Progress

I have no idea of what motivated me to write this. I was 40 then. It was the 70's. I guess I've always been resistant to change and "Progress."

Progress

Once there was a man
Who lived within the wood,
He’d hunt and fish and sing,
And knew his life was good.
And then they found the man
And took him far away…
“To a better land,” they said,
“He’d have to learn to stay.”
But soon the man grew sad,
His body wracked with grief.
They killed the lonely man
Because of their belief.
Why did people try to change
His happy way of life?
Did they know he left behind
His baby and his wife?
Now the child is grown,
His mother died today,
So deeper in the woods he’ll move
To live his father’s way.

By Geraldine, 1976

My Great Grandparents James & Malinda

James and my mother 1915

Family Picnic 1916

Now, this is GOOD PROGRESS!!!!!

And I Know Why........

First a rant............

This early morning I rushed to town with my two baskets of laundry to get it washed before the laundromat became crowded. I have been doing this since 1997 when we moved into the cabin.
I'm lucky to have nice weather today and they will dry on the line well. It's a beautiful day!

Usually, I stay in the small laundromat, reading, but this morning I decided to sit in my car while listening to the radio. The laundromat is 5 miles from our place at the lake and I don't often go into town except for laundry and grocery shopping chores. That may be why I never before noticed how many gas drilling trucks travel to, through and from our little town. They sure caught my attention with their oversized loads and number! And it is SUNDAY!

I observed these huge and invasive, to my thinking, carriers traveling fast and furious on the main avenue. They were all in transit hauling water, frack sand, frack fluids, fracking pumps, residual waste and more.

Some call them soup trucks or kettle trucks and I call them AWFUL. Their stacks emit black stuff to pollute my air. They're noisy. They cause damage to the roads. Some nearby counties have had their roads put off limits to natural gas drilling trucks by PennDOT until the roads are repaired.

The natural gas extraction in my area has grown and I don't like the activity at all. People jumped at the chance to earn money by leasing their land and now the cost is very evident.

In 1900, 1,827 people lived here, and in 1910, 1,914 people lived here. The population was 1,664 at the 2000 census. A 2007 estimate states that the population is 1,843. This town of Montrose was laid out in 1812 and incorporated as a borough on March 19, 1824. It sure seems a shame that it has changed so much in the name of "Progress."

The truck that was involved in yesterday's accident is owned by Casa Grande, Arizona-based Southeast Directional Drilling LLC according to the Times Tribune. I noticed that many of the tags are also from Texas, Wyoming and others.

Fatal Crash

By WBNG News

July 30, 2011

Updated Jul 30, 2011 at 5:18 PM EDT

Liberty Township, PA (WBNG Binghamton) A Susquehanna County man has died in a crash near the state line.

Pennsylvania State Police say 57 year-old John Jones of Brackney was killed when a Mack Truck used to haul natural gas drilling materials overturned on to his car.

The accident happened around 8:00 p.m. Friday night on Route 29 near the intersection of Laurel Lake Road in Liberty Township.

Jones' passenger was an unidentified seventeen year old. She sustained moderate injuries.

50 year-old James Hoffpauir of Montgomery, Texas was driving the truck for Southeast Directional Drilling, based in Arizona.

State Police are continuing their investigation.

Man Killed in Susquehanna County Crash

• By WNEP News

9:04 p.m. EDT, July 30, 2011

We now know the name of a man killed in a crash in Susquehanna County.

According to state police, John Jones III of Brackney died Friday night when a mack truck overturned on his vehicle.

It happened around 7:00 p.m. on Route 29, just north of Montrose.

The driver of the mack truck was injured.

Troopers are still investigating what led to that deadly crash in Susquehanna County.

The Best Things....

It's corn time! We're country folks and really enjoy the summer corn. Tonight we had a corn dinner. That means that all we ate for dinner was corn - on the cob, of course!

Sure, we do know that it is high in starch and such, but so what! Several blogs last year, I posted about our love of corn. I'll repeat that post here, later, BUT.... The shock was that we paid 50 ¢ an EAR for this sugar and cream corn today! We bought five. They were EXCELLENT!

Now years ago, we were very spoiled by having instant access to our own garden corn and the nearby farmer's corn as well. We had all we could eat and our horses did too. I guess times have changed since we no longer have a garden. The local farmer's stand is 5 miles away so there is where we were "forced" to buy our supper.

I have my own method to cook it too, just like my mom and my grandma did. I put a little water in a big pot. When it comes to a rolling boil, I dump the corn into it, replace the lid, and time 10 minutes - EXACTLY! I then immediately remove the cooked ears (with tongs - mine are OLD) onto a platter. We serve ourselves. The butter, yes, I said BUTTER, (stick) is on a special flat dish and we ROLL the corn directly on it. Then we sprinkle salt and pepper. We've learned that we don't like sea salt at all. It isn't salty enough and doesn't stick or dissolve correctly. The pepper can be fresh ground from the mill or shaken from the regular shaker - it doesn't seem to matter to us.

1907 kitchen tongs

Our favorite is "bodacious" but we can't find any locally - YET!

Enjoy my previous blogs from last year about corn now......

Monday, July 12, 2010

Corn Fed

Here in the country, a local farmer brings his produce to town. He sets up in a vacant parking lot. Corn is all the rage now. It sells for 45¢ an ear and is well worth it.

The first we had was "Silver Queen" but it wasn't mature enough to suit me. This week it's "Butter and Sugar" and is WONDERFULLY delicious!Our favorite is "Bodacious" but he doesn't grow that variety. It's the one Ed used to plant here many years ago.

The first step is to find the large kettle which is stored waaaay in the back of the cupboard as it isn't used often.

The Hunt

Isn't it BEAUTIFUL!!! Yes! Corn is beautiful.

Satisfying too! YUM.

Monday, July 12, 2010

Corny Lesson

Bodacious (Top) and

Silver Queen

~The Bodacious hybrid is great eating and is still delicious well after harvest. The ears are about 8 inches long with 16-18 rows of kernels. The Bodacious hybrid does better in warm soils.

~The Silver Queen hybrid is a very popular white corn with 8 inch ears. The ears grow 14-16 rows of delicious kernels. The Silver Queen variety of corn is widely adapted to many different areas.

Hybrid: Hybrid seeds are seeds grown from the crossing of 2 parent plants to produce a new offspring. Most hybrids are an F1 variety, meaning that they are a first generation hybrid. Hybrid seeds incorporate the desirable traits of both parents to make strong plants.

Hybrid seed cannot be saved, as the seed from the first generation of hybrid plants does not reliably produce true copies, therefore, new seed must be purchased for each planting.

~Butter and Sugar kernels are yellow and white with delicious flavor. Ears are plump and sweet. This very sweet bi-color variety is great for eating fresh or freezing and canning. Ears grow about 7 1/2 inches long with 12 to 14 rows of kernels. They grow on tall, vigorous stalks.

Back for a Bit .....

Well, as can probably be expected, I've not been in the mood to write anything. I've been obsessive/compulsive about making computer generated movies and slide shows, using my personal photos. I don't have a movie camera so are all taken with my regular snap camera; (wish I had a zoom lens). It takes a great deal of persistence to learn how to do this and complete them so they are pleasing and interesting - at least to me - and hope others can have fun too.

I'm a slow learner when I teach myself, so bear with me. Some of the movies really mean something to me, such as the Hawaiian wedding of my girlfriend's daughter. She eloped unexpectedly 25 years ago and it is a successful and productive marriage. The couple liked my work and that brought us all enjoyment. The Yummy show used photos she sent me from HI and she didn't realize she had taken so many to show us "mainlanders."

The flying whirlygigs are an important part of living here because they are my imaginary friends. Everyone needs those. "Alvin" is the special one.

I DO love bugs, beans, and other such things. So........

My other obsessive actions this month seem always to involve my love of music. Today I uploaded many Leon Redbone renditions of old songs that I especially like. I just float away on his wavelength! It's hard to control my wants and "needs."

The weather here has been muggy and miserable so I have stayed indoors - with my friend, iMac.

By the way, James celebrated the 4th with a new outfit and then went fishing with another.

Oh, and....we just might have pink ducks and geese and also black flamingoes next year here at the lake. We have had company on the lake's floating log.

Try to have a good time with the 8 new movies here. I did!

Linda Likes Yellow

Fish Escape Try

Bobbi 29 years

Green Beans

Night & Day Alvin Flies Away.m4v

Busy Bugs

Yummy Yummy.m4v

Anniversary Memory

Woods Walk.m4v

Beads & Crafts 2011

Swan Love Story

Thinking Back...

NATURE RULES!!!!!!!!

Something you didn't know about me - I have raised and returned to their own habitat, baby squirrels, baby rabbits, baby raccoons, baby groundhogs, baby possums, baby crows, baby owls and more. In fact, the baby squirrels and baby rabbits were put in a clothes basket with my momma cat and she nursed and groomed them along with her own kittens. When they became too playful in the house, I set them free. The squirrels took a long time to adjust to the wild and came, precariously, from the tree to the house on the clothesline, begging for fig newtons

(their favorite cookie).

I once looked after oriole peeps in a hanging basket that I pinned on the clothesline, too. It had fallen from a tree when they were very young and I found it on the ground. I would reel it out to the tree and the mother would feed them. I would reel it in to the house so I could see how they were doing. One day they weren't there. I don't know if they flew or were eaten by hawks. The basket was empty except for many little white mites!

I learned early on that if I let the small kittens outdoors the hawks would swoop one up - drop it to kill it - swoop down, get it and fly away. I saw this happen! At first, I thought the kittens had wandered into the woods and got themselves lost, but I could never hear their cries nor find them. It was very upsetting to me.

I killed the crow with "kindness!" Jester was doing nicely in a large homemade cage. We had a vacation planned to go to the seashore for the weekend and I put a whole ear of field corn in the cage to last him until we returned. Well......when we came home, he was dead, clutching the perch, with the empty corn cob laying nearby. His crop was huge. We figured he pigged out! Of course he didn't have enough grit in his crop to grind up that much hard corn in one sitting! Lesson learned.

The raccoons were kept in the horse trailer. I bottle fed them. They were very noisy and loving. When the male became a bit aggressive, I set them free. Did you know that they don't actually wash their food? I always had a dishpan of fresh water for them and they would dunk their kibbles before eating. It became apparent that they don't have enough saliva-production to eat.

The owls were in auto accidents. Stunned and a bit brain damaged, they were fed bits of hamburger meat until well. It was my brother who found them lying on the road.

If you wonder how I obtained all of these babies, be assured they were all orphans to begin with! That's another story.

Six years ago, when Ed was recuperating from his heart surgery in May and June, I watched, from my kitchen window in the cabin, a robin build her nest in the carport. I soon saw 4 little eggs. Then, I saw 4 little heads peeking up with mouths opened wide. I saw Momma bird feed those 4 little barenaked babies. I watched their fuzz turn to feathers. One day I saw a big crow take the last one away in his ugly bill. Boy did that make me angry! Too late for any of them to be saved. I know we shouldn't interfere with nature, but DARN!

Water Over The Dam

This morning, between raindrops, I put on my boots - AGAIN! - and ventured out and over the dam. It was NOISY but BEAUTIFUL!

We've had way too much wetness and storms and the April showers that brought May flowers are SMASHING them down!

Pollen in the Cove

Hopefully, when we return it will be ALL gone!

It WAS beautiful, though.

When the Ceiling Fixture Fell......

Yes! You can see it being re-hung by a dear friend, Mr. Watts. REALLY.

Ed was dusting it and BAM! down it came. He wasn't hurt and neither was the dog nor the wagon wheel hanging light that my pop put up here around 50 years ago.

All OK now.

Curiosity Satisfied

Yesterday and this morning, because it's really raining and nasty outdoors, I've been trying to catch up with identifying some of the photographic studies of the subjects I find at the campground. Lately it's a little purple flower, fungus on tree, mushrooms on the campsites, and a pet bug - a very tame bug that stayed with me for quite a while.

The internet is so very helpful and I've found a great site to help me with this endeavor:

http://healthyhomegardening.com

As you know by now, I've always been interested in the natural and beautiful things that surround me. Now I know that the little lavender flowers I photographed have a name.

Mazus

The large and damp bulbous growth on the side of a tree is a giant Birch polypore! I hope it's still there when I go to SC in May. I want to cut it open and examine it closer.

Giant Birch Polypore

Agaricomycetidae (Gill Subclass of Boletaceae)

Boletaceae- Bolete Family

Puffball

Box Elder Bug (Isn't he beautiful!!)

Music is my Heartbeat.

Seriously, I have always believed that music is a wondrous creation that actually DOES soothe the soul. I know it for a fact, personally. Today I'm playing the classics. The internet has given me the opportunity to REALLY enjoy myself while I work. It makes me feel good when the day is dreary and cold. It makes me feel just fine when life seems boring. I don't even have to dig into the CD collection. I have donated my cassettes and old LP, 78 and 45 records away to others through the past few years. It was a painful decision, but the need for space rose above the hoarding instinct and I'm not sorry.

Have you ever thought about which you would rather have if you had your "druthers?"I swing back and forth between the sense of sight and the sense of sound and still haven't come to a conclusion. I'm so lucky to have both working so efficiently still.

Now I can swing and sway and dance and tap and clap and also look outside my primitive abode to enjoy the sights of nature as well. Won't you join me?

I have a great selection pegged of almost all types: classical, opera, film, orchestra, instrumentals - organ, piano, guitar, saxophone, drums - rock and roll, country (the "old kind"), blues, ragtime, folk, gospel, dixie, jazz, marching bands, children's and almost all others. My playlists contain HUNDREDS of my hand picked selections. I don't care for hip hip or rap. Maybe it's my age.

For instance, "Peter and the Wolf" is a wonderful narration with music that brought back my childhood memories. If you have never heard of Kitaro, just listen to his. WOW!

I even have a manifest of my favorite crooners and singers, and perhaps some of them are on your list as well.

A hint: Wear large and wonderful headphones to really lose yourself and you won't bother others in your nearby surroundings.

Try making your own.

http://www.playlist.com/

Start of a New Week

This will be a busy one. Today we have to take "Pal" to the vet for his annual booster and 3 year rabies injections. His Science Diet food supply is always purchased there, both canned and kibbles, plus it's time for a Heartgard replenishment. It will be a costly morning. He's absolutely worth it, and at age 10, is vibrant, healthy and gives us much joy.

I will have my annual lab bloodwork tomorrow in preparation for the once-a-year checkup. The only thing that I know, is that my endurance has faded and my body has enlarged! (Probably related, ya think?)

My husband has just had the truck inspected and serviced and is ready for travel south in two weeks. The car is scheduled for the same, to stay home and be ready for July, when we return. There's grocery shopping, a trip to town for laundry, a 30 mile trip to Wal*Mart for necessary economical needs in larger sizes and a bi-annual dentist appointment for checkup and cleaning all on the calendar for this week.

I want to create three birthday cards on the computer to take with us for my May birthday daughters and grandson. I WILL find time.

The sun is shining brightly as I write and James is back with restored headpiece arrangement after being battered and blown with the spring storms last weekend.

I see buds on the trees now and a very VERY large woodpecker was on the ground this morning poking his awesome bill in the damp earth for grubs.

The week has begun.

Thinking Back..

The children eventually numbered six, but back in 1966 there were four - all dressed up for Easter Sunday. I notice stockings and gloves on the girls and tie clips on the boys.

There was snow still on the ground in northern New Jersey that day, but not one of the youngsters looked cold or uncomfortable.

Yes, times have changed.

My Handle

Because I was "Bookworm" for so many years for e-mail, when I changed internet servers I couldn't keep it so I changed it to "Nookworm." I don't know what I'll do when and if I ever change again. The only other names I can come up with would be "Hookworm" or Cranny Nanny." I think I like the latter best, don't you? (Just think of an old goat that hides in her corner.)

Windy and Rainy Today

I will have to get outdoors to take a picture of James when the rain and excessive and sustained winds have died down. His headpiece is all a-tilt and his scarf is wrapped un-stylishly! Maybe tomorrow...maybe.

GMR 2003

Because we are stuck inside today, we have been busy moving furniture, dusting, taking down window coverings, washing windows and doing all sorts of indoor pressing spring maintenance and upkeep. YUK! I don't like it but, if we are to head south again in two weeks, it must be done. It's a necessary annual ritual, I guess. The dust was flying!