A Year of Change

We had Ty to the clinic by 7:45 and in x-ray about 10 minutes later. 15 minutes after that Dr. Provencher came in and examined Ty and confirmed a fracture of the distal clavicle which basically means a broken collarbone. He ordered up a CT Scan to get a closer look and determine whether or not Ty needed surgery. A few hours later he texted Lori that no surgery was needed, whew. So lots of PT and 8 weeks or so in a sling is the plan. He’s in pain but is only on Tylenol. We could have had some opioids but opted not to. Around 10 I dropped him at school and then was off to the grocery store.

Jag switched from AP Bio to Physiology and Anatomy yesterday as kids can drop and add classes until this week just like in college. We’re glad as he takes such a heavy load and he doesn’t need to. With Jag we want him to relax a bit and enjoy his senior year.

I went on a cleaning binge between work calls and am off to the distributor at about 6:30 this morning. I hope to be back before 11. Then more work and more cleaning. I had to open an electric account yesterday for the new house so things are moving along. Thursday I’ll be down valley and stop and see the progress. Time to go as it’s 6:06 and I want to be on the road in 20 minutes. If anyone wants to send Ty an email you can do so at fugatety@gmail.com. God Bless.

The day started out as usual with all four of us running here and there. Lori and Jag were off to Denver for 8 hours of grueling auditions with 500 wanna be models and Ty and I headed to Steamboat for his race. Getting right to the good stuff, Ty had a great first lap at 37 minutes but then was late on the second. I waited and watched but after 5 more minutes I knew something was wrong. I then saw one of his coaches and found out he had crashed. They said he had a broken collarbone or something. It seemed like it took forever for the medical evac to get him down. They had to drive a 4 wheel car up the course and he said he walked a half a mile to the car. Apparently a kid was next to him and caught his handle bar and took him down. He went over the handle bars and then was dragged a bit by the other riders rear wheel. When he made it down he was smiling in the car which was good news. After having the paramedics check him out and talking to Lori, we decided to just take him home to Vail. As we were leaving Dr. Dorf (from Vail and one of our kids dad’s) came up to the truck and asked if I wanted him to look at him and I said “of course”. He said it’s probably a distal clavicle or AC joint and to get him home and wait until this morning for an x-ray to save $2,000 at ER. He offered to get Ty in first thing this morning but Lori had already called Dr. Provencher who will see him at 8. You might remember he was the New England Patriots and Tom Brady’s doctor so Ty will be in good hands. It could be a broken collarbone (worst case) and we should know more by 9 am this morning. So that’s it. Most of the team and coaches and parents showed up to wait with me for Ty when he was hurt. He has so many friends and is so universally loved as he’s such a good kid who is kind to everyone. People I didn’t know were offering help not only on the spot but all week at school too. There’s something to say for living in a small town as people pull together and help each other.

I knew he’d be ok when he said as soon as we got in the car, “dad, this sure is going to rope in the ladies”! I laughed so hard until I couldn’t anymore. Sure enough as soon as he posted his crash and situation on Instagram, 30 or 40 responses came in within a minute offering help and sympathy, mostly from the ladies!

Meanwhile Jag was selected to walk in Denver Fashion Week and some other event. We just found out the first one conflicts with Homecoming, super. Jag and Lori were home about 3 hours after us. Ty had a rough night which was to be expected and we need to get moving now to get him to the hospital in about an hour. More to come, God Bless and Go Broncos! Here’s a pic of Ty coming through his first lap!

I believe today is the two-year passing of Mom, we all miss her very much! Miss you Mom!

Alright, today should be a day of rest, right? Well, not for our family. Lori and Jag leave for Denver at 8:45 for the casting call for Denver Fashion Week as Jag has been invited as they want him to be a model. Meanwhile Ty and I will be leaving at 9 for Steamboat for his 11:35 am mountain bike race. Hopefully we’ll all be home around 3. And of course it’s the first real day of football, super. On top of everything, thunderstorms are supposed to kick up early this afternoon. I think, if we’re lucky, we’ll all get done before they start.

Yesterday Ty and I went to Steamboat so he could do the pre-ride of the course for today’s race. Lori went to Jag’s soccer game while we were gone. Then Lori went with a bunch of girls to the 4 Seasons while Marty and I went for ribs.

When we made it home from Steamboat it was halftime in the CU Nebraska game and we were losing 17 to 0. All looked lost even at the beginning of the second half but in true, you never know what can happen in sports fashion, CU came back and won in overtime 34 to 31! It was a thrilling game and the right team won! Ha.

Not sure why none of my photos came through my email. I’ll try again. Have a great day, take care, be safe and God Bless.

First up for the day is the gym as we haven’t been in over a week. Then Jag has a soccer game from 11 to 1 and then Ty has his pre-ride so he can learn the course, in Steamboat from 2 until 5. We were going to spend the night in Steamboat, and still might, but we might also drive home and then back in the morning. We’ll decide later.

Yesterday I was stuck in a bad rain and hail storm on I-70 coming back from Denver. It was so bad I thought the windshield was going to break. Thankfully there are no dents on my truck. Lori worked until about 5:30 which made for a long day. I’ve had poison ivy or mosquito bites or something for a few days. I think I picked it up Tuesday night searching for elk. Anyhow Libby called in a steroid cream to Walgreens which seems to be helping.

Jag was out until 1 am and Ty until about 10:30. Late nights for two boys that have sports today. Ty is building a desktop computer with the technology teacher at school. He knows a lot and had to research all the components and will build it and install the operating system by himself. I spoke to Mr. Chambers (his teacher) and he said this will be a great learning experience and that Ty can do it, super cool.

That’s it, time to get moving. I’ve been trying to download some pictures but they’re not coming through yet. Check back later and I’ll post them when they come in. Hope everyone is well, God Bless.

Last night in what started out as kind of a crappy game, the Green Bay Packers ended up beating the Chicago Bears 10 to 3. Mom loved football and loved her Packers. So there ya go.

This morning we have a meeting at school at 7:15 so time to get moving. It’s 6 am now and it seems we never ever get any sleep. Then I’m off to Denver to pick up a check for a rifle I sold and to get some work on the truck. We’re skipping the benefit at the Hyatt in Denver tonight as we just have too much going on.

It’s getting cooler up here and Fall will soon be here in full swing. Bring it on. That’s it. Tom told me I need to get the blog up earlier as I’ve been late. Tomorrow I’ll put up some pictures. Lori said Dixie had a nice date which is great to hear, you go girl, God Bless.

I made it home around noon. No elk this time but I’ll be back out there October 5th. Tonight we have football, whoo hoo! The boys have remarkably been getting up and out the door on time, Jag and Emma are no longer an item (don’t say anything to him!) and he’s fine. Guess she was drinking and vaping which Jag doesn’t go for. Harley woke me at midnight and 4 am to go out with diaherra and for a moment at 4 this morning I thought I was getting up to go hunting again, Ha! Lori is as beautiful as the day I left if n0t more and nothing much changed on the news or in the Country. Surprise surprise. That’s it, time to go as I’m off to Denver, have a great day and God Bless.

Ok to be fair, our Country really isn’t all that civilized these days. In fact you could argue that the rural areas and wilderness are more civilized than the cities. Oh well, you get what I mean.

Last night I shot a nice bull but couldn’t find him. Today 4 or 5 guys are looking for him as he was hit good. As I said Marty got a nice one and we share the meat so all’s well. I have until Christmas to hunt though so I’ll get back into the mountains before then.

Time to get back to work, go to the grocery store, pick up Ty after school, do some laundry and get ready for football tomorrow night. Tom and I are excited! That’s it, sorry for the late post today, God Bless.

This morning around 5 (meaning we woke up at 4!) Marty and I took separate trucks with 4 wheelers in tow over to the other side to hunt. Turns out Marty got a nice bull while again I couldn’t find one. We did call in a cow elk that came sprinting around 30 miles an hour a hill straight toward me. She stopped literally 5 feet away but still didn’t see me. I thought she was going to run me over and was ready to jump to the side if need be. Then she hung out 10 feet to the right of me looking for the bull elk she thought she heard, that was really us. That was it for the morning. I thought about shooting her as I knew Marty had a bull down and the cows are better meat anyhow but decided to pass. It was her lucky day.

Tonight I’ll be back at it while Marty tries for a bear. I’m going to pass on bear as it’s too greasy and I won’t eat it. I have no interest in killing anything I won’t eat. I miss Lori and the boys. Having the kid here who could be dead in 3 months makes you want to hug your kids. Life is short, don’t waste it. That’s it, have a good day, live life and God Bless.

Another early morning, another 5 or 6 mile hunt. No elk this morning but Mike, a former Air Force fighter pilot of 30 years from Wisconsin, did get a small 4X5 last night. I would have passed on it but he’s happy. Now to be fair, I have passed on 2 smaller bulls. J.D., the 21 year old kid with terminal brain cancer from Minnesota is having a blast. Hope he gets one. I built a blind over some water yesterday morning and even though I think it’ll produce a good bull, I told him he can go sit it tonight if he wants.

Lori and the boys are fine. Thanks much to my family for letting me go off the grid for 5 days. Marty and I went to Steamboat yesterday for supplies and are going fishing today. That’s about it, maybe I’ll get one tonight! God Bless and Happy Labor Day.

You can tell this morning it’s colder outside. I’m opting for a long sleeve shirt and a heavier coat for when I walk out the door. After our morning hunt J.D. and his dad Paul arrived. J.D. is a 20 year old kid with a terminal brain tumor and some guys on a forum bought him this trip, sort of like a Make A Wish thing. He’s grounded for being so young and knowing he doesn’t have a lot of time left on the earth. Kind of puts things into perspective when you think about life. There’s a young kid who is a cameraman here too documenting J.D.’s hunt and for that matter, his life. We’re all treating him no different than anyone else which I think he appreciates a bunch. Sure hope he gets an elk.

My morning hunt ended with lots of sign but no animal. I did step into a river trying to cross it so I had one wet foot for a while. Same thing with the evening hunt, nada, nothing. Elk 2, me 0. Hopefully I’ll have better luck this morning. Just a quick note, hunting elk is not easy. In fact, it’s really hard. Lots of hiking, sitting, standing, moving, waiting and walking. Still though, I love it, animal or no animal. My back is sore and I have a bit of a headache, Marty has allergies, red eyes, a sore back and is a little sore too. Other than that, we’re good! Pictures to come.

Have a great day, God Bless.