music – Page 3 – Salty Strings Music Ministry

The Salt Shaker ~ January 2025

January 31, 2025June 9, 2026 Salty Strings Music Ministry

Praises – Illinois friends doing much better, safety and protection during travels and getting stuck, John’s hearing aids arrived and working much better

Prayers – Renters still needed, continued health and strength for February volunteer work, contractor cancelled due to health problems (prayers for him and us to finish the work), Mississippi friends continued healing and physical therapy,

“Lord, there is no one like you. You are great, and your name is great and powerful. Jeremiah 10:6 New Century Version NCV

Hello to our friends, followers, and family:

Before leaving for our volunteer work in Florida there were some chilly mornings! On January 6 we lost power for about an hour in the morning with a temperature of 24 (feels like 18). There was snow on the truck and ice on our steps, and it remained cloudy and didn’t get above freezing all day. We turned up the heater in the addition for an evening swim, came back for a shower finding the gray tank was full and it was still too cold to try to open the valve. We decided Tuesday evening (7^th) that we would leave on Thursday before the snow and ice came, a really good decision because Friday morning brought 6” of snow to our Mississippi home.

We were able to get a few fixes done, photos and instructions for the contractor laid out, and water shut off instructions to our renter/manager (just in case) before leaving. There were the goodbyes to our church families, prayers for our travels and our volunteer work, and a ‘men only’ farewell breakfast. We had a couple of shopping trips to pick up John’s new glasses, fill propane tanks, pay property taxes, put our mail on hold, and pay-off our short-term construction loan (good to be debt-free again). Of course, we had to say goodbye to our swimming (temperature turned down) and hot tub (drained).

On Thursday we were up, packed up, and ready to go at 9am . . . then the electric tonneau cover over the truck wouldn’t open! Eventually a friend came over and helped John get it partially disassembled and fastened for travel. Then surprise! The hitch lock bar wouldn’t go in, finally on the road at 11:30!! We stopped overnight north of Dothan, AL after dark, missed our spot, circled around and squeezed past a power pole into a pull-through site. We hooked up the electric, got somewhat leveled, and stayed warm with only our electric heaters. Travel day 2 brought a few sprinkles before we got the jacks to go in (too much slope error) with no rain the rest of the trip. We arrived around 3:15 (EST) and got stuck in the sand driveway between two trees! Not fun, but the camp had a backhoe and operator along with several spotters to get us pulled back, straightened up, then pulled forward until we reached solid ground. We treated ourselves to a great Italian supper, and Connie was able to wear sandals!

Salty Strings was busy this month. There was music for SALT, the dulcimer group practice, and dulcimers at the Natchez Trace visitor center before our travels. John was able to practice inside and outside once we arrived in Florida, and we found lots of other musicians at the camp as well. We had a potluck jam one evening with great food and 9 musicians sharing their talents. Country, folk, 60’s, hymn sing, a new mandolin player, a few original compositions, and most enjoyable, a flute and tuba playing along with many songs. So much talent and encouragement to each other.

Our volunteer work was with 4 other SOWER couples, 4 RVIC couples, and a COM couple who had our materials ready and coordinated the daily work. We met the camp director on our first tour and found there was lots of work to be done. He is a visionary and shared camp history as well as future visions. The camp hosts a community lunch the third Sunday of the month, to which we were invited, free of charge. It was great seeing many church people head to camp for their Sunday lunch, and how they appreciate and support this ministry. There were a few days we lacked direction, mostly weather related, and we were glad we didn’t have to coordinate all the volunteers.

Connie helped arrange siding and bead boards for painting, caulked nail holes, moved and stacked painted boards, walked around the camp picking up branches, prepped and painted the front of the office, painting in the men’s bathroom including cleaning the screens and trim, cleaning the staff dining area, and ended with a few hours in the kitchen. The ladies were invited to join a weekly Bible study “12 Extraordinary Women” which was uplifting and wonderful to be a part of. Connie also had our keyboard and played a song or two for most of our morning devotions.

Most of the work requested by the camp was outside, and the weather did not cooperate! Our first week was chilly, mostly overcast, a few damp drizzly mornings, but usually reached mid 60’s. The second week brought the cold wave, nothing like the north had, but COLD for Florida with a few nights below freezing and a high of 34 one day, others in the low 40’s – not good for outside cleaning or painting and Connie had to wear shoes and knee socks!! Our last week brought more sunshine, still in the 40’s overnight, but usually 60’s by afternoon.

It was a great group of guys that worked in various combinations to get a lot of camp projects completed. John was involved in running water and sewer pipe for a RV site, tearing off and rebuilding the old chapel front porch, cutting siding for the south peak, clearing the bath house for the ladies, painting trim and bead board, putting up insulation and bead board in the old chapel, and turning into marshmallow man in his Tyvek suit for some tight crawl space plumbing! His nail gun was used by many, and it was great to see the addition end of the old chapel being transformed before our eyes.

January was a great month of fellowship; having morning devotions, working alongside others, and several meals together. We got to go out to eat twice before leaving; once with a church couple, and once with fellow volunteers traveling through from Wisconsin. A local restaurant has Music Bingo on Thursday nights. We went the first time they introduced the ‘90’s Rock’ theme – definitely not fun; too loud and didn’t have a clue what they were playing but, the second theme was ‘All Together Now’ which we really enjoyed even though it was getting a bit chilly outside (imagineentertainment.biz). Only 6 winners per night and of the eight in our group, three came back with winner coupons. We had fresh baked cookies, delivered warm to our door one afternoon, what a treat. One of our pot luck meals centered on a wonderfully cooked brisket with great sides, we brought pudding cake with whip cream for the dessert.

There was lots of walking around the camp, up and down ladders, crawling around with plumbing fixes, and the ½ mile loop around the camp for exercise. Connie posted January 1-11 on the Journey Church group chat some self-examination questions, that was great sharing with each other and it kept us connected part of the month. We prepared three devotions and used our folk instruments most of those mornings. John visited the local music store with a thrift store next door, finally finding a good jacket. Connie started on our taxes and a new baby blanket (the 11^th), stand by for the finish dates on these projects. We went to Friendship Bible Church our first Sunday and have continued to go there and joined Bible Study the following weeks. We have great internet here and several TV stations which allowed John to finally catch some football games. After an afternoon of looking at various displays and models, we ordered a new cover for the truck bed with a two-week delivery. We spent part of an afternoon getting the old electric cover off and the new cover came within a week of ordering. January 31 found us cleaning the rail and installing the new cover, easier than expected and we think our gas mileage has improved.

We drove to Gainesville one Friday morning to the La Chua Trailhead where we had an easy walk on board walks and trails through the Alachua Sink (prairie marsh and wetlands). Lots of herons, cormorants, other birds, and mostly big alligators sunning themselves on the opposite shore. It was great to be in the sunshine enjoying the fresh air and huge mossy trees. Another Friday we went thrift store shopping in Keystone Heights, then on to Waldo to a huge flea market where we found some clothes and stained-glass ideas followed by a great lunch at the Classic Café (a lonely date ‘night’). At our camp site we’ve enjoyed the squirrels right outside our window, one enjoying TV with his evening meal, burying acorns (and digging them up a few days later), we hear sandhill cranes, spotted an eagle soaring overhead, and a huge reddish gold hawk (Red-shouldered hawk?) has landed a few times on a nearby water spigot post. We had a visit from a big pileated woodpecker before leaving Mississippi.

Thoughts for the Month:
Irish theologian Frederick Whitfield said, “God’s way of answering His people’s prayers is not by removing the pressure, but by increasing their strength to bear it.”
Pastor and missions director Bruce Howell reminds us: that you are not what you used to be, you are not what you ought to be, and you are not what you hope to be, but who you are is according to your reliance upon the grace of God in your life.

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement!

John and Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry

Contact Information:
Mail: John & Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
30A Hwy 367
Burnsville, MS 38833

Phone – John 909-336-8910 or Connie 909-336-8912
Email – SaltyStrings@hotmail.com
Facebook – Salty Strings Music Ministry
Web site – SaltyStrings.com

ONLINE DONATIONS via PayPal through our web site

TRAVEL PLANS AND UPCOMING LOCATIONS

January 12-March 6, 2025 – SOWER Project, Melrose, Florida
March 7-8 Traveling, Mississippi home base likely for a few months

The Salt Shaker – December 2024

December 31, 2024June 9, 2026 Salty Strings Music Ministry

Praises – Beautiful, secluded, protected Mississippi ‘home’ property; Emmanuel, God with us

Prayers – Renters still needed for house; Contractor’s safety and completion of addition; Our health and strength for January/February SOWER projects; Protection of property while we’re gone with winter weather; Friends in Mississippi and Illinois with health issues

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10 English Standard Version ESV . . and . . “God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey him.” Philippians 2:13 Contemporary English Version CEV Follow the call God has for your life – you can bring your ‘what ifs’ to Him for He promises to be with you and will provide the courage you need to pursue what He has planned for you.

Hello to our friends, followers, and family:

December brings Christmas! As we prepared spiritually for Jesus’ birth during Advent, we also prepared for gatherings and Christmas at home alone (by choice) this year. We ventured out shopping on the 24^th to get some special food items (Pizza Hut pizza, pork chops, and peppered bacon!) returning home for an afternoon walk through the woods on this beautiful pleasant partly sunny day. Christmas morning John started with a peppered bacon breakfast, we had pizza for lunch, tuna salad crackers (part of Connie’s childhood Christmas memories), and eggnog later in the day. We walked through the woods again and found all our boundaries (first time Connie had been all the way back in the woods). Our neighbor’s shared biscuits, gravy, sausage, bacon, and pineapple crumble from their family breakfast gathering that we had the following morning.

This month started with final preparations for the church float. John washed and cleaned the inside of the truck. Monday afternoon they started at 2:30 getting the trailer hooked up and travel ready, and left at 4:30 to line up. It was a cold evening and Connie stayed inside starting craft projects and helping with supper when they returned at 7:30.

Our Christmas lights were up early this year – Connie decorated the front of our RV with our little wreath and a string of lights on the 3^rd and after a few trials with the timer they come on about 4:30 and go off around 11, we enjoy their twinkling. She helped out on some of John’s projects as well; moving the washer and dryer in the house and enlarging the dryer vent hole with the ‘miracle tool’ all while telling John to keep his fingers out of the way! In the multi-purpose room Connie put in a new shower head and cleaned up the shower stall, fixed a used clock, and started a heater for our first cold night. She got ambitious and cleaned the ceiling vents and plunged the bathroom sink and shower drains in the RV. Connie was the organizer for the notes for our new contractor (work to be done in January when we’re gone), had some frustration getting bank account transfers to work, took a couple of afternoon naps, and relaxed one night with a cup of steamed milk before bed.

Connie had a very creative month! She made another attempt at dumplings with slightly better results, fixed waffles for breakfast one morning, made rotisserie chicken and turkey bone broth, used macaroni instead of noodles with a chicken broth alfredo and tuna casserole with crushed cheese crackers and parmesan cheese topping, two batches of eggnog, and was inspired by a date night conversation (and too much milk on hand) to make some shrimp chowder – very good! Holiday pot lucks included carrot salad, pudding cake, and rice pudding. Add in the gifts of cookies and candies we received – we did eat well this month!!

We manage to keep each other motivated with our swim days. A few times this month we skipped a day or went fairly slow because our bodies were complaining to us. We swam before breakfast a couple of times but typically after dark with a late supper. We’re still learning with chemicals, and the emphasis now is finding what works to keep things above freezing when we leave in January (trying doors open or closed, heaters on or off). One evening John warned Connie as she entered that there were two birds in our addition – she ducked a few times but they stayed put once we started swimming. John evicted them the next morning from their perch on the shower rod. We also started taking a phone with us to play music via a small Bluetooth speaker – works ok even with ear plugs in, but not under water.

Connie did a lot of ‘crafting’ this month and really enjoyed it once she accepted that was her “job” for the month. She sorted through her older items, made a bin of scrap yarn, found all her hooks and needles, put all the plarn supplies together, and made up some knit and crochet patterns. December 2 a scrap yarn lap blanket and 28×40” plarn rug were started. The new lap blanket was finished along with the final rounds of an older one; both were given to residents at a local facility on the 15^th. After a week break the rug was finished on Christmas Day and is being used between the stove and sink in our RV. We also donated a new pink baby blanket she found to a local pregnancy center.

Fellowship continued with several date nights at some new places a bit further away and once with carry-in pizza to a couple’s home, good conversation, no rushing, and comfy chairs! Connie prepared fried potatoes with ham, veggies, and cheese for a Sunday School breakfast party, took some potato chips for a Sunday night white elephant gift exchange, and brought rice pudding and carrot salad for a potluck lunch after a special testimony and sharing service. We decided to give Captain D’s another try one Sunday lunch – after waiting in line our order was time stamped 1:20 and we finally got our food at 2:17!

John kept busy with odd jobs. Our trailer rental has a short section of gutter above the door that we cleaned and we found a rotted deck board that we replaced. We purchased two insulated covers for our window air conditioners on the property and he put those on (with a little help from Connie). John has cleaned and fixed many a vacuum while at SOWER projects and put those skills to work on two from church, one from our RV (lots of Connie hair around the beater bar), and two that were left on the property! A church friend donated a chain link gate that John was able to engineer into a top for our trash bin one nice day.

Early in the month John’s back and sinuses were problems for several days He stayed inside mostly, did a few short walks, and avoided bending and twisting. He had his eye exam and ordered new glasses on the 9^th and Connie decided to order glasses as well. John had to change to over-the-ear type hearing aids; we are hoping they will arrive and work well before we leave for Florida.

Connie followed up from her doctor visit in November with several more blood tests and nothing conclusive. The doctor was concerned with her dizzy spells and really wanted an MRI but she decided not to follow through because all the symptoms quit. She is trying to watch her diet more with cholesterol and blood calcium being a bit high (likely some osteoporosis going on). There was a referral to a dietician who did a phone ‘visit’ with lots of information. Of course, loosing weight would be helpful for overall health. Connie did stress her lower back during her morning exercise time – it started on the left side, moved to the right side the next day, and she dreaded moving for about 10 days. Water stretches and gentle swimming helped some.

John spent a few days on inside work and built two platforms for the spa steps so our short legs can easily clear the top to get into the water – looks great and works beautifully! He finally built up his nerves to enter the crawl space and get our dryer vented outside. Four trips in and out, hopefully for the last time since it bothers his knees and back. Once the cold weather appeared we were very aware of the drafts in the multi-purpose room. Connie plugged a few gaps around pipes and John finished up the area behind our stack washer dryer.

Salty Strings music remained active this month with our churches and the dulcimer club. We learned a couple of new songs for church which typically involves ‘re-writing’ the words and chords and listening to the song several times for timing and melody. Connie typed up a sing-a-long sheet for our caroling at a care facility – we had around 18 including lots of youth for a program with devotion in the activity room followed by room visits to those who couldn’t attend. We’re not used to having booming voices with us! The dulcimer club included the monthly trip to the visitor center, the 2-stop care facility, a special ‘ladies only’ program at a museum (Connie wandered around the exhibits in the free time), and one canceled facility due to COVID. Extra practice was required with the Christmas songs and some specials with the hammer dulcimer.

We do have deer in our woods – Connie sighted two does cutting through the trees one afternoon and John glimpsed the white tails running away. One of them came back a few days later, bolting off as we went to the truck for Sunday evening service. There was a single red-headed woodpecker that kept coming back to the same branch in our apple tree and some fat squirrels. Stray dogs, including two puppies, have made a few messes with the renter’s garbage and John has chased them off several times. After some of the rains John found some bright green moss and several ‘pizza top’ mushrooms (header photo).

John continued his relaxing walks through the woods and built several fires to get rid of lots of cardboard clutter. Connie joined a few times, only staying by the warm fire about 5 minutes one windy evening in the low 40’s. He mowed a couple of times, took several afternoon naps, watched a few old DVD’s when his hotspot minutes ran out, cleaned and organized in our multi-purpose room; all enjoyable activities for him. A bit less enjoyable, he cleaned our RV shower drain, track, and doors and they look great again!

December weather was much colder than we expected this year and included a few storms. All was good with us; we are still amazed at God’s provision of this property! Our longest cold overnight started at 6pm (32) falling to 27 at 8pm, and waking at 7am at 24; we had slow-running water but it didn’t freeze in the RV and had a portable heater pointed at the plumbing in the multi-purpose room. John put up a large thermometer that registers a bit colder than our phone weather temperatures. There were many days with heavy rain, puddles and flowing water on the driveway, and a few days with fog. We did re-learn how to start the truck remotely!

John made the reservation for our 2-day travels to Florida and the trailer hitch made it back to the truck on the 30^th. The diagrams and list for the contractor is finished, and we are now in ‘travel’ mode, watching the weather, worrying more than we should, and having the dread/anticipation of new adventures ahead!

Thought for the Month: Be encouraged. Keep moving ahead in the will of God for you. Be assured of His presence and power. Dr. Adrian Rogers reminds us, “Living victoriously is not our responsibility; it is rather our response to God’s ability.”

“Look! He is coming with the clouds! (Daniel 7:13) Every eye will see him. Even those who pierced him will see him. All the nations of the earth will mourn because of him. (Zechariah 12:10) This will really happen! Amen Revelation 1:7 New International Readers Version NIRV

Thanks for being a blessing to us!!

John and Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry

Contact Information:
Mail: John & Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
30A Hwy 367
Burnsville, MS 38833
Phone – John 909-336-8910 or Connie 909-336-8912
Email – SaltyStrings@hotmail.com
Facebook – Salty Strings Music Ministry
Web site – SaltyStrings.com

ONLINE DONATIONS via PayPal through our web site

TRAVEL PLANS AND UPCOMING LOCATIONS
^ January 10-11 – Travel to Melrose, Florida (Overnight stay Midland City, Alabama)
^ January 12-March 2025 – SOWER Project, Melrose, Florida
^ March-April – Tentative Mississippi home base

The Salt Shaker – October 2024

October 31, 2024June 9, 2026 Salty Strings Music Ministry

Praises – Beautiful fall colors; safe travel; time with friends and family; church family
Prayers –Contractor to finally finish addition; renters for house apartment; hearing aid adjustments, not working as expected

Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom . . . Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. Psalm 90:12, 14 NIV

Hello to our friends, followers, and family:

October was beautiful early on while still in Illinois and traveling back to Mississippi. By the middle of the month we had a week-long cold snap, waking up to 35-40 in the mornings and warming to 70’s by mid-day. There were several great nights of watching stars and the moon playing hide-n-seek behind the clouds. We finally had a good rain at the end of the month, starting in the afternoon, quite heavy at times, along with some wind that caused our bathroom fan to leak again. Falling and crunching leaves means campfires! We relocated and leveled our swing after an evening campfire only to have the smoke blowing our direction this time. Connie was tricked into believing Mississippi is great in the fall; almost all month the humidity was lower with temperatures requiring heat or air conditioning; but the humidity increased slightly and temperatures in the 60’s means miserable (for her)!

Early October brought lots of travels. We finished up our volunteer work at the camp in Illinois (another door and stain on a boat dock), loaded essentials in the truck, and headed to Wisconsin for Connie’s birthday on October 4 where we enjoyed supper with our Phoenix, AZ son and her sister (also her birthday) and husband. The following day we had beautiful weather at Beckman Mill Park with family and a few friends – 19 total if we counted correctly! Among the gifts were a carton each of quail eggs and chicken eggs from our daughter. It was great having almost all the family together again this year. We stayed 2 nights in a hotel, John soaked in the tub Friday night and Connie enjoyed it Saturday night, one of the blessings of motel stays. There was a long lunch Sunday with Connie’s high school friend then the drive back to the RV in Illinois.

We took a day of rest, leisurely packing the RV, and left October 8 to meet our retired pastor for a great lunch at Maverick Steak House in Litchfield, IL (his wife was unable to join us). They did have several items left over from their move to pass along to us, and we received a beautiful framed picture from his office of Jesus made from the Gospel of John (75,000 words). Travel continued through the afternoon with an overnight stay at Lambert’s in Sikeston, MO. We had another leisurely drive day, passed cotton fields in Missouri, and arrived home October 9 around 2pm.

We knew in August that we would be needing new renters for the house in October. It was left in good shape, just a fix to a ceiling fan blade and a few minor carpet stains. The big unknown problem was a mold/mildew issue that developed in September. Connie wiped down some walls where furniture had been, cleaned some very dusty ceiling fans, and painted two ceiling stains near HVAC vents. The upper kitchen cabinets took lots of pondering and John spent days cleaning, removing and fixing doors that had warped and separated. Connie did the painting, using Kilz first and a semi-gloss paint inside this time. John also hooked up the dryer vent, added some support for the furnace filter which was quite warped, and resumed yard care duties.

There were some special days this month with our church families. We went for one evening of a week-long revival and received the message comparing ‘knowing’ our spouses and loved ones to ‘knowing’ God. We heard a young missionary couple share their calling to Hilo, Hawaii with a church start ministry – very interesting as he shared demographics, history, culture, and poverty in what we consider a vacation paradise state. After the 4^th Sunday hymn sing, we had a surprise Pastor appreciation evening meal. The local Booneville Fall Festival turned a Wednesday night study into labeling water bottles plus making 4 batches of sausage balls with a helper the next morning. Connie made waffles one Sunday morning and played the organ and keyboard during services at Journey Church. As we review our church activities, almost all involved food; soup and sandwiches, restaurants, ice cream, and of course desserts!

After the wonderful birthday gatherings, Connie had two special surprises! A book came in the mail from a friend in Illinois and she set aside time to ‘curl up in the corner’ and read for enjoyment (but also a challenge from the story to take opportunities to share with others). It didn’t take very long but was so relaxing! The second surprise was receiving one of her mother’s spoon rings – her collection of “Mom’s rings” is now complete. She still had a few tunnel vision headache episodes and had to quit reading once because of it. Connie’s appointment with the eye doctor was interesting, probably should have stronger ‘readers’ but (she’s) not ready for glasses – no glaucoma or reason visually for the headaches, likely they are more stress related. Setting aside special time for fun things, stretching core exercises, and a few naps has helped her feel better, more peaceful, and rested.

There were many blessed chances for fellowship this month. We were invited to attend the ‘Senior Saints’ program in Illinois from 8:30-2:30 with great entertainment, food, and an excellent speaker; very relaxing for us. We went to our final coffee hour at Lane Church, had lunch a few days later with our retired Pastor friend, and resumed our Friday Date Nights in Mississippi. Although we’ve had our ‘home base’ here for almost two years, we finally made it to ‘Rattlesnake Saloon’ just over the border in Alabama for lunch with a church couple – a great adventure and the perfect fall day for a colorful drive.

The day after arriving home Salty Strings joined the Booneville Dulcimer Club at the Baldwyn Nursing Home, getting back into their routine (Christmas song practice and two other care facilities) as well as enjoying lunch with these friends. As we put together our September newsletter, we edited our web pages, stopped at a local RV repair shop for possible referrals for our extra RV spot, and started working on a music ad for a local ‘free’ Christian paper. John has been looking to add another instrument to our mix and we made a trip while in Wisconsin to see a 10-string cittern which was great sounding but not comfortable to play; Connie enjoyed the time talking with his wife, a retired university librarian. We detoured slightly on the way back to drive through the town where our kids were raised, stopping by the local cheese factory to get cheese curds for the birthday party. Good news/bad news – John did find a 12-string guitar, in Germany, made an offer that was accepted, paid for it, but is still waiting for delivery (customs, air freight, etc.)

We were disappointed that our contractor had not been back to finish several loose ends with our addition. John did finish up the wiring to the heater and fished a falling piece of insulation out of the spa. He used the house car port area with his saws for a work area to repair the cabinet doors. After mowing once he contacted our local mower repair man who picked it up, replaced a blade shaft, 2 solenoids, a head gasket, and delivered it back to us on the 29^th – it has more power, no oil leak, and sharp blades! John’s audiologist appointment was October 11^th and he ordered two in-the-ear hearing aids based on his hearing loss. His hearing was not as bad as we expected, but not hearing consonants clearly makes it hard to understand conversation. We had a piece of door trim on our truck that has been getting worse and even hindering the door opening at times – that is now fixed with a bonus; Connie’s pillow board lap computer stand is ‘glued’ back together (same glue for both fixes).

Connie had noticed the water bill for our mobile home rental was a bit high in August. By the time we returned it went from $45 to $112 to $156! Obviously, a water leak!! We looked everywhere, had a friend try to help to find the water line, walked looking for soft spots, contacted two plumbers who couldn’t help, and finally found another plumber who asked if we had checked the toilet – well we did and it was running (but we caught it!). We picked up some parts, John fixed the float, and we returned what we didn’t need. An expensive lesson in the supposedly obvious! We did get a new deck/back porch built within a week, something that was on our fall repair schedule, after some frustration getting the materials.

Connie wasn’t a lot of help this month! (At least not as much in the physical tasks.) There is a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff that she deals with along with daily necessities (but John still cleans and empties the tanks!). She handled the water leak communication, changed over the rental electric bill, and keeps an eye on our chemical levels cleaning the filters as needed for the spa and hot tub. Her creative cooking brings some surprises at times; waffles, apple crisp from caramel apples, seasoned French fries in the air fryer, eggs and veggies, cabbage stir fry, and routinely her yogurt. There are many hours spent in research – Amazon orders, Homestead Credit, drawing house dimensions for property insurance coverage, realizing and dealing with address changes that did not happen, changing supplemental insurance to Mississippi, and working with John through his oversea purchase.

While in Illinois we continued our evening walks, one was very hazy from the harvested field dust, and a few bike rides. Once home, after setting up the RV, we checked the water in our swim spa. We were gone 7 weeks with the temperature turned down and the water looked good. We cranked up the heat, shocked (extra chlorine) the water, and we were swimming the next day. We try to swim every other day and are now back to speed. On the 23^rd John finally positioned the hot tub, filled it, and we have been really enjoying it; a wonderful way to end the day. Connie resumed her downloaded core stretching exercises; trying for every day but hasn’t got into a routine yet. We found a seat cover and got it on Connie’s bike, much more comfortable but the hills are worse here and we opt for swimming or driveway walks in the evening. We remain very blessed in all we have and do!

Our Thought for the Month: “Peace (Shalom) involves the kind of tranquility that comes from knowing who you are and where you come from.? It involves the kind of prosperity that arises, not from an accumulation of material possessions, but from a thankful spirit.? It involves the kind of security that comes from the faith that God loves you and will provide for your needs.”

“Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27 NIV)
“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10 NIV)

Thanks for traveling with us and supporting us with your thoughts and prayers!

John and Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry

Contact Information:
Mail: John & Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
30A Hwy 367Burnsville, MS 38833

Phone – John 909-336-8910 or Connie 909-336-8912
Email – SaltyStrings@hotmail.com
Facebook – Salty Strings Music Ministry
Web site – SaltyStrings.com

ONLINE DONATIONS via PayPal through our web site

TRAVEL PLANS AND UPCOMING LOCATIONS

November-January 10? – Mississippi home base
January-February 2025 – SOWER Projects, Louisiana or Florida panhandle?
March-April – Tentative Mississippi home base

The Salt Shaker – February 2024

February 29, 2024June 9, 2026 Salty Strings Music Ministry

Praises – Fellowship with fellow workers, music we’ve been able to share

Prayers – Renters – house still not rented and mobile home behind with rent; recording problems and setbacks; John’s knee to hold up for March

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 English Standard Version

Hello to our followers, friends, and family:

We had a great month of fellowship with 4 SOWER couples on site. We gathered around the neighbors’ fire pit twice (the last time with a late-rising full moon), and had a real fire complete with brats, beans, chips, and salsa; the chilly evening air usually disbanded the group. Tuesday night was potluck and games; great food after which John would retreat to the RV while Connie enjoyed games and won the 1.5-hour card game one evening. There were two prayer circles as two of our couples headed out to other places for March.

We continued to attend Sunday School and church in Bonifay the first two weeks. The HVAC person at camp had passed our name out to several area pastors and we received a call from one so we visited Restoration UMC in Cottondale, FL where we enjoyed a great message and wonderful piano playing at this very small new/old church. This old church was vacant for several years and it reopened in January 2023 with a beautiful restored sanctuary, ongoing upgrades planned, and a recovery ministry. We were invited back the following week for the offertory and special music, and stayed for the potluck following. It was nice to be a part of a more traditional service with an emphasis on Lent and congregation readings.

We are thankful to have had only one tornado watch this month and it was in daylight. We’ve had the gas furnace on for some chilly nights and the air conditioners for some upper 70’s sunny days, definitely spring. Each night brings the official weather check to know how to set the thermostats and auxiliary heaters! Many beautiful sunny and breezy days, a few cloudy and rainy days, and a couple of really windy days. We continue to enjoy the pets of others, having 3 dogs in campers this month along with the manager’s cat and SOWER Maine coon cat.

John made time on several occasions to practice with his new amp, looping and recording a track to play along with. His rhythm has improved a lot and he is able to add some really great sounding runs and embellishments. His birthday brought a Walmart online order and he chilled that night with 2 hours of The Three Stooges followed by Svengoolie (typically an old black and white monster movie) while Connie retreated to the bedroom. He received a gift a bit early in the mail and enjoyed wearing his new hat and the mug, full of coffee. Superbowl Sunday is also in February and John drove to church for their party, enjoying the chili supper and game with snacks. He came home early though, there was no interaction with others from the church and the chairs were too hard, but he did see the end of the game here at home.

February has been pretty good with our health; no major issues although changing weather made us aware of some achy joints. By mid-month John had to use his knee brace more and that is causing some rash where it rubs against his skin. While working on the phones Connie had some vision problems (she calls it swirly eye sparkles). It doesn’t hurt at first, she just can’t see, but within a few hours a migraine-type headache sets in that is very painful. Bright light seems to be the trigger and computer/phone screens can be obnoxious that way at times. We did manage to take a 25-minute bike ride including a few hills one day; it felt really good until the stiff muscles came the next day!

Connie went a bit extra in our kitchen this month making homemade noodles, split pea soup with jalapeno cornbread, another batch of sausage balls, and some Spanish rice (a bit too spicy for her). We had a request for some CD’s to be sent to Wisconsin requiring us to get a new CD burner – she got that connected and made more ‘Tis A Gift recordings so we have a few on hand. We now have to figure out how to get the track names to show up rather than the track numbers; guess all our CD’s have had this quirk. There was more tax preparation with lots more to do in March, our goal for filing rather than the last minute which is typical for us. Our new phones are now both updated and some quirks worked out; however, all the effort only slightly improved our weak reception. John’s new phone does allow WiFi calling, that is a big help

Connie had another month of lots of painting, which she enjoys. The dining room touch-up was finished along with an annex room. Our other SOWER ladies focused on 17 doors (3 coats each side) while Connie did the added supports in the dorm stalls. In addition, there were several doors to be sanded and some cleaning for groups coming in.

John was in charge of the group this month, answering questions, giving direction, and assigning the volunteer work. The push was to complete doors for toilet and shower stalls in 2 dorm bathrooms – 18 doors were custom made (very few were the same size), sanded, painted (with the ladies’ help) and put up complete with hinges and latches. Another 12 were made to continue the process in March. There were 2 window replacements and John observed and helped with mini-split HVAC unit installs, doing some others after learning the process. In addition, there were thermostat covers to install, 3 mattresses were replaced, and the exterior mini-split units were secured to the concrete with tap cons (including a trip to town to get more cement bits). The final day, as usual, is putting your personal tools away along with camp equipment and cleaning up.

We found a parking spot right next door for our musician friend Larry Stevens to stay a couple of nights. He arrived in time to enjoy one of our potluck nights, visited nursing homes the next day, enjoyed Connie’s homemade pancakes for supper, and left the following morning (with leftover ‘toaster’ pancakes) after sharing his ministry with our group for morning devotion. He did a little interview with us before leaving, to be edited and published with his ministry updates.

We enjoyed our “first Saturday” every Friday (our work week ends on Thursday) by doing a bit of shopping, always at least 20 minutes away. This seems to be an opportunity for us to have some good conversations for our future hopes and dreams as we drive and sometimes have lunch out. We stopped at “Amazing Grace Thrift Store” on one of our trips and John found a nice pale pink top for Connie. Weekends usually include a couple of movie times and we enjoyed “His Only Son” one afternoon, a great production centered on Abraham and Isaac. There were several days where we heard and eventually saw Blackhawk and other helicopters overhead (and a few nights as well). There is a small tuft of some sort of broom grass that has become our weather vane – we can tell the wind speed and direction from watching it out our dining table window. We have our binoculars on the table to bird watch the numerous cardinals and an oriole one day. There was an interesting buzzard walking around one afternoon, acting a bit slow or drunk; we concluded it was likely an adolescent getting a feel for flying, it took opening our door and starting towards it before it finally flew off. Spring and rain are here, evidenced by our first amphibious friend found outside in a folded up chair.

Thank you for your prayers – Salty Strings has been very active this month!! The first Saturday we were asked in the morning to share a few songs after lunch for the camp board of directors work day. Then came a concert for a small Assembly of God Church in Westville, FL after their Community Spaghetti Dinner and our fellow SOWERs came along. We shared some songs and a bit of our lives with those attending (children had game time outside) and we had a great time. Valentine’s Day, after a great steak and shrimp meal, we shared songs again with 7 couples, one celebrating their 53’rd wedding anniversary. We skipped a week and ended the month with a special song and offertory music at Restoration UMC, about 30 minutes away. We finally got out our “sound proofing” material and set up our music room for recording, starting with refreshing our editing skills for some good tracks – more on that next month.

Looking back, we had a lot of meals “out.” There was a chili lunch with another couple at the local Christian coffee shop (Fresh Grounds), Mexican lunch with 8 after church and 12 at the end of this project (Cancun’s), Valentine’s Dinner for 14 at the camp fixed by the guys for their sweethearts, finally a Chinese lunch with leftovers after church, all the potlucks, plus a few lunches on our own. Life is certainly good and blessed!

“A Texas pastor once said that worry is like sitting in a rocking chair – you can get it moving but it isn’t going anywhere!” And, our second thought for the month: “A detour is someplace where discoveries are made that you would not have seen any other way.”

Commit your works to the Lord {submit and trust them to Him}, and your plans will succeed {if you respond to His will and guidance}. Proverbs 16:3 Amplified Bible

Thanks for traveling with us!
We so appreciate your prayers and notes of encouragement!!

John and Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
Contact Information:
Mail: John & Connie Nicholas
Salty Strings Music Ministry
3916 N. Potsdam Ave. #3962
Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Phone – John 909-336-8910 or Connie 909-336-8912
Email – SaltyStrings@hotmail.com
Facebook – Salty Strings Music Ministry
Web site – SaltyStrings.com

ONLINE DONATIONS via PayPal through our web site

TRAVEL PLANS AND UPCOMING LOCATIONS

March 5-27 – SOWER Project, Bonifay, FL
March 28-July 31 – Travel to property, Jacinto, Mississippi; travels IL, WI, SD
August 1-26 – SOWER Project, East Troy, WI and family visits
August 27-September ?? – Clinton, IL – Little Galilee