A Trip to Denver (Indiana That Is)

 This afternoon we drove southwest about an hour to Doud's Orchard in Denver Indiana.

 

 

The produce shed/store has apples, cider, apple butter, and other items.

They even had onions, plums, other things.

There were maybe 8 different kinds of apples ripe right now. They had signs giving the name, what it was good for (eating, salads, cooking, baking) and a brief idea of the taste (sweet, medium sweet, tart, etc.).

The sales area was decorated for autumn. It was nicely done.

Pumpkins, gourds, Indian corn were available to buy.

Customers could walk around the orchard and the "pumpkin patch".

We had driven south on Indiana 19 most of the way. We decided to go home through Roann on Indiana 16. We had never driven this road west of the town. We were pleasantly surprised to see the Stockdale Mill on the Eel River. The present mill was built in 1857 replacing an earlier one swept away by flood. The current dam was built in 1916.

We browsed in 3 antique stores in Roann, but our day's purchases ended up being apple butter, Jonagold apples, cider, and some cheese corn pops (cheetoh type of snack) added to the basket by my husband.

Books and More

 After my physical therapy session this morning, we headed to North Webster Public Library for the friends of the library book sale. Driving east on Old 30 and north on Indiana 13, we saw 3 yards with pumpkin stands, the one on IN 13 had maybe a hundred pumpkins of all sizes.

The sale started at 10 a.m. We arrived about 10:30. There were quite a lot of people browsing the items. I was a bit disappointed there weren't more jigsaw puzzles. Usually they have lots; but maybe people are holding on to them in case the state closes things down again so they have something to do. Actually, Indiana is doing better, down to a more acceptable level of transmission; our county is also finally down to under 5% community transmission. 

My husband picked out 2 DVD movies. I ended up with 7 fiction books and one decorating book. The Images is the jigsaw puzzle.

While I waited in the main library lobby for him, I noticed that there were free magazines. I picked up the September Better Homes & Gardens. 

We have viewing and reading material for the colder weather coming next week. Right now it is beautiful delightful weather. By next Thursday I will probably need my electric blanket even if only to warm things up for crawling under the covers. 

I have a set of exercises to do twice a day. My neck already feels better, but my arm feels worse. Normally I would have traction next week, but because I have a cervical level that is fused they are going to just do some deep muscle massage. My Medicare Advantage plan is waiving the $40 co-pay through September 30th so I will get two sessions "free". I also didn't pay any copay at the eye doctor nor for my colonoscopy. A "Pandemic Perk". Apparently so many people are avoiding going for medical care the insurance company is paying out very little; they are trying to give an incentive to take care of oneself. 

Tomorrow I am going to try to get a flu shot. That is always no cost to the patient under my insurance. 

Time Marches On

 Even though we are living in a period of weirdness, time marches on. Next week will be the official start of autumn.

My C5-6 vertebra looks pretty ugly on the plain X-ray (severely collapsed was the term used), but looks can be deceiving when trying to identify pain generator(s). Dr. Smith would like to see MRI pictures of the cervical spine, but said the insurance company will require trying physical therapy before allowing an MRI. So next Thursday I will go to a physical therapy facility here in Warsaw. After an evaluation, suggestions will be made to reduce the pain. If I am not better in 4 weeks, I am to let Ortho Northeast know so an MRI can be scheduled before I see the doctor again on November 3rd.

 Meanwhile, I have tramadol for pain, and I am supposed to have gabapentin and a muscle relaxant, but those prescriptions were sent digitally to the wrong pharmacy. I cleared things up this morning, but though my pharmacy received them today, they are very busy and didn't have them ready at 3 p.m. when I picked up the pain killer. Another trip to Kroger tomorrow and I'll be set.

I ordered some blue earrings on Etsy. The pair I was trying to replace had intersecting silver rings with a blue bead; I bought them at Kohl's. These are a little different but look nice with my blouses.

The vendor sent along with her business card another printed card. On one side was a verse to pray to be saved; the other side had a prayer of rededication. A way to reach out to people during a pandemic I guess. 

This morning I went to an estate sale before going to pick up my online grocery order. I hit the jackpot! The deceased lady loved country style decorating and had several books. I bought 4. I also bought two music CDs. The wife of the president of Dallas Theological Seminary while we worked there is a sister to Steve Green. They arranged a private concert for the seminary staff and friends by Steve Green. He sang A Mighty Fortress Is Our God acapella. He sure has the pipes. It was the best solo of that hymn I have ever heard. The song is on the CD and starts out acapella but then backup singers and some instruments come in. The live rendition was better with the notes reverberating in the auditorium.

The Brickman CD still has the shrinkwrap on it. I have another disc of piano pieces by him; I need to listen to this one and see what it is like.

After my medical appointment in Fort Wayne yesterday, I went to Costco mainly looking for a new book by Jenna Bush Hager that came out September 8th. I always thought she was hired for TV because of her father. I read an excerpt of Everything Beautiful In Its Time in a magazine. She writes very well. The piece I read was about her maternal grandmother Jenna Welch. The book shares memories of her two grandmothers and her grandfather (George H. W. Bush). I am looking forward to reading it.

The next few days and nights will be cold (down to 40 at night). Good book reading weather. I bought some Pillsbury cinnamon rolls to bake and have with hot chocolate. 

My husband finished a shadow box recently. There is a remote control that changes the color of the lights. He asked the public library if they would like to display it in the children's section. They loved it!

Music In the Time of a Pandemic

 The Lake Area Community Band traditionally comes to Grace Village each September to perform a concert. This year the band set up outside. Some residents sat in the dining room where they could hear through the open windows. Fortunately, the weather cooperated. My husband and I and others brought folding chairs to put on the grass a safe distance from the musicians.

This band is a wonderful opportunity for people who played as students and young adults to pick up their instruments once again and contribute to the community.

Grace Village choir had its first rehearsal today since mid-March. We all started off with masks, but the back row (tenors and basses) took them off. It would be their germs that project forward onto the two front rows (altos and sopranos). I guess their only risk would be from those spaced out along their own row. A few people wore masks all the time, some part of the time, some took short breaks by pulling the mask down under their chins.

 It is not easy to sing wearing a mask which causes limited airflow. This may be why some church attendees don't wear masks or take them off while singing. I cannot see the people at my church on the livestream except those on the platform; they take their masks off before singing and playing. My church sings 6 or 7 songs during a service. It is one of the reasons I do not attend in person. 

If you think the risk is low at churches, read this sad tale of an older Hoosier couple who isolated except for medical appointments and attending church. Unfortunately, they both contracted COVID-19, and the man who also had COPD died. Turns out members of their church had presymtomatic cases and did become ill several days before the couple did.

On a positive note: after reading on the internet suggestions for fixing my ipad problem of Safari freezing, I was able to change some settings, etc. I can now search the internet and play games again on my ipad. I sat in my comfy chair in the living room doing just that.

Milky Skies

 Woke up this morning to milky skies. The Western wildfire smoke has finally made it to the Great Lakes. Since our skies are otherwise clear, I will need to make an effort to see what kind of sunset we have tonight. I should be outdoors anyway to attend a band concert at Grace Village. To socially distance, the band will perform outside.

The rusty pink sedums are thriving now. I walked with my husband yesterday to the woodworking shop, and there are many sedums between the shop and the community center. I can also see some at the base of my neighbor's hydrangeas. 

I am feeling a bit down this week. I have an appointment with a spine orthopedist Wednesday to address some possible problems. Our county now has the highest positivity rate of any county in the state of Indiana. This might be because of more testing; but it also might mean a high community transmission of the virus. I had hoped to attend my church in person this month, but it isn't looking good risk-wise. My ipad freezes up when online. I can no longer play games from the comfort of my living room chair.

I need to refocus on positive things. I just saw a nuthatch come to the bird feeder. That perks me up.

Market Wagon

 As I came to type up this post, I discovered Blogger has moved to the new format. I could go back to the legacy setup for awhile, but after September it will disappear. I decided I will try the new one to learn the differences. I already know I don't like the way it lists my former posts for me to see the number of views or to edit.

When I picked up a copy of Edible Michiana magazine at the Crazy Egg restaurant, I noticed an ad for a service called Market Wagon. The service area mostly covers northeast Indiana and only goes as far west as Warsaw. Winona Lake falls within those limits.

The idea is to support local food sources: grass-fed beef, family bakeries, fruit and vegetable producers, organic items, etc. The items come from Michigan as well as Indiana. I ordered only two items.

I would say the prices are about 30-40% more than grocery store prices. If pesticides and preservative additives are a concern, this is a good option. You will notice the cheese I bought is made from raw milk. These issues are not that important to me. I would hope the fruit would be fresher and better than regular markets, but not necessarily better than fruit stands. Since blueberry season is about over, I didn't order any blueberries.

The order has a flat $5.95 delivery rate. Ordering more items would help spread out that cost.

My first order arrived today. The delivery lady rang the bell. You don't have to be home because they leave your order on the porch in an insulated bag with an ice pack. Since I am not sure if I will order in the future (kind of pricy for me), I asked her to take the cooler bag with her. For regular customers, you leave the bag for pickup at the next order. The online ordering and delivery worked well. I would have ordered some of the jams and sauces, but most of them were "out of stock". The order must be placed by Tuesday night for Thursday delivery. The delivery is just once a week. 

If I lived closer to Fort Wayne, there would be a few places where I could pick up my order and save the delivery cost. Still it is nice to know during a pandemic that one has access to these types of food without leaving home. I will scroll the products in a few weeks when autumn items start to appear. (Apples already for sale.) I doubt I will be a regular customer because of the higher costs. 

Mums

Yesterday I bought some mums for my front porch. I was intrigued by the celosia (a "wheat" variety) so bought it, too. There was no care tag. When I got home, I looked up Celosia on the internet. It needs lots of light; the front porch is not going to give it what it needs. I bought a plastic pot and put the plant in my sunroom. The internet said it could be grown inside. Since I have never grown celosia I don't know how long it will bloom. For now, it is pretty in the house.

This afternoon I brought the celosia inside so just the mums are left on the porch. I expect the mums to last until the end of September.

Maybe I should take the celosia out of its original pot and replant into the textured container. I think I am going to just leave it as is; I feel lazy.

We have days in the 80's but by the end of next week we will be in the high 60's. Then I will put out some autumn decorations, including a green tablecloth with a runner of autumn leaves in the sun room. I bought some sweet corn from the produce stand this morning. They seemed to have plenty; lots of people buying big quantities for their families and Labor Day parties I suppose. These may be the last ears we eat.

There were at least a dozen people without masks in the grocery store today. They made no effort to distance either. Next week I am going to order online for car pickup. One of the county high schools switched to virtual learning for 2 weeks as they have 100 students with COVID (symptomatic), and because the staff have to isolate for 2 weeks, not enough manpower to keep the school running efficiently. We will see what they and the rest of the communities look like after Labor Day get-togethers. Lots of people are pretty cavalier about the pandemic. 

Found out it was 100 people isolating; only 5 students tested positive and had symptoms. By closing the high school, they were able to transfer janitors, cafeteria workers to the elementary schools where they were short of staff because there too people had been exposed outside of school and needed to be tested and get results.