The Garden

Since I don't have a separate garden blog, you all have to suffer through posts about the garden.

It's starting to wear the typical August look -- overgrown, browning and tired. The weather has alternated between really hot & droughty and cool and too much rain -- not a great combination for keeping plants from getting fungus, black spot and shocked. In spite of that, we've had great yields this year, though, no matter how bad the plants look (about a bushel of green beans, lots of broccoli heads, lots of strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes and cukes)!

Here are some pictures. And, as a reward (?) for looking at the pictures, when you get to the bottom you'll find a video of Turner, the crazy dog. I apologize for the poor quality of the video, but it was shot on a regular digital cameral and he's so incredibly fast that it's hard to keep him in the frame.

Thanks for visiting!

Lumina pumpkins that are taking over

The "attack luminas" from another angle


All the beds are running together


Leeks -- new to the garden this year


Some of the tomatoes & green beans


Not in the veg garden -- native prickley pear flower


Also not in the veg garden --
"Joseph's Coat" climbing rose

Turner, the Crazy Dog

Jim's Next Chapter Begins

Well. young Jim has successfully moved cross-country from LA to Washington DC, to begin working on his Ph.D at the University of Maryland. I must admit that, as a mother, I'm breathing a great sigh of relief. Now he'll no longer fall into the ocean when the great earthquake hits (or when Lex Luthor destroys it to make Arizona oceanfront property). However, in disaster movie logic, he's really not better off! He should have moved to Des Moines or someplace like that (Butte, MO, perhaps?)


Just think how often you've seen the White House blown up, either by terrorists or aliens! IS the DC area truly safer than LA? Compare "Volcano" (where lava runs uphill) to "Independence Day"! The only place that's less safe is New York City, particularly the Statue of Liberty -- think "The Day After Tomorrow" or "Deep Impact". I suppose, in the end, we're not really cinematically safe anywhere -- even Jericho, KS isn't safe!!!!

At any rate, I'm happy that Jim and his dad (and Simon, of course) made it across the country with no mishaps -- highway-wise or politically! Happy new beginnings, Jim -- I'm really excited for you, taking this step, and proud of you, too.

I can be a simpson, too!

If Jimmy and Christy can be simpsonized, so can I!! Here are Unc & I. . .

Yawns

Coming home from work tonight, I drove past someone (driving in the approaching traffic) who was yawning a big, open-mouthed yawn and it made me yawn immediately! That got me thinking about whether or not yawns truly are contagious or if it's just our imagination. As I started looking up articles on this: this one & this, I began to yawn & continue to as I write this post.

Yawns definitely are contagious, especially to me! I must be very empathetic, or closer to the chimpanzees than I like to think!

Happy Birthday, Charlie!

Today is Charlie's birthday and we got to have him at home with us to celebrate it. That may not sound like such a big thing, but with our guys scattered across the country (literally) having an at-home celebration is major.

I know that Charlie always refers to himself as "the good son" (as do his brothers, and NOT in a Macauley Culkin way) -- but what I think of most about him is his good nature. He almost NEVER gets angry or upset about things. I believe he is the most even-tempered person I know.

I looked at lots of pictures of him for this birthday blog, all cute and most with an interesting story attached. I chose this one, though, because it is exactly as Charlie looked growing up -- always smiley and always happy.

Happy Birthday, Charlie -- the big 25!! We love you!!!

Happy Birthday, Christy!

One of the greatest pleasures of blogging, to my mind, is sending birthday greetings to people I love and getting to choose just the right photo to honor them that day.

Crit, this one's for you!!

I've think it's pretty sad when a middle-aged mom updates her blog more often than her twenty-something sons. Jim, Charlie & Danny -- where are you?

Danny -- You're not a kid anymore!

Happy 21st birthday Danny!

It makes me sad (that my baby is 21) and happy (for you) at the same time! These momentous birthdays tend to make parents thoughtful -- so here's what I think about you! You've always been very generous -- enjoying giving as much as receiving -- sensitive to others' feelings & very wise (even as a little guy) and deep in your faith. I've always liked your love of music (you know more songs than anyone I know!) and the fact that you're a free thinker (yes, I'm even used to the plugs and tattoos).

My favorite Danny-ism: when you were 4 and told me you'd seen a spider that was little and big -- it was a daddy-longlegs. Also, another favorite is big brother (translate: second mother) Charlie constantly ripping into me for letting you mispronounce things as a toddler: "he's going to talk like that forever!"

So, happy birthday, Dan -- Charlie's roast comes in a few weeks!

Power Outages Suck!

I haven't been on a computer in 3 days. We had a huge storm move through very quickly Thursday afternoon and leave in its wake many downed trees, alot of debris and widespread power outages -- including ours. A tornado was reported to the southeast of us and I think there was a wind shear, because our neighbors across the street had 4 trees and/or their larger branches sliced off at exactly the same height.

Our power was out from 3:35 Thursday afternoon until about 4:00 today (Sunday).

Here's what I learned from the 3-day experience:

Living without electricity, telephones, refrigerator (you can't open it, in order to save the cold) or water (NO TOILETS!) really sucks!

Detroit Edison doesn't give realistic time estimates for repair

Detroit Edison never tells the caller what happened or why the power is still out

There are lots of people in Meijer at 12:30 on Friday night (especially when Harry Potter is released)

One cannot find gallon jugs of water anywhere when there are power outages

It takes 25 bottles of water to fill the holding tank on a toilet

If one eats enough junk food in a 3 day period, one gets sick of it

There is a God and He has a sense of humor -- Jim left on a golf outing early Friday morning and is getting back tonight and missed the whole thing!

Thanks for visiting!

In the garden today

The raspberries are in! With less than two weeks to be sad that strawberries and asparagus are done, we're getting big, beautiful, sweet raspberries. I used the only container I could find in the barn (this teacup) and filled it -- putting those left over into ME!

Also, we put up the scarecrow, called "Basketball Head" -- not very original, I know. He used to be named "Mexican Jones" because young Jim put a face on him that looked like a Mexican bandito, but that cloth face rotted away and was replaced by a dead basketball. Anyway, when Turner went out after that, he saw the scarecrow and FLIPPED OUT, barking and challenging. I can't get him to go near him -- he's sure he's a threatening person. Here's are some pictures -- see how scary YOU think he is.

Western Trip

We've just returned from our trip to the Rotary International Convention in Salt Lake City. Salt Lake was a much more contemporary and interesting city than I expected -- it was really clean & safe and had great sculptures throughout the whole city. We did a side tour to the Great Salt Lake and the Kennecott Copper Mine.

After that, we drove down to Las Vegas, stopping at Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park on the way. What awesome places they were! I continue to be amazed at the beauty and variety the Lord has created, just because He can!! I think Zion was my favorite because we were able to drive through it and really get a feel for the size and majesty of the canyons.

The next day, we drove out to Grand Canyon West, which is in the Haulapai Indian Reservation. We opted not to go out on the glass skywalk because it costs $50 more and you can't even take cameras out there! We were, however, just west of there at Guano Point (you can see where we were here on Google maps. The vistas were lovely and the Canyon is, of course, awesome -- there's a reason it's called one of the seven natural wonders of the world. The reason it's called Guano Point is that the indians used to zip-line & rapelle down the side of the canyon into bat caves there and "mine" the guano to sell!

Before you get to GC West, you drive over 17.5 miles of the worst dirt roads ever (even worse than those here in Michigan)! It takes about an hour to go those 17 miles, but they go through a Joshua tree forest and a beautiful part of the Mojave Desert. The Joshua trees go on for miles and are small (the tallest is about 15 feet) and gnarled looking. They are really old -- the forest is estimated to be about 900 years old! You can read about Joshua trees here in Wikipedia -- they really are fascinating, though I did find them ugly.

I saw some new birds, too, though I didn't have a field guide and had a hard time identifying them. I saw a Common Raven, a female Golden-Crowned Kinglet, and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. I get really excited to see new birds! I know I'm a geek, but I just can't help myself.

After that, we stayed in Las Vegas for a day & a half. That was, for me, the low point. I'm always taken by how decadent and darkened it is, with everyone concentrating on nothing but themselves, sex, drinking and gambling! It was also 11o degrees, which is REALLY hot when there's nothing but asphalt and cement. We walked miles and saw all the sights, including the new Wynn (which is lush with water features and gardens and really lovely) and the waters at Bellagio. There are some really pretty parts of Vegas, if you can forget about the loss and economy that builds it and the fact that they're devouring all the water everywhere around them.

So that's the story of "what I did on my summer vacation". Be sure to check out the webshots link below for more pics. Thanks for visiting and for reading my long post!

by auntie20

What's New?

I haven't updated in a while. I've just been busy planting, watering and weeding. We've already got our first tomato growing (!) and have picked so many wonderful strawberries! I think the garden will be great this year, though the season is starting out really hot. New this year are leeks -- I'll keep you posted on how they do.

One of the girls died this week. Tiny, the Aracauna, had gotten so thin that I don't even think she weighed 1/2 pound. She just had less and less energy and hadn't laid an egg in months. All the girls are 3 years old and I believe that's old for hens, though they don't have a long life expectancy. My girls certainly don't face many hardships or much stress in their sheltered world!

We leave tomorrow for the Rotary Convention in Salt Lake City. From there, we'll go down to Las Vegas and will be going to see the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam at some point. It should be a fun trip, with lots of sightseeing. I'll try to post at least once from there.

The chickens, cats, dog and plants are all going to be in the care of Danny -- I hope he's up to the pressure (and Turner's early mornings)!

Lily's Quilt

Christy wanted me to post something about the quilt I made for Lily. When I gave it to her, I told Crit that I would, but now it seems like boasting -- forgive me if it seems like that to you, too!

The blocks in Lily's quilt are from animal patterns found in "Claire's Cats" and "Grandma's Bunnies", along with others that I made up because I wanted more variety. The fabrics are primarily Aunt Grace's (a reproduction line of 20s and 30s fabrics) and a few vintage ones that had enough strength to stand up to play. The polka dots, which also are the backing fabric, are an Alexander Henry called "Pop Dots" and I know that I bought every yard (and piece of a yard) available online throughout the country (because there is no more available anywhere)!

I love the outdoors and animals and hoped that Lily would have fun learning the animals and colors, discovering the patterns in the fabric and counting. This is, by far, the most fun I've had making a quilt and (I think) the best one I've ever done. The more I sewed, the more my imagination ran away with me and I'm really pleased with the result. Here are pictures of the blocks -- thanks for looking!

Gardens & Laptops

We've been working in the garden, finally planting the vegetables and STILL planting perennials! We're picking about a pound and a half of asparagus each day. The great news is, though, that the strawberries have arrived!!! They're so sweet -- well worth waiting a year for!

In other, totally unrelated, news -- I'm very excited because we finally have a laptop. Charlie's hard drive died and he replaced his laptop and gave the dead one to us. I replaced the hard drive & disk drive myself (it sounds harder than it is) and reloaded all the drivers, OS & software and -- after 3 nights of working on it and online chats with Dell because of our wireless router -- we have a laptop. It's fun to finally arrive in the 20th century!

Happy Birthday, Aunt Gene!

Today is Aunt Gene's 85th birthday. What a great person she is!! She's always had a "glass half full" attitude. Growing up in a single parent household during the depression, she says that they were the happiest people and had everything they could ever have wanted. She finds great pleasure in the simplest of things: the Cincinnati skyline from the Kentucky side, the ducks at a local park & birds that nest outside her window. She says that she looks in the mirror and says to herself "Who is that old woman?" -- we look at her and are amazed that she's 85! She still walks 1/2 mile on most days and just recently gave up swimming (temporarily) because of some minor health concerns. May she have years and years of continued good health & happiness.

Years ago, Danny had to write a descriptive short paper on someone's hands. Here's what he wrote about Aunt Gene. I've always liked it because it fits her so well:

Geneva has had the same hands for 80 years. The same wonderful hands that held a tennis racket through her youth and won countless state championships. The same hands that typed gracefully on a typewriter at P & G’s headquarters are now weak and full of arthritis. The same hands that wore an engagement ring, but not a wedding ring, for war does odd things to the minds of fiancés. She still has the same hands that held two nieces when they were born, and five great- nieces and nephews, as if they were her own grandchildren. These are the same hands that held many young hands while crossing the street. These are the same great hands, that have hugged and embraced friends and family.

These hands have never missed church, unless they must. These are the same hands that finger through the Bible page after page. These are the same hands that fold and team up with the knees for a daily discussion with the Lord. These hands also hold the hand of Jesus, as they walk through the garden, in Aunt Gene’s daily walk with Christ.

These are the same hands that have never cooked a meal before. These are also the same hands that very rarely labor to benefit themselves. These hands are also the same kind and loving hands that have very little desire to spend time, love or money on themselves. These hands will never be forgotten, for they have touched a great amount of peoples’ hearts, minds and souls.

Time for an update

I really don't have anything meaningful to blog about, but it's time for an update on what's been going on in my life.

TRAVEL:
Last week, I went to a convention in Chattanooga for our church database software. Chattanooga is a cool little town and southern hospitality is a real thing. Everyone was so nice and friendly. I'm such a geek for being as excited as I was about the classes -- how many people would be energized by the topics "Maintaining a Clean Database" and "Managing Classes and Small Groups"?

AIRLINES:
The flights there and back were just creepy! We were on very small jets (40-50 people), including one that taxied up to the gate with only one propeller working -- that's right, I said propeller! We were also delayed 4 1/2 hours in Charlotte because they first didn't have a plane, then didn't have a crew and finally didn't have a captain -- who wonders why the airline industry is in trouble??

GARDENS:

Gardening time is upon us and I've been busy planting and weeding. We've got lots of strawberry blossoms, which means lots of strawberries! I can hardly wait. They'll come and then the raspberries will be right behind them -- Yum! We're also getting about 1 1/2 pounds of asparagus every day -- enough to eat and freeze some, too!

AUNT GENE'S BIRTHDAY:

We're going to Cincinnati soon to celebrate Aunt Gene's 85th birthday! (If you're one of my boys and you haven't gotten her card yet, be sure to buy it and get it in the mail by Friday.) I might post a happy birthday message for her, but it would be a waste because she's a real technotard!

HEROES:
I'm ashamed to admit it, but I really got hooked on Heroes. The season finale was last night and they did, indeed, save the world (or at least a large chunk of New York City). I was disappointed in the ending though, because one of my favorite characters died. He can, however, return next year from death in true soap opera fashion, since he has the ability to regenerate. Does anyone else watch Heroes? What did you think of the ending?

Turner and the Muskrat

I haven't posted in a while -- I've just been busy with the usual routine, so there wasn't anything to comment on.

We had some excitement here last night, though -- Turner, the 75 pound dog, had close encounter with a muskrat. For about an hour & a half, he ran around the base of one of the pine trees barking and lunging at the muskrat, which was cornered and occasionally lunged back. Turner's legs and paws got cut by the brush & pine branches and when we finally got him out, we spent the next hour finding the cuts, getting the bleeding to stop, bandaging him up and cleaning blood off of him and the kitchen floor. It's so much fun having a big dog in the country!

There are always things to be thankful for, though: he's going to be okay, he's a little subdued today (always a good thing), it was a muskrat and not a skunk and that particular muskrat will never come to our house again!

Spring is REALLY here!

I've been so sad about the Virginia Tech massacre that I haven't felt like posting anything else and even felt it was a little inappropriate to take anything lightly in the wake of those deaths.

However, Spring has finally really arrived here in Michigan (though not yet in the UP). Today it was 60+, the peonies are coming up, grass is getting green and trees are beginning to leaf out. By 10:00 this morning I was out in the Beetle (she started up right away) and had rescued my first road-crossing turtle for the year!

Which brings me back full-circle to Virginia Tech. I think part of the reason I like gardening so much is that it puts me in synch with the earth's natural rhythms. No matter what horrible experiences we live through or we learn of, the days continue to get longer and warmer, the bug-eating birds return from wherever they go, trees leaf out and the earth (life) goes on, regardless -- just as it has for thousands of years. I find that more comforting than any of the platitudes or cliches that I hear people say. I find it as comforting as scripture because, for me, it's living scripture. It all works together to reassure me that God is sovereign, what seems so long to us is but a moment to Him and that it will, ultimately, all be well.

In the midst of life we are in death

They got up this morning and went to class -- the usual mind-dulling routine -- perhaps thinking of the snowy spring, summer jobs, lovers, upcoming projects or just wishing they'd slept in. Not one of them could have known it was their last morning of life.

Every parent shares with the parents of those students the pain too horrible to give voice to. The IM or text message that won't be coming. The waiting, hoping to be one of the blessed families, one of the survivor stories. Every one of us must stop and think of the brevity of life and how fragile we are. In the midst of life we are in death.

Stages of life, culture and stupid questions

I've observed that, just as we all have stages in life related to age, we also have stages in life related to our culture and stages in, what I call for lack of a better tag, stupid questions.

I remember when everyone I knew was getting married, having babies, and buying and decorating houses. Now everyone I know is buying a smaller house or redecorating their original one (because the kids have moved out) and is on a mission to get rid of stuff they spent years acquiring. I remember my parents doing exactly this same thing and, believe me, as creepy as it is to look like one's parents or sound like one's parents, it's equally creepy to do the same things one's parents have done! We all tend to (want to?) feel like we're moving into uncharted territory in our lives, but we're really only acting out the cycle that everyone else has acted out before us. As I play my part in this cycle, I think that, with both of my parents dying in their 60s, mortality is looming in the recesses of my mind. I'm not going to elaborate on that, though, except to say that it ties in to the stages of stupid questions . . . .

I'm amazed at how many times I've been asked lately if I have any grandchildren yet! I don't even have married children (but, apparently, I should) and I don't feel old enough mentally or physically to be a grandmother. I must have, though, developed the definitive wrinkle on my face that causes people to move me from mother-of-college-aged-children to the next level!! Not particularly flattering, to my mind and it just makes me feel old. Just as the questions once were "are you married yet?", "when are you going to have children?" or "when are you going back to work?", now I'm asked about grandchildren. I guess people ask these questions as openers or ice-breakers, but they just seem prying to me. I've never liked to interrogate others about their personal lives -- obviously, this is why I'm not good a small talk (and, also, why I don't want to be). I'm sincerely interested in other people, but I'd rather get to know what they think and feel than the current state of their family.

My youngest son told me recently that I don't update my blog often enough, my posts are too long and that I don't write about interesting things. I think the last point is proved out by today's post -- interesting to me, but probably not to a college sophomore. He is, though, living out both stages. All he needs to do is count the number of times he's asked "what's your major?" or "do you have a girlfriend?"

So, as you read this blog, ask yourself what stage you're in and what stupid questions you've been asked lately.

Thanks for visiting -- leave a comment!