Category: Uncategorized

Sometimes you just have to let it go

 Those of you who know me well recognize my camera as merely another appendage.  While it’s true there are heavy sighs and some serious eye rolls whenever I arrive on the scene, who do they gather around when it’s all said and done to see their minute of fame, I ask you.  Ah, the woes of those who wield the camera.

(My hair! NO.. I don’t have make up on! I’m Fat! Oh no, not a picture..)  

 Last night we had a Christmas open house for family and a few friends. My 14 year old niece pried the Rebel from my fingers and took over the job for the evening.  I loved flipping through the images later to see her perspective.. sometimes you really oughta just let. it. go.   🙂

My sister and I.  
Oh no, my hair! No makeup! the dark circles!!..
*sigh and eye roll*
maybe even shock and awe

It’s not over till it’s over

 I did the last minute fools rush yesterday..first to drop off presents to family that I won’t see before our Christmas Day party, then to a certain store for a few certain gifts, then to the grocery store for the remaining ingredients needed for the Big Day’s menu.   ( I never know exactly where to use apostrophes.. for those of you that I annoy with it, I apologize for my laziness.  Mom. ).   Everyone and their brother and  third cousin twice removed was there doing the same darn thing – the shopping, not the apostrophe abomination.

 Anyway.  I thought I was done. Everyone checked off the list. Everything put away, everything wrapped.  I even found the gift card I thought I lost, which was the best gift ever because I  was tired of trying to conceal the evidence of my negligence from the signifcant other.

 And then last night there was this new development.

Me:  “So, since you and (new guy) M are now officially dating,  did you get him something for Christmas other than the little friend gift you originally got, you know.. before you were dating?”

College girl:  “Noooo, and I probably should, huh. “

Me:  ” Ummm, probably. Just a something, nothing huge. ”

College girl:  ” And , Mom? He got YOU guys something.”

Me:  “WHAT?  Really??… he really didn’t have to do that.  Really shouldn’t have done that…. really?”.

College girl:  ” Yeah, really. Somthing nice.  And he made cookies for you. “

Me:  “MADE COOKIES FOR US?”.   …..

College girl:  ” OMG – I have to work tomorrow, I’m not going to have time to shop for him!?”

Me:  ” *sigh*   Well.  Ok … I guess I’ll head out one more time tomorrow and pick a little something up from us and from you. What does he like? Any sports teams?  Particular colors?”

College girl:   “I don’t really know yet.  Want me to ask  him?” 

Me:  “NO, don’t ask him.  What are you gonna say..  Hey, we’re doing a last minute after-thought shopping spree for you because this is the awkward moment when you’re brand new to the scene and it’s CHRISTMAS and you came on the scene  right at the last minute when we don’t really know you yet but you made cookies and are bearing gifts. Can you give us a hint so we can buy you a meaningful gift? “

Back to the stores I go.

And the dog has a fever this morning so I’ll probably be visiting the vet too.  Awesome.

Any suggestions?  This is what I know – male college student, medium build, tall-dark-polite-handsome.  Gives gifts immediately upon meeting you.

 This is an actual Light-Up Men’s Christmas Sweatshirt.  Whadayathink?

No, I did not buy it. Just.. can you just imagine? 🙂

Hues of Holiday Blues

 The guy and I have said several times to each other in the past week..”It just doesn’t feel like Christmas this year”.   There are several reasons I can come up with that are logical – the crappy economy and our tightened budget, which I have exceeded and now feel guilty about.    There’s the lack of snow… it’s been depressingly cold and grey lately without the beauty of  the white stuff.  Today the wind howls down the chimneys of This Old House like a screaming banshee.

  Still,   I don’t think it’s any of those things as much as the absence of  TOYS.  We both bought heavily into the magic of Christmas with our kids over the years.  We went to great lengths to hide presents big and small,  leave cookies out for Santa, carrots for the reindeer.   One year we threw presents on the porch roof to make it look like Santa had dropped a few on his way over to the chimney.  We made sooty boot prints on the hearth,  sometimes threw a loose brick or two in the logs to make it look like the chimney had crumpled  under the weight of Santa…and there have been more than a few curse-strewn sessions of toy-assembling.  Who knew a Barbie Camper could come in 1,378 pieces, assembly required beyond sanity’s threshold.  That part maybe I don’t miss so much.

 I do enjoy the Christmas traditions we continue to carry through, like monkey bread on Christmas morning.  My kids still love getting their gifts under the tree, of course.   After the holiday I’ll share with you some of the crazy stuff I find to fill their stockings.  But…  the gifts under the tree are different. There are no more American Girl dolls or Breyer horses or remote control monster trucks or giant stuffed Tigers or Play Dough or Light Bright or  Big Boxes of Crayons – the kind with the sharpener in the back of the box… I still haven’t outgrown those.  Not even a Tickle-Me Elmo.   And I miss them all.   I miss the feety pajamas and the twinkle in their eyes, the excitement of Christmas Eve, the trying to fall asleep, or more like the trying to stay awake to catch the sound of hooves and sleigh bells on the roof.

   I saw Elmo on the shelf in Target last week and I almost put him in the cart.  Just because.

I always knew I’d land in Purgatory

   I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints…the sinners have much more fun  – (On a side note – I’d like to thank Billy Joel for a truly great song, it always gets me in a good mood)…  

  Of course, I’m not there YET , although on some days that’s debatable… but one of my “shoes” hoofed it to Nova Scotia, and that’s exactly where it landed.

  This is the screened porch of  Sara Harley of Dream Big,  an artist in several mediums that has a very generous heart.  Visit her blog and check out her Paws for Charity work. You’ll also see her incredible stained glass window creations and calendars.  I think I have convinced the husband that we should take a road trip to this beautiful land some time in the near future so that I can purchase one of these windows and call it my very own. Plus, have you seen the rugged beauty of Nova Scotia?  Sara also wields a mean camera, her photos are beautiful.

The Best Gift of the Season

  So.. as I ponder this particular holiday season, for as much HO HO HO, Good tidings and JOY  it’s supposed to bring upon you, what’s more realistic is the angst about spending money, buying the perfect gifts, trying to get a card out, wrapping all the presents, making all the lists, cooking and baking all that food and missing the people who aren’t with you for one reason or the other. I see it clearly on facebook and the blogosphere   (although bloggers tend to be happier people, I’ve noticed.. more griping goes on in the Facebook world and I always think that’s a mistake). 

 Today, although I have all of the above to worry about,  I did nothing in particular of very much importance.  What I did do.. was appreciate the family all under one roof, untethered to work or school projects or activities. There were no tragedies or emergencies.  School is out for the holiday and it’s so nice to have both chicks in the nest. I didn’t even mind the bickering between them, which was minimal…and I suspect they like having each other around too.  I love the gift of  this ordinary day, and I don’t appreciate it often enough.  There have been times when we have not had that luxury and I should know better. 

 I hope you’ve had an ordinary day too, and I’de love to hear the kind of day you cherish most.

You can please some of the people some of the time

  It may appear that This Old House and it’s acreage is way out in the middle of nowhere… however we’re just minutes down the road from the center of  what I can describe as a small New England town. We live on a scenic rural road, but to the right of us when facing the house, up on the hill abutting one of our fields is a subdivision of luxury  homes.  This is the view of that subdivision from our dirt driveway that leads to the back fields.
Our farm has been here for 200 years.  The subdivision is about eight years old.  We have been informed this morning that a formal complaint to the town has been filed by our closest neighbor in that subdivision because they can see our farm machinery from their house, see above. Their property line is right at the back of their house.  They happen to have a beautiful view of our fields. You can see from the pictures below that these fields are well maintained. There is an entire field, treeline,  drive and two stone walls between their property line and the machinery parked at the back of one of our fields.  Said machinery is still 50 yards behind me when I took this shot aiming at their house,  above. Am I clear on how far away from their backyard this equipment is located?
This view below is what they are complaining about. I was standing on the wall on our property line when I took this picture this morning. I had to see for myself just what they were complaining about.   Click on the picture to enlarge.. you will see the tops of our equipment,  and a few extra trucks are there today because we have men here helping Mike spread organic fertilizer over the hay fields. The healthy stuff, not a chemical we could have chosen.
 What disheartens me the most is that if they had any gripe at all, we are neighbors. In my opinion a decent neighbor, one you might want to have a decent relationship with simply because you live next to each other.. oughta pick up the phone and talk to each other about whatever the complaint may be.  They had no problem stopping by to ask if their child could use our fields to cut through to a friend’s house, and they had no problem asking if they could rebuild a portion of rock wall that is on our property but they consider a part of their yard.  WE had no problem oblidging because we are, afterall, neighbors. 
  Well today, as we begin spreading that organic fertilizer,  we will surely fortify the field that is directly behind them right after lunch.  I hope they appreciate that it is all organic and will make that hay field look even more spectacular come Spring.
 

This fertilizer spreader is from the 1970’s… still works beautifully.
They don’t make things like they used to.

Rum Balls

 These are  really easy, really delicious. No baking necessary! When you’re having company over or visting someone else for the holidays, just set a plate heaping full of them out and watch them disappear.  It’s best to make them atleast a week ahead of time, put them in a tupperware container and set in the refrigerator to “season”.

Rum Balls
2 cups finely crushed vanilla wafers
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup light rum
Powdered sugar
Line airtight container with wax paper.  Set aside. In large mixing bowl, combine wafers, granulated sugar and walnuts. Add butter and rum. Stir until well blended. Mixture will be crumbly.
Shape mixture into 1 inch balls. Roll balls in powdered sugar. Place on ungreased baking sheet and let stand for 1 hour. Re-roll balls in powdered sugar and place in prepared container. Store in refrigerator. – Allow to season for alteast one week. Rum flavor improves with time.

Why did the chicken cross the road?

This one’s been around, but it still makes me laugh.

SARAH PALIN: The chicken crossed the road because gosh-darn it, he’s a  maverick!
Honey, where’s my gun?

BARACK OBAMA: The chicken crossed the road because it was time for change! The chicken wanted change!

JOHN MC CAIN:  My friends, that chicken crossed the road because he recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.

 HILLARY CLINTON:  When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken to cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure right from Day One that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn’t about me.

 GEORGE W. BUSH: We don’t really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here.

 DICK CHENEY: Where’s my gun? And where’s Harry Whittington? Is that a quail?

 COLIN POWELL:  Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road.

BILL CLINTON: I did not …cross the road… with that chicken.

 AL GORE: I invented the chicken.

JOHN KERRY: Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken’s intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against it.

AL SHARPTON: Why are all the chickens white? We need some chickens of color.

DR. PHIL: The problem we have here is that this chicken won’t realize that he must first deal with the problem on this side of the road before it goes after the problem on the other side of the road. What we need to do is help him realize how stupid he’s acting by not taking on his current problems before adding new problems.

 OPRAH: Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I’m going to give this chicken a NEW CAR so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road..

 NANCY GRACE: That chicken crossed the road because he’s guilty! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks.
 PAT BUCHANAN: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.
 MARTHA STEWART: No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer’s Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information.

 ERNEST HEMINGWAY: To die in the rain, alone.

 JERRY FALWELL: Because the chicken was gay! Can’t you people see the plain truth? That’s why they call it the ‘other side.’ Yes, my friends, That chicken is gay. And if you eat that chicken, you will become gay too. I say we boycott all chickens until we sort out this abomination that the Liberal media whitewashes with seemingly harmless phrases like ‘the other side.’ That chicken should not be crossing the road. It’s as plain and as simple as that.

 GRANDPA: In my day we didn’t ask why the chicken crossed the road.  Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough.

 BARBARA WALTERS: Isn’t that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heart warming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting, and went on to accomplish it’s lifelong dream of crossing the road.

JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in peace.

 BILL GATES: I have just released eChicken2010, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook. Internet Explorer is an integral part of eChicken2010. This new platform is much more stable and will never reboot.

 COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one?

For the Love of Dogs

 For those of you who have been following along here with me for a while, you know I take pictures almost daily. Recently I was asked by a dear friend to take pictures of her three month old niece.  This baby was the most beautiful thing, she has strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes – and the holiday outfits made her look like a true Kris Kringle baby.

 Out of respect for the family I won’t share their full portraits, but I did get permission from my friend to show you the picture I liked the most, seen below.   Our photo session was held at her house, and she was so generous in letting us dismantle her living room for pictures.  While she and her pup, Izzy,  observed patiently on the sidelines, Izzy fell asleep in her “mothers” lap.

 If this isn’t a portrait of real love, I don’t know what is.