Live Life Exuberantly

Our friend Colleen decamped to Panama last week. Not for a vacation, but to live there. While Colleen has long planned a move to Central America after retirement, events here in America accelerated the timeline. Unfortunately, Donald strikes again. We will miss her and her spirit. Continue reading Colleen

As we left Labuan Bajo, it was raining. It almost felt like our three days on The White Pearl were a pleasant, but fading dream in the mist.  Snorkeling, baby sharks, an early morning hike to see sunrise from a mountain top, thousands of bats, and Komodo Dragons were all a part of this chapter. Continue reading Here Be Dragons

Our hunting of the Pygmy Elephants in Borneo was more difficult than hunting African Elephants in Botswana or Zimbabwe. In fact, we almost didn’t see any. We were down to our sixth and final safari before we were lucky and magic struck. It was worth the wait and we had an amazing hour of viewing. Continue reading Pygmy Elephants

In February, I wrote a blog about Trump and racism. At the end I said, “I have written several blogs about racism here in America. I have to say, they don’t seem to do much good.” Afterwards, my friend, Andrea Codd, sent me wonderful words of encouragement I would like to share. They are a lesson for all of us. Continue reading Keep Speaking Out

There are no immaculate conceptions on farms, however, our friend Linda, who raises sheep, miraculously has six pregnant ewes. How did it happen? While shearing her sheep this spring, she learned one of her males had a “dangler” she missed when castrating him last year – Whoops! It’s quite a story. Continue reading The Dangler

What do visits with family, drinking beer with 2,000 friends, and seeing Orangutans, Pygmy Elephants, and Komodo Dragons have in common? They are all part of our next vacation! Cath and I are flying halfway around the world to visit New Zealand, Singapore, Borneo, and Indonesia. Continue reading Travelin’ 

Last week, I was walking to the barn to feed the horses. The morning was so beautiful, it felt like a stab to my heart and I suddenly knew Spring was my favorite season. This surprised me. For decades, Autumn was my choice. What had changed? Or, what had changed in me? Continue reading Springtime

My birthday is April 10th. Of historical interest, Lee surrendered to Grant on April 9th, 1865. On April 10th, he issued General Order No. 9, his farewell to the Army of Northern Virginia. In it, Lee stated he wished to “avoid useless sacrifice”, which has given rise to my birthday wish this year.  Continue reading Me and Lee

Baseball has started, which made me think about dad. How old was I when we first played catch? When he taught me to throw and catch a baseball? I know I was young. I also thought about some of the other life lessons that were a part of that process. Continue reading Playing Catch

Last Tuesday I filled my F250 pickup truck with diesel. Well actually, I didn’t fill it up. The gas pump shut off automatically when it reached $100.00. That was 20 gallons of fuel at $4.99/gallon. I was lucky. The next day, diesel was up to $5.49 at the same station in Marshall, VA. Continue reading Fill ‘er up 

At Rohan Farm, we have five main pastures or paddocks for the horses. In Cathy’s and my shorthand, we call them: The Back Field, The Jenny Craig, The Barn Paddock, The Field Near the House, and The Front Field. For us, each area has its own particular use. Continue reading Pastures and Paddocks

On March 9th of last week, Adam Ray would have turned 40. Adam was the son of my West Point classmate Jim and his wife Donna. He was killed by an IED in Afghanistan on February 9th, 2010, one month shy of his 24th birthday. The administration’s cavalier attitude about the current war with Iran is raising old ghosts from past conflicts. Continue reading Adam

You have probably heard about the redistricting referendum in Virginia on April 21st. It is an effort to counter the actions by Trump and his friends to gerrymander several Republican-controlled states, starting with Texas. He is trying to keep control of the House of Representatives at all costs in the midterm elections. Voting YES on this referendum is essential to preserve democracy at…

My apologies it was sent out prematurely and is incomplete. Again my apologies.

Continue reading It Didn’t Have to Happen