Tiny Golden Library

While we were in Altus, visiting Nancy, we stopped by an antique store and
inside one of the cases, I saw a Tiny Golden Book. I hadn't thought about
these in years, and there one was.


When we got back to her house, Nancy pulled out her entire set.
The Tiny Golden Library, still in it's original box. I LOVED reading
these when I was little and they're all in pristine condition. There are
24 of them written and wonderfully illustrated by Dorothy Kunhardt.
The other 12 books are by Walt Disney, way before Disney became
such a commercial behemoth. The books brought back a lot of
great memories for me and I'm glad Nancy still has them.

Miley and Otis

Nancy and Greg have two pets that they are taking care of. They are my
nephew Josh's pets, but since he lives in a location that doesn't allow pets,
they've taken up residence in Altus. Miley is a cute little ferret and Otis is
a lovable, but very slobbery bulldog. I've never been around a ferret before.
They are great! Miley loves to be played with and is really intelligent.


Otis. Otis is also smart, a good dog and loves to be around people. Maybe
he likes to be around people a bit too much since he absolutely loves
Lynn, following her everywhere. He means well though and is a irreplaceable
member of the family!

Boomer Sooner!

My sister likes to buy Halloween costumes for her little pug, Sadie.
Here is Sadie's newest outfit. Apparently Sadie has aspirations to
become a University of Oklahoma cheerleader!

Driving Back to Colorado

We left Altus before sunrise and had a long day's drive ahead of us.
One of our first stops was in the panhandle of Texas, east of Amarillo.
Most of this country looks exactly like this photo. Miles and miles of...
nothing! Of course, this area is famous for tornadoes, as the bathrooms
at the restrooms double as tornado shelters according to the posted
signs.


Much of the country in the Southern Plains is agricultural and with
it come lots of large grain elevators. I like to photograph elevators...
probably because I grew up near several of them and they always
seem very noble and fortress-like since they are usually surrounded
by miles of open and flat land.


We felt that driving as far north as Denver, fighting the traffic there and
in Colorado Springs, before making the long journey on I-70 through the
mountains wasn't worth the time or effort, so we took a southern route
we hadn't taken before. We travelled on US 50 across south central
Colorado, through Pueblo, Salida, Gunnison and Montrose. We hadn't
traveled part of this route before and we came upon Monarch Pass half
way through. A really pretty area, crossing the Continental Divide.


We also drove past the Dillon Pinnacles overlooking Blue Mesa Reservoir.
Blue Mesa is the largest body of water in Colorado and part of the
Curecanti National Recreation Area. A nice finish to a very long drive.
16 hours in the car today!

Altus

We spent two really nice days at Nancy and Greg's. The weather was
very hot and a little humid, but there was a hot wind blowing most of
the time that made it tolerable. I was taking these pictures of clouds
outside their front door and Nancy told me that I was easily impressed
because they have much nastier weather than these clouds much of the
time.


Nancy and Greg are babysitting Otis, my nephew Josh's bulldog.
A great dog, but he's way too affectionate and slobbers on you
constantly. I'm not a slobber dog person, but he was fun to be
around. Nancy and Greg have four other dogs and a cat as well...


Nellie


Molly


Trixie


Sadie


Scooter


Greg picked up a bushel of peaches that they had ordered previously,
and although the peaches came from Arkansas (who knew that Arkansas
grew peaches?), they made a great peach pie!



Of course, Nancy shook her head as I took pictures of the pie!