Archive for the ‘maine’ Tag
It’s raining like hell this morning so I decided to spend this time in bed enjoying the sounds and smells of the day. I like walking in the rain almost as much as I enjoy listening to it but not today. Today is going to be a computer day for me because I have a number of things that need to be accomplished.
In my last posting I made an attempt to create some discussion with my list of ten questions. While a good number of people visited and read the posting the response to my request for their answers apparently fell on deaf ears. Not one single response was disappointing as hell but not totally unexpected. At least I tried to wake up a few brain cells out there and just so you know, I will try again.
Today is the day I begin learning how to use the new software package I recently purchased. Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 & Adobe Premiere Elements 12 has been purchased and installed and await my full attention for the next six hours or so. I’m also awaiting the arrival from Amazon of a 400 page User’s Manual I was forced to buy because those cheap bastards at Adobe don’t feel that including a Users Manual is cost effective. Both of the programs are massive and without a manual you might never ever know all of the bells and whistles they contains. I’m praying that the manual arrives today or tomorrow so I can spend the next few days experimenting with the software. I need to get up to speed as quickly as possible because I have projects that will be much easier to complete once I’ve gotten a little hands-on experience.
This week another of my goals is to begin preparations for my first canning class of 2014. A number of my better-half’s friends are interested in learning how the process works so they can eventually can their own pickles. With so many requests I decided to do a class that would take care of them all at once. I’m just a week or so away from canning my first batch of pickles this year so I’ve invited a group of them to get together, watch me do a batch, take appropriate notes, and return home to attempt to do some of their own. I’ve tried to convince them that canning is a simple process but they appear very skeptical. I also make myself available 24/7 for emergency telephone calls when the occasional mishap arises. I’ve done a few one-on-ones in the past which were very successful so this should be a breeze.
I’ve been cleaning and preparing jars for a few weeks because it’s going to get very busy very quickly and I need to keep ahead of things. I’m estimating we’ll be canning 40-60 pints of hot Bread & Butter pickles, 20 pints of hot Mustard Dills, and 15-20 pints of hot Kosher Dills. Add in another 30-50 half pints of assorted jellies, jams, and relishes and you can see that we’ll be canning our asses off for six weeks or so. If I do say so myself, we make some damn good pickles, a truly excellent variety of jams, and the relishes can speak for themselves. Many of the folks who request our pickles return the jars for a refill and as you can see I have them everywhere.
Fun, fun, and more fun.
For months now I’ve been telling you about the attempts by my better-half to convince me to buy a few goats, a dog, chickens, and even a few boxes for raising bees. As you also know I not really crazy about any of those ideas and have been more than clear about it.
In the last few months I thought we’d finally settled those desires with a big fat NO WAY. This story continues forty-eight hours ago when the better-half left for work after telling me she’d be working a little later than usual. I had a handful of stupid little chores that needed done and was sure this extra time would allow me to complete them.
Let me give you some background information to make this story a little easier to understand. A few years ago we had our house resided. New house wrap was installed and once and for all we thought our home would be sealed from intrusion by Mother Nature’s millions of little friends. From that point on the assault by bees, wasps, yellow jackets, and lady bugs continued but with little success on their part. Since wasps and yellow jackets love to build their nests on wood surfaces under the eaves of houses I thought we were finally safe because the siding was vinyl and they couldn’t attach their nests to it.
My better-half told me in passing that a wasp nest was being built under the deck above one of her flower gardens. Could I take care of it please? I really didn’t listen to her at the time and just went about completing my other chores.
The second fact you need to understand is that we have a room that opens to the back yard at the rear of the house. This is used for storage of garden supplies, shovels, weed-whackers and other yard implements. It’s always locked when not in use and I hadn’t been in there for a week or so. I was intending to get the weed-whacker and start my yard work but as I stood near the door I heard an odd buzzing sound. As I unlocked the door the buzzing got much louder and when I stuck my head into the room I saw hanging just above my head a wasp’s nest the size of an NFL football.
As you should remember I broke my leg last fall and damn near destroyed my right knee. I’ve healed up rather well but not completely. I have a slight limp and can’t run too fast anymore, or so I thought.
A cloud of about a thousand bees decided I was trespassing in their territory and to my surprise I discovered that I really was completely healed. I took off like an Olympic sprinter running across the yard with thousand of those little bastards hot on my trail. I managed to outrun them and then slowly returned to the house by a circuitous route to plan my revenge.
A long sleeved shirt, long pants, a baseball hat, and leather gloves completed my ensemble. Along the way I picked up a shovel and a huge can of deadly bug spray. I approached the nest and was able to see a second nest right next to it. Shit! I entered spraying my heart out, dodging hoards of bees which were bouncing off my head. I was able to knock both nests down and spray them heavily and then I got the hell out of there. I waited a few minutes, returned and finished off another thousand bees. That spray was a real killer and it did the job and then some. How I was able to escape being stung I’ll never know. Later in the day I cleaned up the debris and considered the matter closed, or so I thought.
My day continued and the other chores were finally finished. I was walking across the yard and I saw what looked like a lot of bees flying around under the front deck near the flower garden. It dawned on me then that this was probably the one my better-half had warned me about. What did I find but another huge nest of wasps. What the hell right. I was on a roll and decided to wipe this nest out once and for all, or so I thought.
Since the deck is eight feet high I retrieved a step ladder, my bee killing outfit, the long stick, and the bug spray. Easy peasy, right? The only problem was climbing the ladder quickly before they could attack and to not fall off the ladder in the process. I had a stick in one hand, bug spray in the other, and began climbing the ladder with no hands. The bees immediately saw the error of my ways and attacked. They knocked me off the ladder which then fell on top of me. I scrambled to my feet and took off running again. I made it about three feet before one of those buggers stung me on top of my head. They may be small but OMG the pain from that sting was unbelievable. I fled again and took a little time to rethink my strategy while putting an ice pack on my head.
I returned pissed off with nothing but revenge on my mind. I knocked the nest down and killed everything in it. There were hundred still swarming but they had been sprayed and were slowly dying. I turned and walked away very proud of myself when one last little SOB came out of nowhere and stung me on the head in the same exact spot as the first one. That shot dropped me to my knees and required a steam of curse words to make me feel better.
My question is this. Did my better-half know about the nests in that back room? She says she didn’t but I don’t believe her entirely. She seemed a little too smug and insincere when I was looking for some sympathy for my wounds. She finally got her wish that we have bees but unfortunately these little killers don’t make any honey. Maybe now she’ll attempt to bring some killer goats home to surprise me or maybe some chickens trained to attack. She’s a lot sneaker than she looks.
One last time darling, no bees, no goats, no chickens but maybe sometime in the future we can get a dog.
That’s my compromise.
Every once in a while I find something that catches my eye. This photograph is of a entry gate that leads to an old and extremely run down house located next door to nowhere important. I saw it a few months ago as we were driving around looking for anything interesting. I didn’t stop for the shot then but I did a few days ago when we happened upon it once again. I found it simple and fascinating.
It’s been an interesting few days. Shortly after posting earlier in the week I came down with a truly nasty 24 hour stomach virus. I won’t get into the stinky and smelly details but that virus targeted areas of my body that shouldn’t be messed with. All of my activities ceased immediately except for staying within running distance of any bathroom facilities. I was on the mend within twenty-four hours and regained my appetite and my antagonistic attitude rather quickly.
Just when I thought things were improving my better-half said those infamous words you never want to hear, “I think I’m getting a sore throat and my stomach hurts.” It’s only this morning that she was able to get out bed and go to work. She’s one of those women who seems more macho that most men when it comes to missing work. She gets some sort of rush by being able to make it to work regardless of the circumstances. I was like that once but times for me have changed, thank God.
Since I’ve been staying close to home these last few days I thought I’d spend a little time photo documenting every type and color of flower in our gardens that we’ve been blessed with this season. I was more than a little surprised at the variety myself. Here are a few samples of some of those flowers with more to follow as they begin blooming.
Believe me when I tell you there’s no better way to spend an hour or two each week by walking through the garden and photographing everything. It’s a really tough life I have but you know someone’s gotta do it.
This has been a week of rain then sunshine then rain and on and on and on. The humidity is constantly high and sleeping is a real challenge. It certainly limits my activities to hanging around the house and driving my better-half over the edge. It must be true because she tells me that at least twice a day. What to do, what to do. My only solution is to take my camera and go forth to play in the woods. Maybe it was time for a quick check of my favorite swamps to look in on the dragonfly situation. With this much humidity and heat there should be a large increase in their numbers (I hope). It’s a reasonably short drive so I loaded up my gear and took off.
I arrived at the sanctuary, parked the car, and stepped into the world of sweat bees, gnats, and those little mites that congregate around your head by the thousands. I used half a can of the strongest bug spray I could find and it was of little help.
It’s common practice here in Maine for the horse farmers to cover the eyes of their horses with netting to keep the bugs from driving the horses crazy. If it works for horses then why can’t it work for me. I reached into my bag of goodies and found some netting made specifically to be worn over a baseball cap and then tied tightly at the neck. It’s not a perfect solution but it will keep the gnats in the swamp out of my eyes and ears. The rest of my body is up for grabs but even those damn mosquitos and ticks have to eat too. Without a doubt I’ll be their lunch entrée.
On my way to the swamp I have to pass through a few acres of milkweed plants. They’re just coming into bloom and in a few short weeks will be covered with visiting Monarch butterflies. They love laying their eggs on the milkweed plants which contain a chemical that keeps predators from eating their eggs. I’ll be back in a few weeks for their arrival which promises a gang of excellent macro photographs.
I arrived in the swamp covered with swarms of bugs and discovered to my delight a reasonable number of dragonflies flitting around. I’ve found if you stand still in one place for a few minutes they tend to approach to check you out. These pictures were of a few that seemed to be purposely posing for me.
I lasted almost an hour but the bugs made staying any longer impossible. I’ll be better prepared on my next visit and hope to obtain more photos of dragonflies and damselflies. The variety of colors is absolutely amazing.
***WILDLIFE ALERT ***
(Sarcasm On) This Wildlife Alert arrived on my desk today from my better-half and I promised her I’d put out A BOTA (Be On the Lookout) alert for a herd of those terribly dangerous and ruthless gourd eating deer. She plans on hanging some sort of crazy noise-maker in the garden to scare them off. Truthfully we’ve had deer eat almost everything in the garden at one time or another but not a single one has ever munched on a gourd. She has a strange attraction for gourds which I still don’t understand. Maybe I’ll build a blind for her to sit in near the garden and she can jump out in the middle of the night to scare the crap out of them. I promise to get lots of pictures if she actually does it. (Sarcasm Off)
Now that my better-half has returned home from her trip our lives have slowly normalized somewhat. She has returned to work after much whining and complaining and is back to her old self. I’ve returned to my projects again after pretty much ignoring them for a week. Don’t forget her vacation was also my vacation.
The garden is growing wild and today I finally spent three hours on my hands and knees pulling weeds. Don’t misunderstand me, I pulled thousands of weeds, enough to fill the trailer pulled by my lawn tractor. It was extremely hot and in just a few minutes I sweat through my clothing. I have to admit it felt pretty good to be digging in the dirt because it’s one of those times that allows my body to do it’s routine work and all the while my mind is elsewhere. It takes a good hour of this kind of work to calm me down and allow me to really relax. It’s unfortunate that I didn’t discover this outlet a few decades earlier than I actually did. Once again my father was right but I wasn’t listening as usual.
As you can see the frames are slowing filling with beautiful green plants of all kinds. I’ll probably begin picking, blanching, and freezing kale this week. After it’s washed and blanched I can cut it into strips and freeze it. It’ll make for some really flavorful soups this coming winter.
I was forced out of necessity to take the pruning shears to the mint patches. They grow so damn fast and if not properly controlled will take over the entire garden. It makes working out here really pleasant when all you can smell is the aroma of peppermint and spearmint. From the looks of things it’s going to be an unbelievable year for the herbs. I replanted a number of oregano plants after losing a few last winter and the way these things are growing I’ll eventually have enough dried and stored to last me for two winters.
After all of the weeding was completed I returned to the houses to take a quick shower, make a close check for any of Mother Nature’s little friends (ticks), and to rehydrate. The next thing on the agenda was to rack off the dandelion wine once again. It’s clearing nicely and the color is spectacular. Now, if it only ends up tasting as good as it looks. I’ve been disappointed a few times in the past when a gorgeous batch of wine has ended up tasting like battery acid. I’m crossing my fingers again and hoping for the best.
We’re expecting a beautiful weekend and I’m sure we’ll be visiting the beach and hitting a few yard sales and flea markets. The better-half has the weekend off for a change and we can have a little quality time together. Sunday is approaching and we’re looking forward to babysitting the grandson for a few hours to give his parents a little breather and some alone time together. It’s something all of us need. We just have to search out those things that’ll give our minds a little peace and quiet. I consider my self fortunate to have a number of outlets like that to clear my mind and keep me mentally calm and fresh.
In just a few short weeks the festivals will begin in earnest. Almost every weekend from now until mid- October has a festival of some sort scheduled somewhere in Maine. Every small town and community has one and it’s a great way to support the local farmers and artisans. Good food, beautiful summer weather, and communities who love to celebrate and share their community spirit with visitors. It doesn’t get much better than that.
If I sound a little happy today there’s a good reason. I just dropped my better-half at the Portland Jetport (that’s Maine’s way of saying airport) and she’s winging her way to the left coast for a week of fun and frolic with her son. They have quite the trip planned that includes a drive to Las Vegas to see a few shows and lose a few dollars. As I ‘m writing this she should just be landing at O’Hare in Chicago. Then she’s off to LA LA land to enjoy the sunny weather, the warm ocean, and a host of diverse weirdo’s. She should be able to teach them a thing or two about what weirdness is really all about because she’s a pro.
“Remember honey, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”
It’s a vacation for her but it’s also one for yours truly. A total week of no C&W music blaring throughout the house and no one constantly looking over my shoulder. Besides, just mentioning that little tidbit is sure to get a rise out of her. Just to make sure she doesn’t get too upset with my sarcasm I thought I should roam the Internet to collect a few expert opinions and quotations on vacationing separately.
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Taking time alone is a positive sign that the spouses are acknowledging and honoring each other’s careers and likes.
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Taking separate vacations enables a person to understand that spending too much time together may hurt any relationship. “A couple needs time apart as much as time together.”
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“What makes a relationship juicy and exciting are the different perspectives and experiences we bring to it. You need the separateness to appreciate the togetherness.”
In my humble opinion these quotations are almost word for word what I was thinking all along. I’m glad I found an expert or two who were able to word it just the way I was thinking it (sarcasm off).
I see a week of total relaxation. Also, this week will be clothing-optional around the house because I’m in total agreement with good old Benjamin Franklin who was an advocate of what he called "air baths". Amen to that Ben!
I plan on hitting the beach here in Maine a few times and should have quite the collection of photo’s to show for it.
“Remember honey, what happens in Maine also stays in Maine.” LOL
For now the cat and I will spend a great deal of time relaxing on the deck. I’ll be reading a book or two and he’ll be chasing the occasional bird or squirrel. He’s pretty lazy and will probably just end up napping the entire week away in any one of his numerous sleeping spots.
I may break out the margaritas one night and make some smoking hot tacos with a side of salsa or maybe even some kimchee. Eat and drink until I drop then climb into a hot bath with a glass of really good brandy. Now that’s what I call a vacation.
I’d like to keep writing but it’s the first night of my vacation and I want to relax and enjoy it. I may even dig into my bag of fireworks and wake up the damn neighbors in the wee hours of the morning. After all it’s Fourth of July week and I intend to celebrate that birthday all week.
FLY YOUR FLAG PROUDLY
&
HAVE FUN LOVEY
Do you ever feel the need to get away, to hide from the world, or to avoid the people you care most about? It happens to me periodically for no apparent reason and at odd times. I normally just disappear from the house proper and take refuge in my man-cave but that doesn’t work as well as it once did. It seems that other people, including a rather inquisitive grandson have figured out my secret hide-away. When that happens my last resort is to take my camera and head for the woods.
Yesterday was one of those days when the better-half was working and I was tired of gardens, gardening, household fix-it jobs, and the occasional unexpected telephone call. I told no one where I was going, packed up my gear, turned off my cell and hit the road. It was hot and humid and I didn’t care at all if anyone knew where I was going. After arriving at my destination I parked my car, sprayed myself from head to foot with bug repellent, grabbed my camera and disappeared into the woods. It’s one of the reasons I love living in Maine. There are more woods here than I could ever visit in my lifetime.
I’ll give you a short walk-along as I made my way through a number of trails, two swamps, and my favorite blackberry patch. The bugs were out in large numbers but the repellent kept most of them at bay. Since this Spring has been a wet one the woods are lush and green. I didn’t walk twenty feet before I discovered these wild daisies.
I found a patch of these smaller yellow flowers as well and I have no idea what they are or where they came from. I do know they’re very delicate and love being photographed.
The trails are over grown in places and it was dead quiet. I visit this spot every so often because there are so few people who even know it exists. It’s just me, the bugs, and the occasional wildlife visitor.
I was especially interested in visiting the swamps. It’s a little early for the dragonfly population to be booming but I thought I’d check it out anyway. I’m fascinated by them and have hundreds of photos in my files. Unfortunately the swamps today had almost no dragonflies at all. I found that a little unusual but I’ll try again later in July when it gets a little warmer. As I neared the first swamp I saw this wild Iris just sticking up out the water all by lonesome.
A few steps further on and I almost stepped on this bull frog who was hiding in the weeds near my feet. He refused to move so I took immediate advantage.
I made my way a short distance to the edge of the Scarborough River and Marsh. It’s a thousand acres of a fresh water marsh with a water connection to the open ocean. Beautiful scenery as far as the eye can see.
I followed anther trail that took me along the river and then inland to a second swampy area. Again no dragonflies just another big fat bull frog who refused to look my way. He sat quietly and gave me the cold shoulder until I left the area.
I decided to make my way back to my vehicle and along the way check out my favorite blackberry patch. Over the years this patch has supplied my better-half and I with dozens of jars of delicious jam that is to die for. It’s a huge patch as you can see and it is loaded with berries that should begin ripening in big numbers in a month or so.
That was a photo of the patch but here’s one of the berries I intend to pick and eat in a few weeks. I can’t wait to make more jam and freeze a few quarts of those big fat berries for use on my morning cereal. There’s nothing better.
I headed home with a few dozen photo’s and a better outlook on life. Being in the woods has always supplied me with that clarity of thinking that’s so important.
I still find my life difficult after six years of being retired. First of all I never expected to ever be retired and honestly thought I would have died long before this. For a change it’s nice to be wrong about certain things.
Adjusting my day-to-day existence from being an over achieving workaholic to a gardening, bird watching, and laid back retiree has been interesting and at times distressing. I now understand that my high blood pressure issues were probably responsible for my former fast paced life style and the workaholic obsession.
“The garden is producing already. I just thought I’d brag a little.”
But with my slowed down and medicated lifestyle I’m now a much more calm and controlled person. Yesterday I spent a good part of my day taking photographs. I was able to spend more than an hour taking pictures without ever leaving my yard. I’ve never had the luxury of free time like this and it still makes me feel guilty as if I’m being lazy and unproductive. I’ll show you a few of my photo’s and you can judge for yourself if it was worth my time. After looking at them I found myself very happy with the results and felt the time had been well spent. See what you think.
I’ve placed numerous bird houses on the property and this year we have a number of winged residents living with us. I’ve come to find out that birds can be a vicious bunch. They’re very territorial especially when they’re nesting and protecting newborns. This first photo is of a mother spending twelve hours a day coming and going to feed her recently hatched babies.
This second photo is that same mother protecting those young from an intruder. Two years ago this same bird had two nestlings killed by a bird of the same species. I found their little corpses in the nest after the birds left on their southern migration. I finally had to replace the box because they refused to come near the old one even though I’d cleaned out the old nest and dead babies. The first year after replacing that box they returned and took possession of the new one once again. They seem to be much more protective these days than in the past and rightly so.
Hopefully within a few weeks we’ll have a few little ones making a racket as they mature and prepare to leave the nest. That’s assuming no further catastrophes occur such as other birds or the neighbor’s cat. I might be forced to put a few Be-Be’s in the ass of that damn cat to help them a little if necessary.
I then moved through the garden to an area with freshly blooming day lilies. They are some of my favorite flowers for photographing. The colors are just so vibrant and beautiful I can’t resist them.
Lets get just a little closer to see more of Mother Nature’s finest work.
It’s these things that help keep me sane. I could easily roam for hours taking pictures of anything and everything and never be disappointed.
After a day of doing this I’m not quite so discontented with retirement. Doing things I never thought I’d have the opportunity to do is even cooler than I imagined. I do miss working more than I thought I would but it’s all a matter of adjusting to change. I’m almost there.
Another Father’s Day has come and gone. It was great day primarily due to my better-half. I was able to spend an hour or so early in the AM finishing my project for my man-cave. It’s now complete and after drying for one more day it’ll be moved into the cave once and for all.
“The Finished Product”
We initially decided to fire up the grill for a meal of corn-on-the-cob, steaks, and a fresh garden salad. The garden is growing so fast that I actually ate my first radishes yesterday. Take a look.
All of the recent rainfall has accelerated the growth of almost everything. I especially love the bright green colors and the lushness of the garden at this time of the year.
Now, let’s get back to my Father’s Day celebration. My better-half and I after a few cold and refreshing alcoholic beverages decided to cancel the home cooked meal and head for Old Orchard Beach, a local tourist trap and amusement park. She was in deep withdrawal due to a lack of greasy chicken wings and I was looking forward to some good old amusement park junk food. To hell with the weight loss program for this night.
The place wasn’t overly crowded but the tourists had definitely arrived in force. People watching in the park and a walk along the beach gave me my first “big butt” beach picture of the season.
I was really hungry so as the better-half waited for her chicken wing order at the Chinese hole-in-the-wall I discovered a new entry into the food competition right next door. Lo and behold a Mexican food stand had magically appeared and I was drawn to it like a gigantic black bean craving magnet. My black bean and rice addiction kicked in and I was hooked.
Three tacos covered with jalapeno vinaigrette and hot sauce were just what the doctor ordered. I threw in a fresh fruit cup for good measure and to help ease my guilty diet-conscience. The food was excellent and fresh but suffered from tourist pricing. No big surprise there.
Not too bad for amusement park food. We snapped a few pictures and did some window shopping and people watching. All in all it was a great night filled with good food and better company. Happy Father’s Day to me. I saw this shirt and I almost bought it. If it’s still there on my next trip I might be forced to make the purchase and regift it to a certain friend.
Todays posting will be a little more scatter-brained than usual but that’s something you should be used to by now. My life continues in it’s normal routine broken up only by the occasional minor problems, things that need fixing, or just a shot of Jack Daniels when needed. Owning a home is a constant stream of useless tasks that must be dealt with or the whole world will come crumbling down around us (or so says my better-half).
I’ve been spending a fair amount of time for the last few days trying to discover exactly what my brand new cell phone can do. I was forced to return to the bosom of Verizon Wireless after my two months of freedom when I discovered just how truly bad the Tracfone company really is. It sounded like a good idea at the outset but things went down hill fast after I actually tried to use it. Apparently they have half the number of towers that Verizon has which is reflected in their terrible cellular coverage. So I came crawling back to Verizon with my tail between my legs and signed up for a phone that appears to be way smarter than I am.
“Samsung Galaxy S4”
After two days of playing around with it I finally have it setup and ready to go. It’s actually pretty damn cool and has a camera function with 13 megapixels making it comparable to the quality of my Nikon 3200 SLR. The Android operating system also makes it a snap to get the photo’s from the phone to the blog. Android rules (even though I hate Google). Here’s a couple of sample photo’s I took in the garden yesterday.
It’s been a rainy week so far and I’ve had to find something to do to keep me out of trouble. I’ve had two old Sanyo speakers that I bought a million years ago that have long since become obsolete. I kept them around for years with the intention of making them into something useful and this was definitely the week for it. Here’s a series of shots as I progressed through the project. It’s nearing completion but it will be another week or two before I’m completely finished with staining and painting.
It’ll make another fine addition to the décor in my man-cave and will give me a few more storage options for my stupid treasures. I have a second matching speaker sitting somewhere in storage and I guess I’ll keep it until I can come up with a workable idea to repurpose it. That’s a new word I recently picked up from some stupid television show about salvaging old stuff and giving it a new life. It’s a little lame but accurate I suppose.
Yard sales and flea markets are on the agenda for Saturday, weather permitting. I sure hope we find a few things worth dragging home.
everyuselessthing.com 