More Argghhhh...And an Ahhh

I went out to the garden this morning and discovered that in the last few days, they had sprayed the soy bean field with weed killer. They over shot the spray. Casualties: 4 cantelope plants, 8 pumpkin plants, 6 of acorn squash, 6 of butternut squash. ALL DEAD. I am about as close to tears as one can get.

On a lighter note, my nephew has purchased his first home and has been working hard on getting it suitable for living. It was a "fixer upper" in the biggest way. He has had to gut and replace just about everything. He is in his early twenties, and has a couple of neighbors in their early thirties. He had asked them if they could give him a hand with his roof. He had stripped the old roof off, and had the shingles ready to go. He had a day off he had planned on doing the laying of the shingles. He arrived home from work one day to find all of these plastic shingle wrappers all over the yard. First thing he thought was...oh great, someone has stolen my roof. Then he looked up. One neighbor got up there and had the whole front half of the roof shingled, and had started on the back! You know....there is hope for the young ones coming up after all.

Arghhhhhh

I have been out mowing, and as I went along, my mower ran rougher and rougher. Backfiring every time I sped up. I stopped the mower, lifted the hood, and smoke is drifting up out of it. Seems some MICE shredded up some paper towels, and built a nest somewhere in the engine housing. I should have realized that because when I started the mower a bunch of little tiny white paper flew out of the front. Now, I have to wait until the engine cools, take a vacuum cleaner and some wrenches out there and see how I can get that nest out. I am so not happy.

Porches

I was listening to NPR on the way home today, and the topic was porches and their contribution to architecture and society. In the 1800's an architect designed the porch to set apart homes in the United states from those in Europe. Something to make our homes stand out. During the summer the place to be was on the porch, socializing with those passing by and inviting them up to sit a spell and have a beverage. It was the place of catching up on the news of the area, politics, or just sit and enjoy the evening.

Porch sitting for many has becaome a thing of the past. With air conditioning, computers, video games, cable tv and other things to keep one inside, fewer people are sitting out on their porch.

I don't have a porch and it is something I have always wanted. One with a swing, maybe a rocking chair, and for certain, a glider. I have the best memories of visiting my Grandparents and spending hours on the front porch swinging on the swing and just enjoying the day. Grandma had this certain way to get the swing to move with just the slightest push of her foot. Very little effort was involved. It was an art.

Someday I hope to have my porch, and when I do, be certain to see a wave if you pass by and an invitation to come up and have an iced tea and to sit a spell.

Dessert Anyone?

I baked a pie today to take into work. It was a coworker's anniversary and instead of cake, we enjoyed pie and take out. I sent a photo to a friend of mine that has been wanting pie for months. Her reply: "That is just cruel." I just couldn't help teasing my friend. She knows that when she comes to visit she can have a pie a day if she wishes. I have a feeling I will be a baking fiend.

A Day At The Lake

Today was one of those days where you wish it would never end. My brother had the day off, and his wife called and invited my other brother, his wife, my aunt, and myself all up to the lake for the day. We had a huge Sunday type dinner meal, then went out on the pontoon, and went for a swim and boat ride, came back in and ate AGAIN. I don't know what it is with my family and food. We have a sinful amount of food for gatherings, put it all away and a few hours get it all out again, hungry or not.

It seemed like a family reunion today. We talked, shared old photographs, and had a great time. I am truly blessed to have a family that enjoys being around one another, and just being together. With all of our busy lives, we don't get to do it as often as we all would like.

Tonight, my stomach is full, and so is my Soul.

Summer Evenings

Tonight was the perfect summer evening. Being outside, having a neighbor drive by and ask to hop in the car and go for ice cream. What a delight! After ice cream went for a nice drive. Life is good.

SIGH

Those nasty little buggars have eaten the entire top of my tomato plant off in ONE DAY!!! I am desperate.

Aunt Helen

I wrote this a while back and posted it on a different site. I thought I would share it with all of you.


Aunt Helen


The other day, I wore a pair of knee high stockings and for some reason, they wouldn't stay up. It wouldn't have been too bad if the slacks I was wearing were full length, but they were a high water type slack. I looked down at one point and thought.....OH MY GOODNESS, I LOOK LIKE AUNT HELEN!!!!
I got to thinking about Aunt Helen, what a character she was.

Aunt Helen was a Great Aunt of mine, and as a little girl, part of the visiting rounds with my Mother included a stop at Aunt Helen's. She would always be sitting in her rocking chair, with her hosiery rolled down to her ankles with those black oxford shoes that nuns always used to wear and a black sweater with the little black buttons. She would always be sitting there rocking, praying the Rosary. First thing Mom would ask is how she was. Aunt Helen would always say: "oh not good, not good at all." She was ALWAYS dying or sick or had some ailment or another. Mom said that childbirth did her in. For Aunt Helen, it was a major thing, like having some terminal disease. She had a daughter, and then a few years later, got pregnant again. Mom said she was so mad at Uncle Frank, calling him a heathen and every other horrible name in the book, after all ...it was ALL HIS FAULT she got pregnant. She even threw him out of the house, Mom said, and forced him to live in the garage the whole nine months, putting out dinner on the back steps, he coudn't even come in the house to eat.
Aunt Helen ended up out living every member of the family from her generation. She even ended up living with her daughter and at one point was caught running nakid through the neighborhood. She had gone somewhat senile. From devout to the extreme. Her daughter put her in a nursing home, and with one visit, even noticed she had a pair of men's shoes under her bed.
Funny how things end up sometimes. I miss Aunt Helen.


MSM 7/21/06

The Hog Roast

I just got home from our small town's dedication of the new park, and hog roast. The menu was, of course, the best pork you could imagine, cole slaw, sour kraut with potatoes and smoked sausage, potato chips, cookies, ice cream and beverage. All for a free will donation. Needless to say, I am FULL. There was a gospel quartet singing, and the townspeople all enjoyed the music. I looked over to the ladies serving the food at one point, and they were all tapping their toes, and swaying and bobbing their heads to the music. A few cousins, and my Aunt were there, so I sat with them and enjoyed a nice visit.

The town is very small, mostly a few blocks long, so this was a real big community event. In the food line were young and old, even a few bikers in leather. There was no generation gap this evening. A good time was had by all.

I looked at some of the old homes on the main street. Old brick houses with white pillars, and American flags on their porches. A true small town USA.. I wonder what those old homes have seen. A once thriving town, with many business, is now mostly all homes, many that are in bad repair. But the people are generally good. It is one of the many towns that thrived on the railroad, and when those days passed, all of the business left for larger opportunities, and many people followed the business' out of town. I sometimes imagine myself in a different time period where you depended on the community near you for most of your needs, and it was a big event to go into the city. I bet it was pretty exciting for the family to get dressed up (yes, ACTUALLY dress up), for the big excursion. Now, everyone works in the city, and they get what they need there before they come home.

If only those homes could talk.

Tomato Crisis

I went out to the garden today to check on my tomato plants and noticed that one of them had a bunch of leaves missing. Not only leaves, but entire little branches just snipped right off. I started investigating and found these brown raisin type things sitting on all many leaves. Upon further inspection I found the culprit. A big fat HUGE tomato worm. I never knew a thing like that could eat so much and well..poop so much. How in the heck do they know where tomato plants are? Are they just creeping down the road and sniff and say "I smell tomatoes" and turn in the drive? I remember Grandma finding those things and she would just pull them off, throw them to the ground, and step on them. I couldn't do it. So I got out the rubber gloves, pulled it off, and flung it out in the field, which was probably a mistake as it will find it's way back. I checked the other plants and found a little one, and did the same. I think I have a problem and if action isn't taken soon, they will eat the whole darn plant. THIS IS WAR!

No Beans Today

I don't know what happened to the camera. I wanted to show why I couldn't pick green beans today .Scooter had commandeered my basket. I just love how this picture turned out. Looks like one of those old greeting cards doesn't it?

Summer Evenings

This evening, I went down to my brother's house and went swimming in their pool. We just floated and looked up into the blue sky and clouds. My brother saw a foot print in one cloud where I saw the same cloud to look like the bottom of a tennis shoe. We spent a good couple of hours seeing shapes in the clouds and just talking. We could hear the trains in the distance, and the birds. It was the perfect summer evening. I'm all pruney, cool, and relaxed and content. There is nothing like a good float on a hot summer evening.

Progress

I was driving in to the city today to work and have to go through this small town. At the edge of the town, there was this beautiful old brick farm house with barn and trees. I had noticed a sign on that corner for the last few weeks that said "Future CVS Pharmacy coming." Today, as I drove by, the barn was gone, all of the trees, and this beautiful old farm house was a pile of bricks and rubble. This house had to be over 100 years old. I also noticed that about every house next door to this one had a for sale sign in front of them, saying "zoned for business." beautiful little Cape Cods, quaint houses with nice flowers in front , all will be gone in the near future. Part of the attraction to this town was how even on the main highway going through, it never appeared to be more than a nice neighborhood. Now, it looks like the whole road through town will someday be one long strip mall.
I know that communities grow, and there needs to be progress in order for them to thrive, but it sure is hard sometimes to see something you have come to enjoy go to the wayside of progress. It's just kind of sad.

Happy Birthday

Today is a dear friend of mine's Birthday. I wish I could help her celebrate it, but she is on the other side of the continent. So here is my Birthday wish for her.
Risley, I hope you have a wonderful day today and that every day this year is filled with joy, happiness, and prosperity
Happy Birthday Risley!

Heat

In order for sweet corn to be really good, and grow well, it requires heat and humidity. I want to say that I sure hope that sweet corn out in the field is happy now. I know I am not.

Tomato War Update

LOOK, Seattle! There is a RED tomato! I could harldy believe my eyes today! Now, what do I do with it as I don't like tomatoes. I had better get my basket and start door to door again.

Dream Song

she comes in my dreams
her face i can not see
circling just out of sight
singing the most beautiful melody

the song is getting closer
the words i can almost hear
can't quite make them out yet
maybe i could hear them
if i let go of my fear

so i will keep dreaming
night after night
and hope that someday
her song will come to me
in the morning light

feeling her softness
looking into her eyes
hearing her love song
release me from the night skies

MSM
7/14/2006

A Follow up on Sunday's adventure

On this evening's news there was a ten minute segment on what to do about the large number of signs being posted on corners and what to do about the people posting them. The reporter was standing by a Quilt Show sign.

This is my third picking. The first two were bowls and the season just got started. I am headed down the road door to door passing out beans, and thinking of 101 ways to fix green beans

Public Radio

I was driving home from work today and had on our local NPR station. The local news was on, and it was getting ready to switch from national talk to local jazz programing. The lady hosting this evening was reading the weather. First of all, she sounded very much like Tweety Bird's little old granny in that cartoon. She started to read the weather and her is how it kind of went:
"Here is the weather forcast for the next few days...Oh dear, some of you might not like this. Well, it is summer in Indiana. Tonight, chance of rain and thunderstoms, tomorrow fog, and gosh, a muggy high of 85. Friday it warms up to 92, gosh that's not going to be good for the festival going on, they are not going to like that at all. Saturday, a balmy (hiccup) oh excuse me, 91. Now where did that come from?"
I am here to tell you I almost wrecked the car, laughing so. There is nothing like volunteering at the local public radio station.

Realization

I have been thinking about my Aunt for the last few days. She is 86 years old, but you would never know by looking at her. She can out walk and out work me even on one of her bad days. She seems to have never aged.
Sunday my sister-in-law said she saw her walking in back of her yard with a garbage bag and shovel. "B" said she walked down to see what my Aunt was doing, and she told her that her cat had died. She had thought about putting him out with the trast, then decided she would bury him if the ground wasn't too hard. B helped her dig a hole and then had a quiet moment.
She said she got the cat 3 weeks after my Uncle had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. She walked the road for excersice and down by the pickle factory, and one day, this orange kitten showed up. She appropriately named him Pickles, and took him home. He was a huge thing, weighing in at 28 pounds at one point. He saw her through her husbands death and kept her company for a good 12 years.
I had talked to her last week and she had said Pickles was very ill, and tears welled up in her eyes. She knew he wasn't going to last much longer, and I didn't have the words to tell her how sorry I was that he was so sick.
I have been thinking about how much sorrow this old woman has seen in her life, and it has also suddenly occured to me that she won't be around forever like I would like to think. I saw her mortality, I guess I want to say. I have been kind of sad the last couple of days. It was rainy and gloomy today. The skies opened up and cried, and so did I.

Sunday Adventure

Yesterday, my sister-in-law gave me a call and asked if I would help her put some signs in the ground for her quilting guild's upcoming show. She had volunteered to put up 14 signs in a town near us. In turn for me helping, she would spring for lunch. As I was hungry and nothing great to eat here, I happily said yes! We set out driving and thought of a few corners close to the house. She would pull over, I would hop out of the car, grab a sign, and poke it in the ground. The first one, there was no traffic and it went smoothly. After a couple of sign postings in the country at some opportune corners, we went to the town to put the rest up. You know, you see signs poked in the ground all of the time for this and that, so I figured it would be easy to put up one and not feel guilty. This town had NO signs ANYWHERE. I started to feel like a criminal rushing out of the car and poking those things in as fast as I could. And it didn't help that B would pull so far ahead of me that she wouldn't be implicated if a police officer would happen by. I got the feeling there was some sort of ordinance regarding sign posting. Pretty soon she got the idea that I was uncomfortable with the whole thing...Maybe because I would cower and run back to the car, slide in and yell okay now GO! She volunteered to put a few up and let me record the place, as they intend to pull them all up when the show is over. I never thought it would take so long to find spots for 14 signs. What a person has to do to get a free lunch! Anyways, the signs were in, and we enjoyed a nice lunch. I decided that sign posting was not for me.

Shoe Crisis

I am having a crisis of sortss with my "work" shoes. I seem to have run out of old shoes to rotate to the category of work shoe. All of my other shoes are too nice, and these have seen their better day. I even tried to repair them with the magic and all serving duct tape, but I am afraid, it isn't working too well. The backs have worn to where there is a hard piece of plastic poking at my heel and shredding my socks up. I put cotton and duct tape, but that only lasts a few wearings as the tape comes loose and sticks to my sock and then upon shoe removal, comes off. I have never had a situation where I don't have a shoe to replace these. I am so lost.

Hidden Treasures

Last evening I picked the last of the black raspberries. It was a good berry year, about 7 full quart bags for the freezer. There is nothing like a wild black raspberry pie in the middle of winter when things are getting boring and blue. I save those berries for the most special occassions, as when they are gone, that is it for sometimes two years, as it seems, they only produce well every other year. I do, however, plan on baking a pie or two for company coming this summer.
I have a strange habit of saying thank you each time I pick a berry and I am here to tell you...there were a lot of thank yous said this year. One thing I have noticed when I pick is that the best, most luscious berries are kind of hidden underneath the leaves, kind of down at the botttom. Many times all by themselves. Sometimes it even takes looking at the same bush from different angles to even detect them. I had an epiphony to speak of when I found some of these luscious berries. Some people are kind of like that too. The best people sometimes are the one's that are inconspicuous in a crowd, and often overlooked by others, even considered insignificant. They stand alone many times, and are quiet. But if one takes the time to get to know them, they are the ones that usually turn out to be the most important people in your life. It just takes a little coaxing and patience.

Confession

I have a confession to make about gardening and vegetables. Up until very recently I must admit ( I am so embarrassed) that I thought a pole bean was named that because it looked like a pole..... A string bean was named that because it had strings as you snapped it, and a bush bean was named that because...Heck I don't know. I DID NOT KNOW that a pole bean was named that because it vined on a POLE, a string bean because it grew up STRINGS, and a bush bean was just that...a bean plant that grew in a BUSH. The reason I am sharing this is because I KNOW there are others out there like me. Totally ignorant of veggie lingo mumbo jumbo. There....I admitted it to the world.

Hmm mmm hmmm mmm hmmmm and warm woolen mittens.....ARGGGHH

New Arrivals

The baby green bean... The baby pumpkin.....
The baby zucchini....

The baby green bean... The baby pumpkin...
The baby zuchinni

The Fourth Of July

The Fourth of July has always been a strange holiday for me. It was my Mother and Father's wedding anniversary and my cousin's Birthday. We always used to go to the lake and have a big family gathering to celebrate it all.
When I was 10, that changed in the biggest way. It was 1967 and it was my Mom and Dad's 25th wedding anniversary. We all gotten up, my brothers, and myself all excited to go, but Mom was scrurrying around and rushing my Dad out the door, saying that he didn't feel well, she was taking him to the hospital. We were not going to the lake. I will never forget him walking down the sidewalk to the garage. It was the last time I was to see him alive. He had experienced a heart attack during the night, it turns out, and after he got to the hospital, experienced several massive heart attacks and died on July 6. He was 49. We had gatherings at the lake, but after that year, it was never on the Fourth of July. It just was too full of memories and I guess the family never thought it appropriate.
This year, I am 49. I can't help but thinking that I am now the same age as my Father when he died. I look at the life I have lived, and think about Dad, only reaching the age that I now think is just the begining of my life. If that it was going to end so soon, would he have done anything differently. Life i s really short. One thing I know is that I try to live as though it is my last day, treat people the way I want to be treated, and tell them I love them . there is a favorote quote of mine by Harriet Beecher Stowe and that is: "The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone."

Tomato Wars 2006

Okay....There ARE tomatoes on these!!! The foliage is just so lush and perfect you can't see them very well. Washington, I fertilized.

Twilight Zone

I have to say that the holiday weekend so far, has been pretty much a wash out. The weather was supposed to be wonderful all weekend, but turns out some front started to come through and stalled out and parked right over our heads, causing some wonderful storms. All of the projects I committed to do, I suddenly had no desire to even start. I am one that has to have the sun out in order to be productive. I flipped through the channels on the TV and found a Twilight Zone marathon, and sat down and before I knew it the day was gone. I hadn't seen an episode of those since I was little, and it was amazing the ones I remembered. Some of those are just priceless. I wish they would bring that back. It sure beats the reality junk and news magazines that we are subjected to daily on network television. Today is a new day, and I, once again, am going to try to get to the project of the week. I am just going to have to keep myself away from THE TWILIGHT ZONE.

Earworm

Earworm: What you call a song stuck in your head. For WEEKS i have had an earworm. Everytime I hum, or whistle, it is the same thing. "Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens." I can't take much more of this! I have even conciously tried to change the tune, but it always goes back to that darn song.