PhotonQ-Road Runner from the Past (Photo credit: PhOtOnQuAnTiQuE)
I’m sure of one thing, and that is a brand new name for my Blog is needed. Somehow it seemed the right thing to do, as the one I had just didn’t seem to convey exactly what I’d been feeling since the very first day. The name of the blog actually had me wandering about with the stories that I’d come up with. Does that make any sense to you? It’s as though a picture develops in your mind, and you begin to run with it, and sometimes, it leads to someplace you really didn’t want to go to. So as far as I am concerned, making this decision isn’t really that difficult at all. From now on I’m going to try to say what’s in my heart, mind, and tell all about the life going on around us here on our private acreage…with nature all around me, there will always be some goings on (most of the time). Lately most of my furry friends are keeping a low profile because of the heat! They’re using their heads by not exerting themselves very much. But I suppose they do have to go out and forage for their meals, but perhaps they’ll do it in the evening when it’s a bit cooler. Late last evening around 10:30 or so, I heard the”Wiley Coyotes” in the back area of the house. I know there was more than 3 to 4 of them, ’cause there was quite a bit of chattering going on between them! Perhaps his buddy “The Roadrunner” was out back taunting them? It’s very interesting listening to them as I lay back in my bed…. I’ve been hearing them on and off for most of the season, and I do not foresee them leaving anytime soon! My stories may be of things around here, as I do have a small list of ideas, so we’ ll see what develops…. Blessings people.
English: garden Hoe – hand tool (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Weeding on a grand scale I’ll never complain aboutweeding again. Wikipedia)
I’ve just noticed the time….the cookoo clock is heading toward lunch time, and I’ve just finished up with the odds and ends around the house. WhiteFox is still out in his garden, weeding the asparagus beds, and has been since before 10 o’clock this morning. It’s quite a long, tedious job as well as tiring to your back and legs. WhiteFox seems to thrive on doing this, and won’t give up until it’s finished, what ever time that will be. He’s very much his father’s Son when it comes to Gardening. He’s been instilled with great habits for gardening and working outdoors. His Dad had gardens each year because of the size of the family! A family of 8 ate at the supper table each evening, so it was very important to grow just about everything. Sometimes when I look out at him in the garden, I can actually see his Father bending down weeding and hoeing! These habits of clearing the land, plowing as well as hoeing have been passed down from Father to Son, as well as the winter planning! In the middle of winter, you’ll find him seated at the Kitchen table, paper and pencil in hand sketching out the garden, and planning what goes where. This not only helps him plan out what he’ll need in the spring, but it helps pass the time during those long winter days that seem so endless! Spring has finally arrived and it came in like a bull. Rain, rain, and more rain….somehow it just didn’t want to do anything else. As all things happen for a reason, the rains did too. June has turned its beautiful head and looked us in the eyes, and told us all,” put in your plants and gently water them for you will have bounty!”. The White Fox did just that and so far things are looking just as he had planned this past Winter in our kitchen. So we all should plant and water and fertilize as well as hoe around our lovely little babies that are now growing in our gardens….Please, do take care of them all! Your, Sammyjay
English: “Having his hair cut” – Emma hears that Frank Churchill goes all the way to London to have his hair cut and is surprised. Austen, Jane. Emma. London: George Allen, 1898. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Looking in the mirror one morning, I sighed, and proceeded to comb out my really short hair. I’d done this so many times that I’ve lost count! “Holy cow” I thought, when’s the last time you’re hair was longer than 2 inches! I couldn’t remember! I stood there for quite sometime and then it dawned on me,” why not let it grow out”! What an epiphany that was!! I have lost quite a bit of weight recently, but with the same olde hair cut, well let me tell ya, I looked Yucky! I know, I know, your image is just a product of your mind, but if that’s true, then why did I feel so yucky when I saw myself? I was time for a change! I realized it would have to grow through a tough period, but if you keep it trimmed once in a while you’d be amazed just how fast it’ll fill in and lengthen. It’s now been nearly six months, and I am amazed! My hair actually has my old curls and waves, the ones I had as a teenager! Wow! I’m not a young beauty any more, however, even we “more mature ladies,” can make some real changes….. It makes for a much happier Señora!
The day is done, the sun is starting to set over the west edge of the property…The wind that blew for most of the day has finally stopped…Our supper of steak ‘n’ onions has been devoured and we’re sitting here in the den relaxing,’cause the day was a long one for some strange reason; the sort of day that lingered on and on no matter what you did. It was a beautiful, sunny day filled with the noises of summer, the birds, insects, the wind in the trees, and the voices of children in the distance. It reminded me of years and years ago when summer made it’s wondrous entrance…back then the idea of “summer vacation”stirred the mind with all the things we neighborhood kids could do for entertainment! Cowboys and Indians, comes to mind as well as sandlot baseball, hide n’ go seek, and the Saturday Matinees at the Strand Theater….all for 9 cents!! Sometimes as I think back to those times, I do remember that it was hard to scrape up that much money! I know, I know, what’s the difficulty in getting ahold of a few penny’s, espically when you got to see several cartoons, 2 cereals that continued the following weekend, and the regular movie ? Well I’ll tell ya what, it was very hard. When you did chores around the house, you might earn 5 or 10 cents, then you had to figure out where you’d get a few more cents for some candy. But we all managed to do it somehow! All of the kids in our neighborhood walked together down to the Strand Theater off of Park Square. We’d line up to pay our 9cents and then entered the darken theater, found some seats,as the place was quickly filling up with other kids from the town and school. Magically the lights lowered and ……”Presto” the power of the cinema began….. Images flashed upon the gigantic screen, and a hush came over the roudy kids…..Ah, the great and wonderful Saturday Matinee had begun! It seems like that happened only a short time ago, but alas, it’s more like 60 yrs ! Whew, it’s hard to for my mind to wrap around that… I wonder if there are Saturday Afternoon Matinees’ anymore, and if there are, perhaps I’ll join in with the kids and line up to pay( ? ) goodness knows how much?? Be well and do enjoy your Matinees…. I will.
Again my dears, the mowers are humming outside my window. I sort of expected it, ’cause yesterday and today turned out sunny and warm. It’s been sometime since that has occurred, and we all are hoping that this will be the beginning of a stretch of weather that may”help”our gardens. As I said before, rain is needed but too much will lead soggy mess. We don’t want this to happen, now do we? Cutting the grass can be a pain, but is expected… Just think of how nice your yard will look afterwards! It doesn’t take so very long as it used to when we walked behind our old, clunky walk behind type. Sitting there in the seat of your Rider Mower, tends to give you a different slant on mowing the yard, doesn’t it? Ha Ha! We silver haired folks, really do remember the days of Pushing a mower over humps, bumps and a lawn that seemed to be endless. That, my dears, was a Job! I’ll write later ! 4:15pm….. Hi there I’m back….I put on the air conditioner for a bit, as started getting humid…. My age or something makes me notice when the temps go up. Who was it that said “The golden years”? I’d lIke to throttle the guy! haha. The White Fox is out in the garage cooling off. He says the floor of concrete aides in cooling yourself off. I’ve noticed that very thing when I’m in the garage getting into the car. Perhaps there is something to it? He’s finished up in the yard and has come back inside to cool off……(it did get very warm out there) I personally like the idea of air conditioning, as I have a physical disability and find humidity and warmer temperatures almost too difficult to handle. God bless them there air conditioners. Can’t blame me, can you? Much can be said for hiring out and having someone else mow the green blades! My neighbor has someone come to her house to ” mowa de lawn” each week like clockwork , and for her the lawn situation is a “no strain no pain”…. But the “Fox”prefers to do the acres himself, and there’s nothing wrong with that!! “Keeps ya young, and full of vim and vigor”. Happy mowing y’all…. Me
English: A cherry tomato and a beefsteak tomato, showing the diversity of size among tomato varieties. Français : Diversité des tailles chez la tomate: une tomate cerise à coté d’une tomate cœur de bœuf. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Berries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
You guessed it…… Rain! I almost choke on those words! At times I think we’ll all float away, so I try not to think about that too much…I know how to swim, however, “how long can ya tread water? Right? There are times that I forget just how bad things can be without the “stuff”. No fresh veggies or fruits, such as Asparagus or Strawberries……um. We just had our first strawberry shortcake last night and it was great! Some how the berry season is weird this year. I think we’ve had too much of that Wet Stuff! It can rot the berries as well as the veggie seeds we’ve put in the ground. White Fox planted some tomato varieties late last week, and ever sense then we have prayed (a lot)! Seems to me it was like this last season, too wasn’t it? I sort of feel trapped inside the house, when it’s foul out there. I write in my blog, or read on my good old Kindle to pass the time….doing the house work is ok, but that doesn’t do the trick for me. TV watching can be a bore most times, except for my favorite show, “General “Hospital” I’ve been watching it since I was in my late teens, early twenties. Somehow even when you don’t watch for a while, you can pick up where you left off fairly easily. My Mom watched long ago, so I guess I picked up where she left off! It’s proven to be somewhat enjoyable to do, rather than sulking or napping. My days seem to slow down bit by 3PM, so I make a cup of tea on my Keurig Coffee maker, then wander into the den, turn on that Big Flat Screen and settle down for an hour or so… Soon the approach of supper time creeps into my mind, so up I go to my kitchen to whip up our wonder-filled supper of ??? Depends on my mood and what I took out freezer earlier earlier in the day! Good luck!! That’s about it….The day winds down and we settle in for the evening, then it’s off to bed…. The end of another day by the Woods and Pastures…. Good night to all…
My day has been a quiet one so far. White Fox is out in the garden, doing “garden stuff, and seems to be quite content in doing so. This feeling of absolute quiet brings about a sense of peace and makes me think of my family and friends long gone. At my age, some of my best friends have left me behind, and have gone somewhere else, hopefully sweet and delightful….. Perhaps their loved ones were there to welcome them? I believe this happens. Pleasant to think about, isn’t it? Today is the type of day for cutting the grass, planning a picnic, reading your favorite magazine or book and so much more…It’s just up to your imagination! When we were younger there wasn’t too much that stood in the way of doing just exactly what we wanted to do , now there’s lots of things that may do just that!! There’s an old saying that goes,” You’re not getting older, You’re getting better”! Okay, just go ahead and prove it!! Seem’s to me that this “saying” is a bit screwed up to anyone who is over 60yrs of age! I’ve noticed that even mowing the lawn takes MUCH MUCH longer and that I’m really bushed when I’m finished! Am I right or wrong? We all love planning a picnic, right? However, it’s not in the planning nor the picnic that gets ya, it’s the cleanup, and the backache you’ll end up getting. I never ever use to think that way before, but now I do….history has proven me right. My sisters will agree with me, as we’re all over 65 now and we know what we’re talking about. All our neices and our nephew are heading for the “big 50” and we can hardly wait to hear from their mouths, about just “how tired they’re getting,” after doing stuff. Hee Hee. I will make you a promise though, I ‘ll not laugh nor will I chuckle when I hear them whispering to each other, “about their being so pooped out.” I will smile, show them sympathy, (cause I told them so). Somehow being the other side of “60” does have its pluses now doesn’t it? Ha Ha! Everyone out there has my Love and Blessings, Sammyjay bird…..
English: Laundry is hung to dry above an Italian street. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Laundry (Photo credit: Bilal Kamoon)
Saturday’s were always Laundry and Dusting day when I was young. It was almost a ritual in my home on Yale Street #14. There were jobs for the girls (3) and I guess we did what we were supposed to do, but not without some groaning. It seemed to us that the dusting took forever, as well as remaking our beds with clean sheets ” the correct way?” We never realized just how much help we were giving our Mother, not until we were Mom’s ourselves. I still do things the way I was taught by her and I am so very glad I do. As it turns out, everything she taught us to do saves tons of time!! Why am I so surprised? Moms are very sharp, excellent time saving individuals. It’s been proven to me, so many times that I haven’t got enough fingers and toes to count on! Now, our children are doing this stuff just like we did. Humm? Wonder why? All the dirty clothes, get taken care of with our great automatic washers. But then, the labor starts….. we take all the damp clothes and put them in the dryer, or hang them outside to dry. Then comes the blasted folding… Then putting all the stuff away….well, that’s a chore unto itself. All in all, that’s a terrific start to the famous Saturday Morning Ritual! But what about the dreaded vacuuming and dusting? Who’s going to do that.??? I say ” not me! not me ! But Guess What ? There’s no one else but me! Is there some sort of conspiracy going on? I think there has to be, and it’s been going on forever, it includes each and every mother and child on the planet! HELP! HELP! Times change, people change, habits change, and family rituals may change……but not the Saturday morning bed making and cleaning of the home…that will never ever change. Amen!
Memorial Day Commemoration 2008 (Photo credit: davidyuweb)
I just finished reading my niece’s blog on “My Magnificent Mess”, and as always it is terrific! She’s not only my sister Carol’s oldest child, but as it turns out, she is very much like a daughter to me. We’ve been quite close since she was born, (a cosmic connection?). She is the fine young lady that introduced me to blogging! Thanks DJ. My memories of Memorial Days gone by, are filled with family, picnics, Parades in Westfield, espically the one I marched in, and the fun we all had. When I was young, and that was long, long ago in the previous Century, we didn’t go away, as people do now. Then, families hung out around home, kids played in the back yard and Mom’s & Dads got the great food cooking! The smells were so darn wonderful as I remember…..everything from Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, to Mom’s Potato salad! umm! She always baked brownies, a Pie of some sort and the ever famous fruit jello. My Dad was the chief cook, as he always was each year, grilled up the “Wimpies” as we called the burgers as well as the “Puppies….As always, everything was just great! Dave, Carol, Jeannie and myself were stuffed to the gills…and of course Mom and Dad ! Memories of that time sit in my mind like sweet nectar… and can never ever leave. That’s the way I want it, too. Memories rise, like the smoke of the fire we used to cook the fare on. We ‘d roast marshmallows, trying not to burn the heck out of our mouths…but sometimes we’d do just that. Cold soda was the “cure” and we all loved the cure. It seems as though the days back then, were much longer than now. Perhaps it’s a prespective we all inherently gain as we grow older, as it seems everyone I know says the same thing. So this day isn’t just like any other day….. Lots of my old friends from Westfield High class of 1961, gave their lives for this wonderful land of ours. I know this because I recently celebrated my 50th reunion ……Without them. So here’s to Memorial Days come and gone, and To all the Good People that went with them! Be at Peace my friends, be at peace…….. Sammyjay Bird
English: Reading glasses. 中文(繁體)â¬: 老花眼鏡 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)English: A pair of reading glasses with LaCoste frames. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
As I’ve previously written, I needed new glasses badly! The appointment was made, I had my examination, and the new glasses
were ordered. I picked up the new pair, and that’s when the fun began!
I’ve been trying to get use to them for just about a week now,
but they aren’t working out at all! First, I couldn’t see very well, and I had to hold on to things because I felt I would fall. I’d even have my hand touching the wall, so I wouldn’t feel dizzy.
I was so upset that I finally decided to call the Eye Place, and tell them what was going on. I was asked if I’d ever worn bi-focals before? YES I had. He went and checked my records, and then announced they could and would replace the lenses at no cost to me… Thank You God! Were they sensitive to my plight? I think so! I’m going to their office tomorrow and will leave the blasted glasses with them!
I can’t begin to tell you how frustrated I am without decent glasses. I miss all the activity outside my door, out in the back acres….The small squirrels hunting for the acorns that fell last winter, the blue and white violets that seem to be popping up everywhere. We all seem to take our eyesight for granted, until for some reason or another we lose it to some sort of problem! I’m one of those people… Why do we think that way? Perhaps we feel, nothing will ever bad happen to us? Guess what, guys. Bad stuff does happen! And can happen to us all. I now realise this fact…. Rather late than never! With my new developing Macular degeneration, the idea of going blind is now knocking on my door each and every day. So, I should appreciate the days and the evenings to come, right? I’ll make a promise to you, I’ll make the time to look outside my door and into the Woods of Easthampton, every day.
Talk to you soon. ME
When I opened the shades this morning, it looked grey, almost as if it were going to rain at any moment. I wasn’t too surprised, as my hands had been causing me undo pain all weekend. It had been sunny outside, so I couldn’t figure what was up. Surprise, surprise, the local weather person is saying there will be showers each day!!! No wonder I felt awful. With breakfast out of the way, the White Fox announced ” I’m going out to Till the garden!”. “That’s wonderful”, I said. (Thanking the Good Lord under my breath) So, out the door he went, into the garage to start the Good Olde Tiller. It turned over like a champ. He let it run for a few minutes, then walked it slowly out and around the garage to the garden….I could hear the tiller going putt, putt, putt, going back and forth, back and forth out in the back acres. Everything is quiet now, perhaps “White Fox” has finished up the job and is calling it a day? Since our garden is so large, it takes extra time to do the kind of job that White Fox likes to do. He’s always been sort of fussy about things like that. Our garden consists of three growing areas. There are two beds on each side of a much larger area, that is used as the main growing bed! They are both filled with beautiful juicy strawberries, as well as the vibrant green of asparagus! The bigger area in the middle is kept for the vegetables that we enjoy…green string beans, yellow wax beans, onions, some radishes, Swiss-chard, two varieties of Classic tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, head lettuces and cucumbers, (two types). I use the cukes for a dish called “Day Old Pickles”, a real favorite of my Fox. I was given the recipe by an old woman who lived down the road, pretty close to where the Fox was born and lived for nearly 60 years. My dear old friend had been a friend of the family forever… She shared lots of things with me, during the years I lived there. There seemed to be an endless supply of recipes for home baked bread, and some other types of food from Poland, and Germany, that was out of this world. I’m so glad that I had the chance to live in the very home the White Fox was born in! We both felt sad when we finally left the old homestead. The house is now gone, disappearing into the mists of time. I really miss the old place with its gardens and all. I still remember all the wonderful times we spent there, together…. Well the day is finished, supper will be ready in a little bit, as soon as I go and fix it, right? So I’ll close for now because he must be hungry! XXOOXX Me
What a warm day this has turned out to be! I’d not planned on the heat returning quite so soon, but what the heck do I know, right? My husband, who I shall refer to as an” Earth’s Angel” ’cause they are the ones that tend to Mother earth on a daily basis… They are the ones we all depend on for our food sources…and life it’s self.
My Earth’s Angel has a name: My White Fox, as his hair is pure white, without any signs of the colour black, as it once was. He’s the guy who always says, “No water, No Garden!”. He’s right you know. Even now at the age of 80+ he still goes out in the back acres, to tend to his “business”!
Each year he’ll say to me, “I’m going to cut down on the size of this place”. It measures 150’x 100′! Sort of small, right? Haha. I tried for many years, to have him not make the garden so darn Big! He’ll tell me OK! But it always ends up humongous and filled with more vegetables that I could ever use in a life time! After a time, even our next door neighbours begin to refuse our generosity… A person can only eat so many of the delicious wonders that grow out there beyond the house and flowers. The Asparagus beds aren’t doing very well this year…lot’s of people we’ve run into, are saying the same thing about their beds, too. Must have been the snowless Winter, as well as the very weird Spring that followed? We all concur, that is the reason. My loving White fox, said,” The Garden will be smaller this year, lots smaller”!
White Fox has always been an Outdoor person, has always had a “Big Garden” and never said anything that sounded like defeat. This year he said it for the very first time, since I’ve known him.It really surprised me.
I suppose this was going to happen some day, but not now. Time is flying on by me, and I’m not sure where it’s gone? If anyone knows where it went, please let us all know? We’ll be waiting!
Sammyjay Bird. XX OO XX
Donna Jean and the Tricksters (album) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Susan Elizabeth (Photo credit: sharon_k)
My niece Donna Jean called me the other day and I told her how impressed I was with the photography in her blog. She chuckled, saying the camera she used was the camera in her cell phone! Surprise, surprise, so I asked what type she used normally? She described it, and I thought, perhaps it’s time for a newer one. I had a Fugifilm camera, with a SD card etc. so why not give it to her.She could use a really good one. So I offered it to her and she accepted. I did tell her to come on up anytime to get it… Later, on I received a quick message asking if she could stop in after work on Friday? Sure thing, I said and told her to stay for pot luck supper…OK? Her reply was YES!
I ended up having a pretty good fare, Vadilia burgers, fresh carrots and asparagus (from the garden) and a nice desert of croissants from France. They were filled with some delicious chocolate filling, so by the end of the impromptu supper, everyone was full and pushing themselves from the supper table! It was a nice supper for us…
Donna Jean and her sister Susan Elizabeth and I have special ties that bind us. It all began the night Donna Jean was born, way back when! I actually thought I was having labor pains, and they actually were getting quite strong, too. But when it all stopped, Donna Jean had been born, and I had gotten my (you guessed it). I was not very regular in those days. Hee Hee!
We’ve been through thick and thin over these many years, and I feel as though she’s very much my daughter, and I know I always will! Perhaps she feels something similar, too. She and her sister Susan Elizabeth have always been very Special to me. And I know they Know I Love Them, and always will!
XXOOXX. My love to all of my children, and to great
Meals together Soon!
‘Fall Time’, Vermont, Danville Area, Barnet Center Road, Countryside, Farm (Photo credit: WanderingtheWorld (www.LostManProject.com))Cover of Mother
Today is just a perfect day to celebrate….
To all of you Mothers, out beyond my Woods; Celebrate your special day with all your loved ones, and smile because they remembered you. Some of us aren’t as fortunate to have children that want to remember their mothers. I am one of those… They are now grown, have families, live lives of their own, so that’s their priority now, I guess!
My Mother passed on in 1996, and I miss her every day. She was a great Lady, who had an Irish disposition, and could tell a tale like any good fair Irish gal. Her husband of 60 years, spotted her across the room in the kitchen of his brother-laws’ home up in Northern Vermont, when they were very young. He mentioned her to his brother- in- law and brother, saying “I’m going to marry her!” Well, they all laughed him right out of the room! But surprise, surprise, a few years later he did just that! He said to us, “it was her Irish disposition that got me, Hook, Line, and sinker!!”
It turned out just great, ’cause they had four children, and we were able to honor her, on many Mothers Day celebrations for the next 60 years. So “God bless the mothers out beyond my Woods, and have many, many Happy Days to come!”
Enjoy your Mom’s Day. XX OO XX
Sammyjay-bird (just like my Dad called me)
Verizon MiFi 2200 Connection (Photo credit: Old Shoe Woman)
The other day, I opened up my E-mail, trashed most of them, but then I noticed one that was from Verizon-wireless. I opened it and surprise- surprise, inside I found a bill and information telling me that I owed Verizon Wireless, $1,227.72 !!!!! What the what?
I quickly read the bill, and as far as I was concerned, I DID NOT owe them anything! I’d paid all my monthly bills, including my Verizon Cell bill, sooo, it must be a mistake, right? As calmly as I could, I looked up Verizon in my phone book. Well, I’ll be darned…there were so many numbers I didn’t know where to start. Finally, I decided to call the main number for Verizon and ask their operator who I should talk to? She hooked me up with a young lady who was very helpful. At first I thought” she’d think I was a senile old lady who had hit the panic button.” But after a few minutes of asking me some questions and getting my account number, she left me on hold to go and see what was up!
After a bit, she returned, saying something that really surprised me:
“Lots and lots of people had been calling in, complaining about just what had happened to you”. So, needless to say, I wasn’t ready for what she was about to say,…”Its a scam, a SCAM,!” She’d said to me….”What? What did you just say?”. She repeated herself, then told me ” Not to worry anymore!”. I said “thank- you, thank- you” several times…Wishing her well, I hung up. But afterward, I sat there, feeling like a dumbell. Sometime later I began thinking about the whole thing, and decided that I’d done the right thing! I wasn’t a dumbbell, rather, I was smart to call and let the Verizon company know what was going on.
So, my dears, take heed, and don’t answer all E-mails that look weird….just try and be ALERT!
Take care, I’ll be talking to you soon.
PS. I just received another one of those e-mails! This time it was for $1487.00.! Quite a difference from the last one!
Keeper of Our Woods and Backacres 