Happy New Year in 2024!

It has been a little over a year since I last updated my personal website. I'm very sorry about that. Too much has gone on and let's just say that life got in the way, at least that is one way of looking at it. The year 2023 has not gone well. First our beloved dog - Midnight passed away on Feb. 7, 2023. She was my best friend along with my wife - I might add. But her and I were like tied together so, yeah, that particularly hit hard. It came as a shock as we didn't know anything was wrong until about the third week of January and then we found out she had cancer......there is that ugly word again that has taken three of our dogs over time. Both Ann and me are trying to move on, but we take a lot of deep breaths and cry a lot.  

The second item that was life changing was Ann having a stroke on July 7, 2023. I never will forget that day. Without going into great detail here, because it is a long story, Ann had the stroke here at home and I called 911 and then to the hospital we went. She came home that evening, but shouldn't have because they could not locate or determine it was a stroke until the next day, when I had to call 911 again. Then the stroke showed upon imagery and they hostipilized her for nearly a week. She also had to have a pacemaker placed in her a few days later. Then off to Billings she went for two weeks of inpatient therapy at the Billings Rehabilitation Hospital. Then she came home to where she had home therapy for about 6 weeks and then outpatient therapy ever since then. She is still going to outpatient therapy but that should come to an end at the end of this month of March. She is much, much improved, but she still has strength, balance and endurance issues. It has been a wild ride.

Ann has finally retired from everything as she spends time trying to take care of herself now instead of doing so with others. Continue to pray for her. I'm still knee deep in working for the Gallatin Wildlife Association. That spends my time. 

Just recently, we are on our second week of fostering a dog named Bear. We may end up keeping him for good, but between everything else, it takes a lot of time. More on this front as we go along, but for now Bear and we are becoming comfortable with each other.

But for now, sit back and enjoy, inform and educate yourself to my world. Remember, you came to me!

Love to you all. 

Maligne Lake, Jasper National Park

Alberta, Canada 

This picture was taken on June 2013 on our 35th wedding anniversary. This is a beautiful mountain scene along the Canadian Rocky Mountain Front. 

The winter of 2023-24 sure has been a lot different than the winter before. This year's El nino has taken a toll on snowfall and cold weather. As March 1, we've only had 40 inches of snow compared that to 78 inches last year at this time, barely half.   The warm weather and lack of snow has been a real downer, but we've been getting some snow now at the end of February and first of March. The mountains have only about 60% to 75% of normal. That does not bode well for fire season.

Average season snowfall:                                                               72.0   in

Last year season total snowfall:                                                   114.6   in

This year season total snowfall:                                                    40.4   in