As I sit at my desk looking over the backyard and koi pond and all of the plantings that make my work space such a joy to me, I see a very ordered and well trimmed world. I put the boys to work on Saturday hauling and disposing of trimmings and cuttings. I bought a lopper this weekend that allows me to shape and trim the various trees and bushes on my property. I had the fun job of cutting and hacking away at the trees and they had the banal job of gathering the trimmings and cutting them down further and stuffing them in the trash can. The result is a much more neat and ordered set of trees. They were all growing over and into one another and now each tree has its own unique space and the additional light should allow the trees to flourish and fill in even better than before. I accidentally cut the electrical cord to the pump and waterfall in the process of trimming the plantings and had to rewire the electrical afterward. I took the boys out to ice cream at the Cold Stone Creamery last night as a thank you for their help.

Darla is in bed convalescing from a bad cold. She had a sore throat over the weekend that has turned into a wheezing cough and decided to take the day off. Working at home is tough as she enticed me to sleep in a bit this morning and I finally pried myself out of bed and into the shower about a half hour later than usual. I told her she's a bad influence on me. Hopefully, she'll be feeling better after a good rest today.

I played poker on Friday night. The night started out a bit strangely, as John Uno and I arrived at Scott Kolleen's house at the allotted hour of seven p.m. to begin the festivities. John and I were met by Tom Heavey and the three of us were taken aback by the "For Sale" sign on Scott's property. We rang the bell and there was no sign of life at the darkened home. In fact, it appeared that the house was empty. We were all a bit confused as the welcome mat was supposed to be awaiting us and Scott had confirmed the game earlier in the week. About that time, Bill Belcamino came driving by and saw us all standing on the porch looking forlorn and forgotten and called Scott. He answered and said that no one was at his house. He walked outside and I could hear him talking to Bill on the phone, but from a distance. I walked around the garage and saw him standing on the porch of the house next door. I'd trusted John to pick me up and drive me to Scott's house and he'd picked me up and driven me to Scott's next door neighbor. We all had a good laugh before settling in to a night of cards and comraderie. I lost about thirty bucks that night, but came away richer for the friendship and male bonding. Actually, no I lost $30.

I had a slight injury last week and it speaks to my encampment here in the midst of middle age. I'd toasted an English muffin one morning last week to enjoy with my morning cup of joe and the paper. It was rather tasty with a bit of peanut butter and I decided to toast another. I split the English muffin with my knife and I suppose in retrospect that I left a small dollop of peanut butter on the edge of the muffin in the process. The toaster popped up the muffin and I picked it up to carry it to the countertop for the addition of the peanut butter when my right palm began to burn severely. The hot peanut butter on the edge of the muffin scorched my hand and left what would eventually become a blister. Age is a wicked stepmother when you can get injured eating and wake up with a stiff neck after sleeping. At my age it is a hazard to eat and/or sleep. And that is my rant for this week.

Darla and I are off to Monterey on Thursday and Friday. I have to go and visit my agents and Darla decided to come along and enjoy the scenery. It will make my trip a bit more palatable with her along, but depending upon her shopping in Carmel, it could be a bit pricey. We are staying at a hotel on Junipero street in the heart of the business district in Carmel, so she should be fine while I'm off slaving with the agents. We will stay over Thursday and Friday and return to Sacramento on Saturday night. We plan to stop in Stockton on the trip back and pick up a new coffee table to complement our new sofa in the family room. Darla has a friend in Stockton who is a lawyer, but moonlights as a furniture manufacturer and he made us a new wood coffee table. He is attempting to market these through fine furniture stores and I have reserved judgement on the item until I see it. He's been working on this thing since the end of October. I'm anxious to see how it turned out.

My rental home in Galt suffered a wind damage loss in December and I've just found out from my contractor that I have some roof damage. I've conferred with Earl Westra, my father-in-law, on what to expect in the way of an estimate. He spent his whole career in the building industry in Stockton and I called to ask him for a recommendation on a roofer. He gave me pause when he said that of all of the tradesmen in the building industry, he has the least confidence in roofers. He told me that the materials should cost no more than $200, but the installation may cost upwards of $1000 when all is said and done. I'm still waiting for an estimate from the roofer who was supposed to be out at the rental last week.

Well, that is my installment for this week. I played no golf this weekend, but will make up for lost time with a game this Sunday and a three day tournament starting the following weekend that will run Saturday-Sunday-Saturday. It is an individual stroke play tournament, meaning that I can rely on myself alone for scoring and not a partner. Thank the good Lord for that. Be well.