus before the new knee. Even the dogs have had vet visits. 

We had a wasp nest next to the house treated. My car was serviced. Next  week looks to be as busy as this one was. I filled the bird feeders, and the birds emptied them in two days.

In bloom: abelia, Rose-of-Sharon, clematis, white snake root, crape myrtle, caryopteris

Cardinals are back, as are all the usual suspects, including the grackles, who got most of the seeds.

We never see these critters in VT, too many predators, but there are always some here.

Closing Down.

8-27-24 VERMONT: Our season ends Thursday when we go back to NJ. We are losing a bit of summer here, but we both have much to do in Sept. We have been have been doing packing and close-up all week. Scott was here for a day to help with the storm doors and the benches and chairs that get put away. We also stowed away hoses, hammock, flags, rockers and more. The tomatoes and herbs will go to NJ.   

We went to the Goose Pond Equestrian Center to see Tina and her horses compete in barrel racing. Raven won a ribbon! 

We have been eating out to avoid generating a lot of trash before the trip and have been to C & S pizza for takeout, Murphy’s, Red Can last week and tomorrow, Tuckerbox tonight with Shari and David.

The weather has been mild with cool nights and plenty of rain. I can’t say how much because the rain gauge is put away.  

New blooms: pink turtlehead. 

I spent some time outside with the birds and took some pix. This female ruby-throated hummer is taking a break. Can you see her tiny feet. She could easily fit into the glass slipper.

A song sparrow on pride rock. The ID is a little iffy.

A snake in the grass. Judy saw it early in the morning, and it was so cold it couldn't slither away.

Tina on Peachez doing the poles.

Pink turtlehead in front of white hosta.

Fall anemones blooming in summer. The wood pile in the back fore-shadows the next season.

The pond roses keep blooming.

Feels Like Fall.

8-20-24 VERMONT: A cold, gusty wind has blown us into fall today, it’s in the fifties. Suburban Energy was here today to service the furnaces. Tomorrow, the 21st, will see the sun halfway back to the Equator at about 12° North latitude, and a month from now it will be at the Equator and Fall begins. For now, it’s supposed to warm up by the weekend.

Today I saw one monarch caterpillar on the swamp milkweed by the pond, Asclepias incarnata. It was pretty big, but not big enough to go to chrysalis phase yet. It is the first one I have seen this year. I had almost given up hope of seeing them here. Maybe it’s the first of many.

The game cam caught a blue heron leaving the lower pond. The heron flies with his neck folded back in an “S” shape. This is one of the differences between herons, egrets and storks. The storks fly with their necks extended.

New blooms: Siberian catmint, mint.

A game cam pic of the blue heron with neck bent back and legs extended.

The blue heron taking off. The legs are still down and the neck not bent back yet.

A stork in flight with the neck extended. This shot is from our trip to Morocco.

A monarch caterpillar on milkweed.

Lobelia volunteer in the bed below the deck.

A volunteer Siberian catmint growing in the brook between the ponds. I saw it a few weeks ago, but I just ID'd it today.