An arc....

Its raining, its pouring, the old man is snoring..... I'm in the midst of Tropical Storm Nicole. As of this time, we've recieved somewhere over a foot of rain, and its pounding down. I made it to knitting, as much to have something to do and to have the companionship, as to knit. Hopefully I can make it through the night without a code red call. Guessing I wont. I'm just glad to be home safe and sound....

Its fair time. My favorite time of the year!!! I love catching up with old friends, and watching the kids as they learn and grow. Its awesome!!! And all the exhibits???? Love it! I never even go through the midway or the food court. If necessary, I'll grab something small, and head back, but thats it. I just like going through the exhibits, the 4h projects, seeing the kids show, as well as the adults!!!
Ok, off to bed. 7am till probably midnight tomorrow. Parade and auction....and more. And open class cattle!!!

Yogurt

Ok, so in my quest to eat healthier, and lose weight, I tried making my own yogurt this weekend. It was outstanding!!!! Love it!!!

One of my favorite sites-
http://www.makeyourownyogurt.com/homemade-yogurt-faq.php

And this is the main recipe I follow. I've now learned that I can use fat free or skim milk if I want to cut down on calories....not sure when I will try that.

http://greekfood.about.com/od/syrupssauces/r/make_yogurt.htm

It is sooooo much better than that at the stores, and really easy to make. Love it!!!

My Escape.....

Well, it looks like she decided to give up the ghost this time. The transmission burned on my Escape, and she had to be towed back from Tappahannock, Va. The dealership just called, and it'll be $4500 if I want to get it fixed. A 2003 truck, with 170000 miles on it...not worth it. I'm not sure what I will do....and why this week....why? Especially since that was the truck we bought together...

I had a really tough day today. Frustrating day....lots going on at the store, too much going on. So many jobs I couldnt really even think. All the machines were running at once...shades of Kinko's, when I used to be so proud of the fact that I could handle 5 machines at once...it just didnt work that well today. I guess the store isnt organized for that type of system.

Anyway, I was even more frustrated because I am tired of always helping everyone else at work, but when I ask for something, I end up being put at the bottom of the list. I asked months ago, for days off, scheduled them around everyone else's schedules and deadlines, covered everyone else's time off, and now, I am having to deal with having to go to work on a day I was supposed to be off....silly, I know, to be so upset, but you know....I help all of them out. All the time...cover for everyone else. I just need a break. I even worked through being sick...only took time off for one doctor's visit, when I was told I had to go, worked through blizzards, vacations, and lots of sickness. I need a break sometimes too.

We had a kitten years ago, when we lived on the farm, that one of the neighbors had turned out. He was pretty unsocialized, and very much a whiner. This kitten really liked my husband though, but we already had too many cats. Around this time, my husband's grandfather passed away after a long illness, and everyone just needed something to cuddle, so they held this kitten. He was passed from person to person, and even curled up with the nephews in front of the tv. Well, my husband, who was ill, was unable to travel to the funeral in Rhode Island, but coordinated everything from afar. The morning after everyone returned, probably because of the release of so much tension, my husband's sugar collapsed. This kitten was going nuts....running all over my husband on the bed. I didnt know what was wrong with the cat, but had to put it in a cage to call 911. Same thing happened about 2 weeks later, when the kitten woke me in the middle of the night. My husband was in the kitchen, confused, because his sugars were low. The third time, the kitten woke me up, I made my husband check his sugars, and sure enough.... We decided to keep the cat, and now he is a healthy, rambunctious, 5 year old boy, my best buddy. Although my husband passed away several years ago, Herman does his best to look out for me, like he did before!!! I have never regretted for a moment, keeping him!!

Herman's best and dearest friend in the world is Trinity, my dog. They share food dishes, clean each other, and Herman usually curls up right beside Trinity. When Trin gets up early in the morning, to head outside, Herman jumps right up with her. They even share opposite ends of bones at times!!!!

During the blizzards, Boxcar would sit at the door and cry to go out. The other cats were driving him crazy and he couldnt understand why I wouldnt let him out. Finally, after a few days of listening to him, I finally let him out the front door. Within about 5 minutes, I was looking out the side door at the snow pummeling down, and there was Boxcar, huddling under the picnic table, whimpering. I guess it was a bit more than what he expected. Funny thing...since then, he hasnt tried to get out again. Spring is coming though, and he'll want to be out all the time.

Best Friends!

Absolute best friends...this is how Trinity and Herman spent the blizzards. They curled up on the sofa, or on my bed...together. They've done this since about the third day Trinity came into our lives. When Beth brought Trinity down, Trinity kind of stayed by herself....she had issues. Herman was absolutely terrified of her...every hair was on end. I really wish I had taken a picture of it...priceless!!! About the third morning, I came out, and there they were....I think Trinity was scared, and Herman wanted to comfort her. He is very much a caretaker. They've stuck together through thick and thin, and both are always together....Best Friends!

More Landing pics....

An Osprey...beautiful water bird!!!

Poppop and Dad's farm...another peaceful place...

The driveway there....it was always an exciting moment...pulling up this road.....








This was the view...what a change from going to school in the city. I could breathe there, didnt have a ton of people around, could be free. This was the place where I fit in, belonged, because I never felt like I belonged anywhere else. Even at school, my priorities were so different from everyone else's.... and noone ever understood it.






My dad and my great uncle Carlisle built these barns in the 1950's, after my grandfather bought the farm. I can remember when I was little, and the office was in there. Uncle Bobby and Dad would sit at a table there, and plan out where everyone was supposed to go. Later, after the red building was built, these barns were used for storage, and it was always a great adventure to see what we would discover!!! We always found barn cats and horseshoes and all kinds of other goodies!



Since it was bought by the State of Maryland to expand the Tridelphia Reservoir in the middle 80's, its pretty overgrown, but even in this state, its still beautiful, even in the dead of winter.


I remember when Pepco was putting up these towers. I was maybe around 6 or 7 at the time. They just seemed to me at the time to be the
biggest tallest thing ever!!!!

This was the bluff right as you made the last turn to head up the hill to the office. My dad said that many mornings he would see deer here, but I only ever saw them once. In front of the rocks was the old Spring House. We were always told to stay away from it, because snakes hung out in it.

When I showed all these pictures to my dad, they started a flood of his memories...among them, that, when the farm was bought, he and my uncles had to push down what remained of a Civil War era mansion that stood right around this spot. I wish I had known that years ago...it would have been fun to explore and see what remained of the bricks or pottery....

Peaceful places

St Inigoes Landing...one of my favorite places in the county...a county park that few go to...











The water is clear and clean...

And the beach is quiet...










The birds swoop, and the crabs scurry.....its beautiful there....a great place to go to think and ponder and forget about everything crazy in life.






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The Outer Banks in Winter

I got to spend a week at my parents' house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Lots of fun, playing with dogs, and relaxing.
The Outer Banks in the winter is a far different place than during the summer. The tourists are gone, and the natives and locals (there is a difference) have a chance to relax and visit. The scenery is beautiful....peaceful, tranquil, but chilly.



In the South, even in the winter, there are flowers that bloom. One of my favorites always blooms around Christmas, my mom's Camellia bush. Its beautiful!

The swans arrive every fall, usually after November 10th. They're beautiful, majestic, and graceful as they glide down the Currituck Sound...but dont come near them. As beautiful as they are, they are nasty, and will attack.


Its very peaceful there, a far cry from the beaches filled with tourists, junk shops, airplanes towing banners, things like that. And when you look out across the sound, you think that, for the most part, its pretty close to what it looked like hundreds of years ago, when the first settlers were at the Lost Colony, or when the Wright Brothers made their first flights, all those years ago.....and its my favorite time of year there.

It has been brought to my attention that its been far too long since I posted anything on my blog. I guess I have just been busy....but that will hopefully change....just not today. Life is good, just super busy. Hopefully, more tomorrow. (:-)