MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE - 2013

In spite of a lot of illnesses, our group got together and headed out once again to carol in the neighborhood. The weather was very cooperative with temps in the upper 50s! I remember the first year – we sang standing in snow!

Once again we had singers from several different churches. The Baptists provided the words in English for those of us who learned out songs in Latin! We included the words for Ava Maria for them to ponder. We did not try to sing it. Maybe next year. About half way thru the men disappeared to try to get my van running. Dead battery. Oh well, it is the original battery… I added up how old it is and much to my shock, it is 7 1/2 years old. Since I only have 47,000 miles on it, and it is a Toyota good for another 200,000 miles or so, I don’t think about things like age. But I guess the battery did.

We did not have our usual police escort this year, so that limited where we went. We stayed off the Main streets because of the kids – they get excited and sometimes run across the street. So, to keep them safe, we stayed on the back streets. We sang at the homes of several people who usually come and sing with us. It has been a year for surgeries and such…

Anyway, we had a good time. Lots of cookies, hot chocolate, and a Muslim friend made us a tray of Turkish Baklava. I thought that was a good way to top off my 4th Ecumenical Moment.

 

MY IMAGINARY FRIEND SHOWS UP

DID YOU HAVE AN IMAGINARY FRIEND WHEN YOU WERE A KID? Well, most of us did. But my imaginary friend was a dog because my mother was allergic to animals so I could not have pets. There were plenty of kids in the neighborhood, tho they were all boys, but my yard was the meeting place and our big 3 car garage was like having a gym to play in in bad weather. Grandpop always got a good fire going in the old pot-belly stove to take the chill off. So I did not need another kid for my invisible friend… I needed a dog. I did not like little dogs, one tried to bite me when I was real little. “My dog” would never bite anybody! And he or she would be big but not huge. An aunt had a Great Dane we kids used to ride when we were toddlers. We all got photographed on that poor dog’s back. I could not decide what color my dog should be so I decided on her having all of them, and definitely long silky hair I could brush. She would be excited to see me and would walk with me out in the woods and roll over to let me scratch her belly.

Well, most of you know how old I am. So you can figure out how long it has been since I had that imaginary pet. One year I found a little dog ornament of a dog that looked just like my make-believe pet. I bought dog ornaments for my friends, pugs, golden retrievers, a black lab, a yorkie, and there my dog was… I bought her for me. Now how dumb is that? I don’t even have a tree! LOL! Oh well.

Then a couple years ago a friend lost his dog, Gracie. She was a real sweetheart and he missed her terribly. She was his constant companion. But, at home, he kind of had another dog. She was a bit standoffish. He did not know where she came from. She just started hanging out and probably sleeping in his barn a couple years before. It took some work to get her to become a travel companion like Gracie had been, but she has come a long ways toward making friends with him and his friends. It is amazing how a couple “milkbones” can break the ice. Ruggie has become my very visible friend. And I do my best to spoil her. When her owner comes to visit, she comes to visit, too, flops over in front of me to get her belly scratched, and takes walks with my out in my woods. It took a long time for my friend to become visible, but here she is.

Is she beautiful, or what?????

"WE'RE ON PEAKS ISLAND!" OMG

OMG!

I just got a phone call about a half an hour ago... my dear friends, who go by Grenville and Beatrice on their blog, are sitting as I type this at the Peaks Cafe' - hopefully enjoying some nice hot coffee and a cinnamon bun... ah, yes, life can be good.

Unfortunately, they have about frozen their butts off - tis a bit chilly up there this time of year - BUT, it hasn't snowed on them yet... however the wind is high and probably made for a fun trip across the Bay.

It is a short trip, however, under normal conditions. 20 minutes, usually, if I remember correctly - unless there is ice. Yep, I have gone to school with ice swirling around the boat.

In the old days, as I may have mentioned before, (I'm an old lady, indulge me) if you went to high school, you had to go to the Mainland. As there were very few cars on the Island, one walked sometimes several miles on snow packed roads VERY early in the morning to catch the ferry. Once in Portland, it was a good hike up the hill into center city to Portland High School. We traveled cobblestone streets. I swear, we did for the first few blocks.

I don't know what time school gets out today, but it was out shortly after 1 pm back then, probably because of the long trip home for the islanders. It usually took about 20 min to get to the wharf, don't know how long we had to wait - when you are a kid you don't notice those things - the ferry ride was a minimum of 20 minutes, and then, for some, a walk home of about an hour. Walking on snow and ice is not quite as speedy as in better weather. So for many kids, they did not get home until about 3 PM. It is almost dark by then in mid winter. Maine is an hour ahead of the Eastern Shore, sunwise, not clock wise. But then, it is light earlier in the morning...
Living year round on Peaks is not for wimps. In my old age, I have figured out living year round in Maine is not for wimps. Oh, I am so spoiled. (Its gonna be 74 tomorrow here...)

Anyway, THANK YOU Grenville for the phone call. As soon as we hung up, I called my Aunt Kathryn and we oooooooooooo-ed and aaaaaaaaahhhhed for a while wishing we were back on the Island, just one more time... how wonderful our life was on the island, and all that great stuff. Couldn't remember one single bad moment. (Isn't memory wonderful?)

So, while talking to Grenville, I pulled up the Peaks webcam...

This image is from Larry's webcam, PI, 9:50 AM, Oct 22, 2010

A HANGOVER and other odds and ends

FIRST, THE HANGOVER... Yep, Rascal is hanging over the computer chair once again. Guess he is waiting for an email from someone!

AND OTHER ODDS AND ENDS... Hadji and his stiff tail - the result of the flash from taking Rascal's picture on the back of the computer chair. The flash disturbed him, I guess, and he wanted to know what he missed! Sometimes he stands with his front paw up like a Pointer... but by the time I got the camera up to take the shot, his paw was back down.

Thanks for all the interest in the putter bench. Yes, it is my own design, built for my heighth, but most of all, built to withstand hurricanes and Nor'easter winds. I hope. That is why it is so open and also why I used 4x4s for the bottom legs. Wednesday it was used as a potting bench, my friend gave me a flat of petunias, I potted them up into several pots that are now sitting or hanging around the yard. Thanks, Bobbie!

The cactus is in bloom. I thought the color was particularly spectacular this morning.

And the hydrangea Anna gave me a couple years ago finally bloomed!

Thanks for visiting my yard!

THE PUTTER BENCH, a Work in Progress

OK, MOST PEOPLE WOULD CALL this a potting bench, I suppose... but the potting is all done for this year... and mostly what I am doing now is puttering... whatever that actually means. The seeds are all sewn, some are up, some are not, and the lima beans were transplanted earlier this week and looking good! The strawberries are almost finished for now. Sometimes I get a second harvest. We shall see what happens this year. The garden has taken off on its own with a wild riot of color... I never know just what I am going to get out around St Francis, but it is usually beautiful any time of the year. Sooo, now that I have 5 minutes to putter between potting/planting and harvesting, I decided to build myself a potting bench, except, of course, the potting is done for this year. But I end up with all kinds of miscellaneous chores and the old back just needed a place out in the yard where I can DO STUFF without bending down or making a mess in the house, carport, or in a hot stuffy barn. Important stuff like bird feeder cleaning and repair, a place to throw the garden gloves and tools when I have to answer the phone, a place to store the pots, trays, and some of the mixed potting soil till next year, being always mindful to keep that little square spot open next to the Scoop Away bucket (now containing potting soil) - that is the shed where Spook goes when the weather is terribly wet or windy. I decided to give the flat surfaces a coat (or 2) of paint since it is sitting outside. And yes, the bench is tilted. My good friend, Pat, came by and lifted one end so I could tilt it more for rain run off. Another note - I did buy new 4x4s and 2x4s for the legs... 4x4s so it will withstand the hurricane force winds and not blow out in the yard - unless we get a Cat 3 or more. The wood is treated to have contact with the elements. The shelf and work top and all other pieces are scraps I saved for the moment when I might need them. Some of my scrap wood came from the lumber yard's scrap pile. If you go to buy lumber and have them cut it for you, you might notice they have a big scrap pile. Ask and they will usually let you dig thru the pile and take home left over pieces that might come in handy when you make your next project. Got grandkids? A friend's grandson and neighbor kid built a tree house completely out of scrap lumber from the lumber yard. All they bought were nails! It also seemed like a good place to display my very old shore bird decoys... By the way, did you notice the clematis in the St Francis garden??? It is amazing this year. This is not a good shot, but I was in a rush. Forgive me!

WHAT IS THAT PLANT?????

I HAVE HAD more people stop this year than any other time I remember asking what "those" flowers were. I have also found that most people don't know the name foxglove any better than they know digitalis - but at least they have heard of that as a heart medicine. Go figure. I also got arguments from folks who told me that digitalis does NOT grow any higher than 3 feet at the tallest. Since I have never learned how to photoshop pictures to distort them, you will have to trust me, this is next to my patio, count the square foot patio stones from the digitalis to see how far away they are from the Adirondack chair (2 feet) and you will get an idea of how tall they are. The next to newest peonies bloomed. The newest ones are still growing. This is a good thing. Peonies seem to be scarce around here. Maybe it is just that they are so unbelievably expensive in the Garden Centers, I don't know. I brought my oldest ones down from PA, pieces of roots from peonies my grandfather planted years and years ago. He died in 1954, but the beauty of his garden lives on and on. Also, up in PA, there is a grocery store where they have the most beautiful miniature roses that usually sell for $5 or $6 in a little pot. I am a sucker for them, too. They never get taller than 1 foot, if that tall. I have brought a few home and they used to be out front. When I lost my big maple tree, the power company people that came and cut it up piled the logs right on my garden, and right on the mini roses. 2 managed to survive so I brought them out back to my St Francis garden. This is the time of year when my rarest plants bloom. I am proud to say plants since I now have 3 of them that have survived. No one around here knows what they are. Do you? This is Mountain Laurel, the state flower of PA, and it grows wild up there with bushes 8 feet tall in places. This one is just under 4 feet tall. Can you imagine a jungle of Mountain Laurel and rhododendron? Up there the Mountain Laurel blooms first, usually it's in bloom for Father's Day, followed by the rhododendron which also grows wild on the mountain sides. Rhododendron blooms for the 4th of July. I have also had questions about my tiny iris. They are about a fourth the size of my standard iris, which seems to be normal for Siberian iris.

Again, I thank you for wandering around my garden with me. After all, what are gardens for if not to share? Beauty shared is beauty quadrupled!

And PS - thank you Pat for coming and "fixing" my computer - getting it so it works again more or less the way I want it... Now I just need to figure out a way to get the pictures to load in under 2 hours per picture! I know, I need a new computer... but if I can keep this old slow poke running enough to do email and my blog and keep up with my classes, well, I guess that is what I will do. Stick with what you need, not what you want!

A BUSY TIME AT POSSUM LANE

IT’S A BUSY TIME AT POSSUM LANE

SPRING IS ALWAYS a busy time. Just some years it seems busier than others. This year, it is with huge amounts of gratitude that I report that I am getting some stuff done. I, as in ME! So far this spring, my friends have not been up here bailing me out, doing my chores… one has called twice asking if there was anything I needed him to do – plow the garden, help lay stones on my patio… but I know he has tons to do for himself. How many times have I mentioned the wonderful friends I have? May I do it again????? And I do thank you guys. I go to sleep with a sense of security knowing I have you for neighbors and if I ever need you, you will be there.
Again, my apologies for not being on here… but every spare moment I have has been outside trying to get caught up.
Years ago when I first decided to “build” a patio – or at least do something to keep my ancient Adirondack off the ground (this chair is over a hundred years old – it is one of the few things I brought down here when we had to dispose of the little house in the Poconos…) I basically just plopped a bunch of square cement blocks down… and the number grew, I added another chair… and a Beautyberry Bush… Well, the Beautyberry bush, in spite of being cut back severely, GROWS so much each year, it would come out and hang over the chair. So, now that I am better able to DO THINGS for myself, I decided to redo the patio idea, moving several rows of stones from the southern end to the eastern Buddha-side. Better than that, I decided to actually do it with the ground cloth and sand to make it level, due to all the moles that seem to like this place and have tunneled under the stones.
I actually had to go to Salisbury to buy decent ground cloth. The stuff being sold today is like gauze. No one has the good old heavy stuff of just a few years ago around here. Sam’s had 4 foot rolls of the good stuff. That should last me a few years. I found Roses had 50 lb bags of sand. I figured I could handle 3 bags at a time. Truth is, it was a little too much for me. But, I managed. I figured I would need 9 bags – 3 trips. However, I made a mistake, I told a friend the sand was on sale, and he bought it all, so I was 3 bags short. The good thing is, our local building supply place had sand, bigger bags, so much heavier, but better quality sand – the weight was in the sand not the moisture IN with the sand like the stuff from Roses – and the best part – they deliver – FREE! So I got some 4x4s that I needed that won’t fit in my van, some metal fence posts I need for a friend’s garden, and I did not have to beg someone for the use of their truck, and I got another 200 lbs of sand.
The “patio” is far from perfect, still not as level as I would like it, but no blocks uneven enough to trip over – that’s a plus! And I also picked up a plastic Adirondack style yard chair that is light enough for me to move easily, versus the old one that takes a strong man or a steady wheelbarrow. At any rate, I am as satisfied as I am going to be. The cats love sprawling out in the middle of it and it is comfortable for several people to sit and have a glass of tea.

Probably the other big news is my hair “cut”… a friend is undergoing chemo and a bunch of us promised her that when she lost her hair – we would shave our heads in support of her. Well, I did not SHAVE it, but it is beyond just short! We left a little fuzz in the front because I get a rash from synthetics touching my skin – like the threads they use on the binding on hats – so we left a little buffer for that. The back did get shaved pretty close… fortunately it grows back in fast, so it doesn’t really look as bald as it is. I was shocked at how dark the back is – the hair around the front is white! Go figure! Bald heads are cold!

There is much gardening going on here. Beans are thru the dirt in the Stand Uppity garden. Other things are potted waiting to germinate, or in little pots waiting until we are sure of no frost. The strawberries are in full bloom, the asparagus is slowly popping thru the ground – so far never enough for one meal at a time. Onions are up about 5, 6 inches.
The azaleas have opened this week. In another couple of days they will all be open and magnificent. I wonder how many people will stop and tell me how much they enjoy driving past my little acreage? I think that is so cool. Makes all the work worthwhile. I usually offer them a job weeding. So far, no takers.
The lilacs are beautiful this year. How I love to smell them. I planted one bush outside my bedroom window. It has been a long struggle, but it survives. I do believe it is my favorite fragrance. I told that to one of my tiny visitors one year. She said it was nice, but not as good as chocolate. The Bleeding Hearts made it thru the winter. This is the first year for the white one on its own. I planted it last year. The redbud was a bit pitiful this year, not nearly as full of blooms as in years past. Probably so much wind damage over the winter – the little twigs and tiny branches were all over the ground.
It is grass cutting season – though I must admit, it is more like weed mowing and driving over huge patches of moss. But, we have had an almost dry couple of weeks and so it no longer squishes when I walk in the yard, and the Deere no longer leaves ruts in some places. I am hoping I can get some mulch moved this week and use the tractor, not a wheelbarrow.
If you are in the area, come by and have a sit down on the patio… have a glass of tea… enjoy the quiet serenity of the Buddha and the beauty of the flowers. Soon I will be able to share some veggies with you – Inşallah!

MORE WATER!

MORE WATER! My friend Dorothy Perrucci took these shots while on her morning walk. These are near her house, about a half a mile from me. This is a yard, really... not a lake! Anther yard...
Then they had some shopping to do - or maybe it was just an excuse to drive around and see how deep the water was in other places - this is our local Family Dollar ... the moral to this story is NEVER BUILD DURING A DROUGHT. See where the road is supposed to be?
This is the former Meat Barn. One of my girls worked there years ago when we had a cloud burst and her car had water all the way up to the seats! This place got a bit wet! See? The water is all the way across the south bound lane of 13.
And I love this one - this is a reflection turned upside down. Is that a cool shot or what? Thanks for sharing, Dorothy!