Category: Uncategorized

The VIP Room

    
    We are lucky to live right up the road from a very good restaurant.   Our town used to be labeled as “out in the sticks”, but that’s not really true anymore.  We still don’t have a grocery store or an official post office, but we are fairly close to those things in the next town over and we do have local restaurants, a Dunkin, A Subway, a good bakery, a big hardware store, a few gas stations and packages stores (of course!)  and a bunch of other small businesses, with the bustling CT shoreline and outlet centers just three miles down the road. 
   Last night we gathered at that very good restaurant to celebrate a family member’s birthday, and because Wednesdays are a slow night and the owner appreciates our friendship and occasional business, we were given the VIP room, normally reserved for Very Important People.
   

   
      Being hearing impaired,  I tend to observe people more than participate in conversations in a situation like this.  What I saw last night where cousins and brothers and sisters and moms and dads an restaurant workers, patrons  and business owners relaxed and happy, laughing and enjoying each other’s company.  It didn’t matter what was being said… the mood was evident, refreshing, downright inspiring.  Remember that coke commercial back in the day?   “I’d like to teach the world to sing.. in perfect harmony”….   that.  
   I’m still riding that wave we all caught last night, and I plan to encourage it wherever I can. 
    We celebrate several birthdays at this time of year and I have cake in my thoughts and prayers, lol.  This one… oooh dear.  I think I’m gonna try it, gluten free if that’s possible.  Click link for recipe. 





   I’m in love with that jadite cake stand.

   Current situation at This Old House…  the storm two days ago brought about 10 more inches of snow, and there’s talk of another on the horizon next week.   Uncle. 
   
Till soon, friends – 

Mystic Magic

   We needed a little change of scenery after days of storm clean-up here on the farm, so we headed to Mystic yesterday where we had some delicious Mystic Pizza. If you are fairly local, they have great gluten-free pizza – the best I’ve tasted, anyway. 
     After that delicious lunch, we took a stroll around town, stepping in and out of  the shops and galleries that line the main drag. 

 The Mystic River Drawbridge with it’s massive counter-weights…

 Now THIS.. is Easter candy… the fresh made variety.

     Some of  this came home with us…

  One of my favorite shops is the Company of Craftsmen… I have one of these jellyfish glass sculptures by Satava Art glass – more info HERE…

      My guy treated me to these two treasures below as an early birthday gift –

  That beautiful sign below has what looks like abalone in the crystal ball, it shimmers!…  I’m told the woman is very good –

 There wasn’t as much snow up in Mystic, approximately 40 minutes up the coast,  as there is here –  we’ve had a few beautiful days and some snow melt.. only to be hit with yet another winter storm this coming Tuesday/Wednesday.  Some folks are just getting power back this morning…not fun when it’s cold outside. 
 

  
  Till soon, friends – 

Heart Attack Snow, and some things you just can’t know

 

   You’ve heard of the term “heart attack snow”, right?  That’s what we got about a foot of during Wednesday night’s storm…..that wet heavy stuff  that soaks through your jacket five minutes out and feels like each shovelfull weighs a ton.
     Power, cable and internet was just restored a few hours ago on our road, and some folks are still waiting for it. Days without power is a scary thing when it’s cold outside and there are trees and wires down on roads, bad enough that some folks are still trapped in their driveway or at the end of their street, not able to get out, heaven forbid there were an emergency.  
      We lost about 7 or eight trees on the property, mostly in the cedar and pine groves on either side of the house.  I hate when that happens – they are like old friends, these trees.    The “giving tree”.. my beloved ancient half hollow pear that lives in the mini horses paddock has lost a large limb.  I don’t know how much more insult that poor tree can take.  With every storm I look up toward that tree on the hill and hope it’s still intact. 

 

 The Egg Plant below, covered in blasted snow.  You can see some of the trees bent over behind it.. four down on that side. 

 The girls looked bewildered yesterday when I let them out  and their coop yard was a muddy mess.

     You see those bewildered looks above?   They were making little half hearted and sometimes raised pitch clucks.   If it’s in the chicken dictionary, WTF is what they were probably saying. 
  This morning, my favorite girl child came over bright and early. We ate blueberry pancakes and headed out into the barnyard –  K mucked out the stalls while I cleaned up the coop and chicken yard.

     With grapes and spinach leaves to pick on and the sun shining bright upon melting snow, the girls quickly concluded all was right with their world once again. 
     The boys are out in the groves today clearing up all the broken trees.  Temps are supposed to drop tonight, say a little prayer for all those still without power.  
   Once farm chores were done for me and the girlchild, I called Dad at the nursing home to let him know I hadn’t forgot him and asked if he needed anything at the store… 

Two Things! he said…  Milkbones for the dog  and candy for the girls!   So I did our shopping and his. 
   When I arrived, he was playing cards in the rec room with one of his buddies. They looked very serious about the game in hand, coffee and danish at the ready.    I love seeing that.  While some (including me) cringe at the idea of living in a nursing home, for my father it  has been a blessing.  They take better care of him now than he ever did for himself.   While he was alone most of the time before moving there, he is in the constant presence of people, both friends and staff who are very, very kind to him now.  
     The milkbones are for a  therapy dog golden retriever who visits three times a week with his owner.  The dog knows Dad will have a treat for him, so as soon as he walks in the front entrance, he first checks Dad’s usual hang out at the front lobby, and if he’s not there he tugs toward his room just down the hall about 30 feet.  He knows where the  man-of-the-treats “lives”… and it thrills Dad to no end.  Since this has become a regular thing, I thought…    I’ll see your box of milkbones  and raise you a bag of Bacon strips.    So I brought both.  You’d have thought it was Christmas morning. 
     The candy bowl on his dresser  is kept stocked with tootsie rolls , T’s favorite! (my dad’s favorte! nurse) , smarties and wrapped chocolates that reflect the nearest holiday – today we filled it with Russell Stover foil covered eggs, you know the ones).  Dad loves attention, so he also loves to wear Tee shirts that say something funny.   The last one I brought him said Politically Incorrect.   Because Dad.   Today I stopped at the Bong Shop on route 1 just across the street from him.. yep, it’s a bong shop and holy hell does it smell like one… and picked up this tee for  him to wear in this month of St. Patty’s day. 
      He’s now in his second year of living at the home.  I can’t express exactly how emotionally draining that time was for all of us – his third heart attack, his further decline – the continued struggle with what was or wasn’t our relationship –  that ugly decision to sell his home and move him to that place.  It turned out to be a blessing, anything but the curse it felt like at the time.    His new life is a classic example of  this simple truth –  it’s all what you make of it.  While I didn’t think he had it in him, I sold him short in this way.  He’s doing just fine.   
Till soon, friends –

    
     
      

Here we go again –

      And that’s the most accurate forecast I’ve heard all morning.   
So… I’ve mucked the barn  and coop, all critters snug for the day and into the evening….  This was the face that mirrored mine as he stepped out into the crapitude…  Yep I know it, Opie… 
      Once chores were done I took a shower and brushed my teeth and my temporary crown fell out pronto.  So I  hauled ass to the Dentist before the storm hit, got that squared away, hit the grocery store with two hundred thousand seventy eight people, got the ingredients for a decent paleo dinner I want to try because I’m on that never ending quest to lose weight and I want to fool myself once again for the two hundred thousand seventy eighth time that I CAN DO THIS!!!!   Jesus, it’s just 25 lbs but you’d think it was 300.   I cannot believe how hard this shit is once you hit your fifties.  Holy cow.  
  Anyway… my dogs aren’t loving the weather either… they’re huddled together wherever I am… If I’m cleaning the bathroom or folding laundry or away on errands… they’re here…   Side note:  Who needs a throw at the bottom of your bed when you’ve got three dogs that fit perfectly, provide warmth and match the decor, I ask you?   Extra side note: I’m as horrified as you are at the totally uncentered position of the print on the wall.  It’s a heavy print.. really big nail that makes a really big hole… hating the other hole making, so I haven’t… yet.  
   
    Or under the plant table in the kitchen if I’m working at the island or sink or stove.  Sally’s toy basket is on the right..  I pick up all the toys on the floor and she proceeds to take them back out one by one, feigning interest for a few seconds with each. 

    I’m tempted to talk about all the political crapitude we are seeing on the news, on our FB feeds, on the web… but I am so damned disgusted and weary of it all it seems better to just… drop the mic. 
    Speaking of TV –  Have you watched Grace and Frankie at all on Netflix?   I am loving it.. binge watched it for a few evenings, now all caught up.  Also just caught up with how the last season of the Bachelor finished off… I hate reality TV,  dumbs down america if you ask me.   Only watched one season of the Bachelor many years ago when it first came out and was horrified at how those women and men put themselves in such an awkward and humiliating situation.  I know.. they knew what they were signing up for… and Money.  … but this last one in particular.. brutal if you ask me.  What a player the bachelor is.. and after “falling in love” with two accomplished beautiful women and leading them both on with the I Love You So Much crap, he dumps one (as they all do).. then proposes to the other, then in the follow up he dumps the fiance ON TV and goes back to the original dumpee.   All this after he was a dumpee on the Bachelorette.   What is enjoyable about this show, is this really entertainment? 
  I’ll leave you with some funnies as I go attempt that paleo recipe  while glaring at the falling snow, which is coming down heavy now  – 
    
Till soon, friends – 

Wicked High Tide

 Wow… between the full moon and the Nor’easter that blew in,  we’ve got some serious flooding down on the shoreline, a wicked high tide.  We went down to check on Stella, and because she’s at least 15 feet up from the waterline, we’re good, no wind damage either.  The “Island” did see some flooding and the water is eerily calm and crystal clear. 
Under normal conditions there are a few more steps to a concrete “deck” and then a few more steps into the water – 

Below you can see our concrete “deck” under water… and in the distance..
the rock Jetty and marsh beyond it? .. also  completely under water. 

On the other side of the island, the water is so high, it’s above the road level. 
The sea is pushing it’s way through the stone seawall and beach gate, 
flooding the road and kidscape. 
The beach is completely submerged. 

     The seawater is about 12 inches up the baracade, see the dark wood at the very bottom? .. and seeping in… quite a sight… 
  Below is the communal dock and boat launch…. parking lot.  Now underwater. 

The rock jetty submerged.. with the tide changing… so each side of it is fighting against the other.. it was quite a sight to behold…  and the marshlands on the left are invisible underwater.

    We were in awe of the power of nature, the way water can take over a landscape with such ease given the right circumstances.   We thought this was something… until a neighbor on island sent me these photos this afternoon to compare…. 
Hurricane Irene, 2011….  Residents were stuck on island with no electricity for 10 days.  TEN DAYS.     The little guard shack/library/video rental/mail hub we all pass as we enter our little community…. 
The one road to “home”…. hence, stuck. 
   We are newcomers, so we did not experience that storm with Stella on the island, although we were told she weathered it just fine.  
  Amazing, powerful, frighteningly beautiful – mother nature. 
   Till soon – 

From a distance

     I took some shots of the moon at 5:30 a.m. this morning, almost full, incredible orangey peach hues.. all three of these shots taken in the same 60 second window, just different settings on the camera.  
    As I stood out in the cool morning air gazing at this gorgeous moon, I thought of all the other people around the world who look up and admire the very same.  We live in such a beautiful, miraculous place in a myriad of ways. Why we can’t all get along at least in the most basic sense of the word so that we each live in comfort and harmony is heartbreaking.  It’s absolutely possible, totally obtainable.. we just can’t get out of our own way to get there.   
    
    I love this song, performed by Bette Midler…  In these turbulent times it’s more fitting than ever… 
     From a Distance 
From a distance the world looks blue and green
And the snow capped mountains white
From a distance the ocean meets the stream
And the eagle takes to flight
From a distance there is harmony
And it echoes through the land
It’s the voice of hope
It’s the voice of peace
It’s the voice of every man
From a distance we all have enough
And no one is in need
And there are no guns, no bombs and no disease
No hungry mouths to feed
From a distance we are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope
Playing songs of peace
They are the songs of every man
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us from a distance
From a distance you look like my friend
Even though we are at war
From a distance I just cannot comprehend
What all this fightings for
                                                                        Till soon, friends… 

It’s in the air!

   Spring! That glorious thing!…. seriously… yesterday?  68 degrees.  I mucked stalls in a long sleeve Tee, no jacket required… and mud boots. The horse pastures are soggy, the paddocks muddy, the dirt roads around this little farm have little rivers running through.   The horses were blanketless and rolled in the mud because it felt so good to be naked.   I let the chickens loose out into the yard so they could stretch their legs and wings and forage for worms and bugs.. because the bugs were indeed out and about…. How does that happen with just a two day stretch of warm? 
   I looked up as I was walking out to feed horses in the evening and the moon was so beautiful and bright I ran back inside to grab the tripod and long lens, sharing that sight here with you.  
      I’ve been browsing the seed catalogs, looking forward to digging into the dirt in our two raised beds in the backyard again…. we learned something from one of you readers, can’t remember which one, I apologize.  Our tomatoes didn’t do so great last year, kinda wishy washy, despite our best efforts.  We have always used the same raised bed for the tomatoes, did not know you should rotate their home year to year.  We’re aware of crop rotation, makes perfect sense.  We will fortify the soil with aged horse and rabbit manure again this year, too…and indeed.. ROTATE.   
    I love these particular seed catalogs, the photography is beautiful and they sell some interesting exotics and heirloom varieties.  
Look at this beautiful  glass gem corn….. 
The description..
 Amazing color! Indescribably beautiful flint or popcorn comes in an endless range of colors. Translucent kernels really do shine brilliantly like glass—on the cob they resemble strands of glass beads! The 3-8” ears are consummately decorative, but edible and delicious as well.

     I usually pick one or two new things to try – sometimes it’s a success, sometimes not so much.    Melons have never been happy in our garden patch, we’re assuming the soil isn’t sandy enough and we have tried the tips and tricks, including added sand to the soil, placing the plants on mounds well spaced, etc.  Same for carrots, and that’s a bummer as we have people, horses and a rabbit who would love the home grown variety.  Last year I tried growing two rows of purple carrots – we had a stunted lot, but even those were a delicious sweet carrot taste.  I believe I planted them too close together and the soil wasn’t soft far enough down in the beds for them to reach and grow.   Strawberries are always eaten by rabbits and birds before we get to enjoy many of them so we gave that up.  Corn has been a learning experience, to say the least. 
   The  Mr. loves his beans and peas – the standard  variety.  I’d like to give these a try this year – tender and superbly delicious sounds good to me! .. and they’re beautiful. 
 And look at this “Violet Sparkle” Pepper…. 
I’m giving this a go as well. 
      Staples in our little garden are peppers, tomatoes, parsley,  onions, basil, peas, cucumbers, eggplant, yellow squash and  a few rows of corn out beyond the fence that are always iffy because we have yet to master happy corn growing.  When we drive by fields and fields and fields full of healthy, happy corn, we say.. surely we can get this right for our little patch.  Jeez!  The secret is somewhere  in the amount of corn you grow – they love proper pollination and mass production.  They are clearly not happy planted in little patches without the proper space between and plenty of friends for cross pollination.  The corn we’ve managed to grow looks stunted more often than not.  We might try again, hopefully with better results this year and a better game plan. 
  Looking out the kitchen porch sliders, here’s the current view of our garden… 32 degrees, back to the norms for late February, rain-snow-rain in the forecast.    We live about 4 miles in from the coast, a slow rise that reaches our hill at about 400 feet above sea level.  The scent of the sea is in the air this morning. T find it refreshing, invigorates the soul.  My husband teases me often about this – he says “You have a differently look in your eyes when we’re down by the water or  the seamist reaches the farm. ”    
    I know it’s origin…. It’s called Peace.  
  If you haven’t tried gardening in the past and have a bit of the winter blues, start planning for your little patch of garden space, give it a go.  Apartment or condo dweller?  Not a problem – roof tops, window sills, little terraces, decks  and even fire escapes can hold a few pots of something to grow.  It feels good to nurture something that will in turn nurture you. 
 My gardening friends – any tips you want to share?  I’m all ears –  not of corn, though.. apparently. 
      

Because I care

     I’m teased often because of my open expression of opinion on Facebook and I’ve received criticism for it here on this blog via e-mail.  I’m not bothered by that because it’s based solely on the fact that I care, and that care encompasses all. I care about my country, the safety of our children, our impoverished, our diversity,  our rights, our freedoms, our hard working citizens on all economic levels, our struggling population on so many levels, and our decency in our government and toward each other. If the fact that I care bothers you, that’s your issue, not mine.
     That being said- a piece I agree with whole heartedly, and believe it encompasses much of what we are dealing with in this deeply troubling divide of the people of this country…
     One of the biggest sources of bullshit today is the proliferation of “If you’re this then you’re automatically that” and “You’re either with us or you’re against us” politics. These are emotional lines that we hear invoked by everyone from elected officials and lobbyists to movie heroes and villains on a regular basis. They’re effective political moves; however, 95 percent of the time it’s an emotional and passionate rendering of bullshit.
     No matter where we stand in any given issue, let’s all stop the bullshit.  Let’s be honest, let’s be real, let’s share what we know to be true, not just things that align with what we want to believe. 

     Let’s be decent to each other, regardless.


Winterscape

  We woke up to about 4 inches of beautiful fluffy white snow and clear skies.  By Tuesday, the temps will hit 60 degrees.  T’is  true what they say about New England weather… don’t like it?  wait a few minutes…. it’ll change… 

     My little southern peach, Sally,
 with her little twisted legs absolutely loves the snow… 

When is enough, enough?

     I’m not anti-gun. We own guns. 


     I am for a government that is not bought by the NRA.  The NRA used to be an organization of integrity, concerned with safety issues.  Not so today, run by a wingnut who’s main concern is whipping everyone into a frenzy over their rights,  buying politicians to protect their sales, under the disguise of  protecting the Second Amendment.  No one is trying to take away your second amendment rights, to be clear.  Just adding common sense to the equation, really, that’s it. 

     I am for stricter gun laws, and many who agree with me are not looking to take your guns away if you are a responsible individual who passes a background check and are mentally sound.  

     Now, you might say mental health is the issue, not the gun. All the more reason to have more restrictions. There is no sound reason for a 19 year old with a disturbing digital history to be able to buy an assault rifle capable of killing many people quickly.  

   Trump blamed the tragedy on mental health, although he himself signed last year’s bill to relax vetting of mentally unstable gun purchasers. 

     So far in 2018, we have numerous school shootings in less than two months, 30 mass shootings all together. All conducted with the assault rifle. 

     That’s terrorism, the home grown variety. More restrictions won’t fix the whole problem, but it’s a step in the right direction. Doing nothing isn’t the answer. When is enough, enough? Do we have to wait for the bought politicians children to be massacred? Then will it matter enough?

     Drain the Swamp.