Memphis Democrat
January 16,2003

I have finally returned home after several weeks of traveling to visit my family. I was blessed with lots of time with my family during my extended stay although the reason, the death of my grandmother, was very sad. After such a long time away, I'm especially glad to return to enjoy my friends and home.

Nearly everyone else has returned from their winter travels as well. I heard it was awfully quiet around here, though some excellent desserts were served to the half dozen who remained. There was plenty of rest and relaxation. But also hard work erecting a porch on Skyhouse and a deck on the grain bin apartments.

I came home just in time to say goodbye to Ingmar, the cat. He's been looking for a new home for awhile. His other guardian, Alyosha, came to visit and took him to nursing home facility where he will bring joy to the home bound residents. I also almost missed Susan Brown. She stayed on the farm for the holidays, but just headed east to visit her Ukrainian "sister" from her Peace Corps days, who is living for awhile in Syracuse, NY.

Bob faithfully walks every Saturday morning to Zimmerman's for some food from the cafe and a visit with the Rutledge Renegades. He comes back with stories to share from our neighbors. So if you see him in the cafe on a Saturday morning, stop by and ask him to show you his plans for a co-op kitchen he is designing.

The cold weather has been a bit of a shock after Florida and NY, but I love what it does to the pond! The pond froze thick and crystal clear, so we could watch the underwater life as we skated across the ice. Now all we need is a little snow so we can dust off our cross country skis.

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