THE END OF MAY

THE END OF MAY here on the shore means the peas are ready to be picked, the late peonies are in bloom, and my joy of joys, the Mountain Laurel is in bloom. The clematis is also in bloom this year, but I think it is a bit early. It has been hot for May, but then the entire winter/spring has been very warm, even hot some days. I am sure there are those who do not think 80 is hot, but I am a Mountain girl… or an Island girl so I measure hot and cold differently, I guess. I think Punkin must be a mountain cat… he does not like the heat when it gets around 80. He gives up following me around the garden and heads for a place in the shade, often under a bush, but sometimes right in the middle of the plants. What is fun for me, but surprising for visitors is when he meows as we walk by and other folks do not even see him. I am sure he enjoys that look of bewilderment when they look around and no cat is to be seen… “Ow,” he repeats. Do you see him?
It is also at the end of May that our little Train Station has its Plant Sale as part of the Town’s Spring Fling – a town-wide yard sale sort of thing that starts at 7 AM, but usually ends for us between noon and 1PM. It is real hard work for some of us, contacting growers, then driving up and down the highway with a van full of plants, then setting things up. Someone has to price them. They get arranged and rearranged as things get sold.
This year we had a Bake Sale in conjunction with the Plant Sale. That was even harder on me than all the work with the planning and getting and doing………… namely not eating all the goodies. Sigh. BUT, I try to stay gluten and sugar free, so my house is a Safe Haven for cookie storage! LOL!
We did set up our simplest train track, just in case a kid or two showed up. Of course, some of our kids were in their 60s. That happens a lot. But here is one of the younger ones.

MAY MORNING

MORNING..... I think of Thoreau, who wrote in his journal:

"I have just heard the flicker among the oaks on the hillside ushering in a new
dynasty...Eternity could not begin with more security and momentousness than the
spring. The summer's eternity is reestablished by this note. All sights and
sounds are seen and heard both in time and eternity. And when the eternity of
any sight or sound strikes the eye or ear, they are intoxicated with delight."

Have you been so programmed by noise that you can’t enjoy the sound of water lapping against the side of the dock, the surf rolling the sand, shells or pebbles on the beach, or the calls of the newly hatched, the mewling sounds of a newborn creature as it searches for a bit of nourishment. Do you hear the hum of bees in the garden? Can you tell what kind of bird it is by the sound of their wings? These things are the sound of Peace, contentment, a connection with the earth and the Self.

I still thrill at the sight of a red cardinal sitting in the camellia outside my window and marvel at the subtle coloring of the mama cardinal as she sits on a branch nearby. I get excited when I see the tiny flowers on my berry bushes and watch as the pods form on the peas climbing up the fence. The air yesterday morning was heavy with left over rain and the promise of more rain to come mixed with the fragrance of honeysuckle. A gentle breeze added the scent of the magnolia to the air and I ventured out to find the blossoms, gaze at their huge magnificence next to the fragile petals of the honeysuckle growing up the tree. I can’t imagine being confined to a world of concrete and bricks, glass and steel, traffic and city noise… the crowds of people brushing by reeking of human smells, alcohol, tobacco, body odors, cologne, aftershave, smelly deodorants, hair control products, stale food…

Today the air is cooler, crisper, they say, tho I have never figured out how air can be crisp, I guess they mean drier, a perfect day to be out in the yard getting some chores done. It is difficult to concentrate on the work at hand, there is so much beauty to pause and admire. Some things are big, bright and bold in color, other things are tiny, subtle, and yet equally as spell binding. In the evening I try to concentrate on getting the grass (mostly weeds) cut, but keep thinking I must come back out here on foot in the morning and look at this or that. I cut the grass slowly, grateful to have the machine to take me where my legs don't want to go, but hate the noise drowning out the bird song.

Morning comes, breezy, fresh, almost chilly for a change. The honeysuckle is on the wind this morning. The little cat trots along ahead of me telling me about what went on in the yard last night, stopping to inspect a hole made by a deer stepping in the soft dirt, saying a few words to the new lilies freshly opened, hiding in the ferns to ambush me as I pass by. A car goes by. I hear the deep BOOM BOOM BOOM as the driver, thinking how cool he is, hastens deafness with what his generation considers music. I return to the sounds and sights of my little world, so grateful to be there, knowing of the suffering around me. For now, I have been given this gift.

Give me space and fresh air! Let me hear the rustling of the wind in the trees, the smells of the blossoms, the breeze ruffling my hair. Let me walk on the earth, not the pavement, with a little cat meowing by my side. Let me feel the rough bark of the trees in my yard, caress the petals of the rose, taste the sweetness of the strawberries in my garden.

That, my friends, is Peace, Contentment.

What a blessed Morning.

THEY WALK AMONG US

Some guy bought a new fridge for his house.To get rid of his old fridge, he put it in his front yard and hung aSign on it saying: 'Free to good home. You want it, you take it.'For three days the fridge sat there without anyone looking twice.He eventually decided that people were too mistrustful of this deal.So he changed the sign to read: 'Fridge for sale $50.' The next day someone stole it!
They walk amongst us!-------------------------------------
*One day I was walking down the beach withSome friends when someone shouted.....'Look at that dead bird!'Someone looked up at the sky and said...'where?'
They walk among us! ----------------------------------------------------------
While looking at a house, my brother asked theEstate agent which direction was north becauseHe didn't want the sun waking him up every morning.She asked, 'Does the sun rise in the north?'My brother explained that the sun rises in the eastAnd has for sometime. She shook her head and said,'Oh, I don't keep up with all that stuff......'
They Walk Among Us!--------------------------------------------
My colleague and I were eating our lunch in our cafeteria,when we overheard an admin girl talking about thesunburn she got on her weekend drive to the beach.She drove down in a convertible, but saidshe 'didn't think she'd get sunburnedbecause the car was moving'.
They Walk Among Us!------------------------------------
My sister has a lifesaving tool in her carwhich is designed to cut through a seat beltif she gets trapped. She keeps it in the car trunk.
They Walk Among Us! -------------------------------------------------
I couldn't find my luggage at the airport baggage area and went to the lost luggage office and reported the loss.The woman there smiled and told me not to worrybecause she was a trained professional andsaid I was in good hands. 'Now,' she asked me,'Has your plane arrived yet?'...(I work with professionals like this.)
They Walk Among Us!------------------------------------------------
While working at a pizza parlor I observed a manordering a small pizza to go. He appeared to be alone and the cook asked him if he would like it cutinto 4 pieces or 6. He thought about it for some timethen said 'Just cut it into 4 pieces; I don't think I'm hungryenough to eat 6 pieces.
They Walk Among Us!
Thanks Bobby for the humor... but what is scary is - how do we know when we are one of THEM? Obviously they had no idea...
What if..........................

COULDN'T HELP IT

As a former Art Teacher, I remember teaching the kids to recognize the Scream, and they all wanted to "play" with it... rename it... many of them said the could identify with it. Well, this cartoon is one I sure can identify with, I am sorry to say. I know, I try to keep politics out of this blog... I try to be an equal opportunity kind of person, and this takes no real sides except for those of us who are so frustrated with what has been going on for the past however many years. It is just plain sad. I feel like Screaming!

A ROSE IS A ROSE IS A ROSE.....

Peace, my favorite rose........ See the tiny spider web? I have always loved pink roses best or the real dark red ones, but the last couple years I have been in love with yellow roses... Enjoy my garden..

VISITORS

I LOVE IT when I get unusual visitors out front either at the feeders or just hanging out in the redbud tree. This week I had 2 visitors I have not seen for a few years. Doesn't mean they haven't been here, just means I have not noticed them. The first was a Rose Breasted Grosbeak. Yeah, I know it is hard to tell from this picture, but by the time I got my camera, he was ready to move on. If you know your birds, you will recognize his back. If you don't know them, his breast is white with a bright red heart shape just under his neck, not that song birds have much of a neck. The female looks kind of like an over-sized sparrow in color and markings. I have had Evening Grosbeaks in the winter, even a Blue Grosbeak one summer that I thought was a giant Indigo Bunting! Hey, I was new to birding! And they said Blue Grosbeaks did not get this far north, but, as Roger Tory Peterson told my neighbor, "birds have wings!" Imagine! Then, today a Redheaded woodpecker visited. How beautiful! The female is very plain by comparison, browns and white. Great coloring for sitting on the nest. I often have a good assortment of really cool woodpeckers, my favorite being the Pileated that lives in my woods (or Frank's woods, or in a tree on the line!) I have posted pics of them before on here... And I have posted pictures of the red-bellied, the occasional yellow shafted flicker, and the ubiquitous Hairy and Downy.

EVER SEE A FRINGE TREE?

THE YARD, ONE WEEK LATER, has more stuff open, some things finished. One super cool thing is my Fringe Tree, Chionanthus virginicus, surprisingly a member of the Oleaceae (Olive Family). It has a lot of nick-names, so I have been told, most common is Old Man's Beard and Honeysuckle tree. I like it not only for its unusual beauty, but because it is so fragrant... sort of like a cross between the honey suckle and a jasmine, but not as heavy as wisteria. My favorite Irises are blooming, loads of them left to bloom, and the azaleas with the bigger flowers, the ones that will bloom again in the fall. I might mention, these colors are NOT inhanced. Honest! I mean, what's the point? As you can see, the camellias are still in bloom. Maybe you can get a sense of the size of things in this shot. Grandpop's peonies are open. The red ones will open next week. As you can see, the Boys are enjoying the garden, too. Spook has taken to napping next to the zucchini and eggplants. Punkin is enjoying the empty trays!
I have been mega busy this past week, and the coming weeks look even worse! So, I try to visit you when I have a moment, but don't always have a chance to comment. I hope you have enjoyed visiting my gardens and yard. Wish you could stop by and have a cup of tea with me in the adirondacks! See them back there behind the azaleas?

for LEONTIEN

We all have known someone to fight the BIG fight... many of us are Cancer survivors ourselves. Lets post a flower for someone who is fighting this fight. Troutbirded mentioned and posted a wildflower for Leontien Vandelaar of Four Leaf Clover Dairy .

Leontien, this is my favorite Iris... it opened this morning... it is for you.

Wishing you well............. possum