Harts in Alaska--and other places

6th Grade Class Picture--1970

2009-07-29T08:28:00.006-08:00

William F. Prisk Elementary School 1970

Front Row: Cindy Taylor, Susan Coulter, Mark LaRowe, Danny Larsen, Dana Roach, Bobbie Howell, Karen Clouse, Susan Montgomery, Ann Riggins, Steve Nelson

Middle Row: Lisa Bennett, Lori Henry, Brad Smith, Bill Cook, Michelle Lennotte, Twyla Starky, Rick Hart, David Keuther, Paul Charles, Mark Malone, Alan Darrow

Back Row: Mrs. Krogstad, Linda McDonald, Liz Baker, Antonette G, Ann Megna, Elaina Smelnavich, Lynn Hopewell, Julie Wiggins, Diane Dahms, Joyce Slope, Forrest Freed, Bill Dager, Russell Keene, Terri Reynolds

From an eye doc point of view this was interesting. We had some that wore glasses. Then at the end of the school year we were going to Camp Hi-Hill for our 6th grade camp. We had to have a "physical" with the school nurse. I failed the eye test as did about half the class. By the time we went to camp a bunch more us us had glasses. I thought it was odd at the time, but after learning of the development of the eye in optometry school it was logical. The eyes grow in size and about 10-13 it can get to a point that the become nearsighted.

Devil's Club-The Adversary

2009-07-23T15:05:00.008-08:00

While being a very useful plant...especially to the Alaska natives...Devil's Club is wicked for the unsuspecting.

Depending on which part is used you can get tea, oils, juice, etc. from it. I have a patient on Prince of Wales Island who make gallons of juice and claims it will help diabetes and even cancer.

I usually don't post eye pictures here, but this patient was too interesting. He was flown in to the clinic in Klawock from a logging camp.

He had been hit in the face with Devil's Club while walking in the woods. His eye was red, light sensitive, watery, and hurt. Eventually, Jason Barnes a 4th year optometry student

who worked with me that week flipped over the upper eye lid and we found a bit of a thorn of the plant.

When I went to pull it out...it wouldn't move. Then we found the other end of the thorn on the outside of the lid. So it had penetrated the eye lid. We had to send him to an ophthalmologist in Juneau. The thorn scratched the front of the eye every time he blinked or moved his eye. Here is the Wikipedia article on Devil's Club.

Devil's Club is also a good looking plant. It grow pretty tall, has big leaves which are a bright yellow in the fall, and produces bright red berries in the fall.

So avoid it.

Visitors from Down South

2009-06-22T06:23:00.006-08:00

Meg graduated from Sitka High and we had visitors help honor her.

My mom joined us from southern California and Anneka and Mike brought

our wonderful granddaughter from Idaho.

Samantha is now 1 1/2 years old and just fun. We got lots of hugs.

Meg and Samantha had fun together.

Mike and I got to go fishing one day and we each caught a nice king salmon.

It tasted really good that evening for dinner....yumm.

Waterlogged Dog

2009-05-18T00:17:00.000-08:00

Apparently poodles are water dogs. Labs of course are. Well, it must be an enhanced trait in the labradoodle. D'Artangan will get in any water anywhere. This has become his new favorite spot. This is the Indian River here in Sitka. It is a major salmon stream in the fall. One of the hiking trails in town... the Cross Trail... ends at the river. Usually D'Artangan stays within a 100 feet or so of Lori when they are hiking. By the time they get within a 1/4 mile of the river Lori won't seem him until she reaches the water. Having sticks thrown is a favorite of his...but he never brings them back. He hasn't grasped the concept of what to do when the stick gets past him and is headed downstream...just kind of looks at it. He would stay in here all day if we let him, but we eventually run out of sticks since he doesn't get the bring back part...

Missing Dad

2009-05-09T21:12:00.006-08:00

Today has been one year since my dad died. In a way I'm glad he is gone. Now wait, before you think that is a terrible thing to say...hear me out. In a way Dad died several years ago. As the Alzhiemers progressed he forgot more and more. At one point he didn't recognize me or my brothers. When the time came when he didn't know who Mom was at least he knew that she was someone special and he would light up just seeing her. Everyonce in a while Mom said that he would start crying and say he couldn't do it anymore. It seems those were moments where he broke through the disease and had an understanding of what he was becoming. So by saying that it would have been better to have died sooner is for his sake, not mine. And for my mom's sake. She worked so hard, held so much in. Yeah, she probably made some mistakes, but then like raising kids, there is no manual to tell us what to do, say, or think.My mom misses him. I'd like to spend more time with her. I got to go down in February and help her out. We didn't do much. Watch TV, talk, go to Taco Bell or In-n-Out, but I hope that just being there helps. She understands that the Lord wanted her to learn something by taking care of Dad. She hopes she learned whatever it was. The biggest blessing of Alzhiemers that I see is the victim probably doesn't have a clue that they are suffering, unlike a cancer patient who is aware of all the pain and inconvience. The caregivers are the ones who have trouble dealing. I guess in a way it prepares them for the death and allows them to spread out the grieving process. I just had a friend die that I had grown up with. He was 2 years younger than me. He did have heart problems. He died while riding a motorcycle in the mountains and the aren't sure if he had a heart attack and crashed or just crashed. But it was sudden. All the grieving is taking place now. His mom is still alive and I really feel for her.

From an "what is life all about" perspective my dad had a great life. He had a family, grandkids, a career, and gave and received lots of love. So I really miss Dad, but from an eternal view he is just one step ahead of the rest of us. I guess he and my friend can catch up on old times.

Love you Dad.

Not a 6 Foot Turkey

2009-04-05T18:56:00.005-08:00

In Sitka when we refer to the raptor center we aren't talking about the big-toothed, huge-clawed things from Jurassic Park. No, we are talking about the cool facility that rehabilitates birds of all kinds, but specializes in eagles and other birds of prey. According to their website they take care of 100+ birds a year. Most are able to be released back in to the wild. When a release happens the public is invited to attend. Yesteday we got to see 2 bald eagles released. One was an adult and the other a 1 yr. old juvenile. Today they did 3 more. These birds are so cool and majestic. This is a video from my regular digital camers of the juvenile being released.

Monet...Manet...Picasso...Samantha

2009-03-12T21:46:00.002-08:00

Just a proud gramps moment. We just received this from Anneka... Samantha's first coloring. Notice how she can't stay in the lines like her uncles.

I CAN SEE...(turn and bump into tree)...NEVER MIND!!

2009-03-09T21:09:00.008-08:00

My mom had cataract surgery 3 weeks ago. I got to go down and make sure she got there, got to her follow-ups, and took her drops. She did very well and even commented that it was pretty easy. No bruising; just a little lightheadedness due to the valium.

Her glasses now are not correct, but she is seeing much better. First night after surgery she asked me if I had changed the lights in the kitchen...they looked much brighter.

While there I got to eat at In-n-Out, Bob's Big Boy, good Mexican food. The first week I was there by myself and the second week Lori flew down and joined me.

I got to play golf twice.. once with my aunt's husband Bill and then with my cousin Josh. Lori did a dinner for my aunt's birthday.

It was fun to watch the Californians be cold with temps in the 60s. I was nice and warm.

Lori and spent some time at IKEA and got some stuff for the house up here.

One of the coolest things...besides spending some great time with my mom... was seeing the musical at the high school where both Lori and I went. They did Sound of Music. When I was a senior in 1976 we did the same show. I participated by having a couple of small parts. Via FaceBook I got reconnected with a friend whom I have known since kindergarten. Karen played Leisel...the eldest girl. The show was fun and it was really nice to see Karen again. Lori and I also got to have dinner with friends Melinda and Carl.

Mom will be able to do the other eye in the next few months if she wants. The only negative thing she has noticed is the wrinkles she claims weren't there last month. It was kind of funny.

Lori and Rick Sitting in a Tree....

2009-01-23T21:20:00.007-09:00

My wife / best friend / sweethart is the the love of my life. I will gladly give her credit for making what I am today. Of course, my overweightness is a bit my fault. Lori has become such a good cook that it dominates my will power.

She helped me find a profession which I liked and encouraged me, helped me, worked her tail off, and taught me how to be a bit adventurous...which has let us to Alaska for one thing. We are approaching 28 years of being married and still find time to be best friends amid all the "stuff" life throws at us.
Here are a few pictures of just the 2 of us in the past few years. I'll have to find some old ones to scan later.

On the Yukon River and next to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.

This is where it all began.. 20 June 1983. Wow...that guy is skinny and the chick was and is a fox!!!

Fairbanks at 10:30 pm. June 2006

Disneyland Feb. 2005

Sitka Thanksgiving Day 2008. A really nice day so we took a hike on the Mosquito Cove trail.

Crater Lake Sept 2008. Part of the trip we took with Meg and Charles to let them look at colleges. This natural wonder is still not as beautiful as my sweethart.

Disneyland March 2008. Yes, we like the place.

Fanning Island Dec. 2003. This was part of our Hawai'ian cruise for Richard's 16th birthday.
About 200 miles north of the equator.

Sitka Alaska Nov. 2005. This was during the site visit SEARHC did for us when I was being hired. This shot happens to be at Silver Bay and is about 2 miles from our current house.

I look forward to another 50 years or so with my wife in this life and an eternity beyond.

December Delights

2009-01-08T13:49:00.008-09:00

December is such a busy time, but we still tried to get out and relax. Lori worked hard on her school/work, Meg and Charles studied, and Richard put up with holiday shoppers. Our little lake in town.. Swan Lake.. froze over mid-month. Once the ice is thick enough (monitored by the fire department) it becomes a busy place for young, old, and dogs. There is hockey, skating, walking (Lori and I don't have skates so we just walked around), people on bikes, sleds, etc. A local rental company donates a large light that allows use of the lake until 11pm or so. In December, dark occurs by 3 or 3:30 so it really makes a difference.

Christmas found us just enjoying warmth and family. As one of Richard's presents we brought his girl friend.. Abbey.. up from Utah (she was by herself...family back east) and she got to see how crazy our family is. The kids got some silly string and Lori just didn't understand that you don't tease someone with a can of that stuff. We had our traditional rolls for breakfast.. they must be pretty good since Richard, Charles, and Meg are smiling.
Even D'Artagnan got spruced up for the holidays. He isn't too keen on getting a bath, but he puts up with it and he ends up so "floofy" and soft afterwards.
New Year's Day was cold but sunny. Lori and I took D'Artagnan to Totem Park for a walk. The picture here is about 2pm and even though we are gaining daylight each day you can see how long the shadows are.

Christmas Letter 2009

2008-12-27T21:55:00.006-09:00

Christmas 2009

This year we have felt we should change our name to Duncan…as in Yo-Yo. It has been an up and down year with time down (like a sleeping trick) and up time (rock-the-baby). We traveled a bunch, but not quite around-the-world. Lori tried to spend a lot of time walking-the-dog, but overall we are healthy, alive, and still spinning. We have watched our granddaughter Samantha turn one-years-old, waited for Richard to deal with some legal issues, taken a few trips, said goodbye to Rick’s dad, sent Anna back to Germany, and had some visitors. After over 10 years of Alzheimer’s, Rick’s dad died in May; he was 77. It was in many ways a relief. We will all miss him greatly, but won’t have the sorrow of seeing this great man be so helpless. Last Christmas she came up for a week to visit and found out first-hand that we do have daylight in the winter. Our traditional “16 year-old picks-a-trip” trip to go back east and visit some historical sites was Charles’ choice. We toured Boston and New York City with a brief stop in northern Vermont to visit one of his friends. It was while we were on this trip that Rick’s dad passed away. Lori and Rick went to the funeral in Long Beach. We also went to Long Beach for Spring Break (D’Artagnan went with us with his new mohawk haircut) and in the fall did a “college” trip for Meg and Charles (and a friend of theirs - Emma) to Portland, Southern Oregon, and Humboldt. We got to see some really BIG redwoods and had a good time. Rick and Lori were in Idaho in January to see Anneka, Mike and Samantha. We actually got to see Samantha 4 times this year. In January, during spring break, at the funeral, and for her 1st birthday. Rick and Lori also went to Maui so Rick could attend an optometry meeting. Rick also went up to the Alyeska ski resort outside of Anchorage for another meeting. Charles, Meg, and Anna traveled to Juneau, Ketchikan, and Anchorage for drama/debate.
Rick is staying busy at SEARHC. 6 trips to Klawock/Prince of Wales Island and 1 to Yakutat plus a full schedule most days in Sitka. The meeting in Girdwood/Alyeska was for a new part of the optometry law. A very intense course and Rick didn’t even get to ski. Yes, He is still Bishop at church.Lori was fired by WSU after making a fuss about an unfair policy, but was quickly rehired because of a technicality in her contract. It is unlikely that her contract will be renewed again, so it was time for a new plan. She is back in school to get a teaching credential so she can teach high school. We see little of her as she is teaching full time AND working toward finishing an 18 month program in 9 months. Now if we can keep her sane for a few more months….
Richard has had a rough year. He had to spend some time in jail, but is out and serving his probation here in Sitka. He is working at one of the grocery stores and was promoted to a manager position within a month of starting. Meg (she prefers Marg now) is really ready to be out of high school. She turned 19 in November and is taking some classes at the local Univ. of Alaska campus as well as making sure she has all the high school credits she needs. She still works at Highliner Coffee and has decided that she will attend Humboldt State University in Arcata, California next fall and be a music education major. She is currently taking voice lessons too.
Charles is a junior and in choir and vocal jazz. His voice has really matured and he loves being on stage. In fact, he had a duet/solo at this years Jazz Fesitval. In addition he participated in the All- State Choir in Anchorage. He, along with Meg and Anna got to go to the State Drama/Debate meet in Anchorage. Charles is planning on attending Humboldt State after he graduates in 2010 as a music education major. He wants it known that he decided to go to Humboldt first, so he is NOT following his sister.
Anna ended her exchange with us in June. While still here she participated with the track team doing shot put, long jump, and some relays. She “graduated” from Sitka High, but still has a couple of years left of German high school to complete. It was sad to see her go. Yet it is nice to know that we have 3 other children that are part of us… Annika, Jo, and now Anna. AFS has been good to us.
Anneka, Mike and Samantha are all doing well. Samantha is now 1 year old, Mike finished his journeyman’s school and passed his test for a Journeyman license (after only one try). They are planning to come up for Meg’s graduation in May.
We are all on Facebook now… I manage Lori’s for now. We all have our dumb cell phones that don’t let us ever be alone, so give us a call or text us. We are looking forward to a new year full of love, blessings, friends, and family.
Rick: 907-738-1159, Lori: 907-738-9068, Richard: 907-738-3112, Meg(Marg): 907-738-3826, Charles: 907-738-3123, D’Artangan-unlisted

College Road Trip

2008-12-27T15:26:00.012-09:00

No, not the movie (not that I have seen it), but a family trip the last part of September for Meg and Charles (and their friend Emma) to look at some schools for their future plans.

Both Meg and Charles want to go into music education and be high school music teachers. The two main places the checked was Southern Oregon Univ. and Humbolt State Univ.

Both are WUI schools, which means that they can be from out-of-state, but not have to pay the higher fees. They don't get in-state, but a split of the two... 1.5x the in-state. A really good deal. It is actually cheaper to be on WUI for 4 years than to do out-of-state for 2 and then in-state for 2. Plus being from Alaska they don't have to give up their residency which allows them to keep receiving the PFD (Permanent Fund Distribution) each year.

We flew into Portland, picked up our car and spent a couple of days in Portland. As we have done recently we rented a place while in Portland and Ashland. The kids visited Univ. of Portland, and Reid College. Emma looked at an art school too. We experienced Powell's Book and VooDoo Donuts. They knew several people at Reid who were from Logan, so they hung out with them. Charles and I got to play golf.

Then we drove to Ashland, Oregon. On the way we went to Crater Lake. I had been there once before with my folks/brothers in 1975. Lori and the kids had not but were very impressed. When God makes something it is REALLY something!!

The music program at Southern Oregon looked pretty good, but the kids... and Lori and I thought the program and its resources was better at Humbolt.

While in Ashland we took in a Shakespeare play as they have a 9 month festival. We saw "Comedy of Errors". We had some incredible weather too. At both So. Ore. and Humbolt the kid (and us) had tours given by current students on campus.

On the way to Arcata / Humbolt / Eureka, California the highway goes through some huge areas of redwoods. We got to see some HUGE trees.

Makes you feel very small.

In Arcata we drove around the area and enjoyed the views. I played golf again in Arcata. Again great weather.

We finished off by driving to San Jose to fly home. On the way we drove the Avenue of the Giants in another redwood area.

End result: Meg will be heading to Humbolt next year and Charles the next year.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-17T21:44:00.005-09:00

Last year I got to kayak on Thanksgiving thanks to great weather. Well, this year we had another sunny "warm" holiday.

Meg, Lori, D'Artagnan, and I hiked the Mosquito Cove trail.

The great weather gave us just one more reason to be thankful. We had a couple of guests for dinner... Meg's friend Amy and her mom. We had a great dinner (Lori and the kids had their veggie "turkey".. dressing wrapped in a turkey flavored tofu) and then played Apples to Apples.

All in all a really nice day.

Samantha's Lament

2008-11-25T16:40:00.004-09:00

Samantha apparently really misses her Gramps.. i.e., me.. Here she is standing at the window waiting for me to return...Anneka took this. Sam likes to watch the traffic go by and the window is a good height for her to stand and watch. She is apparently standing up next to all the furniture and "walking" to the other end. Still I think she is just pining for dear old Gramps!

Gramps' Favorite Picture

2008-11-19T19:47:00.003-09:00

This is now my favorite picture. I have always enjoyed the kids when they were small and so snuggley. OF course Richard wasn't much of a snuggler and Meg wouldn't let you hold her in a traditional way. At this age a child is so completely trusting and just loves you. Besides they are really warm and comfortable.

Gramps at 1

2008-11-14T20:38:00.034-09:00

OK, so it is Samantha Moya Smith

who is 1 year-old, but Lori and I got to be with her for her birthday.

Lori and I flew down to Idaho Falls to be with

Anneka /Mike /Samantha for a week.

Between looking at my computer clock instead of my cell phone we missed our flight from Seattle to Idaho Falls, so we had to spend the night in Seattle.

Samantha has been growing

faster lately, but she is still a very petite

1 year old. She crawls all over, but dosen't have much interest in standing much less walking.

Mike and Anneka just moved in to a new apartment which allowed us to help put a few things away.

Samantha's birthday party was a Mike's parents' house and there were a bunch of the relatives there. They are a fun bunch.

Samantha did very well with our tradition of letting the birthday

kid destroy/devour

their own cake. Sam's was a butterfly made with one 9" cake. She had no problem digging in and mangling the thing.

When she was finished 90% was inside of her as there wasn't much on the floor or on her lap.

Anneka made 3 cakes

with a butterfly

theme and did a great job.

We got to spend time going places with Anneka and Mike.... with Sam of course.

Grams and Gramps enjoyed being quite silly. Lori and I even got to attend the Idaho

Falls temple.

The only downside to the trip was

my dental experience. It had been 3 years since I had been to the dentist... before we moved to Alaska.

I am a whimp and have to have gas (nitrous oxide).

No one in Sitka uses it so Anneka got me an appointment with her dentist. Yes, with gas. As it turned out I spent Tuesday,

Thursday, and Friday mornings in the chair getting 8 cavities taken care of. Ouch!

We really had great time with Samantha and I really miss her hugs and snuggles.

A Cute Little Pumpkin

2008-10-23T20:27:00.007-08:00

My little granddaughter Samantha is getting to enjoy her first Autumn. She seems to be enjoying herself. Now 11 1/2 months her personality is really showing. Enjoy.

Bearly Safe

2008-10-13T20:08:00.013-08:00

During my work trip to Yakutat last week I took an opportunity to view some brown bears (grizzlies). The city dump is the place to be. Whether it is good or bad for bears to hang around a dump, it is good for us geeky city types to get a view of these incredible animals. The first day the gates were closed so I walked in... OK not too bright. They were hanging out in a specific area and I got within about 100 feet, then one of the bears would stand up and glare at me. The next day we had the car and stayed in it. I'm not the sharpest tool, but I can learn.

Richard's Home to Roost

2008-09-18T17:01:00.003-08:00

We have just made reservations for Richard to come home. The process had to go from the Utah people to the Alaska people back to the Utah people. But he will be home on September 30. It will really nice to have him close by again.

Charles Piccaso

2008-09-12T16:38:00.004-08:00

Charles has gone wild with painting his room. Not in a Meg sort of way... random/ reproductions ..., but in being very bold. This too from one of my 2 color deficient sons. Charles picked the colors, Lori mocked him, and the 3 of us painted it. Personally I like the colors and it does make the room much more cozy/ warm. The "smudged" lines where the color goes to the tan are Charles' idea.

BLUEBERRIES!!

2008-09-07T21:32:00.005-08:00

One of the cool things about living basically in a wilderness is there are treats to be found. Here in Alaska we have bears. Since we have bears we also have berries for them to munch on (besides the salmon). A unique berry is the salmonberry. Size wise they are bigger than a raspberry and smaller than a blackberry. They come in a yellow and a salmon orange /yellow /red. We also have huckleberries, gooseberries, and best of all BLUEBERRIES.

The berries are very accessible. Sometimes just off the road, next to the driveway, along trails, etc. Last month Lori and I went up to Thimbleberry Lake (I have no idea if there is such a thing as a thimbleberry) and spent an hour picking blueberries and ended up with about 2 quarts. Pancakes, cookies, pie... good stuff.

The drawback is that these are wild and need to be checked before eating... some have worms. We are told the process is easy: put them in water and the ones that float have worms.

Yesterday Charles, Lori and I went up Harbor Mtn. and hiked a bit. On the way down Lori noticed soda cans on branches of bushes on the roadside. She figured they marked areas with berries. Sure enough, we found a huge amount of blueberries at one location. In just a short time we had another 2 quarts.

According to a couple of neighbors this has been very good year for berries. The first summer we were here even the locals were complaining about the lack of berries. We had several bear problems with them looking for other things to eat.

What a great way to get some good nutrition that tastes great.

Bewitched by Samantha

2008-08-23T19:56:00.019-08:00

No this isn't referring to the Will/Nichole version.. thank goodness. My dear little grandaughter Samantha Moya is almost 10 months old. Her mom (my Anneka) had these pictures taken for when she turned 9 months. She is still very petite, but growing steadily. She really loves yogurt and is now doing the commando crawl. Can't quited get that body off the ground to really get going. She should be getting some teeth soon as she is fussier and her gums have "lumps". Lori and I will try to get down south to see her for her 1st birthday in November.

Down South Visitors

2008-08-21T21:24:00.006-08:00

Last Sunday we had a huge amount of visitors from the lower-48. Lori's Aunt Kathy(her mom's sister) took a bunch of her family on a cruise to Alaska. Sitka was one of their stops so we arranged to meet them and spend a bit of time showing them our town. Kathy was joined by her daughter Cheryl. Cheryl's husband Rick and his daughter/son-in-law/grandson; Lori's cousin Terri with husband Tony and daughter Erin; another cousin Cody rounded out the party. Charles and I took the biggest bunch on a hike to Mosquito Cove while Lori took Aunt Kathy and Cheryl to the Russian Church. Then we had a bunch of really good food... halibut, cheesy potatoes, etc. We didn't get much time with them as they had to get back to their ship, but it was really nice to see them. In addition, Aunt Kathy had a hip replace 3 weeks prior to this trip and Rick(not me) had a heart attack less than two week ago. Thanks for coming!!

Choices and Tough Times for Richard

2008-07-27T16:29:00.011-08:00

This is a very tough post to write. We always hoped this would never happen, but now that it has...

We think a blog should share all the things in our lives. Sometimes they are fun and positive, worthy of kudos. Others are a reality check of our struggles with the implication of requesting prayers and virtual hugs.

In mid-December right before Richard was to start finals at Utah State University he was arrested on drug charges stemming from a police investigation involving Richard and his 3 roomates. The charges involved the distribution, possession of pot. Richard was on audio tape by a police plant arranging for the sale of drugs to someone.

Generally this would be a misdemeaner, but their apartment was right across the street from a school, putting them in a "drug-free zone" and creating a felony situation.

After several months of waiting Richard finally had a court date at which he plead guilty to 2 of the 6 counts against him. Then it was another couple of months before he began his sentence of 60 days in the Cache County Jail. He went in the end of April and was released the end of June.

Now he has fines to pay. Once that is taken care of his probation will be transfered here to Sitka and he will be able to live at home.

The jail time was a pain for all of us. Sending him mail was brutal with the myriad of rules about what you could send in what with what on the card/letter etc. Getting a phone call was even worse as you have to go through a company that handles correctional places. First it wasn't activated and then we wouldn't be home. Of course we couldn't call him.

Meg visited him a couple of times when she was in Utah. She had to fill out an application and be on the list that he provided and her name had to match what he had written.... BS after BS.

We also found out through all of this that he had 2 prior arrests that were not felonies and did not require any jail time.

We sincerely hope that he as learn some things. Yes, jail was boring with bad food. Is it worth the risk of being sent to a state or federal prison? Was it worth creating a situation where he would be unable to get certain jobs because of his record? How did this affect the rest of us? Only time will tell. Richard's attitude toward us... his family... has been improving. He is trying to be more open and honest with us. We're looking forward to enjoying these changes when he gets here.

Richard, we love you and hope that you or us ever has to go through this again.

As the Sun Pulls Away from the Shore and Our Boat Sinks Slowly in the West... Maui Part 2

2008-07-13T22:05:00.010-08:00

OK, so this should be part 1, but I just had to get that video up.

Lori and I went to Hawai'i so I could attend a cont. ed. conference. Part of my work benefits include help with getting the hours I need for my license.

OK, the sun and the warmth played a part in deciding where to go.

The conference was on the island of Maui, in Ka'anapali. Although it is nice to stay in the hotel where the conference is, it is also expensive.

Lori found us a small condo about a mile from my meetings for about 1/3 the cost of the hotel. Very close to the beach and nice and quiet.

We actually got there a few days before my meetings started.

We tried to used our time to the fullest. We did the Road to Hana and although June is the dry part of the year, the waterfalls were still cool. The black sand and red sand beaches near Hana were really nice.

We would have breakfast on the beach.

No waves on this sided of the island in the summer, but the water was SO clear and warm!

We rented snorkel gear for the whole week. Ka'anapali beach right where were has a reef that is really good for snorkeling. We went out there several times. We also went up the coast a little to a "reserve" bay that was pretty good too. We didn't see any sharks, but did see 3 large sea turtles. No pictures though... the are so cool and are so graceful.

I got to play golf twice. One was the Dunes which is "inland" and the other was the Wailea Gold (the LPGA and Senior Tour each play there. My brother, David, played there once. Both were really nice and fun. I didn't play great, but that wasn't the point.

My conference was nice in that we had class from 7am to noon. Then it was our own time! Very nice.

We ate lots of really fresh fish and tropical fruit. Lori wanted to get sick and tired of tropical fruit.. she tried, but failed... bummer.

The pineapple was SO good. At least the prices didn't seem bad... not much different than here in Sitka.

A tour book Lori got was great at helping out... "Maui Revealed". It is written from a local point of view. We had some great meals for cheap. One of the best was the Aloha Lunch Plate. We also had some hand made pita with Ahi caught that morning (this was at lunch time).

We visited a valley famous for a huge battle for control of island. The valley looks like something out of Jurasic Park. The main feature is a "needle". This is the Needle of Ioa.

There is a really good magic show in Lahaina called "Warren and Annabell's". Warren is a close up magician. He even invites you to take pictures during the show. Annabell is a ghost... there is a story behind the whole thing..., but the thing that haunts me are the tricks Warren did!! Whew! Not only is it good magic, but it is funny too.

Maui had a lot more to offer than I expected. Summer may be "low season", but it was also a bit less crowded. Besides, those of us living in Sitka need all the sun and warmth we can find.

As the Sun Pulls Away from the Shore and Our Boat Sinks Slowly in the West... Maui Part 1

2008-06-26T20:20:00.004-08:00

This is actually from our last day in Hawaii. We had bought a boogie board, but never got to beach with waves. The beach where we were (Ka'anapali) has great snorkeling, but no waves. We saw a little kid skimming on his boogie board and decided to try it.

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble-Salem-Charles' B-Day Trip Part 3

2008-06-23T16:17:00.010-08:00

We took a side trip up the coast to Salem, MA... yes, home of the infamous witch trials in the 17th century. But also famous for its maritime history and Nathaniel Hawthorne (House of the 7 Gables). We had beautiful weather and just wandered around. The Kids went to the presentation at the Witches Museum while Lori and I walked. She and I had seen this many years ago and felt it was a bit too creepy for us... the kids didn't think so, though.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame...Charles B-Day Trip Part 3

2008-05-31T10:26:00.026-08:00

Well, this is the 3rd time I've been to Boston during baseball season and the 3rd time the Red Sox have been out of town.. grrr. So this time I compromised and went to Fenway Park for a tour. Eventhough I was the big baseball fan Lori, Meg, Charles, and Anna enjoyed the tour also.

This was no tour for weak Yankee fans.

Our guide made comments about their intelligence,
the evilness of their team and city, etc. He has been in Boston and a fan of the Red Sox since 1949. We got to see just about everything but the locker rooms.

The past few years there have been seats on the Green Monster. The only way to sit there is through a lottery that is held online.

You register at the Red Sox site and if you are picked you can buy 2 tickets at

$150 each for 1 game. The view from there is really good. In fact, everywhere we went was a good seat.

The is a section below the press box that in order to get tickets there you have to commit to 2 seats every home game for like 7 years. End cost is about $350,000.
Don't worry there is a waiting list.

Fenway still has some wood seats.. not benches though. The owners from the 20s to the 60s want to be immortalized at Fenway. You can see in this picture dots and dashes on 2 of the vertical lines. Those are the initials of the owner and his wife. Pretty cool.

The person who runs the totally manual score board on the bottom of the Green Monster makes about $60 a game. He has been doing it about 16 years and there is a 400 person waiting list for this job. The room back there is very narrow with no heat or air conditioning or water or toilet...

Charles' 16th B-Day Trip Part 2

2008-05-27T15:55:00.009-08:00

After a red-eye flight from Seattle to Boston we arrived in Beantown. Considering the nutrutional suppliments you get now-a-days on flights we were to say the least FAMISHED when we arrived. The guy at the rental place gave a tip on a good local diner at which to have breakfast. This is one of the old train cars that has been converted in to a eating establishment. Food was really good. The atmosphere was very authentic north-east. We added a GPS to our rental car so we could get around. Well, it got us to our apartment, but more on the GPS later.

As in England last year we rented condos/apartments for our stays instead of doing the hotel thing. We were in the blue building

With 5 of us it made more sense. This one on the east side of Boston was on the 3rd floor...no elevator... and had 2 bedrooms, our own bath, kitchen, satalite TV, and internet.. including an actual computer. The landlords of this apartment also let us use their game room in the basement which incuded a Wii, 2 pinball machines, and a slot machine. It was quiet, near a "T" station and very comfortable.

Good-Bye to the Old Fart-Dick Hart 1930-2008

2008-05-23T11:48:00.019-08:00

As many of you know my dad Richard Harold/ Dick/ Spaz passed away on 9 May 2008. He had been dealing with Alzhiemer's for many years and had been in a nursing home since last summer.
I saw him last Sept and he was still able to walk around, but when we saw him in March he was wasting away fast. The good thing about Alzhiemer's is that the person afflicted probably has no clue as to what is going on. The care givers, ie, my mom are the one's that really struggle. For both of them this passing into the next life is a blessing for both of my parents.
The services were held on 17 May. It was a good day for all of us, especially Mom. She got to see just how well liked Dad was and how much she is loved. Lori and I were able to attend after cancelling part of our vacation to get there. Anneka and Samantha flew down from Idaho. My brothers came in from Utah and Seattle. My cousin Mathew flew out from North Carolina. Friends came from northern California and Utah. Mom was pretty amazed with the response.
We were able to get a military color guard to present a flag to Mom and play taps. It was really cool. Anneka kept a promise she made long ago, by playing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at the luncheon. We also sang the Navy Hymn although most of us just muttered random words since we didn't know anything but the tune. My sister- in-law Laurie sang during the service and she played with Anneka.. playing cello.
For all those who knew Dad knew that although he was a grouch and very loud, he was a big softy inside and we loved him all the more.
I feel very lucky to have had my dad around for so long. I love him and will miss him, but I'm so glad he is free of his failed body and can now enjoy his time in the spirt world while he waits the Resurrection. Till we meet again Dad, Love you.

Charles' 16th B-Day Trip Part 1

2008-05-08T04:58:00.005-08:00

We started a tradition with Anneka that when the kids get turn 16 they get to have a trip to celebrate it. For AJ it was a cruise with Mom and Dad. Richard did a Hawaiian cruise and last year we did Meg's to England. This year Charles turned 16 and he decided to do an American History trip. So for the next few posts we will explore our travels in Boston, New York, and Washington DC.

Before we even got back east we had a long layover in Seattle. My brother David and his family live there. They picked us up a

t the airport and we spent the afternoon with them. My cousin Luke joined all of us for a very nice time.

On the couch l-r is Anna, Charles, Meg, Debbie

On the floor l-r is Lori, Cristina, Me, Darlee, David

Track Star Anna

2008-04-26T17:39:00.006-08:00

Anna competed in the Sitka High track meet this weekend. On Friday she won the girls' shot-put. Today, Saturday, she did the discus(one of her throws was almost 67 feet), long jump, and participated in the 4x100m relay. Today our weather changed a bunch. No sun, but wind, cold, and rain. Anna has been working hard every day after school for track. She has even developed shin-splints. She apparently would have qualified for the State meet next month, but we will be back east on our vacation.

Springtime for....Sitka

2008-04-24T20:20:00.010-08:00

We have had a full week now of clear skies and normal temps. In fact, yesterday was 58 degrees.... Lori left last Thursday and was delayed 3 hours because of heavy snow here and in Juneau. At about 2pm it cleared up and we haven't hardly seen a cloud since. It will end Sat. p.m., but it has been absolutely gorgeous. I have ridden my bike at least part way to work each day this week (I'm too out of shape to go too far). The kids and I have cleaned out the flower beds for Lori and got the yard looking nice. At least we will only have to put up with a week of this...when it ends...before heading back to Boston and the east coast. The eagles have been out in force. Sometimes you can see 50-100 of them in one place. This one was about 20 feet away from me. I walked right by the tree it was sitting in and he didn't even flinch. Really cool.

The Honorable Anna.. and Meg and Charles

2008-04-17T14:01:00.007-08:00

Tuesday night at the Sitka School Board meeting, Anna, Charles and Meg were honored as members of the Drama and Debate team which took 3rd place at the Alaska state meet and 1st place for Academic Excellence(highest overall grade point average). Anna and Allison were the only members of the team present as most of the others were traveling with other activities. Anna was also honored as being part of the Mock-Trial Team which also took 3rd place. She was the only representative there for the team.
I hope these kids don't think this honor is unimportant. It gives recognition to the time and effort they all put in to being so good.

Planes, Trams, and Automobiles

2008-04-11T14:16:00.030-08:00

OK, so there were no trains...
As I mentioned in another post, it has been a busy month for us in a traveling way. If this gets a bit confusing...please pardon an old man. I had a continuing education meeting to go to that was required for the new optometry law here in Alaska. For 4 days every optometrist in Alaska was at the Alyeska Resort outside of Anchorage. It is a ski complex and with the long hours we put in very few went skiing...I wasn't one of them. However, this is where the Tram comes in. Dinner one night.. provided by one of our sponsors... was on the top of the mountain and we had to take the ski tram in order to eat. I have no pictures of this event because I lost the camera when I returned the rental car...must have left it and it either got thrown away or someone has a nice camera.
But, the next part of the trip involved 2 cameras... Anna's and Anneka's. My CE trip was just before our spring break trip to California. Lori, Meg, Charles, and Anna flew down on a Sunday and I flew overnight that same day from Anchorage, getting into Seattle at 3am and not leaving till 8am. Even that busy SEATAC airport was practictally empty at that time of night.
Richard flew down from Utah on Monday and Anneka, Mike, and Samantha came in on Wed. nite. Oh, we took D'Artagnan with us with a great haircut...a mohawk all the way down his back!! He fit right in in California.
It was weird to think that this will be the last time I'll see the house I grew up in as our family home. My mom now has it on the market and plans to move to a retirement community. Depending on how my dad does... that was very hard to see... I may have to wait till the next life to see him again. Mom seemed to enjoy the chaos that we all bring when we come. Lori arranged for us to do family pictures since all 6 of us were there. The previous post has some of those. First time in 4 years. I'm sure Mom was relieved to have a quiet place when we left. Oh, we also had staying with us at Mom's a friend of Meg and Charles...Ben. He is from Haines Alaska and Meg met him when she was on her way to her exchange...Ben went to Spain. He is on a "road trip" and was in Calif. when we were.
We went to the beach and D'Artagnan got to romp in the surf, went to Magic Mountain(a Six Flag park), Disneyland... Anna's first visit..., my mom treated us to a show in Hollywood- Wicked, we saw my dad, and just enjoyed mid-70s and sunny skies. We also got to see my cousin Josh and his family, my Aunt Susie and Bill, Mike got to eat at a South African place that Lori found(he was a missionary in Durban), and on our way back with a long layover in Seattle we spent some time with my brother David and his girls as well as another cousin...Luke. My sister-in-law, Debbie, had to work and we missed her. David fixed Lori and I an Easter dinner since Charles, Meg, and Anna went visiting with a friend. We also got to see David's gym. His so rightly proud of what he is doing there.
Since we got back from California I have been on a work trip to Klawock and now Charles and Meg are in Juneau for a state wide student council meeting and Anna is in Ketchikan for a track meet(she does shot put, discus, and sprints). Right now I don't even want to think about the crazyness in the next few weeks....more on that later.

We Should have been in Pictures

2008-04-08T19:23:00.004-08:00

One of the important tasks we did during our trip to Long Beach last month was to get new family pictures taken. It had been 4 years since were all together. With Anneka, Mike, and Samantha along with Richard being there we took some pictures at JC Penney. Enjoy. (Yes, I don't look happy, but I don't smile one cue very well)

Long Beach Hart Home on the Market

2008-04-04T20:40:00.007-08:00

(NOTE:
I had a bad link for the house. Please now use
the following as a link to
www.virginiabrady.com. When there please
click on the Properties button on the left
and then on the link for Current Inventory).
Following the above link(the title of this post) you can see the home I grew up in.
Since my dad went in to the nursing home last summer my mom started making plans to move to a retirement area called Leisure World in Seal Beach(about 5 miles away). With the sale of the house Mom will be able to buy a place there for cash and have all that she needs...and what she doesn't need(lawn and other maintinance).

When my folks(with David and me) move to southern California in 1960 we rented a duplex on Euclid. I remember a bit about that place. In 1962, a year or so after John was born, we rented the house on Tevis from some friends. The deal was apparently a rent-to-own thing and in 1964 my parents were able to buy the house. In 1994 it was paid off just as my dad retired from teaching for 34 years.

The house wasn't always this big. When we moved in it had a large back yard. Between 1968 and 1970 we added the family room/master suite. Then there was a small remodel on the front of the house in the 80's.

I will miss this house and had to say "good-bye" a couple of weeks ago when we were there for spring break.

The Importance of "Becoming" Samantha

2008-03-08T19:51:00.004-09:00

The more photos that Anneka sends of Samantha the more I can see her own personality starting to show. She is developing a look that is different than just the "fat/cute" infant. She is definitely a combo of Mike and Anneka.

Alaska State Drama/Debate!!

2008-03-03T15:11:00.005-09:00

Meg, Charles, and Anna just returned from Anchorage where the DDF State meet was held this past weekend. Charles felt he did well, but didn't make the finals. Meg and Anna both made finals in 2 of their 3 events. Meg ended up placing 3rd in both, while Anna finished 5th in each. In addition the Sitka team had a couple of 1sts and 2nds. Overall as a team they were 3rd. They also do an award for the team with the highest grade-point average which Sitka won. A very good season for the 3 Hart kids.

A Bit of Rick-Type Trivia

2008-02-24T19:57:00.009-09:00

Ever wonder how far we are from you? Or you from us? Here are a few tid-bits I looked up to feed my need for odd info:

These are distances from Sitka "as the raven flies"... not driving...

Logan 1480

Long Beach 1800

North Carolina 2960

Seattle 865

Minnesota 1940

Memphis 2580

East Tennessee 2760

Idaho Falls 1380

Maryland 2835

Fun and "Bad" Habits

2008-02-23T22:46:00.004-09:00

Samantha seems to enjoy herself on her dad's lap. Mike looks forward to holding his little girl when he gets home from work. He has treated my daughter well, so I shouldn't expect my granddaughter to be any different.

However, Samantha likes to watch the TV...must be the movement of the image... so Anneka set her up with a couple of props while she indulged.(no infant consumed any carbonated cola substance in this picture)

Don't Kill Anna the Lawyer!!

2008-02-20T12:44:00.010-09:00

I don’t know what a lawyer is called in German, but Anna would be a good representative. She has worked with the Mock-Trial team this year and went to the State competition last weekend in Anchorage where they took 3^rd place. Anna is on the team with another of the exchange students… Fernando, who is from

Chile

In Mock-Trial the teams have a “case”. Piles of evidence and participant descriptions are included. Anna was on the “prosecution” team and presented the "opening statement". They learn the proper way to present opening/closing statements, how to question a witness, cross-examine, when to object, what not to say, etc. Some of the team plays the defendant or the other witnesses. Anna has had fun doing this and it has given her the chance to see how the American court system compares with the German. She also received 3 different nominations for “best lawyer” during the competition.

Cold and Snow

2008-02-15T20:03:00.007-09:00

February has been unusually cold for Sitka. It got down to the single digits for several nights... the record low ever in Sitka is zero. We woke up one morning to find the cove behind the house frozen over. This is a direct link to the ocean and there was NO water moving. We average only 20" of snow a year and just in a week we had over 3 FEET. The cold started first and our small lake in town was nice and frozen. the even put a set of flood lights in to allow for night skating. Then the snow hit... the ice was covered with all this snow. People were now x-country skiing and driving their ATV with snow plows on the ice to move enough snow to play hockey or skate. Someone even plowed a long path for people to walk around the lake. Several of the side roads got so narrow that they became one lane.

Monday the 5th we took a short hike up to a little lake. The snow on the trees was incredible and again the iced lake had all that snow on it

D'Artagnan had a great time running out on the "lake". He loves to chase rock that we throw into the water, but now...no rocks. He also like to go after snowballs.

So I'd thow snowballs and he try to find them. As

today(15th) we are almost clear of snow after a week of rain and warmer temps...more normal. The big weekend snow found Meg, Charles, and Anna in Haines where the temps were below 0 and the wind chills 25-30 below. This weekend Anna is in Anchorage being cold again.

Jazz Fest and "Nat King" Charles

2008-02-09T18:44:00.000-09:00

The first weekend in February is the Sitka Jazz Festival. This was our 3rd one. It is a mix of local and regional middle and high schools groups with professional talent from around the world. Southeast Alaska has a great tradition of jazz. Even in these small schools there is enough talent for groups that are better than I ever heard in Utah or California. The professionals do workshops with the students in things like improv, techniques, composition. This year we had school groups from Anchorage and Juneau, as well as few more I can't remember.

Sitka had 3 bands and one vocal group. This included 2 the middle school jazz bands. The high school vocal jazz is where Charles performs. He has discovered the joy of singing and this semester is also in the regular choir. Meg could not squeeze vocal jazz into her schedule this year although she sang with them last year.

The professionals included a trumpet player from the northwest(the down south one), a sax player from New Orleans, a jazz

trio whose pianist is from Israel, and a jazz vocalist from the San Fransico area. All were awes. They not only performed by themselves, but with each other and with the school bands.

Charles got to do a duet with vocal jazz during the Nat King Cole standard "Unforgetable". So not only is he a first year singer, but he has the guts to be in the limelight. A cool kid.

Since Meg didn't get to sing, she helped with the video crew, running one of the cameras. It was a lot of standing, but she had a good time, learned some stuff, and used her creative eye to give us some really cool shots of the performers.

On the Road Again

2008-01-31T20:30:00.000-09:00

We are getting ready for another month of travel... especially the kids. Lori is actually home the whole month and I don't go until the last week. However, next week Meg, Anna, and Charles will be heading to Haines, AK for their final debate meet before State. Right after that Anna goes to Anchorage to participate in Mock Trial (which Charles did last year). Then a 2 week break and the three of them go to Anchorage for the State Drama/Debate meet. They will each have 3 events to do there.

Then in March we start off by me going to Anchorage for continuing education. Followed right away by a spring break trip to southern California to help my mom have her house prepared to sell it and take Anna to Disneyland and the beach. Just getting some sunshine and clear skies will be worth the trip.

In April there will be no traveling for the kids, but I do a work trip and Lori goes to Utah for Weber State meetings/graduation.. as well as see our great little granddaughter(and Anneka/Mike).

May will find us going back east for a family trip to celebrate Charles' 16th birthday. Then Meg, Anna, and Charles going to Utah to see friends for 3+ weeks.

While they are in Utah, Lori and I will go to Hawai'i so I can attend another continuing education conference.

I may have missed something, but I'm tried just remembering all of this...

Friends and Co-Workers

2008-01-28T11:39:00.000-09:00

During my trip to see my wonderful granddaughter, I had a chance to visit one of the Sam's Clubs where I had worked occasionally. My former manager in Logan is now working with Cheryl... the manager in this particular office. Therefore, I got to see them both. It was really fun. Jessica and I worked together for 3 years and Cheryl and I always had a blast talking about Harry Potter. They were the reasons I was able to say sane and last as long as I did at Sam's!!

A "Small" Update

2008-01-25T14:51:00.000-09:00

I hope you aren't tired of my fasination with my granddaughter. Anneka sends us lots of pictures and she puts them on her blog, but I usually use different ones. Samantha has had her first cold and Anneka has had to do the bulb syringe thing on her. Here is Samantha doing her Rodin imitation and just looking cute.

Glorious Granddaughter

2008-01-10T15:34:00.000-09:00

Samanatha Moya is now 2 months old and I finally got to see her and hold her. We again did a combination trip. Lori had some meetings in Ogden for Weber State, Anneka and Mike blessed Samantha at Church, and I got to go down just to play Grandpa. I also got to see some friends in Logan as well as friend's that I had worked with at Sam's Club. I also did alot of driving. We flew into Idaho Falls, got a car, drove to Ogden for the night, dropped Lori off at Weber State, drove d0wn to see Jessica and Cheryl at the Sam's in Layton, went up to Logan and saw Steve Moon and our old neighbors, the Wrights, went back down to pick Lori up in Ogden, and finally drove up to Idaho Falls where Mike and Anneka and Samantha live. I sure was neat to hold this little 2 month old who has been very good and very cute. I held her whenever I could. We had a house full with Mike's family being there...some staying elsewhere though... so I did have to share. On Sunday...when we blessed her at Church... my brother John with his family drove up with my mom who was there to spend time with AJ/Mike/Sam. I also got to go with Anneka to Samantha's doctor appointment before I left. She weighed 6lb. 9 oz. when she was born and now is 10lb. 12oz. Obviously she is eating well and Anneka is providing well. A quick but great weekend.
We were also able to get a 4 generation picture. I have now been the youngest, the dad, now the grandpa in these 4 generation shots. Only one more step to go!!

Merry CHRISTmas!!

2007-12-26T11:32:00.000-09:00

Hope you all had a great day. Here in south- east Alaska did. A bit of rain, hail, snow made for a nice day to stay inside.
Looking back on my post regarding our Traditions, I realized I forgot to include one of the best.
Lori found a way of doing gifts that keep us from adding this or that gift to keep things "even". The idea is based on the 3 gifts of the Wise Men to Jesus... Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. A "gold" gift is one to Cherish, a "frankincense" gift is to Use, and the "myrrh" gift is to Amuse. Some years they are easy, others years they overlap alot. This year the Gold gift for Charles and Meg was a poster collage of our trip to Europe this summer.
We were real bums in the afternon. We have the kids the 1st season of Heros and spent several hours watching. It was nice not to have the commercials.
We feel and are very blessed to have what we do and to live in a nice place and have a great family.
Merry CHRISTmas!!

Polar Dip for the Loony

2007-12-23T17:52:00.000-09:00

Sikta has an annual "polar dip" where the crazies go out in 42 degree water up to the chest. I wasn't expecting a huge turnout since I hadn't seen this done before(we where in California last year). There were well over 100 kooks who did the "dip" and received a certificate signed by one of the local psycologists. We bullied Charles and Anna into doing it. Charles went all the way under while Anna did the least she had to.

Charles "Longfellow"...his feet do show it!!

2007-12-20T13:28:00.000-09:00

Charles competed in the Poetry Out Loud again this year. He didn't win, but his stage presence is so good. He actally likes being up there. His best friend Berret won the local competition and will go to Anchorage to compete for the State. If she wins there she would go to Nationals where they have scholarships available for the winners. The competition has a set list of 500 or so poems that the kids can pick from. They do one that is under 25 lines and their choice for the other. At the State level they do 3 poems. All of the kids were really good. Grandma got to see Charles do his poems and meet his friends.

Grandma Visits

2007-12-20T08:56:00.000-09:00

This fall we have managed to get my mom out of California for a while. It has been a good opportunity since my dad is in the nursing home and not doing very well. Mom knows he is well taken care of and now that she doesn't have to watch him every minute she can see us...meaning the rest of the family. She went to Logan to be with John's family for Thanksgiving and even got to see her first great-grand child when John took her up to Idaho Falls for a day. She then got two weeks of rest at home and she came up here to see us in Sitka. She is leaving today to spend another week at David's in Seattle for Christmas. Then she'll have a week at home before going to Idaho Fall the first weekend in January to see Anneka, Mike, and Samantha. Then we'll let her rest for a while. I think she forgets how strange our family is. She doesn't have to say much...just sit back and be entertained by non-stop craziness. She got to experience a nice snow fall...10 inches over a two day period, Charles singing with the Vocal Jazz, Charles in the Poetry Out Loud competition, Church with us, our church Christmas party, decorating our house for Christmas, good food(moose steaks), etc... We really enjoyed having her here and getting to see us in our new environment.

Meg' 18th!!!

2007-12-19T10:08:00.000-09:00

Meg turned 18 in November, but her party was in December. And what a party! 15+ friends, lots of food, music, games, lots of fun!! Meg enjoyed this eventhough she would have rather not been reminded that she is getting older. She sure is a great part of our family and we love her lots!
It's a good thing these guys can sing...but you'd never know it from this clip of "Happy Birthday".

2007 Christmas Letter(Long)

2007-12-13T15:23:00.000-09:00

I have been doing my letter after New Year's, but with so much happening it wouldn't have been prudent to wait... Enjoy... You may receive a copy of this in the mail...

Christmas 2007

Hey Relatives and Friends,

Wow, how to summarize the year 2007? It was full of beginnings, ends, and continuations. Rick has a new position at church…Bishop of the Sitka Ward… We have 2 new additions to the family... One in the form of 6 lb. 9 oz. Samantha Moya Smith, our first grandchild and one in the form of Anna-Maria Mück our AFS exchange student... We have a new doctor in the house... We have experienced England and Paris... We still live in Alaska and it still rains...

Anneka/Mike At publishing date Lori is in Idaho Falls helping Anneka, Mike and Samantha. Our first grandchild was born Tuesday 6 November. She was officially 3 weeks early, but since Anneka tried to go into labor 10 weeks early we are grateful that we Samantha got another 7 weeks to “simmer”. Yes, Mike and AJ are doing well, but there is a new star in the family. Mike is continuing to take classes for his electrician journeyman’s license and AJ has been still working at the bank. They are living in Mike’s parents’ house while they are on a Church mission in Florida.

Lori is now officially Doctor Hart. She finished her Ph.D. after jumping through all the hoops. She then started working at the mental health clinic at SEARHC(where Rick works). Eventually, she was offered a job with Weber State University…the school she worked for when in Logan… as a professor of nursing. Part of her duties will be to help develop classes for a Master’s of Nursing program. She has to attend some faculty meetings in Utah during the year so she can see Samantha(Anneka/Mike too). In fact, she just got back from Idaho after helping AJ, Mike, and Samantha for 3 weeks. Lori arranged for us to get some used kayaks, so she is becoming familiar with the water surrounding our little cove.

Rick is still with SEARHC. Usually this “STILL” comment is in a not good sense, but in this case it is with pleasure that we say it. The staff is wonderful, the other doctor(Pam Steffes) is great, and the chance to be an employee with great benefits can’t be beat. Rick traveled 7 times for work this year..one to Yakutat and 6 to Prince of Wales Island(Klawock). Using his benefit for the continuing education he needs we all traveled to England in May/June so Rick could attend the British Contact Lens Association meeting in Manchester. He learned to drive on the right side of the car and the left side of the street. He has also used some of his sick leave to be with his parents as his dad gets worse. Being bishop at church is a huge responsibility. He is in charge of everything at church now. A very busy and scary experience, but rewarding.

Meg has been working hard this year. She has worked in a local coffee shop where she has trained to be a barista. She works part-time after school and Saturdays. Drama is still her passion and her work with the Drama/Debate team has paid off. She is involved in NHS(National Honor Society), Drama, and music. She is also beginning to make plans for here post-high school life. She just turned 18, but has had no desire to drive yet. Meg has traveled a bunch with 2 trips to Anchorage, places all over the southeast(Alaska that is), California, Utah, England, and Paris. She spent 4 weeks as a Junior Councilor at Kennolyn Camp near Santa Cruz. Oh, she is painting her room…Picasso, Chagall, Van Gogh, and Monet…she copies the picture on the wall and then fills it in. Photography has been big for her and her birthday present was an photo enlarger for the darkroom she is setting up in her bathroom.

Charles is a sophomore and is involved in Drama/Debate, Student Council, irritating his sisters and the dog, and hanging out with his many friends. He got to go to Anchorage twice this year for Mock-Trial and for a state Student Council thing. He too has been all over the southeast, California(for his 5^th year at Kennolyn), Utah, and Europe.

Anna came to us in August from the Bavarian region of Germany. Her English is excellent. In fact, she has been doing both drama and debate, is in Honors English, Calculus, and AP Chemistry, and having a boyfriend. She has learned to take the teasing our family give and can also give it back. She is fun to have in our family and we are glad to have her.

Richard is at Utah State University. His classes are going well. He spent the summer here in Sitka working at the Raptor Rehablitation Center. He’ll be up here again for Christmas and has plans to work up here again next summer. Richard is working at the USU library in addition to carrying a full schedule.

D’Artagnan is a great dog. He is HUGE… about 90 lbs.! He loves being in the water and swimming… the problem is getting him out. He is 20 months old now and Lori is getting him to walk off the leash without running off to the woods.

Our Europe trip had two main reasons. One, Rick has always wanted to attend this British conference and Two, it was for Meg’s 16^th birthday trip…to see top quality theatre. We saw Sir Ian McKellen(Gandalf) in King Lear in Shakespeare’s home town, Othello in London at the Shakespeare Globe, and Wicked, The Lord of the Rings Musical, and Spamalot on the West End. We got to spend a couple days with Annika, our first exchange-daughter. We rode the tube/underground in London. Paris was a whirlwind… we spent 2 days there and saw lots. We took the speedy Eurostar train under the English Channel to London.

Lori and Rick traveled to San Diego and visited/helped Rick’s parents. Rick also went to his folks’ in September to help. His dad has Alzheimer’s and finally had to be put in a nursing home this summer. He has really deteriated quickly. Rick’s mom is feeling the stress, but has been doing well. She spent Thanksgiving with John(Rick’s brother) and his family in Logan. She has plans to visit us in a couple of weeks and then be at David’s(other brother) for Christmas. Then to Anneka’s for the blessing of Samantha.

We hope your Christmas season is full of love for each other and for our Savior.

Love, Rick, Lori, Meg, Charles, Anna, and of course, D’Artagnan

Ultimate Stocking Stuffer

2007-12-13T11:25:00.000-09:00

This is also the very best of the best Christmas present. Samantha's mom... ie, my eldest daughter ... stuck "poor" Samantha in a Christmas stocking and took pictures. She doesn't look too distressed about the whole thing...in fact, she looks pretty darn cute!! In about 3 weeks I get to actually hold her when Lori and I go down to Idaho Falls.

En Garde D'Artagnan!!

2007-12-11T18:43:00.000-09:00

Meet Samantha the Musketeer!! She is in a classic infant pose known as Tonic Neck Reflex or a fencer's pose. This will disappear in a few months as she starts to roll over. Lori didn't get the whole picture because one leg on the side where the arm is pulled up is also pulled up. Pretty cool, huh?

Samantha in B&W

2007-11-24T21:18:00.000-09:00

Lori did a bunch of photos of the new family.

Ansel Lori

2007-11-23T23:17:00.000-09:00

Lori has discovered that having a great subject makes it easier to take pictures. Here are a few pictures that include the visit of great-grandma Hart. My mom is in Logan visiting my brother John and his famil for Thanksgiving. Since Idaho Falls is less than a 3 hour drive, John, Lexie, and Juliette took her up to see her first great-grandchild. In the last picture, Mike is really not sleeping..Anneka is playing her cello and he is just relishing in the sound.

Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T14:06:00.000-09:00

We have so much to be thankful for. We have been bless with abundance and chances to share it. Living here in Sitka is great. I have a great job, we have a nice place to live with wonderful scenery, and we have the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives. We also have family and good friends all over the world.

Anna is experiencing her first Thanksgiving. She has learned that this is the beginning of the "holidays" with the start of all the Christmas stuff. She is looking forward to a turkey(which is in the oven as I type). She isn't crazy about eggnog...oh well, more for the rest of us, but is looking forward to a nice 4 day weekend.

Our weather is rain free today and not cold so Anna and I went out in the kayaks for a while. We have a friend from church coming for dinner today as his wife and little girl are in Texas visiting family.

Anna gets to go to Seattle tomorrow and Saturday. Her boyfriend's(Sean) mom is taking her for a couple of days of shopping and pampering. It is really nice of her. Anna is really excited.

We are missing Lori, but we're glad that we have been blessed with the means to have her go down to Anneka's and that her job at Weber State is on-line so she can do it from anywhere... if she get the time.

Missing Mom

2007-11-22T13:50:00.000-09:00

No Lori is not being looked for by law-enforcement....we are sad that she isn't here with us. Yes, she is doing wonderful work at Anneka's by helping with the baby and easing AJ's adjustment, but we would like her here. Anna and I probably won't get salmonella from the real turkey we have(Charles and Meg for sure won't get it from their vegan Tofurky loaf), but Lori could ensure that wouldn't happen. We really look forward to having her here "mothering" us again. We
love and miss you Sweethart!!

Pictures of the GrandKid-Samantha

2007-11-16T23:15:00.000-09:00

Lori took a bunch of pictures of little Samantha and posted them on a Kodak website. Lori is showing a good eye for cool pictures. Click on the link above to view.

Time for a Break

2007-11-16T22:19:00.000-09:00

I have finally finished two weeks of work/travel. Not all at once though... Last week I was in Yakutat for 3 days... starting with a 6 am flight and a 4 hour layover. This week I just got back from Klawock. Generally we fly a local airline in an 8 seater plane. This is iffy with the variable weather in the fall and winter. In September we lost a whole day of clinic due to not being able to get the small plane landed. So for the fall and winter(and probably spring) we will utilize Alaska Air to Ketchikan and then the Inter-Island Ferry to Prince of Wales Island. The down side is that we have to be gone 2 extra days. Monday and Friday end up being strictly travel days withT-Th clinic days. The B&B were we stay is really nice and the owner is great. I get internet wifi and great room. However, it is always nice to get back home. I will get a little break before going back to Klawock in 3 weeks. The Yakutat trip is only 2 times a year and Klawock is 8 times.

Rug Rat

2007-11-12T21:53:00.001-09:00

Samantha sure spends a lot of time on floor. Oh yeah, she can't walk yet!! Besides it is a good place to get people to notice you!!

Samanatha MOYA Smith

2007-11-09T21:31:00.000-09:00

Many may be wondering where Samantha's middle name came from. Well, it is a Zulu word. My son-in-law Mike served an LDS mission in the South Africa Durban Mission. He learned some Zulu and grew to love the culture. He has since wanted to use Zulu words as names for his children. Anneka liked the idea and they plan on using a Zulu word as middle names for their kids. MOYA is a word for Holy. Kind of a cool idea.

Photogenic GrandKid

2007-11-08T20:30:00.000-09:00

These pictures are from Anneka and Mike. The obvious star is Samantha. Enjoy.

Meet Samantha--Granddaughter!!

2007-11-07T08:56:00.000-09:00

Thanks to Anneka's sister-in-law we now have a picture of the newest member of the family. For a little 6lb 9oz kid she sure has nice fat cheeks.
Lori will be there this evening and maybe we can get some pictures of the new mom and new grandma

Grand Daughter: Samantha Moya Smith

2007-11-06T20:00:00.000-09:00

Welcome to our family Samantha. She was born tonight at 6:58 MDT in Idaho Falls, Bonneville, Idaho to our eldest daughter Anneka and her great husband Mike. Anneka has been back at work since her week of bed rest and Lori was convinced that she wouldn't make her due date of 29 Nov. Especially since in the past week AJ has had lots of energy and has done a bunch of things around the house... Can you say: "nesting"?

This does put a bit of a twist in all the traveling that we have planned for the next month. Lori was scheduled to go down there on her due date and stay until 16 Dec(Beethoven's B-Day). Now she is leaving tomorrow and staying to the 29th...mostly because of the holiday it would have cost a fortune to come back before Thanksgiving. So, Lori and I leave tomorrow(I have a clinic in Yakutat) at 6am, then I go next week to Klawock and the kids will be orphans for a while.

Stay tuned for the further adventures of SMS!!!

Is it Meg or is it Momorex?

2007-10-31T15:28:00.000-08:00

For our church "harvest festival" party last night Lori dressed up as Meg... complete with black wig and her bowling shoes. Some didn't get it, but those that know Meg mistook Lori for her. Meg is out of town so her opinion is unknown at present. I think she'd approve and be flattered ...maybe creeped out a bit...

A Plethora of Storage

2007-10-23T08:56:00.000-08:00

The only thing we don't like about our house is the kitchen. We have some long term plans as what to do, but those will be way down the road. In the mean time we have been trying to figure out how to increase our storage space.

Based on a projected I built in our Second house; I am taking advantage of a blank wall. We looked at putting cabinets along this area, but it would really cramp the hall way to the garage, bathroom, and pantry under the stairs.

Most of the walls downstairs are thicker than "normal". They are built with 2x6s instead of 2x4s. So..... I cut out a LARGE section of drywall...7+ ft. high and almost 7 ft. wide.... added shelves between the studs, extended the depth into the pantry, and will add some sliding shelves in the empty space under the stairs. This will give us storage for non-can items and odd shaped things. Already we have 50% of the things out of the pantry so I can re-configure that to be more efficient.

Row, Row, Row Your Kayak

2007-10-20T22:03:00.000-08:00

Well, we don't have a boat yet, but we have kayaks. One of the tour companies was selling off some older models and we got 3. Now we can take advantage of our closeness to the water.

"My" kayak is a "fishing" model. It is set up to be able to fish from. We'll see.

Lori has been out a couple of times as have I. Charles has gone once. Lori and I went out today. The water was very calm and glassy...no rain either.

The perspective of things is very different when you are sitting right on the water. We finally have a nice picture of the back of our house from the cove. The first time I went out there was a seal(or small sea lion) just poking its head up and looking around.

It is nice exercise although the shoulders and upper back pay a slight price(or maybe I'm just outof shape?). If we have any visitors they can kayak for free instead of paying someone.

What a great place to live!!

German Interruptis

2007-10-19T08:06:00.000-08:00

Anna(our exchange student form southern Germany) has now been part of our family for 2 months. We have been amazed at how well she has learned to understand humor...especially ours, considering how strange we are. School is going very well. The only classes she doesn't have an A in are a calculus class and Honors English.. and those are B+s. She is working hard in Debate and is doing well. Both Meg and Charles are helping and are impressed with her abilities.

Her English is doing GREAT. Last night she has to call her school in Germany for some paperwork and they lady at the school couldn't understand Anna... Her German was so bad!! She has been "hanging out" with a guy from school... She has her first AFS weekend starting tonight and we feel she'll be one of the most adapted kids there.

No Rest for the Healthy

2007-10-12T15:23:00.000-08:00

Anneka is no longer on "bedrest" . Thanks to rest and some will used medications she received clearance from her doc to resume full activity. While still restricted last Saturday they lost power in their area for 16 hours....8 in the morning till midnight. No TV, No computer, No music. They survived though and AJ is really glad not to be on restriction any more!

Sing in the Rain

2007-10-09T21:33:00.000-08:00

Meg and Charles sang in the Sitka High Fall Concert tonight. This is Charles' first year singing and he is really enjoying it. He is in the Vocal Jazz group. His part is a baritone/bass. Meg is singing in the concert choir this year as her schedule would allow for both that and Vocal Jazz. Here are two short clips of the performance. This is my first attempt and they were done with our regular digital camera...I forgot we even had a video camera.

That's Debatable

2007-10-09T16:08:00.001-08:00

Last weekend Charles, Meg, and Anna worked overtime and were rarely not at Sitka High for the first debate meet of the season. Sitka was the host school for Haines, Skagway, Juneau, Mt. Edgecumbe, and Ketchikan. We hosted 2 boys from Ketchikan. I judged one round of Extemporaneous speaking on Friday and Lori did a round on both Friday and Saturday. Lori provided the our kids with food each day. It was a very exhausting couple of days, but they all did well.
Anna
Being a rookie this year, Anna did very well. She prepared hard and got lots of advice from the two experts...Charles and Meg. She did an HI... Humorous Interpretation, Debate, and Duet. She got compliments on all her work from both the coaches and the judges.

Meg
This is one awesome chick. Meg only does drama stuff. She as a solo, a duo, and an HI. She took First for her Solo and d and a second for her . During the weekend there was a work shop by a guy from Northern Arizona... THE hotbed for college debate... and he told Meg is she wanted to do this in college to let him know...
Charles
In each of his 3 events Charles was in the finals with a second place in Duet. He and his debate partner(and friend) Berrett could beat everyone in debate if they weren't so lazy and uncommitted(this by their own admission).

Bearly in Time

2007-10-05T12:52:00.000-08:00

Fall is the time when bears are feasting on salmon in the streams and getting ready to den for the winter. Here in Sitka I have only seen a bear way far away. Charles hadn't seen one and Anna REALLY wanted to see one as one of her AFS friends had just seen one.
Well, just a quarter mile from home on Tuesday on the main road(Sawmill Creek) we saw a fairly small brown bear(ie, grizzly) who had just crossed the road and climbed up some rock and into the woods. Lori has seen several bears in our neighborhood. Besides my aforementioned sighting, I have seen bears 2 or 3 times when on Prince of Wales Island for work... Those are black bears as they don't have the browns. Of course, we don't have any black bears here.

Close Call

2007-10-02T09:30:00.000-08:00

Anneka and Mike experienced a bit of a scare yesterday. It seems my future granddaughter was so anxious to see me that she tried to get here early.... 8 weeks early. Well, as much as I want to see her it just isn't time yet. Anneka went to the doctor and her cervix was almost completely effased...shortened/thinned and ready for the dilation process. Well, they got some meds in Anneka and stopped the contractions and started preparing Samantha for a possible early arrival...get those lungs ready, etc. Lori was ready to fly out today, but Anneka is now home on partial bed-rest. So for now everything is OK.

Stuck in K-Town

2007-09-25T10:51:00.001-08:00

Travel in SE Alaska is always an iffy adventure. I am heading to Klawock for a clinic. The weather in Sitka was rainy and windy, but OK to leave. Klawock was supposed to be good to land. However, by the time we got to Klawock the weather had become worse. We circled for about a 1/2 hour before giving up and heading to Ketchikan(or as Meg and Charles refer to it as.. K-town). We have been sitting here for about 2 hours and there is no word on when we will get out and over to Klawock. This will mean either a short clinic... 2 days instead of 3, or adding a day and coming home Friday. I'll just have to wait and see...

Rick Trip to California-Help Grandma

2007-09-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

I went down to California early in September to help my mom out. My brothers and I have been trying to get down there to support her now that my dad has gotten so bad. David really helped in April by helping Mom recognize the need to get Dad in a place where he could be cared for properly. John was able to do a bunch of work for her in July. David then went in August and got Mom set up with place for Dad, helped her get her financial stuff in order. Mom also has a family from Church (a home teacher) who has cleaned, moved, organized so much that I didn't have any chores to do when I was there. However, I was able help with Dad when he went to a psych appointment and get an I.D. at the DMV. We had to take him out of the nursing home. The first appointment was fine, but when we got to the DMV he was "over it" and his cooperation disappeared. I did get to visit him several times at the nursing home. It was very hard to see the man who helped raise me looking fine, but having no clue as to who I am or where he is or even most of the time who Mom is. He seems to be doing well in the "home".

Mom is trying to get use to living alone and she has really appreciated the visits. She is planning on selling the house and move to a retirement community called Leisure World. On the up side she will be able to travel and see us as well as David and John's families.

I guess my trip was just moral support. Mom and I ate out, watched the Angels go from 2 games up on Seattle to 8 as most of the games were on TV. I got to see my Aunt Susan and her husband Bill. Mom's neighbors are very nurturing and keep a great eye on her. It was a very eye-opening visit. My brothers and I are calling Mom several times a week to check on her. Any extra prayers you have she would appreciate.

Added Picts of Housing

2007-09-07T10:12:00.000-08:00

I just added a couple of pictures of 2 of our former residences in California. It is in the October 2006 "Annals of Time". Check it out.

Richard's Summer

2007-08-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

Richard has returned to Logan to continue his education at Utah State University. He will be working at the campus library where he is getting a nice raise after working there last year.

Richard got to work at the the Sitka Raptor Rehabilitation Center where injured eagles and other birds are brought to get healthy for possible release back into the wild. Some can't be and are permanent residents. Richard was an interrupter... leading groups through the center. His natural abilities of being an entertainer worked to his advantage. Yeah, he still had to deal with the public... mostly tourists, but he enjoyed not only the work, but the friends he made. We saw very little of him as he was having dinner or just hanging out with his friends when not at work. Richard is planning to return to Sitka next summer and work there again. It is a combination of showmanship and teaching... both of which are part of who Richard is. This eagle is one of the permanent birds at the center. Richard could tell me its name, so I may up date this entry later with that.

More Traveling Harts

2007-08-16T16:31:00.000-08:00

It seems like at least one of us always traveling. Meg will be coming home from camp on Sunday, Lori is leaving tomorrow for Utah/Idaho to attend some Weber State faculty meetings and see Anneka/Mike/Little Spud(now referred to as Samantha). Then right after Lori gets back I leave for California to help my mom get some things accomplished/arranged/done. Then a couple of weeks after I get back I leave again for a work trip. Lori is currently planning to be down at Anneka's when the baby is born to help out. We have no idea yet what the holidays will bring!!

Anna the New Hart

2007-08-16T16:14:00.000-08:00

OK, so she hasn't changed her name to Hart, but she is fitting very will with us. If you are interested in our other AFS experiences go to my post from 8/9/06.

We are enjoying having Anna here. We have kept her busy which is important for her to get acclimated to things around here. Yesterday Charles and Lori took her up to Beaver Lake(see old post for info on this) for a hike. D'Artagnan had a great time swimming. We have had such great weather the past two weeks we are trying to take advantage of it.

Anna has jumped right in and is helping with dishes, setting the table, laundry, etc. She is now registered at school and will be doing drama and debate and maybe volleyball. Since there are 4 other AFS students here in Sitka she has been able to see them.

Hey, We're Parents Again!!

2007-08-14T14:54:00.000-08:00

OK, this event comes in the form of an 18 year old young lady named Anna-Maria Muck... Anna for short. She joined our family late Saturday night (11 Aug) and will spend the next 10 months surviving the Hart household. Anna is an AFS exchange student from the Bavarian region of Germany(the south). Her town is less than 10 miles from Austria. She has very good English skills already. She is staying in Richard's room(since he will be away at school). We hadn't updated that room yet so Lori asked Anna by email what her favorite colors were...brown and orange... and I painted the room a nice milk chocolate brown with an orange ceiling. I built a desk for her and put a a carpet remnant down to make it quieter and cozier.

So WELCOME ANNA to Sitka and the Harts!!!

There and Back Again...A Hart Family Tale... Part 4 York, Church History

2007-08-09T11:20:00.001-08:00

Our first adventure from Manchester was a day trip to York. With a long history from Romans to Vikings through the dark-ages to modern times York is a neat place. Both times I've been there it has been cool, blustery and cloudy. We were able to get into a free city tour. This is done by local volunteers who just love their town. Our guide could have been a hobbit. His York accent was cool and Charles enjoyed his explanations of word origins... how and why we have meanings today. We had dinner at a pub and 3 of us had fish and chips. We wandered around town a while just enjoying the oldness of the place. Lori and Meg got their first experience in having to pay to use a public toilet. 40 pence each (that's 80 cents) to relieve yourself. Charles and I had no problem... I guess they figure guys will just find a tree rather than pay. The York Minster is one of my favorite churches in England. Meg really enjoyed taking pictures with all the different angles and lightings available.

One minor reason for going to England for me was to allow Lori and the Kids to see a couple of LDS Church history sites. My 3rd great grandfather was an LDS Church leader named Heber C. Kimball. He was the first missionary from the church to go to Europe. Most of his time was spent in the north in the Preston/Liverpool area. One area of particular interest are the villages of Chatburn and Downham. These are near the town of Clitheroe. When we went through Clitheroe we visited the castle there. In Chatburn we had ice cream at Hudson's where 9 years ago I had ice cream with my mom and the Kimball Family group when we toured England. In Downham we visited an OLD church and wandered through this quaint village.

In the US we have signs on the road indicating that "Children Playing" or "Deaf Child", etc. Well, in England they take care of the old people with signs that say: "Elderly People" with a drawing of two old people stooped over. See the picture.

We went over to Preston where there is an LDS temple. During my first trip there I attended the open house for the temple as well as the services of dedication (when it is consecrated and closed to the public). One purpose of that trip with the Kimball group was to donate a portrait of Heber(our group's common grandfather) to the Church. It now is in the Missionary Training Center in Preston.

While in Preston we found a nice Indian place to eat. We drove one some narrow windy roads and got to see some great country side.

There and Back Again...A Hart Family Tale... Part 3 Rick's Reason/Manchester

2007-08-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

The first "reason" we took this trip was so I could attend a contact lens conference and get some continuing education for my optometry license. In Alaska I am required to complete 36 hours of education in a 2 year period. Fortunately, SEARHC has a benefit for the medical staff which pays a certain amount each year for expences to attend. I can pick what ever I'd like. This trip took my whole allotment for this year... but it was worth it.

The BCLA(British Contact Lens Assoc.) has one of the biggest contact lens meetings in the world. They usually have it in a different city in England each year. This year was Manchester. There were over 1000 delegates...85 from the USA. The speakers were all world renowned and about half of the were from the States.

We had decided that since hotels would be expensive and we were staying in one area for a week that we would rent a flat. Here in Manchester we rented a "self-catering" unit, which turned out to be a condo. We had 2 bedrooms, kitchen, bath... We were able to buy groceries and cook meals there as well as keep milk, juice, etc. the frig. There was also a washer/dryer in the place which is always nice on a long trip. Strange unit though...the washer and dryer were the same appliance. It did take Lori a while to figure out how to go from one to the other.

The location turned out to be really nice... a 15 min. walk to the conference site. We were just down the street from a public library and the kids were able to used the computers there to check emails. I had it even better. One of the vendors at the conference set up a small internet cafe a the conference center with 6 computers. It was very convenient.

We were able to use Manchester as a "base-camp" for some side trips such as York, Preston, Chatburn. We did find a big mall and were able to replace our broken camera. We even took time to see a movie...Pirates 3.

Having a car was nice, but getting used to driving on the wrong side of the road was interesting. We had picked up the car at Heathrow Airport in London. Meg was my navigator and we got us to Manchester without too much difficulty. The problem was finding the flat... Almost all of the cars there were manual transmissions. A slight adjustment to shifting with the left hand while pedal were the same. I kept hearing this word in my head for 9 days...LEFT!!! Lori and Meg were very "kind" to remind me to not drive like an American. I didn't run anyone over and didn't hit another car, so I was pleased. Roundabouts while maybe efficient and too difficult were at times crazy and in places you didn't expect.

Since most English food is pretty bland, we avoided it except for the fish and chips. Meg was the only one who didn't since she eats no meat and Lori and Charles will eat fish. During this trip we probably had fish and chips over 10 times. Lori's goal was to get sick and tired of and she was sucessful by the end. We found Indian food which we all like and we had tapas(I'd never heard of these small portioned serving meals) at a Spanish place and an Italian place.

Sad Day for the Hart Family

2007-07-30T09:46:00.000-08:00

No, no one has died. However, my dad... Dick Hart... who has been progressively suffering from senile dementia/Alzhiemer's for several years... has got to the point of needing more care than my mom can give. When we saw Dad at Christmas he didn't recognize me at all, Mom he could acknowlege occasionally that she was his wife and kind of knew where he was. By April when my brother David was there Dad had no rememberance of the house or Mom expect that he knows she was important to him. Mom has realized that she can't care for him at this point.

Last week David was in Long Beach again and he and Mom visited several place that they could put Dad. Today is the day that John(now in Long Beach with Mom) and Mom will put Dad in a nursing facility.

As bad as this is for us, for Mom it will be eventually a relief. She will have a chance to go where ever again and know that Dad is OK. I will be going down to help over Labor Day. David's role in this has been wonderful. In April he helped Mom see that it was time and that her insistance on never putting Dad somewhere and not selling the house was a nice dream, but not practical any longer. On this last trip that David made he sacrificed a lot... They had just sold their house, bought a new one, getting ready to open his gym, and doing all the moving stuff. My sister-in-law Debbie and my nieces Darlee and Cristina were willing to put in some big overtime to let David help Mom. He was able to make sure here finances were in good shape, help her find this place for Dad, help her get an equity loan, met with her and the financial guy, took time to help organize her finance.

Mom is now getting ready to sell the house where she has lived for over 40 years. She is planning on getting a place in Lesiure World in Seal Beach. This is a large well established retirement comminity. She can use all the prayers you can spare as she gets use to not having my dad around and living somewhere else. And of course getting over any guilt she brings upon herself about not being able to continue to care for Dad. She will be able to travel more and actually come see us in Alaska.

I'm really sad to see my dad this way, but he still has the ability to talk to people and enjoys making others feel good... he'll be a ray of sunshine to the other residents.

There and Back Again... A Hart Family Tale, Part 2 Paris

2007-07-17T22:10:00.000-08:00

OK, Paris in 2 1/4 days is insane, but that is the time we had and what we did. We walked a lot, got rained on, but we saw some incredible things and I even survived the language difference. (For those unaware.. I have no language skills, either listening or speaking). We used the Metro for our travel when we weren't walking. Paris must have more art work and antiques than the whole US. We had to pick and choose what we saw. I'll try and spell things correctly.
We had a hotel about a 15 min. walk from the Eiffel Tower...which we could see the top of from. We were on floor 6 or in the US the 7th since in the rest of the world the Ground floor comes first. There was very SMALL lift which was better than 6 flights of spiral stairs. A very tiny room, but it worked well for us.
After getting from the airport to the hotel via bus and underground Metro we headed over to the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, we broke our new camera(very few Paris pictures, but a fair amount of video), got a little irritated with each other, and went to bed. We'd been up and traveling for almost 24 hours with a "bit" of sleep on the plane.
Over the next 2 days we saw Versailles, the Orsay, the Louvre, Notre Dame, Sainte-Chapelle, Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower again(Really nice view from the top..Charles and Meg opted to walk up to the second level while Lori and I went all the way to the top), Champs-Élysées, and more that my poor brain can't think of now. We saw of course, the Mona Lisa.. the crowd wasn't too bad either. The Venus de Milo, Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh, etc.
When we ate we avoided any chain type places...especially American. Our last night we found a little Swiss place that was really good. A nice warm crepe in a cool drizzle taste even better than usual.
We left Paris for London via the Eurostar train which travels under the English Channel in the "chunnel". It was smooth, quiet, very fast, and the underwater part was basically a long tunnel.

There and Back Again... A Hart Family Tale, Part Pause

2007-07-13T15:29:00.000-08:00

All of this posting of our trip has been slow since right after we got back my computer hard-drive died and the photos we took were on it. I sent it off to get repaired and thankfully they were able to salvage all the info on the old drive... So when that gets back I'll have more pictures to share.

After Midnight

2007-07-03T15:27:00.000-08:00

Sitka has a tradition that on the eve of July 1 there is an event that is called "Only Fools Run at Midnight". It is a 5K run/1 mile walk in downtown Sitka. Since our family doesn't run, we walked the mile course. It starts at midnight. There were probably 150-200 people involved. The runners doing 3.1 miles were faster than most walking 1 mile. D'Artagnan joined us even though it was way past his bedtime. He is now 15 months old, but still just a puppy in a BIG dog body. He was so excited to be around people and other dogs. This picture is a sunset. The light area below the clouds is the daylight at midnight on 30 June. It would look like that again in another 3 hours or so. We had a blast. It has been so fun to know so many people in the community and see them at all the events.

There and Back Again... A Hart Family Tale, Part 1

2007-06-15T23:01:00.000-08:00

Well, we're back from the longest vacation of my life... in time not in a negative sense. We left Sitka on 25 May, just a day after Meg and Charles finished school and we returned last night(14 June). Long plane rides in big planes(my first ride in a 747). We did massive quanities of things both in Paris and in England. We felt sometimes that we would walk our poor feet off.

I'll start off with one of the main reasons for this trip... Meg's "16th Birthday" Trip. Yes, she is almost 18, but then she did turn 16 while in Italy. As our resident drama queen, Meg opted for an opportunity to see Theatre instead of a cruise. But, rather than accept the "lights of Broadway" she wanted the ultimate theatre experience...London/England. This worked well with my conference in Manchester, England.

We were able to attend 5 productions... all of professional quality.

First, while in the home of William Shakespeare... Stratford-Upon-Avon and home to the Royal Shakespeare Company... We managed to get tickets to Shakespeare's King Lear. Although sold out for the whole season, we waited in line for "returns" and ended up with some great seats. What made this special was that this starred Sir Ian McKellen(Gandalf from Lord of the Rings) as King Lear. Other than the old, demented king dropping his drawers and revealing more of Sir McKellen than we wanted to see.... it was a wonderful perfomance in a really nice theatre.

When we got to London we did a tour of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre... a true as possible re-creation of the original.We also returned for Othello. I won't even try and summarize it here as I barely could keep up with the twists of the plot myself. We were on a side and had a pillar in the way for parts, but it was till wonderful.

The show that we weren't sure of was a musical version of The Lord of the Rings. We couldn't figure out how they could pull hat off. Well, we were all impressed. With appropriate song placement, great staging, and just plain fun it came off extremely well.

Next came Meg's current favorite... Wicked the story of the witches of OZ. I thought it was really good, but I don't like the idea behind it. Meg loved it, but was a bit put-off when the ending was different than the book.

Finally came "something completely different". Spamalot, the farce of a farce with even more bad jokes than the Holy Grail film. Sadly, there were no witches burned due to insurance concerns, but there were bits from other Python movies and sketches.

So we spent a lot of time in English theatres. The 3 musicals had binoculars for rent. One set for every 2 seats. For 50p you had the use the binoculars for the duration of the evening. Nice concept. The staging was really good in the London theatres. It is weird to us Americans(outside of NYC) to see a theatre that is exclusively set up for one show for several years. They end up building the decor around the theme of the production.

Our Grand-Spud

2007-05-14T21:10:00.000-08:00

Here is our official picture of the Little Spud. Anneka's ultrasound on May first. A photo of a photocopy isn't too good, but you get the idea. Things are going pretty well still for her. She was cute and sent the ultrasound picture with a card to Grandma Hart. Lori wasn't sure if she miss addressed my mom's card, until she opened it.

Meg and Charles: Thespians

2007-05-07T21:57:00.000-08:00

Meg and Charles have been working hard the past couple of months on the Sitka High School play... "Months on End". Most of the parts have been double or triple cast... Charles' is doubled. He shares the part of Tony with Francois a exchange student from France. Meg's part of Heidi is triple cast with two of her friends.. Barrett and Amy. Each gives the part a different personality. We have seen it 3 times...twice with Meg, twice with Charles and once with both in the same show.
Since the original posting we have seen this one more time... with Charles performing. We also got to see the other casts. They will perform one more time for the students on the last day of school (1 day before we go to Europe!!

British Beware!

2007-04-17T16:09:00.000-08:00

We are going across the "pond" to visit Jolly Ole England...land of our forefathers and all that. There are 2 main reasons for going. First, I am attending the British Contact Lens Assn. meeting in Manchester the end of May/first of June. As an excuse for going that far to hear some of the world's best minds in optometry we are also going for Meg's "16th birthday trip". Yes, it is a bit late. Anneka and Richard opted for cruises. Lori was urging Meg to go to NY and see theatre on Broadway. I figured she might want to see theatre in London.
We will fly to Paris and spend 2 1/2 days before taking the Chunnel to London. Then pick up a car in London(we'll see how the left side of the road feels...not to mention the right side of the car) and head to Manchester for my conference. We will stay a week in Manchester at an apartment/flat that we have rented and do some evening trips or Lori, Meg, and Charles can take the train to some northern sites. Then we'll spend a couple of days seeing the Lakes District and Preston where there are some LDS Church historical sites as well as on of our Temples. We'll head south to Bath and hit a couple more Church sites and end up in London for the last week. I'll dump the car then as I have no desire to drive on the wrong side of the street in a "town" of 12 million. We have tickets for "Wicked" that Meg REALLY wants to see, a musical version of "Lord of the Rings"(we're not sure about that, but it sound "interesting"), and we'll go to the New Globe Theatre for a Shakespeare play. All this while staying at another flat we have rented for a week in Soho. We will be gone almost 3 weeks and will be the biggest trip we have ever taken. Thank goodness my plane fare is paid for as is 5 nights of lodging, 5 days of food, and 5 days of the car thanks to the benefits I get at work. I never thought that would happen.
Well, our passports are good and we are just waiting for the 25 of May. We'll for sure have some things to report afterwards. Cheerie-O!!

Grandma Lori

2007-04-09T15:31:00.000-08:00

OK that would by definition include Grandpa Rick too. Yes, Anneka is pregnant. She is oneryer (that is a great word) than usually, moodier, sick to her stomach and has an offical due date of November 29th. She is really happy, but understandably spooked a bit. Heck, when Lori was pregnant with Anneka I was spooked and it wasn't even me that was carrying the kid. Lori is excited and has even been seeing things that the "little spud" would like. BTW, I have official permission from the Little Mother herself to call my future grandkid the "Little Spud" until it pops out and has a name. More to follow!!

National Honor Society Kid

2007-04-03T16:38:00.000-08:00

Meg was inducted into the Barnoff Chapter of the National Honor Society last night. Apparently this chapter has opted to have a higher standard for GPA than the norm, so Meg is especially special. We are rather biased, but that what parents do. Congrats Meg!!!

Orchestra Kids

2007-04-02T12:55:00.000-08:00

Yes, we have no orchestra program in the Sitka schools. But, for the past 6 years there has been a community youth orchestra. Charles played in it last year and this year he and Meg participated. The practice on Saturday mornings (not too early) and have one performance which was this past Saturday. They played one of my favorite pieces: the Smetana tone-poem The Moldau. This is a very nationalistic piece based on a Czech folk song. It stirred such national pride in the Czechs that Hitler banned it from being played after he invaded in 1939. When the Allies liberated Prague at the end of the war they broadcast The Moldau everywhere they could and the people knew they had been freed from the Nazis. They also play another neat piece: The Hall of the Mountain King. Charles of course played bass while Meg was on violin. There are a few adults in the group, but most are students. They had 47 members this year.

Great Winter Sport

2007-03-30T10:13:00.000-08:00

For those of us "suffering" with this odd cold / snowy weather, racquetball is a nice way to get a lot of excercise in a short period. We use the courts at Sheldon Jackson College... a small private school here in Sitka. They have 2 courts and a pool (which Meg uses as she doesn't want racquetball to mess up her tennis swing), weights, etc.
I taught Lori to play many years ago and she has become a good player. Charles is getting really good and I have to work hard at beating him. The past year he has really improved as he grows and gets more coordinated.
We occasionally will play "cutthroat" but Lori get a bit paranoid(and rightfully so) of getting smacked with the ball. We tried doubles a couple of times, but she would rather do singles.