A busy summer so far

Posted on by jsudar

We’ve been doing a lot of gardening between the two houses. It has been very hard to bring back the yard at 203. Pruning, digging, planting, digging, mowing, digging. You get the picture. I’ll post pics when I have a bit more done. We had some really windy days, and my rose trellis snapped. argh. I’ve sort of fixed it, but it needs totally redone, which won’t happen until the fall when I trim back the rose bush.

There’s been a lot of work as well. Dan has been doing a wiring job for the school district. I’ve been doing sewing. I’ve also repaired two chairs. Check it out!

Life has been busy with SCA meetings, SCA beledi dance and bobbin lace classes, School board stuff and the Huerfano RE-1 Schools Foundation. We are working on a mill levy overide to provide more money for our school district. In order to make it a bit more sustainable, we are setting up a foundation that can raise money any time for the schools. If you’d like to contribute, you can send a check to the Huerfano RE-1 Schools Foundation care of the Huerfano RE-1 School District, 201 E. 5th, Walsenburg, CO. 81089.

The Flag, the Funeral and the Conference

Posted on by jsudar

Last week was hectic. Really hectic.

Monday: Packed for a week’s trip. Finished running errands and getting ready by 1am.

Tuesday: Up at 6am. Out the door by 7:30am. Funeral at 11:45am at Ft. Logan in Denver. After the funeral, the Thomas family, Dan and I went out for breakfast/lunch at the Littleton Cafe, which use to be an IHOP. In fact, it was the IHOP that John and I use to go to for breakfast before speech meetings. It was great. Granted, the cafe was probably glad when the 22-23 of us finally left.  After that, we headed over to Judy’s house and visited for a while. When Dan and I got ready to leave, Erin asked me to wait. He had something for me. It was the flag that he’d been presented with as eldest son. He said that as I had been the military wife for 17 years, that I should have it.

John Thomas' flag

Later that night, we went to the wake held by the SCA. It was lovely. Lots of good food, friends and drink.

Wednesday: After sleeping in, and a brief trip to IKEA, we headed to Colorado Springs for the CASB conference. We checked into the hotel and collapsed.

Thursday-Sunday: The Colorado Association of School Boards 75th Annual Winter Conference. It was a good one. I didn’t get elected to the CASB board, but I will run again next year. Learned a lot. Saw a lot of people and made some new connections. I will have a bunch of stuff to tell my board.

Today. Catch up day. Job day. Deal with insurance day. My head is spinning and it isn’t even noon yet. Oh, and the week isn’t slowing down yet. Tomorrow is the school board meeting. Wednesday, we go shopping in Pueblo. Saturday is John’s memorial down here at the library. sigh….

Finding time!

Posted on by jsudar

It’s been crazy. We got back from Battlemoor and went into full on “Celtic Music Fest” mode. We had a great time, in spite of some last minute panic attacks, late teeshirts and a few other bits. Check out the website to see pics of the festival.

We’ve been working on emptying our storage locker and moving it all to my mom’s garage. This is in between shopping trips, packing away most of the summer clothes, rain storms, meetings, my nephew visiting, dog sitting, trying to find work, working, checking out our 1/4th of an acre of land, and school district issues.

Our executive secretary lost her grandma and husband in the span of two weeks. She’s devastated, and the office is just a tad scattered. Plus, we’ve been losing teachers. They simply can’t cope with rural Colorado and the needs of our students. The ‘funny side’ to this is that Dan is getting his substitute teacher’s license and will be replacing the STEM teacher.

Tomorrow we are off to work in Castle Rock. Aieee-ya!

Yet Another Crazy Week.

Posted on by jsudar

We thought it was going to be fairly easy. (yeah, you can start laughing now) Our friend Ethan was heading from California to Colorado to be our new STEM teacher. Well, at first he was suppose to arrive on Sunday at midnight. That didn’t happen. He left California on Sunday afternoon. Keep in mind that it is a 14+ hour drive and he was due to start work at 11:30am on Monday.

Well… at some point, he realized that he wasn’t going to cope. He and Dan talked and they decided to meet in Las Vegas, NM. Dan told me of this plan around midnight. (insert cussing) So, we went to bed and got up at 4am. We had time enough to dress, and head out the door. Awwwgh!

We got to Las Vegas at 7am. We had breakfast at Charlie’s Spic and Span Bakery. Bought tortillas, macaroons and sugar cookies. I drove Ethan’s car and Dan drove the truck while Ethan sort of slept.

We got to school with 30 minutes to spare. Dan went home and Ethan and I went to New Teacher orientation. When it was over, we headed home as Ethan was staying with us. He napped while I made a salad. Why? Well, because at 5:30, we had the Staff and Family BBQ. Ethan, Dan, Mom and I went. It was a lot of fun.

Tuesday we got up and Ethan and I went to the first Teacher Inservice day. I only had to be there for a few hours. Then I headed off to work on signatures for my petition, and a few other things. Yes, I’m running for school board again. We had a Town Hall meeting at Washington School as well. An attempt to get people to understand what the school district is up against and how everyone should work together. We had 25 people. Not bad, but it could have been better.

Wednesday, a repeat of the day before, only I cleaned up the clothing bank. Thursday I went up to Gardner and taught some of the staff how to run a WordPress site. 🙂 In a fit of craziness, I volunteered to do the district’s websites. At least start them up. Overall, it saved the district about $5000. They look pretty good too.

Friday… Mom and I went shopping while Dan figured out why his computer fried. He was trying to get the SQUARE program set up on the website for the Celtic Music Festival. He’s had a lot of frustrations. Oh, and everyone has been asking when will it be done. Aieee-ya! We went to Bargain Box and I found some neat stuff for Battlemoor!

Today… Celtic Music Fest Board meeting. We are about a month out from the festival, and everyone is a bit edgy. Frustrated. Panicked. So, tempers got a little warm. The dust is now settled, but… there is still work to do. If you like Celtic music, check it out. Better yet, Come to the festival. If you can’t come, donate towards a good cause!

Tomorrow is gardening for me and sewing work on the bespoke tunic. Dan will be battling with SQUARE, and we will both help Ethan move into his new home.

Enough!

Posted on by jsudar

The last two weeks have been.. Hell. Not the kind where you feel the ship sink or the train heading to run you over. No, this is more like being nibbled to death by ants or ducks. I don’t think I could even start to list all the wonky things that have gone on, but here are the highlights:

  • The president of the Celtic Music Festival resigned because of health reasons. Then the treasurer resigned. The only officer left? Me. We are meeting Saturday to see what we can do.
  • Car repairs. New tires, one tire replaced after the new tires. (curb bite) Two new CV joints. Still stuff to do.
  • Heat. Nuff said.
  • Late nights in spite of attempts to go to bed early.
  • People not thinking before they email 6-12 others with erroneous information. Argh!!!!
  • School stuff. OMG. Resignations. Interviews. More interviews. Special meetings to hire people. (4) Oh, and at last count, 20 new staff members. Keep in mind that we have just under 70 all total in the district. And… issues finding housing.
  • Our Superintendent having health issues. Emergency room to hospital to minor surgery. Gahhh!
  • Schedule changes. I don’t think we’ve gone a day without something being shuffled.
  • New bespoke sewing project. Good for the reputation and the pocket book, but have I had time to sew? NO!
  • Contract canceled, and another one just starting. The waiting is crazy. Meanwhile, the bank account dwindles. Oh, and trying to work from Mom’s house is problematic.
  • The land we wanted to buy hit access issues and neighbor issues. So, we start again.

Walsenburg also had a ‘brain fart’ yesterday. Two attempted suicides. One by train. An assault that ended up with shots being fired at police, and an arrest. Plus tire slashings, a semi rear ending a car and other bits of mindless stupidity.

One of the few good things going on is that our garden is going gang busters! I harvested the first crookneck squash and green beans. 🙂

I am hoping that the only thing on my schedule tomorrow will remain harvesting veg, cooking dinner and sewing. Keep your fingers crossed!

 

Taking a deep breath

Posted on by

We headed to Denver in snowy weather the last week of February, on our way to a CASB conference. (Colorado Association of School Boards) Two days of Legislative Updates on what our local state politicians are up to. It was a pretty good conference, and we had a lovely hotel. Of course, there was about 10 inches of snow that fell while we were there. Thursday night we went to a COCatalyst.org meeting which was different.

Friday, Dan went off to get the car so we could head home. What should have taken 15 minutes took forever. The doorman at the Brown Palace heard that there had been a couple of accidents because of the snow, and of course I panicked a bit. My phone was in the car, so I finally borrowed a phone to call Dan. He was alright, just. He had literally bounced from one accident to another. We finally headed out of Denver about 90 minutes later.

On the way home, the “fun” started. Dan was feeling worse and worse. By the time we got home, he was ill. We thought he’d eaten something bad. Nope. A very Nasty Virus. And of course, two days later, I got it. Ugh! I haven’t been ill like that in 15 years. All we did for the next week was sleep. I did everything possible via phone or email.

My first outing was a Celtic Music Festival meeting. Dan drove. I spent most of Sunday and Monday trying to recover and get back on my feet. I survived the school board meeting on Tuesday, shopping with my mom, and the Tech committee meeting on Wednesday.

In the middle of that meeting, I got a call from my mom. My Aunt Debbie had a stroke. Thursday was crazy. A new washer for my parents, my dad having a bad Alzheimer’s day and waiting to hear about my aunt. They did a lot of tests, and the decision was made to take her off of all the machinery today. If she lasts the night, they will move her to hospice. I know it may sound rather cold hearted, but I truly hope that she passes quickly. My mom went up with my sister Jill this afternoon to be with my cousin and sister. Dan and I are staying here to take care of Dad. Plus, Morgan is due home from college for Spring Break today. Oh, and one of my favourite authors passed away. RIP Terry Pratchett.

What a exhausting couple of weeks.

Okay, it’s been like FOREVER since I last posted.

Posted on by

It’s been busy. Never Ever let anyone tell you that taking care of your elderly parents is easier than babies. Nope. Not even gonna believe that. It’s been three months of adjustment and reorganizing. Between shopping, drives, housecleaning and just everyday things, my life has been HECTIC.

Plus, it’s been busy. Usually our lives slow down around the end of the Celtic Music Festival. Not this year! Our one client in Denver moved, and we’ve been doing a lot of work getting their new home tech ready. On top of that, having new admin in the school district has been interesting. We’ve gotten more done in the last few months than we have in the last few years. Oh, and Morgan goes off to College in January.

So, now for some highlights.

Sunday Drives. In trying to meld my parent’s schedule in with ours means that we try to take Sunday drives. We saw some brilliant aspen in October. November and December brought sunny but cold days with snow. We also try and have breakfast at this little diner in Trinidad, called Bob and Earl’s. It’s the kind of place you walk into and everyone knows each other. Good food too.

Along with this is the Wednesday shopping in Pueblo which has been fun and yet eaten my life!

The Spanish Peaks Community Foundation Gala.  A night to dress up and honor people in the community. It was a very nice evening and lovely to dress up!

Skunked! We were woken up out of a dead sleep around 3am. Our dog Brandy got skunked on the front porch of the Wendy House. We had to open all the doors and windows, and I sat up until nearly 6am, trying to breathe. Ugh…

So, instead of working on some of our various projects, we will be washing Brandy and her area along with bedding, curtains, etc. I hate skunks.

Halloween. Dan and I handed out candy on my parent’s front porch. We must have seen over 300 kids. It was a lot of fun, and the weather was so nice!

Outlander Yes, I’m a fan. The series was fantastic. And… All the costume work. So much of it that a group formed on Facebook with all sorts of knitting, sewing, crocheting, etc. I have knitted two shawls and a cowl. 🙂 One man put out a survivor’s guide.

School stuff Our new superintendent is great. We’ve worked out a lot of the issues that the district has had problems with in the last 6 months. We have a lot of new staff as well, and it seems to be going well. Plus, we took a big chance. We bought iPads for every student in the district. It’s been interesting. We’ve also started a clothing bank. Too many kids without coats or basics. We are running out of a class room. 🙂 I went to the CASB Winter Conference at the beginning of December as well. It was a really good conference. Lots of info, ideas and connections.

We’ve had a Veteran’s Day celebration which honored Vets from our community, and local nursing home, and some creative literary nights. Night at the Museum was a lot of fun. The One Room Schoolhouse was great too. We also had a holiday dinner at La Plaza. More dressing up. 🙂

Weather November had some bitter cold and snow. Brrr! December has had it’s surprises as well. We are having a white Christmas as there was about 6 inches of snow on the 22nd. Oh, and it’s going to snow on Boxing Day as well. (26th) Lots of deer in the yard too, eating everything.

The Wendy House. We painted! We trimmed! We built another raised bed and oh have we gathered, chopped, split and burned firewood! We got permission to trim up two dead trees and were given two loads of wood. Wow. Morgan teased us that we love Halloween so much that we live in a pumpkin. Oh, and we got a bathtub and on demand water heater for the bathroom! 

Family. My Great Uncle Richard Ridge passed away on Halloween. He was 91. My Great Aunt Ann Sudar had her 100th birthday on December 13th. That was a wonderful party with 75 friends and family present. I got to see a lot of Sudars I hadn’t seen in years.

The Great Experiment Dan and I have been looking into hydroponics and aquaponics. So, we tried a small inside experiment. There will be more on that on this blog. We learned some lessons and will be trying it again in the spring.

Thanksgiving. My sister and her family, my aunt and her family, my parents and my family all got together for Thanksgiving dinner. Eleven people for three days. Wow! It was really nice.

And now for some pictures. 🙂

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Oh the Chaos…

Posted on by

Since last I had a chance to write, life has been just a little chaotic. First we had the Mountain Miners Day on September 20th. While I didn’t watch the parade or go to some of the events downtown, I was involved with a play written by Barbara Yule. It’s called “For Tomorrow We May Die”, the story of Mary Thomas. It was about a woman who survived the Ludlow Massacre. Originally it was a 3-4 person play, but turned into a one woman dramatic reading by Tanya Perkins. I made an apron and scarf for part of her costume and was the school connection as we were holding it at Washington School. It was lightly attended, but Oh My! It was beautiful.

The next week was a surgery for my dad, a school board meeting, a field trip with the school STEM class, a CASB (Colorado Association of School Boards) conference and the Celtic Music Festival. Yes, just a little jam packed. Dan drove my parents up to Colorado Springs for Dad’s surgery. I stayed home and attended the school board meeting.

On Wednesday, I went with Mark Thompson and his students to the Wings over the Rockies flight museum in Denver. That was a lot of fun.

Thursday was crazy. Once again, lots of stuff to get done. Dan was gone doing Celtic music festival stuff while I got things done around the house and prepared for the concert in Gardner. A Taste of Things to Come is always fun. The Gardner community center was packed.

Friday, 5:30am. Up, dressed and out the door to the CASB conference in Pueblo. Dan was out the door an hour later to work the festival. Lots of good info at the CASB event, and then home just in time to help at the first concert at the Fox. Full Set played. It was heavenly. Got home and got a phone call… My Dad was in hospital with an infection.

Saturday, 5:30am. Up, dressed off to Pueblo. Legislative delegate day at the CASB conference. I finished up by 2pm. Took Mom out to the hospital to see Dad. Then off to the evening concert and the 10th Anniversary concert afterwards. We got home around 1am.

Sunday. We got to sleep in until 7am! Wow! Off to La Veta for the final day of the Celtic music festival and the final performance of “For Tomorrow We May Die.” Oh was it grand. Packed house. Not a dry eye either. Oh… Oh my.

Afterwards, we went to see my Dad again. He was not doing well. Confused, etc. Monday thru Thursday was a mix of hospital trips, running errands, meetings, and playing catch up with work. Oh, and lots of planning. Friday, we got to bring Dad home. It was also the day that the doctors told him no more driving. So, Dan and I are now “Driving Mr. Sudar.” Luckily, Dad took it well after an initial bit of shock.

Over the weekend, we’ve tried to get ready for winter. We chopped firewood, cleaned up the yard a bit, brought plants in and have driven Mom and Dad wherever they needed to go. Somewhere in here we got our bathtub for the Wendy House. We hope to plumb it soon.New tub2 On Sunday we took a drive up Cordova Pass to see the aspen. Ahhhh… it was beautiful.

This week has been yet another rush of work, driving and meetings, and it is only Tuesday. Ah Chaos, thy name is normality around here…

Crazy Week(s)

Posted on by

I am fried. Brain dead. Zombified. Tired. The last few weeks have been plain crazy. Between lots of meetings, temper tantrums, weather, a Superintendent Search, three graduation ceremonies, Ludlow, oh, and trying to work on the house, I’m toast. It’s also cold! We had a really intense rain/hail storm yesterday, and today is cloudy and cold. (55F) I’m waiting to see if we get more rain.

Last week we had a board meeting in Gardner that was a long and rather hectic event. Then there was the high school graduation and the Ludlow Centennial event. This week we had yet another long board meeting. This was a rehash of some of the previous meeting and work on the superintendent search. Wednesday was Gardner 8th grade graduation at 1pm, and Peakveiw’s 8th grade promotion ceremony at 6pm. It made for a very long day.

I also did some gardening work. Well overdue! I planted everything that had been living in the house because of the bad weather. I have Russian sage, raspberry canes, flowers, herbs and of course, my garden guru, RedTom.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

This evening we have a retirement party for 5 or 6 teachers. Friday, I meet with the school lawyer to discuss contracts. After that, I’m curling up with a cup of tea, my book and only answering the phone if there is an emergency! I’ve got to recharge my mental batteries as there is yet another school board meeting on Tuesday!

Wind Whistling

Posted on by

… through my ears, the walls and every crack it can find. We’ve had a lot of wind this year. The last really nasty gusts, 83mph, ripped our weather station off the roof. It still isn’t fixed, so now I check our local weather station. (63F and 20mph gusts right now) Our dog, Brandy, hates the wind. You’d think a coyote/Shepard mix wouldn’t mind. Wrong! So, we woke this morning to her whining and wanting IN!

WendyHouseWork10

Life is still hectic. While the last two weeks was busy with meetings and oddball schedules, the next two are travel heavy.

First off, I’m going to Denver tomorrow with my friend Jolene. We are going to IKEA to get stuff for her Pre-School class. Wednesday, after lunch with friends, Dan and I are off to Denver for a CASB Legislative Conference. It’s at the Brown Palace Hotel. Very swanky. 🙂 A pull out the high heels and leave the cowboy boots at home kind of thing. The last day of the conference is spent at the Capitol, meeting legislators.

When we get home, if the weather will allow, we will be doing more work on the Wendy House. Closets and maybe book shelves. That will open up the area and get our clothes out of the ‘dust zone’. 🙂

We’ve also been slowly whittling down our electric bill by using LED lights. Our next step may be solar and DC powered lights. We figured out how to replace the AC bulbs with DC LED lights, and not have to totally rewire. (thank you Scott!)

I’ve also got just under three weeks to get ready for Corazon. I bought a new book last night, Great Book of Celtic Patterns, by Lora S, Irish. Lots of very nice patterns to use with my Viking persona, Unna Farulfsdottir.