Covid and My Mom...(Reader Alert)

(Not my usual content, but still needing to be said)

My Mom is a Covid Statistic...but she never had Covid.

She died 6 days before her 91st Birthday, complications from a urinary infection.  In my mind, it was close enough to say she was 91...

It would require 10 full length posts to tell her final chapter.

But the headlines for her last 3 months are a horror story...all created by government initiated Covid fear mongering. 

...Woman in Nursing Home Denied Family Visits Due to Cuomo Mandates...

...Because of Cuomo Mandates: Family Turned Away at Hospital Lobby, While Mother Lies Dying...

...Woman Dies All Alone - Result of Cuomo Mandates...

...Cuomo Decides: Elderly Have Less Rights Than Dogs...

My Mom never contracted Covid, but it directly caused her death.  She was denied loving supportive contact, which crushed her will to live.

She had the Covid vaccine shots - just like they said to do...

She also wore a mask - just like they said to do...

She was bed ridden, so following social distancing rules was easy for her, so she did - just like they said to do...

We visited in person for the allowed 1 hour every few weeks...and talked on the phone fairly frequently in between visits. 

And I remember during one of our many phone calls, she pleaded...

"... I just want to feel a hug..."

She just wanted a touch of kindness, from somebody who loved her.

But it got worse and worse. Cuomo kept adding more mandates, more restrictions, piling on more lunacy and madness. 

Many targeted specifically against the elderly.

In the end, Cuomo succeeded in finally stripping away the most fundamental sustainer of life in her final days.

He prevented family visits.

Mom finally went into a critical watch condition...her life now measured in hours.

With trouble communicating at that point, just having her family present gave her the most comfort, such a simple little thing, which she always appreciated.

But...the Cuomo mandates kept coming - - - 

They became so severely restrictive that family visits were effectively stopped at the "care" facility.

Restrictive to the point where Judy and I were turned away at the lobby of the facility, denied a visit because of "new" Cuomo Madness released just hours before.

I wasn't allowed to see my Mom that day...nor the next...I never saw her again.

Mom died alone...

I am convinced my Mom finally just gave up.

She lost disire to hold onto life isolated from her family.

Making up arbitrary rules and punitive mandates, which ultimately force Americans to die alone is a travesty and a moral crime against humanity of the worst kind...

Cuomo, Hochel, Wolf, and even "Let's Go Brandon" should all be held personally accountable for their actions and unlawful mandates...for their crimes against the people of America, and specifically the elderly.

And the rest of the political pond scum suckers  who we are taxed for their worthless existence are guilty of the same moral crimes and for enabling the Cuomos and Brandons of this world to hold tyrannical dictatorship. 

Dogs are protected with more rights, more value, more humane treatment than we provide to our elderly.

It's time for a change...

Twitterpated...

Dear Aunt Lois,

I found some family pictures you may be interested in...

While going through some of Mom's treasures after her passing, I found some photos of some of my cousins at a young age, in an envelope marked "Lois".

Ahhh, my wonderful Aunt Lois...

Looking back through child's eyes, I remember her always being quick to smile.  And she had such warm sincerity mixed with her quiet yet "always busy" activity as a Mother and Wife.

She was married to my Mom's youngest brother, who was killed in an unfortunate traffic accident almost 40 years ago...

It was at a much too young age, leaving my Aunt Lois to figure out how to move forward in life with 5 young children. 

So with the plan of sending her the old family photos, I contacted my dear Aunt Lois, who I've not spoken with for years and years...a situation I am most sorry for.

"The Importance of Family" is something I started learning much too late in life, and am still even now only in kindergarten on that toughest of subjects.

With only having her email address, we connected and had a spectacular time catching up with how she and my cousins have been blessed over the last 45 years!

And she did figure it out...raising her family intact, emotionally healthy and still in close contact.

Her life and her family is another real-life example of God's mercy and grace.

Chris, one of her sons commented on the email thread...

"...One memory I have of Terry is when I was maybe 5 or 6 and Terry and Judy had been over at the farm playing hide-and-seek and swinging on the ropes in the barn.  I don't think they were married just yet...

I remember being in the tub that night getting ready for church the next day and talking to Mom about Judy because she was pretty...

Mom told me Terry and Judy were "twitterpated".

I remember thinking "...That's a strange word, what does it even mean?..." 

He went on to ask in his email if Judy and I were still twitterpated?

After 46 years of marriage...I pretty much still see Judy as that smiling 18 year old.

She hasn't changed in my mind's eye after all these years...

It's the mental image I see when thinking of her - she had me from the start with that beautiful twinkle in her warm blue eyes...and I live just to see her smile! 

It all still captivates me.

...I hope they never make a vaccine for Twitterpated...

Let the adventure continue... 

Polar Bears and Grizzly Bears...

Both are powerful and not to be underestimated...your life hangs in the balance!

It's said Polar Bears are the most dangerous of all the big bears.  Once on your scent trail, they will stalk and hunt you down just for the sheer satisfaction of proving they are THE supreme apex hunter.

And Grizzlies - Ursus arctos horribilis - Note the "horribilis" which is Latin.  It means "...able to tear both your arms off in one swipe...".

Go ahead, Google it, but you can trust me on this...

Grizzlies are as capable, ferocious and well equipped as the Polar Bear, but maybe just not quite as motivated to seek and destroy smelly humans.

So Polar Bears and Grizzly Bears...

...And never ever forget the mighty Woolly Bear...!

Maybe not quite as large as the Polar or Griz... and just maybe not able to take your arms off with just a single swipe of its paw...

(Not sure it has paws actually.  If it did, man would have already hunted them to extinction out of pure fear, kind of like we did with the Tyrannosaurus Rex).

But nevertheless, NEVER underestimate the power of the Woolly Bear to make your life MISERABLE.

In fact, Woolly Bears don't even need to touch you!  Just one look at them can sometimes steal months from your life, and recovery is never a guarantee!!!

And unrefutable legend has it that the Woolly Bear is a more accurate predictor of the weather than even the pernicious Punxsutawney Phil.

Well documented, forensicly validated scientific folklore has it that the more black hair on the Woolly Bear - the longer, harder and more dreadful the Winter will be!

And the opposite, the more brown showing on the Woolly Bear, the shorter and more mild will be the bane of Winter.

So lots of black is not so beautiful when it comes to Woolly Bears.

Months of your life are in jeopardy...anguish, misery and unrelenting pain, a winter without end - all dependent on the terrible and fearsome Woolly Bear.

There is much at stake...life as we know it, rests in the hands paws legs of the Woolly Bear...

And thus, we've been intently interested in capturing and scientifically analyzing the Windy Hill Woolly Bear population of late.

Oh Yeah Baby!!!

Once again, life has proven to be spectacular on Windy Hill!

In fact, we've decided to not even get out our 17 boxes of winter clothes this year! 

Our newest and most ferocious favorite friend on Windy Hill says we can stay in our summer shorts and sandals for the next 6 months!!!

Let the adventure continue...

Crunchy Grass

It finally happened...at 6:46am...

...32.9 degrees on Windy Hill.

Close enough to 32 degrees to make it the first frost of the season...it's late this year, but that's OK by me!!!

I do enjoy how nature puts on a show during a frost!

Up close...

And from a distance...

  Let the adventure continue...

Motive...

This post isn't really about Covid...well, it is, but not the typical "cover your ears so you can't hear, so you can then shout your opinion" kind of content.

It's safe for all to read no matter your perspective, whether you've exercised your free choice to get shot or not get shot.

In a way, my Mom's death was related to Covid, but that's for another post.  And I'm firsthand aware of other people that have had it...direct family members and friends.

So I am trying to evaluate the different sides of the Covid discussion, specifically regarding the vaccine.

Although I hate needles, my view from Windy Hill is that much of the shouting debate has nothing to do with getting a shot.

The root of the Covid debate is motive...

Let's go back in time just a wee bit.

Science vs. Religion has been a festering cold war for the last ~130 years.  Maybe Darwin's writings were the watershed event, or maybe it was the World's Fair of 1900.  From somewhere in that epoch (always wanted to use that word!) there has been a clear emergence of Science as a religion.

Science with its intense observations of nature, it's ability to offer increasingly precise parameters - the distance from earth to the Moon, the Sun, or even Polaris, the North Star, the increasing exactness in the measurement of the passing of time, the break down of matter into its atomic elements, and even into sub particles of energy - have all contributed to the rise and importance of Science over the 20th century.

To the point where it is often mentioned as a religion with dedicated believers, but maybe not yet with secret handshakes, eye winks or hooded indoctrination of devotees!

The discoveries attributed to Science have been wide ranging and too numerous to list.  Science has resulted in the saving of life with penicillin, the Smallpox vaccine, heart transplants, and development of Kubota Tractors.

And though with the best of intentions, some Science has also resulted in the destruction of life with the splitting of an atom or plastic micro-particles being found in newborn infants.

But for the most part, the historic trust placed in the pursuit of Science and scientific discoveries, and even scientists themselves has been largely merited.

The Scientific approach of establishing theories, and identifying hypotheses - then pursuing unbiased truths by following widely agreed experimentation and testing principles to prove or disprove, have all served Science well.

And so, for many, Science has in fact replaced traditional religion as the source of commonly accepted truth.

Science has become its own religion and many people "trust the Science".

Pause now and shift focus from the rise of Science to the downfall of religion.

The term "religion" is broad with many different meanings.

For this discussion "Religion" (with a capital R) is God's simple plan for a relationship with Man in the Biblical sense.

Where as, "religion" with a lower case "r" is Man's attempt to find a god, or even a group of gods to worship.  "religion" is Man's attempt to explain the world around him or to try and sooth his churning soul.  Subtle but important differences, so stay with me here.

In the beginning, the pure focus of Religion was for establishing a direct relationship between God and the individual Man.

Though over time, governments, politics and individual pursuit of selfish power have injected themselves into the equation.  Think Cardinals, state religions, approved speech, acceptable doctrine.

When that happens, pure Religion quickly devolves into a Godless and false religion - diluted and twisted, fake and unsatisfying.  It becomes all about man, nothing about God.

Look back throughout history and you'll find the pollution of Religion whenever the pure Man/God relationship is interrupted by selfish or political motives.  And attempts to leverage Religion in order to gain power and control over its believers always results in creation of false religions.

Selfish motive has always been causal to the downfall of a pure relationship between God and individual Man.

But eventually, realization of the selfish motives of the anointed religious leaders or state religion is made manifest...resulting in loss of trust for the whole.

And by their very nature, corrupt, false religions will ALWAYS die at some point.  Mankind is too aware, and the soul of man is too sensitive for it to not occur.

This mistrust of man made religion is why many today have no regard nor interest in a direct and personal God/Man relationship.

Think for a moment of how many different gods the Egyptians worshipped, even calling Pharaoh "God".  Now just the statues are left...

So pursuit by Pharaohs, Kings, Governments and false religious leaders throughout history to leverage their selfish motives, to gain power, all under the disguise of religion - in order to control and subject the masses, have all lead to their repeated downfall.

While the soul's need for a direct God/Man relationship has never changed, mixing in politics and selfish individual motives, is like mixing oil and water.  It is not sustainable and has proven catastrophic for both the power hungry politicos and the huddled masses.

Now shift back one more time to Science...

With Science as the now popular defacto religion, it enjoys a wide base of sincere disciples, it has its prominent anointed leaders, has its own principles, doctrines and "truths".

Yet the risks for Science as a religion are the same as any other false religion.

Once personal motive turns to selfish gain, power seeking, or control, the downfall is just a matter of time...

Fast forward to 2021 - to the Covid vaccine debate...to the purported benefits of the vaccine...to the Covid impact reports...to government mandates related to Covid...to Media coverage of Covid...even to the depth (or lack) of Covid investigative reporting...

The Covid "Science" has widespread government involvement, think Wolf, the use-to-be Cuomo and Pelosi and popular Science influencers, think Fauci, the CDC, the other Cuomo...

And as leaders of the current "Trust the Science" religion, their individual trustability and personal motives must be considered...

An always important metric for evaluation is to:

Follow the money to identify true motives...

This is a valid test for many transactions in life, critical decisions and even religious choices.

It's said Madame Currie gave penicillin to the World...free, without concern for selfish monitory gain.  The history of Science is full of similar examples of selfless pursuit of truth.

And the true litmus test for the current "Trust the Science" debate is for you, the individual, to conduct an unbiased evaluation of the personal motives for all involved.

   What are the real underlying motives for those involved...

   What do they gain...

   What are their risks...

   And is there money in play?

Think for yourself.  Establish in your own mind, whether the current Covid Science, its doctrines, its leaders, its mandates are all pure, without selfish motive or gain.

Do you honestly trust government?

Are the key decision makers making the best decisions possible for you personally - with your personal best interests at heart?

You must decide for yourself...do you truly trust their motives...

Can you "Trust Their Science"?

Let the adventure continue...

Finding 8...

Embrace your inner child. Is the sidewalk carpeted with oh-so-crunchy leaves? Stomp through ‘em. (I love hearing that crackle.) Do small puddles dot the trail you’re on? Don your waterproof boots before you head out, and walk right through; or jump in ‘em for crying out loud! Stoop down and check out the cool bug you’re crossing paths with. Don’t worry about looking foolish; nobody is having as much fun as you.

I found the above a while back, in fact, it was dated October 2020, so a year ago...

Not sure who wrote it...but I've been saving it...

The title caught my attention, but it was the content that really resonated with me.

I've decided that I'm pretty much done with "adulting" at this stage of life.

The kids are grown and doing their thing...and they're pretty successful at doing what they're doing...proud of them both! 

And we've done our thing, and we've had a pretty good run with it all.

We are amazingly blessed.

So now I am focused on finding 8.

Can you even remember it?

Think back to when life was an adventure, when the day lasted till the sun went down...a time filled with wonder and novelty and living!

That's 8!!!

We used to have a coffee bean tree in the yard on Lake Avenue.  Well, it wasn't really a coffee bean tree, but we still called it the "Coffee Bean Tree".

It grew 10 inch long pods, about 1 inch wide, and rather thin.  The pods turned dark brown before falling from the tree, and grew beans inside that rattled in the pod when shaken, so of course it was "The  Coffee Bean Tree"!

But the tree was really secondary...even though it had a great tree fort in it (well, other than the Earwigs with the pincher butts).

The real appeal was found at the base of the Coffee Bean tree - a spread of dirt big enough to engineer roads, towns, bridges, hills, sand pits, intersections, a whole world...all in Matchbox size.

And poor as we were, somehow, we had enough Matchbox sized graders, dozers, trucks and cars to make it come to life!

Hours were spent under that tree...with nothing to distract our attention.  We had the focus that only an 8 year old can achieve while creating and playing in their own great big make-believe world.

And that's kinda where my focus is now...finding 8.

...'cept now I've got grown up sized tractors and buckets and grapples to remake my little dirt pile into roads and hills, ditches and my own little world.

But ya' know, I'm not so sure one need tractors and tools to find 8 again...to find your true self, to experience life again, special and full of wonder.

I'm pretty well convinced that it might be more about simply pausing in the head long rush of the everyday...to see the Creator at work in His creation...

To watch a Bluebird hop from its tree limb perch, snatch up a bug, and return back to hunt again...

To watch the flight of a butterfly as it meanders from flower to flower...or a bee, who moves as if it's on a mission...

To watch the grace and cautious awareness of a doe as it eats...looks...looks...and eats again...

To watch a single leaf, as it floats all the way from tree limb to the ground...

There's something special about finding 8 again... 

My hope is that you'll slow down enough to find a puddle...

...and that you'll find the courage to splash in it...

...and to laugh out loud - simply because you're alive!

Let the adventure continue...

Windy Hill...

Windy Hill...we've been here for over 2 years now...amazing when I think on that.

And it's scary how fast the time has gone by.

Although we call it "Windy Hill", it is really "Windy Hill RV Park, Old Folks Home, Natural Wildlife Sanctuary and Timber Preserve".

But that's a lot of words to put on an envelope for all who are sending fan mail and those Go-Fund-Me checks with a one followed by many, many zeros. 

But that has all changed now!

Welcome to "...Windy Hill Farm..."!

And we are a legit 403(b) farming enterprise.

Primary proof is our old disc...every farm must have at least one. (It says that in the Legit Farm Requirements section).

We've also got our first official commercial crop in the ground!!!

For all our city-fied readers, that's 200 Garlic cloves...

Music, Italian Softnecks, Turkish Reds and Italian Reds...

...all snug in their beds!

So we can now finally justify Max, the Kubota...Arliss, the Massey Ferguson...their 27 implements...the 250 gallons of diesel and the 432 hours spent driving the tractors.

And we're accepting early orders - - - WITH A DISCOUNT! - - - for our regular subscribers who want to enjoy Windy Hill Garlic!

Our break-even cost is only $1000...(per clove)!

Let the adventure continue! 

Chlorophyll...

September 20th:  The hummingbirds have all flown away...it's a marker...a harbinger of things to come...another sign of the passing of time.

And the journey of life has many signs if one is looking for them, and I do.

October 11th:  Now, it's the turning of the leaves... 

It's peak Autumn at Windy Hill.  A visual treat, one that typically starts slow and then builds with speed and impact...

It typically starts with blush on a leaf, then a branch, a subtle color shift, a faint patch-work promise, an early hint for what's to come...

Then the leaves on a whole limb turn yellow, orange or red, looking like a bright firework shooting out of a dark green canopy. 

Keep watching and the leaves at the top of the tree start to catch up, morphing into those warm Autumn colors as the days grow shorter and the nights cool off.

Except at Windy Hill.  We have "Martin's Tree"!

Martin is one of our neighbors in the valley below, with a 60' Maple growing in his front yard, which is not terribly unique or hard to find in Northern PA.

But Martin's Maple is magic...it's as-if Tinker Bell swept in, waved her wand and all her glittering fairy dust gently settles on this one-of-a-kind tree.

While all the trees in sight from the top of Windy Hill are still wearing Summer green, this one turns BRILLIANT RED overnight!

All Summer long it's green, and then BAM!  Faster than you can microwave a cup of coffee, it transforms into a stunning, put-your-eyes-out beacon of color.

And we are lucky enough to see it perfectly while sitting in our easy chairs looking out at our view on Windy Hill! 

That tree does it all at once!  It resonates with some of my core life mottos...make it happen...do it now...let's get on with it...I like it!

And I've read the scientific details...

The leaves stop their food making process, then chlorophyll in the leaves, which give trees their green Summer color starts to break down, revealing the underlying bright yellows, reds and oranges of Autumn, until the tree finally shuts off "leaf support" and the leaves begin to fall.

Pretty amazing stuff right there!

And some people believe it all started with a big bang...

I can't figure these people out.

In my simple mind, it requires a significant leap of faith to get from "...It all started with a Big Bang..." -> to seeing trees with the biological capability and internalized processes to shed their leaves before the winter winds and heavy snows can rip their limbs off!

It takes way less faith to believe Somebody really smart created it all, with a perfect plan for how it would all work together...but that's just me.

But, more frequently, my mind focuses on those brilliant reds, yellows and oranges...the colors hidden by the green chlorophyll.

It's amazing that the colors are always there!

We just don't get to see them till the source of the green is removed.

I like that...knowing the colors are always there, just covered up...

And maybe that's the way life is...

When life grows bland and colorless, or perhaps turns dark...gray...or black...

...then maybe we need to be like the trees of Autumn, and identify the source of the darkness.

For me it is the News...media...the "experts", (who actually aren't)...the fear mongers...the triggered worry...the what-ifs which never happen... 

When I remove the noise, life becomes colorful again.

Like trees cutting back on chlorophyll, it is then that I see the true colors and mystries of life...

And just like Autumn leaves, the beautiful colors of life are always there...

...but sometimes we just allow them to get covered up...

Let the adventure continue...

Like A Snotty Nosed Kid...

"...Like a Snotty Nosed Kid..."

When hearing that spoken, one might infer some type of moral judgement was being made...but it's really more of a simple observation, a sight which everyone has seen...

If it's one of your own, you automatically look for green boogers...which indicate some kind of cell level hand-to-hand mortal combat is raging, with parental concern on which side will eventually win.

And you also mentally get prepared for the coughs and sneezes, plus double check there are at least 6 bottles of Children's Tylenol on hand.  (Do they still give children Tylenol in this age of questioning the motives behind "follow the science"?)

If it happens to be somebody else's wonder child, you turn around and run awaaaay - quickly!

BUT if it's one of your grandchildren, you run to scoop them into your arms with extended hugs and comfort as ONLY a grandparent can provide!

But in this case, I'm speaking of the weather.

As Arden used to say, it's been kind of "gloombie" - - - for a long while. 

In fact, the entire summer has been like a Snotty Nosed Kid with a runny nose that won't stop!

We've experienced two major 3 inch rains with only two weeks separation.  The first washed out Woodhull, the small town just north of us, creating extensive damage and changing life for many, and our lake ended up ~20 feet over normal pool, just a couple feet below breeching the dam.

And then it happened again, just days later!

The impact was exacerbated for both rains, because of the high ground water saturation from the previous rains received throughout the spring and summer.

And the rain adds to the humidity which adds to the cloudiness, which adds to the rain, which further adds to the humidity and more to the cloudiness...which all add to my craziness!

And yet, maybe it's just a reminder, about life actually being more about HOW we react to our daily obstacles and challenges...rather than the speedbump itself. 

...and the need to separate those few things in life which we can control from the many things we can't.  And to not let those things we can't control - - - to control us!

So I remind myself, the sun really is still shining, even if I can't see it, and - 

   ...to be a little more gentle...

   ...to be light, when it's dark...

   ...to offer warmth, when it's easier to act cold...

   ...to respond with a kind word, when it's human nature to bluster...

And so, I'll live with the rain, the clouds, the mist...

...and look for those special moments when the clouds finally do part and the sun shares itself with what can be an otherwise dark and "gloombie" world.

Let the adventure continue...

January 10th

Just another day on the calendar...

Forecast to be in the mid-30's...overcast...

But a special day never-the-less!

Happy 39th Birthday wishes to the most important person in my world.

You changed my life with your shy smile and bright blue eyes back in the winter of '73.

You are my life and my motivation...

Thank you for your love.

Here's my continued commitment for spending the next 47 years with you!

Let the adventure continue...

Why...

 Thinking about the Capital building invasion...

Interesting topic, lots of differing views...some I find comical, if they weren't so one-sidedly blind and self-righteous...

People talk as if a major breach of protocol or highly held order of rightness and decorum has been violated by the infiltration of the Capitol building.

I'm not so convinced of that from my view on Windy Hill.

"...Taxation Without Representation..." was the headline in the early 1770's.

It was the "Why"...

The coelescing force that motivated a few dozen men, and a baker's dozen of colonies to seek a better form of fair government which truly represented the people of this great country.

Throughout our nation's short history there has been conflict, from those earliest discussions of how that representative government should be designed up through today.  Not everybody's opinion can be implemented...so compromise is found, with the intent to achieve the best interests for all.

And it has worked for the most part...

The Capital building is the people's house, the branch of government that represents the common people of this one nation, which have many highly diverse needs and a wide range of expectations.

If the day had ended as a typically peaceful gathering of a million Trump supporters, it would have been a 30 second spot on a few news networks.

But the invasion of the "house of the people" was symbolic and made it something so much more...

If done by anarchists, the news would have reported it like other recent riots in the past - "...that it was mostly a peaceful protest..."

But the invasion was done by the total opposite - committed by the people who say they love this country, the Constitution and work day in and day out to fund and support the representative government designed by the founders. 

The self-righteous say it was the most grievous assault mankind has ever witnessed, perpetrated by a bunch of rubes.

But it had nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans.

It's as symbolic as the throwing of tea in the sea. 

It is the unrepresented voicing frustration...

Just for a moment, quiet the noise...stop the outside inputs...the commentary...shut off the talking heads with their own personal and financially motivated agendas...

Ask yourself...

Does Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Kevin McCarthy, or Mitch McConnell represent your needs in government?

Are they noble statesmen or self-benefiting politicians?

Is government working to maintain existing laws and to create new legislation with your best interests at heart?

Do you think government today, at its most fundamental core, truly cares about your welfare?

I typically close with "Let the adventure continue..."

This post can't end with that.

I'm hopeless about where big government is today and sad for my country...

"Taxation Without Representation"

It is said that history repeats itself...