Month: July 2023

Smalltown USA

 

 

07/12/2023 Holy Hannah. I suck at blogging. I apologize but I really don’t mean it because I had to force myself to write this. It’s now July 25th and I still haven’t finished this. It’s not because I’m busy, unless you consider spending a few hours under the pool umbrella reading, floating on a raft, sharing fruit with the boys and taking a nap busy. Then I’m so dang busy!!

Living here turns you into a rutabaga. I am not sure, but I probably don’t like rutabaga. This is a very quiet town, for people in Williamsport, this is Nisbet small, Everson friends, Burkesville makes Nooksack look like a metropolis. There is not much to do here at all, aside from the lake. Lake Cumberland was just designated as the number one lake in the whole USA. Dale Hollow Lake is in the top 10 of the cleanest, clearest lakes in the US. It’s a fishing and boating mecca. If you don’t do either, it’s dullsville in Cumberland County. During the summer this tiny burb is over-run with campers and boats, they’re everywhere. It’s a big money business 4 months out of the year.

Bill’s sister Kathy was just here for a visit. She flew from Harrisburg to Nashville, where Bill picked her up. We’re a two-hour jaunt from Nashville. We had some great weather when she arrived but then it got rainy and gray. Not pool weather at all.

We mostly hung out here, in the pool when the weather was hot or in the sunroom. Sitting in the sunroom is my favorite place to be, if it’s not as hot as an oven in there. It’s great because you have a 360-degree view of the property. I do have a problem with hummingbirds flying in the sunroom if I let the door open. I have so many hummers this year. They are all tiny Ruby Throats and they love the Monarda that I planted for them. I watch them go from the plants by the pool, over the fence to the Verbena and Monarda along the driveway, and back over the fence to their feeder. They’re active little things.

Today I went to close the sunroom and there was a Black Swallowtail butterfly in there, trying like crazy to get out. It was on a screen when I noticed it. I tried several times to get it on the fly swatter so I could let it out but it was stressed and panicking. Finally, I got both windows closed and it got on the fly swatter and I took it out and released it. I would have felt terrible had it gotten injured while stuck in there.

Not my photo, I grabbed this from the web.

My flowers are doing great, my lettuce is gone but I planted more seeds, they are coming up quite nicely.

Lettuce gone wild.
These were HUGE heads of lettuce.
This is along the front of the house.
This is the new bed (soon after I planted it) at the end of the garage.
Dahlias are going crazy.
I’ve never had so many blooms.
Zinnias are my favorites.
Sweet peas (flowers)

 

Kathy spoiling the dogs.
We went to Mikes Landing Restaurant, on Dale Hollow Lake for lunch one day. It was packed. Cool place right on the water.
Bathroom at the lake restaurant
Max, my pool dog. This guy loves the water.
Looks like Bill is supervising Kathy. Kathy is the ONLY person Barrio has liked. He laid by her, let her pet him and he followed her around.
My fav meal, chicken, potatoes, onions, peppers, pineapple in a vinaigrette, basil and rosemary marinade.
Kathy brought this to me. I love it, it hangs in the kitchen window.
So many of these Ink Cap mushrooms.
We couldn’t figure out what this poop was until the neighbor saw it. He said it was from a raccoon.
Pretty sky reflecting in the pool.
Kathy made this for us. Quilting amazes me, I just don’t have the patience or concentration level to do something like this. I love it, it will be great in the winter while watching TV.
Parsley, I have so much. Soon the caterpillars will arrive and they’ll eat what is left. I dried enough to hold me over for a year.
I harvested 6+ cups of fresh basil. I made pesto and froze it in small quantities. It is delicious pesto, good parmesan cheese and pine nuts make a huge difference. I still have a lot left.
This is slime mold and it’s growing in my garden in the mulch. It looks like scrambled eggs. It’s not poisonous and will eventually go away or if you rake it and aerate it, it will dry up.
Our neighbor Mike asked if he could cut through our property onto his so he could drag this camper up on the hill. He has 80 acres that adjoins ours. We said absolutely he could cut through our field. He had a friend tractor it over here.
Max was over it. I could only bring Max and Barrio out. Highway was too insane and wouldn’t listen.
Getting it down the hill was easy.
Getting it from our field to his was interesting. I thought it was going to rip the tail off the camper but it didn’t.
There was quite a dip there.
Over the dip and up the hill.
I am reading this now and it’s quite good. My bookmarker is a photo of one of my best high school friends, Lee Cohen. He and Steve Cimini and I were quite the trio. Lee passed away a few years ago and his sweet wife Susan made me this bookmarker with Lee and their dog Rose E on it.

Recently I’ve read: We Were the Lucky Ones, Before We Were Yours, Daughters of Sparta, The Scent Keeper, Where They Lie, Layla, The Wife Between Us, The Widow, Verity and Twenty Years. All pretty good books. See, I have been busy.

Also, I watched The Bear on Hulu. I really really liked it and I hope there is a season 3.

My friend Marcia (she used to live on Roa too) messaged me the other day and asked about our friend Yvonne.  I didn’t know what she was talking about but saw I had a message from Yvonne too. I clicked on that message and it was an obituary. Her husband Ron had sent it to me. Yvonne had passed away. I was shocked. I was messaging her on Friday and she passed on Sunday. Yvonne and Ron lived about 5 min. from our place on Roatan. I’m so sad, Yvonne was a lot of fun and a good friend. I met her on Christmas Eve in 2013 at Stef and Jurgen’s party. We have been friends since then. You just never know. Rest in Peace Yvonne.

My Zinnias
I love these flowers.
Monarda or Bee Balm. It’s covered with bees, butterflies and Hummingbirds. I have 7 of them, 2 short varieties and 5 tall ones.
My view while I’m busy.
No words. This dog. Bill was in the living room and he said Deb. Highway was in the bedroom with me and he went nutz. It was like Bill said there is a wild rhino in the house. No self-control at all.
My coleus. I love the vibrant colors and the variety of leaves.
The flowers by the garage, they are growing really well.

You know what? I’m ending this abruptly or else it will be 3 more weeks until I get this posted.

Enjoy the rest of your summer, fall will be here soon.

Eclectic Twist

Design And Live Outside the Lines