Work calls, afternoon at Fernan Lake - boat test
Sunday in CDA
Heading to Austin’s house to wait on a load of gravel. Delivery scheduled for 11. Planning to assemble the Roanoke and organize some gear. Went to National skate day and watched the locals work the ramps. Nan shoveled gravel, I repacked the truck including the new float boat. Went to Caruso’s for dinner then back to Mill River.
National Skate Day at Coeur D’Alene Skate Park
Saturday in CDA
Up this morning, after breakfast dropped Sonya at Fred Meyer. Black Sheep was mobbed with people but managed to get the inflatable pontoon boat, life vest, pump and fins purchased and loaded up. Went to Austin’s then tacos at the food truck. Picked up lumber and plumbing supplies for the yard project. Built planter under picture window. Rain came, cooked steak and chicken on the BioLite. Loaded the tent onto the new truck racks. Back at Mill River for programs.
New planter box
Me an Aus
Nan by fire on front porch
Tent loaded on truck racks
Friday - Free day, taking a break
Up this morning at 6, coffee and then to Precision Auto Glass, fix rock chips. Made appointment at Atlas Auto for repairs to AC. Picked up Sonya, went to North 40 for some tie down materials for truck, hit Albertsons and the chiropractor. Back at mill river. Heading on an outing around 1:30. Afternoon, picked up Sally then took a trip out along the east shore of the lake, sat at Beacon Point for a while, too busy with people, traffic and boats. Went back to Mill River and changed into shorts. Parked at the top of the the access road then walked down to Mica Bay Boaters Park. Sonya and I sat and talked while I worked on a painting. Bugs got to us so we pulled out. Dropped Sally back at Austin’s then back home to mill river. Watched more of Alone Season 6.
relaxing at Beacon Point
Painting of Mica Boaters Park
Sod Day - Thursday in CDA
Sod was delivered around 10:30am, we jumped on it and had it rolled out and sprinklers running on it by the end of the day.
New sod at Austin and Carries House
Carrie and Sonya resting up
Austin watering the sod
Galena Ridge - Kellogg, ID
Austin and I played Galena Ridge today at 10:40. It was a double wrap 9 hole course. White tees both 9’s. Perfect weather, a bit of wind late. Would play again for sure.
Galena Ridge Pro Shack
Austin hitting into #4 green
#6 Tee
Lupine
Front Yard Makeover - Day 1
Met at Austin’s house 8am, had a little breakfast then made a plan for the yard as we waited for the rain to let up. Took Denali to Les Schwab for new tires. Pick up tiller, worked on grading yard. Cody an Johnny helped out. Ordered sod for Thursday. Lunch from wing stop. Fowler stopped by.
Day 1 - Yard Makeover
Monday in CDA
Rainy day, worked from Mill River til noon. Went to Walk in Chiropractic for adjustment. Sonya got her toes done, checked out pontoon boats at Blacksheep. Scheduled new tires at Les Schwab for tomorrow. Ordered Truck rack at Custom Truck. Short visit with Austin and Carrie then back to Mill River. Settled in watching The National Parks - Episode 1. Early bed for Sonya. Planning yard makeover at Austin’s tomorrow.
CDA Golf Club
Austin and I got out for nine holes at CDA Golf Club. Got a break in the rain. Austin 43, Pops 41
On practice putting green at Coeur D’Alene Golf Club
Number4 Tee
Trestle Creek
On our way through St. Regis, Sonya and I stopped off for nine holes at Trestle Creek. Sally got to ride along. Fun stop for us.
Sally riding along.
First Tee
Number 1 Tee
Sunday in CDA
Still a little cool and cloudy, Walmart run then drove the northwest side of Lake CDA looking for a public use area from the past. Turned out to be Mica Bay Boaters Park. A lot of driving! Met up with Austin and Carrie at their house. Went to CDA Golf Club with Austin played front nine. Met Sonya and Carrie after, Albertsons stop then to their house for dinner. Chicken, Tri Tip and Salad. Back to Mill River at 9.
Saturday in CDA
First day settling into the carriage house condo, Sally spent the night with Austin and Carrie. Met up with them at White Pine for coffee. Picked up Sally. It was a cold and wet day, drizzle all day. Ran up to Michaels for some painting supplies. Went back to Austin’s, flew the drone a little then went to lunch down at Collective Kitchen. Went for a walk around the neighborhood, made some dinner and watched The Dust Bowl documentary by Ken Burns. Solid day today on health goals.
Seeley Lake to CDA
Packed up this morning and left the Tamarack’s around 9:30, stopped and played 9 holes Trestle Creek in St Regis. Rolled into Coeur D’Alene around 2:30. Met up with Austin and Kerri then got settled in a Mill River.
Sally at Trestle Creek
Living room and kitchen at Mill River
Finding peace, health, joy and contentment. The view from Soda Lake.
Manifesto 2020
We arrived here in CDA yesterday with a month ahead of us to create a lifestyle that will most likely mimic the rest of our lives. Late in the evening an unsettling feeling came over me, this feeling of agitation, sleeping unsettled for several hours, I am up now at 3:30 AM writing this to sort out my thoughts.
Questions and thoughts…
What am I pretending not to know?
Discipline = Freedom
What if I or we were sick? What would be different, fast forward ahead.
Control what I can control, influence that which can be, forget the rest.
What constitutes a life that provides joy and happiness?
Practice essentialism & hygee.
Live life with intention, not by accident.
Practice and celebrate lead measures, don’t focus on the lag….this brings disappointment. If we consistently do the things that predict success, results are assured. So what are the lead measures that we can incorporate into our lives? Let’s keep is simple.
Here are a few to start…
Get up early and get your fitness activities done as a priority everyday. Walking, hiking with a pack, 100 moves and yoga. Everyday dedicate 1 hour. This will predict success and prepare me to do all of the other things that we plan to do without pain or strain.
Practice financial discipline, payoff bills 2 times every month - 1st and 15th. This will provide peace of mind and security.
Fuel our bodies like our lives depend on it. There really is no excuse on this one, it is just a decision. No time, too hard to plan etc…all cop outs and excuses. If we want to remove belly fat and jiggly legs, this is how it is done. Time to pull my head out of my #$@. What if our lives depended on it? They do…80% of our success and results will come from this one decision. Coupled with item #1, we become unstoppable. Think about all we gain, self confidence, a feeling of control, lack of pain, overall higher quality of life and well being. Enough is enough on this one. Get your shit together McCleary!
Rest and sleep quality - By consistently practicing #1 & #3, we are bound to sleep well, manage our environment and eliminate habits that deprive us of rest. For me, aim for 7-8 hours per night on average, get make up sleep when possible. When tired…rest.
Manage / limit unhealthy technology. Continual input from our screens deprives us of living a real life. This is where asking what would be happening in 1950 becomes useful, being intentional about simplicity has its own benefits. When we sit back and entertain ourselves with the tv, streaming shows, news, social media…what are we really doing? What do we get from it? Rarely is anything we watch or see on a screen, big or small, truly memorable. For me it is mostly wasting time, with few exceptions. How many times have we invested hours and days to be entertained and then when asked about this so called “entertainment”, we cant even remember what we watched, sometime the day after we watched it. It is all a mindless folly and I will plan to pursue alternatives that create lasting value. For instance, reading, writing, painting, journaling, playing cards or real games with Sonya, doin a puzzle etc…are better ways to pass the time and contribute to a healthier and more peaceful life. Eliminating the sources of agitation like news and world events should be guarded at all costs. Physical health is preceded by mental health, mental heath is a product of our thoughts, how we choose to feed out mind is the greatest influencer in this area. The world will find ways to force enough of this upon us, let us not choose to voluntarily add to the onslaught of input that dominates our lives today. Instead, choose peace, calm and activities that matter and ultimately bring us joy and contentment.
Dedicate more time to nature, observe the world around us, notice and appreciate all of the wonders and variety that gods world has to offer, it is free and abundant and ever changing. Note what we see, learn from the natural world and the balance of it. Again a choice.
I am reminded of something that I read in a current book by John Geirach. He was speaking about or fly boxes a a metaphor for life. Our tendency is to always look for a shortcut of hack to speed along one result or another. We can all remember an earlier time where, when first starting out, we only had one fly box, in my case it was full of one pattern, the humpy, mostly in black, both wet and dry and in multiple sizes, mostly large. On Mill Creek, this was enough to catch fish, rain or shine this one little box caught fish. I still have it and some of the remaining flies but treat it like some kind of antique. There was a time when this is all I had and for me, it was enough. Simple and effective. John’s quote went something like…..”Still, I find it difficult to live with the kind of simplicity that eliminates struggle”
These are good questions and I am sure there will be others, it is my hope to capture it all in a summary here to refer back to as time goes along.
In conclusion, for this first installment, I want to lay it on the line. If lifestyle changes are not incorporated consistently, and the results of our health are left to chance, then we should not be surprised when something goes wrong down the line. Even taking all of these precautions as a preventative strategy provide no guarantee to lasting health. We see it all the time, perfectly healthy people, doing all of the right things, stricken down by one disease or another. My own bias is toward stress as the real killer. So, what are we pretending not to know? If we were ever going to live our best life, when would be the best time to get started?
Next Steps:
Dump the crappy food we just bough yesterday and replace it with items that are compliant an vital to our success.
Come up with a plan for staying fed, have the discipline to prepare our food on advance.
Start the fitness routine now…no delay. And stick with it, do something everyday.
Gain commitment and accountability. Help each other drive through life safely.
That is all for now….
Double Arrow Ranch - Seeley Lake
Nice clear day today, warm and sunny in Seeley Lake. We spent some time around the cabin and campground in the morning. 11:44 Tee Time at Double Arrow Golf Course. Sally was situated in her condo in the back seat of the truck with a personal fan along with her blanket, busy bone and water dish. Sonya and I walked the front 9, perfect weather and beautiful surroundings. We both played well, Sonya hit some really nice shots and lost only one ball on her way to a 58. I scored a 39 with one birdie. When we checked in for the golf we had a chance to meet a woman who was one of the owners of Double Arrow, on her recommendation, we went to the main Lodge for lunch. Great rustic old log lodge. Did some painting back at the cabin, then went to Lindy’s Steakhouse for a long anticipated dinner. An exceptional day.
Practice range at Double Arrow
Lindy’s Prime Steakhouse in Seeley Lake
Menu at Lindey’s
Sonya on #2 Tee
Ovando and Browns Lake
We took a day trip over to Ovando about 30 miles southeast of Seeley Lake. Stopped at the bait shop where the young fella who I gave a 10$ tip for the local pike fishing knowledge worked, only to find his older brother who looked to be 14, working the till. Paid a visit to the Blackfoot Angler and planned to grab some lunch at the Stray Bullet, no lunch but a good visit with Kathy, some micro leeches and a tee shirt then across the street to the general store for some supplies. We missed a turn on our way to Browns Lake and went an extra 10 miles to Helmsville, then backtracked to Browns Lake. The lake was a bit of a disappointment, limited access and I joined the ranks of the bait dunkers with a few halfhearted casts with a worm and spinner. We drove back toward Seeley Lake, for the 4th time spotted elk along Montana 200. Stopped at Harpers Lake and drove around the tidy public campground near the river. Retired to Tamarack’s, grilled some chicken, quiet evening at the Huckleberry Cabin.
Downtown Ovando
Ovando Town Sign
Near Browns Lake
Fishing Seeley Lake
Launched from the dock in a 14’ rowboat with a shiny new Yamaha 9.9 and headed to Lindy Bay. Saw a doe put here fawn to bed along the shore among the summer homes and boat docks, then wander off to find some unsuspecting patio geraniums. Sonya and Sally were along for the first 2 hours. Sunny and calm. No fish, tried smelt and meat flies around several weed beds. Fished hard all afternoon, weather cooled, clouds moved on and the wind freshened a bit. No fish. I was told by the young man at the bait shop, fishing has been slow since early May. Packed it in around 4.
Morning fog on Seeley Lake
Pike rig at Seeley Lake
Cabins on Seeley Lake
Butte to Seeley Lake
Woke to wet heavy snow in Butte, drove to Missoula having to skip plans to fish the Anaconda Settling Ponds. Went to Michaels for painting supplies, then lunch in downtown Missoula. Stopped at Kim’s store and had a nice visit. Picked up painting box from Ben Haggett. Got to Seeley Lake around 4. Tent site muddy, rented Huckleberry cabin at Tamarack’s for 4 nights.
Huckleberry Cabin
Seeley Lake - Tamarack’s Resort
Driggs to Butte
Got up today and packed up in Driggs, rainy morning. Drove through Ashton and up to Island Park. Harriman Ranch closed until June 15. Sonya and I had breakfast at the Trout Hunter. Stopped at box canyon campground, nice place for camping. Drove to Henry’s Lake campground, no good. West Yellowstone, then down the Gallatin River. Everything high and off color. Still wet and raining over pipestone pass, Got into Butte late afternoon, checked into Hotel Finlen, motor inn. Dinner at Casagranada’s.
Upper Gallatin River
Sonya at Lobby of Hotel Finlen
Dinner in Butte
Soda Lake, Wyoming
We left Twin Buttes Lake Wednesday morning, arrived in Pinedale, Wyoming late afternoon. Sonya and I made camp at the north end of Soda Lake on a flat sandy shelf above the waters edge. For two days we hit the fishing hard, tried every combination in the box, even got professional help at 2 Rivers Fly Shop. We saw fish, just could not get them to move to our flies. We enjoyed our camp, the lake and the towering peaks. Sonya picked up her 9’ 5 weight rod, put on her waders and fished along side me both days. We loved the town of Pinedale, hope to come back again.
Nan heading into the lake.
Nan casting on the south shore.
View from our camp.
Camp
Supper