The Cats are in Charge

We are off to enjoy a day of sunshine, beautiful Inland Empire scenery, and picture taking.The cats have been left in charge. Stay tuned for pictures !

Gathering Leaves

Gathering Leaves

by Robert Frost Spades take up leaves No better than spoons, And bags full of leaves Are light as balloons. I make a great noise Of rustling all day Like rabbit and deer Running away. But the mountains I raise Elude my embrace, Flowing over my arms And into my face. I may load and unload Again and again Till I fill the whole shed, And what have I then? Next to nothing for weight, And since they grew duller From contact with earth, Next to nothing for color. Next to nothing for use. But a crop is a crop, And who's to say where The harvest shall stop?

Tag... I'm It Also: List of Seven Meme

I spotted this meme many times in visiting other blogs this week and thought I would give it a twirl.

Things I Plan To Do Before I Die
1. Write a cookbook
2. Visit the Olympic National Park in Washington state
3. Raise grapes that make good wine
4. Go on a train trip
5. Return to playing the piano and getting better at it
6. Volunteer to help animals in some way
7. Capture family stories and history in written form


7 Things I Do Now
1. Teach students wedged between childhood and teenage years
2. Grow flowers
3. Find new and different ways to can and preserve food
4. Write every day
5. Pray
6. Chronicle my life in photos
7. Read books and articles that make me think

7 Things That Attract Me To The Opposite Sex
1. Makes me laugh
2. Misses me when I am gone
3. Eager to learn new things
4. Loves animals
5. Appreciates the world around us
6. Loves the simple things in life
7. Kindness toward others

7 Things That I Say Most Often
1. How was your day?
2. Are you making good choices?
3. What do you want for dinner?
4. Thank You!
5. I feel blessed.
6. Are you going to town today?
7. What have you learned today?
7 Celebrities That I Admire
1. Paul Newman
2. Billy Graham
3. Ina Garten
4. Meryl Streep
5. James Taylor
6. Mary Oliver
7. Mary Englebreit

7 Favorite Foods
1. Homemade bread
2. Rib Eye Steak
3. Garlic Mashed Potatoes
4. Orange Rolls
5. Coffee
6. Cherries
7. garden fresh green beans
7 People Who Need To Do This:
any of you that have time and are interested. Let me know in a comment or email that you did it so I can read it!

Required Slowdown: No Power

Things have been way too busy in my life lately. I got home late yesterday with a bag of work and a list of "to-dos" and I felt swamped before I got out of the car. Just when I was ready to do dinner preparations, the power went off! The meal moved to the barbecue and I felt my sense of being overwhelmed begin to slowly fade away. I got to sit and talk with my husband. I could move through the early evening slowly. Avista said the power would be back on by 9:00. I stretched out on my chaise lounge, lit the propane lantern, read and dozed.
Isabelle joined me as we felt full relaxation. Later the message changed and the power was not to come on until 2:00 a.m. It was early to bed with some reading with a flashlight and a peaceful end to a very hectic day. The only disruption later was when the power came back on a bit after midnight and all the lights were on.
It was a slowdown I needed. Today I feel refreshed. Perhaps we should just turn off our power every so often to slow down the busyness of life!

Moving Inside

It is that time of year when our living moves inside. It is a bit too wet and damp to sit in the garden and too dark to even enjoy our surroundings on the deck for dinner. Today was a warm socks sweater day. It was a day when flip flops were put away, students arrived in with heavier sweatshirts, and less pairs of shorts were spotted in the hallway.
The cats always have a natural moving inside ritual also. Kit found the warm fire and decided that was the place to take a nap. It doesn't take much to keep a cat happy. Isabelle is close to the warmth also on the back of the chair. The dogs also love that ritual of leaving the outside behind.

The natural rhythm of the season coaxes us to crave the warmth of a fire, mix up a pot of hearty soup, and sip a warm mug of tea. Moving inside is part of that rhythm and my soul tells me it is time.

I've Seen Fire and I've Seen Rain

In the case of today it was first the rain and then the fire. Since the trees went down at the end of July the slash that remained has sat where we usually park. It was too dry for so long to burn. The last few days we have been blessed with much needed rain. The slash pile has been getting drier and drier plus it didn't add much to the whole landscaping scheme around the place!!JEJ decided this evening it was time for a bonfire! I had never had a big Homecoming-like bonfire in my own driveway. I also had never really experimented with taking pictures of fire. It was a nice break from reading essays earlier this evening. The coals here look perfect for some really big marshmallows! He made a dent in the pile tonight. If it keeps raining maybe I will get to do another fire series of photo images!!