Life in the Bristolwood

I dropped Michelle off to work with Cindy today.  As I was driving back towards home, I decided to do something I think about all the time,  but always pass on, as I seem always to be in the “hurry” mode. I  pulled the Explorer over to the side of the road and got out. I then walked a few feet over and took photos of grapes on the vine! (A rather hard task, it was, as I am a “grape addict”!)  I nearly felt guilty for taking the photos, and as I made my way back to the car, I held the camera in such a way that anyone who might be watching would see it…I certainly would never want to be accused of  stealing grapes!

These vineyards are growing right near the roadway….I mean, within inches! And, right in town! How do they keep people, kids, teens, from stealing these luscious little gems?

Now that I have confided my addiction, I must advise you of the phenomenon that occurs only this time of year.  Let me set the scene….Naples is a tiny village nestled in the hills. It is a valley that receives just the proper balance of God’s blessings to grow the most delectable, delicious grapes. There are vines growing right in town.

I live in the “highlands” located a few miles north of Naples.  When driving down to Naples, there are two roads that both lead to the village. One is the high road that has some of the most spectacular views! This road is also planted with acres and acres of grapes along the roadside.  It has antique red barns, built in the 1800′s, the views, and just the charm that calls out to artists to come and set up canvas and try to recreate the marvelous images set before them.  This road rolls on for a few miles before descending down into the valley below.

When the atmospheric conditions are just right, “it” happens.  As one descends down the hill with windows open,  the olfactory senses come to life,  making their owner aware of the sweetest, most delicious sensation of “the fruits of the vine”! Yes, the smell of ripe grapes wafts up from the valley below in an almost intoxicatingly distracting fashion. And, yours truly finds herself craving those little purple delights with such conviction, it is almost overwhelming! Judging from the sales of grape treats in the Naples area, I don’t think I am in this boat all alone!

I decided to take the low road home. Low road….it doesn’t sound very exciting, does it?  Oh, but do not be fooled, for this is the road that leads along the lake where the Eagle flies and the views here rival those of the road above!

I stopped in Woodville to see what has changed in the past couple of days. Yes, the scenery is changing more rapidly than we should like it. But, one must pay attention in order to see the changes, as they can be quite minute.

I heard on the news the other day that the forest rangers are reporting the leaves on the trees are changing color about two to three weeks ahead of what is considered to be normal.  In hearing this news, it made me wonder what, exactly, that means regarding the winter ahead.  Our winters have been taking on a rather mild nature of late with lesser amounts of snow and “kinder” temperatures.

The sky was so overcast today, but you can see the colorful patches dotted throughout the hills.

Jackie, in Glasgow, Scotland, fooled her readers with a photo of a large vase made from slate.  This got me to thinking about the huge walls of slate drivers pass through on Route 21 every day.

The road was cut out from a large hill.  The “cuts” in the face of the slate show where drills cut through the stone for blasting. One of the remarkable facets of this is that many types of foliage take root in the face of this stone and grow to maturity!

If you look at the bottom of this stone face, you can see where tiny pieces of slate have washed over the front, forming a pile at the bottom. This particular stretch looks relatively stable in contrast to some of the walls to the south where chunks of fallen slate can sometimes be seen lying alongside the road.  There are signs warning to watch for fallen rock, but (heaven forbid!) what would one do if the rock lands on the roof of the vehicle? This road is very narrow,  and there are houses built lakeside, nearly on top of the water!

My short journey ends at home with my two naughty Scottie boys! See those faces? There is a reason for those expressions!

Last night as I was reading, Murphy came up beside me, begging for a bit of the apple I was eating.  I mindlessly bit off a small piece and fed it to my spoiled little  terrorterrier.  This morning, I came downstairs and grabbed an apple from the Little paper bag.  After washing it, I settled down on a chair to eat said apple.

As I was munching my apple,  suddenly there was such a snarling, growling ruckus! I grabbed one of the Scotties by his suspenders (harness, actually) and pulled him aside! I had innocently been partaking of my apple when the Scottie SHARKS decided each was going to jockey for a tidbit! WELL!  Neither won any favor from me! As soon as I finished, I went to the kitchen to dispose of the core, only to find the Scottie brothers sitting and staring at the apple bag!

Fortunately, I am clever enough to realize that if that bag was not removed from the height of two short-legged, greedy little boys, more of the snarling and such would ensue! Good grief! Scottie boys fighting over an apple of all things!