While reading and enjoying my morning coffee I looked up to see this flame reflected in the framed map on the wall opposite me. And opposite the south windows where I have hung chandelier crystals to catch the sun sending rainbows dancing across the room, for a little while every day. As we come closer to the Solstice we are all more aware of the sun, and the diminishing hours of light and warmth. But there was the…
It was wild on the field in Ashburnam when our grandson, Ryan, and his team, the undefeated North Middlesex Wranglers, played for the state Pop Warner championship title. And they won! The Wranglers are State Champs. Next weekend they go to the regional playoffs. Ryan has a pretty good grip on that amazing trophy. Great team and a great game. Ryan's mom went wild cheering - and can barely speak today! Yay Wranglers! Good luck next weekend. This porcupine has been lurking around…
There were frosts and snows here in Heath, but in between we have been having the most delightful weather. Sun and warmth are such blessings at this time of the year that every ordinary (quotidian) task brings an awareness of the pleasures of the earth. I have my morning routine, beginning with feeding and watering the chickens who are enjoying this weather even though it does not prompt them to lay eggs. I'm down to two or three…
Regular visitors at May Dreams Gardens know that Carol is an afcianodo of hoes. Her October 7 post was her final Hoe-tober Fest for the year and she asked about the hoes other bloggers use. I have two hoes that I use, very occasionally, and when I dug them out for this shameful photo it was clear that a trip to OESCO in Conway is in order. I need a sharpener. I can arrange a cleaning and oiling cloth right here…
It is so pleasant to run errands at this time of the year when the landscape in turning into a jewel box. But, in fact, I only have to travel down the dirt road to our mailbox to see this glory.
No, we didn't have an ice storm here yesterday, but many residents of Heath did form a Flash Mob! We were photographed on the steps of Sawyer Hall waving signs and cell phones (which don't actually work here) and looking mad as part of the Wake Up Call we were sending our President and legislators. We want them to Do Something in Copenhagen in December. We were only one of about 2500 groups around the world telling our…
Replicas of The Roundhouse, built in 1899 were everywhere at this year's Franklin County Fair which celebrated its 161st anniversary. This edible version was a prize in the raffle supporting a major renovation of the roundhouse. It is a beautiful icon of the Fair which has shown off the handiwork and skills of farmers and residents of the county for 110 years. Nowadays there is a midway with games and rides, but for me, the heart of the Fair is…
Life will not be denied is a cry that goes up with some regularity at the End of the Road, often because some weedy thing is trying to get the better of me. But sometimes . . . there is an example of how nature simply abhors a vacuum. Earlier this year I posted about the acres of invasive yellow flags that grew in an abandoned beaver pond. Then, during the summer the dam gave way. Stinky water…
Pulling Together was the theme of this year's Annual Heath Fair organized by the Heath Agricultural Society and supported one way or another by just about every one of the town's 800 residents so that thousands of area people can enjoy a day in the country and gain a sense of the abundance around us - even in these hard times. It would not be pushing a metaphor too hard to say that it takes a lot of people …
We first met Dan our first spring in Heath in 1980. He stopped by the house to say he had come to get some farm implement that the previous owner said he could leave in the barn. The ensuing chat revealed that he and other friends had lived in our house for a time. Although we could not know it then, this was really a sign that our lives were already joined through the house, and would become even…