Rain and Spring







May 19th - finally some rain

Bluebirds are nesting

Lilac in full blossom

Lilac

Honeysuckle weighted down with bloom

Black-Headed Grosbeak

My lovely visitor - Lazuli Bunting

Well - we had almost a week of rain off and on - got about 1" so we are still well below normal, but the  moisture and hot days (80'-90' the week before) brought forth spring!  The air is full of the aroma of blossoms; the post office doorway is framed by two lilac trees:

daily haiku

the smell of lilacs
in the post office doorway
letters with perfume

The birds are coming through on their spring trip too, the Bluebirds are very busy and such a sweet couple. Mrs Bluebird takes a rest on the fence and Mr. Bluebird sits by her side flying to the ground now and then to feed her.  Also seen are Rufus-sided Towhees, Lark Sparrows, Black-headed Grosbeaks, and my favorite the brilliant Lazuli Buntings. I put ordinary bird seed in the feeder for the summer but they are all enjoying it and get feisty about their territory.

daily haiku

lazuli bunting
flash of blue in pounding wind
hope in a dark world

At Hanging Woman Creek Bridge I call up the mud swallows and they fly around me squealing their greeting or warning. You can find a video of the swallows at my blog for Memorial Day 2010 (May 31st). The Carp were spawning this morning, roiling around in the water so spring is here. I must assume that there will be no more frost and take a trip to the greenhouse this week to get blooming flowers for my containers and who knows, maybe we'll get more rain along the way.............

Spring - sort of

 

daily haiku

rabbits take a rest

from mating activity

rest on the rock wall

 Today is a lovely spring day in the 70's and not much wind. I was able to work outdoors, and that was nice.  I de-rusted a metal outdoor table and tomorrow I will spray paint it to look like new!  While waiting for the rustoleum to work its magic I sat in my chaise longue and caught up on a couple of magazines; simply delightful. 

So far the weather this spring has swung wildly back and forth .... 83' to barely above freezing. We are still having frost most mornings. The spring flowers are pretty feeble because of the drought - see the photo of the Star of Bethlehem at the top of the page - normally about 4-5 blossoms will sprout from each plant. None of this slows the rabbits, however. I am constantly amused by their antics as they chase each other around the house at top speed. While I was in my chaise a big chase took place around the garden several times.  The male finally gave up and hid under the propane tank. Poor female will probably get "jumped" from his hiding place. Guess that's where the saying "mad as a March Hare " comes from.

Pittsburgh to Tampa

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

"FALLINGWATER"

 

KENTUCK KNOB - SCULPTURE GARDEN

"RED ARMY"

WITH KELLY (HUSKY MIX) AND JASPER (ADOPTED GREYHOUND)

VALRICO, FLORIDA

COLUMBIA RESTAURANT

 daily haiku

peacefulness

coo of the mourning dove

off alone somewhere

Well, it is Sunday and snow is coming down slanted at times because of the wind. We're having April showers...sometimes rain, sometimes snow, but what ever form in which it comes, we need it badly so I will not complain.

I am home from a trip to visit two of my children. The first stop was in Pittsburgh to visit our oldest son and his wife, plus their two dogs. Stephen and Alice adopt many older dogs who cannot find homes. They grow to love them and then lose them in a few years, but the time they spend together is special for all of them. Currently they have a Husky mix and a retired Greyhound - beautiful dogs very sedate and loving in their older years. I admire their courage in adopting them.

While I was there, Alice drove me to Fallingwater, the famous Frank Lloyd Wright house built around the Bear Run stream.  It has been one of my dreams to see this house and I was not disappointed. It is most unusual and the level of thoughtful little details in the design is amazing. For instance, most rooms have a rock floor.... rocks that have been smoothed by the water and have little undulations. Wherever the view from the room looks towards the water, the rocks have been polished with Johnson's Wax so that they have a similar reflection as the water and they merge together. The house, now a museum is only available by guided tours and no indoor pictures allowed. Throughout each room are wonderful pieces of art ..Picasso, Diego Rivera and a new sculptor to me- Richmond Barthe - one small bust was utterly exquisite, the most emotional piece of work I have ever seen.

After the tour we drove a little further south to another less well known FLW house - Kentuck Knob. In contrast to the multi-level Fallingwater, this is a smaller house all on one level.  It is also built with natural rock from the area and the interior is hewn wood and rock. The impression is one of a log cabin in some ways; it is intimate, cozy and warm. It is currently owned by a British Lord - Lord Palumbo - who is noted for his contributions to the arts and architecture. The grounds of Kentuck Knob have a collection of sculptures the most eye catching of which is the Red Army, about 200 -300 iron silhouettes painted red. There is also a large piece of the Berlin Wall. 

We also took a tour of downtown Pittsburgh on WW II DUKW boat. Much fun! We traversed downtown buildings by wheel then entered the Ohio River and chugged into the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers. 

I left Pittsburgh and flew to Tampa, Fl. to visit daughter Sarah and husband Jerry. Sarah unfortunately had to work much of the time, but Jerry was a great host and we went to the new Tampa Historical Center. I was most interested in the exhibit of the Seminole Tribe and the Indian Wars. One of the generals in the war against the Seminoles was Zachary Taylor who later became President. Interesting to me because the person who homesteaded my quarter section was named Zachary Taylor Cox - obviously after the President of that name.

The next day we went to one of my favorite places, Ybor City, the Cuban quarter of Tampa, where we had lunch at Columbia - my favorite restaurant in the US, I believe. Fried plantains send me to heaven :) We went to the El Molino coffee roasters and I ordered Cuban coffee to be shipped home - it is best made very strong and has a wonderful flavor.

So now I am back to being alone again on my hill and watching the snow squalls of April driving through. I loved being with the children and miss them a lot. I wish we lived closer, but at the moment we are driven by our choices, them to the east and me to my beloved west. As Frank Lloyd Wright said when he selected the site for Taliesin West “This is pure abstraction wherever you look.”

Stormy Days

 

daily poem

 

wind thunder lightning

hail and snow all in an hour

exciting weather

abraham would have decreed

god is angry with the world

he must be watching congress

 

 A large storm system is moving through. It started last night and was quite exciting. First there were huge wind gusts (about 50 mph) that battered the house and made the metal surround on the chimney vibrate. Then large dark clouds came racing through bringing rain that changed to snow pellets/hail, along with lightning and thunder claps; finally horizontal snow!  It lasted about two hours and then everything stopped except for the wind which rammed the house most of the night at intervals. This morning brought light snow and a lot more wind. The sun is trying to break through but is acting feeble, at best. 

The last few days I have been entertained by an early chipmunk who is feeding on the seed inside an old thistle sock. He climbs the cedar tree then leaps about 18-20 inches onto the sock. I would give him an Olympic medal for his efforts. The Juncos love him. He has made larger holes in the sock and after he takes his new stash to the larder under the rocks, they move in and feed through the new holes. Symbiosis at its best!

 

I have been catching up on a few chores, but just couldn't face the vacuum today so am blogging, and reading instead. As my first husband, Bob, used to say "It'll still be there tomorrow."

 

Refrigerator Soup

 Grey skies to the east - morning snow

Wind chime against light snowfall

daily tanka

President's Day

Lincoln and Washington

great men in their time

both saw their people struggling

what struggle would they see now

Soup for a Thrifty President

Leftover meat or tofu chopped small

1-2 Tbsps olive oil

1/2 small onion chopped

1 clove garlic chopped

1 large yellow potato diced

2 large fresh tomatoes skinned and diced

(or as in my case 1/2 can leftover diced tomatoes)

1 can low sodium chicken or vegetable broth 

2 Tbsps chopped basil
1/8 - 1/4 tsp cayenne

Saute the meat in the oil if uncooked.  Remove and set aside.

Saute the onion and garlic in the oil until transparent.

Add meat, diced potatoes, tomatoes, basil and broth.

Bring to simmering point; turn down the heat 

and simmer for an hour.

Serve with toast points or crackers.

Today I woke up to grey skies and snow flurries with a colder day forecast. I slept in and then got a series of phone calls so felt I was behind - then told myself it was alright as it was a national holiday anyway!  

By the time noon rolled around I felt like some homemade soup. So I looked in the refrigerator and made the recipe above with a couple of skinned and diced Italian sausages that I needed to use up.  Ate a late but delicious President's day lunch.

A Gift of Daffodils

An Ex-Patriot Thinks Of Spring

In January snowdrops push

Their sleepy heads through ice and snow,

To shake their white and emerald bells,

While we wait for spring.

On February’s sunny days

The crocus flings its petals wide

In gold and purple majesty,

Then spring is on the way.

Beset by March gusts, pounding rain,

The daffodil on sturdy stalks

Waves cheerful trumpets as we pass

And spring is here again.

On sunny April days we walk

By green and mossy country banks

And gather creamy primroses

And then we know it’s spring.

In May through wood and copse we stroll

To stop and sigh and wonder there,

At bluebells bobbing mile on mile

To celebrate the spring.

When Rose and Lilac scent the lane

We know that spring has yielded now

To summer’s warmth, and buzzy bees

Know spring is on the wane.

© C.Valentine 2009

 

Thawing Out

 Certificate of Completion - Welch Cancer Center

 Gift of quilt from Tongue River Quilters

February Thaw Photos

 Ice from new drain - it works some of the time!

Driveway is a sea of mud

daily haiku

in mid winter sun
snow turns to slush and mud
a joyful mess

A joyful mess indeed! The warmth is appreciated, the mud only as far as it indicates better weather. Cold waves will come in again, but right now it is great to see the sun most days and walk outdoors in the 40's instead of indoors on the treadmill.

It is good to be writing in my blog again; I haven't had the time or inclination to do so over the last few months. It seems a long time mentally and physically since my last blog on November 10th.  

In August last year - my annual mammogram returned a verdict of abnormality. It showed a cluster of calcium crystals that could indicate a malignancy. I had a second opinion which said the same, that a biopsy was needed.  The biopsy showed malignant cells present. I was diagnosed with DCIS (Duct Carcinoma In Situ)  The news was bad, but also good. DCIS stays in the duct and is not invasive - good; I needed a lumpectomy - bad. So in October and November I had two surgeries. The second just to take more tissue because the pathologist felt not enough tissue had been removed on the "edges" of the site the first time. All pathology came back as non-invasive.  After this I was scheduled for 33 radiation sessions.  Surgery plus radiation raises the chances of the malignancy or other malignancies NOT occurring up to the 97% percentile so I felt it was worthwhile. The sessions were daily Mon-Fri at the Welch Cancer Center in Sheridan. I completed last Monday, January 28th 2013, and am at home healing, thankful that it is all over. 

I am so very thankful about many things. The first that I live in the age of the mammogram and it was found even before a lump had formed. The second for the staff and top rate equipment at the Welch Center in Sheridan who have been my friends and encouragement team for the last 5 months. And for my family and many friends who have given me their love and support throughout, especially Thelma who gave me a home and caring friendship throughout the operations and therapy sessions; Owen and Diana who looked after my house while I was away during the week; Aaron who listened to my anger and understood; Art and Kathy who continued to write daily and listened to my occasional whining; and all those friends who prayed for me - I know it makes a difference. 

I did not share what I was going through with my neighbors here, only my close friends. Cancer is a scary condition - many of us have relatives and friends who died from it. But as time elapses more and more therapies are available that are creating a big pool of us "cancer survivors" which is getting larger with each succeeding year. I did not want to be affected by attitudes of negativity, and in that way I could stay positive and involved with my own self-caring a day at a time. If someone we know is diagnosed with a malignancy - we owe it to them most of all to project hope. 


Right now I have hope for my own future and ripe old age - after all my great-grandmother was over 100 yrs old when she died and I use her as a role model!  In the meantime - to all women who read this - don't play with the date for your annual mammogram get it each year and on time. And to the men who love them - make sure they get it - be aware of which month of the year the appointment comes up and don't hesitate to give reminders. Mammograms save lives. I know firsthand.