Sophie's Story

It's hard to believe that I have been writing this column for two years now. The first one I wrote was a Memorial Day tribute of sorts to my late father-in-law, Mr. Warren. I wrote about how, at that time, there was a lot of talk about soldiers sacrificing so much for the rest of us who seemed not to care or even be aware of how great their sacrifices are. I don't dispute this, but the soldiers are not the only ones who sacrifice, so do their families. That sacrifice is not always having to cope with the loss of a loved one in war. It's having to continue to live life while they are away and also when the soldier returns sometimes "not as nature made them,but as war left them." to quote Bob Schieffer. I know someone who is doing something to help. His name is Paul and he is the president of Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Washington County (Minnesota) Network. Beyond the Yellow Ribbon is a federally funded program created by the Minnesota National Guard. People livi...

At the risk of offending all my Christian friends, I think I can imagine what God felt like after he created the heavens and earth. I finished planting the garden yesterday. All of the plants that we bought or that were given to me are planted somewhere. It took me about three hours, but then I was only planting half a garden as opposed to God creating everything. Like God though, I did walk around and look at everything I had done and could say, "it was very good." (Gen 1:31 KJV). Unlike God I did not get to rest afterward. It's only fair. Creating every thing is a big job. Planting the garden was work, but nowhere is as extensive. It isn't completely finished actually. Now that all the plants are where they belong, we need to put mulch around them. That will be C's job. After the garden has been mulched, it will look better and will also be easier to maintain. We are growing all kind of things. We have tomatoes and bell peppers. I was given some eggplant s...

Does anybody invent anything anymore? I'm not talking about new apps for phones and such, I'm talking about completely new things. Lately it seems that all that is happening is remakes,sequels and TV shows made into movies and various technology things are constantly being upgraded so the item you bought 6 months ago is obsolete. Things are being made smaller, but not completely new. There are a few things I wish someone would invent. If anyone reading this actually manages to invent one or more of these items, I promise I will not try to sue you for royalties or anything like that. All I ask is that I be allowed to purchase the item at a generous discount. These items are not listed in any particular order. Run resistant nylon stockings. Note that I do not say run proof. I don't think run proof is possible. I do think that someone should be able to come up with a nylon stocking that doesn't develop a run if you wear it,wash it or look at it funny. Part of my sock...

I may have to start believing in miracles. Now that the sun is up around five-thirty in the morning I can go running. If I want to get in any exercise I have to do it in the early morning or it won't get done. I've been waiting for the sun to rise earlier so I can start running again. (Yes, I'm a wuss. I won't run in the snow or heavy rain.) I like to be outside as much as possible when it is nice out. I think it has to do with living in the north all my life. Back to the miracle... When I told C that I was going to start running in the mornings he mentioned that he would be joining me. I gently scoffed at the idea. To me, C is a night owl. If he had his way we would stay up until 11 pm to midnight and get up between nine and ten in the morning. He can get up earlier and has due to various jobs that require it, but I still think he's a late afternoon to night person. Nothing wrong with that. So I didn't think there was any way that he would get out of bed at...

Yesterday Tracy and I went on a road trip. We've done this before. We load her dog into her SUV and head north. We were going to Louie's Finer Meats for some sausage, Bona Casa for ravioli, Bella Curella for some cheese,Bergman's Greenhouse for plants and Cady Cheese factory for more cheese. I was looking forward to this. I like the flowers at Bergman's and they have the herb plants I like. I was also getting low on cheese and I believe the best cheese can be found at small factories out in the country. Tra and I have not seen each other for quite awhile. The first thing we needed to do was catch up on what was happening with each other's lives. We were so involved in the process that we missed a turn and ended up in a small town west of where we wanted to be. I was a bit worried. The last time we missed a turn like this we had to stop and get directions because Tra didn't have a Wisconsin map in the car. This time she remembered to carry one and we quickly foun...

It's all Mandy's fault. I'm looking a bit trimmer than I used to. I have a bit more energy. I've stopped drinking so much coffee and I'm ready to start running again. These changes are very good and I am pleased about them. I blame Mandy. Everyone who has been reading this column the last few months knows that I'm trying to exercise more. I have worked out on the elliptical and last spring took up running. I also do some workout videos that I can get on cable TV. On Demand is a wonderful thing. I like to do different things because I get bored doing the same workout all the time. It's also good to change things up and work on different muscles etc. If I do a workout video it has to be no longer than 20-25 minutes. Since early morning is the only time I have to work out on a consistent basis that is all the time I have to spare. I have done workouts by several different trainers. I tried Pilates with Nicole Stewart. I did abs with Amy Dixon. I...

I think I'm on vacation next week. When I looked at the schedule, my name was off it and someone else was covering my shifts. I'm not completely sure though. Most likely what will happen is that I will go to work and if someone else is there I'll greet them politely and leave. I have no idea what I'll do. I don't like taking vacation. I don't like being away from work for more than a long weekend and I really don't like the kind of mess I always seem to come back to. I'm not implying that my staff is no good. They are, but things pile up especially when a regular staff member is missing and a substitute is working. This whole thing started when the company I work for changed the way vacation scheduling is handled. We had to make our requests at the beginning of the year and we had to take at least two thirds of our allotted vacation time. So I had to submit two weeks. I remember picking one week in May thinking that it wouldn't be approved and ...

Hi Everyone, this is Scamp. For those of you that don't know me, I am the chief house cat that lives with C and Sophie. I am an absolutely gorgeous Maine Coon cat mix. I am a bit over two years old. I have a younger brother, Colby, who lives here too. He is my second in command. Spring is a busy time for us cats. Now that the snow is off the ground and it's warm out I am starting to patrol the outside of the house with my human. I have to be on the alert for predators and things that don't belong here. My job is to make sure that they understand that they are not welcome here. This is my territory! You have to be very subtle when looking for predators. I like to sit in the grass quietly and look for them, moving once in a while to a different spot. I know Sophie thinks that I am being lazy and chewing grass. That's not the case. I am hiding in the grass or when there is no grass picking a piece of dirt that matches my fur so I can't be seen. I have not caugh...