Thankful Sunday--September 28, 2014

I am thankful for a visit from Theodore

(and so are the cats).

Theodore was home from school this weekend and it was a pleasure to see him. He brought his dirty clothes which I encouraged him to do because it is so much cheaper for him to wash them here. And the added bonus was his basket of smelly clothes was a favorite place for the cats to hang out.

Unfocused

Blogging is more difficult these days than I would like. On first thought, I'm not sure why. When I think about it, I have many ideas I want to explore or things I have done that I want to share. But the problem seems to be that my mind is too busy as well as my life to focus. It's not crazy busy like I have 100 bushels of apples to process or I have three events scheduled every day at the same time, but it's busy all the same.

It's busy with important life issues. There is a very, very sick relative and a very needy elderly parent who are using much of my energy. There is also planning for the next stage of life. The empty nest has brought thoughts of what my husband and I want to do--where we want to live, how we want to live, when we want to retire, what we can afford, etc.

It's also busy with everyday things like doing the laundry and fixing the lawnmower. Going to work and taking the cats to the vet. Cleaning the fridge and freezing tomatoes. Paying the bills and tutoring the girl next door. You know, the things that provide the rhythm for our days.

And I am lucky that I also have some time to spend on things that truly make me smile. Watching the birds. Exploring my yard. Lunching with friends. Visiting with my kids. Sitting on the couch with my husband and watching a silly TV show. 

Where am I going with all of this? I'm not sure. I have no great conclusions except that life goes in cycles and sometimes you feel restless and unfocused. And sometimes you don't.

So there you have it. The beginnings of my exploration into why I feel unsettled these days. Now it's time to go to work. Thanks for listening to my ramblings.

A Second Look--September 24, 2014

This week I did a Second Look in the morning--not my typical time because I'm really not a morning person. However I decided it was time to try a different perspective on things in honor of the official  beginning of Fall. When first I went out, the air was cool and the sun was up but there was still fog in the valleys and dew on the grass. The birds were fairly quiet except for the cawing of some noisy crows and the drumming of a persistent woodpecker. As the sun rose higher in the sky, these were joined by more melodious sounds of other birds. The bees and other insects appeared to be waiting for the day to warm up before they began their activity because I saw very few of them compared to later in the day. The plants are continuing to change as some leaves are turning red while others are going straight to brown. However, there still bits of color from summer here and there.

Here are a few things I was this week 

during a Second Look.

Dew covered most things including this balloon flower.

Fungus on rotting stump.

Honeysuckle berries. The birds love these, but they can be poisonous for humans.

A few of the coreopsis are still blooming, but most are turning to seed.

Roxanne geranium

At first I thought the inchworm on this coneflower was a stick, but it appears that it was just still "sleeping."

Thankful Sunday--September 21, 2014

I am thankful for pen and paper.

Out of all of the ways we have to record things today, for me nothing beats a good, old fashioned pen and paper.

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions-Sept. 19, 2014

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions. Occasionally, if our eating is going okay, I'll talk about some other food topic.

This Week's Month's Food Waste 

and True Food Confessions

I've gotten out of the habit of reporting on these endeavors and it's time to get back on track after being absent for a month.

Overall the food waste hasn't been too bad but we certainly have had some. With an abundance of  garden produce this summer has also come a few tomatoes and a cucumber that have gone bad before we used them. Also down-the-drain went a jar of mayo and a jar of BBQ sauce. The mayo got left out on the counter overnight after using it for a tomato sandwich. Also I decided it was time for some BBQ sauce to go. It's been in the fridge for over seven years. (Yes, I said seven years.) I didn't like the taste of it and apparently neither did anyone else. 

 

Some of the things we've enjoyed eating recently.

As far as our eating, it hasn't been too bad either.  Our eating-out has been an occasional Chinese takeout or Subway sandwich except for the week we were on vacation. There we ate out every night after having breakfast at the hotel and peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. As I mentioned above, we have been enjoying fresh things from the garden. Many of our meals have centered around watermelon, cucumbers, squash, beets, brussel sprouts, beans,  zucchini, and tomatoes. Also, Ward tried out his new smoker with a chicken and some ribs. And I'm happy to report that it worked well. Also, we recently tried a recipe for crock pot lasagna. That was also a hit. 

As much of the garden produce is done for the year, I'm going to have to start planning more. This summer's meals have mostly been guided with what fresh vegetables we had to work with. Wish me luck with the planning as this has never been my strong suit.

Until next time...(which will hopefully be next week.)

A Second Look--September 17, 2014

What can I say? The weather has been wonderful with cool mornings and warm days. The kind of days where you wear a sweater to work, but forget to bring it home because it's warm when you leave. (Don't ask me how many sweaters I have at work right now.) While I am still seeing plenty of critters, I am seeing fewer of them. I don't know if they've gone south, or they're off preparing for the impending winter.
 
But I did notice something that totally fascinated me this week. I saw a skipper butterfly roll up its proboscis. One minute it had it extended and collecting pollen and the next minute, it was rolling it up and hiding it. It was just like one of those party noise makers that unrolls when you blow into it and then rolls back up when you stop. Now if I were like millions of others out there, I would have had my smart phone ready and have a good video to show you. However, I don't have a smart phone and the video on my camera doesn't work right. So you'll just have to take my word for it when you see the pictures below. It was really neat. :)

Here are a few things I saw this week during a Second Look.

Dogwood tree. Notice the buds for next spring's blooms next to the berries from this year's blooms.

Sternbergia lutea

A few of the Lily of the Valley berries have been snatched.

Skipper butterfly on sedum. If you look closely, you can see it had its proboscis out in the first picture. In the second picture, you can't see it.

Faithful flowers that have been blooming all summer and are still hanging on.

Saddleback Caterpillar. It turns out that this colorful caterpillar has venomous barbs. Not only will they sting you skin, they can also make you sick. I'm glad I was wearing gloves when I found him.

Female hummingbird.  Male hummingbirds leave a few weeks before the females. I don't know if all of the males are gone, but I've only seen females at the feeder.

Star Spangled Banner, 200th Anniversary

Yesterday was the 200th anniversary of the writing of our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. Here is a post I wrote a couple of years ago after visiting Fort McHenry where the event took place.

A History Lesson

My history education hasn't been very good—both from my schooling and my own initiation. So, I have vague ideas about a lot of things but don't understand much completely. This was evident during my recent visit with Ward to Fort McHenry in Baltimore. I knew that Francis Scott Key wrote the Star Spangled Banner there while he was watching bombs bursting in air, supposedly to the tune of an old English drinking song. But I never knew the rest of the story.

A replica of Key's Star Spangled Banner at Fort McHenry

Picture it. September 1814 during the War of 1812. The British have just burned the Nation's Capital and the people of Baltimore are frightened. The British Navy is amassing in the Chesapeake Bay and they are coming for Baltimore next if they can get by Fort McHenry. Meanwhile, Francis Scott Key, a young Georgetown lawyer, has taken a ship out among the British to negotiate for the release of Dr. William Beanes, who is a prisoner of war. 

The British start bombing the fort and the Americans return their fire. Francis is forced to stay among the British ships and can do nothing but watch the massive battle. For twenty five hours the exchange goes on. The firing finally stops and the battle has been won. But by whom? He anxiously awaits to see which flag will be flying over the fort: the Union Jack or the Stars and Stripes. When dawn brakes, it is a tremendous relief for him to see the Star Spangled Banner still flying. Francis Scott Key, overcome with emotion, is inspired to capture the feelings of the experience by penning the Star Spangled Banner.

There are many more details, that I can't quite remember, but the words of our National Anthem now have more meaning for me.

"Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

Thankful Sunday--September 13, 2014

I am thankful for rain.

I thought we were going to have sunshine. Instead we had a gentle, cool rain all day long. Because of that, I slowed down and enjoyed the day. No rushing outside to mow the grass and weed the beds. Instead a day inside of reading and watching the birds through the window. For that I am thankful.

Praying Mantis Grooming

Recently Ward and I were outside doing a bit of work when I spotted a praying mantis. The first thing I noticed was that it blended perfectly with the plant it was on. It even had a bit of red on its head to match the red on the leaves. As we were marveling at that, it started to do something that we hadn't seen before. It started to groom itself. At least that's what it looked like. It was biting up and down it's legs and looked just like our cats do sometimes when they are cleaning their legs. And then, ever so cat like, it rubbed it's clean leg over it's head--just like our cats do. We were fascinated.

We had never thought about an insect grooming itself, but that is certainly what it looked like. A quick look on the internet revealed, that yes, indeed, praying mantises do groom themselves. In fact, when I widened the search to include all insects, I found out that grooming is something that many insects do. Who knew? I certainly didn't. From a brief skimming of the articles, it looks like the antennae are what are groomed the most because these are very important in transmitting sensory information. Cock roaches have had several studies done about them in this area.

I don't know if you can make out much from these pictures below, but trust me, it was very interesting to watch. Now I'm going to be on the lookout to see if I can observe grooming in other insects. Do you ever wonder how you can have lived so long and not know anything about something that is very common? It seems to happen a lot to me. I'm not sure what that implies, but I do know that it keeps life interesting.

When you first look, it's hard to see, but notice the praying mantis' triangular head is in the bend of its raised leg. This was part of its leg cleaning.

Notice the praying mantis is biting its leg. It did this all up and down it's leg.

Annie grooming her head and ears. This kind of grooming I'm familiar with.

Want to explore further?

Insects Groom to Improve Their Sense of Smell

Praying Mantis Grooming Video

A Second Look--September 10, 2014

It's going to be hot and steamy today, but we've had beautiful weather the last couple of days--just like fall should be. And speaking of fall, the first of the fall flowers has bloomed--the Autumn Joy Sedum. Even though we haven't seen as many butterflies this year, the skipper butterflies seem to be flocking to it. The mums, the classic flower of fall, are budding but haven't bloomed yet. However, there must be several other things flowering because everyone's fall allergies are starting to act up.

Here are a few things a saw this week during 

a Second Look.

Skipper butterfly on newly blooming sedum.

This spider has caught a lot in its web. It's hard to see, but look carefully at the bottom of the "mess".

Most of the coneflowers have faded or gone to seed. However, here's one that is still hanging on.

Another skipper butterfly. (There are many different kinds of skippers, and also the name of this flower escapes me at the moment.)

The black walnuts are starting to fall making it tricky to walk sometimes.

Coltsfoot seeds (At least, I think that's what these are.)

Thankful Sunday--September 7, 2014

I am thankful to be home.

After a interesting, educational, wonderful, family vacation, 

I am glad to be home.

Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.

Philly Vacation--Day Five

Today was the day to slow down a little. We visited Valley Forge in the morning and when the heat started to become too much, we headed home. But before the heat became uncomfortable, we had a wonderful morning exploring the Valley Forge area. Since the summer officially ended on Labor Day (September 1), many of the scheduled talks weren't active. But that also meant that when we took the driving tour of the area, we only encountered a couple of other people. Just our speed especially after spending the few previous days in the city that was teeming with people.

Valley Forge is the site of a seven month encampment of George Washington and over 10,000 soldiers during the winter of 1777-1778. They have reconstructed much of the area from written records and archeological digs.

A few pictures from our visit to Valley Forge.

Ward entering the very nice visitor's center. He was disappointed that he didn't have time to read every display. He's the kind that reads everything. I'm more of a skimmer.

A representative of the huts the men lived in during the winter.

There was a bare minimum in these huts--12 bunks and a fire place. Here's Theo trying out one of the bunks.

National Memorial Arch dedicated in 1917 to the people of the Valley Forge encampment. For an idea of scale, you can see Ward, Wally, and Theo under it.

George Washington's headquarters during the encampment. The house was a rental property of Mr. Potts, who made his money from iron forges around the Vally Stream. (Thus the name, Valley Forge.)

George Washington statue. For those of you into symbolism, there is a lot of it in this statue such as he is holding a walking stick where there would normally be a sword. You can ponder that for a moment and come to your own conclusion as to what it means.

Philly Vacation--Day Four

Flamingo from Philly Zoo

It has been good visiting here during the first week of school. That has meant no lines and only a few kids. However, the few that we've seen have been a lot of fun to watch. Like the little boy at the zoo who called to his mother, "Look, he wants a piggyback ride!," when he saw one of the goats mount another one. That goat looked like he had something entirely different in mind than a piggyback ride. Speaking of the zoo, that was one of the places we visited today along with the Franklin Institute Science Museum.

We have been visiting the local zoo with Wally and Theo since they were born. When they were little we went at least once a month. Even though they are adults now, it's still a fun thing to do. Maybe even more fun because we don't have to pull them down from the fences before they climb into an exhibit. We enjoyed all of the animals we saw, but our favorite, of course, were the big cats. They reminded us of the four cats we left at home especially when we saw one of the younger tigers scratching at a door. That was because she wanted to get back to where two other younger male tigers were. Her persistence seemed just like our cats when they scratch on our bathroom door until we come out.

We left the zoo as it was getting hot and made our way to the Franklin Institute. Every time you mention the Franklin Institute to someone who has been there, they talk about the giant, walk through heart. So that's the first thing we saw. However, I think our favorite for the day was the Amazing Machine room with all of the gears and levers to watch and play with. We ended the day with a trip to the planetarium which depending on your perspective, was either a good place to learn about weather on other planets or a good place to take a nice nap.

Until next time...
 

Pennsylvania established the Philadelphia Zoological Society in 1859--the first of its kind.

Other tigers were behind this door and she wanted in.

Wally and Theo watching rhinos. They are about 20 years older than when we visited the zoo with them in strollers.

Besides the big cats, giraffes are always interesting to see.

The Franklin Institute was first formed in 1824, but is most famous for its Science Museum that opened in 1934.

Theo getting ready to enter the giant heart.

Theo at beginning of the Amazing Machine exhibit.

Ward in part of a very interesting exhibit they had on the brain.

Philly Vacation--Day 3

Well, I can't complain about the weather today. We had a storm last night which cooled things down as well as lowered the humidity. It was certainly a welcome change. We also had a change up in activities. Today the emphasis was on buildings instead of history although there was an interesting history involved with everything we saw.

Carving from City Hall

We started in Center City where we toured the Philadelphia Masonic Temple and City Hall. The temple was a large building, built in the late 1800's, and very ornately decorated. Among other things, they had five main meeting rooms that had been painstakingly copied from five different temples or museums from around the world. Each room was filled with elaborate, beautiful details.

Next we moved across the street to take a tour of Philadelphia City Hall. This city hall is the largest operating municipal building in the US (it has over 700 rooms) and its building style is referred to as French Second Empire, I'm not sure what that means except detailed and fancy. It was built in the late 1800's, but has a long history of funding difficulties and the city wanting to tear it down. However, luckily it has been mostly restored and is still a busy city office building. The highlight for Ward, Wally, and Theodore may have been riding the elevator to the observation deck (548' above ground) at the base of a 37' high statue of William Penn (Philly's founder). That wasn't the highlight for me, however, because I'm afraid of heights.

After tours of these beautiful buildings, we moved onto something quite different. Next we toured Eastern State Penitentiary which was in operation from 1829 to 1971. It was quite radical when it was first built because it considered that wrong-doers could be rehabilitated instead of just punished. I'm not so sure that their ideas of total solitary confinement for the prisoners to contemplate their wrong doings worked out so well in the end, but their systems was copied in many other places in the world.

After another interesting, but tiring day, we changed hotels to one outside of town. It's a little cheaper and calmer here than where we were in the city, but that location served us well as we were able to walk to may attractions.

Until next time...

Pictures from the Masonic Temple

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Pictures from City Hall

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Pictures from Eastern State Penitentiary

Escape tunnel from one of the cells