It’s been a minute (a month!) since we’ve posted something to RivetingJourney.com. There hasn’t been much to report on. Yet, at the same time, there have been some happenings!

First, health – Karen made a quick trip (2 days) to North Carolina for follow-up appointments. She met with her oncologist, had blood drawn, underwent a CT scan and a bone scan, and was given the Xgeva shot (for bone strengthening). Blood results were perfect, and the CT and bone scans were clear of cancer! An appointment has been made to have her port removed in March. Her oncologist expressed concern having it flushed in other locations as we travel – a potential infection risk – so she gave the green light to have it removed. She would prefer that Karen have the Xgeva shot monthly, but that is not doable at this time, given our travel schedule. She’ll need to be diligent in taking her supplements DAILY!

Other health news … Both of us (Karen first) came down with a serious cold – our first in many years. No need to point fingers at who did what wrong (Karen…). Let’s just say that masks will be worn in enclosed spaces in the future! We would rather wear a mask for a short time to avoid feeling miserable for a week.

Second, travel – We are still in Florida during its WARMEST February ever. Of course… And we have a week of boondocking (meaning: no hookups, thus no electricity to run our A/C) near Lake Okeechobee for one week starting February 28. Yes, we did try to change this, but … busy season in Florida. So, we will prevail! The upside for that week – we will be visiting Karen’s cousin, Tami, and her husband, Scott, who live in Port St. Lucie. It has been a few years since we have seen them, and we look forward to the visit.

We will have a few more weeks in Florida – Eustis then Daytona – before we make our way back to North Carolina for a few weeks. Visits with family and friends and several medical/dental/eye appointments will be had before we move on in April toward Montana. YES! Alaska is happening this year! FINALLY!!!!!!!

Etcetera – We made new friends, Don and Carolyn from Ohio, in Eustis, Florida. Carolyn is an avid crocheter and cancer survivor, and Karen is teaching herself to crochet, so they connected immediately and easily. We went on a boat tour with them, had dinner, and Carl and Don played golf in Clermont when we met up with them again at the Orlando RV Resort. We will miss seeing them, but Karen and Carolyn will be keeping in touch as they update each other on their projects. We hope to see our other Ohio friends, Dennis and Mickey, before we head to Lake Okeechobee.

While in NC, Karen saw The Book of Mormon with Madeline, Layne, Rachel, and Em at DPAC. So enjoyable. She loves spending time with her girls!

Karen reconnected with a high school friend, Kathy Kralovich Ziegler. She lives not far from where we stayed in Bradenton, Florida, but we didn’t know until after we left the area. Thankfully, Kathy reached out through FaceBook messenger, and we met her at a restaurant in Lakeland – a good half-way point. It was an enjoyable visit, and Karen hopes to keep in touch with her.

We have visited with Carl’s son, Eric, and his girlfriend, Patty. We love spending time with them and hope to see them again in Daytona before we leave Florida.

ETCETERA – The one BIG THING that happened in February… Our refrigerator died the yellow pool of death (major, unrepairable leaking). Carl is extremely talented, however, and after waiting about 10 days longer than expected due to a shipping delay, we installed our new 12-volt Dometic RV refrigerator. Upside – it is BIGGER than the original refrigerator, and we are loving the space. Carl checks the amperage daily, and he is satisfied. We filmed the entire installation, and Karen is editing the video and will upload it soon.

Wishing all of you well. Stay tuned for our RV refrigerator installation video!

Happy New Year! We have 12 months in front of us. Some of us might have made some resolutions – lose weight, exercise more, eat healthier, quit smoking, drink less, travel more, read more, etc. Others of us have given up on the resolution-setting idea. Goal setting – the same thing. How can we think of five years from now when we just want to get through this next week?

Years ago, I read an interesting way of looking at a new year ahead. I don’t remember the source, but the idea has stayed with me for several years. I’m calling it a time travel exercise. Stay with me for a few more sentences!

Okay, this is what you do. Pretend you are sitting in your favorite spot, all good and comfortable, on December 31, 2023 – the last day of this new year – and you are reflecting back on the past 12 months (which have yet to take place…). What has 2023 looked like for you? What do you want it to look like? Are there places you went, debts you paid, accomplishments you made? Are you feeling happier, more centered, healthier? Are you just glad you made it through another year? Are you proud of how you handled unexpected challenges?

The idea is to take a glance over your shoulder, look back at this coming year, and give yourself a pat on the back for the roads you navigated, the decisions you made, the life you’ve lived.

Write some of these down. What did 2023 look like in your visionary exploration? Then tuck the list somewhere – maybe stick it in your Christmas decorations so you find it next year when you start decorating your house. Or slip it in a desk drawer for you to come across at the end of this year. Put a reminder on your phone for sometime in December to pull the list out and read it. Then just forget about it and live these next 12 months as they unfold.

When next December arrives and you find your list, you might be pleasantly surprised by what you wrote, by what you imagined for yourself, by what you accomplished. Maybe nothing happened as you expected, or maybe it all did. Most definitely, though, you might discover something about yourself that is revealed in a list you wrote 12 months earlier.

Whatever we put out into the universe eventually finds its way back to us in some form or fashion. Setting resolutions and goals is basically saying you WILL DO or WILL TRY TO DO something. But stating that you HAVE DONE something is acknowledging that it has already happened, and it is just a matter of time.

At the end of 2023, as I look over my shoulder, I see that Carl and I have traveled to Alaska and had an unforgettable, adventurous, beautiful trip – boat rides, float plane rides, walking on a glacier, seeing incredible wildlife, feasting our eyes on untouched beauty, meeting new people and seeing old friends. We also made our way back to Minnesota for Carl to work the corn silage and sugar beet harvests as a truck driver. And then we spent some time exploring new places in the southwest. Our health is good – no unexpected scares. And I’ve made serious and productive progress with my writing, to the point that I’m starting to make some money.

Now you’ve seen my list. So much for me “tucking” it away until the end of next year. The good news, for me, is that I generally forget what I’ve written until I reread it again! So, I will put a reminder in my phone to reread this post at the end of next year, and I’ll let you know how it all turns out!

This year, 2023, will be a year to remember. May it unfold lovingly and beautifully for you as well.

Hello cheese lovers! We all know our cheese comes from dairy, and we might even see in our mind’s eye a farmer sitting on a stool milking a cow into a bucket. Or we might even envision a more modern-day dairy parlor where the cow is being milked mechanically by suction tubes.

The “cow carousel” takes it to a different level. Yes. You read that right – a CAROUSEL! When we first arrived in northern Minnesota at the beginning of September, we knew Carl would be hauling corn silage to a dairy farm. We were told this farm had over 10,000 cows, and all I could think of was that I did not want to be down wind of a 10,000-cow farm! Read on for more information, and, for an inside look, watch our pictorial video.