How do I love thee? Let me count the ways on my paws

This post was meant for yesterday. I'd written it Sunday afternoon and was planning on posting it that evening for the next day. However, when I came back to check it before clicking "publish", I thought "Oh, my God, they'll all think I'm crazy." So I didn't click the button. Instead, I quickly wrote another post and used that one. At school today, I told a couple of people what I had done and they immediately said, "Oh, but you HAVE to publish that one." Don't expect much, really now. I'm sure they'll tease me all week about my dog being in love with the cat, or the cat from 'the wrong side of the farm'. Good thing I'm tough and can take it. And so here it is . . .

This is what happens when I have too much time on my hands and have taken a pain pill. Yes, I broke down Sunday afternoon and took one. I overdid it Saturday; let's leave it at that.

My husband was probably sick of seeing me limping about all hurt, and then he suggested I take a pain pill. I reached for the Advil but he said, "just take the real ones, Kate. I promise you that you'll feel better". Oh, and he was correct. I do. I do. I do. Feel better.

But this is what happens when I'm in lah-lah-land and out of pain and my camera with the zooooom lens is at hand and I'm sitting on my little couch. Regular readers of this blog will remember the stray cat that I've been feeding. I've been chided for not taking it in and/or naming it, but I'm over it. If you had any idea of the amount of stray cats I've seen on the horse farms I've lived. And how many I've named and taken in. Oh, don't get me going on this subject. Anyway, I feed it. I say 'it' because I don't know what sex it is. It doesn't let me get that close. But George, well he loves this cat. And the cat? Well it truly loves my dog.

The rain has stopped and there is suddenly a multitude of birds at the feeders. Here, SC is crouching while he was looking at all those lovely birds. He hears a noise behind him. It's his dog friend coming. "Hello, my friend", says the cat.

As you can see, George is very excited to see his cat friend.

"Hello to you", says George who proceeds to have a lie down to cuddle (read: chew) his best buddy. They do this all the time. The cat really does seem to enjoy it.

"What's that you say? I can't hear you. Oh, you love me?" asks George.

"Ah. You had me at hello", says George.

"You complete me", says the cat.

Cue Bruce Springsteen's "Secret Garden".

Press comment button for more.

Truth or Fiction Answers (and a winner)

Congratulations to Rachel Lynn, who correctly guessed that answer #4 in yesterday’s Truth or Fiction game was not true. The Weaver of Grass also guessed correctly, but Rachel beat her to it.

I’ve updated yesterday’s post to include the answers and am shocked that some of you think what you do about me. Am I really that outrageous?

I’ve seen this meme going around the blogosphere and thought I’d give it a go. This is a list of ten things about myself, one of which is false. A prize to the first person who gets it.

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, this should be easy. Those that thought they knew me know me in real life, don’t give away the answer, ok?

1. My television debut was at the age of six.

TRUE. I was in the peanut gallery of the Howdy Doody Show and was asked to stand up and sing ‘Mary Had a Little Lamb’. I was struck dumb with stage fright, so the microphone moved on, allowing my best friend, Paula Lackner to shine. It was great.

2. I once had a conversation on the phone with Robert Duvall.

TRUE. It was a very short conversation, but for what it's worth: I worked at a private high school in Middleburg, VA and one day a girl got sick and after we called the ambulance, I called the mother. I knew she worked for Mr. Duvall, but I never thought HE would answer the phone. I could tell it was him as soon as he said hello and asked who I was speaking to (Bob Duvall). He went to get the girl's mother after I told him what had happened. And that's that.

3. At the age of 20, my boyfriend and I seriously considered hiking the Appalachian Trail.

TRUE. What? You’re surprised? (And he’s my husband now).

4. I sang Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Fever’ at a karaoke bar one night to loud applause.

FALSE. I almost did. I was in a karaoke bar where some of my friends were singing, but I couldn’t do it. A couple more drinks, and the answer may have been different.

5. My favorite cocktail is Yukon Jack and fresh grapefruit juice on the rocks.

TRUE. Oh, so true. I even wrote a post about it [link]. Not that I condone drinking, mind you.

6. I once participated in a food fight with nuns.

TRUE. Same high school as mentioned above. I’d never met anyone like this group of sisters. Things were different in Virginia, I guessed. At the end of the school year, a celebration was held on the front lawn of the convent and the faculty were all in attendance as well as the board of directors. Crabs were served and I’d never seen so many. Everything was excellent.

At the end of the evening, with just about 25 of us left, one of the nuns picked up some food and threw it at the athletic director. Just for fun. He threw it back and before you knew it, it was an all-out food fight. It was insane but a huge amount of fun, because throwing food is really bad and nuns were doing it.

7. You can dress me up, and you can take me out.

TRUE. As comfortable as I am in jeans and a sweater, I love getting dressed up and going out. I don’t do it that often so it’s sort of special.

8. I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up.

TRUE. We all want to be something when we grow up.

9. The first car I bought for myself was a Fiat Sport Coupe.

TRUE. My parents helped me buy my previous car, but I bought this one myself, from my future brother-in-law. It was always breaking down, but I had a boyfriend who kept it on the road.

10. I can build a fire.

TRUE. Just hand me the matches.

I’ll put the answers up tomorrow. Until then, my friends . . .

PS: I’ll post the winner when I post the answers tomorrow.

Hiking in Acadia National Park

Hello, all!

I’ve finally returned from my vacation and am just now getting caught up with the all the commotion that my previous posts had generated. I had no idea that Maine, and my travels in general, would generate such interest.

As most of you know, I’ve been unable to post all week due to the lack of internet service at the cottage we rented while vacationing in Stonington, Maine last week.

We stayed at [this place], located on a peninsula directly between Burnt Cove and Crockett Cove, on the west (Sunset) side of Deer Isle. It’s a great place, but was billed as ‘secluded’ and it was not. But no complaints. It was well-apportioned and the nearby hiking was wonderful. MDI (Mt. Desert Island) is about an hour and 45 minutes away and is where Acadia National Park is located. This park is a must-see and is a gem in the nation’s list of national parks. We visited there twice while staying on Deer Isle last week.

I’d like to address a couple of the comments I’ve read since getting the internet going again. I’ve only been able to read through about half of them but one or two things keep coming to surface, so I’d like to address them, if you’ll be so kind.

YES, when you throw a live lobster into a pot, there is sort of a slight commotion (very slight) and a sound like your tea kettle has come to a boil. And then it ends as quickly as it happens. I’m not sorry that I love lobster and how it tastes with butter and lemon. I worked hard to eat lobster for three of the meals I had while in Maine. Hiking some of the trails at Acadia National Park are just a little bit more than I’m used to and there’s nothing better than tucking into a good lobstah meal!

And yes, you need to visit Maine in the summertime. I can’t recommend it in the winter, but only because I’ve never visited at that time of year. I would think that if you liked snow and cold that it would be awesome. I like snow and cold, in moderation.

 

AND NOW, here is the post I attempted to do on Friday, when I arrived at the local community store and found a parking lot full of some sort of fair, which I later saw was a big farmer’s market.

Twice this week, we headed to Mount Desert Island to hike a couple of trails in the park there. If you haven’t been to Acadia National Park, I suggest you go. It’s one of the most beautiful parks in the country.

On Tuesday, we hiked the Great Head Trail which is listed as a moderate hike that leads you to beautiful vistas of the water as well as an excellent view of Sand Beach. If you look closely at the photo above, you’ll see George and my husband, just around the middle. My husband wants me to hike the Beehive, which is in the photo below.

The Beehive is on the right and we can’t take George on the trail (yay!) so we won’t be hiking that one (secret *Yay* here) . It’s a “ladder” trail, which means that in several spots, you’ll either climb a ladder or hold onto one as you ascend the hill. An even more strenuous hike is The Precipice. I’m not even going to discuss that one. I will say, though, that in my youth I would have been all over it.

Oh, and notice that there’s not many people in the water on the beach above. It’s because it’s fricken freezin', that’s why! But it’s beautiful from here. And it’s getting hot hiking . . .

 

Thursday morning brought us back to MDI, driving up the Cadillac Mountain Drive for a view of Bar Harbor and the Porcupine Islands in the fog.

 

Somebody’s watching me taking photos from the roadside on Cadillac Mountain.

 

We followed the Park Loop Road to the parking lot at Jordan Pond. We’ve never been able to park here before, due to the throngs that visit this spot. But if you get to Jordan Pond before 9 am, the parking lot is quite empty. Just as we begin our hike around this beautiful lake, we see a carriage tour going past. The park is filled with wonderful carriage trails where you can either walk, bike or take a ride like this. No cars permitted.

 

View of Jordan Pond with The Bubbles (the two hills) in the background.

For about a mile around the lake, the trail is on planks like this, sometimes as high as 4-feet off the ground. George did quite well, in case you’re wondering~

We got nothing but compliments on him and he’s doing much better around lots of people. He’s still a little funny around small children, though. They sort of freak him out a bit.

After our hike, we left the Park Loop Road and took the road into Northwest Harbor which is way too swanky for my tastes. Beautiful, yes. We stopped at The Colonel’s to get a lunch to go, which was served in little cardboard boxes. I had a lobster roll and my husband had fish & chips. And let me tell you, it was the best lobster roll I’ve ever had and it even came with seasoned fries.

I promise to go on a diet really soon.

We drove along with the scent of our boxed lunches filling the car and making our mouths water. We were looking for Sergeant Drive which runs along the Somes Sound and has many little pullover areas. This is where we finally stopped to eat our lunch. Sorry I didn’t get a photo of the little box but it’s up there on the right. I was too hungry.

I don’t mean to sound like a hog, but we’d hiked all morning and I’d only had a power bar and that smell was driving me . . . crazy . . . who cares about taking pictures for the blog . . .

 

Home again. This is the scene we see as we look to the left (the south) every time we pull into the road that leads to our cottage in the woods.

I haven’t even been able to read any of my mail this week so am not able to respond to any comments. I’ll try to get up to the Community Center here on the island this morning to post this. Today is our last day here and it looks like another beautiful one. We were thinking of taking the Mail Boat to Isle Au Haut this morning but we’ll see how it goes. I don’t want to leave this place. It’s just too beautiful!

Until next time, my friends . . .

PS ~ Thanks to all, regular readers and all the new faces, for your comments and visits. Glad to have you along!

Two things

Two things happened today that drove home the fact that sometimes I am just a sentimental fool. I make no apologies for having this trait although at times I wish I didn’t get so teary about certain things.

First thing.

We had a pep rally today to kick off the start of the basketball tournament games which began after school. It’s always fun (well, for most, I guess) but this year I didn’t get to see any of it because I got busy in the office. No big deal. Sometimes that happens. But when I left at my regular time, the cheerleaders were warming up in the lobby and I stood and watched them in my coat before I went through the gym doors and eventually out to my car.

Our cheerleaders are amazing and our program has come a long way from where it was twelve years ago when I started at the school. Our coach is one of our parents and was formerly the coach at a nearby university. The group was totally in synch, the music was a blast, and they looked great. I smiled wide as I stood at the door watching them and when the routine was over, the coach turned and noticed me there, then asked me if I’d seen the pep rally today. I told her I hadn’t and why.

She turned to the girls and asked if they’d like to do Amanda’s routine for me and they all agreed. They were going to do a routine just for me because I hadn’t been able to attend the pep rally and I had no idea that one of our seniors had choreographed an entire dance routine. As the music began and the group started their precise moves, I was amazed that one of our girls did this. It looked so professional. And at the end, aerials and a lift and standing at the top of it all, a 7th grader who, as a young child, I consoled one day and who has always remembered my kindness. She always goes out of her way to say hello to me in the hallways. And at that moment, my heart just swelled.

And silly me, my eyes filled up with tears. I told them it was beautiful as I clapped after the ending. Amanda came and gave me a hug when she noticed I really was crying . . . and I left that building thinking what a sap I was. Can’t even watch a cheerleading routine without breaking down. Good grief.

Second thing.

I come home to my husband and my favorite pup. And later on as I’m going through photos, I find a series of bird shots that my husband has taken. They’re nothing special, and I’m thinking the whole time that I’ve really got to get him a better lens than this Quantaray. And as I’m going through them I realize suddenly how lucky I am that they are here on this disk in the first place. Because it means he’s still alive.

And I suddenly find that tears are falling down my face. Sometimes I really am just a total sap.

~ ~ ~ ~ @ ~ ~ ~ ~ @ ~ ~ ~ ~ @ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

And now, let’s get serious because inquiring minds would like to know . . .

1. How and when did you learn to type?

2. What is your key ring like?

3. What was the last thing you took a photo of?

4. Of the people in your life, who is the Geekiest?

5. When was the last time you had to shout in order to be heard?

See you in the comments, my friends . . .

I am interviewed by Le Jarden girl

As many of you have noticed, there's this little thing called the Interview Meme that's going around right now. I've already interviewed several people and it was a lot more fun that I thought it would be. You can visit them here.

And just in case you don't have enough information about me, there's more to come. So if you've already heard enough, I can honestly understand. Today, I'm being interviewed by Beth over at a wonderful little blog that I've just discovered. It's Le Jarden girl and I'm enjoying her photography very much. I also love the fact that she lives in Montana. My husband always wanted to move to Montana, to start a dental floss farm.

(I'm kidding you know, but extra points if you can name the artist that wrote that song).

So here goes.

Hello Kate, here are your questions I have for you.

I can tell you love to photograph from your blog, what is your all time favorite subject matter?

It's nature, Beth. I'm just drawn to it. Landscapes, flowers, mushrooms, seashells.

What got you started with your blog?

Originally, I had thought to just have it as a personal website for my sisters and I, after our mother passed away. We e-mail each other several times a week, and I always added pictures to my e-mails. I thought it would look nicer if I put my letters in a different format. And it sort of took off from there.

Have you always lived in Maryland, and if not where have you lived?

I was born in Philadelphia and my family moved around quite a bit when I was young. My father was an executive for the Coca-Cola Bottling Company. We lived in Pennsylvania and then in New Jersey. After I left home, I lived in Florida for awhile, then back to Jersey, Pennsylvania for years, Virginia for a year or so, and I've been living in Maryland since 1996.

I see you love to read...give me a list of your top ten books.

A top ten list? That means I would have to actually remember all the books I loved the most. I'll start by saying that as a child, Black Beauty was my all-time favorite book. I read it over and over. In my early 20's, I discovered Stephen King and I think I read The Stand about 8 times. I love all of Sue Grafton's Kinsey Milhone mystery books and I gravitate towards mysteries. I couldn't put down the Harry Potter books, either. And then there are all the classics. I love Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. There's probably 10 books in there somewhere.

Last of all, what inspires you most of all about your life?

Mulling over this question, I finally realized that what really inspires me is people. Photographers (such as yourself) inspire me, friends inspire me. The children and the teachers at my school inspire me. People I hear about on the news inspire me. And my husband, my sisters and my family do as well. So it's people.

Ok, people, listen up. How this meme works is that now I get to interview you. However, I've already done 13 of them and my brain is reeling from all of the thought-provoking and pondering I've been doing. Here's how I see it: This is a meme to let us get to know each other, right? So let's get to know some of the brand new people out there. What I'll do is offer to interview the first 3 new bloggers (blogging 3 months or less and who I have not yet interviewed) who comment asking me to do so.

Here's the directions:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. (I get to pick the questions).

3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Until tomorrow, my friends . . .

A Saturday Drive (& some link love)

It’s been an insufferably muggy day around here and the temperature outside was too high for comfort. It’s sad to say that most of the day was spent in air conditioned comfort but I kept busy with a few housekeeping chores and then playing around with some images I snapped this morning during George’s first outing in the new car.

To those of you who are new here, George is our 5-year-old border collie. The only car he’s ever really known is our Honda Element and exactly one week ago, we bought a new Subaru Outback and he had yet to go for a ride in it.

So today was the day.

He looks a little disconcerted to me.

But he soon perks up as we head down the driveway for a “ride in the car.”

Say that in our house and watch what happens.

(Pure doggie bliss).

We drove south for awhile, then headed over the Chesapeake City Bridge after buying some fish at a market along the way.

This is a high bridge that traverses the C&D (Chesapeake & Delaware) Canal.

My view west.

When I looked at all these images on my computer, I felt they were too glaring. I wanted softness, something much more calming, and so I edited them in Photoshop using a Gaussian blur technique I learned. Let me know if you'd like to learn it and I'll do a post about it.

Now the images were what I was looking for.

Hey!

It’s hay.

:  :  :

We drove around for a little while, looking things up in the car manual, my husband getting a good feel for this vehicle (which is awesome, btw) and then we headed north towards home, coming through the back side of Chesapeake City.

The town park by the water.

My favorite restaurant is the last building by the water there.

We have been going there for (OMG) nearly 30 years, since back when we lived in Pennsylvania. It was so good, and so worth travelling the extra miles for this place.

The Bayard House Restaurant

And then some more driving, and finally home and we were heading up the driveway towards the old manor house on the hill. We opened the windows so George could stick his head out (one of his favorite things).

Exciting, yes?

You don't have to answer that.

Almost home.

:  :  :

And now for some Link Love:

Please don’t be hurt if I read you regularly and you don’t see your name here. These are simply a few blog posts that I read early this morning that either touched my heart, made me swoon from the photography, or just plain had me smiling. And so, in no particular order, I give you:

not necessarily in that order by Kelly Letky at that’s mrs. mediocrity to you

Once in a Blue Moon by Hilary at The Smitten Image

Hello September by Caroline Manrique at Constantly Evolving

To a Beautiful Weekend, Dahlings! by Georgianna Lane at her Photography & Other Magic

DC Drama by Kat Warren at Low Tide High Style (there’s a Giveaway there, as well)

waiting by Daryl Edelstein at Out & About in New York City

:  :  :

And, with that, I bid you adieu for now, my friends . . .

thank you for stopping by to visit.

Hello it’s me

Did you think I’d fallen off the face of the earth? I’m sorry, my friends, that I’ve been so absent. I think that, for a long time, blogging was such an escape for me. It also enabled me to connect with people and to make new friends. But I loved that iIt gave me something to do while in the same room with my husband, who was either watching tv or resting. And now that it’s just me . . . maybe I don’t need it for an escape anymore.

I still enjoy sharing my photos with you and apologize that it’s just on a weekly basis anymore. It’s true that May and early June were extraordinarily busy for me at work. Being busy is fine but when you couple it with the weekend housekeeping chores, I feel like I hardly have time to just chill.

 

My favorite thing to do to relax these days is to take photographs of the birds at the feeders. I’ve built this weird perching system at the edge of the patio, trying to mimic the one my husband built that was knocked down by snow and winter storms.

I have several shepherd’s hooks with flowering baskets and bird feeders hanging from them. I have two bird baths. But I also have 2 old and large tree stumps. Attached to them are a series of long tree branches, and across some of the branches, I’ve tied other branches for perches. It’s a work in progress. So – on the whole, it’s kind of weird-looking. (I’ll show you some day). But for bird close-ups, it’s nice.

 

 

There’s this, which I think is terribly cute.

The tufted titmouse really likes the fruit & nut seed mix, so when I’m taking photos,

I fill up this little seed holder. It almost looks like he’s found a friend.

 

 

A downy woodpecker.

At least, I think it’s a downy. Could be a hairy, which is a little bigger. But it’s hard to tell without the other to compare it to.

 

What I was really waiting ever-so-patiently for was this fellow - a red-bellied woodpecker. I can sit outside for an hour or more and catch a few good shots, but this guy waited to show up immediately after I left the patio to go back inside. I’d been waiting for him because I could hear him for quite some time in the trees. I shot this image through the screened windows of the breakfast nook which is why it looks grainy like this.

 

I haven’t been just sitting at home on my free time.

My son came down from NYC and we went to a family graduation party in NJ yesterday. That’s the Delaware Memorial Bridge you see there.

 

I also took a boat ride with friends last weekend to say goodbye to another good friend and co-worker who has retired. I’m happy for her that she’s moving to NC to be closer to her children, but sad that I won’t be able to see her as much.

And finally . . .

 

I am heading to Maine again. With my sisters this time! All four of us will be staying in a cottage I rented. I had booked with the same agency last spring because my husband wanted to go see Maine again one last time. But about a month after I booked it, he began failing quickly and I had to cancel. I couldn’t get my money back, but the realtor told me I could transfer the rental to the following year. I not only did that, but I chose a bigger place so that all of my sisters could come with me. They’re coming from California, Florida, and Pennsylvania. And I cannot wait.

 

I’ll keep you posted . . .

 

Enjoy your week, my friends and thanks for stopping by today.

In no particular order

Hello, my friends. This post is coming to you completely off the top of my head, in no particular order and what few images there are all came from my cell phone.

First off, I want to state that I should not have bought that bag of Keebler Grasshopper cookies. I guess I wanted to see if they really tasted like the girl scout thin mint cookies. But seriously, I really didn’t need to know. That they do. Especially after you put them in the freezer. And now I know that they’re excellent on top of vanilla ice cream. This is also something I did not need to know.

 

 

I took this image of my side view mirror one day last week in the early morning, while driving down the driveway heading to work. I always roll down the window so that I can wave goodbye until I reach the bend and he can’t see me anymore. That’s my husband just to the right of the orange Element, waving back. It’s what we have done every day for several years.

 

 

I broke down and bought a new smart phone last Friday. I went to the Verizon store, marched up to the counter, and asked to see the iPhone 5 which I was determined to get. I had done some research and had thought it was what I wanted. I came home with the Samsung Galaxy S4, however, which I am in love with.

 

I am an Android girl.

 

Did I mention that it has a 13 megapixel camera?

 

 

Every evening, George and I go outside while my husband takes his after-dinner nap on the couch. George chases squirrels, sniffs around the edges of the property, finds his frisbee and brings it to me while I water the container plants, freshen the water in the bird baths, and fill the feeders with seed. It’s become a nice kind of ritual doing all the little chores that my husband used to do. I know he would love to be able to still do them.

 

 

So this is some little thing my phone does with the camera. I was walking around the property, snapping pictures and inadvertently touched something on the top of the screen that I couldn’t seem to make go away. It put this little picture in the corner, and without my reading glasses on, I couldn’t tell what it was. But then I realized it was my finger and by the time I took the picture, there I was in the shot.

 

Hello.

 

 

Our son is coming out at the end of the month to stay the weekend with his father so that I can go visit my niece in Philadelphia. My sister and her other daughter will be there as well and we’re planning on having a girls night at home. I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to seeing them and just getting away for a night and a day.

 

 

 

One of the first grade teachers brought me a gift and a card this week. In the card, she told me how much my help and kindness has meant to her over the years. She thanked me again for a print I had given her that she has hanging in her classroom. She said that it calms her just to look at it. It’s a black & white image of a stand of trees with bare branches that I had completely forgotten I had given to her. I then remembered that I did it when she was having a hard time of it earlier this year. The gift she gave to me was a book on photography, specifically the art of photographing trees.

 

I love trees.

 

I nearly cried.

 

Kindness really does matter.

 

 

[Posted by George Young on Pinterest]

 

:   :   :

 

And on that note, I bid you farewell.

 

Until next time, my friends . . .