I spent the afternoon on my deck in a rocking chair, petting the cats and writing. Tonight my writing group is coming over and we're going to have lobster sliders and corn on the cob.
Not a bad life!
Not a bad life!
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
Finicky
After picking some Maine lobsters for dinner tomorrow night, I had a few scraps and some gorgeous scarlet tomalley left over so I thought I'd give the cats a little treat. I chopped everything finely and presented it to them with a flourish. They trotted eagerly to their dishes and sniffed the unexpected presentation with enthusiasm. Then they stopped, looked at each other, shook their heads in confusion, switched dishes, looked at me, and then literally turned their noses up and walked away.
"I'm not trying to force anybody in this house to eat lobster!" I told them, but then shrugged and sprinkled a couple of pieces of dry cat food over the offensive sea bug. The magical tinkle of kibble hitting metal got them back in the kitchen, and once they were eating, it all was all good, and they ate their lobster, too.
I hoped they enjoyed it, because that's probably the last time it will ever be served to them!
"I'm not trying to force anybody in this house to eat lobster!" I told them, but then shrugged and sprinkled a couple of pieces of dry cat food over the offensive sea bug. The magical tinkle of kibble hitting metal got them back in the kitchen, and once they were eating, it all was all good, and they ate their lobster, too.
I hoped they enjoyed it, because that's probably the last time it will ever be served to them!
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Jiggity-Jig
The cats are fine.
Lucy is thrilled to see all her doggie friends.
The garden is dry, but doing well.
The cucumbers are now pickles.
The bed is comfortable,
and the sunrise floods our treetop room
with golden light.
There is still a hole in the ceiling,
and the washer and dryer are still broken.
The hanging baskets and containers
are thriving--
full of herbs and flowers.
The refrigerator is restocked.
and we have been to the movies,
a documentary, to be exact.
Lucy is thrilled to see all her doggie friends.
The garden is dry, but doing well.
The cucumbers are now pickles.
The bed is comfortable,
and the sunrise floods our treetop room
with golden light.
There is still a hole in the ceiling,
and the washer and dryer are still broken.
The hanging baskets and containers
are thriving--
full of herbs and flowers.
The refrigerator is restocked.
and we have been to the movies,
a documentary, to be exact.
Monday, July 9, 2018
The Road Rose Up to Meet Us
It was 1 o'clock when we loaded Lucy into the car after a romp and a swim at the amazing dog park from Saturday. "We should have left earlier!" Heidi scowled.
The sky was blue, the sun was warm, and the air was cool. We had stayed for a late breakfast of BLTs, stopped for coffee, and given Lucy a chance to exercise before being cooped up in the car all day. "What's the rush?" I shrugged.
"I don't want to get home in the dark!" Heidi continued.
"It's summer!" I said. "The light will be with us all the way."
And it was. Because we were leaving from a little south and east, the map app sent us a new way home. As we rolled through emerald hills we saw lots of farms and lots of wind farms, too. We drove up and down mountains, past reservoirs and rivers, through battle fields and shrines. We hit zero traffic, and finished our audio book exactly 10 minutes from home. The sun was just setting as we pulled in to our parking lot.
Home!
Our destination was as warm and welcoming as ever.
Our journey?
Was, too.
The sky was blue, the sun was warm, and the air was cool. We had stayed for a late breakfast of BLTs, stopped for coffee, and given Lucy a chance to exercise before being cooped up in the car all day. "What's the rush?" I shrugged.
"I don't want to get home in the dark!" Heidi continued.
"It's summer!" I said. "The light will be with us all the way."
And it was. Because we were leaving from a little south and east, the map app sent us a new way home. As we rolled through emerald hills we saw lots of farms and lots of wind farms, too. We drove up and down mountains, past reservoirs and rivers, through battle fields and shrines. We hit zero traffic, and finished our audio book exactly 10 minutes from home. The sun was just setting as we pulled in to our parking lot.
Home!
Our destination was as warm and welcoming as ever.
Our journey?
Was, too.
Sunday, July 8, 2018
You'll Always Know Your Pal
We were back from the falls by noon, and I was restless by 12:30. A lazy search on my phone turned up a promising activity.
"Who wants to do a cave and underwater boat tour?" I asked. Maybe it was the unfolding drama in Thailand or perhaps it was just a lazy Sunday, but there were no takers.
Finally Heidi broke the crickets. "I'll go with you, Babe," she offered. And away we drove, 30 minutes to the north to a town called Lockport, the first big stop on the Erie Canal for eastbound traffic. And why was it such a destination at only 35 miles or so from the big city of Buffalo? Well, the answer is in the name. The canal drops 520 feet from Buffalo to Albany, and a full 60 of them are in Lockport. That means six locks, which could originally accommodate one boat every 3 hours. So the average back up at Lockport was three days, which was very good for the economy.
In addition, the excess water that came from constructing all those locks was redirected through a chase that went around the canal, providing enough hydropower to run three factories-- the first fire hydrant plant, a farm equipment production line, and a pulping mill.
It was those tunnels that we toured today; not an actual cave at all, but hand-excavated subterranean passages blown through the dolomite by miners and Irish orphans working as powder monkeys. Our guide was a young man by the name of Ben who was pretty knowledgeable and had a school presentation style that I found both familiar and endearing. His favorite interactive device was to introduce topics with an invitation: Anyone care to guess... how deep the water is? ...what happened to this factory? ...how many boats could fit? etc. It was simple, but effective, and he did a great job leading our group of 19 adults and 3 children.
"How old are you Ben?" Heidi asked him after slipping him a five at the end of the tour.
"Sixteen," he said.
"You were amazing!" I told him.
In 1918, an updated lock system opened, one that speeded 10 boats at a time through in less than an hour. In addition, electricity meant that the raceways were no longer necessary to power the factories, which closed or relocated, and the tunnels were drained and abandoned.
Lockport's economy declined for the next 100 years. The canal still operates today, though, mostly for leisure vessels like tour boats, house boats, kayaks, and canoes. And this year? In honor of the 100th anniversary of the new locks? Passage through Lockport is free.
And well worth the stop!
"Who wants to do a cave and underwater boat tour?" I asked. Maybe it was the unfolding drama in Thailand or perhaps it was just a lazy Sunday, but there were no takers.
Finally Heidi broke the crickets. "I'll go with you, Babe," she offered. And away we drove, 30 minutes to the north to a town called Lockport, the first big stop on the Erie Canal for eastbound traffic. And why was it such a destination at only 35 miles or so from the big city of Buffalo? Well, the answer is in the name. The canal drops 520 feet from Buffalo to Albany, and a full 60 of them are in Lockport. That means six locks, which could originally accommodate one boat every 3 hours. So the average back up at Lockport was three days, which was very good for the economy.
In addition, the excess water that came from constructing all those locks was redirected through a chase that went around the canal, providing enough hydropower to run three factories-- the first fire hydrant plant, a farm equipment production line, and a pulping mill.
It was those tunnels that we toured today; not an actual cave at all, but hand-excavated subterranean passages blown through the dolomite by miners and Irish orphans working as powder monkeys. Our guide was a young man by the name of Ben who was pretty knowledgeable and had a school presentation style that I found both familiar and endearing. His favorite interactive device was to introduce topics with an invitation: Anyone care to guess... how deep the water is? ...what happened to this factory? ...how many boats could fit? etc. It was simple, but effective, and he did a great job leading our group of 19 adults and 3 children.
"How old are you Ben?" Heidi asked him after slipping him a five at the end of the tour.
"Sixteen," he said.
"You were amazing!" I told him.
In 1918, an updated lock system opened, one that speeded 10 boats at a time through in less than an hour. In addition, electricity meant that the raceways were no longer necessary to power the factories, which closed or relocated, and the tunnels were drained and abandoned.
Lockport's economy declined for the next 100 years. The canal still operates today, though, mostly for leisure vessels like tour boats, house boats, kayaks, and canoes. And this year? In honor of the 100th anniversary of the new locks? Passage through Lockport is free.
And well worth the stop!
Saturday, July 7, 2018
Dog Day
"Let's do something with Lucy," Heidi suggested today, so I consulted a trusty local website to find the best things to with dogs around here. They pointed us in the direction of a state park which was the former farm of the Knox family who, along with their in-laws, the Woolworths, made their fortune in the early variety store business.
The weather was glorious and the park was perfection for pups-- we started at an acres large grassy off leash area where 20 dogs ran and played. Down one of the rolling trails was a sunny little pond where Lucy could swim, and we strolled through shady woods and across fields, past old farmsteads and houses and through a wedding until we returned to the parking lot, but not before we had fresh squeezed lemonade and baked this morning lemon madeleines at the dog friendly cafe on the premises.
Come to think of it, the park was pretty perfect for people, too.
The weather was glorious and the park was perfection for pups-- we started at an acres large grassy off leash area where 20 dogs ran and played. Down one of the rolling trails was a sunny little pond where Lucy could swim, and we strolled through shady woods and across fields, past old farmsteads and houses and through a wedding until we returned to the parking lot, but not before we had fresh squeezed lemonade and baked this morning lemon madeleines at the dog friendly cafe on the premises.
Come to think of it, the park was pretty perfect for people, too.
Friday, July 6, 2018
Cardinal Rules
Heidi's folks have worked hard to create a lovely garden-like atmosphere in their back yard, and our summer visits always include lots of time relaxing outside. Of course many birds also enjoy the yard, and one of the frequent visitors this week has been the strangest looking cardinal I've ever seen. The poor little bird is completely missing her crest and the rest of her head feathers!
Her baldness gives her the appearance of a tiny vulture.
She gives the impression of being healthy in all other respects, especially her appetite, and the internet assures me that she is probably just the victim of a bad molt. It seems that most birds lose and replace their feathers a few at a time all over their bodies during molting season, but on occasion, for unknown reasons, something goes haywire and all the plumage in one area falls out at once.
She should be back to normal in 8-10 weeks, but until then? She definitely stands out in the flock.
Her baldness gives her the appearance of a tiny vulture.
She gives the impression of being healthy in all other respects, especially her appetite, and the internet assures me that she is probably just the victim of a bad molt. It seems that most birds lose and replace their feathers a few at a time all over their bodies during molting season, but on occasion, for unknown reasons, something goes haywire and all the plumage in one area falls out at once.
She should be back to normal in 8-10 weeks, but until then? She definitely stands out in the flock.
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