Life in the Bristolwood

Late this evening, I began to feel as though I might be coming down with a cold.  Drat!  I have walked amongst the aflicted so long without catching anything,  I was sure I was superimmune!  Yeah, sure…Used to be if anyone coughed or sneezed in a room, within minutes,  I caught a cold!  Perhaps that is an exaggeration….perhaps not!

I will never forget when I was working at JoAnn’s Fabrics.  I was waiting on a customer when she let loose with a sneeze.  Disgusting as that was,  it seemed she made no attempt to cover her facial orifices and I wound up with a shower of germ-carrying moisture all over myself.  Gross.  And yes, within days,  I was suffering a bear of a cold.

But, alas, I digress!

The symptoms were what caused me to recline on the bed to relax,  browsing the web and just enjoying doing nothing in particular.  Suddenly,  I heard the most ridiculous scream.  At first,  I thought perhaps I was hearing things, but as I listened,  I was sure I heard noises outside my window.

I got up and opened the window.  Bone-chilling screams could be heard not too far from our house.  I listened and it sounded like a scream.  I looked out the window and listened…..it sounded as though it had crossed the road and was now coming from a greater distance.  As I listened,  the shrieking screams diminished somewhat and changed to what sounded like a cat crying loudly.  I did see the neighbors’ outdoor lights come on, so whatever it was, it must have ca used disturbance there as well…

I have been awakened many times in the middle of the night by noises.  I realize that owls are out hunting at that time, as well as foxes and other nocturnal critters.  It sure makes it interesting for the humans nearby!

And speaking of nocturnal!  Take a gander at what the deer did in our side yard last night as we slept!

The area looks small in the photo, but it really covers a good size piece of the yard!  The deer paw at the earth, looking for goodies to eat.   This is the side of the house where the birdfeeder is located, so perhaps they were digging for sunflower seeds.

I was looking thorugh the photos I took at the park the other day and came across this one that I really like of s Nuthatch sitting on Kim’s hand.

And one more…..

The little Black-Capped Chickadee was opening wide to grab a seed!

I shall go back to my reclined resting mode once again.   I would rather think about dear little birdies nearly weightlessly lighting upon my hand than nasty raptors swooping down to make a meal on some poor unsuspecting animal who just happens to seem like a suitable meal! Argh!

Oh, and I hope the Scottie boys emptied their “tanks” well when they were out earlier…..I am in no hurry to go outside into the night tonight!

After hearing rain pounding on the rooftop the past couple of nights,  it was refreshing to awaken to a less damp start to the day! Yes, I generally grumble too much because of our lack of snow, but this morning,  the temperature had dropped after the deluge of rain and the results were quite pretty!

I walked about the yard, enjoying all the scenery….

But I just loved what Jack Frost painted on the hood of the Explorer!

The sun was brilliant and the skies a crystal sapphire blue!

As I walked the wooded path behind the house,  I couldn’t help but think how springlike everything was looking…and feeling, as the temperature rose!

In all my euphoria, I noticed a ziplock bag lying on the ground behind the house.  I walked down and snatched it up, only to realize what it was.  You might remember me mentioning here that a beautiful bluebird had met an untimely death trapped in our woodstove.  I had taken a ziplock bag and placed it inside, then placed it inside another bag.  Well, the winds apparently whipped the thing about and it ended up behind the house. (not sure where the outer bag ended up!)  Anyway,  I thought since not everyone has seen an Eastern Bluebird up close,  I would show the beautiful coloration of the bird before I took it to the dump today.

Kudos to Nikon for lenses that are spot on! The color of this bird is perfect…I did nothing to “doctor” the photo.  I am sorry if the photo is disturbing…I know Mark and the kids would probably balk if they knew I showed this. These birds are fairly hard to find.  Their natural habitation is open fields and orchards.  Their population had fallen so that people were encouraged to build Bluebird nesting boxes.  The last I heard, their population had been increasing because of the boxes people placed on fences and poles.

I will leave you with something far more pleasing!

Yes,  I baked a small army of Gingerbread Boys!  I have never made these before and it was fun! Ben looked at them and asked if I was really going to let people *eat* them!  He must have thought they looked more complex than they really were….thank heaven for the wonderful tubes of Wilton’s icing for decorating!

This is our “Christmas 2009″ garage wreath.  One needn’t squint too hard to see that we now have larger LED lightbulbs decorating the greenery.

We bought this big wreath in clearance at Lowe’s several years ago.  I believe it came with those pretty white miniature lights carefully and meticulously woven throughout the greenery.   The lights lasted one season, then came the frustrating job of removing the lights.  They had little dark green plastic ties to hold them in place, and while they worked fantastically,  there was no way I could rewire to the original specs.  So, we chose a colored set of lights and yours truly carefully wove the new (much prettier!) string into the wreath.

One year later,  the lights refused to work.  Bah humbug!  We store this wreath upstairs in our garage, hung on the wall where no one and nothing disturbs it.  A *bit* annoyed,  but really liking the look of the huge wreath on the front of the garage, I dutifully removed the old and strung in the new light set.  I think that set actually worked when we plugged it into the outlet the next year,  but as time progressed,  I found several of the tiny bulbs on the sidewalk beneath the wreath…

This year, true to form,  we plugged in the wreath and nada. Nothing.  Becoming more than frustrated, as I searched the aisles of stores for light sets,  I happened across the larger “C6″ LED set.  Thrilled at the notion I would “only” be wiring 80 lights into the wreath in lieu of 150,  I merrily bought the bigger set!  Fortunately for me, Michelle did the wiring this year!  Joy to the world!

Now, for those of you who have light sets that you have kept over the course of many years, HOW in the world did you keep them?  The last set I bought that lasted “almost” two seasons was from WalMart and I think I paid all of $1.88 for them! 

Anyone want to venture on how long these snazzy new LED’s will last?

Yes, that is a four letter word that puts fear into the hearts of many!  So many folks have a love/hate relationship with the white stuff, wanting it to snow from December 18- 25, then wishing it to cease to be!  I have actually heard some proclaim it should snow Christmas Eve, only!!

When first we moved here, I was thrilled to be living within a couple miles of one of New York State’s ski areas! Yes! Growing up in one of New York’s snowbelt areas,  I love snow.  I have played in it, shoveled it,  waded through it,  and yes, even eaten it!  Snow was a very important factor in the winter months where I lived.  We even learned to drive in it.

Shortly after moving here, I read a detailed article on how the ski area located so nearby was developed to operate with or without Mother Nature’s help.  Wonderful! In other words, our mountain has enough equipment to create inches and feet of snow so long as the temperature is below freezing.

This evening, the kids wanted pizza for dinner, so we ordered from the local convenience store.  As soon as I walked out our front door, I could hear that steady drone of the hydants over on the mountain, making snow.  We had some snow in October, and here it is, less than three weeks before Christmas with no snow in sight.

I was so upset this evening,  I actually caught a corner of the cape I was wearing in the door latching mechanism of the Explorer.  The cape was *so* caught, in fact, that I had to climb out the passenger side door to go into the store. I had slithered out of the warm and cozy cape firmly captivated by my door,  angrier than a wet hen!

We picked up the pizza, then as I moved along the road toward home,  I stopped at the mountain to take a few photos.

Well, my foul mood didn’t stop me from taking some photos.

When I arrived back home,  Michelle held the handle of the door in her hand as I applied force on the door and we finally were able to pop it open.  Another great disaster averted! Perhaps not so disastrous, but certainly stirring a ner panic response on my behalf….it is less than comforting knowing that one’s door is unable to open! In the end, we surmised that the cape had gotten tangled into the door mechanism, as th locks worked perfectly!

Wait a minute!

That should read dog on it.

Huh?

Let me explain.  Or, better yet…..

Mark wanted to check for a certain vent at Home Depot this afternoon.  We pulled into the parking lot and Ben offered to run inside the store to see if the vent was even available.  Being a relatively warm day, Mark rolled the windows down.

Since Ben had been sitting in the front seat of the truck,  I was seated in the back with Murphy on my lap, reading. (okay, so *I* was reading, not the wee Scot!)  I immediately looked up, as did Angus, when we heard a mournful mix of barking and howling!  Murphy could have cared less what was happening,  but as I looked,  I immediately grabbed my camera!  I had never seen anything like this before!

Apparently, the owner of this dog left the cur in the back of the pickup while shopping.  The poor dog, totally disenchanted,  got on his/ her “soapbox” to air the frustration of being left behind!  In all honesty, while this whole scene was rather humorous,  I was also frustrated, as I hate seeing a pet left alone like that.  If the dog would have jumped out of the pickup,  it would have been terribly dangerous, as the parking lot was very busy and the dog would risk being run over or causing an accident.

The poor dog howled and barked on for at least another 15 minutes. 

The sad part is that the pickup had a backseat, where the dog could have waited (perhaps a bit less anxiously).

Today was Mark’s birthday, so we went up to Rochester after dropping Michelle at school.  We shopped around a bit and just enjoyed a rather relaxing and non-structured day!

For those of you who find my hibernation hard to imagine,  I must tell you….as soon as the sun goes down at night,  I am in “relax” mode! I really do love the short days, as I find more time to sit still!!! Hopefully, this will give me more time to blog as well!

The fact that I had a late morning appointment at the dentist’s office today was enough to stress me out, but it seems the entire day grew more and more stressful as it progressed!

I had arisen early, as always, and tended to the Scotties.  I then helped Mark outside so he could  watch me as I cut some firewood. (He doesn’t like the idea of me cutting alone in the woods.)  I worked for about an hour, then felt too out of shape and tired!  I got on my ATV and we went for a little ride in the woods before I had to get ready for he dentist appoinment.

I arrived at the dentist office at the designated time and waited a few minutes.  I was called and went in to see if the new crown was properly “colored” to match my teeth.  I watched the dentist frown as he held the crown against my teeth….once again, it was a no-go! I was happy I didn’t have to endure any pain or such and leaped from the chair as I was dismissed!

On my way home,  I stopped in Woodville and was delighted to see three different ducks with their little broods.  The ducklings ranged in size from tiny little tennis-balls of fluff to “teens”, catching up in size and coloration of their parents.

One of the ducks and her ducklings were perched on the dock, soaking up the sun’s warmth and enjoying the warm aluminum dock.  They were so cute, I just had to share these photos!

When I got home, I had more stress waiting for me!  It wasn’t great important things that drove me to the edge today…just lots of little things that kept adding up!

As Annie stated,  “The sun will come out tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar”!!!!

I suppose at one point or another, everyone will find themselves attached to a device which requires the use of headphones. And thus begins my dilemma!

For some reason unknown to me, I cannot find a set of headphones with the little “doo-dads” that will fit into my ears. I have tried several different varieties, including the itty bitty silicone ones. No matter how hard I try to insert the buggers, as soon as I turn my head, they fall out. Very strange, say I!

Now if you think that I have given up too easily, let me tell you that each member of my own family has tried (diligently!) to place those little “plugs” into my ears. None has succeeded! In fact, it was only after all attempts failed that Mark looked for a set of headphones that fit over the ears!

Sennheiser to the rescue!

These Sennheiser headphones are the most fantastic headphones I have ever heard! Although they aren’t studio quality, they have a very nice sound. Add to that the fact that while listening to music at a respectable level, I can still hear conversations around me, and well, it is a win-win situation! See how they fold up?

And fit neatly into their compact case. Okay, so they are larger than the tiny ones that fit into the ear, but I don’t mind.

The other day, I saw one of the neighbor kids walking up our hill after being dropped off by the school bus. I stopped to talk to him for a few minutes and he removed a pair of headphones from his ears….interestingly, they were similar to my Sennheisers, although much more “flashy”! I couldn’t help but wonder as I pulled away if perhaps he also has “small ears”?

I spent a great deal of time being miserable today.  Seems something made me awaken with a terrible headache that just refused to let up.  I took some Tylenol and even that didn’t work, so I decided to just take it easy.  So easy, I didn’t get any photos!

I know there is much to be photographed right here in the Bristolwood.  However! Those gypsy moth caterpillars are making the outdoors a most unsavory place to be! Consider this….if I go outside when there is no noise, it actually sounds as though it is lightly raining.  Yes, those filthy little worms that ruin our beautiful canopy above also litter the entire woods with their droppings!  The canopy is truly shrinking. I hate this. I really do.

Michelle was making up a stir fry of vegetable lo mein when she came upstairs and asked me to bring down my camera with the “big lens”.   I have the big one on the Nikon D-80 at present, so I grabbed the camera and went to the window with her….

It is so unusual to see one lone turkey hen!  She was just walking along the pathway behind the pool as though she had done it many times!

Just when I had been thinking I had missed yet another entire day with no photos!  I had missed three Tom turkeys yesterday at my mother-in-law’s house when a neighbor’s dog came out yapping and scared them away!   I love it when nature presents itself to my lens! 

If you click on the photos, they will expand. Twice gives you a full screen shot.  Now, on this last photo, if you think I might have been exaggerating just a bit about those blasted caterpillars, take a look on that Maple tree just to the left of the bird. That big black “cluster” at about her head level is a group of gypsy moth caterpillars!

I will be so glad when these caterpillars are gone!  In the meantime, I am thankful for squirrels, chipmunks, robins, chickadees, and nuthatches…all predators of gypsy moth caterpillars!

Today was one of the oddest days I have ever encountered.  After getting a call from a friend this morning, we ended up taking her to the emergency room this afternoon, where she was examined and released.  She was having an allergic reaction to a medication and was concerned.  After the examination, she was feeling better just knowing that the reaction wasn’t severe enough to be overly concerned.

After taking our friend back to her house,  we decided to take a short ride not too far from home.

A few years ago, Mark received a newsletter from a spinal cord association and in it was one little piece of really cool information.  It explained how New York has special areas where physically-challenged people may drive their vehicles, including ATV’s, on trails to enjoy the out-of-doors.  Mark called the state concerning this and was sent a key that unlocks the gates to these specially-designated areas.

So today, we took a peek at a couple of entrances…The pictures for today were taken with the little Panasonic camera.  I didn’t think it would have been appropriate to take along my whole arsenal this afternoon, so I had to settle for “stealth”!

Wow, we are “authorized”!

And, we have a key!

These pretty flowers are found everywhere along the roadside. Ben brought a couple stems for me to smell! They looked so pretty on the dashboard!

As we were driving along a road a few miles away from home,  Mark made a remark about the truck’s steering pulling to the right. He gave a few different scenarios that could cause such a phenomenon but we continued on.

We stopped at the area where the geese families had been near Woodville,  but there wasn’t a goose to be found!  Instead, we found some pretty wild Irises growing right at the water’s edge.

There were also lots of the pretty flowers like Ben picked me.

We drove a few hundred feet and Mark pulled into the Woodville boat launch….

Yup, a flat tire was the LAST thing we needed! Mark dialed AAA and they said they would send someone out to change the tire.  In the meantime, Mark and the kids got out and took out the spare tire.  Then they jacked the truck up and changed the tire!  Mark had to call and cancel the call for help.

It was interesting sitting in the truck with the Scottie boys and watching the passers-by.  Many people looked and gawked as they saw Mark sitting in the wheelchair with two teens working on changing a tire. A Sherriff’s deputy came by and he offered his help, but when Mark told him the kids were getting a lesson in tire-changing, he smiled and moved on.  Two other older fellows came by and offered their services as well.

We finally arrived back home shortly before eight. Wow, it is so cold out…there is a frost warning for tonight!  It was so good to come home to a warm and cozy house.

The most bizzarre part of today was when Mark commented that it was ten years ago that he suffered the spinal cord injury.  In so many ways, it seems like it hasn’t been that long and in others, it seems like it has been forever….

As for tomorrow, perhaps I will just remain in bed and pass the hours watching videos, reading, sipping tea and just relaxing!  Okay, so maybe not!

To all my faithful readers….I am sorry I’ve not posted today. Something is amiss in CyberLand. Two of my entries here have “evaporated” and Mark spent quite a chunk of time trying to resolve “stuff” with our provider. Hopefully, things will be soon resolved and….
“I shall return!”