A very special day

Today was a very special day. First, it was Ellen's and my 16th wedding anniversary. It was really great to be here for that occasion, and we celebrated by the four of us going to Melvin's Brewing Co. for supper. They make very good beer there, and they have good pub food as well. Plus, it is a gorgeous spot, located within view of mountains and reservoir. The only down side was they had live music and it was too loud. So we had to sort of shout to carry on a conversation. But we had a good time.

Ellen, Jenny and Paul raise their glasses at Melvin's. I also had a lovely time today with Allen Schoonover, the former pastor of the Star Valley United Church, whom I have not seen for two years. He is fully retired and living in Lake Havasu, AZ, but they still have a house here at Star Valley Ranch, and they are here for the summer- escaping the heat. I learned that he and has wife both had COVID back in March, and he was pretty sick - in the hospital for seven days. But he is recovering well and glad to be alive. We met at a new cafe at the Star Valley Ranch lodge, while Ellen and Max were just down the hill at the pool. I so enjoy talking with Allen and that also made the day special. Finally, I resolved some issues with the new phone - figured them out myself, by golly - and was able to uplaod two new apps, one that identifies bird songs and a second that identifies plants. We had the second one on the old phone, but now we have it on the new, and Ellen had a great time trying it out. And one last thing - the Baker's new dog, Rollie, finally got over his strangeness with me, and let me take his picture! He is a sweet dog, but up until today, he has growled and barked whenever I came into the same room with him. But now we are friends.

Rollie letting me take his portrait.