Monday Musings - May 23, 2011

1. Just as a reminder--I'm still here. The rapture didn't happen--I'm not sure if I'm happy or not.

2. I'm sitting here in front of a big bouquet of peony's--they are beautiful and fragrant. I picked them yesterday and they are still fresh looking today.

3. There was something not quite right when the phone rang as I was leaving the house 30 minutes before her scheduled arrival to retrieve Chris from her bus ride back from NYC. "Where are you?" she said. "Just leaving," I replied. "Well I'm already here so don't get a speeding ticket on your way." Really? 30 minutes early on a 3 hour 20 minute planned bus ride from NYC? I didn't know they made supersonic buses.

4. Just for the record--the O's beat the Nats yesterday 2-1 in a tightly played game that I was sure would wind up in the loss column for the Orioles.  Miracles happen and for the first game in a long time, the relievers did not give up a run. The game ended on a dramatic strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play. Which was very exciting, more so in that it was the second such play of the game.

5. Sitting around the pool last evening with a bottle of wine and dinner was probably the best meal I've enjoyed in over a week.

6. A busy week is planned--more travel, but the three-day weekend at the end will definitely be welcomed.

7. May is winding down.  It is amazing how quickly the month seems to be soaring along. All too quickly summertime will be upon us--and then gone.

8. The stinkbug plague is back. We found stinkbugs yesterday. They all met with a watery grave.

Warm Temperatures and Nice Evenings

I sat outside last evening and enjoyed the end of the day.  Good friends, wine, and munchies.  Even an occasional mosquito--which brought out the bug spray for the first time this year.

I watched the bats come out to play in the twilight sky and enjoyed the trees fully covered in deep green foliage.

It was the perfect ending to a great day.

It had been a day of mowing and cleaning and working outside even pulling up an occasional weed form the gardens. One of those early summer days which we usually have a few more of by this time of the year--but this year has been cool and rainy.

First Swim of the Season
Patrick, Tina and Chewie

I checked out the herb garden and determined that it actually does receive good sunlight during the middle of the day--which is why the weeds seem to be doing better than the cilantro and rosemary.

The most frustrating part of the day was my continuing battle with Comcast to ensure consistent internet service--they were having some issue and my internet kept dropping out, which really wasn't a problem because of everything else I was doing--but it was an annoyance.

We sat around late into the evening chatting about the day and the week and life. A fitting end to a day which saw sun, blue skies, and 80 degrees all on a weekend for a change.

Oh and did I mention that the pool even saw some action, too. Yeah--it has been open a month and this was the first swim.

Flowers of Springtime

Peony in the Evening Light

The flowers of late Springtime are now in bloom around the yard.

I love the smell of the peony, its sweet perfume like fragrance is intoxicating and the blooms are complex and full. I think many other flowers try to imitate the peony in terms of bloom fullness or fragrance--but truly, the peony is the the king--if only the stalks were stronger and they would stand straight up.

I can almost smell the one that is in the picture that I took last evening.

And the cascading clematis which we planted last year has not disappointed, either.

Its blooms are full rising up from the ground in a dark blue/purple mound.

I am enjoying the Springtime more and more this year as I experience again the rebirth of summer--and everyone knows that I am a summer-type of guy.

Clematis Mound May 2011

I am happy to be in Maryland--it snowed in Denver this week--twice.  Who really needs all of that in threir lives.

Although, I am sitting here waiting for the morning temperature to rise above 60 degrees so that I can begin my outside work after a week of storms and rain.

There is so much to do.

Butt the flowers make it enjoyable because every so often I can stop and enjoy their blooms and experience the moment just marveling at how diverse and awesome the world is--if only we allow ourselves to see it a bit.

I note that the magical temperature of 60 degrees has been met--and so it is off to labor in the yard and do the business of the day.

Happily--because good weather and the weekend are not terms which usually go together around here.

Thoughts and Musings

A home improvement project will always take twice as long as the guy thinks it will. Sadly, it will take four times longer than the wife thinks it should.

Why do cats always puke up their hairballs on the carpet and not the wood floor?

Who knew that my dog would hate getting her feet wet--except when she is playing in the stream behind the house.

Why did the house sound so empty when I came home yesterday--and it was the same as when I come home any other day? But I knew I was alone yesterday.

Darkness is not the opposite of light, it is the absence of light.

Cold is not the opposite of heat, it is the absence of heat.
Why do I worry about losing seconds when I am driving, but don't worry about losing hours when I am home?

New technology is fun--until it becomes enslaving.

Who developed that new car smell and why do we all seem to be infatuated by it?

We do not appreciate our health until we lose it, nor our lifestyle until it changes. I need to be content where I am and enjoy the now.

So what's wrong with dreaming about having a dive boat in Key West?

Storms and Sun

This week has been stormy, rainy, and generally gloomy.

And that assessment is not only for the weather.

As I write this, one member of our extended family, Troy, is recovering in a hospital in NYC after having extensive surgery in his battle with cancer. And this is not minor surgery. But he is doing well--and the surgery had better than expected results.

So this week has not been a lot of fun.

I know the sun still shines above the clouds--I have witnessed the impressive spectacle of breaking through dark clouds and into bright sun and blue skies. We need to keep ourselves above the storms in the sunlight.

But it is hard.

Slogging through rain drenched streets and paths makes me wet.

And muddy.

It is hard to keep the mud off when it splashes everywhere--and so I have determined that being in bright sunshine is a state of mind which transcends the mud on my shoes.

But every time I look down--I see the mud and forget the sunshine.

Early Morning in the Yard

She stood, still, along the edge of the lawn in the dawn light. Her dark eyes were locked on Makayla and me as we went about our business a short distance away.

She was so still--not even her ears twitched--every one of here senses were focused upon the dog.

Makayla noticed her standing there. Her brown coast almost fading into the green underbrush where the lawn turns into forest.  I thought for a moment she might begin barking and wake the neighbors--but as she was on a leash (for which I was thoroughly grateful), she turned away without making a scene at the deer--still frozen in place.

I know that had she not been on a leash--the chase through the brambles would have been on resulting in hours of cleaning her coat of the prickers she would have picked up. The deer would have crossed the stream and up the hill faster than Makayla could follow--but the noise of the barking dog and crashing deer would have broken the stillness of this early morning wake up slowly time.

I probably would have just taken her to PetSmart for a grooming.

I truly was amazed at Makayla's lack of interest.

I was more fascinated by this creature on the edge of the yard than she was--they are so beautiful when seen alive and not the mangled corpses strewn I normally observe along the highways.

She was so still--watching me watch her.  I wondered when she would make her move.

I looked down at Makayla and then back to where she was. Mesmerized.

I am glad the deer are still around the house--they remind me of my past and growing up in the rural area of Central New York State. Where I know life was simpler, the speed slower, and the wildlife more abundant.

The two-lane road that connected us to civilization was a lifeline and a a protection from the hectic life I now live.

I sometimes am reminded of those times by the scents--especially after the rain, like yesterday as the warm, humid air rolled up out of the small creek behind the house loaded with smells of plant matter and fresh growth.

I close my eyes, and remember standing in front of the house I grew up in looking across the fields to the hills in front of me and thinking they seemed so big (I had not yet seen the Rockies) and I had to conquer them (which I did). And seeing a herd of deer on the edge of the fields--just at the forest line.

And in the short time it took me to remember the sights and the smells, when I looked back to where the deer had been standing, so silently she had made her escape.

And I realized--so had I.

Why are the Drawers Empty?

Mornings can be hectic--made more so when Chris is away. I gain a real appreciation for how many things just magically get done in my life--like laundry.  When the drawers get low, magically they seem to fill up.

It doesn't happen like that when she is away.

So this week I am again experiencing the joy of life alone--Orioles Baseball on the TV, laundry piling up in the hamper, cleaning the litter box, feeding the cats (why exactly do we have cats?), trying to keep a sense of normalcy in the face of abnormal activity.

The hardest part is trying to ensure Makayla doesn't have to goo too many hours without human contact--12 is about the longest I've ever pushed her bladder.

Wednesday could be a problem!  E-day.

Ethan may have to take a ride with me to fetch the dog. He hates going places after school. He would prefer to eat and veggie out after a hard day of Kindergarten learning.

I don't blame him, either. I don't really like going out after work. I become the world's greatest homebody.

Absence makes the heart grow finder, they say.

I find that I just have to work harder.

Oh, and did I mention the blasted rain? What another downer on life.

But the pile in the hamper isn't going to magically disappear this morning--so I need to get moving or the cats will probably take matters into their own paws and the dog may revolt.  I sense a coup coming on.

Monday Musings - May 16, 2011

1. Every week has its own rhythm--and this one is already off to a fast start.

2. It is sad that the weather has been too cold for pool activities--it is open and wanting people to play in it, but at 65 degrees--it is just a tad (OK 15 degrees) too cold.

3. Dogs are constants in life--they love and then they love some more no matter what craziness is going on around them.

4. The lawn got mowed yesterday despite the weather forecast--and I got sunburned, too.

5. The swing set saw some brief use yesterday--it still took me longer to trim around it than the kids played on it.

6. It was youth Sunday at church yesterday--how can I bottle some of that energy for later use?

7. Trains, planes, automobiles and buses--the winner in the NYC round-trip is: Bus at $17 each way. That is less than the tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike.

Staying busy

So the question is..how do you keep a three-year old busy while working on the pool?

Let him chase the pool cleaner. Was good for almost 15 minutes.

Something to brighten a gloomy day

So the day is pretty much a washout.

Rainy and overcast.

I saw this iris in my garden changing its whole area from gray to color and I realized that while the skies may be rainy and overcast, we still carry sunshine in our hearts.