The 2019 Letter at Christmas Time part 1

   I find myself less interested in putting out this letter every year, call it what you will but from my point of view it's really only interesting to us. So there, I have that out in the open. Maybe it is the weather system that just literally just blew in this morning. Jan and I were heading up to New Ulm at 6am for a doctors appointment and the visibility in blowing snow and falling temperatures forced us back to town for breakfast at the Home Town. Wait, this is supposed to be the Christmas letter so I better get back on subject.
   January like most Januarys in this part of the world was cold and mostly nasty, snow, cleaning out after, more snow, digging out ad infinitum. Jan and I did manage to get to follow the Theobald boys basketball season. I spent a lot of time re reading a couple series of books in order and we watched a lot of tv series on dvds. I also had a few projects to keep me busy in the garage and doing some finishing work in the basement. Really bitter cold by the end of the month, -26 at night and high temperature of -16 oof da.
   February starts out with me and a cold that got worse as time went by, eventually Jan got it too. Jan and I were down to Ormsby to the bank to finish up some paperwork to get my Mom's bank accounts closed out finally. She had her ducks in a row financially thank goodness, not like my sister who had not until my brother Paul and wife Marcy got a lot of it in line a few years ago. Jan and I celebrated our 48th anniversary at Bailey's in Ormsby when they had a special for Valentine's Day, our anniversary date. In checking my notes I see that we got 5-6 inches of snow about every few days with a blizzard with 50 mph winds thrown in, somehow we did manage to make a couple of routine doctor appointments.
   March started with what else but more snow and wind and below zero temperatures. Jan, Leah, Aaron and I did manage to get to Rochester to watch Sam and Gus play basketball in a tournament on a day between storms. We did spend some time in Menards finally getting a gun safe and a really nice electric fireplace that Jan, showing some of her Jewish dna, got it for about half the regular price. Actually toward the end of the month I managed to get a couple bikes out for a run, so things are starting to moderate some. Also the Mustang came out of cold storage for the Summer and I did manage to get to some PGR missions in locations in southern Minnesota.
   April, I have got to think of a better start to a month than using a variation of the word start. Anyhow, I managed to get the BMW in for it's Spring checkup at the dealer in Sioux City before the next round of nasty weather hit. Jan and I did trade in the Triumph Bonneville in for another Triumph Tiger, the 2012 Tiger was purchased by Eli. Jan and I were to the Theobalds in Rochester for Easter and it was 85 degrees that day, and 45 the next with rain, wow only in Minnesota. We did keep an eye on Leah and Aaron while Eli and Lindsey made a run to The Hills.
   May. I had a PGR mission down to the new state veteran cemetery at Preston and mowed the lawn at the beginning of the month. Jan and I were up to Sleepy Eye to watch Leah and Aaron participate in the track meet for all of the Lutheran schools in the area. It's really fun to see all of those young people, Lutherans all, by the hundreds I think pretty much having a good time. I replaced the stool in one bathroom with a new Kohler super dooper model recommended by a close expert. And the soccer season starts with trips to assorted fields in southern Minnesota and a check up with my doctor at Rochester Mayo. Got a clean bill of health again PTL. Made a bread run to Sioux City and one to MSP to pick up Rachel who had come home for my 75th birthday-Memorial Day festivities. May 25th was an extremely big day for me and our family, We had our usual get together at a park in Owatonna and Eli and my first ever parachute jump. The weather was great, we had brothers Paul and Phil with their wives Marcy and Laura, children Rachel, Gen and Eli with their spouses Steve, boys Sam and Gus, Lindsey children Leah and Aaron. Rachel was here by herself as the rest of the family was home in the D.C. area. One at a time to 10,000 feet a little free fall with at least 10 minutes under the canopy. For me I guess it was more of a check off on my bucket list but Eli loved it. I got to thank my wife Jan for coming up with it, lining it up and for the kiddos for chipping in. Quite a day all in all. I looked out the kitchen window one day after a heavy rain and saw a buzzard sitting on the back of a chair on the deck right outside. It was there all afternoon and eventually flew off. I think it got caught in that heavy rain and got too soaked to fly. Weird looking up close but unique.
   June. I finally made it all the way to Elko, Nevada after a couple of aborted trips in past years. Last year it was smoke so thick it was hard to see more than a mile or two. This year the weather was nice, a little warm around Salt Lake and the salt flats and breezy out there. Elko was kind of surprising in that it is a busy growing place in what looks like the high plains. I spent some time touring around the Ruby mountains. Got stopped by snow banks going up the Lamoille Canyon and then made a long circuit to Ely. The run from Ely to Beaver, Utah was a pleasant surprise, green- this time of year- rolling valleys between mountain ranges when I expected dry desert type terrain judging by the maps I had been studying. From there it was a run through northern Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota and home. So I have that one checked off the bucket list. Having no desire to head east on a bike I do have some other destinations to look to in the future. In the middle of June the DeFor clan stopped by on their way home, so to speak. They had had a good trip west as far as Craters of the Moon in Idaho. We had Rachel home over my birthday the last of May and now she and Hans, Joe, Annie and Will spent a couple more days here. Jan and I were making some soccer games for our grand kids, out to the farm on projects and doctor appointments. The 20th there was a tornado east of town that hit the airport and the turkey barns along hiway 60, it was quite a mess. The turkey barn still is missing most of its roof and the hanger destroyed has not been replaced. I managed to attend several PGR missions during June, so it's been a pretty busy month. I will post this half and finish the rest a little later.