THE ALASKAN SKIES

Once again I am sitting in my cave, as Fred calls it and catching up with the mail and notes that I owe my family and friends. It is really my sewing room and I am resisting the urge to turn off the computer and just sew the day away. It is perfect for that: the sky is cloudy and threatening to drench me if I even open the window more than two inches; the wind is gently blowing the smells of wild flowers and wood smoke from the surrounding neighborhood; and the quiet mood of Miss Jane Marple solving a another murder on audio book fills the room. It is the simple life I wish I could maintain throughout the weeks of summer.

Reality hits! I really enjoyed the time in Nebraska. I spent more time on the road than expected due to the trips to Norfolk to visit Grandma Lehman. Those are important and I was pleased to see her steadily in recovery from the heart surgery. Unfortunately, she has had a couple of setbacks due to blood clots in the lungs. She was returned to the hospital and seems to be recovering, but is struggling. We get almost daily updates from Fred’s older sister, Barbara. She travels about 2 hours every few days to see her. Fred’s younger sister, Pam, lives in the same town and is with her daily. Pam is very optimistic that she will be home by mid-July. She will need constant companionship when she does return. Decisions about her long term recovery have been very difficult for the family, but all seems to be going well.

The rest of the trip resembled a roller coaster ride with escalating rises, sharp turns and just the silliness of being with friends on the carnival rides. One must just keep going back to the ticket booth for another adventure. That would be Mom and Dad’s place. The heavy rains and numerous weather warnings for tornadoes followed by gorgeous sunny days reminded me that life is just as unpredictable. My Mom, Aunt and two sister-in-laws met up with my good friend Cindy, her Mom and sisters in Omaha. We “ lunched” on a roof-top café in the Old Market area and then hurried off to the theater to see Menopause the Musical. We laughed ‘til our sides hurt tears stained our faces. Margaret, Kathy and I extended the evening by finding a hotel room, sharing a couple bottles of wine and regaling each other with stories and secrets of motherhood and marriage. For those in the know – “Ya-Ya Sisterhood” is alive and well!

It would be the only trip to Omaha due to the storms and highway closures. Dennis ended up spending lots of time trying to farm and rescue cattle and fences between the storms. I spent my last evening in Nebraska eating HIS food and drinking HIS wine…..always good to eat off the relatives. Margaret and I spent a girl day spoiling Megan with lunch and a movie. The waitress asked the question if we were celebrating anything special and so we pretended it was it birthday! The afternoon just got crazier after that. (Actually, it made me miss my own girls even more. You guys just need to move closer so that I can spoil you with these fun moments!) Bruce and his family “blew in” from Kansas, minus Toto, to spend a little over a day. We rarely get the three siblings together, let alone the extended family. My niece Sarah has bloomed into a lovely young woman and will start college this fall.

The quiet evenings, and occasional days, spent with Mom and Dad were very relaxing. Instead of cotton candy & carnival peanuts, we settled for Rough Necks and many card games. They mowed lawns; I trimmed. They picked up branches and I climbed the tree to knock them down. Good times come to an end and I returned to Alaska.
I was back for only three days and then off to Washington DC for a conference. At the conference I met up with a professional friend from Germany and several others from across the nation. The meeting was set to “solve” challenges that resulted from law changes and Congressional hearings as they apply to military housing. We had two free evenings. I spent one walking through Georgetown and eating at Martin’s Tavern. (Several Presidents made that their favorite meeting place.) Another evening was spent on historical Fort Meyer and watching a military tattoo with the Old Guard. Always impressive!

Back to work, but always at the hectic pace. June to August is always the heaviest turnover in military housing. We have added to the pace by moving troops in /out of the Gulf area. Normal days, long past, we saw about 75-100 walk-in customers a day, plus all regular appointments and 20+ inspections a day. Since mid May a normal day is 150 to 180 walk-ins. It’s a pace that just makes your brain hurt to think about. Around the first of August our customer base will increase by about 3,000 as we take on the management of barracks spaces. We all have our moments of stress and unhappy customers. Everyday I ask the question, “Have I made a difference in the life of a soldier or his family?” Each day I say yes and know that I love what I do.

Fred has had the most fun the summer. His favorite question today – “Do you know the difference between a ditch and a swale?” The first is $500 and the latter is $2000. Both look the same when they are done. We had to put in a swale to help the drainage in the front and northeast parts of the yard. It was draining toward the house. Now it should drain into the northeast green belt. Fred planted grass, trees and a few flowers and spend hours watering and nurturing. (i.e. swearing and counseling them if they do not respond.) He has built a retaining wall, 4+ feet high on the southwest corner. He is adding spiral stairs to the back yard that will curve along the wall. The built up area is the chosen space for a small shed for the snow blower, mower and gas cans. That remains to be built.

In between projects and “his regular job,” he has found the time for his hobby, FLYING. We celebrated with impromptu beer/pizza party another achievement Friday night; he passed the written instrument test. He still has the oral and the test ride, but he says they will be much easier. Kelcie, our 4 1/2 year old adopted granddaughter found the perfect airplane to adorn the cake. It had large comical eyes for the windows and a cheeky smile.

Although I have spent some time in the yard, my mission is to get the window quilts finished for the family room by September. No pattern here, just my vision of a finished product. I have chosen a muted yellow-brown for the background. The “framing” strips for each window is a scattered pine bough print. The quilts will be made in the design of a Roman shade and will roll up in 12” sections. I chose to decorate with simple pine trees, bear and moose along the bottom twelve inches. Everything will be in silhouette so there is no detail. Four windows are 35” x 58” and the large center window is 94” x 58.” I decided to make the large windows into three panels that will resemble the other windows. The scene will be Denali and the reflecting lake. In the foreground will be a Cache with a sled dog on one side and a musher’s sled with a couple of dogs on the other. In-between this quilt, the Grandma in me has taken special requests from the audience under the age of 5. This includes orders for Halloween costumes, Blue’s Clues Cuddle quilt, and whatever else can be thought of. Sure hope that they are all easy this year. Now is the time to catch up on your blogs as well.