Inner wild beast…

Last week we were sitting in the convenience store parking lot when the fire siren went off. Zeke howled with it on and on and on…. Most places we camp we can hear coyotes howling at night. A few nights ago we were camped in a wilderness area and at least two wolves came up fairly close to the van. They gave a bone chilling howl and Zeke barked back. The wolf gave a sort of bark that scared the bejeepers out of Zeke. He uncurled from the front seat and got as close to my bed as possible.

I haven’t heard much in the woods here except night bird calls and rustlings out away from the campfire. Tonight I have the generator going to recharge my marine battery and the computer. Since the generator changed the ambiance around the campfire, I brought out the radio and put it on an oldies station. One of the songs inspired me to sing along quite loudly. There’s no one for miles around, so I really belted it out. Suddenly Zeke put his head up in the air and let out a howl. He looked at me and kept howling. I finally realized he was doing that because I was singing ;-p When the song was over, he got up, peed on a tree and climbed into the van. I guess I hurt his ears!

Earlier tonight Aleka was in the van eating and using the litter box. She must have really lightened her load because she burst out of the van and in a few seconds was about 15 feet up a tree. The rest of the evening she sat on my lap by the fire and took over my chair whenever I got up to reseason the Dutch oven or poke the fire. A couple of weeks ago my bro came over early in the morning and left a Dutch oven on the picnic table for me Tonight I had the best fire for seasoning it properly. Just before I got in the van, I used the flashlight and looked at the lid and pot one more time sitting on the fireplace grate. It was a gorgeous black…just right.

I really don’t want to be tamed! If the weather never got any colder than freezing or much over the 80’s, I’d be in hog heaven! I could easily spend the rest of my life camping. This has been one of my favorite camping seasons ever. The DEC primitive sites all over the Adirondacks are free and a zillion times better than any state park. I LOVE being out in the north woods or snug and warm in my van. The pets seem to be at least as happy as me

Below freezing last night again…

Brrrr…I wore many layers of clothes and cinched up my fleece jacket hood tight around my face. Even bundled up and  under a down comforter, it’s COLD outside. Driving out of the woods this morning was gorgeous! Tooley Pond only had a small amount of mist but the Oswegatchie River and Cooks Pond were totally socked in with fog. At one point along the Oswegatchie, the terrain was ethereal…layers upon layers of fog, hills and trees, all sort of floating in the morning mist.

It felt really good to go in Liz’s house and warm up. I took a nice, warm shower and went to my doc appointment. This doc is very thorough. She wants me to go to a gut doc for yet another camera shot of my intestines. Fun….NOT! I need to get my port flushed tomorrow, then I’m free from appointments until October 3rd. Hmmmm….I need to find someplace extra special to camp See ya…..

Mood swings…

I hope it’s menopause! This week has been a strange one mood wise. One minute I am very happy, the next I am questioning everything. Last night there was a thick frost covering cars and gardens. It was the first night since the 4th of July that I slept in a house. I begged my sister for a spot on her couch

Today I called all the apartments I have applied at.  No openings at one, no one there for another and they haven’t finished reviewing my application at the third. Soon I either need to move south and keep living in my van or get an inside dwelling here in the north country.

Although it sure was nice to sleep in a warm place for a change, I also hated it. I woke up at 3 AM feeling yucky then when I woke up in the morning, I was all stuffed up with a monster headache. Living inside invariably makes me sick. It’s a dilemma. I need to stay in one place for health care, but when I stay still inside, I NEED more health care….

Out of the woods for a date with the vet

Actually Aleka was pretty calm and collected We were surrounded by dogs and she walked right up to the town barn on her leash. Two weeks ago there was a rabies clinic, but the vet never showed up. This time the vet was there early, but no one had the keys to the town barn. Once the guy with the keys was located, things moved fast. Someone had 6 cocker spaniels and a couple of them shrieked like they were being killed.

Today is my niece Sam’s burthday. She is 14. I had better get back for a piece of cake

Safe Harbor

“As you overcome adversity in your life, you will become stronger. Then you will be better able to help others —those who are working, in their turn, to find a safe harbor from the storms that rage about them.”

–Joseph B. Wirthlin, “Finding a Safe Harbor“, Ensign, May 2000, 59

James 1:22, 27

Have I Done Any Good?, Hymn #223 Listen | Text | Interactive | About

Been camping in the wilderness

Here’s where I have been camping this week. I came out of the woods to buy some things and send some mail, but am going back tonight.  It was quite the adventure Sunday night! The remnants of hurricane Ike came through. Sunday evening was oppressively hot and muggy.  There was a full moon and when it came up, the wind did, too. I sat in my camp chair enjoying the sound of pine needles in the wind and the cooling effect on my hair and body. I fell asleep with all the doors and windows open and was awoken by pelting rain some time in the middle of the night.

After I got up to close the doors, the storm got stronger. Sometimes the wind gusts blew the van all over. It rained all night and ALL day yesterday.  I was happy to see a forest cop then a town truck down the long road to where I was camped. I wondered how the road fared. When I left today I counted at least 5 places where crews had to cut up trees that had been across the road.

I’m in a fantastic spot with Wild Forest on one side of the road and 5 Ponds Wilderness Area on the other. Nice

New pages added…

If you look under pages to ponder, you will see I  have added two new ones

How to live in a van

Wendy is looking for an LDS eternal companion

Tooth is OUT!

That darn tooth is gone. Yippppppeeeeee!!!! So far, no pain, can’t wait for the shots to wear off….NOT. He took it out in two parts. Only the roots and a bit sticking up were left. You might remember I’ve been complaining about this tooth for 2 years now. No dentist would touch it…they said I needed a dental surgeon and no insurance paid for a dental surgeon.

This dentist had no trouble at all getting the stubs out. I felt nothing What a relief!

No camping far away for me tonight. I have to stay in my sister’s yard. The dentist wants to see me back in the morning.

I told Zeke he would have to stay in the car while I got my tooth pulled. He seemed to understand and did not try to come with me and didn’t even get worried. Good dog I HATE walking with a cane instead of Zeke! Not only do I feel even older and more decrepit, but I shake like crazy. The tremor in my arm and head is both annoying and painful. There’s no tremor with no cane

Well, I had better get back to Liz’s house…it’s almost time to change the gauze….

Nippy nights and Wedding Plans

I spent the last few days camping in a Wild Forest. Last night was cold…frost warnings for the Adirondacks and predictions as low as the mid 20’s. I did not see any frost, but did notice some kinds of ferns have turned autumn golden brown. This morning Zeke, Aleka and I went to look at the lake we were camped near and there was mist over the water as the air was much colder than the water.

I suppose it will be good to get into some sort of housing soon. In Florida you need protection from summer heat, in NY you REALLY need protection from winter. I am very grateful to the woman who helped me get warm last winter. She sent me a winter coat, a propane heater, some clothes and a down comforter. I don’t own much now days…but I do own those!!!

I’m thinking I need to get one of those egg crate foam pads for my bed and a Velux blanket for extra warmth. The mattress I found free on the side of the road is plasticized and it gets COLD! The comforter alone has been good until last night. Now I’m needing more.

The good part about this part of the world at this season is watching the forest change from green to multi-colored. Swamps are gorgeous right now with crimson and burgundy leaves. Most of the flowers blooming are purple and yellow. I ate a crisp NYS apple in the crisp air and felt at home

In October, Heather gets married. I’ll be flying to Texas with Zeke for a week and Aleka will be staying with relatives. Zeke has been on a plane before, but not with me. His trainer took him to at least one conference by plane. That should be fun! I need to teach him all over again how to pee on a pad in the bathroom ;-p

I’m looking forward to the wedding in a bittersweet sort of way. My baby has found a very nice young man and will now promise to bond with him for life. It’s hard to see my baby has grown up so fast, but good to know all is well. They made totally cool and clever wedding invitations! The reception is going to be a good ol’ fashioned Texas BBQ. Mmmmmmmm….

I came out of the woods today because tomorrow I get that nasty, painful, broken off tooth pulled. I’m thrilled and scared at the same time. Such is life…

In the wilds…

It’s tough to keep a blog when you’re living in Wild Forest and Wilderness areas. Not much around and certainly no wifi! It’s been great for me, though The only worry I have is that with no cell phone and nobody around, what if I have another stroke? Well, then it would be my time to go, I guess….

MOST of the time I have been a zillion times better than I was in Florida. That all seems like a long nightmare now. I can’t believe how sick I was the first half of this year. Maybe wandering really does make me healthier! Problem is, winter will soon be here. There have been two frost warnings in the Adirondacks…in August! August was a pretty wet, cloudy month. So far September has been warm and sunny. LOTS of leaves have turned color already. People at the 2 LDS churches I go to have been commenting that their particular trees have never turned so early before. Zeke has been in non-stop shed mode. I brush him and brush him and brush him some more and there’s always a poodle’s worth of loose hair on him. I wonder if he will grow a big fluffy coat like he used to have in Vermont?

Today I have a dentist appointment What a change from Florida! They actually care about and care for poor people around here. My doc is nice and the dentist only needed a short notice for an appointment. I asked on a Friday of Labor Day weekend and got the appointment two business days later TOTALLY cool!!!!!! I’ve had a broken off tooth that has been torturing me for 2 years. I hope he can do something about it. YES!!! It’s being pulled next week and he plans to fix up my teeth

I finished up some tasks that have needed doing a long time now…got new front brake pads, got my hair cut, shopped for cheap groceries, got a $1 clock with a snap hook for the front of the van, etc., etc….  It feels real good. Tuesday I applied for senior/disabled housing at two different complexes in the heart of the Adirondacks. I admit to bursting into tears when one lady gave me a hard time about my past renting history. Ever since the marriage break-up, I have been homeless except for when other people helped me live somewhere. She says by doing that I have no rental history to go on to be accepted in an apartment! It didn’t matter that I bought 2 homes and lived in them, they want long term rental agreements. That seems absurd to me. I told her I was doing the best I could to survive on $573 or less each month! It sure wasn’t enough to rent a place.

I do not understand the difference between Florida and New York’s rental fees. Even with a Section 8 housing voucher in Florida, I could not afford to rent, yet here in NY, the rent is sooooo cheap in HUD housing, that I CAN afford to live there. It’s a mystery to me. Also there is a world of difference in medical care. DO NOT move to or stay in Florida if you are disabled! It sucks!!!!

Just call me Phoenix. I feel like I am raising out of the ashes of my own personal disaster. I am thriving and will continue to thrive!