Sandi Chats

I have all sorts of goals for my retirement, and one of those goals is to be a faithful blogger. I hate it when people start something and then just drop it...but that's exactly what I did. Actually I just got busy but I'm not sure that's the most valid excuse. We are all busy and still can find the time to do the things we feel are most important. In the last half of 2018 we attended several shoots, each occupying an entire weekend except the shoot in Valentine which our club hosted, and that took a weekend and a couple days before plus recuperation time into the following week!  Our family gathered at our house here in Springview for a Labor Day reunion. We were only minus one family and a couple of great-grandsons. That was a houseful but the weather was beautiful and made it easy to gather outside when the house got too full. In mid-October my mother and I embarked on our New England trip. That will be another several posts, but for now I will say that it was a ve...

Today is a "red letter" day...for two reasons! First of all it is New Year's Day 2019, and if you will look at a calendar you will see that the date is in red print denoting a holiday. It's also my red letter day...I am officially retired! I spent a number of hours at the office earlier today finishing out the month-end work and leaving things ready for the new administration and a new year. As I turned off my computer for the last time, closed up the vault for the last time, and pulled the door shut behind me for the last time, I will admit to a few sentimental tears. After all I was in office for 20 years plus put in 6 1/2 years as a deputy before that, so I think I am entitled to a few parting tears. But by the time I put my box of personal belongings in the car, the tears were dry and I was thinking ahead to what I was going to do when I got home. In case you were wondering, I made spaghetti for a late lunch!  There are few times in life when everything c...

A year or so ago I wrote a blog on gratitude and being thankful for the many blessings we enjoy but take for granted. I believe I vowed, at least in my mind, to remain mindful of the blessings that life has given me. But I forgot to remember! So a blog, just like a good sermon, needs to repeat itself every so often to remain at the forefront of consciousness. There are jobs that are known for putting people in the mood to confess, and believe it or not, the county treasurer's job can be one of those! Facebook is another place to see what people are dealing with and get some insight into their private lives. This past week has put me in mind of several situations that have given me cause to be thankful. One person I talked to this past week mentioned great financial discouragement...and how I can relate to that! It's true that money can't buy happiness, but it sure can relieve some stress and make life easier! And the lack thereof can make life tough. I recall some times...

Sunset on the St. Louis River When I began this blog I said I would be posting about my travels, which promptly became non-existent! Life got busy and we went places but no place that was blog-worthy. Unless you are an avid Fast Draw fan, posting about the latest shoot sounds like the one before it. And, other than trips to visit the kids, we haven't done anything worth sharing...until last weekend. Last weekend was the Wisconsin State Championship held at Superior, Wisconsin, which is a vvveeeerrrryyyyy long drive! We have been through the Duluth, Minnesota/Superior, Wisconsin area on a couple of other trips, but I don't think we had ever put our feet on the ground there. But Mike wanted to attend this shoot since it was one we hadn't done before. And it just happened to work out this time. So Friday morning at "O dark thirty" we finished loading the last of the items in the camper and struck out for the North Country. It was raining but didn't cause...

I see that I have been AWOL for  nearly two months! In the meantime we had the biggest winter blizzard we had all year, spring has arrived in full bloom and we now have the air conditioner turned on and running. It's always been said that if you don't like the weather in Nebraska, wait 5 minutes! And this has certainly been true this year.  My focus this year is on transition. Life is a constant transition but it's usually the kind of transition that takes place gradually and in the background of consciousness. This year, with my pending retirement, there is active and targeted transition going on. Plans are being talked about, to-do lists are being made, and the things I've done for 26 years are being wrapped up and prepared to hand over to someone else. I keep thinking I should be sad and sentimental and nostalgic, but honestly, I am looking toward the future with anticipation and excitement. I'm sure you are asking yourself what can I do that would be thi...

I like to joke that my job is only a "temp job" since I have to be reelected every four years. Job security is hard to come by these days, and this job is no different except that I am guaranteed a four-year run between elections. I began this job in 1992 working as a deputy for the county treasurer. I held that position for 6 1/2 years until that treasurer retired then ran for the position myself. I took office in January 1999 and have held the position for 19 years...and counting. Time has gone so fast, and it sometimes boggles my mind that I have held this position for nearly 20 years. Including those years I served as deputy, this will amount to 26 1/2 years at the same job. That calculates out to be 40% of my life at this job. In contrast, we milked cows less than half that time and it seemed like a lifetime! So this year I bravely stepped out and decided to retire at the end of this term. It wasn't an easy decision to arrive at. What about the finances? What w...

You may recognize the title of this blog as also being the title of a Laura Ingalls Wilder book where Laura describes a winter from her childhood that lasted seven months. This was the winter of 1880-1881 when the Dakota Territory, where the book takes place, was very sparsely settled. The book tells of the hardships of living on the prairie during seven months of blizzards and cold with scant provisions. Yeah, those people were tough!!! We have all heard the stories about the Blizzard of '88 (that's 1888), when many people on the Plains perished due to being caught in a sudden 3-day blizzard. And my folks tell stories from the Blizzards of '49 (that's 1949), which they lived through. How planes dropped provisions to snow-bound residents and how the  "weasels" had to come out and open the roads. The '49 blizzards were a series of blizzards that hit every few days for several weeks, totally paralyzing this area. Fast forward to the current winter that w...