Drying Kiwi

With three days left in the year of 2011, I am trying to make use of the kiwi that I harvested in late November.  I purchased a food dehydrator online for the purpose of saving some of the kiwi.  Some experimentation had to take place and sure enough I had to pitch out the first batch.

The instructions did not say to pre treat the kiwi, but I did with "fruit fresh" and that may be why the first batch had such a tart taste.  Some days went by before I tried again.  This time I thought a strawberry flavor might be tasty.  I had some powdered strawberry jello on hand so I sprinkled that on the peeled slices of kiwi.  I put in three trays of the kiwi and one tray of sliced persimmon.  Both the persimmon and the strawberry  kiwi was pleasant to taste.  I did the moisture test on them and they passed.  The moisture test is simply to place the product in a glass jar and put the lid on.  Watch and see if it fogs up, if not then the proper amount of dryness  is correct.

My next part of the experiment was to try different flavors.  My daughter gave me some sugar free jello in lemon and raspberry.  I put in one tray of lemon flavor sliced kiwi, in about 1/8 inch slices.  One tray had the kiwi sprinkled with the raspberry jello powder.  One tray had the kiwi with Splenda sprinkled on them.  Part of this experiment was to add another fruit so I used two small bananas for the fourth tray.  I did not pretreat them with ascorbic powder and I learned that the color would have been lighter if I had, and perhaps the taste better.  But, all in all, I like the flavor of the raspberry and the kiwi with splenda best.  The lemon sugar free jello powder did not enhance the taste of the kiwi on that tray.

My daughter has hinted that she will be looking for boxes of persimmon on sale for me to dry.  I do think that the persimmon had the prettiest appearance and a very pleasant taste.  The nice thing about the dried fruit is that I can put it in the freezer chest and pull out for making trail mix all during the time that the kiwi vines are sleeping the winter away.

Drying Kiwi

Fellowship Around the Ginkgo

The simplist things in nature can be the most beautiful, and capture the attention of everyone who is fortunate enough to be able to view them.  I was priviliged to see the branches of the Ginkgo in their rich, yellow, fall color, in tall thin vases of water, sitting in the middle of the  tables in a long window lined room.

The room was the large fellowship hall at our small church.  I was walking in that direction with a bag containing hot, fragrant grilled chicken from KFC.  I had just met up with the speaker for the morning  service.   He was with his wife of many years, and no doubt memories were crowding through through their minds,  as he once  pastored this church, on many occasions over many years.  We chatted as we walked toward the  building.   He had his grandson on his mind as he would not be there for the service today, but the rest of his family would be.  The fellowship for the morning began with meeting them as we stepped from our cars, and it continued into the  building.

Before I opened the door I could faintly hear the various tones of voices on the other side.  Thus began the warm tone of the day.  As I stepped inside I said to the nearest people standing around a huge table, " I brought Dottie and Cliff with me".  The talking did not stop, but we were greeted warmly by the ones closest to the door.  We went our separate ways  as I found the hostesses for the dinner and handed over the bucket of chicken in the bag.  I made my way around the room greeting some friends who sat having coffee and snacks at the round tables all decorated with the autumn motif.  The vases on the tables dominated the scene with the rich yellow of the Ginkgo leaves still clinging to the dark brown branches, and dominating  the space with their beauty.  As an admirer of  the fan shaped leaf of this particular tree, I could not resist reaching over and gently touching one and examining  up close it's shape, color and unique vein arrangement.  No other leaf in nature has the parallel veins as does this Ginkgo biloba.  It is an Asiatic tree and well suited to withstand the pollution of our cities.

I have been drawn to the Ginkgo since I was a young girl.  I suppose I caught the fever from my mother.  She first pointed out the Ginkgo to me on a  trip to the local post office, in our small town, in eastern Kentucky.  When I first saw this tree it was as big as a full grown white oak, and dwarfed the building in front of it.  My mother once framed a leaf and the seeds from it, in a small green frame, along with information about it.

The presence of the Ginkfo  pops up in unexpected places.  There is one at the back of the school where I taught first graders for fifteen years.  Each fall I looked forward to seeing the rich yellow leaves, as I walked my children to their Gym class.  It was a young tree then but after twenty years it must be more than twice the size it was then.  They are a slow growing tree but well worth the wait.

I spotted a row of them planted on the main east/west  highway in our town.  Some one else appreciated this tree, as the decision was made to plant around six of them in front of a grocery store.  Perhaps this same city planner wanted to see them across town as a row of them is planted near the corner of two busy streets, Washington and Academy Streets near the town square.  Some days when I am caught waiting for a light to change I am parked beside this row of  Ginkgoes and have the pleasure of seeing them all green.  However they achieve their greatest beauty in the fall of the year.

Trees have always held a fascination for me.  In winter when no leaves can conceal the structure of  their many branches, they are best displayed against a cloudless sky.  The different, textured bark of the hardwoods and the peeling bark of  the Crape Myrtles,  are close to me here where I live.  My woods is full of the beauty of the bark of so many of them, not to mention the variety of leaf shapes.  The Mulberry always amuses me with it's three different shape leaves .  The Sassafras also has these particular leaf patterns.  Another aspect of the mighty tree is how it nourishes us in many ways with it's fruit.  Perhaps the greatest gift of all the trees is the oxygen it gives back to us while taking away the air we have already used.  We could not,  literally, exist without them.  Nor could we exist without the fellowship of our fellow human beings.  Both are treasures to hold onto  and be sustained by, in order to live in harmony and enjoy a satisfactory life.  If you are out and about and see a tree with rich, yellow foliage gracing its branches, take a closer look, it just may be this interesting Ginkgo, displaying its fall wardrobe.

Harvesting the Kiwi

Our local weatherman on television advised us that on early Friday morning we would have a freeze in our area of the state.  So on Thursday morning I donned my warmest outdoor work clothes and went outdoors to prepare for the freeze.  Some chores close to my house had priority but then I gathered all of the giant market baskets that I had stored in the Cedar House, got in my golf cart and headed up to the Kiwi vines.  Of my three female vines I only had two to bear fruit this year.  I fully expect that next year the other one will be as productive as the two I picked from on Thursday.

 

It was pleasant enough to be outdoors and working among the vines.  I wore work gloves as reaching through the many vines can cause some scratches on your hands.  After about two hours of picking I had the four market baskets filled to the  top.  Since it was near lunch time, and a good break time, I went up to the house and unloaded the four baskets into the sun room.  Since there is no heat in the sun room it is ideal to store the kiwi there.  After lunch I gathered up all of the containers I could find, to put the rest of the kiwi in, as I picked them.  I filled up another smaller market basket, a five gallon bucket, and several other baskets and bowls.

As I was working, I found two bird nests up at the very top of the vines.  I just left them there as it was too high to get them down.  Many of the larger kiwi were up above the wires.  In the past I have weighed the average size fruit and found them to weigh three ounces.  This is the same size that is sold in the grocery stores.  However the larger ones weigh more, four to four and a half ounces total.  I made a clean sweep and picked all sizes, even the smaller ones which may or may not be worth the effort to peel them.

My daughter and I talked about buying an electric food dehydrator to try drying out some of the kiwi this year.  First, however, they must be ripe enough to eat.  It will not be an easy chore to determine when they are all ripe, simply because there are so many of them this year.  When they do ripen, I expect it will all happen at the same time.  This may be the year that I try some kiwi jelly!

I have many friends who like the kiwi, so thankfully they will use some of them.   With the hot, dry weather we had this past summer any harvest at all is a wonder.  I can understand why so many very small kiwi were on the vine this year.  There simply was not enough moisture in the ground for them to all develop properly.  At any rate they have all been picked for this year.  I cannot say that for the  muscadine grapes.  There were too many for me and for my grape loving friends to pick them all.  Even the deer and birds could not manage to eat all of those grapes.  Gardening is a fun hobby for the summer and fall.  When the cold winter winds begin to blow the outdoor phase of gardening is at an end.  Preserving some of the fruit is the last phase, until the seed catalogs arrive.  Then it all begins over again, otherwise there will be no harvest next fall.  So, as long as I feel game enough to repeat it all, there will always be something to harvest from this land.

Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn

My raised beds have been tucked in for the winter, thanks to Jim.  He also burned out the gasoline in the mowers, weed whacker, and chain saw.  The only thing left to do until bedding down for the cold winter is harvesting the kiwi.  That, I usually do after a frost.  We were threatened with a frost last night but it did  not materialize.  Once that has been done I can put my mind at rest.

We had a bountiful harvest of muscadine grapes this year and many happy wine makers are no doubt keeping an eye on their brew to see when it will be ready for bottling.  The first year my husband made wine from them was my first encounter with the art of making a tasty wine.  He used Higgins variety and entered his wine in the Annual Amateur Wine Makers Competition in Atlanta.  He won first place in native grapes and was so proud he couldn't stop grinning.  What I remember about that adventure was the many containers of bubbling grape juice as it fermented, and the odor permeating our home.

One other type of harvesting activity here is the season for bow hunting for deer.  One gentleman comes each year when his work allows it.  He has made two trips already.  One of them made him a very happy man.  He bagged an eight point buck.  The first time he had a deer he told me about it later and said he wanted to show it to me but decided not to.  I told him I was happy for him but glad he did not show me as I might not want him to hunt here again.  I think it is a good practice to keep the many deer here in balance but cannot bear to actually see one taken down.

Since today is the last day in October, we will be on Daylight Saving Time next week.  Also little children, and my grandson, too, will be out all dressed up and knocking on neighborhood doors singing out "Trick or Treat".  No one comes to my door as I am too far away from young families with children.  The last children who came here are now out of college and in the work force.  Halloween has never been one of my favorite times, but little children do have a lot of fun with it.  When I was teaching first graders we always had a parade through the classrooms so everyone could have the thrill of seeing other little goblins and be seen!  I participated by bringing  a huge pumpkin to school.  Every morning and every afternoon someone had the privilege of drawing a face on the pumpkin, using a special pen which could be washed off.  I took photographs of each Jack-O-Lantern and put them into a book.  I turned it into a reading book with a sentence  under each picture.  This went into our classroom library.

We all have memories of special holidays and Halloween is one of the fun times for children and a few adults.  Many years ago when I was in my teens we had parties at our church.  I recall how someone played a trick on me which was not safe at all.  My neighbor pulled a chair out from under me and I sat down hard on a concrete floor.  Boys still like to play tricks on their friends but hopefully not that kind of trick.  There were some older and rowdier boys who went around doing damage.  If you really lived out in the country and had an out house, you had to guard it or some roustabouts would slip in under cover of dark and push it over.  A favorite trick, rather a nuisance, but safer, was taking a bar of soap and marking up the windows of the businesses in town.  It was easier for  adults to hold parties for youngsters then to deal with some of the tricks which creative youngsters could initiate.

Whatever happens in your neighborhood, I hope it is a fun time, so happy memories can be filed away in the minds of little children, and this Autumn will be a happy one for all.

Serenity, NOW !!!!!!!!!!!

In one of my favorite sitcoms, Seinfeld, George Castanza's father is repeatedly irritated with one thing or another.  When this happened he would lift his arms up as he looked skyward and scream "Serenity Now".  It always made me chuckle.

This all came up in my memory yesterday when my daughter attended my church and we were in the adult Bible Study class.  We are just beginning a new study of the book of Proverbs, one of my favorite parts of the Bible.  Our teacher, our pastor, was leading us into the study for the second lesson by reviewing the lesson for last week.  This is a very good teaching technique, to set the scene for the day, by reviewing the last lesson.

The August 28th lesson was With Wisdom Comes Character, with Proverbs 1:5 and James 3:13.
After a review we began the September 4th lesson:  Proverbs 17:22 and Colossians 3:23, Enthusiasm Builds Character.  There was a lot of discussion about what Character was, etc.  Then we began to explore how enthusiasm connected with character.  The members who are still wage earners had something to say about how hard they had worked in their jobs and how no one seemed to realize the effort they had put in nor had they been recognized for all of the effort and cheerful "enthusiasm" they had put into their work.  They expressed that, though they had not asked for that pat on the back, to be ignored completely by their bosses was a real balloon bursting experience. It just took away their enthusiasm for their work, and how do we combat it in the future.  There is not a simple solution.

I just sat and listened to this discussion, but in the back of my mind I could see George Castanza's father with his red face lifted upward and his arms shaking in the air shouting "Serenity NOW !

We did not get to finish the discussion as we were running out of the time allotted for this class.  The next week we will no doubt take it up again for a reasonable conclusion.  I am thinking however, that during this week when these same people meet this same situation at their jobs, they may look at it in  a different way.  If nothing else, they may remember that not being appreciated is not a singular experience and that may give them some comfort.  Or perhaps it can help them to just dismiss it and go on without allowing  someone else to rule their own responses.

Something New Every Day

Variety is the spice of life.  As long as it does not lead to chaos.  There is something comforting about having a routine.  It can also become so boring you just have to break out and try something new.

I was not bored when I started a new thing recently, I did it on advise of my doctor.  She thought I needed to  have some set exercises to strength my bones.  She recommended Curves.  I am into my second week at Curves, and am learning to use the machines  the way they were intended to be used.  Today however, I agreed to try something new in conjunction with the machine workout.  I knew in advance what it would be but had no idea it would be so vigorous.  It is called Zumba dancing.

It has an African flavor in the music and also in the moves.  In any videos, or films I have seen with African dancers, they are all younger people.  This should have been a tip off that the workout is not for sissies.  But I went into it knowing it was not a piece of cake but would be fun.  It was fun, and it was vigorous and I did not do the moves perfectly but hey, I was in there trying!

Our teacher danced like her body was  a piece of music.  Her flexibility and dancing were impeccable.  It was fun to see her and to try to imitate her.  However, I am not sure it is for oldsters like me.  In Curves the machines and physical tolerance are within my range.  The slow exercises which I do as per directed by the Physical Therapist are also within my range of physical tolerance. So, the jury is still out on how long I will follow this new trend.  I want to wait until next week and try it again.  I am  not inclined to give up on something after only one try.

For example, last year I made many attempts to propagate kiwi, both the male an female plants.  I was not successful.  This year I tried again.  Failure.  But, I persevered, trying a different method.  Now I have both a male and a female plant still alive.  One has a green leaf unfolding at the top.  The other one is still alive and has the original piece of leaf still attached and it is still green.  The instructions I read did not say to put the cutting in water (with a trace of liquid fertilizer).  But I have propagated gardenia bushes by taking the bloom and letting it sit in water for a few weeks.  I got five gardenia bushes.  Two, I gave away.  Three are thriving here near my house.  So, I thought, if it works for gardenias then just maybe it will work for kiwi.

It is good to try new things, but within reason, and as long as no one is placed in danger.  My daughter and her husband took their 26 year old son to Six Flags for a day of fun recently.  This trip was the culmination of his two week visit from college.   They all had a great time and rode everything there.  My daughter got soaking wet on one ride.  All three of them had done this before as teens, and it was a great repeat for them.  I am pretty sure it is not for me but I was glad that they were still so young at heart.

I am not so sure that my brother at age 85  should have gone sky diving - for the first time.  But he did, and survived it just fine.  He had a great time and being able to look down on earth was an exhilarating experience .  He and our former president George H. Bush have at least two things in common.  They both are World War II survivors and both are survivors of sky diving at an advanced age. So, don't allow yourself to become bored or caught in a stale routine.  Try something new.  You just might be happy that you did.

Good Jobs After the Rain

Last night we had a rain while I was sleeping away.  A good time to pull up weeds is after a rain, when the rain has settled into the ground.  The ground is soft and it is just an easier chore.  Pulling weeds is back breaking work as you must bend over to reach them (that is for the uninitiated  among you).The growth that I attacked early this morning had the same weeds of varying  heights.  Some barely one inch high, but if allowed to reach full growth would have at least two thousand seeds in the fall.  Obviously, I have neglected them in the past at this one spot around my Acuba in back of my house.  Some of those weeds were almost four feet high.

As I was bending over and then standing up to pitch the handful of weeds to the collection place, something occurred to me.  When Adam and Eve were banned from the Garden of Eden and turned out to toil for the rest of their lives, did God plan to make them regret their disobedience?  Every time I bent over I  had a humbling  feeling , like I was bowing before God .  It made me wonder if Adam and Eve had to pull weeds and if so did they feel like they were bowing before God?  If the Garden of Eden was perfect, then there were probably no weeds there.  Perfection was a given.

Perfection is not a given in humans, it takes hard work to become proficient in anything to reach perfection.  It also takes dedication to a cause and usually a lot of time, perhaps practicing for a certain skill, over a long, long time.  I was watching some high dive performers and to be able to do some of those twists and flips and enter the water with hardly a ripple, requires a supreme effort.

One could compare their regimen to working toward perfection in lifes most challenging endeavor.  What comes to mind for me is human relationships.  It may be that achieving that perfect plane is actually impossible.  There are too many variables to make it possible.  A machine can be designed to make something perfect over and over, and maybe even when it interacts with another machine, as on an assembly line.  But for us humans it just does not happen.  Too much has to be taken into consideration to have harmony with another person.  You must be able to understand how that other person feels about a given situation.

If Ronald Reagen was a good communicator, he no doubt had a habit of looking at all sides of a situation when he was trying to achieve a certain result, with another person.  It does not require any skill at all when you bend over to pull up weeds.  It helps to have a good strong back, and a good dose of humility as you bow down to the ground. It does have its rewards however. A sort of cleansing both in the appearance of your garden and in clearing your mind.

Beauty Saloon Information

A lot of information floats around in a Beauty Saloon.  Some of it is pure speculation on the part of the patrons.  Some is interesting but not applicable to the listener.  An example of this kind of news is what I heard last week.  A gentleman with gray hair and moustache to match, was in with his wife.  He was a man of some girth and was a jolly type.  Comments were going back and forth as is common when regular patrons gather there and know each other.  The subject came up of him making a good Santa if he had the beard.  It seems that he had looked into this matter and learned that this seasonal job is very well regulated.  There is a professional organization for Santa's, who keep tabs on the kind of men who can belong and find jobs through them.  I had no idea such a thing existed.

I am reminded of an episode of Seinfeld showing what happened when Kramer and a "little man" went to work at a department store as Santa's.  The little guy was pretty savvy about union rules and convinced Kramer that they needed to have better pay and working conditions.  Of course it all ended in a comedic debacle and they lost their jobs.  The gentleman in the Saloon that day had researched it all and found it was not for him, even though it did pay well for a seasonal job.

My hairdresser happens to own the shop and she likes to cook.  She can tell me about a lot of easy to prepare dishes while she is setting my hair.  Some of them do give me some ideas and I can use them with some modification.  Because I try to eat healthy foods, mine probably do not taste as good as her dishes.  Her son is a preacher in a near by town so she helps a lot with dinners there.  She looks out for her customers and tries to see that they are well taken care of.  Her customers like her and the work she does.  They bring her vegetables from their gardens and flowers and other things to show their appreciation.  She in turn, finds ways to help them in various ways.  I have given her a lot of perennials from my place and she has given me things she finds at bargain stores, which she thinks I can use and/or will like.  She once gave me black Capri pants which are my favorites to wear anywhere casual.  Also she had given me shoes,  and other clothing which she has found at a real bargain.  She found a pair of bright yellow rubber shoes, a size too big for me but they have become my favorites for working in the wet garden.  I can just hose them off and they are ready to go again.  She really likes the challenge of finding things at bargain stores.  I, on the other hand, never do this kind of shopping.  It is a game for her and I am not into that kind of game. 

Another game she really enjoys is gambling.  She knows all of the favorite gambling places and often gets free lodging and food just to go there and gamble.  Some of her patrons give her money to gamble with and if they win, she takes  the winnings back to them.  She considers it innocent as for her it is only entertainment.  We do not agree on how to shop or spend money but she is a great hair dresser and is very good with hair color, which I need on a regular basis.

One of her patrons has lost most of her vision and she looks forward to seeing me so we can chat and exchange ideas.  My hairdresser manages her schedule on Wednesdays just so we can visit.  She has me come in right after her so this lady can have a little social life.  She rarely gets out now except on rare occasions and she looks forward to these visits.  Her son drives her there and picks her up later.  I enjoy her company as well.  She has another customer, of considerable age who is in a similar situation.  She lives nearby and does  not have transportation so my hairdresser goes to get her and then takes her back home.

This saloon owner has been in business for over forty years and has a faithful following.  Going there is more than a business transaction.  It is part social, part therapeutic, and is small enough to be intimate.  She keeps her prices under the high end saloons as her shop is modest and her goal is to have happy customers and she goes all out to please them.  I think it is an excellent business model for a small shop.  It is sort of like Cheers of sitcom fame.  Almost everyone knows your name, not to mention that you can hear some pretty interesting things while you are there.  It is all good fun.

Experimenting in Gardening

Sometimes I have some really off base ideas.  It occurred to me that there should be some way I could use the poly/blend tote bags which are found in almost every retail store in my town.  They are cheap, sometimes only fifty cents, but usually are one dollar.  I thought it might work to use them as planters.  I had accumulated enough to experiment with them.  So, I filled the first one with good potting soil and planted some year old seeds in it.  I used white scallop squash seeds, often they are called "patty pan squash".  I even put a date on a card with indelible pen and took a picture of this first odd planter.  I was so pleased when all of the seeds came up.  I had put in many more than I wanted as I did not trust them to be viable.

Encouraged that they came up so well, I forged ahead and prepared more bags.  My neighbor volunteered one huge bag along with five different kinds of pumpkin seeds that she had saved from pumpkins  the  year before.  They all came up and looked so healthy that I faithfully watered them and watched them travel out of the bag and onto the hillside.  One of them now has a green pumpkin growing on the vine.  It is small, about the size of a golf ball.

After a month had passed and I watered and watched, I noticed something disturbing.  Two of the  bags were disintegrating.  I had a tiny white squash on the patty pan plant, but in time it began to shrivel.  One of the pumpkin bags was disintegrating rapidly.  It was literally crumbling.  I began to pull on the bag and saw that the water was not getting down into the bag.  We are in a drought and no doubt I had not kept up with the watering as well as I needed to.  I had a decision to make.

The patty pan was not going to make it and the soil was still usable so I put the whole thing in my rubber garden tub and took it over to the healthy pumpkins which were traveling down the hill.  I tore away the  shreds of the bag and dumped the good soil all around it and gave it a good drenching.  Hopefully it will be revived and still make at least one pumpkin.  The other pumpkin bag was partly in the shade and seemed to fare better, at least enough to have a little green pumpkin on it.

I will still water these pumpkins for the rest of the summer, but my experiment did not prove to give me a good way to grow plants.  It seemed like a good idea, to tote the plant around.  I still have some hope for one of the bags which was in part shade.  It is still intact and is showing promise.  This bag is larger than the others and on the side is printed "Dalton Carpet.com".  They do make good carpets in Dalton.  It could be that this bag will last and there may be hope for my idea after all.

After I had started my experiment I received the May/June issue of Birds and Blooms.  A reader had sent in a picture of a tote bag from the Wine Store.  She had the same idea that I had for using her tote for a mobile planter.  She had sent a picture of the bag with spinach (from the market) inside the bag.  I knew it was not actually grown in the bag as it was mature and the bag was too clean.  I am wondering how her idea worked out for her.

When things do not work out as I had planned with my experiments, I think of Robert Burns the Scottish poet.  He was ploughing in his field and uprooted the nest of a little mouse.  He wrote a poem about it called "To a Mouse".  Lines from that poem have become known world wide.  He felt really bad that he had disturbed the mouse's home as it was in the month of November and the mouse did not have time, or materials available to built another nest before harsh weather.  The lines are "the best laid plans of mice and men, often go awry".  Below is the verse of the poem in which the line appears.

                   But mousie, thou are no thy-lane,     (not alone)
                   in proving foresight may be vain:
                   The best laid schemes o' Mice and Men,
                               Gang aft agley,     (often go awry)
                   An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
                                For promis'd joy!

It is believed that he was comparing his own life to the problems of the mouse.  He loved nature and was deeply hurt by what he had done to the tiny creature.  No doubt he had plans in his personal life which did not turn out as expected, and was reminded of them by this event in his garden.  My experiment not turning out well did not disturb me at all.  I have plenty of other experiments in progress to make up for this failed one.

Do Churches Have Personalities?

The church where I have been a member for almost 30 years was originally organized as a mission church, and that is what it is today.  We are small in membership and also generally older in age.  Some people prefer to be  in a larger church.  A lady told me once that she liked a big church because she liked to "get lost" in it.  I suppose that means that you go on Sunday morning and then return next Sunday, revived but unencumbered by any close associations.  For very busy people that may work for a time, but then the time comes when you no longer want to get lost, you want to be an integral part of the group.

Some years ago there was a popular television sitcom called "Cheers".  Ted Danson, the bar owner and bar maid  Diane, were the central characters who were surrounded by the regular customers.  They were like a family and entertained us for years.  They learned to know each other quite well, perhaps because the alcohol loosened their tongues and they became less inhibited.  Whereas, in our churches we do not go for a drink and conversation, we do receive a balm of affirmation with like minded people.

I was thinking about some of the activities that are an integral part of our church.  Because of the hot weather and some temporary health conditions, I have not been there  in about three weeks.  I miss the connection and this directed my thinking into comparing the aura of our group to the aura of the one time
television sitcom, Cheers.  The lead in song says, "Cheers, where everybody knows your name".  The same could be said of our church.  Maybe we should change the name of our church to Cheers Trinity Presbyterian Church, because after two visits, everybody knows your name. 

In order for folks there to really know you, you need to have some other connections.  There are lots of opportunities.  To name a few:  adult Bible class, Bible instruction for children during the church hour, coffee time in fellowship hall before service, a well trained Biblical scholar to lead the service, opportunity to serve as lay leader each Sunday, participate in the adult choir, the bell ringer group, monthly ladies circle, monthly men of the church meeting (usually with a meal), monthly fellowship covered dish dinner.  There are multiple service opportunities also.  Each month, on the first Wednesday a few members take a meal to the Good News at Noon, Kitchen in our town.  Other churches take food on a different day, so every day of the month is supplied.  In the hallway of our building, there are shelves which our members keep full of canned goods, dog food, and other household items.  Anyone in the community who is struggling to maintain their home can come and take what they need.  Last, but  not least, the ladies of the church are invited to be a part of a prayer chain.  When someone has an emergency, and requests prayer, the calls go out and are passed along to the next person.  Prayer is basic to our faith, and expresses concern for each other.

Psychologist stress that children need the association of groups to help them build a lifetime of wholeness.  Starting with the child's family, he  hopefully branches out with school groups, then sports groups, and various groups structured to train good habits.  Circles of friends is a lifelong need, and they should be nurtured and treasured for as long possible.

To answer my question, do churches have personalities, yes I think they do.  For the church is the people who gather and worship in oneness of purpose. It is that oneness of purpose which defines our basic personality, it is who we are and how we live.

Pat Yourself On The Back

These words are directed to anyone who has a paying job.  It is also for anyone who is responsible  for some  endeavor, which has no pay check attached to it.  Have you been receiving "Attaboys" for the myriad of things you do in that job.  I doubt it.  It would be impossible for anyone else to know all of the many things you do throughout the day, and perhaps into the night, to be successful in what you do.

Every job is important, it only varies in the weight of consequences.  Brain surgery carries a heavy weigh indeed.  Properly pruning a flowering shrub has consequences, but far less noticeable.  Think about your own job and all of the things you do to accomplish harmony in your day.  Do you reward yourself after a job well done?  Probably you are too busy to stop and think about it.  But at the end of a day, or week, or a month, when you receive that pay check, find a way to pat yourself on the back.

The way you reward yourself will be different from the way someone else finds satisfaction.  A small effort may call for a rest, a cup of coffee, or a quick coke.  A longer effort could be a good book, or box of fine chocolates as a reward.

Think about the way you felt when someone has said, "Good Job", or "I like the way you handled that situation".  It is only human nature to want affirmation from another person.  When you are happy about something you have accomplished, a word, or smile from someone is like icing on the cake.

Perhaps you have someone in your life who can give you those pats on the back.  If not, I urge you to do it for yourself, and to do it for others.  You may soon forget what you did, but the one you encourage will not forget, and the encouragement can last a lifetime.

Chronicle From My Garden # 2

This was one of those mornings when I spend a lot of early morning time on the computer.  I got started on a search by the word "skylark" which is the name of a speckled bird with a beautiful voice.  This  led me to remember a newspaper published in the sixties and seventies in Atlanta, Ga.  It was called The Great Speckled Bird, and was mostly local in content and interest.  It was considered hippy and eventually was drummed out of business.  In my search, I discovered that in Jeremiah 12:9 there is a reference to a speckled bird.  Roy Acuff recorded a song called The Great Speckled Bird.  The founders of this local paper liked the sound of the title and began using it for their newspapers.  We had just moved to the Atlanta area when the paper was in its infancy.  My daughter remembers reading it and I probably did too.  The song that Roy Acuff and also Johnny Cash sang is very southern and according to some Biblical scholars has a misunderstood meaning. The speckled bird that Jeremiah speaks of, refers to the people who lived around the Israelites and were idol worshipers.  The song indicates that the bird is a heavenly haven for safety, when in reality the speckled bird refers to the many different peoples who were corrupting the worshipers of the one true God.  .

Later in the morning, I was reading a magazine that my neighbor brought over for me to see.  It is called "Grit" and is designed for country folks.  I found it very interesting and learned that soon camel milk will be available for purchase here in the United States.  A lady (Dr. Hinkle) has started a coalition for farmers who want to engage in this kind of farming.  You can read about it at http://www.camelmilkusa.com/ .  I may want to try it as it is touted as being good for many different reasons, one of which is that people who are lactose intolerant  can drink it safely.

I can be sedentary for just so long and then I feel the need to get busy doing something active.  My son had given me a small bag of whole wheat pastry flour so I decided to try it out with my favorite muffin recipe.  When I make them with white unbleached flour I always put in 1/4 cup of wheat germ.  This was my first time to use whole wheat flour.  I had some fresh blueberries so that determined what I would use.  Wanting to add more protein I got some slivered almonds from my freezer chest and went to work.  I liked the result, especially with smart balance spread on the inside.  If you are so inclined I am printing the recipe.  It came from the new and revised edition of a Betty Crocker cookbook which I have had for over fifty years. I made some changes, as follows.

1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil ( I use canola)
2 cups flour- or whole wheat pastry flour  (if using self rising flour omit salt and baking powder)
1/3 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 scant teaspoon salt
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon mace
3/4 cup blueberries
3/4 cup slivered almonds
Heat oven to 400, Grease bottoms only of 12 cup muffin tin.

Beat egg, stir in milk and oil, add blueberries and slivered almonds, save some almonds for topping
Combine dry ingredients, pour wet ingredients into flour mixture.  Mix with spoon only until wet ingredients are absorbed.  Do not over mix.  Fill muffin tins about 3/4 way full, sprinkle almonds over top, then sprinkle a little sugar on top.

Bake for 20 minutes, let sit in tins a few minutes, then carefully remove each muffin and sit on wire rack.

If 12 are more than you can use, wrap individually and freeze.  I find that when they are thawed later they are better if wrapped individually.

Two visitors came by later in the afternoon.  My neighbor came to pick up some of my muffins and I took her for a ride in the golf cart.  I pulled up under the pear trees and she reached up and pulled a pear from one.  I went to the other and pulled two for her to take home.  I also drove up close to the wild blackberries and she was able to pick a few without leaving the golf cart.

The other visitors came by to bring me a pint of blueberries from her bushes and a piece of blueberry strudel that she had baked. 

I had a phone call from my son who is on a trip out west.  He was telling me about walking up the sand dunes in sandals and burning his feet, but having a wonderful trip.

My sister called around 7:00 from her bed in the rehab center.  There are pleasures all about on this place and not all are out of doors.

Chronicle From My Garden

July 9, 2011: As I drove the golf cart up to the mail box, 1000 feet away, I saw a young deer in the road. He was standing in the road looking back at me, about 40 feet away. I had slowed down at the curve to look at the yellow day lilies. He was trying to decide which way to go, I suppose. Then he bolted down the road leaping up in the air and then one big leap over the top of the hill and down into the ravine, out of sight. He was the youngest one I have seen out alone, usually a doe is around. I guess he was a teen ager, testing his boundaries.

My lavender crape myrtle is in full bloom, and so is the beautiful dark pink in everyone’s yard but mine. My deep red crape myrtle has never been pruned so it is very tall and the cinnamon colored trunks are the beauty spots on them right now.

The muscadine grapes are the size of big green peas. The big rain last night was a blessing for them. The kiwi are looking good and plentiful. The brown turkey figs are looking fat but not ripe yet, maybe in two weeks. Sometimes they do have a few early ones that I can put in my cereal, but not today.

My luck with blueberries is a bust. Everyone else around here can grow luscious blue berries, but I cannot. I know I am doing something wrong, but have not discovered what it is.

One success, is that the big black ants which I have found indoors, are now outdoors, and very inactive, as in “dead as a door knob”. The trap with sweetened boric acid has done the job.

Yesterday, Jim cut away a lot of the young trees, etc. which are threatening to fall over the electric fence. That fence has been a blessing to my garden, and a challenge to the deer. They are learning to look elsewhere for their favorite tidbits.

When the day cooled down a bit I checked the water in the batteries of my golf cart.  They really needed water as I had not looked at them for a couple of weeks.  I dislike this one chore, but I am able to do it as it does not require a lot of strength.

I was able to pick a few red tomatoes, but the heirlooms are not yet ripe.  I am anxious to have my first one from the German Queen.  That tomato plant has rambled over a four foot area and with all of the ties I had to put up it resembles a red neck spider web.  In fact the entire area has the red neck stamp of approval.  Maybe this was a red neck kind of day, but it is what it is.

My Favorite Resting Place

When I feel the need for a short nap I tend to go  into my sun room.  This room was once a screened in porch.  I thought I wanted a screened in porch on the east side of my house so my husband made one for me.  I can remember watching him on his hands and knees putting down the  roof for this room.  later  he made a sturdy railing all around the edges with corner seats.  Thus the  porch below was available for indoor use and above it a deck is always ready for use as a gathering place, when the weather is mild and friends appear.

The sun room can be entered through french doors on the east side of the dining area.  The deck above it can be entered from a door on the east side of the balcony room above the dining area.  Because the deck is upstairs and out of the main line of traffic it is not used as often as it could be.  But it is there and ready for use, but only if you enter from the inside.  There is no way to get there from the outside.  Many happy memories come back to me from time spent there.

Today however, I spent my restful time down below the deck, reclining on a deacons bench.  This bench has a history all its own.  I will never know who enjoyed it before me as it came from an auction many years ago in Atlanta.  Unclaimed  furniture was  being sold from pieces left in storage, way past the allotted time.  My husband was looking for furniture for my son to use in college and he bid forty dollars for a lot which included this deacons bench along with other items.  They all became part of a college dorm room at the University of Georgia.  I made  cushions for the bench and they went along to college also.  I can imagine a lot of young  students, sat, or reclined on those cushions over the college years.

When it was no longer needed the bench made its way back to my house where my son made his home.   The day came when I moved away and took some of the furniture with me.  The deacons bench was one item I liked and so it moved with me.  This time I had an upholster make new cushions for it.  The wood of the bench is made of oak and is a very sturdy piece of furniture.  It seats three easily, in comfort.  And is long enough for even a tall person to recline, by bending the knees a bit.

Today when I awakened from a short nap on this treasured bench, I was in a perfect position to see two framed photographs on the west wall, straight in my line of vision.  Both are photographs taken by my son.  One is in sepia tone and is an artistic view of a tree beside a stream. The other is a close up of some grapes from my vineyard.  It was pleasant to see and I began to reminisce about the other things on the wall. On the north side is a painting done by my grandson who is now away at college.  I had some orange day lilies so I made a vase of them and asked him to paint it for me.  He did.  The orange color of the vase has faded but that does not matter to me.  Also sitting in the corner window shelf is a ceramic owl which is orange and was made by my sister Katrine.  The windows frames are wide enough to accompany a glass tray with beautifully embroidered fruit under glass.  This was a gift made by my daughter Bonnie and presented to me one Christmas, after she had married and moved away from home.
The other framed picture is a painting of a clipper ship. The words James Baines is under the picture.  I do not know if such a ship existed but it was a reminder that my husband loved sailing and once had a sailing boat at our dock.

Looking further to the east wall which is all windows, with some space between; I can see plates hanging between the windows.  There are nine of them, all painted by my artist sister, Katrine.  She loved birds and painted a lot of them.  Two watercolors of birds are on the opposite wall along with other paintings she did back as far as the 1960's.  One of my favorites is of a little black girl wearing an orange dress and a tan straw hat.  She is sitting beside a huge basket of white laundry.  I think my sister saw her in Charleston and was entranced with her, so she painted this portrait of her.  I am struck by her beauty, peaceful posture and the look on her face.

My grandson Grant likes this picture also.  I think it reminds him of one of his school friends.  The other pictures around her are still life painting in chalk of fruit, oranges, etc.

This restful room has very light weight sturdy furniture made of aluminum, painted white with dark green molded mesh backs and seats, all in one piece.  I found them in Roswell at a store many years ago and waited six weeks for them to be made at a factory in Florida.  The glass topped table that goes with them is oval and big enough to accompany six people or eight in a squeeze.  Down at the end of the room is a white cafe table with two metal chairs, perfect in case we had ten to eat on any given day.

Another thing that makes this room special for me is the tile floor.  I wanted  something that would not crack with weight or scratch.  I was assured that these tiles would live up to my expectations, and they have.  Someone who comes to visit and sits out here would not know the history of this room.  But when I am out here I have many memories to make it special for me.  Birthdays have been celebrated here.  Easter and Thanksgiving dinners were enjoyed here.  Not Christmas dinners, as it is too cold out here at that time of year.  Others have crashed on this deacons bench for a short nap and card games have been played at the table.  All these memories are there to make me cherish this place.   For most of the year I do come out and take advantage of the ambiance and comfort even if only for a little while.

June Harvest

With no intention of harvesting anything from my garden I just went around to see if the latest wind had blown over anything I had tied up.  I did have to straighten one tomato cage and tie up one tomato branch which was getting heavy with tomatoes.  Nothing in the tomato area was anywhere near ready for harvesting.

In the thornless Navajo blackberry bed, however, I saw some very large berries ripe for picking.  A few days ago I picked enough of them to have a nice, refreshing bowl to eat, with milk over them.  I picked a few today and went on the the cucumbers.  Several of the cukes are almost ready to be made into pickles, but I will wait to see if they are larger in a few days.

The pole  beans are a big disappointment to me.  I am thinking of pulling them all up, and putting in regular bush, blue lake green beans.  I know they are prolific, tender and stringless.  My reason for trying the pole variety was because harvesting the bush type is hard on your back.  So, on my shopping list, is blue lake bean seeds.

I am excited about the kiwi for two reasons.  I am trying to clone the male and female plants in little pots.  One of the cuttings has new leaves already.  I started them on the last day of May.  I am still watching the other cuttings and hoping they will follow suit.  The other excitement is about how fast and large the kiwi fruit up in the north bed, is progressing.  Last year was disappointing due to the severe pruning from two years ago.  This fall, I will have plenty of healthy fruit to share with my kiwi loving friends.  Nesrby, the big Brown Turkey fig tree is loaded with green, promising fruit.

Starting now and through June and into July, the wild blackberries on this place are ready for picking.  To do this I do have to "suit up" and spray good on my legs and clothing against chiggers and other insects.
I always take a walking stick into the blackberry patch.  It comes in handy for parting the canes in order to reach the irresistible fat berries.  I only got a handful today from the outer edges.  They are much sweeter than the cultivated ones .  Also the seeds are not as objectionable as the large ones on the Navajo
types.

The yellow squash is a total loss this year.  The squash bug won the battle.  I sprayed with Safer Insecticidal soap on the bugs I saw, but one plant I just pulled up in disgust.  You can't win them all, or at least I cannot.  When I go to the trouble to suit up for the wild blackberries, I will also go into the netting to pick blueberries.  I can see that the early types are ready to be picked.  I cannot compete with the large lush berries that my South Carolina family member grows, but these will work fine for adding to the muffins that I have in mind.  Still, it is fun to gradually get into the real reason I like to garden, the fresh harvest just tastes so great!

Refocus

All of the people I know are leading busy lives with family or with their jobs.  Many of my friends are of my generation or younger.  Most of them are retired and not as active physically, yet most of them have found their niche in service.  Most have developed health problems, as their physical energy wears thin.  I am thinking of one such lady who, it seems, led a life of service and loneliness.  But, was she really lonely?  I question that she was.  I think she had a personal GPS to keep her on course.

This is what I know about her:  When she was a baby, an older child was attempting to carry her and perhaps stumbled as she fell and dropped her.  She landed on the ground in such as way that her hip was damaged for life.  If that had happened in our modern  world of medical miracles, it may have changed her life.  As she grew her legs did not grow at the same speed and she was left with one leg shorter than the other, which limited her activities severely.  When I first knew her, she had retired from her life's work as a hair dresser.  She had spent her life working in a standing position and making others look better with her skills.

At the same time that she was doing this work, she took on the job of caring for her ailing mother.  She had a brother also, but I am not sure what his roll was in the care of their mother.  I do know that she was a devout, unmarried lady who could no longer drive and her friends helped her out by taking her shopping, on a weekly basis.   She was a founding member our church,  and when she could no longer drive, someone drove her to the services.  She found ways to show kindness even then ,when she was severely limited.  One Sunday, when I had taken my three year old grandson to worship with me, she called him to come over to her and she gave him a little package of candies.  She did this fairly often when he was there with me.  That  gave him a warm, happy feeling.

She had taken on one mission of our church, by sending out birthday cards to all of the our members throughout the year.  She served on our prayer chain,   and passed requests on, via the telephone so that others as well as she, could lift them up in prayer during their time of need.

Growing up with the experience of being a care giver as she had done, gave her a fiery streak which she could use if need be.  She could verbally stand up for what she thought was right.  Her faith kept her steady.  Early on in her life she played the piano for a small group of like minded people working to establish a church in the west end of our town.  We all knew that her favorite hymn was "Precious Lord".  This hymn was written by Thomas A. Dorsey in 1938.  The words to the first verse are:  "Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on, help me stand; I am tired, I am weak, I am worn; through the storm, through the night, lead me on to the light; take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home". No doubt she found comfort in the words of this song.  It must have given her strength when she needed support.

She wore a monitor in case of an emergency, she could call for help.  If she had been able to, I think she would have used it on her last opportunity to do so.  On this particular day, she did not answer calls and someone went to check on her, they  found her in the chair where she sat most of the time.  She had her phone beside her, her notebook of calls, her Bible and was wearing her monitor.  Apparently she died in her sleep.

She spent her working life doing for others, and in later life she gratefully accepted  help  when she needed it.  But I doubt that she was lonely.  Whenever I saw her, or stopped by to take something to her, she had a smile on her face and conversation to match her smile.

When I think of her limitations, it reminds me that there is always something one can do to brighten the day of another human being, even a small child.  The people in our world who could use a little cheering, are legion.  With the diversity of us all, the ways to extend kindness is also legion.  Not everyone  is in a position to extend kindness in the same way.  But when an opportunity comes by, take hold of the moment and do the thing that no one else can do, but you, at that moment.

I think that Doris had found a way to "get out of herself". She was not focused on her limitations, rather looked outside of herself to send a brightness to  those who passed her way.  It is good to think of Doris, and follow her example.  Psychologists will tell you that the best way to fight depression or problems of loneliness  is to focus on helping  someone else.  That is a good thought to tuck under your hat and use when the opportunity arises.

Public Libraries

The  county commissioners of Hall county Georgia, are considering ways to juggle money in this economic slump.  One of  their options is to close from 2 to 4 public libraries.  This has caused an outcry from the users of the libraries.  I have two library cards, one from my own county and one for this adjoining county.  For as long as I can remember, in my long life, I have been privileged to have  a library card. 

My first contact with a library was at the school I attended, from third grade through twelfth grade.  Our library there doubled as a detention hall for some students. In some cases it was where we could go if we had free time.  At that time, long before computers, typewriters were available for us to use there, but not to check out.  When I went off to college, the library there became a source of information for me, as well as a place to study when  a quiet place was needed.   After graduation and on my first job, I continued to be  a consistent  patron of the town library where I lived.  I used it to get books for my first grade class.  Because I was a teacher I was allowed to check out twenty books at one time.  I went every other week to find colorful books for my first grade class.  In my classroom I had a library table where the children could go to select a book, after finishing their assigned work.  I was introducing my class to their first library, as there was none in our school building or in this small community where I taught and they lived.  Each day I chose a child to select one of the books for me to read to the entire class.

I continued this pattern  for four years, while living and teaching in this southeastern area of Kentucky.  Then my husband and I moved many miles away to the eastern shore of Maryland.  One of the first things we did, after finding an apartment, was to sign up for a library card.  For a number of years I was a homemaker and had the time to indulge my love of reading.  My favorite books were non fiction, and especially biographies and autobiographies.  My husband was a teacher, and he was a daily reader also.

When my children came along, I introduced books to them early on.  I have a picture of my daughter when she was only one,  walking with a book in her hands, and "reading" it.  When my children were old enough, I took them to the public library and we checked out books for them and for me also.   When they were small, libraries had not established the custom of "children's hour".   During this time I did not have a car of my own so we boarded a local bus to get to the library. 

I discovered more new elements of the library in Decatur Georgia.  They had oil paintings which could be checked out for a period of time.  This was a new way in which the public library enriched my life, as we could all enjoy the art of creative people. 

When my children began  school, I went back into the classroom myself, again, as a first grade teacher.  I discovered another lending element had been added for the use of patrons, in  slide films.  I was able to enrich the experiences of my young students outside of the printed books, with slide shows on many different subjects.  At the current time in our history, librarians need multiple skills to meet the needs of modern patrons.  Their title has changed to Media Specialists, and the information highway is linked to the once humble library via the personal computer.  Our public libraries are meeting the changing times and morphing into an even more vital part of our communities.

When I look back, I see so many ways and times that my life has been made better because of  public libraries.  At this time in the history of our country, many people are struggling financially.  Those of us who can afford to give a lending hand to our lending libraries need to find a way to do just that.  Shutting out the source of knowledge to our citizens is not the way for our elected officials to meet their budget.  I am proposing that we put a big tin cup on the counter where visitors may put in what they can afford, when checking out a book to take home and enjoy.

Garden Discovery

Getting plenty of rain during the spring months was a good thing, as all of the perennials were able to grow lots of nice roots, and get fortified for the summer.  However, it is a bit deceiving as  it caused me to plan on a fine garden in May, and put me in denial about the coming hot, rainless months, in which the garden has to fight stress.

In Georgia we are in another drought and the most used tool now, is the garden hose.  I alternate mornings to get things watered, before the sun is so demanding on my energy.  Because my garden is scattered about, it can't all be done in one day.   My first chore was to pull up all of the leaf lettuce, not because it did not look good, but because it was bitter.  I did not like this leaf lettuce as much as I had thought I would.  Thus, it was not  eaten in a timely manner,  before it became bitter.  Next year I will plant romaine, and less of it.  I am very fond of romaine and will be sure to use it myself or share.
I met a new enemy this morning as I was bending over to move the hose around.  Out of the corner of my eye I saw a movement.  Upon closer inspection I saw what I thought were fleas because they did not fly, or crawl.  They did little hops to move about.  They were on the side of the concrete blocks that form the walls of the raised beds.  I made a mental note to  research fleas in the garden.

The first call I made was to my favorite free, information agency, the County Extension Office.  The agents are aways so knowledgeable about any problem you present to them.  This agent said it sounded like flea beetles.  They favor eggplant.  Their eggs are laid in the soil and I suppose they emerge when it is time to eat on the eggplant.  I do not have eggplant in my garden but the flea beetles  are there anyway.  My next step in research was to see what the online sources had to say about flea beetles, especially in how to combat them.  The solution is to put yellow sticky traps about for them to hop onto.  The other suggestion was to use the sticky fly paper available in the hardware stores.  I remembered seeing those in my storage shed, so I went out to be sure I did have some, and happily, I did have three of the little rolls.

I waited a while to go down and try out the fly paper but when I went to put up the paper, I only saw about two of the little pests.  I did put up the paper anyway, as they could not have hopped too far away.

The last thing I expected to find in my garden was this pesky flea beetle.  Since I try to use organic practices in my garden this sticky fly paper fits into my plan.

The agent did say that if I could bring one in to him, he could make a definite identification.  I have no idea how you would catch one of those hopping insects, so I will go on the theory that he did identify it accurately. Also, I put out the fly paper, so that is good enough for me, done deal!

It is always  nice to fine the solution to a problem right on the premises, as in my Cedar house shed.   

If you see little jumping bugs on your eggplant you might want to  decorate your plant with fly paper, winding it around the leaves.  It was not something I had planned on doing but when an obstacle presents intself, it is satisfying to find the solution without resorting to toxic sprays.

Wrapping up May

Here in north Georgia, it is hotter than usual for this time of year.  With June coming on tomorrow, I see the signs of nature confirming that summer is upon us.  One of the things I look for are the lightening bugs or the embroidered  term "fire flies".  Two evenings ago I thought I saw one but since I was indoors I was not positive.  Then last evening, sure enough, there they were everywhere, blinking all over the yard in front of my house.

The cool of the morning and the cool of the evening are the best times for me to observe things in the plant world.  Early morning is the best time to do some watering and it is paying off nicely.  I am seeing little green tomatoes on my plants.  This morning I spied something I had been working for, tiny yellow crookneck squash on the plants.  Since I was watering them slowly I saw my old enemy, the squash bug coming out of the soil around the plants.  I was able to catch four of them and destroy them.  They keep showing up, so, I will keep watching for them when I soak the soil.

The blue lake pole beans are starting to bloom so they got some extra water to encourage them to keep on keeping on.

The one chore I had on my calendar that  I was able to take care of, is propagating kiwi.  I am not doing this for myself, rather my primary care doctor.  She loves my kiwi and wanted some plants for herself, exactly like mine.  Last year I got a male and a female plant for her, but somehow they died after I gave them to her.  So, I was waiting for June to do some propagating for her.  I printed instructions from an online source and loaded my golf cart with the necessary tools to do the job.  Four quart size plastic pots filled with Miracle Gro potting soil well watered, a jar of Root Tone, hand shears freshly disinfected with rubbing alcohol, a trowel and a permanent pen for marking which is male and which is female.  My plan was to try for two of each.  Now they are sitting on my back porch in the shade, and up off the brick porch so the sow bugs and other crawling critters will not reach them.  This will be an interesting experiment for me.  I have tried to propagate them before without success, but this time I think I may have gotten it right. Time will tell.  And I will be sure to report the results whether positive or negative.

Gardening Stories

This morning I went down early to my raised beds to pick lettuce.  I ended up with a large plastic continer of three different kinds of lettuce, some green, tinged with purple, some purple with oak tree type leaves and some just oval shaped green.  Using my golf cart I went promptly up to the house to give the leaves a three step water bath, then ligthly folded them in a big white feed sack cloth and put in the fridge for later use.

Next early morning chore, was to go back to the beds and do some watering.  I had left the hose on slow mode at one of the tomato plants.  I moved it to the squash hills (three of them), the water was moving very slowly and I put it down  on the ground.  It was then that I noticed two bugs coming up out of the ground near the base of the plants.  I picked them up and realized they must be squash bugs I took them over to the wall and using a brick, put an end to them.  I went back and saw another one emerging from the ground.  He met the same end.  Apparently the water was forcing them to come topside.

This was a new garden experience for me.  I went to all of the squash plants  and repeated this same action until I had collected and disposed of around 12 of those squash bugs.  Usually I discover them after they have done their damage.  Hopefully I have saved my yellow crookneck squash for this year.  Also I have learned a new trick.  Flush out the bugs with a slow flowing water hose.

I share this story in case any of my online friends are not familiar with this safe way of ridding the garden of squash bugs.  I do not know if it was just a happy coincidence that I found them at this stage of growth.  In any event I will file this experience away to use another year.  Of course, if you are averse to picking bugs with your bare hands, this may not be your cup of tea.  As for me I would rather do that then lose my crop of yellow squash to a 1/2 inch bug.

A Good Tired

Right now I am almost aching from working outdoors. Jim was up here today and he worked so much more than I did, but still, I feel tired, however, it is a good feeling.

I probably have twenty azaleas here near the house and down the hill and in front of the old barn.  This is the first year they have been pruned in a long time.  Down the hillside the English Ivy, grapevines, and wild honeysuckle have almost taken over.  Jim attacked it all with a fury, cutting, pulling, raking, just to get to the azalea bushes.  I worked  on the opposite side of the railroad tie walk.  This is the walk that Jim and Bruce put in for me around twenty years ago as  a Mothers Day surprise.  I found some azaleas at the foot of the hill which had never been pruned.  They had grown up and some trees had grown down and where they met is where I pruned.  A  huge grape vine had been twisting and running through the trees for so long it was about 1.5 inches in  width.  That one Jim had to come over to cut.  I look forward to seeing those azaleas in bloom next spring when I enter the property and drive toward the house.

Jim dug up so many jonquil bulbs that I lost count as we cut the dried leaves off and put them in mesh bags to hang until fall.  I suppose we had one hundred and we hardly scratched the surface.  Next week we will tackle the rest of them.  But first I have the job of softening the ground by using a hose on the area.  Some that he dug, we have decided are Blue Scilla.  The bloom resembles the allium.  I think they must be used mostly in the north where they favor the cold temperatures.

Repairs around here are a given.  The door on the shed had slipped down and it was almost impossible to close it, so that was one repair this visit.  I really dislike seeing bugs indoors so now I should only see dead ones.  Jim used a special kind of spray to put boric acid powder behind the light switches and other places suspected of hiding those crawly creatures.

It is all in a days work, as they say.  I will be like a child who has played hard all day, I will sleep soundly, and wake to another day of pulling weeds and watering tomatoes, etc.  It is a hobby I chose so I am not complaining.  I much prefer the out of doors than walking the city sidewalks.

A cup of Tea

Several years ago I was visiting my sister in Ohio.  She lived in a very nice retirement facility.  We had our meals in a huge dining room.  Waiters came around with carts loaded with  items for each course. While there I began to enjoy Lemon Lift tea, from a little white tea pot.  I had it for every meal for a week.  When I left to go home, the manager gave me one of the little tea pots.  It is used here, by me, a lot.

My neighbor will call me occasionally and ask if she can come over for a cup of tea.  It is not a regular event but we do get to have a face to face on those occasions.  There is something about a cup of tea which is soothing as a balm on frayed nerves.  It must be sipped slowly to enjoy, thus slowing the pace of the day.  You just cannot rush around when having a cup of tea.

I think the British have a charming custom of tea time in the afternoon.  If I lived in that climate I would fall into that custom easily.  I am not sure what crumpets are but it just sounds like it should be served with tea.  Actually, from Websters description crumpets sound rather bland, "a small, unsweetened batter cake baked on a griddle; usually toasted before serving".  I believe they usually serve jam with them.

In a book called "Three Cups of Tea", the author tells about the people of Afghanistan serving a tea which is quite different from the tea we drink.  It is heavy with fats and if you are not accustomed to having that in your diet, it might upset your system.  This happened to a friend when he was in Tibet.  However, it is the custom there, that after you have tea three times with someone, you are considered friends.  I can see how that would be true.

Years ago when we lived in Baltimore, we had new neighbors, just come from Ireland.  I did not know them very well but they had a baby and we kept the baby while they went to midnight mass at Christmas.  She had a teapot and kept a tea cozy over it.  It had been knitted with woolen yarn.  That sounds about right for the climate in Ireland.

My mother was known for her frugality.  One example was the way she used a tea bag over for a second cup of tea. She may have  enjoyed it more had she used a small tea pot for that second cup.  Since I lived a long distance from her most of my adult life I do not recall if she had a tea pot.  I have several and even one I made myself in a pottery class.  Being able to pour from the spout without getting a drip on the end, is my description  of a good tea pot.

One of my favorite tea pots came from Aunt Martha, not my aunt but the aunt of my friend Betty McNutt Bray.  It was brown and I got it on a trip with her to Alabama.  She went to settle the estate of Aunt Martha and Uncle Earl.  The last time I saw Betty, was here at my house.  I told her that I felt the tea pot belonged to her if she wanted it.  She did and she took it home that day.

Choosing which tea to buy at the market could be a daunting task, as there are so many choices on the shelves. Some of the choices are always the same, while others are constantly changing.  Just when I try one of the caffeine free teas, and find it pleasing, it is not there the next time I shop.  One made by Twinings has a blend of three flavors, ginseng, chamomile and Tahitian vanilla (as best I recall).  I have looked for it every time I go shopping but have never found it again.

It is rather amazing that a few dried leaves steeped in fresh boiling water can sooth and calm so well.  I am aware that coffee drinkers have their own favorite drinks to get them going in the mornings.  I would never try to change their minds, nor would I want to exchange drinks with them.  A  cup of tea is good for me.

Daylilies Anyone?

If you have ever planted daylilies, then you know how prolific they are.  If you have never planted them,  just try one in a small area and watch what happens.  If they like the spot they are planted in step back, because they are going to increase in number faster than you can imagine.  The name daylily identifies the length of the bloom, one day.  The roots have little growths on them which probably have a biological name, but they look like elongated peanuts and may be called buds.  This is their progeny and they seek to leave home more than any disconteded teen ager.  They do not go far, they spread all around the mother plant.  I happen to have a huge number of them which are double orange.  A few years ago I filled the trunk of my car with bags of them to take to a county agent who grows them, possibly at  his farm.  Even with all I took to him, they are all back again.  If not divided every few years, they are not happy and stop blooming.  Maybe some inner clock says, no more children.

Today I had a great helper, my son-in-law, Jim.  With a shovel and strong arms and some doubt he began to dig these plants for me.  I have a curved stone wall at a turn in my road.  I had planted daylilies, along with other plants inside of the stone wall which circumscribes this garden bed.  Now, their children had left home and spread all outside the rocks, too close to the road.  Jim was afraid if he dug them it would undermine the rock wall.   I had a different view, so he plunged ahead and in a very short time we had a huge pile of day lilies, along with some iris which like to do some traveling of their own.  I put them in a large yellow plastic tub and also in some plastic garbage bags.  My daughter wanted to plant them in their garden in Norcross.  Jim is a most accomidating husband so he will be digging a new home for these plants where his wife wants them.

Oh, if only the work stopped there.  Now, I have the chore of weeding inside of this bed.  A lot of Black Eyed Susans are experiencing too much growth so they need room to spread around.  Unfortunately the wild honeysuckle likes the inside of this bed.  So, it is up to me to show who is in charge of this garden bed.  Somewhere in there is a Cherokee Rose bush, whose future depends upon my work.

I hope I have not discouraged anyone from planting daylilies.  There are so many different varieties of them and each one is prettier than the next.  They really are a joy to own, even if they tend to need some dividing every few years.  Any that Jim did not take home, I can always take to the church rummage sale as freebies for folks coming to buy.

Long Live She Bear

Driving a long way to pick up some heirloom tomato plants seemed like a reasonable jaunt for me, so that is what I did.  Taking my neighbor along with me, we headed out with directions she had scribbled on a scrap piece of paper.  She had been there before and had told me a lot about this lady whom she has known for years.  They both worked at the North Georgia Medical Center years ago.  Last year I mailed this lady, whom I had not met, some seeds for heirloom tomatoes.  I next met her at the funeral for her husband of almost fifty years.  So, she was not a complete stranger.  Also I had heard a lot about her and had seen some remarkable things she had made on her sewing machine.  With all of this information under my belt, I headed out to see her for a brief visit, or so I thought.

There were a few bobbles on the way but we finally pulled up in her driveway.  She was waiting for us barefoot and in denim capri pants.  She won my heart the moment I saw those bare feet.  No pretenses here at all.  When I opened the car door I saw a Kousa dogwood beside her drive.  I asked Diana if that was what it was, and she said, "Yes, most people do not know what it is".  It was in bloom and a beautiful specimen plant.  Next my eyes fell on another plant, partly concealed by the green blades of some kind of bulb, already finished with blooming.  These turned out to be something I had wanted for a long time, annuals called "Sweet William".  I asked if she had grown them from seed.  Yes, she had.  Now I know I must find seeds for them and plant them!  I remember my mother having those in her garden, fifty years ago.

As we entered her home we were greeted by a barking Spaniel with hair as red as the hair of our hostess.  She called him Little Red.  His left hip  had been shaved which gave him  a slightly mottled look.  It seems that he had surgery on his hip, thus the shaved area.  Diana took us through her home and an interesting tour it was.  First off, a tall, almost five feet, Cacti plant.  For once, a real plant that did not look real.  She told us it was over one hundred years old.  Diana offered one to me.  I could not take it as the responsibility of keeping it alive was just too great a task.  A friend of hers was breaking up house keeping and could not take it with her, possibly she will return for it one day.

Near the plant up high up on the wall were two trophy heads of beautiful deer.  Her husband had been a hunter and supplied them with venison for most of their married lives.  In her dining area was a beautiful cherry table inlaid with contrasting wood grain.  This had belonged to her mother.  Along the wall a huge cupboard which almost reached to the ceiling.  A friend had bought it at an auction and after getting it home realized it was too big for her house.  She had paid $35 for it and gave it to her just for the taking.  As we went through her house Diana pointed out interesting things, like the century old iron bed which had been in her family.    She had painted it a burnished gold.  I certainly remember having those iron beds in our home, as a child.  Some of her watercolor paintings are on her walls and also some charcoal and pastel drawing.  They were all lovely pictures.

Leading off her dining area we went out onto a second story deck. looking out we were surrounded by sky high trees.  A black walnut, a pecan, and some native Sweet Gum trees.  This lady had two rain barrels at the back corners of her house, in anticipation of  a dry summer.  It was such a woodsy area that you did not notice about one acre away  was busy I 85 which goes south to Atlanta and north to Greenville,  S.C.

At this point our hostess said she wanted to take us for lunch to a quaint little restaurant nearby.  I asked her to drive my car since she knew the way.  Without a moments  hesitation she got into my car, backed out onto her street and off we went.  She took us to a neat, fenced in house, with tables and chairs out front, apparently for customers to sit and enjoy the day.  The inside was eye popping.  The dining room inself had only eight tables to seat four.  I could see an additional back dining area, but we were seated in this first area and I was happy about that.  You see, all of the  walls were  painted with a colorful mural of tree trunks, and pots of flowers.  It gave you a feeling of eating outdoors.  The menu had so many choices of good wholesome food.  She said  they were known for fresh creamed corn, so that is one thing I ordered.  When our food had been served these two friends automatically held hands and reached for mine as this charming lady offered a blessing before our meal. We had such a delightful lunch, exchanging ideas and news.  When it was time to go I really hated to leave.

Once back at her home she took us down to see her raised beds, four of them.  She had planted a wide variety of summer vegetables.  I saw tomatoes in one bed, asparagus in one along with eggplant, squash, pimentoes, green peppers, cucumbers, early peas and possibly some I have forgotten.   All of them thriving in beds Diana had made with wooden sides, on a flat area, beside the back of her house.  Then she pulled out the tomatoes she had for me.  Six plants, Rutgers red, Yellow Pear, German Queen, and Mr. Stripy heirloom.  This generous variety was for me and my neighbor - who was her friend first.

Diana  is a hard working nurse at a nearby hospital.  She went to night school while holding down a full time job in order to get a degree in nursing.   I happen to know that she is a writer as well.  I heard a poem that she wrote for her husband.  This poem was read at his funeral service.  She was instrumental in publishing a cookbook when her sister graduated from nursing school.  This was in dedication to the GTC R.N. Class of 2011 and their instructors.  They were the first graduation class from this technical school in Lawrenceville, Ga.   One interesting facet of the book is the symbols which guide you in your selections.  As one might expect,  throughout the book are paintings of different flowers, lilies, tulips, poppies, sunflowers, water lilies, and daffodils.  On the cover is a picture of the ladies who studied and worked hard to become nurses as the first graduating class at this school.

As you can tell, I admire Diana very much.  She never had children of her own, but her life is full of joy and accomplishments.  I wish her a continued, purposeful life filled with all her heart desires.  She has made an impact on many whom she nursed over the years.  No doubt they could tell they were in capable hands without ever knowing that everything else she did, was done with capable hands and heart as well.  Our visit turned out to be much more than brief, it was a fun filled jaunt which will stay with me for a long, long time.  One other thing, her email address has "she bear" in it.  I would like to know the story behind the name.  I can bet it is a good story.

Palm Sunday Indulgence, 2011

My usual routine on any Sunday is to attend the adult Bible Study Class, and visit the Nursery where we have a great lady who watches over any young children who come in.  Next, I go into the worship service which affords me the opportunity to "recharge" my spiritual life.

After returning home and having lunch today I indulged myself  by watching a Robert Downey Jr. movie.  Then further indulged myself by reading a long email from my daughter.  Next, having had no real exercise, I decided to have a walk about,  to see how my tomatoes fared overnight in the cooler temperatures.  Bonnie and Jim and some gardeners from church all thought my tomatoes would be just fine.  My first task on this walk was to see if they were right.  They all spoke the truth.  My tomatoes all were just fine.

Down in the raised beds, the lettuce was up about two inches.  This was my first attempt to grow lettuce.
Also the yellow squash plants in all three hills were up, about eight in all.  I will have to do some thinning.

I am happy to report that the Navaho blackberries are in bloom.  I have five of those plants.  Just this morning I indulged myself with a biscuit and blackberry jelly. I had a discussion after church with a veteran gardener, who happens to be a retired Eastern Airline pilot.  I told him that he always reminded me of blueberries, as he has some fine bushes which keep on producing year after year.  Today he told me of when he was a youth.  His father had around ten acres of blackberries, where he honed his skills as a blackberry gardener.  He said that they cut down the dead stalks each year .  To reward him for his gardening advise I told him I would bring him a jar of home made blackberry jelly.  That brought  a big smile to his face.

Back to growing things, some time ago I wrote about how Jim had used the chain saw to cut two enormous logs from a fallen oak tree.  The logs had imprisoned a voluntary magnolia tree.  Much to my delight I discovered that the tree will be rewarding us with blooms this year.  I counted around twenty of them.  The tree is about nine feet tall, and this is the first year for blooms to appear.

Another pleasant surprise was that two small Alpine Spruce are putting out new growth.  They both were Christmas gifts from my children going back four years.  They are not known to thrive in the south, but so far they are still where I planted them and still looking good.

The blueberries have lots of buds on them and this year the deer will not get them, as they are covered with netting.  Also inside of the rabbit fencing around them, the strawberries are showing green berries.  I have some slug bait which is safe to use around edibles, so one of my chores in the morning will be to use that inside the fence.

There were other surprises on this walk.  I had forgotten that I planted Japanese Iris in the front beds.  They are interesting as they grow in a circle.  The buds on them were ready to open and show their white faces.

I promised to report back on the bulbs which took seven years to bloom.  I got varying opinions, but I think my daughter gave the right answer.  She said she thought it looked like Scilla.  Then a light went off in my head which caused me to remember the word Scilla was on the label.  I think it really is Blue Scilla.  What I do not know is why it took seven years to bloom.  I do have an idea however.  I noticed that the places where it had been reported to grow, were all north of here.  My thoughts are that I did not bury them deep enough for our warm climate.  In the fall I plan to dig them up and replant them much deeper and see if they reward me for this act of kindness.

One thing was missing on this walk about,  that one thing was someone to exclaim with me on each little discovery.  Gardening surprises are best when served up with a friend.

You Never Know

On the second Thursday of each month the William Candler Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution meet at the first Presbyterian church on Enota Street in our town. Someone is always responsible for bringing drinks and snacks. When everyone has settled in and are seated at some round tables, our Regent brings the meeting to order and we begin by going through our ritual. The ritual expresses our mission and all participate in a litany which reflects this goal. We have the pledge to the American flag, the Americans Creed, and the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America. It is always the same and one line I really like especially. It is a response, "Yea, I have a goodly heritage".

If we have a speaker that day, that is next on the agenda. Yesterday we had a lady come ,who had been there before. Her background is varied, but fashion design is one facet of her many talents. The last time she came she was dressed in period costume. This day, she was dressed in the style of the 1980's. She gave a history of clothing from the time of the Pilgrims up to the present. Also she had some vintage clothes which had belonged to her grandmother. She wore white gloves when she handled them. She touched them gingerly as she told about them. One tip for those who had old and delicate clothing was never to fold them, rather roll them for storage and once a month bring them out for a good airing.

We had been invited to bring to this meeting any vintage clothing that we had inherited. Some of the ladies did. The thing that impressed all of us was the very small waists of the dresses. They did wear corsets, skirt hoops, lace and ruffles too, which all seemed extreme in light of how simply we ladies dress today. The clothing which was brought in was for formal occasions mostly, like weddings. They were quite old and some had disintegrated in places, but still were impressive in their embroidery and hand work. In some cases they were made of silk. I think seeing these old styles made us appreciate our comfortable styles of today and also our many choices of fabrics.

One lady brought in a book which had pictures of her families from the past. Seeing them reminded me of my mother in her wedding attire. I am guessing that it was her wedding attire as she wore an elaborate blouse with many tucks and turns with blousing sleeves and of course the tiny waist. The picture of my father of that same year shows a hat worn at a jaunty angle and him seated in a casual pose. His white shirt had a very high collar, stylish at that time. No one was smiling, and I notice the same thing in other vintage family pictures. It was just not in vogue to smile for your portrait. It makes one wonder, if the folks of that time ( around 1900) had good dentistry services available. The pictures which I have of my fraternal grandmother and my maternal grandmother shows the same straight look, no smiling. In their portraits they wore dark clothing and were probably in their seventies. Perhaps these ladies were not smiling as they led austere lives in a time when the living was hard for most people, especially women. The dressy attire. lace and ruffles were reserved for special occasions and youth. I am still guessing, but I wonder if they had to sit very still for the cameras of their day.

Regarding the hair styles, I remember when my mother had her hair "bobbed". It was a big step. In her youth she had long hair but it was pulled over a round, rolled form, around her face. This form was called a "rat". Someone told me that they were now called "bumps" and were coming back into style. They are worn in back at the top of the head, maybe they replace wigs, for some women do have balding there, later in life. For whatever reason, we adapt to the present , according to what is available to us. We are now living in an age of rapid change. Hopefully the changes will be better for ourselves , our children, and grandchildren. It can be fun to look back, but looking forward can be more productive.