Those of you that want the latest updates on Erika's 2007 recovery (with pictures) may go to http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Erika2007.htm


We Moved to the Mountains on June 15, 2003

On the road again
Goin' places that I've never been
Seein' things that I may never see again,
And I can't wait to get on the road again.

Willie Nelson
CBS Records
I like the road of any kind, 
for they intrigue me still.
I wonder what's around the bend,
or just beyond the hill.

Rachel Harnett (Age 95), 
Tucumcary Literary Review
, Los Angeles

Bob Jensen at Trinity University
Bob Jensen's home page is at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/ 

On November 18 moved inside our cottage because it was beginning to get cold mornings in my outdoor studio. Besides I like the foliage views better from our cottage. I took the above picture a few weeks ago from my "winter desk" inside the cottage. This is a view of Mt. Lafayette about ten miles away in the Kinsman Range.  Lincoln Mountain can be seen between Lafayette and Cannon. Only Cannon Mountain has ski trails and an aerial tramway. Between Lincoln and Cannon is a mountain pass called the Franconia Notch State Park. After he retired my father took on another job managing the Kossuth County State Liquor Store in Algona, Iowa. The ear of corn next to my monitor was one of his collected Jim Beam bottles of bourbon. Just to the right outside the picture is another bottle in the shape of an Iowa hog. The picture below was taken in the summer. To the right of Cannon Mountain are the Three Graces (also known as the Cannon Balls) and North and South Kinsman mountains.

 
 
My close friends Lon and Nancy Hendersen own the Sunset Hill House down the road from our cottage. The above picture is the first slide in their promotional slide show at http://www.sunsethillhouse.com/
 
 
 
In the Autumn of Life in the Autumn of 2006 in New Hampshire's White Mountains
From Our Living Room About a Mile from Robert Frost's Old Farm House
Three mountain ranges are visible in the above picture taken in an earlier foliage week:
The Kinsman Range (about 10 miles away showing the pointy-headed Garfield, Baby's Cradle, and Lafayette)
The Twin Mountain Range (about 20 miles away showing North Twin and South Twin)
The distant Presidential Range (about 30 miles away showing part of Mt. Washington with its wind-swept dome in the clouds)
Our closest mountains (Cannon, Three Graces, North Kinsman, and South Kinsman) are to the right and not visible above.
It's been an absolutely breath-taking foliage season this year under a nightly awe-inspiring full moon this week.
We've been blessed!
 
 
I see from my house by the side of the road
By the side of the highway of life,
The men who press with the ardor of hope,
The men who are faint with the strife,
But I turn not away from their smiles and tears,
Both parts of an infinite plan-
Let me live in a house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.
Sam Walter Foss (1858-1911)

For earlier editions of Tidbits go to http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/TidbitsDirectory.htm
For earlier editions of New Bookmarks go to http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/bookurl.htm 

My Theme Song
Train of Life
(Willie Nelson and Patsy Cline)
--- Click Here

My music download page --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm
My electronic literature page --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/ElectronicLiterature.htm


On May 14, 2006 I retired from Trinity University after a long and wonderful career as an accounting professor in four universities. My wife and I now live in a cottage in the White Mountains of New Hampshire --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/NHcottage.htm

The pictures taken by a professional photographer courtesy of the Public Relations Department at Trinity University are available at http://www.cs.trinity.edu/~rjensen/PictureHistory/
A subset of these pictures is available for loading into a browser at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/tidbits/2006/tidbits060512.htm 

Thanks to the generosity of Trinity University, I will continue to tend my knowledge gardens on two Web servers --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/

A Few of the Pictures at the Above Link Are Shown Below

DSC00068.JPG (1460597 bytes)

The interesting history of our cottage (formerly called Brayton Cottage) is summarized with pictures at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/tidbits/2007/tidbits070326.htm
Because of the historic pictures. the above site loads slowly.

Old 35-mm Pictures Across Earlier Years ---
http://www.cs.trinity.edu/~rjensen/PictureHistory/

For a listing of Year 2004 Spring Pictures, click on http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/2004spring/2004spring.htm 

Bob & Erika's 2004 Holiday Greetings and Pictures --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/XMAS2004/XMAS2004.htm 

Winter 2005 pictures --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/2005winter/2005winter.htm 
For a listing of 92 Year 2004 Spring Pictures, click on http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/2004spring/2004spring.htm 

More pictures and our Year 2003 holiday season letter are at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/XMAS2003.htm 
This pictures I took in October download very slowly, so be patient when you are at this site.  They will show up eventually.

 

These Are Some Older Pictures of Our Cottage in the White Mountains

 

September 20, 2003 picture of the golf club house that is beside our barn (barn not shown is getting new roof and siding).  This is the view of the Green Mountains of Vermont on the back side of our home.  We can't quite see the golf club house through the trees, but we can see the Green Mountains from a slightly different angle.

MSNBC has a special section entitled "Journey Around the World:  A Virtual Picture Tour" that has some wonderful pictures.  My secretary, Debbie Bowling" found this Picture 4 on January 27, 2005.  Our living room looks up at Cannon Mountain.  In the winter we watch the skiers glide down this cold place.  It's about ten miles from our house.  Cannon Mountain is in Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire.  

The link is at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/ under "Travel" and "Photo Tour:  Beautiful and Unique Places"

You can find links to other pictures in this region at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/NHcottage.htm 

Our 2004 holiday season letter and pictures are at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/xmas2004/xmas2004.htm

 

A holiday picture from our living room is shown below.  The White Mountains shown below are on the front (East) side of our house.

SOL DA!! (means sunny day in Norwegian)
My neighbor's tulips in Texas are out of the ground.
It's springtime in Texas --- http://garywolff.com/springtime/ 

UFF DA!! (means poopie day in Norwegian)
"New Hampshire Winter:  The First Nine Months Are the Hardest"
Auntie Bev posted this picture of that expresses our sentiments about winter up in the Northeast this year --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/winter.htm 

This is Erika trying to climb up to our back door.

Poem Written When I Was Teaching in Texas and Only Visiting for the Holidays

In six days, twelve hours, and two minutes 
I'll be home
After driving into those hard winds and snow

In six days, twelve hours, and three minutes
I'll stand in the doorway
After wading up to those powdered stairs

In six days, twelve hours, and four minutes
I'll see those loving smiles
That brought me all those miles

In six days, twelve hours, and five minutes
I'll wrap you in my arms
That held you all those wonderful years

 

In seven days, seven hours, and ten minutes
I'll awaken with icy breaths
Upon those warm shoulders

In seven days, eight hours, and nine minutes
I'll feel warmed and welcomed at the windows
By those dying and flickering candles

In seven days, eight hours, and twenty minutes
I'll break bread and give thanks
While gazing in awe at those soaring peaks

In sixteen days, twelve hours, and four minutes
I'll taste the salt upon my tongue
While casting a parting glance at those tears

Bob did not move toNew Hampshire full time until Erika got his office remodeled as follows:

 

Happy Holidays for the Year 2003

    H

H    O

  A    L

    P    I

      P    D

        Y    A

                 Y

                    S

Y

  E

    A

      R

        2

           0

              0

                 4

 

 


We can view Mount Washington from our living room.

In the February 26, 2007 issue of Time Magazine on Page 6, there's a page entitled "A Little Taste of the Arctic Close to Home:  If you like awful weather, you'll love spending a night on Mount Washington." To read about the history and mean weather on this mountain --- Click Here

Live Webcam atop Mount Washington --- http://www.mountwashington.org/cam/ 

Wednesday, January 22, 2003
Are we nuts?  Next year we will be viewing Mt Washington from our new home--- 
  Conditions at 5:00 a.m. on January 22, 2003  
  Weather: Blowing snow and freezing fog  
  Temperature: -34°   Visibility: 100 feet  
  Wind Chill Index: -79°F   Relative Humidity: 100%  
  Wind: Northwest at 117 gusting to 142 MPH   Station Pressure: 22.80" and falling  
Average snowfall:  40 inches per month  
Where are the palm trees?

Current weather report from Mount Washington --- http://www.mountwashington.org/weather/


Erika and I are capable of fast decisions. We got married two weeks after we first met almost 20 years ago. We just bought a New Hampshire house after looking at it for 15 minutes. I moved from Florida State University to Trinity University after one phone call from Ron Calgaard (former President of Trinity University). It's a darn good thing that I avoid horse sales.

The history of our new cottage is rather interesting. It was the structure called Brayton Cottage on the grounds of a huge hotel. In 1973, all the structures in the resort were demolished except for three summer homes on the golf course and a small power house.  The power house is now our barn, and one of the summer homes that was saved was originally named Brayton Cottage. George Foss purchased the land and Brayton Cottage.  He poured a fine basement where the hotel's dining room once stood atop a hill. Brayton Cottage was then moved over this basement. The views are spectacular. The front side overlooks the Kinsman Range (about 10 miles away) and the Presidential Range (about 30 miles away) of the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The backside overlooks the Green Mountains of Vermont. On a clear night we're supposedly able to look down on the lights of 27 villages, although I've never spotted all of those villages. 

This Field is in Front of Our Cottage in June

For a description of our new location, go to http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0027pL 

There is a fantastic spot in northern New Hampshire for wildflowers with mountains on the horizon (though not usually covered in snow at that time of the year). Go to Sugar Hill, NH in mid-June for the lupine festival. From about June 10th to 17th there are fields of lupines that bloom beneath the White Mountains. In Sugar Hill on Sunset Road there is a 12 acre field completely filled lupines that has Cannon Mountain and Mt. Washington in the background. These lupines come in shades of blue, purple, white and pink. The attached image was taken at sunrise in the lupine field on Sunset Road in Sugar Hill. The back roads around Sugar Hill contain a number of spots where there are large concentrations of lupines, some strategically located near red barns and white churches. This spot is not only great for grand landscape shots, but is also macro photography heaven, the dew drops and little insects on the lupines also make great subjects. But be careful, one morning at sunrise I was intently photgraphing the sunrise and moved towards a tree to include it in my shot. I startled a mother moose and calf who I did not realize were on the other side of the tree and they ran right in front of me. Of course having a 17-35mm lens on my camera with an ND grad and polarizing filter made it a little tough to get a good shot of the moose.

About 5 miles away is Franconia Notch state park where there are lots of nice waterfall opportunities, my favorites include The Basin, the Falling Waters Trail (Stair Falls and Cloudland Falls are both wonderful)and the Flume.

This area in early to mid-June can't be beat. To do grand landscape photography in New England requires a little more work than in the national parks out west, but Sugar Hill is one of the better locations in New England for the kind of photography you are interested in.

-- Ed McGuirk , April 06, 2002; 06:15 A.M. Eastern


I live in New Hampshire and have done a good amount of hiking in the Whites and know of some good places. In particular one place that comes to mind is on Mt. Garfield - there is a pond, a short way from the summitt which is beautiful. I hiked up Mt. Eisenhower in the spring in early june/ late may (I can't remember exactly when) on a cloudy day and it was spectacular (with 70 mph winds). Additionally, there is one trail that I myself have not been on - The Alpine Garden Trail on Mt. Washington, which is known for its alpine flowers which bloom in June (I'm hoping I'll get up there for that). Good luck. I too, am very much looking forward to spring photos in the Whites.

-- Doug Seigars , April 06, 2002; 08:35 P.M. Eastern

A very nice and nearby inn is the Sunset Hill House, Sunset Road, Sugar Hill, NH 03585, (603)823-5522 or 800 SUN HILL --- http://www.bnblist.com/nh/sunset_hill_house/ 
Fall and winter pictures of the Sunset Hill House (about 100 yards from our house) are shown below:


About a quarter of a mile from our house is The Homestead.  The Homestead is the 24th oldest family business in the USA, home of Sugar Hill's first settler (1780), and handed down through 7 generations of family.

The Homestead
Corner of Route 117 and Sunset Hill Road
P.O. Box 619
Sugar Hill, New Hampshire 03585
Phone: (603) 823-5564
Toll-free: N/A
Fax: (603) 823-9599
http://www.thehomestead1802.com
homested@together.net

A short distance beyond The Homestead is the lovely Foxglove Inn near our church --- http://www.foxgloveinn.com/ 
Route 117 at Lovers Lane, Sugar Hill New Hampshire 03585 Toll free:  888-343-2220  
email: Foxgloveinn@compuserve.com

About four miles away, you will find The Franconia Inn --- http://www.franconiainn.com/about.html 

Sugar Hill is a village that has only houses, two churches, and a post office. Another village (Franconia) with a grocery store and hardware store is about two miles away. The backside of our four acres borders on a small golf course, but I don't think residents are looking forward to the arrival of the divot king.

There is an  an art studio beside the house. Erika already has plans to make it a home for her bench saw, her scroll saw, her drill press, and her other heavy tools. All I'm concerned about is the speed of my Internet connection in these remote mountains.

We are fortunate to have the Robert Frost home and museum within a short walk from my new house in the White Mountains. You can see some pictures of his old home at http://www.simplybicycling.com/sugarhill.htm 

We're a bit tired of city dwelling and the Texas heat. However, we may return to San Antonio a couple of months a year. Of course for the next two or three years, I will be teaching at Trinity University about nine months per year (which is full time for Trinity).

Live Webcam atop Mt. Washington --- http://www.mountwashington.org/cam/ 
Current weather report from Mt. Washington --- http://www.mountwashington.org/weather/index.html 

Bob --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/ 

More photos of our new home are available in the following PDF file:
 http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/NHcottage/NHhouse.pdf 

New England Mountains --- http://www.billwood.com/travel/newengland/ 

Retirement in New England --- http://www.seniors-place.com/retirementhavens/AdirNewEnglandWest.html 

New England Travel --- http://www.virginholidays.com/ski/breakout.html?url=http://www.virginholidays.com/ski/resorts/newengland.html 

New England Ruins (photography, American history, travel) ---  http://photos.dobi.nu/ 

Hiking in New England --- http://hiking.alpinezone.com/ 

New England Books --- http://www.nesales.com/newengbk.htm 

New England Skiing --- http://skiing.alpinezone.com/ 

Look at what you can get at a New Hampshire spa --- http://spas.about.com/library/weekly/aa070703.htm 


A few miles down the road from our new retirement cottage in the White Mountains of New Hampshire is the home where Bode Miller was raised deep in the woods. His parents believed in a simple life (not even plumbing or electricity) and sound values.

A World Class Athlete With World Class Ethics That Will Impact Upon Future Generations
He speaks his mind --- and apologizes later.  He loves to party --- and doesn't care about winning.  Yet Bode Miller is poised to strike Olympic gold.  On the slopes with skiing's bad boy,.
Bill Saporito. As written on the cover of Time Magazine, January 23, 2006 --- http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1149374,00.html

Jensen Comment
Bode Miller is the best of the best in a sport where winners are determined by hundredths of a second on a stop watch.  His picture is on the cover of the January 23, 2006 edition of Time Magazine.  Although he's relatively unknown in his home country (U.S.A.), he's been an established hero in Europe where crowds chanted "Bode, Bode, . . . ." while he was on his way to winning the 2005 World Cup.  He's poised to become the Gold Medal hero in the 2006 and obtained recent U.S. notoriety due to a recent interview on Sixty Minutes (CBS television) in which he admitted that having fun is more important than winning and that he sometimes partied too much when skiing including a few instances when he was a bit tipsy or hung over when crashing down the slope at over 80 miles per hour.

Chagrined media analysts questioned whether the partying and outspoken Bode Miller was really a role model for our young people.  I contend that he is largely do to some things buried in the article in Time Magazine. After discussing his partying and independent nature, the article goes on to explain how Bode more than any other skier in history made a science out of the sport.  Most of his life has been spent studying and experimenting with every item of clothing and equipment, every position for every circumstance on the slopes, and the torques and forces of every move under every possible slope condition. That sort of makes him my hero, but what really makes him my hero is the following quotation that speaks for itself:

Last year, after tinkering with his boots, he discovered that inserting a composite --- as opposed to aluminum or plastic --- lift under the sole gave him a better feel on the snow and better performance.  Then he did something really crazy, he shared the information with everyone, including competitors.  His equipment team flipped, but in the Miller school of philosophy this makes complete sense.  Otherwise, he says, "I'm maintaining an unfair advantage over my competitors knowingly, for the purpose of beating them alone.  Not for the purpose of enjoying it more or skiing better.  To me that's ethically unsound."

One has to be reminded of the famous poem painted on the wall of my old Algona High School gymnasium:

For when the Great Scorer comes
To write against your name.
He marks -- not that you won or lost --
But how you played the game.

Grantland Rice --- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grantland_Rice


Congratulations to Don and LaDonna Jenson on their Golden Wedding Anniversary.  The picture below is from a family reunion in August 2005 (Don and LaDonna are in the right in the first row):


Here are some fun sites if you've got speakers on your computer

In the past I've provided links to various types of music available free on the Web. 
I created a page that summarizes those various links --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm

Retirement Music:  Some days you can't win --- http://wandascountryhome.com/retirement/

The following interesting poems and music vary quite often.  The current ones are at http://www.plantinghisseeds.com/httpdocs/poems.html 
The "Train of Life" one has the following verse:

I want to feel the winds of change,  
Blowing in my face, 
(Yep, that's for sure in the White Mountains)
I want to see what life unfolds, 
As I move from place to place

Great Photography PowerPoint Show (turn up your speakers) --- Click Here 

Also see "Treasures" --- http://www.plantinghisseeds.com/poems/treasures.htm 
My dreams are getting better all the time.

For Sven, Ole, and Lena stories, try http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ole_and_Lena 
 

Remember the Old Barn?  Check it out at  http://www.countrywhispers.com/oldbarn 

"Our get up and go got up an went." http://www.eakles.com/get_up_go.html 

Music from our generation --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm#JukeBox  

Various Music --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm

Hope Has Place (I love this one) --- http://www.jessiesweb.com/pity.htm

Train of Life (Willie Nelson and Patsy Cline) --- Click Here http://mywebpages.comcast.net/singingman7/TOL.htm

Romantic music --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm#Romantic

Inspirational Music --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm#Inspirational

Other free music downloads --- http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/music.htm


Cindy is David's wife and the mother of four of our grandchildren.  Her journal about raising four children near Yuba City, California --- http://journals.aol.com/cb96db/Summeradventures/



An Irish Blessing 
http://www.jessiesweb.com/blessing.htm
You may have to scroll clear down to the bottom of the page to turn on the audio.  
Then scroll back up to the top to watch the animation while the music plays.

May the blessing of light be upon you,
light on the outside, light on the inside.

With God's sunlight shining on you,
may your heart glow with warmth like a turf fire
that welcomes friends and strangers alike.

May the light of the Lord shine from your eyes
like a candle in the window
welcoming the weary traveler.

May the blessing of God's soft rain be on you
falling gently on your head, refreshing your soul
with the sweetness of little flowers newly blooming.

May the strength of the winds of Heaven bless you
carrying the rain to wash your spirit clean,
sparkling after in the sunlight.

May the blessing of God's earth be on you.
And as you walk the roads,
may you always have a kind word for those you meet.

May you understand the strength and power of God
in a thunderstorm in winter,
and the quiet beauty of creation
in the calm of a summer sunset.

And may you come to realize that,
insignificant as you may seem in this great universe,
you "are" an important part of God's plan.

May He watch over you
and keep you safe from harm.

Ten things Bob Jensen's done that nobody else has done
http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/tidbits022605.htm#TenThings

God Bless America --- http://www.dayspring.com/movies/view.asp?moviename=GBA2movie.swf

Other Dayspring fee online videos --- http://www.dayspring.com/movies/

Please check on your bank account --- http://www.scottstratten.com/movie.html

Bob Jensen's home page is at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/