Collections

I remember, gosh, it was years ago, that my brother Pat found it interesting that I frequently photograph, what he called, collections of things. While downloading a bunch of photos I've taken in the last few days, it struck me that he was on to something. Thus, today, I present some recent collections, beginning with some beautiful fall leaves Bruce brought home last evening.

Stopping, on his way to the airport, he picked up these gorgeous leaves alongside the George Washington Parkway, near Arlington Cemetery. There are loads of good things about living in Florida, however, fall leaves are not one of those good things. These are so fresh, they almost still feel cool! I'd like to keep them around until our Thanksgiving feast to spread around on the tables, and I've read about preserving their freshness in a mixture of glycerine and water. Has anyone ever tried that method?

How about all the odd colored pumpkins recently available?

I, for one, knew nothing of blue pumpkins until this year.

While on my way to Lowes for some annuals, I drove through the peacock neighborhood which was jam-packed with peacocks. As in, probably 70 (!) roaming through people's yards. The males have all done their molting, and their tails are just beginning to grow back in, albeit without color yet.

The funny thing was there were so many of them that it made it somewhat difficult to drive down the street, ESPECIALLY when a man came out in his front yard with seed--there were like 15 in the road as they scampered over to eat.

I'm not entirely sure about these blooms, but I think they must be some sort of Morning Glories? The shade of blue, well, purplish-blue, is so appealing, one you don't often find.

Lately, one need only look up above for blue--since our monsoonish September, rain has been scarce around these parts, with hardly a drop all October. Most days clouds have been absent, however, when they do appear, they are lovely.

Crows on the bottom left--still scads of them, both just before sunset, and then again, before sunrise. I'm no cloud student so I'm pretty clueless about what any of these types are called; I just know when I find them interesting.

They hardly look real. Do you agree?

This morning I came across a collection to beat most collections.

Riding my bike East on Pershing, I saw a sign near the corner of Ferncreek advertising an estate sale. Although I had no money with me, I rode over to see what sort of stuff they had. As you know, I'm a little conflicted regarding estate sales, feel sort of funny going through another person's life, however, I suspect someone in the family needs money, and because there are plenty of customers who line the streets, ready and willing to part with theirs, estate sales flourish. Putting that all aside, as I walked my bike around back, I spotted some fabric. The worker said, if you are a sewer, this is the place for you. She WAS NOT kidding. Has anyone ever heard of a sewing hoarder? Well, now you have.

From what I could tell, the woman had been purchasing fabric for nearly 50 years. One entire bedroom was filled with it--boxes, shelves, closets, and even the floor! Zippers? Every color of the rainbow, not to mention lengths, were stored neatly in shoe boxes. Hundreds of zippers. The same goes for threads--oh my!!! Shelf upon shelf filled with sewing books. You literally had to climb over stuff to look at all of the fabric. Not confined to the one bedroom, fabric hung in the closet of another bedroom, probably twenty huge moving boxes overflowing in the garage. Even the living room! People, coming in behind me, took one peek through the door opening, and gasped!

Not only are all the fabrics in pristine condition, many of them are labeled as to the type of fabric, the cost, and the date and place purchased. This is some of what I brought home and I believe these are the oldest--dated March 13, 1969. The pink in the front cost 50 cents a yard, on sale from 69 cents. Purchased at Belks, in what I'm presuming is Albany, Georgia. Rummaging through as much as time permitted, I came across an old Ivey's box, as well as a Jordan Marsh one. In 1969 I was in my sewing heyday, the 10th grade; is it any wonder I was enthralled with the fabric from my youth? It was like stepping back in time. If only her clothing patterns were my size! Then too, our Mom worked at Belks in the Colonial Plaza, so there's that. Ivey's was a big department store back when Orlando had actual places to shop downtown! I came away with 16 different pieces of fabric, most of them 2 yards or more, as well as some machine needles, and a few other things. The total cost: $25.00. Anymore good, made in America fabric, is impossible to come by, making this stash very inviting. Furthermore, when was the last time you saw dotted swiss, or pique? So few people make their own clothes now that most of the great clothing-type fabrics are absent from store shelves. I have no clue what I will do with most of it, however, you and I know I'm a project kind of gal. In fact, my sewing machine is out, as I type.

It is a good thing I had a lunch date with Jean and Bev today because I would have come home with even more!! Add to that, they were closing the sale at noontime, so no possibility of making a second run. It was fun while it lasted for sure. I'm stunned wondering what it must have looked like yesterday on the first day of the sale. The too, the sales woman told me they had already filled two dumpsters worth of stuff! I always say that living in a smallish home keeps me from collecting too much, but that surely did not stop this woman!

Well, that's it for collections today, however, I did want to mention two excellent books I've just read: "Long Man", by Amy Green, and  "Equal of the Sun" by Anita Amirrezvani. The settings could not be any more different with the first set in in Tennessee during the last days of the depression, whereas the second one is set in Iran, 1576. If you're looking for something good to read, either of these, or so I think, will suit you.

What Next?

You might think to yourself that it is no ones fault but our own that creatures have been making their way inside our home and you would be right to presume that. Many years ago it would have been unthinkable to leave doors wide open, however, not because of birds, but flies. Oh my, they were, in the words of my late mother, "as thick as thieves" around these parts. For whatever reason this is no longer the case allowing me to leave both the front and back doors wide open during the lovely weather we've experienced this winter. Plus, the optimist in me thinks that rarely things go wrong. I'm not a complete fool, but mostly I look on the bright side of life.

I was not thinking bright and happy thoughts when I walked into the sunroom Friday morning and discovered a large toad on the floor near Bruce's briefcase. YIKES!! Quickly shutting the French doors so said nasty toad would remain at least in the sunroom, I went to get you know who. He was still showering but promised to get there ASAP. Although I proposed a jar to rid said sunroom of the toad, Bruce gently picked him up, even pausing long enough for me to take photographs.

According to Bruce the toad must have been burrowing in the dirt because he was covered in it, making him far less attractive than normal. I know some folks think toads and frogs are cute, and in fact, I do have the toad swimming in the pool photograph hung in our hall bathroom, but a photograph is one thing, in the flesh--not so much!

Once the toad was safely in the backyard, and the back door firmly shut, we finished getting ready for our day trip to Gamble Place in Port Orange. The weather was a bit dreary as we left but improved throughout the day. Because we arrived about twenty minutes before the gates opened we took a look around Cracker Creek, the adjacent property where they rent canoes and kayaks. As we got out of the car the first thing I saw was a male peacock on the front porch rails. As is often the case, once you have a pair, they multiply pretty quickly. We ended up seeing at least a dozen peacocks, or I should say mostly peahens, with a few peacocks showing off in the mix.

This peacock had such lovely coloration! They offer a one hour pontoon boat ride at 11:00 down Spruce Creek which we decided was just the thing to do after visiting Gamble Place.

GP was used primarily as a hunting lodge for the Gamble, of Ivory Soap fame, family. Apparently there was a mansion in Daytona Beach where they slept, making day excursions to the creek. At one point (1938), one of the heirs of James Gamble was so enamored of the new Walt Disney film, Snow White, that he had an architect build a replica of the Black Forest cottage as seen in the film.

To the left of the main building is a burned out cypress tree trunk used for the witches hut! As you can see the azaleas were in full bloom and not just adjacent to the cottage but huge bunches of them everywhere.

Bruce was amazed at the quality of the workmanship on the cottage which was much larger than I'd expected. A playhouse was it's function. Meandering the property, we took in what we could, however,  because the boat tour time was quickly approaching, we didn't see a lot of the place in depth,  but enough to imagine why he chose the location for a summer retreat.

The family that now owns Cracker Creek named it that because, as we saw in a demonstration after the boat ride, the sound of the cow whip makes a loud crack, and I do mean loud. To put your mind at ease, it turns out the whip was used not to beat the animals but to give them a scare so they would keep going during cattle drives. Captain Jim demonstrates the technique:

We learned that the incredibly loud crack comes from the whip breaking the sound barrier. And now you know the origin of the nickname, Florida Cracker! The boat ride was lovely with soft breezes under partly cloudy skies. We saw a few juvenile alligators sunning themselves on the banks much to the delight of the other guests who were visiting the area for Daytona Bike Week from parts up North.

At this size they look kind of cute don't they? As well we saw some newly blooming air plants clinging to the old oak trees amongst the Resurrection Ferns.

All those squiggly brown things are the Resurrection Ferns which according to our very knowledgeable guide turn bright green after a rainstorm.

During Kate's funeral Bruce mentioned he'd have to take more photographs of me if we were to do a slide show at my funeral. He started the project on the boat.

No makeup!!! Bruce convinced me I didn't need it, however, I think he doesn't see what I see. :-)

The azaleas were really breathtaking with a gorgeous shade blooming that I can't recall seeing before.

After lunch at their picnic tables we headed North towards Ormond Beach to visit The Casements, the winter home of John D. Rockefeller. Driving through Daytona Beach was pretty interesting with all the bikers just arriving. I asked Bruce, what exactly do they do for a week? It remains a mystery. By now it was raining so the volume on the streets was naturally diminished.

Joining a tour underway, we unfortunately didn't get as much background information as I would have liked, but that's why we have the Internet isn't it?

According to Wikipedia the house was named for the casement windows which are absent these days; mostly hurricane damage through the years. Amazingly the top floor holds a Boy Scout museum and a Hungarian Costume museum. Weird, I know.

The Boy Scout Museum was begun as an Eagle Scout project by a local young man in 1980 and it's been housed there ever since. The collection of memorabilia is really astonishing including this final letter to the Scouts from the British founder of the movement.

There were uniforms from every era prior to 1980, and when I tell you it was really well done, you'll just have to believe me.

Bruce was a Boy Scout for a long time and his brother Cris went onto become an Eagle Scout. Those knots Bruce uses to tie down my tent every week--the Boy Scouts. Being prepared for anything--that's the Boy Scout motto!

The other folks on the tour weren't as interested in the Hungarian costumes so we made a quick run through of that room.

Really beautiful hand made costumes.

So, all in all, it was a terrific day trip. Of course any day I get to spend with Bruce is terrific, but then again, that goes without saying.

When you've lived in Florida most of your life it is easy to take it for granted, however, there is so much to see and do that it's really no wonder people the world over come to Florida to both live and play. The last few years have really opened my eyes to the wonder that is Florida, despite the heat and live creatures that come into our home uninvited!

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

On my way home from school I drove by the house where I took this photo; they are dead and ugly now. Here today and gone tomorrow. That is what I feel about my health these days.

I went to see Dr. Everett today and the good news is the blood work for bad stuff is negative--the bad news is that I still have no diagnosis or treatment. I'm feeling pretty sorry for myself right now. He is referring me to a neurologist for possible peripheral neuropathy; I guess I'll be researching that next, however, I am not holding out much hope. It may be another month until I can get that appointment, so I guess life goes on like it is.

I stopped again on the peacock street and I got to speak with one of the homeowners. She told me that the peacocks had been there before they built the houses which was in 1965! She feeds them dog food every day around 4:30 when they come up on her porch. She said I was welcome to come back anytime and witness it, which of course, I intend to do.

Vulnerability

I don't know what has made me blog exactly. I kept seeing it on Picassa and I guess I thought, why not. Having said that, I now realize that I have made myself very vulnerable, not only with the blog, but my flickr account (www.flickr.com/photos/gailpeck). You begin writing, and then you think, wow, am I just contributing to the blogosphere, or does anyone really care what I think? I had a bit of reinforcement lately though because my dear friend Karen, who has remained a bit of a Luddite for years, showed up at the market, having read about it on the blog. Lisa worries about me if I don't post and Matt's friend, Sarah, apparently catches up with me now and again as well. Thanks guys.

I got a bit of a shaky start this morning; I was having dry heaves in Geology, but I'm doing better now. In order to put logarithms behind me, I made a tiny detour off my main drive home. I know there is a neighborhood in Conway that is overrun by wild peacocks--I decided to see for myself. There are scads of them hanging around front yards and in trees, unbelievable. I'll post more on the flickr. They seem unafraid of people, thus I was able to get pretty close. The light today wasn't great as it is a bit overcast, so I'll try again on a sunnier day. Nice.

I've been thinking about Elizabeth Edwards. I feel very sad about her metastases, and almost sadder at the hope she feels. Having worked as a mammographer for twelve years, I know first hand that it is a rare person who survives for long with her condition. As well, bone cancer is extremely painful. Having young children just adds to the pathos. Here's hoping she is an exception to the rule.