nbdog
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Goodbye to the Naughties
Posted in Personal on 29-Dec-2009
Paul Krugman‘s New York Times December 27th column (“The Big Zero“) notes that for most of America the past decade has been at best an economics holding action. For the first time in U.S history private-sector employment declined and median household income ended up lower than it was in 1999. Trisha and I have been fortunate in many ways. We both kept our jobs, managed to make some home improvements and pay off the mortgage, and get through a variety of health issues. We also found time to take a couple of memorable trips in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. I’m optimistic that the next decade will offer more time for gardening, reading and travel.
Christmas Day
Posted in Holidays on 25-Dec-2009
Trisha was up early as always to feed the birds and by 8:00 we were in front of the tree opening gifts. Taking advantage of the luscious weather we walked a ways up a nearby logging road that we haven’t visited much since we’ve been without dogs. It was a wonderful reminder of how beautiful the forest is and the soothing effect of the waterfalls. Later it was back to the Snoqualmie Casino buffet for an early Christmas dinner. It’s so decadent. I sampled a wide range of the offerings: turkey with stuffing, French toast, smoked bacon, crab legs, carrot cake. The day ended with a typical North Bend wind storm and we lost power around 7:00 so it was a quiet evening reading by candlelight until bed time.
Lovely Christmas Eve
Posted in Entertainment, Holidays on 25-Dec-2009
We began our day with a vigorous workout at the gym. Trisha then readied Christmas cookies that we distributed to our neighbors. After an early dinner at the Snoqualmie Casino buffet we toured the Bellevue Botanical Gardens‘ display of holiday lights. It’s a dramatic presentation with thousands of LED lights used to imitate garden plants and animals like poinsettias, clematis, grapes, sunflowers, butterflies, peacocks, etc.
First Stamps Posted on Ebay
Posted in Personal on 23-Dec-2009
I finally took the plunge and posted a few U.S. stamps for sale on Ebay. I doubt I’ll sell these initial items but I wanted to go through the steps and set up an efficient process for scanning and uploading the images, creating descriptions, and tracking my inventory. I have about 100 items in the queue and will be adding more to Ebay over the next few weeks.
Building the Stamps Store
Posted in Personal on 15-Dec-2009
In anticipation of selling my huge inventory of extra mint U.S. stamps I registered two Internet domain names I’ll be using for my web presence: EvergreenStamps.net and EvergreenStamps.biz. The email address for the business will be EvergreenStamps@Yahoo.com. I hope to spend some time over the holidays putting some initial items on Ebay and setting up a basic web site.
No More Mortgage Payments
Posted in Around the house on 14-Dec-2009
WhoooHooo!! I dropped off our final mortgage payment in this morning’s mail. For the first time since 1984 we won’t have a monthly house payment.
Breaking Out the Snow Shovel
Posted in Weather on 14-Dec-2009
We had our first measurable snow this evening. I had to scrape an inch or so of snow from around Trisha’s bird feeders. I’m not complaining though: it was this week last year that we got the first foot of snow in that relentless series of winter storms. And the forecast is for temperatures pushing 50 later in the week.
New Bridge Open
Posted in Around the house on 9-Dec-2009
We have a new sense of security with the completion of the new bridge over the Snoqualmie River. The original bridge was nearly 100 years old and showed its age. Whenever I saw a moving van in our neighborhood I wondered if the next one would end up in the river.
New Mt. Si Bridge
Related articles
- Mount Si Bridge wins national award (SnoValleyStar.com)
- Mt. Si Bridge (MowatCo.com)
Dinner at the Casino
Posted in Entertainment on 26-Nov-2009
We decided to try Thanksgiving dinner out this year and headed to the buffet at the Snoqualmie Casino just ten minutes from home. The casino opened over a year ago and we still hadn’t tried any of the several restaurants on site. Thanksgiving seems like a good reason to get out of the kitchen at home. What a surprise! A great selection of rather good food. There were the traditional turkey, stuffing, potatoes and gravy, of course. But also potatoes au-gratin, yams, ham, prime rib, and mountains of crab legs. Even pizza. It was good enough that we’re thinking of heading back for Christmas dinner.
It’s official
Posted in Personal on 12-Nov-2009
I sent my official notice to Microsoft HR today that I’m retiring on February 28th.
Nutmeg50@hotmail.com 