Clouds

As the sun was coming up this morning and I took Bob the Beagle out to potty, it was impossible to ignore the thick blanket of clouds that hung above the little town below.

In the first photo, although it looks like the sun rising, actually it is a drop of moisture that had fallen on my camera lens that I didn't notice until I saw the picture.

Peace to all!

Baseball in Central America

It is 109 in my little piece of the world. The heat index is around 117. I have no words to say for any of this because like everyone else who lives here, I do not understand it and find myself wondering how we, our animals and livestock can continue to survive in conditions that are so foreign to our nature.

So, rather than whine about something of which I have no control, I shall share Dennis' recent trip with you. Enjoy the brief escape.

Dennis just returned from a trip to Nicaragua.

Like many other countries in Central and South America, it has a lush green landscape with breath taking ocean and mountain views. Above is a picture of the volcano near Managua.

The country has beautiful resort areas, and areas of dire poverty. He saw people sleeping on the sidewalks, with the fortunate ones building shelter out of any scrap objects they could fine.

But once he got to the ball park, he could have been in any city in the world. The kids, the excitement, the dedication is universal.

Kids swarming the Yankees scouts, wanting them to sign their caps.

A lone Nicaraguan player, coming to the stadium early to wait for his game.

Nicaraguan kids, excited to meet a Yankees scout. (Dennis is taking the picture. The scout in the picture is one of his translators)

End of the day.........

Reflections on the First Half of 2011

Now that we are well passed the halfway mark in 2011, I was thinking about what has happened so far this year.

Looking back through the blog, there was a lot of talk about the weather. Around here, that has been the focal point of most folks' lives. At the beginning of the year, we had a lot of snow and ice. Then came spring and we had an unprecedented amount of rain and several tornadoes. I will always remember this because for two months this Spring, a bull dozer sat in my yard. But it was only in operation about half of that time because the ground was so wet and the rainfall was so fierce.

Now we are in late summer and what we wouldn't give for some of that rain right now. Ponds are dry, lawns and fields are parched, and cattle prices are low because the market has been inundated with animals their owners can neither need or water.

I don't like the sound my boots make when I walk around the mountain. Each step I take is a constant reminder the grass is so dry and brittle, it breaks off down to the bare earth, leaving an ugly footprint in my wake.

This was the year we were to have grapes in the vineyard. It began very promising. Each row had an abundance of clusters and our mouths would water every day as we checked them and monitored the growth. Then the rains came and they stayed wet far too long. Mold and rot set in. We had hopes for the clusters that survived. Then the long hot dry summer came. Despite being watered every evening around sunset, many of the survivors simply burned up and shriveled on the vine. At the moment, the Cynthiana is hanging on. But I have learned not to be too optimistic when it comes to things controlled by weather. We are definitely not in control. I have realized this year I could not be a farmer...the uncertainty it just too much for someone like me with an overly-controlling personality. I have no control over this at all and it frustrates me. But.....there is always next year!

Despite the weather, some wonderful things have happened this year. We have made a lot of progress on the mountain. Our mission to tackle a major project each year (we are eight years in now) is rolling along. Because we chose outside projects this year instead of inside ones, the work we have done is more obvious.

We cleared some unusable land, built a pond (now we need rain!), and are almost finished with the outdoor kitchen and fireplace. We see deer almost nightly now in front and they are mesmerizing to watch. We are hoping the pond will be a water source for all types of wildlife, but because of the lay of the land, we can't actually see in it from the house, so the creatures who need to bathe or drink or just cool off will have an element of privacy.

Dennis has traveled the world this year with his new job. He has gone to places we might not have initially considered as travel destinations, but after being there, he always found something unique and interesting, and with the exception of the very dangerous environment in Venezuela, he would look forward to returning to each country.

So far, this has been an eventful year. I am hoping to have the projects finished by Fall, and Dennis home a wee bit more so we can enjoy them. We live our lives in increments......he will be home 3 days on the 10th, 2 days on the 25, etc. We have to pack everything into these tight containers of time, but we have been doing this for so long, we know no other way. I guess our "normal" is like everyone else...........it's what you become accustomed to.

I look forward to the Fall, my favorite time of year, and what it holds for us all.

Best wishes to you and yours!

Families on the Mountain

We are not the only family living on this 22 acre mountaintop plot of land.

Most evenings, usually between 7:00 and dark, another family comes out of the shelter of the deep woods to visit the salad bar that is the freshly planted grass on the cleared land in front of our house.

They seem to be getting braver as they spend more time in the open. I know they see me watching them from the upper deck, sometimes with a camera, but usually just in awe of their beauty and grace.

I wish they weren't so brave. They are in danger and don't realize it. There are people who live nearby who love guns and seem to love killing things. How someone could purposly take the life of something so beautiful and perfect for their own personal pleasure is beyond anything I can comprehend. It isn't a sport if the one being hunted can't shoot back.

So, I will protect these beautiful creatures as best as I can and hope the evil nearby can not see over the fence and find out find out they are here.

I am so grateful they let me look...........hope you are too!

Flowers

I have five good friends, scattered about the country, each of whom is a very gifted painter. I anxiously await emails containing their new work and I am always spellbound by their ability to take an ordinary subject and turn it into a thing of beauty to be seen in a more vibrant and thought provoking way.

So it is with a bit of reluctance on this quiet Sunday morning that I decided to share with you these lovely lilies I found in my rock garden early this morning while out taking a walk. Any one of those five extraordinary people could paint the subject with more identity and imagination. I cannot draw a stick man that would be recognized as a stick man.

But I, with my modest (meaning inexpensive) camera could not pass up the opportunity to capture these beautiful, fleeting treasures from the earth because I wanted them to be seen by eyes other than my own. I hope you agree.

Peace to all!

Guests

When I took Bob the Beagle out to potty before bedtime tonight and noticed we had a visitor......

The Vineyard and What It Brings

For the past three years, since the day we planted the tiny little fragile vines in the ground, I have entertained a fantasy about our first harvest.

Dennis and I would work in the hot sun, side by side, snipping clusters of grapes from the six rows of vines as we discussed politics, music, mutual friends and current events. In my vision of that day, we would be so excited to see our dream come to fruition after over five years of planning that we could hardly contain ourselves as we carried the buckets of fruit back to our kitchen.

I think about that day a lot.

Two weeks ago, the Chardonnay grapes were abundant and beautiful as they began to blossom and hang down from the cordons. The quantity of the clusters was almost overwhelming.

But then on May 23, we got an enormous amount of rain.....so much rain it sat on the ground for days. Soon after, we noticed a distinct change in the beautiful green grapes. Some of them began to turn dark.

After consulting the professionals, we learned two very distinct and somewhat disappointing things. First, all of the grape clusters that were discolored would have to be removed. And secondly, our plan to grow organically would have to change in order to preserve our fruit.

So, today in 93 degree temperatures and without Dennis, I had to do what was technically the first cutting to protect future growth. And it was sad.

At the end of the afternoon, after carefully examining and clipping two rows of Chardonnay, vine by vine, branch by branch, I ended up with these two buckets full of precious grapes that we could no longer use.

But there always is an up side to a dismal situation if you look hard enough. And my up side was surrounding me.

This mountain really belongs to the many inhabitants that live deep in these wood...we are just the caretakers. I don't see them often, but their presence is always with me. Sometimes, I feel their eyes on me as I work and there is evidence of them everywhere.

After my disappointing harvest today, I decided there was only one thing that could be done to justify our loss.
So tonight, when my fellow mountain inhabitants come out to search for food under the protective blanket of darkness, they will find a surprise. Deep in the woods, in various locations, the table will be set with a feast of Chardonnay grapes........ all they have to do is show up.

And my long walk back to the house this evening wasn't near as sad as the walk I had made earlier in the day to the vineyard.

UPDATE: So far, the rows of Cabernet and Cynthiana grapes are doing fine.