September 30, 2010. San Antonio, Tx. The Game.

Belonging to a team for a young person is valuable. Physically, learning skills and developing muscles will serve the young person well their whole life. And the social aspect of being a part of a group with the same goals and expectations with other people allows the group dynamic skills to develop, again useful for the future. Sarah belongs to the seventh grade volleyball team. They practice every day in the last period of the day and also stay for another hour to work on their skills and fitness level. They are very nice girls and they work hard. But the difficult part is they are not very good. Basically, this is the same team that won the tournament last year in the sixth grade, except now there is a new coach, and the coach is no good.

But this is the best part. It doesn't really matter. Playing on a team gives every player the opportunity to work hard yet lose the game. After the game is over and you lose the game, the sky does not fall. Life goes on. So as a player, you learn to do your best, then get on with your life. Most of these girls are good students. They are used to doing well. They certainly are not used to failure. When you play a game, you might not win every time. Being a part of a team is very valuable for a young person, if only because of the experience of not always winning. If you lose, you feel terrible for a short time, and then it is back to your real life. Where else in the life of a young person can you learn those valuable lessons?

40+ Snowy Egrets at the Lake

Arid TX Color of the Season - Green

Start of a new collection- reading women

September 29, 2010. Canyon Lake, Tx. Planning Ahead.

This place is lovely. Quiet, seventy-five degrees and sunny with everything in the house working well. It is a great blessing.

All day I have been planning ahead. I marked the maps for our 281 trip north, both the new atlas and the individual maps. Look it up on the map. We will be driving through the middle of the country, right through the great plains, the geographic center of the nation. Actually, Ken is right. There is not much there there. But we are ready with our maps.

Next up for me was Christmas shopping. We will all be here in San Antonio, including the Mississippi family and as we will only be here until a short time before Christmas and as I hate crowded store, this morning I went Christmas shopping for the seven girls. I must still purchase seven objects to add to their collection I started several years ago but I am almost ready to go. Of course, one problem with my timing is that the stores have no Christmas bags. For the past several years I have given each girl a large bag of goodies from the Dollar store. I give them paper, pens, post its, tape, scissors, flash lights, mirrors, socks, cups, candy, rulers, magnifying glass, containers for pens and anything I think useful through the year. Sometimes but not always I give them something of value but not always. They like the bag of goodies which is the most important part of the gift.

And I hope Suzanne does not mind, but I moved the furniture in the living room. It was changed a couple of years ago and I did not object to the change but today I decided it was better the old way. I'll tell her when we see her tomorrow. Our first Volleyball game at TMI this season will be held tomorrow. I love to watch the girls play their games. Both Sarah and Abigail play on their respective teams and they are much better than I was at the same time. Abigail's team is unbeaten and according to David they are a very good team. Abigail is definitely a gifted athlete so it will be interesting what she does with her talents. She along with me, is planning for her future.

September 28, 2010. San Antonio, Tx. Puppies.

Moose is a perfectly proper puppy. He is affectionate, energetic and playful, just like a puppy should be. Crush grabs his collar and throws him to the ground. Right now they are playing with the same toy, a rope knotted at each end, The goal is to keep the toy for themselves, except when one dog finally gets control of the toy, it is returned to the feet of the other, all to start the game again. Eventually Moose will be taller and heavier than Crush, but for the moment, Crush is the man in charge. Except Moose can open the door with the handle, thus allowing them both into the house. Crush has been with the family for eight years and never tried to open the door, but now the door must be kept locked. Moose must be smart.

When we first arrived yesterday, I immediately went outside to inspect the puppy. I sat on a chair on the deck and Moose came over and put his nose on my leg and just waited to be petted. He stayed there without biting or nipping, just looking up hoping I would keep stroking his head. Of course, Crush was right by my other leg. It was endearing to see both dogs standing waiting for some love. David takes Moose for a walk every night and Suzanne takes both dogs for a walk each morning. When they walk, Moose walks as close as possible beside Crush, trying to learn the ropes. Crush tolerates the puppy most of the time but every so often Moose ends up on his back with four legs in the air.

David was right. Two dogs are better than one, especially when the dogs are Crush and Moose.

September 27, 2010. San Antonio, Tx. Home Again.

They have even grown since the summer. Sarah soon to be thirteen and the same height as me, Abigail 11 in the sixth grade in a new school and Allison and Samantha working hard in the third grade. Lovely girls growing up very nicely. Of course, I am biased.

A woman taxi driver brought us from the airport to David and Suzanne's home. I don't think I have ever been driven by a woman in a taxi. She was competent and careful but mute which suits us just fine.

After school, while Suzanne took Abigail to the dentist, Ken and I along with Samantha and Allison stayed at home. The girls ate a snack, then did their homework, which included getting ready for a Science test tomorrow. It turns out that I forgot to review the work with Samantha. I'm getting old. After homework the girls played outside, then went swimming. They were in the pool so long they got chilled. Lots of activity, lots of fun, lots of play. David went to Sarah's Volleyball game so brought her home after a big win.

This was an auspicious day for Abigail because she had her braces put on her teeth. They hurt. It goes with our family mouth I guess. One year and she will be done, said the dentist. I was happy to see her begin the process. She looks great. I am happy to be here in Texas too.

Woods - the old and the new

This Falls Featured Color - Brown

September 25, 2010. Artemas, Pa. Bedford Fall Fair.

It all begins next Friday. For ten days, The Bedford Fall Fair will be in business. The whole town is taken over with the fair. Vendors are everywhere and on every street. The place is full of people and food and fun. It is so big that you can almost not walk the whole thing. Tammy and the children love it. Tammy's parents run a farmers market so Tammy sells her vegetables and her baked goods at her parent's booth. This morning she was busy makings gobs, hundreds of gobs. They are like large cookies with a baked bottom and top and icing in the middle. People love them. So far she has made five hundred, but by Friday she will have made two thousand. They sell for two dollars each.

She also had made hundreds of small banana loaves, all stacked in boxes ready for the fair. They are all wrapped in paper and look very home made but neat. Ken and I were wondering what it costs her to bake the gobs and the bread, but I am sure she does not know. They tend to pay no attention to the cost of their labor. She loves the whole atmosphere of the fair and she knows that all she earns is profit, at least in her mind.

We will not be there, because we will be in Texas. In years past we have attended the Fair and enjoyed it but we are rather pleased that we will not be here. Too many people in too small a space for us to really be happy. But we wish them well. I am sure Tammy will sell out of all her baked goods.

September 24, 2010. Artemas, Pa. Working.

Achievement seems to come from within each person. I call it the "Fire in The Belly" that causes a person to work hard to accomplish a task. Nancy at work once commented that she did not know where it came from, but anything she has ever tried to do either when employed or in her personal life, she had climbed the ladder of success, not perhaps to the top, but certainly where she was known by her peers as successful. Today I spoke with an agent who has had some very successful years as a real estate agent and some not so successful years. He seems to have all the talent and systems in place for whatever success he wishes, but it has not happened on a consistent manner. Today we were trying to try to figure it out.

I don't know the answer. It has to come from within himself. But I suspect that it comes from his attitude about work. One of my good friends is lazy at work. He has always wanted to do the bare minimum effort in order to run his office. He is certainly much smarter than me but his offices have never done as well, mainly he has two issues. He is cheap and he is lazy. One day at a meeting he asked me why I worked so hard. My answer surprised him. I told him that I work hard to keep myself from being bored and to keep helping the agents get better at their job so the office could grow. I also told him that over the past ten years I had had more fun in my office than he did in his, mainly because he was bored and I was not. He agreed but he still stayed lazy.

My son David was asked why he works so hard. His answer was "Is there any other way?" Working is complicated, all tied up with money and reputation and culture. But I have always felt that working hard is it's own reward.

September 23, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. Getting Old.

Natalie was telling me about her ankle. It was hurting. For no reason at all, when she was walking down the street, her ankle turned over. Now it hurts. She is older than me and she has never been very physically active either as a child or a young adult. She is of the age when proper young women were not supposed to sweat. So she did not. Several years ago when she was diagnosed with some difficulty with her heart and put on medication, the Doctor suggested that she walk for exercise. But she told me that she got tired when she walked. I suggested that nothing bad occurs when you get tired. I am a hard lady.

When she was telling me about her ankle, I asked her if she was over seventy and she assured me that she was. My comment was not kind but it was accurate. "Natalie", I said, "over the age of seventy it will be one damn thing after another, so get ready for it". She laughed and so did I, but it seems to be coming true. Natalie is the lucky one. Her husband, who seemed to be in perfect health, all of a sudden died of a heart attack at age 72. Bummer. We still miss him in the office.

Today I noticed Fran limping. It seems that her back is causing trouble and also her hips, so the Doctors are trying to determine the source of the pain. She is not enjoying this process of getting old. So here we go, heading into our old age but trying to keep the legs still walking!!

September 22, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. Crab Feast.

It is a Maryland tradition. Everyone sits around a table covered with butcher paper, mounds of steamed crab is brought to the table, then you pick them apart and eat them. You dump the shell in the middle of the table. Every so often the mess is picked up by the wait staff while more crab is dumped onto the tray. It is the messiest meal in the world. Beer is the beverage of choice. It is a tradition of long standing, except now the crab is not plentiful, therefore expensive, so today we ordered the crab by the dozen, and many people did not even eat crab. I saw people eating shrimp, chicken and even fish. It was all good.

Prosperity Mortgage Co, took the agents out to lunch to pick crab. We took a bus to Kent Island on the east side of the Chesapeake Bay and enjoyed being taken out for lunch. It was so unexpected that the agents and the Managers were thrilled. Harris was the name of the establishment and the good thing was it was an hour's drive away so many agents drove in their own cars. We left the office at 10:30 and we were home by 3:30, all with a smile on our faces. It was fun and festive, a reward for long term good behaviour I guess. The agents have been the number one office in Long and Foster for twenty years. What a tradition. We gave a big hug to Bob and Jeff and Joyce who took us to the Harris Crab Shack for lunch. It was delicious.

September 21, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. My Car.

My car is no longer my car. The Salvation Army came and picked it up this morning. My insurance is cancelled and I am without a set of wheels. Now this is an odd feeling, to be an adult and yet not own an automobile. No telling what trauma will occur with my psyche. So far we are doing fine. Ken drives me to work every morning and Suzanne brings me home every evening after work. My thinking is that when I need a car I will rent it for the day. Tomorrow Ken and I both have appointments with Dr. Huang our Opthamologist early in the morning, then Ken will drop me off at work. We will see if it can work. It certainly is less expensive.

For the amount I drive, owning a car is silly, in fact it is a nuisance, so I have talked myself into owning only one vehicle, the truck. Now we must turn in my license plate which I have owned for many many years. When I ordered my vanity plate, when I became a real estate agent, they forgot to put in a period between the F.and the Ruth, so my plate became FRuth. Ever since I have been called Fruth. But no longer. My car is gone and my plate will soon be returned. I am into a whole new world of those folks who do not own a car. So far I am liking it.

Helicopters at the Farm

September 20, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. Driving.

We left the farm just before four o'clock. All the way home we listened to the football games on the radio. Satellite radio gives you many different games so if one game is not interesting you just switch the station. It is a great way to drive. We got to listen to Dallas lose their game, which pleased us, and we heard Pittsburgh win their game, which makes everyone at the farm happy. At least five different games were on the radio at the same time. Then we caught the games that started at four, including the Redskins, who were ahead the whole game but finally lost in overtime.

I can not sit and watch a whole football game, but when we are driving and I have many different games available to me, I keep interested until we are home. It was great fun. If one game is not competitive, I just switch the station. Ken gets a bit confused because I don't tell him always who is now playing, so he hears a score and thinks New England just scored when in actual fact I have changed the teams. Often it takes quite a long time to figure out who is playing and the score. The stupid announcers assume you know but we are just trying to figure it out. Keeps our brains in gear I guess.

It is a great assist for a drive, listening football games on the radio.

September 19, 2010. Artemas, Pa.

One half inch of rain does the world of good to a farm. Our fields are green, while at the Jay's farm, where one tenth of an inch fell, their fields are still brown. Our farm looks great. Friday evening during our Gator ride around the farm we saw several herds of deer, all looking healthy. Of course, we are still very dry. The pond is small and the creek is not running, but we have had no trouble with any of the wells.

What you can see is just the beginning of orange and yellow in the trees, so you know the autumn season will soon be with us in full force. I put the wool blanket on the bed Friday, in the middle of the night. The nights are perfect sleeping temperature, especially when you have a wool blanket on the bed and the windows wide open.

And we have a new gate. Almost two years ago a new set of fence posts were installed, but it took until yesterday to move the old gate. Now it looks and functions very well. Dave and Alan installed it and came to tell us yesterday late morning. These folks are always working. The list keeps coming, but now the gate is complete, except Ken will do the painting. We are making progress.

September 18, 2010. Artemas, Pa. Dinner.

When we are together in the country, Diana always invites us for dinner which we appreciate, because Diana is a wonderful cook. In addition, their son Ben had three friends from the football team visiting with them so it is always interesting to talk to these young men, all seniors at BCC High school. Great kids, energetic, enthusiastic city kids enjoying the country.

The evening was beautiful. We sat on their deck and watched the sun set, then ate our delicious dinner as we watched the sky turn pink then purple then violet. Finally the moon came out. It was a spectacular evening.

Over the summer, Gary and Diana cut down trees, opening their view to the south for a distance of many miles. You can see several rungs of mountains from their deck, where in the past you saw only trees. It is a great improvement to their view. They already have the best sunset, now they have the best long distance view. The four boys after dinner went to their far field to watch the evening sky and came home much after dark. It was a little spooky walking through the woods at night, they all said.

It was a very pleasant evening indeed.

September 17, 2010. Artemas, Pa. High Tech.

For the past few months, a study has being conducted in the area of the farm. The gas company is finding out what is under the grass and trees, looking for more gas storage or even gas itself. It is all very high tech stuff with wires stretching everywhere. I have no idea how it is done but I know they use fiber-optic cables and dynamite. Up until now their actions were not obvious, other than all the cables and trucks both large and small. But this afternoon they were noisy.

They were picking up their equipment, using a helicopter. Men on the ground would connect the line to the bag of supplies, then the helicopter would roar and lift the load up, still danging on the long line. When four bags were attached, the helicopter flew away back to home base, only to return in ten minutes and begin the process all over again. They were picking up the sacks from our farm this afternoon and they will continue tomorrow too, as we noticed several dotted around the farm during our gator ride.

It seems incongruous to see all this high tech equipment in this obscure part of the country. We wondered what the cows were thinking about all this noise.

September 16, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. Lunch.

Thursday lunch is grilling day in the Bethesda Gateway Garden. Dennis fires up the barbecue grill and cooks hot dogs and hamburgers and serves them to any one who arrives. He brings all the supplies outside including iced tea plus all the fixings. I spent over two hours outside at lunch today, eating and talking and enjoying myself. At least forty people came out for lunch. Many brought their own food, rejecting those prepared by Dennis. Most folks came to eat and talk and after half an hour or so, they got back to work, so I had a constantly rotating cast of folks to talk to. It was fun.

Dennis made this garden. It is actually a ten foot wide space between two buildings, right behind the parking lot and adjacent to our office building. Dennis decided to make this space useful. He brought some furniture from home and he asked the agents to bring deck furniture from clients who were getting rid of chairs and tables. Then he bought plants from Walmart so now we have hanging plants and large ferns and lots of furniture. It is pleasant and useful and when the weather is good we eat lunch outside, all thanks to Dennis and his idea. In a million years I would never have thought to fix up this ugly space and turn it into a lovely useful garden. We wanted to name it Dennis' Garden but he would not hear of it. It is the Bethesda Gateway Garden and we enjoy it and are grateful.

September 15, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. My Car.

My car will not be my car much longer. Soon it will be removed from my parking lot and taken away from me for ever. This car has been with me since 1992. My car phone was firmly attached to the floor of the front seat along with a box in the trunk and an antennae on the trunk door. It was very high tech back then. Now I am donating my wonderful old car to The Salvation Army. Just like that, next Tuesday, they will take it away forever.

This is a smart thing to do. I only drive eight miles a week. Weather permitting I could walk. My plan is to rent a car on the days when I must drive, but most of the time I can use the truck. Ken will drive me to work in the morning and this week, Suzanne has taken me home at the end of the day. She lives just five minutes away and does not mind.

Monday after work my car would not start so Tuesday the AAA came to get me started. The young man gave me a lecture, telling me that I just must drive my car for longer times, so rather than drive it around for an hour to charge the battery, I came straight home and told Ken to donate my car, which he did. I will save money and I will eliminate hassle, but I will not have my smelly old car, which is probably a good thing. But I will miss it.

September 14, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. Jose.

He walked into my office with a gift, an old remedy of his grandmothers to cure all ailments. The gift arrived with a recipe, written in his hand writing. The Long and Foster bag came complete with all ingredients. My instructions were to follow the directions exactly for three nights, then I would be cured, along with Ken.

Ingredients: 1 shot of Jack Daniels.
Juice of one lemon
1 large shot of honey
1 cup of hot water
Directions: Put honey in the bottom of a mug. Add the juice of one lemon. Add one large shot of Jack Daniels.
Fill the mug with very hot water and stir.
Drink in bed. Pull up the covers to your neck and sleep like a baby. In three treatments, all signs
of illness will be gone.
Now I know that Jose is a reliable fellow, so we followed his directions last night and we will do it again. Just thinking about that late night libation makes me feel better already!!

September 13, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. A Mess.

It is never a good idea to walk into your home and be met with a terrible smell, but that was what greeted us at home yesterday afternoon. The kitchen sink was full of putrid water. This nasty water had leaked onto the counter top and into the drawers, finally landing on the carpet. It smelled awful. What a mess.

The manager called the plumber to unstop the drain. I emptied the drawers and cleaned up the counters, also the floor. The carpet is still out on the balcony, awaiting the trip to the cleaner. This morning early I ran a dishwasher full of cutlery, also took the dish towels and aprons down to the washing machine., so by the time I went to work, the kitchen was beginning to look some order could be restored. Ken bought more cleaning supplies today at the grocery store. Tonight after dinner I finished organizing the cutlery along with the compartments. By this time tomorrow night we will be back in business. Except parts of the wood floor is black and some of the drawer fronts have separated.

Next time we will have some one check the apartment every week, a system we use every where except the apartment. We should have known better. Also, also my car would not start. Next time I will ask Jose to drive my car every month. He would love to drive that vintage car every week, I am sure. We get too soon old and too late smart!!

September 12, 2010. Artemas, Pa. Energy.

First thing this morning I washed the outside tables on the deck. A summer of dust made everything dirty. Now they are clean, which pleases me. Next I did a load of laundry. But that was all I was able to accomplish. This illness has taken us down. Last night, every time Ken lay down he coughed so much he got back up to read, only to try again later. This meant he slept very little. Both of us are lacking energy and feel the need to lie down regularly. It makes us think that something other than a cold is at work. Ken has started himself on antibiotics, but my immune system usually works well by itself. This illness is hanging on.

I am imagining us in ten years time, shuffling around our home barely keeping up with routine activities. I washed the table early this morning because I knew my energy would be gone early in the day. I think it will not be a pretty picture. I have led my life with an abundance of energy, and now I have none. I have always ignored colds and pushed through my work, but that might not be smart. Maybe I should just rest all day. I am not required to take ibuprofen every four hours all day as I have been doing up till now, so I must be getting better. We will both be happy when our energy levels return.

September 11, 2010. Artemas, Pa. The Farm.

The summer at the farm has been hot and dry. Only three inches of rain since we left. The creek is not running and even the pools are small. The pond is but a shadow of it's former self. Alan told us they were forced to keep tanks of water full for the cattle. This is the first time in recent history. Fortunately we have a pump at the barn, but wouldn't you know, the pump broke and needed replaced. The hills appear tinged by color, but it is merely leaves too dry, not autumn colors of orange and red. The woods caught on fire the other day, we think at our old farm. The farmers are fearful of wild fires. Even the brush on the fields will burn.

In our absence, our calves were sold. Also Alan cut and sold four cherry trees, so we have income coming in which will off set the cost of the new pump. Alan cuts the wood when the trees are dead but not totally damaged. Then we split the cost which works well for both of us. He does all the labor, cutting the trees and trimming them, finally taking the wood to the mill, where they cut two identical cheques, one for him and one for us. Our goal at the farm is to make it sustainable and so far all is well. Both houses seem fine. It is lovely here at the farm.

September 10, 2010. Jonestown, Pa. Travelling.

We are too pooped to pop, so we decided to stop for the night. Actually, we are about three hours drive from the farm, but we decided to stay in the Lebanon Valley, eat a good meal and finish the drive tomorrow when we are rested. These colds are pulling us down. The sounds emanating from Ken last night were truly remarkable. The spluttering and coughing and sneezing kept us both awake.

The drive today was lovely. We came south, then west on 84, and finally south again on 81. Lovely rolling hills with lots of rocks. Many rivers. This country is blessed with rivers, especially before the days of roads. This drive today took us across many rivers large and small, the biggest being the Hudson, The Mighty Hudson. I tried to take a boat ride up the Hudson River but there are no commercial trips available. Unbelievable. These Pennsylvania hills are lovely. We have enjoyed them today. Tomorrow we will be at the farm, and we will be pleased.

September 9, 2010. Waterville, Maine. A Travel Day.

New roads today. With no ferry running from Yarmouth, we are required to drive across the Province of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in order to get to the same place, Portland, except we stopped in Waterville instead. We drove through Frederickton because two travel sites told us it saves time, even though the distance is greater. They were right. The highway was wonderful all the way. Big road and no traffic. We left at seven-thirty this morning and kept driving all day. Tomorrow we hope to arrive at the farm.

Even the border was a breeze. It took us three minutes. No wait at all. The XM radio kept us amused and the scenery was lovely so we enjoyed the day, except both Ken and I have these colds. I am getting better and Ken is a day later. It is interesting in that one day you feel you can barely stand up and the next day you forget you have been sick. Ibuprofen saved the day for me to keep functioning. Tomorrow I expect to be perfect!!

September 8, 2010. Western Head, N.S. Barbara and Gary.

Their home in Milton is beautiful, a very old home and large barn on the Mersey River, both built in early 1800's. The lot is large, about an acre, and has a a gentle slope down to the river. Barbara had a small cottage built for Gary for his birthday, down close to the river, with no electricity or plumbing. It is charming. Tonight we sat outside on the porch of the cottage for cocktails. The whole scene was gorgeous, another one of the benefits of living in Nova Scotia.

Their home is full of antiques, but the most impressive is a grouping of small pieces of furniture, that seems at first are children's toys, but they were salesman's samples. They are quite a collection.

It was a lovely evening, good food and good company. Now we hit the road in the morning.

September 7, 2010. Western Head, N.S. Endings.

The cool breeze is in the air which means Autumn is coming and we are going. Yesterday we had the last party at the cottage, eight good friends eating hamburgers and chicken on the deck. No swimming. Tomorrow Ken and I and Vinal go back to the cottage to bring in the dock and store the furniture. I bring sheets and towels back to the house, also clear out the refrigerate. Soon the plumber will close down the water system, all ready for the winter.

Thursday we begin the drive home, leaving early. Today Ken has harvested the vegetables, to be given to Jackie and Bryan for their use. The food bank is delighted to have any extra fresh vegetables, a suggestion of Jackie's and a good one. All the traditional endings are under way. Tonight we dine with Gill and tomorrow night with Gary and Barbara to say good-bye. The weather this summer has been extraordinary, warm and sunny all of July and August. No one recalls such sustained beautiful weather. But now summer is over and we will say goodbye to our friends.

Two weeks ago, we were all at a big party. It turns out that several people at the party had colds. Unfortunately, Gill, Mary, Cliff and I have come down with this bad cold and we are all suffering. Miserable being ill. People who are ill should stay home, not spread their germs. I accomplish by work in fits and starts of energy, hoping I will soon get better.

September 5, 2010. Western Head, N.S. Conversations.

It must have seemed like a good idea when I read the review and down loaded it into my Kindle, but the reality was much less that the promise. The title was intriguing, "A Good Talk: The Story and Skill of Conversations", by Daniel Menaker, but do not buy it or read it. Over promised and under performed, in every category. I kept thinking that if I just kept reading further into the book, I would find the meat, but no such luck. The book content is pathetic and the writer in love with himself. The book is not worth reading.

I was looking for some ideas. One of the problems being around retired people is that the discussions seem to center in the past, stories that occurred twenty years ago, when I really like to talk about the future. It is a problem, so I was looking for suggestions. I just remembered one part of the book that was mildly helpful. The author gave several hints when in a conversation with a very boring person. That was actually funny. So I must look further for better ideas. Definitely, "A Good Talk..." was not much help.

After Earl

September 4, 2010. Western Head, N.S. Storms.

The storm Earl has gone, but the strong wind is still blowing. Our bay was filled with white frothing water, with the waves pounding into the shore. It was exciting. All our preparations yielded good results. Nothing blew away, when the electricity failed for several hours our toilets could flush and we had plenty of good and water available. Now the power is back on and we are watching the US Open tennis on TV. The wind is still blowing very hard, so everyone is staying home and hunkering down, safe inside their own homes. It certainly is not a day to go for a walk to check out the causeway.

The sound of the wind is the first thing that you notice when you wake up. It is loud and only gets louder. Ken went down by the shore and sat in a chair watching the waves. "It was very dramatic", said Ken. I stood on the deck and watched the sea. Everything shook, even the deck. The water in the commodes sloshed around so I guess the whole house was moving. The sea never reached the new wall and no water came up into our yard so the damage was not as bad as the storm of last year, but the winds were greater, and I have never seen the whole bay full of white water. We love storms but we are always pleased when they have passed up the coast to Newfoundland.

The Eye of Earl Passes

September 3, 2010. Western Head, N.S. Storms.

We are getting ready, even though Hurricane Earl will not come here...probably. The bath tub is full of water, all the furniture has been turned over or brought into the garage, the whirly-gig has been taken from it's spot beside fisherman Joe and the buckets are in the bathrooms, all ready when the power stops working. One of the problems of having a well means using an electrical pump which will not work if the electricity fails, thus the toilets will not flush, except once.

Yesterday at the cottage we brought the boat lift into shore, also put the boat safely into the boat house, folded down all the furniture and stored the light chairs in the woods. So we are ready, both here at the shore and at the cottage. The storm is the first topic of conversation in town. "When is it coming and how bad will it be? Of course no one knows but you can bet, everyone will be doing the same as us, which is getting ready.

"Will the new wall stay in place?" everyone is asking too. One thing we know for sure. Mary and I will not be beside the wall during the storm. We learned our lesson.

September 2, 2010. Western Head, N.S. The Last Supper.

Today Wendy, Claussen and the dogs begin their drive back to Maryland. Last evening we ate dinner at our house to wish them well, all fourteen of us. Once again, it was a lovely evening. This summer has been different, in that we have been in residence for a longer period of time which has been nice, but actually we have seen each other less. Now summer 2010 is ended and we celebrated in style.

First cocktails down by the water. It was so hot that we decided that the breeze, even though it was hot, would feel better, so we ate smoked salmon and shrimp down on the deck by the fire pit. When the evening cooled a bit, we retreated to our dining room where we ate chowder, made by Betty. It was delicious. Small squares for dessert. By 10:30 Ken and I were watching the US Open, the kitchen and dining room all clean and tidy.

Every year, something is added to our routine. Suzanne always enjoyed appetizers and a drink down by the water, so this Spring we bought three sturdy benches to use as tables for food and drinks down by the water. It has worked very well. Ken used linseed oil to protect the wood. Ken uses the tractor and cart to haul the supplies down so it makes for few trips down the path. This is the first year when we have served cocktails down by the shore. It is nice. The summer season is just about over, but what a wonderful summer it has been.