Friday, June 10, 2011



Dear Kids,
       I’m sitting at the computer and Oreo is asleep in the basket chair, snoring. I never knew cats could snore.
       Dad and I planned a big adventure for last Wednesday, a 50-mile bike ride north on the Jordan River Trail, the Legacy Trail, and the D&RG Trail. You can ride all the way to Roy, and then take the Frontrunner back to Salt Lake, and the Trax practically home. It was a gorgeous day, cool and sunny. We started out at the UTA parking lot, so we could avoid the worst flooding on the trail, but going north, there was flooding in places where I’ve never seen water before. We rode alongside of the ducks. When we got to North Salt Lake, we stopped at Al & Missy’s house, but just after we headed north again, Dad got a flat tire. "No problem," I thought, "he can patch it." (Amazingly, neither one of us had spare tubes.) The patching didn’t work, and after an hour, he was talking about finding a bike shop. Here we were, at the start of the Legacy Trail, where I’ve been wanting to ride for the last three years. So we parted ways. I think we both had fun. Dad found a bike shop and got a new tube. I rode north to Lagoon, Layton, Clearfield, and Roy. The trails are all interconnected now. I was sorry to be riding without Dad, but I knew we wouldn’t get such a perfect day again. I found the Frontrunner station OK, and made it back to Meadowbrook about the same time as Dad. So it all turned out OK. From now on, we’re not riding anywhere without extra tubes.
       Bonnie called me last night about Grandma Allen, and she’s going downhill pretty fast now. She’s asleep most of the time. The hospice people said it could be weeks, or just days. Bonnie’s guessing days. She suggested I might want to start writing the obituary. Dad and I are going to visit her tomorrow afternoon, and if she’s awake, I’ll ask her what I should say. Sorry for the bad news on this, but we knew this was coming.
       I’ll keep in touch with you all! Love, Mom