Blogger Blast

Blogger Kim and Dave drove from Texas to my mountains to visit, and I am having a blast. It is fantastic to have time to spend with them, as they and their dogs stay at an RV park just down the road. Kim’s blog is here.

Two days in a row Kim and I walked to the creek. I haven’t done that since last May, just before sciatica hit me. Oh! To have a favorite blogger to talk with while walking was marvelous! I remembered to take a photo.

Kim took me to the RV park and gave me the grand tour of their motor home. I enjoyed seeing how they can store so much in small spaces. The dogs, Whiskey and Brandy, were welcoming, and Dave agreed that I could take their photo.

Kim had seen a picture of friend Brit’s and grandson David’s colorful leaf arrangements on the kitchen counter. I told her she could pick up leaves on the way home and create another work of art. They missed the peak of the leaf season, but there are still beautiful things to celebrate.

David Meets Cowboy

One of the cashiers called grandson David over to meet Cowboy and his pet squirrel. The celebrity shops at the supermarket where David works, so many of the staff had already met him. This is the same character that daughter Lise and I met in the waiting room of a doctor’s office. He always encourages people to have their picture taken with the pet squirrel on their shoulder. I thought David did well with his selfies.

Logan’s Halloween

I knew neighbor Logan was going trick or treating in town, so I put aside the candy I bought for him. He came over to visit for a short while the day after Halloween. I was totally surprised to find that they had remote learning that day. The students got their assignments via computer or telephone and had all day to do the work. Logan finished before he came over. His take on it was the teachers didn’t want to deal with kids that had had too much candy the night before. I should explain that whenever I quote Logan, I have to fill in the blanks. He speaks quickly and softly, so my hearing aids don’t always deliver every word.

I enjoyed hearing about his going around to homes to get candy. One story really amused me. The home owner was in an upstairs window. He had a pipe going from his window to the mailbox. As children came by, he told them to say trick or treat, and then he’d put a bunch of candy in the pipe for them. Isn’t that a novel thing to do?

When Logan went home, I asked if he wanted to take all the candy home or only some of it. He opted to take four pieces. Marvelous restraint!! He knows I’ll keep it all for him and give him a piece whenever he comes over. Don’t worry about grandson David. He and I have our own cache.

Not knowing Logan would take so little candy, I gave him a plastic bag to put it in. He agreed to let me take a quick photo of him. Somehow this lacked the drama of treats delivered by a pipe.

I hurried taking the photo and missed one important part – Logan’s feet. He was barefooted! It was after dark, and I’m pretty sure the temperature was below freezing. He said his feet are tough, and I believe that!

Huge Leaf

After publishing a photo of autumn leaves, I have one more to show off. This time I added a quarter to give you an idea of the size. I’m following the advice of a great photographer whose blog I follow on WordPress, linked here.

I left the leaf on the counter, and friend Brit noticed it as soon as she walked in the kitchen. I gave the background, and she picked it up and put it on like a hat. If only I’d had my camera in my hand and not in my pocket! She had a busy day ahead and rushed off.

I held grandson David hostage while he quickly ate his dinner before going to work. I asked him to wear the leaf hat so that I could get a photo of it. He was sweet to humor me. I can see now that it would have looked much more appropriate on Brit’s head, because it looks like the mobcap of a Colonial woman.

It Wasn’t a Contest

Our autumn leaves put on a wonderful show every year, but this year my enjoyment was greatly enhanced by friend Brit and grandson David. Brit displayed her finds on the kitchen counter for us to enjoy, a handful at a time. David joined in, adding his favorites. One set grew for a couple of days, and I took a photo of the collage. We enjoyed it for a while before one of us erased the show and started another.

Two weeks later I stopped to pet CAT on my morning walk, and I saw lots of big leaves in her yard. I picked up one to take home. Its size was impressive compared to the earlier ones. All the leaves wanted to be chosen, but only four made the cut. I don’t have an artistic eye like Brit or attention to detail like David, but I was going to show off my fallen giants quietly on the counter. I figured they’d walk by and notice the new display, even if they didn’t comment on it. That’s when the camera took over. She said, “It has to be impressive, and it has to be recorded.”

I’m sure it was Cam’s idea to make a sign for the display, and she put the words in my head. The Post-it note says:

I won the SIZE contest.

Favorite Relatives

All my relatives are favorites, but they are most favorite when they are visiting me. John’s sister Barbara and Thom were here for a night, between visiting his brother in the middle of this state and one of their children in Maryland. It was wonderful to see them and catch up on their news. We talked a lot the evening they arrived, and we continued as we walked to the stop sign the next morning. I forgot to take a photo of us there; it was much easier to remember to take pictures at the creek. Thom did the honors with a selfie at the house.

I loved the roundup of news. Here are the brackets. Their youngest grandchild is three years old and has an amazing vocabulary. The oldest has a job in California, but she lives and works remotely in Manhattan. If I didn’t know better, I’d think she was COASTing along.

As Barbara and Thom left here, they were heading to see two of four grandsons playing soccer in Maryland. They would have time to be together after the games, and the trip home to Long Island the next day would be a familiar one. Knowing them, they will hit the ground running. We didn’t have a lot of time together here, but we made the most of it. I enjoyed every minute.

After they left, David and I had a good laugh about the beginning of my day. Right now the easiest way to accommodate guests is for them to stay in my room, and I sleep in David’s room. I must have been reaching to shut off the alarm when I felt myself slipping off the lower bunk. On the way down, I told myself not to make a noise, and I didn’t scream. I didn’t even groan, but I did land with a thud. I looked toward David’s bed and didn’t see any movement, so I thought I was the only one who knew I’d fallen out of bed. David’s story? He heard a thump, raised his head, asked softly if I was OK, and after no response from me, put his head down again. He saw me moving and knew I was fine. Without hearing aids, I thought the room had been totally quiet. Just now, to satisfy my curiosity, I measured the distance from the top of the mattress to the floor. It was only 18 inches. I DO know better than to fall out of my bed. The fall there would be 33 inches.

Colder Weather

I read the roof across the street and knew we’d had a hard frost. My houseplants had been safely inside for days, so I could just enjoy the brisk air.

I had not read the street with its evidence that Logan and his nephews, Sufi and Pico, had left their marks. In the past, I envied Linda’s posts on street art in her area. There were drawings of professional quality (see here). I’m so happy we have some art of our own now.

Even though I feel the dog should be holding onto her fur, she has been shedding everywhere lately. I picked up one little tuft and knew right where it belonged. I had seen photos of model trains in John’s magazines, and Kacey’s fur was perfect as steam engine smoke on a table lamp.

Proud?

Arlene, a dear blog friend in Manila, the Philippines, has a post titled, “What are you most proud of in your life?” Her response to this question was full of wisdom, and you can read it here.

I laughed at the first thing that came to my mind – being the organist at church for 25 years. It had nothing to do with my musicianship. I was proud of the fact that I was never, ever late for a service. As I wrote in a comment, we had two services most Sundays plus special ones for Lent, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Thanksgiving, Advent, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve. I estimated that I was proud of being prompt over 2,850 times.

Merry Mayhem!

The years dropped away as I greeted Inga. She has been a friend of the family for a long time, but I hadn’t seen her for over ten years. She went to a wedding in a neighboring town and remembered I lived in Western North Carolina. It was marvelous that she could stay a night with us, prolonging her stay in the mountains. As an original flat-lander like me, she adores the mountains, especially when they are sporting their brilliant fall colors. She and her sons call me Aunt Anne, and I realized she is a niece with no blood ties.

This was the view from her window that day.

We had a chance to share our new experiences of widowhood. There are more differences than similarities. Her husband was cut down by cancer in the prime of his life. They had 7 years together, compared to 58 for John and me. I have children who look after me, and she has two young sons. My heart grieves for her and all she has had to face.

Good times go along with the sad ones. Neighbor Logan came over to meet these people he had never met. Inga was delighted to be with him, since she watched him grow up through my blog. His nephews are similar in age, so he knew how to entertain them. He ran home to bring over his fossils to show them.

Of the five video clips I took, this one has everyone in it – Inga, her sons, Brit and her sons, as well as David, dog Kacey, and Logan. Favorite toys were yo-yos, a balance ball, a radio controlled truck, the piano, and a plastic recorder (flute). Even the yo-yos were noisy as they barely missed people and hit the floor. It couldn’t have been too bad, since I didn’t shut down my hearing aids.

It was marvelous to be with Inga again. I hope she and the boys will be able to come again and stay longer.

Firefighter!

Oh! Life is exciting at my house now! Friend Brit has been training with the local volunteer fire department, and she just went to her first fire. I had already gone to bed and didn’t know until the next morning that she had done this. The abandoned house was off the beaten track and mostly consumed by the time someone called about it. There was no one to rescue and no reason to enter a building that was already gone. Brit said she was tired after pulling those heavy hoses around. Surely this was an ideal first experience. She shared two photos where the faces would be hard to identify and the department name is not visible.

Twice since then I’ve been here when Brit responded to an alarm – both times she ran through the house to jump in her car and race off. I would feel silly cheering her on, so I pray for her safety and that of her cohorts.

Brit takes wonderful photos with her phone, and this one caught my fancy. Kacey is bounding toward her, and the sturdy old oak tree is in the background.