SOLD!

Previously on this blog (March 20) , I shared some pictures of the renovation work we were doing on a rental property we have in Farmington. I just have to share the good news.




I'm happy to announce that after 82 days on the market, it is . . .
SOLD!!

As you probably know, it's a Buyer's market in Utah, as it is in most areas of the country, so we are very happy with this result. Ironically, after so much time on the market with increasing interest, but no offers - this week, we got 2 offers, one day apart. Competing offers are always a good thing, if you are a seller. Assuming everything goes well, it should close by mid-August. This is proof there is hope for those of you that might be trying to sell a home. The price is the key, so do your research and be realistic.

If you want to see what the house looked like after all our renovations, click here. (I hope this link works, it's the first time I've tried this feature.)

Don't Feed the Bears

In Yellowstone they say: Please don't feed the bears. But apparently feeding the mosquitoes is perfectly okay, and I have the bites to prove it. Yes, we used mosquito repellent, but there must have been a mix-up at the factory and we got mosquito attractant instead of repellent. Aside from that, we had a good time seeing the sights at Yellowstone National Park this weekend.


I like to get off the beaten path away from the crowds, so we usually do a couple of 5 or 6 mile hikes to places most people never see. This time I found a new hike near the Canyon area.

It starts off across a meadow, where we came across a lone Bison enjoying the wildflowers.












It then goes into a shady pine forest and suddenly you are at Clear Lake.














After that the trail goes by some unmarked, unfenced, and unnamed mud pots and hot springs. It's interesting to see these things as the original explorers found them, but you have to watch your step.
















Over the hill is a nice little Lily Pond Lake.


Then the path curves up to the edge of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.



















Again, no fences, no warnings, and a very steep drop off to certain death. This is no hike for sissies or little kids.


If you're wondering why they call it Yellowstone, you know why when you walk the edge of this canyon.












The waterfalls are amazing.
















Then it's back through a nice shady forest, looping back to the start of the hike.


It's always fun to see some wildlife in the Park.
























Eagle's nest.















Unfortunately (or fortunately), we did not see any moose or BEARS this time.
I guess they did not want to come out and deal with those pesky mosquitoes.

Corvettes and Jets

I saw this on the internet and thought you guys would enjoy it. They swore this was NOT photo-shopped, but was an actual picture of a race between a Corvette and a Blue Angel. Well, since both the Navy Blue Angels and GM Corvettes are now federal government run entities, I guess that makes sense. Or not???






BTW, on a completely different subject -
I got my free can of Glidden paint today, just 2 and 1/2 weeks after my request. Not bad!

Only in Farmington

I's July in Utah and that means not a weekend goes by without parades and fireworks. It's not enough that we have the usual 4th of July and 24th of July celebrations, but our little town of Farmington has its own July celebration. The Farmington Festival Days happens each year on the weekend between those two more famous holidays.

This year it started with an early morning race, 5K, 10K and Half-Marathon. Ken won 3rd place in the 10K in his age group. He's not too sad about moving up an age group this year. I walked the 5K and still beat over 40 of the 300 some 5K runners. I was a little worried I would end up dead last, so at least I didn't have to suffer that humiliation.

















Then, after the awards ceremony and breakfast in the park, it was on to the Parade.
I will divide the parade into 3 segments:
1)Marching Bands 2) Cool Cars AND 3) Things seen only in a Farmington parade.

Marching Bands - the best part of any parade IMHO.



Can you believe it? Farmington JUNIOR HIGH has it's own marching band now. I thought you former Huskies would like to see this.





Viewmont Band. Sorry but it's pathetic.














And then there's the mother of all bands, Davis High Band. They just go on and on and on.

























2) Cool Cars
I thought Ryan and Kevin would enjoy this.














































OK. The last car was not actually in the parade, but it looked cool in the parking lot.

AND

3) Things only seen in a Farmington parade.

My boat is my float.
















Make up your own joke about this waving beauty queen.









Every tractor ever built.











And I thought this guy was kind of cool on the 3-wheel unicycle.

Farmington Wildlife

Some people are into running. I admire this, but I've never liked long distance running myself. The constant pounding seems to be destructive to joints plus I've just never liked that jiggly look.

I am more into walking. My usual 4 mile walks take me down the hill, through old downtown Farmington, and onto the Lagoon Trail.







This time of year, the trail is green and cool. It crosses the river/stream/creek in several places and is usually quiet and peaceful.
























Along the way, there are opportunities to see wildlife. I took my camera one day to see what I could see.














Lagoon keeps Bison and Elk in pens which border on the trail. The animals usually look hot, thirsty and just really bored. I should probably report this to the local PETA people . . . just kidding. They would probably object to my treatment of the innocent wasps, spiders, and other assorted bugs I have tried to exterminate over the years. (But that's a subject for another blog post.)




Also along my walking route are other animals, kept by ordinary people in ordinary houses. Of course, there are the usual dogs (just ignore that annoying barking) and cats (harmlessly self-absorbed). But in Farmington, there is other wildlife to see.

There used to be 4 ducks in this pen. Then one day there was only one duck. A few days later 3 new ducks suddenly appeared. I wonder if one of those annoying dogs enjoyed a duck dinner?






Then I came across this group in the front yard of a house in the older part of town.




One or two chickens wouldn't have been so surprising, but this was a whole flock of chickens and roosters running free, with the roosters in full cock-0-doodle-doo mode. I know chickens can sometimes be mean and aggressive (again a subject to another blog), but luckily these did not pay any attention to me.





As I headed back up the hill, one more example of Farmington wildlife crossed my path.




Even though I'm not running, this little guy makes me feel really fast.

New Room

If you've had more than enough of my painting projects, you may want to click off this blog right now. I finished the family room and hall and did some furniture rearranging, so wanted to share the final results.















The room looks so much bigger. It's amazing what removing half the couch will do. It looks like a whole new room.



















Also notice the new and improved light fixture over the stairs. Initially, I was a little concerned with how dark it is. However, with the darker paint, I think it was the best choice. Also the old dark wood on the stairs and doors seems to look better now too. It's funny how the darker colors are back in style now. No need to do that annoying constant updating. You just have to wait about 25 years, and everything you have is back in style again.... or not.