What a Difference a Year Makes!

As has been stated before, some might say ad nauseam, I love having a blog! You should try it. 

Except more work goes into it than you might imagine, especially as I get older. Of course you see the finished product and for the most part, it looks pretty good. It's meant to. But still I make mistakes and before you even see it I have made many more. Seems as if my typing skills are diminishing lately yet I keep writing and taking photographs because I love them both so much. When it comes to either remembering things, or confirming my suspicions, the blog is invaluable. 

So what prompted that lengthy intro? The heat and more specifically the lack of rain! Undoubtedly the cause for it to be 90 degrees today with nary a cloud in the sky! I do love that Carolina blue, but enough is enough! We need rain. Unlike this post that was written one week after we arrived at the cottage. Not only did I write about the rain that June, but I also wrote how we would not be here more than three months. Shows you what I knew! The second post after our arrival begins with this line: "Do I start with the rain? Lots of steady rain this week, although it did not keep us from adventuring." I even wrote, get this, "that we lit a fire one afternoon." 

Let's just say that it is keeping me guessing! The mosquitos have abated only slightly, however I have discovered that if I immediately rub the bites down with an alcohol wipe, that seems to help.  I was chatting with Daniel, our next door neighbor, and he mentioned the mosquitoes to which I replied, "tell me more." Turns out that once the TVA fills the river with water, essentially making a long lake, the little tributaries fill and the water sits there breeding, yup, mosquitoes. Being just a few blocks from the river has both advantages and disadvantages. Just like everything else, right? The heat and bugs have cut down on my walking, but I did see this the other day.

I've forgotten the name of these puffy pink flowers but they sure look pretty, especially when a cute little sparrow rests on one the branches. 

Not far from there I heard the distinctive call of a Cardinal prompting me to look over my head. I never saw the face of the bird, but with all that green, I thought it made for an interesting photograph.

I started to write that I was seeing far fewer birds and while it is mostly true, one can almost always count on seeing a Mourning Dove, one of the most prevalent North American birds.

One day last week we played pickleball in nearby Andrews because they were doing work on our courts. As has been stated many times before, I love the drive there.

Have you ever wondered why they are called the Blue Ridge Mountains as a whole? It has to do with a hydrocarbon called isoprene. Look at me sounding all scientific! Actually, I learned about it from this website which should you care to learn more, you can click on the provided link. Sounds pretty fancy to me. That same article says the Cherokee Indians had something to do with the name as well.  The folks playing pickleball in Andrews were quite nice and one day soon we will have to return. I really should have posted this picture shouldn't I?

And to think all of the above will change color in a few months. For a Florida gal, that is simply amazing.

Speaking of blue, the hydrangeas are starting to change, is maybe the best way I can put it. Next year I will be able to go back in time and see what happened when I begin to worry about them! 

Maybe it has to do with the heat? Surely I don't know. Some look like the above, and increasingly others, are looking like this.

How interesting is that? I'll answer that question! Pretty darn interesting. The climbing hydrangea has nary a bloom nor does another hydrangea plant that is closer to the backyard. Then again, maybe it is biding its' time? Our neighbor Sandy has all manner of good things growing in her yard. These pink ones, against her house, are beautiful.

As is her Oak Hydrangea.

They began as sort of a creamy white, but as time goes on, it looks like they are changing color as well. 

Another lovely display she has is about four stands of lavender.

Seemingly it changes color too.

Let's have a look around our place now, starting with the Japanese Maple tree along with the Rose of Sharon in the foreground.

More on those pretty pink flowers that look like mini-hibiscus, in my next post but I will say that they are very prolific bloomers and having three such trees is a massive blessing. 

I have neglected to tell you that at the Senior Games banquet I won one of the door prizes and chose this lovely basket with begonias, coleus, and who knows what the pretty little  green disc-shaped plant is.

It is kind of crazy to think that Bruce has won three things since we have been here, and now I have won something as well. Perhaps it is the lack of competition? :)

I picked up a Peach begonia at the farmer's market and is it ever pretty and smells delightful.

Another day I bought three huge tomatoes from a woman and it is safe to say that they were some of the best I have eaten in a long time. Oh my word! I need cottage cheese, a favorite of mine with sliced tomatoes. Except, duh, I went grocery shopping this morning and did not buy any. What was I thinking?

More begonias that sit beside the front door and are blooming like mad.

I know that I should not, but I am already worried about them dying in the winter! That's another thing Daniel told me....winter can be hard. He confirmed that last winter was somewhat out of the ordinary in its' mildness. Hmmm...

The above is a squirrel over at Sandy's house and I'm including it because I wanted to mention that over at our place I have seen a squirrel climbing the brick! 

Back to the Japanese Maple tree in our yard. On Saturday, while Bruce was busy re-building a ramp for a woman in need, 

along with about three other men I want to add, I planted some impatiens under that tree. I kept watching things and before long I saw a Robin find a worm in the yard and fly into the tree. This is on the other side of the tree if you have a good memory and the story sounds familiar.

Two things to note:

1. the underside of the leaves are greenish.

2. that is some kind of latex bandage paper near the bottom of the nest. Where that came from is a mystery to me.

Our favorite wine bar, Fairy Cross Bottle Shop, celebrated one year in business last week. Look who we saw tat the celebration. I'll give you a hint....we rented her cottage!

In that one year it has become many folks favorite hang-out, including ours. Sort of like a pub is to towns all over England, a place for folks to hang out. Those who go there regularly are not going to be among folks who move back to where they came from because they are lonely! Saturday night, after Bruce had worked so hard in the heat, we went back and found all sorts of friends already there. 

Some of whom were celebrating opening a new ladies boutique that day. Our Orlando friend, Gayle, introduced us, from afar to Gene and Lisa who don't go out in public without hats. Plus, she sells them in her shop. I've yet to visit the new boutique, but I plan on doing so soon.

We had Laura, John, and Anna Claire over for dinner on Friday night, during which time I neglected to take any photographs, except for when we had adjourned to the porch for our blueberry cobbler. From our porch, sunsets are now part of our evenings once again. Yup, another red sky at night. 

Downstairs Bruces has been very busy today while I am writing this. I can't wait to show you what he has finally done for himself! 

Living in Murphy has been full of surprises and that is a good thing in my book. We had gone to Tractor Supply, a place I'd only heard of before we came here, and shall I add, a place that I never imagined shopping in? Anyway, as we were heading back to the car, look what we saw.

It looks like it is pretty old, but it also looks like it is in very good shape. Somewhat like our home, right? I said to Anna Claire, imagine how many people have been in these rooms during 99 years? She's only lived in new houses before, so she was intrigued. I showed her some potential paint colors, seeing as she is so artistic, and I value her opinion. Although nothing has changed in that department yet, it cannot be ruled out in the future. 

Indeed, what a difference a year makes!

your friend,

Gail

Some Events and Some Decorating

Unlike my last post when I was bragging on the cool temperatures,  the heat has definitely found us. As have the mosquitoes which are having a heyday biting your favorite blogger! Oh my gosh! Apparently our year, (give or take a month or two), of living amidst the mountain where mosquitoes are few and far between, did not prepare me for living a few blocks from the river which is very high right now. I do remember, and I've mentioned it before, how John called it a lake when we arrived in the summer which confused me because I had not seen it otherwise. Since that time I have posted many photos of the river both full and barely covering the rocks it runs over. It was fun the other day to see folks in a kayak paddling on the river as we played pickleball just steps away. So while writing this I am scratching myself like a madwoman! No longer will I go out without bug spray, or so I say. 

Hydrangeas have to be one of the most wonderful flowers to ever bloom. My goodness what I have been missing not having them in my life before now. There must be fifty or so on the bush now, however, after weeks of blooming, I think their days are numbered. But maybe not? What do I know?

The Rose of Sharon has begun blooming and I can't wait to show you that in my next post.

Let's do events first, shall we? First up was the Forks and Corks event which showcases local, well, you get it, food, wine and beer. Beer of course does not fit the title, but there is a local brewery so bring it on for those who prefer that libation. Anyway, it was held in a venue I'd only seen from the outside before and the inside did not disappoint.

Above is the courtyard and it is a welcoming space with, oh my goodness, Oak Leaf hydrangeas for the win!

Inside was very cool with a good crowd who came to sample the offerings. We met up with Gene and Lisa, as well as their friends from Knoxville. 

The fellow in green is my new gynecologist which is slightly weird, but there it is anyway. Laura sent me his way and his staff is just wonderful.  The place is called The Hackney which definitely brings fond memories to the forefront as Matt and Tom where married at Hackney Town Hall in London. Anyway, it was a very fun time, put on by the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce, on Thursday night.

Friday night was the monthly Art Walk and thank God it was nice and dry, unlike the previous month when it was marred by torrential rain. Thinking of that night, it was the day we bought the house! 

Something that is very prevalent here is live music. Not only do they have live music on the lawn adjacent to the location of the photograph above, but they have someone inside who we thought was quite good.

Saturday night we went out to the John C. Campbell Folk School to an annual event called Empty Bowls. For a donation, you lined up and chose one of the pottery bowls, made there at the school.

Pictured holding his bowl is our Duke summer intern at the church. He will spend ten weeks in Murphy learning more about how to run a church once he graduates. Get this...his name is John Murphy! Once we had our bowls we were seated in the dining rooms of the school and treated to a delicious soup and salad meal along with tremendous, and I do mean tremendous, homemade bread and dessert.

The folks at our table had traveled from as far away as Franklin to attend the event. Much of our dinner conversation revolved around gardening as it is very popular here. One of the ladies told us about garden bags, something we'd never heard of before. Any of you ever used them? If the reviews are any indication, they are popular in many more places than Murphy, NC!

Because field trips have taken a back seat for the time being, we had not been out to the school to see the gardens, so taking this opportunity to do so made sense. While I roamed around with my camera, your favorite bloggers husband was engaging in one of his favorite past times, looking something up on Google!

For reasons unknown to me, the gardens were a great disappointment this time around. They did have a considerable amount of vegetables growing, 

as well as sunflowers, 

but the flowers were few and far between.

I guess we will just have to return in a month or so. 

Good grief, still on events? Why yes I am.

We were made aware of an event nearby, as in up the hill from here, almost next door to our church, if you are interested in the location and I am betting that you are. Anyway, Shannon who lives behind us, put together a fund raising event for Colby, who also lives nearly behind us, because he has had surgery and is unable to work for some time period. As is often the case, so we have discovered, you could hear the music from our porch. Later Sunday afternoon we walked there to see what it was all about. Live music for sure! The singer in this band turned out to be the same one who performed at the Thursday night event. 

She was terrific and when she finished her set I went and told her so. Turns out she is from Tampa and performed around town there for the last forty years. We look forward to seeing her again. While we were sitting, a woman next to me began chatting. No surprise there! 

Linda is from Mississippi, but  for the last year she has been traveling the country in a van equipped with solar power enabling her to boondock, or so it is called when you can camp anywhere. Should you care to know more, read this. Her story was a interesting one and we enjoyed her company while we were there. She even bought Bruce a beer! The event ended just as some rain clouds moved in so we got home as fast as our little feet would take us! Just in the nick of time. Although, unfortunately, the rain did not last long. We most definitely could use some. There has been red sky at night all week long.

Finally, moving inside, I finished putting the top together on a new quilt and am awaiting flannel for the inside of it. For once, I am able to lay it out without moving any furniture!

I know it is crazy colorful but am hoping it plays well with the curtains given to me by Fallon and god send I might add as they are blackout curtains. One thing about being in the city is street lights! 

While we were most grateful for what Bill Sr. left, and I might add, everything was in pristine condition, some things are ready for a tune up. So we began making some changes, or a more appropriate description would be that Bruce did! The living room seemed just a tad crowded with three valances so close to the huge crown molding so they came down,

leaving plenty of work for Bruce to transition us over to drapes instead.

Finally we found a white paint that could be used to cover the nail holes! I'd ordered curtains from Ikea, five sets to be exact, hoping they would look good. Because there are blinds, mostly they are just for show although I have discovered they definitely soften the incoming afternoon sun.

Not wanting to completely discount their hard work, we kept the cornice in the dining room and to our eyes it fits perfectly. 

The office had curtains that, while nice, were ready to come down and make way for a refresh.

Now it looks like this.

One reason to buy from Ikea is that their curtains are well made and usually very fun, and as we all know, I am up for some fun in our decorating schemes. Furthermore, they come in 98" length which suited our needs to a tee. 

Before today the last room he did was what we are deeming the guest room. Since we slept in there for two weeks we knew full well that black out curtains were a must. 

Taking the blinds down first, he spackled and sanded all of the holes and then repainted the window frames before installing all of the new hardware. It's quite the job! That said, he is very pleased with the results.

He also spray painted the lamps we purchased because they were as dull as dirt! 

Today while I have been writing, and scratching I might add, he has been doing all of that work in the parlor which I will highlight next post. Talk about some personality, I'm thinking the curtains for there are going to really create a reaction. Good or bad, we are interested in them all.

Lastly, we are still continuing our thrifting ways. In a crazy good find, a woman at the flea market had some glasses that I was interested in. Eventually she said to take all I wanted for $5. Yes ma'am!! I came home with countless glasses and six of these pretty little bowls.

You can find the darnedest things, pretty much everywhere you go, right?

Michelle asked me if we were done and the answer is there seems to always be something we either want or need! A ladder late last week. Another fan today....

Now that will make one's heart flutter.

your friend,

Gail

Busy, Busy, Busy

For a small town, we sure seem to find ways to keep busy! Which, btw, we are most grateful that our health allows us to occupy our time in good ways. You already know that we are volunteering at our church when needs arise and since we are so close, why not, right? 

It's such a pretty and active church that has been serving Murphy for a long time now. If my memory serves me correctly it was built either a year before our home, or a year later. Sometimes we walk and sometimes we don't. Why, you ask? Depends on how much energy we have for climbing the hill up to it! 

Speaking of our home (who me?), the inspector found a few electrical problems that needed attention so when our realtor Donna happened to mention that her son had just gotten his license we hired Barron. Actually he had to switch out the main breaker which is why the photograph is so dark. Murphy Power came over first thing in the morning and switched off our power, Barron did his thing successfully, and within the half-hour, the inspector did his thing and the power company did theirs. Back in business.

As each day passes we are more in love with this house. The windows, the doors, the wall texture! I would throw in the ghost word, but so far we have been ghostless! Anyway, last evening when a fellow learned that we were the ones to buy the Vespasian house he said, and I quote, "all eyes of Murphy are on you." Say what? It's a small town folks! Folks were probably already talking about us when we were not mowing the lawn, don't you think? 

However, this past Saturday, Bruce mowed the far more difficult front yard, then I took over the reigns of our electric mower and did the back.

Let's just say that pushing a button to start a lawn mower is a heck of a lot easier than pulling the string countless times, something I have plenty of experience doing! 

You know what-- let's stay in the back yard for a moment and if you are the sensitive type, perhaps this will bother you, but others feel free to continue. This morning Bruce was taking the trash to the curb from beside the above pictured red stairs. Okay, I am in the house with the doors wide open for the morning chill to enter, when he calls out that there is a rabbit in the back yard. We may not have deer here, but we do have rabbits. In this instance, there was more than one and they had some hanky-panky on their minds or so it seemed when they began jumping up and down with one another. Well how about this a moment later?

My goodness me! Suffice it to say that once was not enough for these two however, after three times the charm, they began heading into Shannon's back yard leaving you to fill in the rest of the short story I've presented.

Note the lack of fences between our yards; a small rock wall marks our property line, something pretty common here.  Next door to Shannon is Jason and when I was out working in the yard at the same time that he was, he told me he'd found a Robin's nest in his bushes when he was trimming. "May I see it please?" "But of course" was his response. Jason is a super nice young fellow, neighbor, and principal of what is called the "early college high school" here. When I was not tall enough to look down on the nest, he got out his ladder. I told you he was a good guy.

Aren't they beautiful?? The Magnolia tree in the back yard, the huge one with four trunks that drops all manner of stuff on our yard, is blooming and two things to note about that. One is that the fragrance is different than what I am accustomed to, and two, the blooms are absolutely huge!

This one was drooping pretty low allowing me to cut it off to display inside. Well, it measured 10 inches across (!), and it lasted for one day. Unlike the cut hydrangeas that seemingly last forever. 

Apparently what they do is fade after two weeks in a bud vase! Unbelievable. There are loads of them on the bushes outside the porch and I could not be any happier. What looks like a pink one below is merely reflecting the setting sun.

And in what I am deeming good news to report, there are two or maybe three, Rose of Sharon trees loaded with buds. This is getting exciting my friends. Plus the Hostas are at it as well. 

(An unplanned still life above) 

Are you missing the Goldfinch? I was until this afternoon while we were eating lunch in the parlor and one appeared like magic. 

While there are tons of birds here, they are an elusive bunch unlike when they were outside the living room window and a dime a dozen! I did manage a shot of a Brown Thrasher one day.

Bruce is at the gym right now which is when I normally do the river walk, however, I told him this blog was my priority today, as I am woefully behind. I did go on Monday and the river is very, very full.

A large contingent of Canadian Geese have returned to their mess-making ways. If you don't know what I mean by that, well let's just say that they can be not very pedestrian friendly.

Lillies were in bloom,

but mostly things are green, green and more green. I love it!

So where is all this busyness you are touting? The truth is, I was getting ahead of myself. Last week we went out to events probably four out of seven nights, all of which bear mentioning, however, I'd already picked out this batch of photos to use today, so I'm going with it. Bear with me! I promise to do better.

We did go to Curt and Nancy's awesome mountaintop home for pickleball and a cookout. That counts, right? 

Two other couples came and it was a blast with perfect weather, perfect company, and delicious food, including a homemade key lime pie that Tammy brought.

That would be Nancy at the grill, Tammy beside her and Angie on the right. The view from the deck where the grill is.

Jonathan and Alissa are in Korea right now and their photos are filled with green mountains as well. If North Carolina is this green, and Korea looks similar, how much greener can Ireland be? We've never been so enlighten me please.

Here's an idea for you: make art from calendars! Actually, while we were in Orlando buying what we could fit in the car, four frames made their way here. Now I've already told you that lots of artwork was left behind and while we are grateful, not all of it is going to stay. I put these together using a calendar Matt gave me with old London Transit posters.

The frames turned out to be anemic so "Mr. I can spray paint anything" worked his magic. Much better!

The front porch is bringing so much joy to our lives. Entertaining folks there is great, and most mornings I eat my breakfast out there to enjoy the cool mornings. This week the temperatures have been in the middle 50's when we get up! So far this wonderful Craftsman bungalow is doing what it is meant to with wide eaves to keep the interior cool. Because I get so hot while sleeping we do use the upstairs air conditioning at night, but the rest of the time, we are enjoying the fresh air. Will it get too hot? Probably. For now, however, it has been good. 

Plus, the plants grow like crazy. It mays sound as if I am exaggerating, but to my recollection, I have never had a plant bloom like this before. 

Let alone two of them, as there is a twin on the other side of the door!

Shall I end with spider webs? Maybe my neighbor Sandy's lavender is more to your liking?

My goodness have I rambled and I never even got to her beautiful, and prolific, oak hydrangea plant! 

Mr. Peck has returned from the gym and is in need of using my computer for a zoom meeting with our Orlando condo community. Saved by his responsibilities! Otherwise I might have kept going!

your friend,

Gail