It's Been a Minute

Walking down the stairs this morning I asked Bruce, have you ever thought how hard it was for the Pilgrims? I don't mean that it is now considered really bad form to displace the locals, I totally get that. In fact, on the pickleball court the other day, a friend got in a heated argument with a woman who yelled loudly, "I am from Murphy" meaning she can do what she wants. But, that's a story for another day. What I meant is like the whole boat trip, arriving on land that is so foreign, knowing almost nothing about how you will eat, have shelter, or care for your family. Elementary school children are taught a version of the story but after those years most of us never think much of it again.

To me it is unimaginable. How about you? 

Okey dokey then, let's talk about that title Gail. I think it must be a Georgia thing because three people I know who lived there for a long time use it with frequency. Is it new to you? 

Certainly it is appropriate after this blog has sat fallow for nearly another two weeks. It is a good thing and a bad thing because while it means we have been busy, it also means I am not holding up my end of the bargain and that is to publish once a week. It must be an age thing, or at least that is a good excuse! My apologies.

And yes, we have been busy in spite of the heat which everyone knows how much I hate. Frequently I remind myself that it is far worse in Orlando and having hot temperatures and abundant sunshine helps all my flowers and plants to grow, and grow they have! The roses are growing, not blooming much yet, but I think that is to be expected as they acclimate. Seven tomatoes of various sizes are on one plant, while the other has about five. The cucumbers seem to have run out of steam, although I am not counting them out just yet. And the flowers, gosh it has been fun.

The spider lilies popped out of the ground last week, and of all things my hydrangeas are on their second round of blooming.  You don't have to take my word for it, here are said tomatoes.

The peppers were mostly a bust, but here are some fresh picked cucumbers to back up my claims.

Next year if you come across a "balloon plant" I suggest you purchase one because not only is the color wonderful, but those buds are so cool! Furthermore, when they are spent they feel like a balloon.

In house news, we are getting a shower in the downstairs bathroom. After 100 years it is happening, or nearly so.

You may be meeting Danny in this space in the next week or so. Visiting early one morning, he and Bruce conferred about how best to go about it. At $140/ hour, Bruce is cutting the plaster himself, and it is not really only about the expense, it is who is most qualified to cut into the wall!

In the photo above he is planning the special waterproof board that is to be installed there and then painted. Note the round hole where the handle will be. I have mixed feelings about this but he does not, so since he's doing the work, what can I say? He took me to the plumbers early Friday morning. It's been there, well it's been a minute! It is probably at least as old as our home.

Returning to Campbell Street, I've got a tip for you! My 80 year old friend Dottie mentioned, when we were talking about hard boiled eggs, that she shakes them in the pan once they are cooled. Good grief, it is magic!!

Perfection, right?

One day we went to look at a couple of campgrounds near the Nantahala Outdoor Center. Two of them were quite nice. Below, Mr. Bruce is taking note of the site numbers.

Most of three days were taken up with quilt making. In this instance, a baby quilt marked for the beginning quilting lines. I've had that piece of alphabet fabric for years and did not want to cut it apart, thus the design.

I am obsessed with this view of the cornfields and mountains and can you blame me? 

Every single time we head towards Andrews I can't help taking a photo no matter the time of year. We were on our way to the Liber's again, this time for a sleepover. David knew of a nearby fishing lake so because of the distance, it only made sense because they wanted to fish in the evening and then again in  the early morning. 

And just when you thought it could not get any better out there, it did!

Before leaving the house however, Matthew called via FaceTime to wish us a happy anniversary and happy it was. 52 years and counting!! He told me that flowers were forthcoming and we are so glad that he mentioned it because, of course, we were on our way to our sleepover.  Immediately I called Ramblin Rose and she agreed to postpone the delivery until Tuesday. Upon our return, I called to let her know we were home and she brought them over within minutes. Oh my word, another winner! For a small town, our florist rocks!

The above turned out to be a great spot for them because that basket leaks a bit. With marble on the hearth, it works perfectly!

Firstly, the Liber's garden. Have I mentioned before that everything there is like a Southern Living magazine come to life? It totally is.

While there are still butterflies, see previous post, they are not nearly as plentiful, so let's look at waterfalls instead!!

While the fellas went out fishing, we walked along the river with their dog Ranger.

The music of a waterfall is magic, don't you think?

My goodness, we saw a heron and while we were watching, I thought it was a molting Great Blue Heron; turns out that I was wrong and it is a Grey Heron, a bird that I have never seen before!

Look who joined our party! I do so love coming across butterflies in the pure wild, enjoying the natural plants!Following our waterfall walk, we returned to their home and made a delicious lasagna and salad for our anniversary dinner in their spacious kitchen. Picture taking in very dim light rarely works and this night was no exception, however I did manage to get a shot of the wonderful lemon icebox pie she made especially for us using her Mom's recipe.

Just before sunrise, which by the way, are you noticing how much the light is changing? Anyway, they took off while we slept in a bit. Once we were up and about she suggested we go to Wayah Bald because I had never before been. I am including a link because there are photos on that site as well as more details. The day they took those photos was a wee bit clearer!

Nonetheless, I think you will enjoy mine as well because it shows it in a whole different light!  But first we had to get there and for sure it is a winding road, followed by a four mile gravel road to the top. And what is a bald you wonder? I did too! Turns out it is a summit unexpectedly devoid of trees. Now you know, let's go! Lake Nantahala along the way, the very same one we went boating on.

Before too much longer Duke Energy will lower the lake and this scene will look entirely different until the Spring. 

Into the forest we go, round and round.

My goodness, a structure!! 

 

Wilson Lick Ranger station, the first of its kind in the Nantahala forest. D'Anna has been coming to the area for years before moving here full time so she is quite familiar with the roads and landmarks, the above is one such landmark that tells you that the gravel road to the bald is nearing.

One minute it is wildflowers alongside the road,

and the next photo I took is of the weird trees and the summit in the distance.

I really could not get enough of the bald trees!

D'Anna is looking down 5,324 feet!

We stayed for a bit however, the clouds showed no signs of parting any time soon, thus our views to Georgia and Tennessee remained veiled.

More bald trees and by bald I mean bald; really smooth bark!

That is in contrast to our drive down the mountain

Are you, like me, trying to imagine this both in the fall and winter? 

This time I got a nice photo of the full breakfast we feasted on after our excursions. Bruce caught and released two fish for the first time in several years! David caught a couple as well.

Back on Campbell Street, your favorite blogger is asking everyone she knows to voice an opinion about a new color for the screen door, including the florist who delivered the flowers herself because her driver did not show up.  They all differ btw.

Perhaps you have noticed that as the cooler weather approaches, projects are heating up in our sweet home. 

Three holes on this side of the wall and two on the bathroom side, all so perfect and let me tell you that is not easy cutting through plaster. And now you understand why a man with a carpenter background would want to be the one with the saw in his hands! This area is all tidy now after nearly ten hours of work. Plumber up next!

The gold bowl in the late afternoon light! Remember the 50th anniversary present from Matt and Tom? Of course you don't!!

I am constantly taking photos of the light here because it just pleases me so.

Lastly, we did an experiment recently to see if we could get used to something in the middle of the kitchen that we might use primarily as a landing pad. Although this was small, I could see something small in our future.

Of course that would mean more work for Bruce and is he up for so many projects you ask? Time will tell as it always does, but if the past is any indicator, the answer is probably a yes! 

Hopefully it wont be a minute until we meet again!!

your friend,

Gail

Butterflies and Mountains

A winning combination for sure. Who does not like butterflies or mountains??? Not me! In fact I love them and this past Friday I got a chance to see plenty of both. Earlier in the week I had a health issue that kept me from being as active as I like to be, but nothing to worry about. More like a nuisance. 

By Friday I was rip roaring to head to the Liber's house for what D'Anna called a lake day. We left the house at 9:30 and got home at around 8pm so it was as advertised. Forecasted rain never materialized, much to our relief. Within a few minutes of getting there my camera saw action as there were so many butterflies on both her huge phlox bushes and a large butterfly bush. I cannot remember seeing so many butterflies at one time unless it has been a butterfly attraction. Honestly I was in butterfly heaven!

I took an obscene amount of photographs because what if the next shot was even better than the last? Bruce got into the act as well.

Here is a funny little story: Knowing that my friend has had a lot on her mind of late, when I did go out for a walk one afternoon last week,

just over the bridge I came across a Tiger Swallowtail on a flower and snapped this shot to send to her.

Little did I know that she was running a butterfly sanctuary at her home and could take all the photos she wanted!

On that same walk I did come across some pretty cool mushrooms brought on by recent rains.

Have I mentioned before that while the iPhone is a whiz at identifying birds and plants, mushrooms seem to have it stymied. I've yet to take a mushroom picture and get an identification, so perhaps one of you knows what type of mushroom was under a tree along the river in abundance?

Before we get back to the lake day I do have a few photos of interest, or at least they are to me. I was standing on the front walkway, studying the Mourning dove's nest when this little critter flew in. 

Insects are usually identified as was the one above as a Swamp cicada. Now you know! Me too.

Much to our dismay, our baby doves have grown up and left us but not without siblings to come. How about both parents on the nest with the new batch?

We shall see what happens next. The backyard bunny continues to entertain us. Still much smaller, she seems to come every morning and evening to munch on the weeds. 

The little cotton tail shows when she is on her haunches.

As you may recall, the house came with all sorts of art work, most of which has been fine, but not necessarily what we would pick leaving us with no choice but to fined new pieces, a task that is easier said than done. While Bruce was changing this essential lightbulb that had burned out, it does show off one of the latest pieces from the downtown antique store. I have named her Dixie and she replaces a huge wooden pineapple from the Philippines which was fine but, well, you already know my thoughts.

Her sassy look is watching over us as we exit to the basement or the back porch. That was a very challenging lightbulb change, so hopefully the advertised nine year life span is correct!

Ask me if I have any cowboy decor in my house aside from Dixie. I suspect you know the answer to that!

Alrighty now, back to our lake day and the multitude of beautiful things to see.

More butterfly goodness.

What were once white hydrangeas are now pink.

I love seeing birds at feeders, but when they land way up in a tree, especially when I have a zoom lens in my hand, it is magical.

Nantahala Lake is a few miles from their home so with the boat already on the trailer we took off and went to the beautiful water. First stop once we were on our way was for lunch at the terrific restaurant on the lake. The approach is beautiful!

Duh, I did not need to tell you that because you can see it with your own two eyes! 

We sat on the upstairs porch admiring that huge willow tree all while eating. Back to the boat, after heading down some steps,

it is lovely to behold. And to think that in only a month or so it will looks completely different!

Before we actually got to the restaurant we watched folks jumping into the water near the dam that makes the lake possible. As is the case with all of the nearby lakes, they have been created by the TVA.

I love seeing the mountains from the car,

and I love seeing them from a boat!

I am just taking a moment here to acknowledge how incredibly lucky and blessed we have been since moving here, to not only be a witness to seasons that will before we know it will change this scenery drastically, but to meet so many wonderful new friends. To tell you the truth, I hardly know what to say.

Returning to the story, David was driving us to a fishing spot that he knew about and had Bruce very excited as it has been a very long time since he was able to fish. Before we got there though, David noticed some folks waving for help and so he helped them by towing their boat quite a distance to their home dock. After that, we got on our way,

and look who is fishing off the back end of the boat? 

No fish were caught, but fun was had. Whoops, I almost forgot! D'Anna and I went swimming. Initially it was chilly ,but before long we were comfortable as can be. Time to head back to the boat ramp, and look what I saw!

Once back at their home, we sat for awhile on the front porch enjoying the multitude of hummingbirds coming to the feeders. The humans enjoyed some refreshments as well! 😊

Whoa Nelly, the drive home...

was fantastic with those low clouds hanging in the mountains.  

On Fridays it has become our custom to play pickleball but on that Friday we went boating instead, meaning we had to miss Karen and Rich who were visiting from Orlando. Staying in a nearby town they are not afraid of driving, so returned to Murphy on Saturday and we went to the annual Bloody Mary contest at the farmer's market where they were celebrating all things tomato. But under the big tent, restaurants vied for first place. Case in point. the new Gordon Ramsey restaurant at the casino.

They definitely went all out, including a skewer with a slider, tomatoes and a jumbo shrimp! We asked a passerby to take our photo before they went back to their sight-seeing.

So much green in this post!! We will all enjoy it while we can. Bruce and I popped over to the market and I want you to get a look at the variety of jellies!

I tried the one made with Rose of Sharon and it was pretty good. I am finding it so hard to imagine how she does it. By the way, our Rose of Sharon trees are on round two of blooms, and it is just delightful to witness.

Before I close this uplifting post, I have some sad news to report. As you know, we work twice a month at our church's free lunch where Bruce washes dishes and I greet the folks as they arrive. This last Thursday a woman arrived who usually has two friends with her, one of whom I had the hardest time learning her name. Finally I had the name Angela etched in my mind and asked if she was coming? Imagine my shock when Emma told me she had died over the previous weekend, her husband having found her dead in her bed. Gosh that hurt. Emma was devastated as she, along with another woman, had gone out to lunch together on Friday and she was just fine until she wasn't on Saturday afternoon. After a year of seeing these folks bi-monthly, it is easy to get attached. 😢

After that sad report I want to end this on a positive note, staying in step with my title.

Butterflies, mountains, friends, water, clouds, trees, cicadas, rabbits, holy cow, it's a wonderful world out there my dear ones.

your friend,

Gail