About a month ago, a group of us, Board members from SPOTS (http://onley-spots.blogspot.com/), went across the Bay to a Train Show at the VA Beach Convention Center. I was the only female with 4 of our male Directors. I was excited as it would be my first train show and I was anxious to see and learn. I don’t even pretend to know anything about model trains, so several of the men who have extensive train layouts of their own were going to teach me, as I really need to know about model trains in order to help get our education program up and running.
As some of you know, I cannot walk very far – I am lucky to be walking at all having been told many years ago I would never walk again after a really bad car accident. So, I took my wheel chair. The guys were more than wonderful, helping to push me thru the huge parking lot and into the building. That convention center is enormous! I never could have walked it. One guy or the other stayed with me almost all the time, gladly explaining the differences in the engines, types of track, names of the different cars, what they would have been used for in a real train… it was like being with a couple of train professors! It was GREAT!
I knew I wanted to buy some N scale cars, maybe an engine if I could find a blue one that vaguely resembled what runs here on the shore, and I was happy to see so many N scale trains at the show. (Check the SPOTS blog for the size of N scale and what I bought.) For example, the N scale engine I bought is no longer than a ball point pen. One or another of the men advised me and actually made the decisions for me when we had several things to choose from, after explaining the differences. They were extremely kind and attentive. One section of the show had some cool N scale kits. Dennis looked the kits over and we found something we thought would be just perfect. He explained everything to me; I put the kit aside, and continued to look for some box cars that were plain and of good color that we could put our station logo on.
See, I don’t mind shopping like a woman – “What do you want, dear?” “Oh, something in blue…” I even use that when I buy cars! Tho’ today, I say “a van in blue.” But the logic in multiple bright colors in train cars (yeah, there IS some logic here) is because it will attract the kids better than a bunch of cars all the same, same color, same shape – which might be more authentic, I admit, but is also atheistically very boring. And we will be looking to keep kids interested in what we are doing, even if it is only learning shapes and colors with the littlest kids. “Can you find a car that is like a cylinder?” There are ‘shape ID’ SOLs for several grade levels. I also needed stuff for the scenery (my department) and buying stuff on line just wasn't working out real well.Anyway, I digress, as usual… after I picked out what I wanted, it was time to pay the girl who was working the table with her husband. They were young, under 30, I am sure, but at this point in my ancient life, they all look like high school kids just as when I was in my teens and 20s, anyone over 50 was ancient! I pulled out the checkbook, made out the check, and looked around for Niall to co-sign the check as the group would be buying the train set, and the checks require 2 signatures. The girl saw me looking around and, seeing Dennis at the end of the aisle said, “Your husband is over there.”
“Oh, no,” I said – the word husband having not registered in my brain yet – “I need the one in the yellow jacket. Be right back…” as I rolled off in search of Niall. I found Niall and brought him back to look at what Dennis and I had picked out, he thought it was a good purchase, and co-signed the check. If we were getting funny looks from the kids selling the stuff, I did not notice. Not yet.
Time went by, we all split and rejoined each other here and there throughout the show, but I usually had someone by my side or nearby to explain things to me, suggest that I needed this one, not that one, and why. Like I said, I felt like a kid in school with the experts teaching Model Trains, 101. After a while, I went back to the table where I had found the N train kit and looked for some more box cars. This time Tom was with me. We picked out a few more cars, but rather than try to chase Niall down, I just put them on my credit card. Tom was also very attentive, enjoying teaching the rookie and watching someone get bitten by the Train bug. It was at this time the girl really took notice that I was with 3 different men. But when I showed up with Pat to show him an HO car I wanted and to pick up some stuff for the scenery, she really began looking at me kind of funny. I mean, here I was, an old lady in a wheel chair, with 4 men acting like what she was doing or buying was actually important to them. Of course, it did not keep her from taking my money.
We left the show at 2 PM, meeting each other at the entrance, maybe 30 feet away from the kids where I had made several purchases. As I rolled down their aisle on my way to meet the guys, the devil whispered in my ear. I rolled up to the young woman who definitely recognized me at this time – I might have been her best customer that day, who knows? She might have thought I was going to buy yet another couple cars or more track, so she greeted me with a smile, then looked around to see which man was in attendance. But I was alone, just passing by to get to the guys and go home. However, I stopped and quietly said to her, “Ya know, those Mormons have it all wrong. I mean, if a man can have several wives, why can’t a woman have several husbands?” Her eyes looked shocked but her face lit up in a big grin as she contemplated the idea. Her husband, having overheard my comment stepped in closer and started telling her in a slightly louder than usual voice, “Don’t listen to her, don’t listen to her!”
There stood the guys innocently waiting at the entrance, not having any idea what was being said 30 feet away… “I mean, look, 4 paychecks instead of one. Think of the shopping you can do! Always someone handy to fix things around the house…”
“DON’T LISTEN TO HER! SHUT YOUR EARS!” her husband was shouting and hitting (not hard) her arm. “DON’T LISTEN TO ANY OF THAT, ITS JUST WRONG!” Shoot, I thought the boy was going to cry! He did not tell me to go away, after all, I had spent a couple hundred dollars there that day, he had not lost sight of that, but he was getting worried! And his wife was grinning… in shock with what the old lady in the wheelchair was telling her, but her fantasies were running away with her, nonetheless, I could tell. Ah, youth...
“Don’t knock it until you try it, honey,” I said as I winked and rolled away. “Hey guys! Sorry, just wanted to say goodbye to (I forget her name). I’m coming!” I could hear him still carrying on back behind us as one of the men took over pushing my chair over the carpet and out into the sunlight, out to the Yukon. I smiled all the way home.
I bet she still thinks about it.
“DON’T LISTEN TO HER! SHUT YOUR EARS!” her husband was shouting and hitting (not hard) her arm. “DON’T LISTEN TO ANY OF THAT, ITS JUST WRONG!” Shoot, I thought the boy was going to cry! He did not tell me to go away, after all, I had spent a couple hundred dollars there that day, he had not lost sight of that, but he was getting worried! And his wife was grinning… in shock with what the old lady in the wheelchair was telling her, but her fantasies were running away with her, nonetheless, I could tell. Ah, youth...
“Don’t knock it until you try it, honey,” I said as I winked and rolled away. “Hey guys! Sorry, just wanted to say goodbye to (I forget her name). I’m coming!” I could hear him still carrying on back behind us as one of the men took over pushing my chair over the carpet and out into the sunlight, out to the Yukon. I smiled all the way home.
I bet she still thinks about it.
This was taken this time last year... remember what a cold winter we had last year? Record snow fall for the Eastern Shore. Froze our butts off! This year, I am grateful to say, winter passed us by! I know my friends in Vermont are saying the same thing, as some of them spent the winter in tipis while rebuilding their homes, bridges, barns, and shops. Even they have had very little snow and quite mild temps. Our mild temps hit an extreme this past week. It was 83 here on Thursday. Tank top weather! 
Red Emperor is in full bloom. This bush is over 10 feet tall and has a diameter of 8 feet.
It is so loaded with blooms this year. Isn't it beautiful?
The daisies have put out their leaves, but they won't bloom until Oct... But the azaleas will bloom soon.
Punk could be found sleeping in the morning sun...
by afternoon, he was in a shady spot under a bush.
Pink Perfection blooms this time of year. Last year we had snow on the camellias,
this year the only white on the ground IS the camellias! (or daffodils, or pansies...). 
I actually cut some grass (and a lot of weeds) this past week. The forsythia is in bloom as are the fruit trees. The peas are up and I have onions up about an inch! How has your winter been?
Fereigners? That’s what the old folks called folks from further away than the “come here” states (MD, Del, PA, NC, SC). Come here’s were tolerated... fereigners, not as much. Most ‘come here’s’ eventually learn the local names of things and how to pronounce them, fereigners have a harder time, and some fereigners spend all their time trying to correct the locals on what they have called things for generations. Sigh. Most of those folks come from one particular state, but I won’t mention that. (Reminds me of a favorite bumper sticker that says, “We’re RURAL, not stupid.”
but there is a lot of difference in the length of the tines and the space between them. Then there is the flimsy metal thing that holds the rake to the handle. This thing from China (that cost nearly $30) will come apart in a couple more years with its one size fits all skimpy little sleeve that the handle fits into. Well, you can see the difference. The old rake will last as long as I need it to, and when I am gone whoever inherits it or buys it will probably consider it a piece of junk – but I bet it will outlive them, too. Maybe the Smithsonian would like it? A piece of Americana!
We were trying to figure out if this rake got twisted somehow,
or if it is made this way. The guys concluded it was made this way as the steel in it is so strong, it burned up a drill bit trying to get the nail out and they could not imagine any way it could have gotten twisted unless it was made this way. All I can say is I can't wait to get outside and use it! 
THE RECENT STORMS that have done so much damage to so many people have once again blessedly missed us. But, last night we did have a little excitement, a frozen precip event that lasted about an hour. I was told there was some thunder with it, but 
we were watching Northern Exposure, so I missed that. The snow/ice piled up on a few surfaces and is still on the roof tops. You can see the size of the ice crystals best on the adirondack.
Snow/ice and a camellia...
We are now waiting for a little snow storm. Yep, that is what the radio is saying, I can see it on the radar... but back in the 60s by Wednesday. But, for now, the boys are tucked in their heated box toasting their toes and cat-napping, as usual. The heat is on in the greenhouse... Hmmmm, I just saw something white pass by the window. Oh, my. I hope you all are warm and safe.
got a few left, but ran out of space. So I will figure out another place next week. I wanted to buy some new potting soil, but it was raining so hard yesterday, I gave up on that idea. We got an inch and a half. Like most garden centers, even WalMart, the potting soil is kept outside. If it rains, that entire area is getting wet. Seems rather stupid to me. It's during a good rain that folks want to go shopping, but all the tools, bags of soil, fertilizers, etc are out in the rain. dumb. Good thing the cat food is under the roof! LOL!
The daffodils are beautiful, the forsythia has started to open. Today was not only a T-shirt day, it was a sleeveless T-shirt day! Temps in the 70s again. The house smells so nice with fresh air from open windows and vases of daffodils.
The feeders are filled as the little guys are arriving here in droves on their way north. And I can barely walk. sigh. The carport is clean... as my little neighbor would say, I "blow dried" it. Potting bench is cleaned off and ready for use. Garden tools are cleaned and ready to go. John (Deere) is gassed up. Covers are off the Adirondacks. Watch and see it snow!
The snow geese are on the move again - huge flocks have been flying over. When I say huge, I am talking thousands Really. They make so much noise, it is easy to keep track of them. The ponds are snow white, some of the fields are white... I am not a farmer, so I think it is beautiful. I understand not everyone feels this way. But they don't eat any of my crops. If I had to worry about that, one goose would clean up my garden in short order! But, It feeds us... and I still find it exciting to go out in the yard and pick something I am going to eat for lunch or dinner... or pick berries for my cereal. No chemicals, not even any chemical fertilizers, and my cow manure comes from field grazed cows... remember? Like they used to do? Cows in the pasture? What a novel idea. Home grown food. Not crap from China or some other country with worse rules than we have, and folks, we have bad rules when you consider GMOs, pesticides, herbicides, and tons of chemical fertilizers. If you are close to my age, you will have noticed food just doesn't taste like you remember it from when you were a kid, does it? Even many of the tomatoes from farm markets taste like cardboard these days. Why? They have been genetically modified so they look prettier, grow bigger, ripen faster... Didja ever notice cherry tomatoes are sweeter than regular tomatoes? The goal is not to take all that flavor and stretch it into a huge tomato, so it is sweeter. Now the big thing is grape tomatoes. They grow fast, are harvested in weeks, and have tough skins so they can stand rough treatment without bruising. But how do they taste to you? Lots of chemicals in those tiny red things.
Way too wet to pack into anything. The water content was .67 inches, so we did get a good amount of wet-stuff, but with the temps never getting below 35 degrees, most of it melted as soon as it hit. These are white camellias on the bush to the right.
If we had had today's temps with that snow, we would have had 2-3 inches of white stuff waiting for us. It is 29 right now. (Supposed to make it up to 70 by Thurs!) It did bring a load of birds to the feeders and brought this little fellow back to the redbud. See the snow on the branch???? Look carefully or you will miss it!
BTW, this posting is just for certain people who asked to see our great snow!
My problem is not that I am a Klutz... but that I have problems understanding limitations. Maybe it is because I grew up as the only girl for miles in a neighborhood of boys. If they could do it, so could I! As a kid, my step-father always made me help him do things. I learned about making mistakes by watching him rip up more than he fixed. When I lived with my father, he made me help him do things, and with a Master's in Mechanical Engineering, he did not make as many mistakes, and he was a good teacher. He taught me not to be afraid to try things. For example, he made me rotate the tires on my first car before he would turn the keys over to me. That way he knew I would be able to change a tire if I had to - and I had to change more than one! He knew I could not call im and have him help me out as he was seldom in this country, let alone close enough to change a tire for me. 'Course, now I am too old and have no idea how to even get to the so called spare tire. Oh well.
pile #1... Remember, that saw is 8 feet long, so this pile of little trees is over 7 feet high. 
Now on pile#1, it doesn't look like much until you notice, some of these trees with a 2 and 3 inch diameter are 20 to 30 feet long! Most of them I had to cut in half just to move them to the pile....
Pile #2...is badly piled... too many trees I should have cut kept getting in my way. It was an unplanned pile, but really high, long and deep. I planned on going back and cutting the few trees holding the pile in place and restacking the trees, but it actually started to sleet. Needless to say, I quit.
Besides, I was getting cold. I hate sweating and freezing at the same time, but I am really pushing my body to do this stuff. However, I am determined to be as independent as I can be. I have learned there are not many folks that can be depended on... not even the folks that supposedly make a living doing this kind of work... or the folks that beg for small jobs. So, if I can stand and walk, I will keep at it. Do not remind me that a woman of 68 is not supposed to be doing this stuff. Do not remind me of that wheelchair in the barn.
It is raining harder now and is mixed with ice pellets... supposed to turn to snow tonight. That will be good as a nice heavy snow will compact those piles and also show me all the little stuff I missed because of the leaves. Lets just hope we don't have an ice storm because someone always gets hurt. But, a nice clean snow will be good. Actually, I am excited as this was impenetrable last summer. When I get done, I am going to transplant a couple dozen camellias into this area. I want to turn it into a Meditation Garden...
Just because I buy bags of apples for them... doesn't mean I OWN them. Anyway, today I saw them visiting across the street. There were 13 in all. I grabbed my camera and tried to stay behind my bushes, (can you see them?)
but they got freaked anyway
and headed across the street into my woods. How many did you count? Ya gotta look really carefully.
The daffodils are about to show color. And the forecast is for some cold weather ahead. And "It always snows on the daffodils!" So we shall see. But that is OK, I need to stay inside and get some cleaning done. However, the garden catalogs are rolling in... sigh... so I spend my time planning, itching to go buy some lumber and make myself another stand-uppity garden, skinnier but deeper. Maybe 2 of them, one each for my onions and carrots. Maybe another 4x4 to transplant my strawberries into... Where will I put my tomatoes this year? The cucumbers... 
The intro speaker was Senator Ralph Northam. Kaine is running for Senate. Governors are allowed only one term here in VA - otherwise the man would still be in office!
Tim and Frank Moore, DemCom president for Accomack County. 
Tim and Luz, the liason with the Hispanic community;
with Aşir;
Tim, guess who, Luz, and Ralph.
