Basically Speaking...   
          (New & ongoing events will be posted below this Basic Outline) 
 
            I enjoy a simple lifestyle and have lived a very unique way for the past seven years.  I'll explain a little of what this has been like.  Our house is in a cedar/pine forest, very rustic and is heated soley with a wood stove.  There is plenty of fuel from the forest plus scraps aplenty from the home construction.  On cold nights, I would heat a nice round-shaped rock on top of the wood stove, wrap it in a towel and at bedtime  place it between the bottom sheet and the top bedding and, no matter how cold the temperature, as soon as my feet touched the heated stone I began to feel it spread warmth throughout my whole body.  This works as well as an electric blanket and, amazingly, the stone would still be warm in the morning when I unwrapped it.  I know this is an old "boy scout" trick but I never lose amazement at how well this technique works!  I love things that propel us to a more self-sufficient way of living, it is extremely satisfying for me.
       I would heat hot water on either the propane stove on the upper deck outside or the wood stove if there was a hot fire in it.  Propane gas lines will be hooked up soon and the kitchen downstairs is nearly finished. I painted a "Castle Theme" Playroom for a local cabinet maker (you can see the playroom on in the photo section) in exhchange for the knotty pine cabinets. Children's Rooms and Theme Rooms are a favorite of mine to do.
        A part-time job I have done for many years is working as a cook a few days a week when The Bridge, a health facility in Rockville near Zion's, is running group sessions.  This is a beautiful and special place to work.  I help the guests learn about nutrition and encourage them to use the things they are learning at The Bridge as something they can do for themselves when they return home. I have made many close friendships with these people who come and stay for three weeks then move on.  They help remind me that our health is a delicate balance that can be lost at any time and it is a duty we have to preserve it the best way we can.  "The body flourishes or declines as we respect or disrespect it."  One of the things I stress at The Bridge is that "Processing Foods Leads To Non-Foods".  This is so common nowdays.  We usually take for granted how our food sources are changing from past eras.  
     My  children and, especially my grandchildren, are the sparkling jewels of my life.  They are the sweetness and goodness I draw from in remembrance of those characterisitcs that are ebbing in the hardness of today.   I enjoy my times with them and wish there were more of me to go around.  Any suggestions on  how to harness time and crowd 48 hours into 24 would be greatly appreciated.