HELLO

The time has come for a few words of life in the barn.

This past 8 weeks there have been hunters using the barn.

They have come from places distant, such as PA, WA, OR, WI, LA, MI, MS,

AND MORE.

Did you know that their reservations are made through Cabela's?

They get what and where they want.

Ducks, Pheasant, Bow for deer, even fishing.

All this right here where I live and breathe and cook.

Sleeping is done in the main house and napping in the barn

while they watch TV on the new 50"(owned by the outfitters).

I've learned there is rest needed and allowed between the forages

into the wilderness of the wild!

Yes, they also eat in the main house and snack in the barn..not to forget

some liquid refreshing. Spacewise the old made new barn is

just plain good for the mountains of stuff their sport calls for.

Who could guess a year ago that my days would be made cheerier

by these folks who think North Dakota is great!

I love them all. Especially the small family from Las Vegas who

brought along their kids, Hunter, 4 and Hannah,6 --who named my 4 new kittens

--after themselves, adding also Sarah, (coincidentally the day McCain brought his

VP to our political stage), and Mattie.

Last Friday as we waved off the last couple we went into party mode, getting the house under control and then attacking the barn, carting things hither and yon to

celebrate Halloween with book club and neighbors and guitar and mandelin.

At 5:oo I slipped on a step coming down from upstairs and proceeded down the rest

of the way thumping and rolling til my body hit the cement. Only a toe is hairline fractured but the rest of my body is black and blue in all the expected spots. Enough.

That was Friday and this is Wednesday and tomorrow I fly direct from Fargo to Pheenix-Mesa where I'll continue to heal with fun and fancy and friends.

Can you believe that was all? I was happy to discover when I got untangled from

the stairs, that I could walk.

The best news of the last month is that I have a great-grandson. Kate and Nick produced

him, Kaj Delys Naujokas, (you should see the red lines under those 3 misspelled words!!)

--nine pounds seven ounces and twenty one inches long

with a pug nose and beautiful hair. Two days later he fell asleep in my arms.

It feels like a fresh breeze - a new start - and a reason to keep an

eye out for those toys that my eight grandsons didn't quite wear out.

God is good in each day and each minute of each day. It's like getting up on

my tiptoes to see over into the day to come, because I always wanted to

know ----- what next.