Never Lose Hope

This quote came via an email from a friend:

"The charm of fishing is that is is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable,
a perpetual series of occasions for hope,"

He goes on to write, "Without hope there is nothing."

In this case hope is so very precious that we must not, can not, lose it.

Not in any stage of life....

Must be why I have always loved fishing!

Topsy-Turvy

She was an excellent waitress....courteous, thoughtful and prompt. She was friendly and spent some time with us as it was a quiet time at the restaurant.

"I am a registered nurse", she told us. "I used to work in home health throughout the Black Hills and I did Hospice care. Now I am working as a waitress. The work is more pleasant, the pay is good and the hours are 30 a week, unlike the long hours I put in as a nurse."

"Ouch", was my immediate response. "That is so sad when the need for nurses is so critical, especially in home health and hospice."

"I know. But the work was difficult and the hours were long. I make as much money as a waitress with fewer hours."

Bob and I ate our meal for a while in silence. It was depressing to hear what this woman had to say. She had the type of personality that would be attractive to the elderly and/or the terminally ill and yet she was waiting tables in Rapid City.

It's a strange world in so many ways. Today was another example brought home, to our table by a pleasant ex-nurse, mother of 3 (2 in college), and presently a waitress.

Is there something wrong with this picture?

From My Brother, Roy, in Response to "Farewell to Dottie" Blog.

Wedding photo, July, 1949
She was a cute red head.

A Farewell to Dottie

An email arrived from my brother. "Dottie passed away this morning."

It was the 40's, after WWII, years before the women's movement of the 60's and 70's. Dottie took care of her parents as they became ill, first one, then another. Her life was consumed by her duty as the dutiful daughter and college was out of the question. Into her life came a handsome young engineer who, when she was free from her care taking, rescued her to a married life of safety and comfort, enveloped by her family, her home and her love of the many animals who came to her back yard from the forested gully that wound past her home.

She fed the squirrels, the birds, the fox, raccoons and other woodland creatures who came to the feeders for nourishment. She loved the wild things and ignored the comments from her husband who fretted about the exorbitant cost of feed. Some wives spend a fortune on jewelry, clothes, cars or entertainment. Her life was simple. She preferred taking care of her family and the animals that crept out of the forest to partake of the bounty in her yard.

There were the occasions when she and her husband travelled back to Minnesota to visit with her in-laws and their relatives. During those times she asked her son, Bruce, to tend to her creatures who were fed daily through her generosity. Her son came to check on the house. He had no intention of feeding the critters. While walking through the living room he got the strangest, eerie feeling. He went over to the large patio windows and opened the drapes. Outside the window was a group of raccoons sitting silently, staring and waiting for the food they had been accustomed to receive from his mother. Bruce felt his skin crawl as he looked at this voiceless assembly and, needless to say, he went straight away to the food supply and threw out the food. During the rest of his time checking on the house he did not neglect the critters outside the window. After all, it was what his mother wished.

Dottie kept contact with her husband's family, writing lengthy letters each Christmas, informing us in detail of the her family's activities. She graciously took in her father-in-law for weeks at a time after his wife died. She also took me into her home for a time of healing while I was going through a crisis and had need of a sanctuary far from the problems facing me. I will not forget her kindness to me.

And now we say goodbye to this woman who followed her duty....to her parents, her family, her husband's family and the creatures who came her way. In her new life may she be surrounded by those who made her happy in this life. We can only hope.

Goodbye, Dottie....daughter, wife, mother, my sister-in-law and friend to all.....

Yet Another Step

"When will you open?" This question keeps getting asked.

Before Wild West Wheels opens Bob has stuff to do to get the building ready. There is water to hook up, locks to change, doors to fix, windows and pipes to replace and on and on it goes.

So, in answer to some of you, he doesn't know when the shop will officially open, but he is selling his Amsoil to old and new customers and he has been repairing bikes and motorcycles. Those who have come in advance are delighted they don't have to trek up to Rapid City. That is his plan: service locally and be reasonably priced. It may not be speedy, but it will be done with skill and care.

Roof repair is another step in getting his building in shape before opening. The list goes on and on.
                                                                         Let's hear it for the patient man!

Cheers for FedEx

We are often inundated with the "ugly truths" about the greedy corporations avoiding taxes, polluting our environment, etc. But there are the extraordinary exceptions and they deserve equal billing.

Oh, yes, there are a few out there. In time there may be more if their shareholders speak up. Thanks to the shareholders who have influenced some big businesses to help save our planet for future generations.

Here's to FedEx. Their strategy is Reduce, Replace, Revolutionize. And, they are five years ahead of their plan! FedEx Express surpassed its goal to boost vehicle fuel efficiency by 30% by 2020 starting from 2005, in spite of the fact that most of the technology needed then didn't exist at the time.

Here was their strategy adopted in 2005:

REDUCE overall mileage by travelling the minimum miles by optimizing routes.

REPLACE with more fuel efficient models and reprogramming the models to run at the optimal levels for fuel efficiency.

REVOLUTIONIZE the fleet by adopting electric vehicles, fuel cells, natural gas and hybrids. They are also focusing on hydrogen fuel cells.

Result of this plan: They have saved more than 137 million gallons of fuel since 2008 and avoided nearly 1.5 million  metric tons of CO2e emissions.

What a win-win by FedEx. They saved their stockholders money while helping to save our planet!

(Information from the FedEx Annual Report 2016)