Summer Vacation

     This year we travelled the 200+ miles again to visit and stay with family for a few days.  It was touch and go as to whether or not we'd actually be able to make the trip as when we took the van in for pre-trip check over there were some problems and one of them had to be fixed by another garage.  There was some concern that not all of the parts could be either found or fabricated in time to make our old van safe for the trip, but luckily the skilled mechanics at both garages were able to get us in fine shape for the journey north. Happily the traveling part of the trip was uneventful and we made good time, even stopping at a favorite restaurant for a fish sandwich that can only be gotten in the area where my husband grew up.  It has their own special chili sauce on it and I recommend stopping at Ted's Fish Fry if you ever travel in the area of Troy, New York.  Get the coleslaw and onion rings too--you won't be sorry!  It's where we stop for lunch on our yearly trek to the Adirondacks, and we look forward to that almost as much as seeing family.

    Once at our destination and unloaded we were able to settle in and be pampered a bit by our hostess, and very well fed over the duration of our stay.  The weather was very hot and humid which was a bit of a disappointment because we had hoped to escape that by travelling north into the mountains, but we made the best of it and enjoyed the peace and quiet, as well as the company.  There was some worry the first night that a predator of some sort such as a coyote may have gotten Flora, one of the kitties, who failed to return home for 24 hours, but the next morning there she was outside the door when I got up. (I was the first one up as I generally awaken at the same ridiculously early hour every day no matter where I am.) She is a little bit skittish of strangers and wouldn't come in when I opened the door to her, but she ran around to the glass sliders and I let her in that way.  She made a beeline for her food dish, so I guess aside from being hungry she was no worse for the wear and found a safe place outside to hide until she decided to come home.  Her sister, Luna, was sleeping curled up on the bed with my sister in law, but seemed happy to see her when they came down later in the morning.  Flora is quite the explorer and daredevil, also a bit of a brat but incredibly cute so you just have to love her when she comes and taps at you for pets and attention.  Luna is the homebody and likes belly rubs and cuddles with her mommy, and seems to look at her sister the way and older sister will react to a younger more gregarious sibling although they are the same age.  It's funny how each cat has her own distinct personality, it's not something I ever gave much thought to before.

    We mostly just relaxed over the course of our visit, I read a novel cover to cover while we were there, which was quite a treat for me to have so much uninterrupted reading time.  We took some walks and my sister in law took us by turns in her 4 wheeler or her Subaru to the little cabin she put down by the brook on her property where she sometimes camps out.  She loves nature and really it's wonderful that she is able to be living out her dreams now that she is retired.  There is something new every year because she keeps herself busy gardening and building little sitting areas around her property. She added an outdoor fireplace to a small flagstone patio she has, and new ornaments and a hammock swing to a grotto she built to the side of that patio. Her garden shed is new since we were there last year, although we knew she was building it from a kit with one of her sons. The vegetable garden is prolific with tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, and some root vegetables.  She recently planted some fruit trees and her flower gardens are enviable.  In the winter she takes care of her houseplants which are also to be admired, especially her little lemon tree which she places outside in the summer and this year is heavy with fruits. My husband is quite jealous of the lemon tree as the cutting she gave him years ago just barely stays alive through the winter and has yet to  blossom or produce fruit.  She has a very green thumb which is handy because she is a Master Gardener.

    So we returned home refreshed and rested, driving through some much needed rain on the way home.  Naturally one of the first things I did after unpacking the van and getting Hillary freshened up was laundry and  packing away the suitcases for another year.  Although, since my husband is retiring in about 6 months perhaps we will take a trip for a few days before next summer. Hmmmm, that might be nice!

    Although our summer vacation was (and usually is) short, it was pleasant and relaxing. Can you really ask for much more than that from vacation?  I don't think so!

When we come up the driveway we are greeted by two beautiful hydrangeas.

Here's Luna relaxing in the heat of the afternoon in the shade under the hammock swing in the grotto,

I took this picture as I was walking up the small part of the trail we drove down to get to the little cabin by the brook.  I didn't walk very far down the hill because it was a bit rocky and uneven.

The gardening shed.  The curtain was made by her daughter in law and 2 of her granddaughters.

Flora jumped into the pantry looking for treats when I opened it.

We had a fire in the outdoor fireplace our last night there.  We also saw a few shooting stars which was a treat since where we live there's just a bit too much light pollution at night to see any.

Flying Things

On a recent Saturday we loaded up into the van and drove to the small airport we sometimes visit for a few hours to relax and watch the little planes take off and land, and the gliders being towed into the sky and soaring overhead until finally they sail softly to land in the grass next to the tarmac runway.  It was one of those rare summer weekends where the humidity was low, the sun was bright in a deep blue cotton ball cloud dotted sky with a gentle breeze whispering through the tall pines.  It was a restful afternoon made even better by table service from the airport luncheonette and a plethora of other flying things to observe when there was a lull in aircraft action.

It began near the beginning of our journey when as we passed through a small town a couple miles from our home a katydid landed on the radio antenna as we sat at a red light. It was a pretty sizeable insect as you can see from the pictures below and we expected that once we were out of the town and picked up speed it would fly away.  We were wrong and amazed to see that the tenacious creature clung to the antenna, it's little bottom legs straight out in the wind, perhaps for balance, all the way to the airport.  I took a proper picture of it when I exited the van as it was still there, but by the time we left a few hours later it had flown away, perhaps to explore the vegetation in its new home.  I hope a bird didn't swoop down and make a snack of it.

The luncheonette has a garden outside the kitchen and we watched bright yellow and black butterflies enjoying the nectar in the flowers there as we munched on hot dogs and fries.  There are hummingbird feeders and windchimes hung under the eaves and the tiny birds flew from the pine trees (where I assume they built their tiny nests) to the feeders and back again to their home all afternoon.  There were sparrows playing in the shade under the empty picnic tables and on the post and rail fence, and the occasional honey bee on the clover which grew along with the grass under our feet.  We also noticed some young people flying a toy plane over by the rental office for the gliders. 

There were many sights and sounds that day as we spent a lazy afternoon under the pines before loading back into the van and returning home.  It was a perfect summer weekend afternoon. 

Sparrow under  a picnic table.

The little yellow spot on the middle left of this picture is the tow plane and to the right you can see the glider it was pulling into the atmosphere.  There a plane in the center waiting to cross the runway and a white one on the right tied down waiting for its owner to come fly it away.

      The katydid on the antenna when we got parked and I was out of the van---it's so big!

This is the katydid as we were driving, see it's little back legs extended as we drove along?  It almost looks like someone parasailing.  Perhaps that's what it felt like to the little guy.

There's a little yellow bird in among the yellow flowers that grow at a farm market we buy local corn from.

                                                         No explanation needed!