So, what do you do if

you are a mailman, a little bit bored, and live in France?

Well, you build a palace right out of a childs imagination. The Le Palais Ideal Facteur Cheval is just such a place, and I think well worth a visit with a camera. Take a look for yourself.


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That's right, I'm getting ready for my next trek, which just happens to start out near the Rhone Alps region of France. That means I will need something to do for a few days before the hike. So, how about some site seeing? And this humble little palace caught my eye.

There are plenty of places I'd like to see. Among them some of the sites of Lyon, Roman ruins and Annecy. My roommate however, seems to have his heart set on Paris. Though, I think that is in part nostalgic because he remembers having gone there with only change in his pockets back in his very early college years. And part of it is because he seems to think that there isn't much else to see outside of the tourist centers of Paris--at least that is the impression I have been getting from him. I'm hoping to encourage him to venture out a little further. After all, it isn't all just scenery and sitting around in cafes people watching. There's a lot to see and do.

More updates on sites to see soon.

The next question is whether to take the one week trek or the two week trek around Mont Blanc. It's looking like the one week. Mostly because he claims he doesn't have the vacation time and partly because he's never been on a trek of more than 1 days length. Though he will tell you that it's because I can't heft 30 pounds with my left arm yet. Last week that weight limitation was 10 pounds. I wonder how long it will be before he realizes I've been donning 30 pound plus packs for a couple of weeks now without any limitations from my left arm. I've always used my right arm to heft the pack up on the back. Besides, our packs will likely never be heavier than 15 pounds, if that.

crocheted lace

Ok, silly and old fashioned though it might seem, one of my favourite hobbies is to tie really long, seemingly unending, creative knots. Yep, I like to crochet. Lately, I've been concentrating mostly on afghans, but not all that many years ago I also used to crochet lace--doilies, table cloths, that sort of thing. I've always preferred the older lace patterns to the more modern motifs.

I recently decided to try my hand at lace again, partly because I wanted to see if I could still do such fine work and partly because I wanted to make a special "just because" gift for a friend. So I hit the web looking for a good source of patterns and motifs to base my work off of. If you like crocheted lace, you might like these links too.


Crochet Pattern Central


Angelfire Crochet Patterns

Arm update

Yesterday was my last day of in office physical therapy. I've regained full range of motion. I have to continue therapy exercises for a few more months to ensure that I keep full bend and straightness.

Now the hard work starts--strengthening the arm back to the condition it was in before the accident,and preferably better. I'm up to a 6 pound dumbbell now. I'm hoping to be up to 10 pounds before the trek to Mont Blanc. And, I am back on the machines at the gym, though I admit the weights are very very light. It will be a while before I can do pushups or get back on the vertical ascent machine (mountain climber), but I am working on it.