I was looking out of the bathroom window and was startled by what looked like the perfect maple leaf laying on the ground.  It wasn't a bright red, or yellow but a muted combination of red/yellow and orange.  It probably was the coloring that attracted my attention and the fact that it was this one perfect leaf just laying on the green lawn. I wanted to retrieve it but was distracted and never did go a pick it up. As one looks into the distant hills, one can see changes in the leaves. Not necessarily color but just a dryness that certainly hints at fall. I mentioned to my brother that soon we'd have to spend a day or so in the garden, pulling the stalky mint and cutting back the irises. For some reason I just don't feel as if I've consummed enough of summer. Somehow it has eluded me.  But, if nothing else, I will do some steamed lobsters outdoors before the summer is over. 

 

Every now and then I let my imagination run.  Have you ever wondered where you might like to live in this country .... even if it is just for a year?  I keep thinking that I'd love to live in a city even if it is just for the experience of living in a city.  I'd like to live 'simply,' use public transportation to make my way around and take in the cafe's, cultural events, the food emporiums, the bookstores and libraries.etc. Nothing expensive but as inexpensively and economically as possible. Of course I'm looking at it from the eyes of a late stage baby boomer and one who is on a fixed income.

 

So.....what do you think are great places for mature members of society to live in?  I'm not sure that there should be a distinct between old and young but this was the list of 5 places to live as mentioned in the AARP magazine.  Cities to consider:  Portland, Oregon; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Chandler, Arizona; Atlanta, Georgia; and Boston, Massachusetts. Each of these cities have some wonderful opportunities for older folks. There is an upside and a downside to each of these cities but effort is made to promote quality of life and social equality for all.  Reference is made to an organization called Partners for Livable Communities. I just have this notion of wanting to live as inexpensively as possible without being a landowner and experiencing what a particular city has to offer.  Ok, ok.....just an idea.

 

I read the article on Katrina revisited.....two years after and I'm shocked at what we haven't done for the people of New Orleans. There are still sections that haven't been touched or cleaned up and many, many people who have just had to re-locate because FEMA and insurance companies have negated any responsibilty to assist or pay insurance claims.  Unfortunately, it has taken its toll on many people and the bottom line is......life will never be the same.  The stories are endless.

 

Well I leave you.  Remember to be thankful for at least one good thing in your day and if nothing else, smile or acknowledge one other person today.    Bittersweet on-the-hill.

 

 

Ahh, that atypical August weather!  We're experiencing some coolish weather and I must admit, that everyone pulled out a flannel shirt and the woodstove is going.  I'm sure this aberrant weather pattern won't last long but it is frightening to think that fall's head is rearing!  The signs are all around. The smell of the air has changed, the leaves on trees are drying, the yellow finches have left and the chrysanthemums are being sold at garden and vegetable stands. So fall is slowly coming.

 

I just received my September/October issue of "The Book Bag," and found it an absolute treat. This issue was called Russian Dressing and focused on both great and contemporary Russian writers. It brought to mind my first introduction to Russian Literature and how much I enjoyed the powerful and detailed writing.  So I just might select a book from each of several authors and add it to my bookshelve for winter reading.

 

I received my first issue of the AARP magazine and found it a delight. Without exception, every article was worth the read. I'm about to read the article on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina which I know will upset me deeply.  I fear we've left the people in hurricane alley high and dry.  It seems as if our government just can't get anything right.  The economy, health care, the mortgage crises, the war, FEMA and trailer cities etc. etc. and lets not forget the bridge collapse and the mining accidents. We're just not spending the money were we should be. My brother Pete and I were talking ....how you just can't rely on the government anymore.  Don't think any of us are going to be able to rely on the government for much of anything as we get older.

 

Another brother went out to Martha's Vineyard to visit his daughter and while there saw Buffy Saint Marie at the Tabernacle in Oaks Bluff. She happened to be a guest at the movie tribute to her and he had met her in the early sixties at one of the state colleges. They talked about why today there is very little activism by the young and why we don't see more protests by the young. Her answer was simple.....no draft.  Young people don't have to be worried about being drafted like they did in the 60's.  Our armies are all volunteer so people aren't getting involved. Where is our outrage????  The Black Panters, the Grey Panthers etc., etc.  I'm sure as soon as I read the article on the aftermath of Katrina I will be seething with rage.

 

I have spent the last 10 years isolating and insulating myself from the turmoil of life and there are times I fear what the cost of complacency and inactivity will cost.  I have become aware of the lack of home health care services and think that may be my focus for awhile.  With this being a presidential election year, it might be a good time to do some letter writing and at least make some issues known.

 

So good friends, we move on.  Good day to all.   Bittersweet

 

A few more minutes of relaxing and then I'll start my day. Sunday mornings should be designed around an added hour of 'do what you want' relaxation before the day begins.  So with cup of coffee in hand, I'm sitting here and will bring you up to date.

 

Let's start with my weather. Delightfully beautiful.  It has cooled down, the sun is out and no rain until this evening. This has been one of those near perfect weekends and at this point, you feel guilty when you can't spend at least part of each day enjoying the out of doors. The cacadas are singing, and the air has that scent of fall emerging and you just know from here on out, your beautiful, sunny warm days can be counted. I still have a few days to order some daffadils and irises for a fall planting so things are in hand.

 

The big event of two weeks ago, is the acquisition of 4 month old Sidney.  She's an Australian Shepherd, sweet and just full of play! Good thing there are three of us because that is what she requires! I can only say thank God she goes quietly into her cage and sleeps through the night. "NO" is not within her vernacular yet and neither is "come here."  The occasional motor cycle is of great fascination especially the Japanese bikes with the high whine!  I have acreas and fields on all sides of me except the road side and she seems to be attracted to the jogger, biker and anything that moves. We try to give her free play time, someone is always with her, but am always fearful that she just might make a dash when we least expect it.  We just put up a run but that's not the answer and may have to look at some invisable fencing for awhile.  I have always let my dogs loosing but am not sure about this one.

 

Sidney was picked out of the litter because of her similarity to an Australian Shepherd we had in the early 80's She also was a Sidney and was a beautiful dog although too protective of me and my mother.  Anyway, the similarities are uncanny! This young pup loves mouthing wood; she loves carrying sticks and bark chips around and has even tried tugging and moving some fire wood around. She has this desire to dig holes and is probably smelling the chipmunks that have been displaced.  I do notice a few woodchucks in the fields and I'm sure she'll go after those in time. And she just loves rolling on her back with her legs in the air.  Not very lady-like but part of her behavior just the same. Fortunately she enjoys all of us even though I think she has already determined that one of her roles is to protect me. I'm not sure why this is the case but perhaps because I am in the kitchen a lot, and always find time for that assuring pat. She certainly is one glutton! We have decided only dry goods this time since the original Sidney was heavier than she should have been and once gained, very hard to take off. 

 

I may have mentioned that I have my Tucson house on the market. Since i had pictures shipped home, I decided to have the furniture shipped as well. The furniture isn't worth much but I can add it to the 50 years of accumulated junk in the barn.  So one big barn sale coming up on the 24th and 25th of August. Two of my brothers and one of their lady friends will help me with the sale. Fortunately most of it I can keep in the barn if the weather is bad or just have a rain date. So we'll see.

 

Lastly, 'c' introduced me to some random quizzes at her site. Check them out......cool and interesting.  But, as for what color purple am I......I am a lavender, born year of the horse, have the Biblical name of Shira Gilana, my city is Boston, am 44 % democratic and am absolutely yin!  So there you have it.  A good day to you all.   Bittersweet

When I think chipmunks, I think back to my childhood when it seems as though all we did was rescue chipmunks from the cats.  The cats always seemed to be carrying these limp rags of reddish brown fur who played the art of pretending death to perfection.  Some survived and some didn't. I remember getting a box, pulling grass, getting a towel and a dish of water and watching vigilantly for that first sign of life.

 

As the owner of an 1850's Greek Revival I view them somewhat differently. There is nothing as disconcerting as hearing something in the walls scurrying around you are trying to sleep and not knowing whether it is a mouse, a squirrel or a chipmunk. The mice I can handle. They just pitter-patter across the ceiling and you just roll-over and continue your sleep hoping you remember to set the mouse traps the next morning.

 

What does knock you out of a dead sleep is when you hear some furry think inch its way up between the studs and it sounds as if it is the size of a cat. That's when I wake up one of the guys in the night and stupidly ask....."what's that noise?" Finally they have proclaimed......enough.

 

This year it seemed as if there is a profusion of chipmunks.  So the youngest has proclaimed a war against chipmunks.  He purchased an expensive trap and set out to catch every one of them. They seem to have a series of holes in the mulch by the rhododendrums next to the kitchen and my bedroom. So the trap is set with a gourmet dinner of peanut butter covered with the best variety of bird seeds. And sure enough, we have caught 5 to date.  The one stipulation is that they not be injured and that it is catch and release. So they all have new homes.

 

I was kind of curious where he took them all.  On the mornings of his big catch he loads the trap onto the back of his pick-up truck and drives off. I watch him and think.....big game hunter!  A stinking little chipmunk and he acts as if this catch may take him to a taxidermist!

 

So where did these creatures go? I don't make a big deal of it but at the end of the day I nonchalantly ask...."so where was the drop-off today?  The first one ended up in the parking lot of the Niverville  post office.  Ok......four miles is a safe distance, lots of country, trees and if he is extra diligent, he can make up for lost time.  Second one, the water falls in Valatie. This one would have to work harder to catch up. People feed the ducks so maybe he can find some bread crumbs.  The third one.....a country road on the way to his work project in Ghent. I think this one will have to raid another chippies den to make it through the winter. The fourth one has lots of history on his side. Old Kinderhook, the home of the 8th president of the U.S. - Martin Van Buren.  This one has lots of choices from among the Revolutionary heroes homes.  The Poole House, Lindenwald, the Aaron Burr House, I'm sure one of them would be happy to accomodate another chipmunk.  And now for the most recent one - the cemetery where our parents were burried. I looked at him and said,....."oh!"  He even added a comment.

 

"It was kind of interesting to watch him.  Everything was so flat. He didn't quite know where to go since there was no place to hide. He just kept running around among the tomb stones."

 

"No bread crumbs there," I said to myself.

 

So, the story of the first five.

 

 

First, I must admit that I wrote an entry twice on Sunday and couldn't publish them as a blog entry.  And yes, it is always something simple like not having put a title to the entry!  So even though I kept the site open most of the day......nothing happened!  So closed the site and started again and still nothing.  Perhaps it was the heat and humidity.

 

Let's begin with the loss of our four chipmunks.  Somehow we are inundated with chipmunks this summer.  They are in the woodpile, out in the garden shed and love tunneling in the woodchips in the flower beds.  So it was trap time.  I refuse to let anything happen to them and as each was trapped, they went on a trip.  One is now located by a neighboring town's post office, another by the water falls in another town, one on a country road on the way to David's work site and the last one in Old Kinderhook the home town of Martin Van Buren, 8th president of the U.S.

I do apologize to each and every one for the lost efforts of their summer but feel they will be industrious enough to find enough seeds and nuts

to build a new cache for winter.  Anyway, they have been thieving thistle seed  from the gold finches so now they can start to work in earnest!

 

Well Miss Xena has finally arrived home. It was nearly an 8 hour round trip to the Finger Lakes region of the state and thankfully one of my brother's offered to make the trip with his lady friend.  I'm thankful he viewed it as a Sunday drive because I'm not sure I was willing to make the trip.  So Xena, a four month old Australian Shepherd is now a full fledged member of the household and a lovable, sweet dog.  Lot's of kisses and licks and lots of outside running. The area where the fruit trees are is cut lawn and she views it as her play ground. She has added a new joy to the household and loves sitting outside with us when we enjoy the afternoon or evening.

 

I hope you are all well.  We are experiencing hot, humid weather and tomorrow will be worse.  Peace,  Bittersweet