Tag: reno blog

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Those Before Me

Oy. Vey.

Have I got a book to recommend to anyone that might enjoy some great historical fiction based on the journey of a very real family! The story centers around Emil and Adeline Martell and their beautiful boys during WWII. It has everything a good story should have from romance to suspense and bone chilling descriptions of the horrors of war. Most importantly, it’s about a family’s love for the Lord, each other, and life.

My ancestors were Germans that moved to the Volga region to farm starting in 1763. Simple as that. Along with land grants from Katharine the Great, they were promised freedom to worship while building great lives around farming. For a long time, everything worked just as promised and their lives flourished. Until it all came crashing down.

Catherine the Great promised a new life along the Volga River to German Farmers

In 1902, as live became more dangerous and uncertain, with a brand new baby girl, my Great Grandparents left their homes to travel to a new country. America would be their next stop. About their journey I know nothing, and wish I would have asked my Great Grandfather Christoph all those years ago. It was he that built the box that held all their worldly belongings as they made their trip in faith and love right through Ellis Island and on to the San Joaquin Valley of California.

Over a century later, their descendants have made wonderful lives in this great country, while citizens of Russia and Ukraine struggle to this day. I’ve enjoyed every physical luxury at my fingertips during my life, except for the six months I returned to live in Moldavia, USSR (now Moldova). A time in my life of hunger and horrors I wish I hadn’t experienced. Travel there required ten vaccines for everything from cholera to typhoid and typhus. One of the few times in my life, I was thankful to be fully vaccinated.

Can you imagine leaving every friend, family member, and possession behind, taking only what you could carry? Then, leaving those things along the way as you struggled through heat, cold, weather, snow, rain, and sun while avoiding tanks, bombs and crossfire? Always moving towards the goal and Never, Never, Never Giving Up?????

When I wrote about my own struggles yesterday, I should’ve included that my minor problems in life were nothing compared to those my ancestors endured. Unspeakable tragedy. Unbelievable faith. Unworldly strength and courage. Those are the things that are woven into my DNA, whether I think of them every day or not. My ancestors were courageous travelers on their way to dreams of their own last green valley. Some made it and some died trying.

With the summer heat spiking, it’s a great time to read a wonderful book about some resourceful people who lived. They REALLY lived. The Last Green Valley by Mark Sullivan won’t disappoint.

If you have any thoughts after reading the book, please drop me a line. I lived in Moldova and swam in the Dniester River they crossed in their wagon. People in the surrounding towns near Tiraspol still used horses and wagons for transportation and harvests in 1977. Many men had never used a wrench to loosen the nut off a bolt. Actual experiences in the place I lived so long ago.

On the eve of Independence Day, take a moment to be grateful for all the freedom and luxuries we enjoy. From refrigeration for our food to pasteurized milk, we are a fully developed nation that folks from 3rd world countries can only dream. Our blessings overflow in great green valleys of milk and honey.

Whatever you do, consider reading something outside the norm. If you choose this book, you won’t be disappointed.

More tomorrow.

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Caring for Roses

Butchart Gardens — Victoria, Canada

One of the many things HHH and I have in common is our LOVE for roses! We aren’t fans of every kind, just Hybrid Tea Roses with gigantic and fragrant blossoms.

On our first Christmas together, I gave HHH his favorite rose, Mr. Lincoln. I wrapped up a certificate for the rose, explaining that the bush would arrive in March, and it did. Having purchased it from one of the “best” rose companies out there and at a premium price, I was shocked when it arrived, unwrapped with bare roots exposed in a carboard box.

HHH lovingly planted it here at Winterpast long before he proposed and then it refused to thrive. For 365 days, it was on the verge of dying, while HHH patiently worked his magic. From then on, I promised myself I’d only purchase potted roses that we could inspect.

This year, we purchased nine rose bushes named “Serenity” to celebrate Mother’s Day. With sweat and brute force, HHH used his trusty pick ax to plant each one. Slowly, they are beginning to settle in, blooming for the second time this season. There are plenty of very healthy roses sold at Walmart or the hardware store. It’s not necessary to pay twice the price because you just might receive half the plant.

Rose bush names are interesting. I’m sure the proper name can market more roses. Who could resist buying a bright yellow rose named “Happy Go Lucky”? (We now own two.) Or a stately rose named “The Grand Dame”, which she is. Mr. Lincoln now presides over the rose beds, while Independence Day, Tahitian Sunrise and Stainless Steel (a very pale lavender color), all fall in place. Bliss pumps out bloom after bloom.

All roses need good drainage and lots of water. Don’t plant them too deep, leaving the crown exposed so it can breathe.

Roses do need regular feeding. Bayer Systemic Rose Pellets are long lasting and work very well. Here on the high desert plains of Northwestern Nevada, aphids are proving to be a big problem which the Bayer food will solve. Luckily, the systemic insecticide is okay for use around the bees because bees don’t visit roses. Simple as that.

During the heat of the summer, all the rose bushes will slow down, using their energy to survive the heat. They will bloom again when the weather tames down in the fall. Last week, we had 2″ of rain here on the desert and the roses were thriving. This week, a heat wave is coming with a temperature of 106 predicted for Sunday.

After blooms have faded and died away, be sure to clip them off. There are many articles online about the proper way to do this. While growing your bush larger, clip them back to the first place there are five leaves growing. If you are just deadheading, clip only the dead blossom. There are specific reasons on what to trim and why, so do your own research.

Whatever you do today, try your hand at growing roses. There is nothing prettier than a freshly grown bouquet sitting on your kitchen table.

More tomorrow.

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Interstate Standstill

Ahh, the wide open spaces. How wonderful to put the new car on cruise control and jet through the high desert plains without a care in the world. Yesterday could have been like this, but it didn’t turn out that way. My beautiful day ended up more like this.

Okay, okay. maybe not quite that bad, but bad enough. A 30 minute drive took three hours. That’s a lot of time to sit and wait for traffic to keep moving.

The start of the day had been wonderful. After a meeting with my financial guru, I’d planned a shopping day with two girlfriends. I’ve known them the longest of any of my friends, having met in 2014 in Virginia City, Nevada. Tried and true blue girlfriends, these two. They were my support when I lost VST and have remained so.

Sitting over lunch in a beautiful restaurant in the Biggest Little City to the West, we had a lot on news to cover. Tree removal. Greenhouse delivery. My Mysterious Marine. Their sweet husbands, who were besties to VST. New fashions. Our lunch disappeared, and we talked on, just as a lunch with old friends should be.

After lunch, it was on to the mall. Mazelike, it’s easy to get lost there. I don’t visit malls all that often, using Amazon to do most of the shopping around here. It was fun to see and touch the clothing. It seems this year, natural fibers are in. Thank goodness holes over the shoulders are yesterday’s news. I never understood that trend. Or bell sleeves that could drape through a dinner plate. I didn’t see one ruffle yesterday. Hallelujah!! Praise the Lord.

This year, I think I’d better snatch up quite a bit, because next year, it might be mini-skirts and polyester on the racks.

The girls and I had a wonderful time, ending at the SEE’s candy store to end our day. We all purchased some candy and then head home. I was elated at the great day in the city. It’s been some time since I would just jump in the car and go. My GPS gave me perfect instructions to get on the freeway and I was headed home, back to the land of the mosquitos and green hills.

Yes. Mosquitos. I’ve been nailed several times in the last few days. Sadly, troublesome bite is just below my eye, which has puffed a little. I’ve also decided that dogs rolling around in the grass and weeds and then coming in for a pet is allergy inducing stuff. The last two days have been a bit itchy.

Desert + Rain + Sunshine = Noxious Weeds. The up side is that any property that isn’t mine is nice and green. The bad thing is that my property has way too many weeds, all which need pulling or spraying. It’s going to be that kind of year.

So, as I was driving along the interstate, three highway patrols raced by me with sirens blazing. I didn’t think too much of it, as these things happen when you live in a big city. What I didn’t know was that a poor soul going WEST rolled his brand new truck into the EAST bound lands, tying up BOTH directions of the interstate. By time I knew, gridlock made it impossible to get off the freeway. Besides, it would have made a 30 minute trip a 2 hour trip. As it turned out, that would’ve been the quicker choice.

How the poor soul survived is beyond me. His beautiful truck lay to the side of the road, trapezoidal prism in shape.

Hours later, I returned to Winterpast.

Whatever you do today, consider lunch and shopping with friends. The stores are full of brand new summer fashions. Shoppers are out having a great time! It’s nice to touch and feel merchandise on the shelf, rather than guess at what will arrive at the door in brown wrapping. Time for this world to get back to normal.

For me, the day holds more weeding. I better get going before the temps get too high. Summer is on the way.

More tomorrow.