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It’s Your Choice

By Lynn, on July 14th, 2010%

Well, club members, it’s that time again.  Time for another of my fabulous hit songs from the mid 1970s.  The songs just keep getting better and better.  So grab your mop or broom or coffee cup or dust rag (or whatever it is you hold in your hand while you stand and stare) and get ready to sing!

Whoaaaa, is that a club song, or WHAT?  And not only is it your choice what you hold while you stand and stare, but you get to choose what you want out of life, and out of your club president.  Do you want saugar canes or honey?  Knowing how my presidential mind worked way back then, I’m not sure I choose saugar canes.  It might be safer for you if you just go with honey.

In other club news, I have chosen our membership chairman.  Yes, dear friends, it is Annie, a.k.a. Fatso Beagle, the love of my midlife crisis.  I noticed the other day that she is really good at standing and staring.  Yes, here she is holding onto her knotted up sock, staring at the ceiling. 

I zoomed in  to give you a closer look.  As you can see, she is not looking at me, and there’s no one else in the room, I promise.   She is totally focused on the ceiling.  What she saw up there is up for grabs.  I know I look very much the same way when I am trying to decide something important, i.e., whether or not to move a large metal blanket cabinet down the stairs for the dozenth time, and trade it for a sewing desk (insert heavy object of your choice here) which will be dragged upstairs for the dozenth time.   No wonder my children hide under their beds when I look like that.

Oh dear.  I have wandered off topic again.  Yes, it happens frequently these days.  I was telling a dear friend just the other day that I am much like an ameoba  lately.   Room for only one thought at a time, I’m afraid.  If only I were like a certain carpenter man I know, who really made me laugh (hysterically) the other day when he said he had enough gray matter to run a power plant.  I think men just say things like that whether it’s true or not.  Just sayin.

So back to WHY Annie will be the membership chairman.  I have made a very keen observation.  She does not bark at everyone.  Only some people.  Some people she does not bark at and some people she does.  (How’s that for saying something forward and backward?)  Anyhoo, I got to thinkin’ that maybe she’s barking at people who are not real good at standing and staring.  In fact, it seems highly likely that this is the case.  So far, the people she has barked at (relentlessly) are people who strike me as not being very good at standing and staring at all!   Are you getting a picture of how the membership process will work? 

Well, that’s all for club news for now.  Let’s talk about creatures.

I wish this picture had turned out clearer, but basically I had to lie down on the ground with the camera almost in the wet dirt to get this.   The web is nearly horizontal and the spider was on the ground side of the web.  It was just such a pretty sight after the rain, I had to share it with you.

I love these little green creatures you can see on the tansy.   I’m not sure what they are, but they are here every year.  They can really hide well on plants that are colored just like they are.  They sometimes jump on my arms when I bushwhack my way through the garden.

And speaking of that, I have more chores to do than can be done.  Makes me want to just sit down and do something mindless, but I’m afraid of what carpenter man will say when the lady banks and trumpet vine finally grows up around the doors and windows so that we cannot exit or enter the house, and what he might do if there’s nothing for supper except cereal and cucumbers (again).

Enjoy this day!  It’s bright and sunny here and we got buckets of rain last night. 

9 comments   Content Thyself, Gardening, Pets, Spiders

Jumping

By Lynn, on June 29th, 2010%

Jumping is such a nice word.  You can jump around.  You can jump rope.  You can jump for joy.  You can jump at an opportunity.  How ’bout jumping on the bed?  Or jumping in the swimmin’ hole?

And then there’s the Jumping Spider.  Yikes.  Actually they are beautiful creatures clothed in bright jackets.  Many of them have an almost fluorescent patch on their thorax and abdomen.  I was hoping to get a picture of one of our huge black jumping spiders for you, but they stay hidden pretty well.  This one caught me off guard.  I tried to get an excellent picture, but he was pretty jumpy.  (I crack myself up.)

Anyway, Michaela and I will be busy doing our own jumping around.  We are going out to shop for a new dress for her, as well as a nice pair of shorts for her to play in.  I would like a new pair of combs for my hair, but I don’t have to have anything.  I mostly want a date with my darling daughter.

In the meantime, Queen B. will be in charge.

I know you’ll find Annie to be kind and attentive, and perhaps a bit bossy, but in the most adorable way. 

You’re in good hands.

2 comments   Pets, Spiders

In Search of Creatures

By Lynn, on June 26th, 2010%

It is sweltering hot here.  The last few days it has been around 100 degrees, and that is with the North Carolina humidity, mind you.  There are days when we get announcements on the radio that it’s best to stay in because it’s dangerous for the young and the elderly to be outside. 

I sprayed the plants off this morning with a cool stream from the hose and watered everything I have for sale.  Doesn’t take long for pots to turn completely bone dry with the soil sucked in from the edges of the pot, all leaves pitifully wilted. 

I then went, in search of creatures, through the garden.  I think even most of the creatures are hiding in their leafy green houses because it’s just to hot to be out in the sun.  Except the mosquitoes, that is.  They are pesky and annoying and I wonder just what good they do.  They are creatures, after all, and I suppose they qualify as food for something out there, which gives them some credit, but I am hard pressed to find anything else endearing about the things.  They follow me in clouds around my legs.  Just a part of the North Carolina summer.

This is a tiny specimen of a jumping spider.  I almost didn’t see him.  We have some really huge jumping spiders in the garden, and I very much want to get you a picture of one this year.  They are even bigger than those I have seen in years past.

My little wild garden needs a bit of trimming.  I let it burst out of its boundaries until, well, about this time of year, then it requires some love so that people can walk through.  People other than me.  People who are not so excited about rubbing shoulders with creatures.  The poor mailman continues to cut his way through the Lady Banks that sweeps down into his hair and the pokeweed that’s now 8 feet tall and hanging in his way, and the mass of arugula, mint and rosemary that reaches for his legs when he comes up my sidewalk.  He homeschools, and he knows we do, so he presses on.

The sunflowers are starting to bloom, some tall, some short, and some taken down to the ground by aggressive cucumber and squash vines.  All is fair in love and war.  And gardening.

The bronze fennel has a gorgeous, dainty, lacy bloom.  This plant, if you’ve never grown it, is quite interesting.  It has an odd taste that I like but can’t take too much of, if you know what I mean.  It’s sort of a licorice taste to me.  Sort of.  Fennel is very good for you, however.  I put it in salads.

Now, this creature was smack dab in the middle of the vegetable garden, probably having just chewed a hole in something that I wanted to keep.  I did not kill him — may regret that later, but I carried him off to another place.  I don’t have time to ID him this morning and I’m not sure what he is.  Any ideas?  Any thoughts about what vegetable he’s out to destroy?

Not sure you can see the hummingbird.  This picture was taken yesterday from my work desk, through the office window actually.  This sweet little hummingbird hangs out around the bee balm and loves sitting on the little archway I’ve put out there for the cardinal vine to climb on.  When the hummingbird is not there, a couple of cardinals rest there. 

Not any clearer really, but a little closer up.

I do have to work today.  Sigh and double sigh.  It’s not easy but I try so hard not to complain.  There are so many things I’d love to do for an income — things that I’ve tried in the past and had success with, but for now we need the insurance that my job provides.  So I try to enjoy my work.  Some of it is actually quite interesting.  I’ve already done notes this year about snake bites!  Yes.  A bite from a snake, up close and personal, and requiring emergency care, antivenin and a hospital stay.  I am fascinated with snakes, I must say, but I don’t care anything about being bitten by one. 

So I’ll look for the good in things and keep doing what I have to do right now.  If I’ve learned anything at all in my 47 years, it’s that life certainly does pass by in seasons, and this season too shall pass.

5 comments   Birds, Gardening, Herbs and Wild Edibles, Spiders

Our First Day of School

By admin, on August 25th, 2009%

IS TODAY.  For all children.   The only reason I get to make a quick entry here is because we are on a breakfast break.

Last night was a quick shopping trip to the mall to get clothes for John, my public school child.  Do you KNOW how much money we could have spent here?  Including me.  I was sucked in too.  The lights, the loud music everywhere, subliminal messages saying SHOP SHOP SHOP.  I saw several skirts and blouses I wanted, but I tried to focus on John.

One thing I did get was a pair of really cute Madden Girl shoes.  It was buy one get one half off, so after we bought John’s black high-top Converses and I made sure he didn’t want anything else, I said, “Oh, ME ME, I DO!

In the garden this morning, more and more orb weavers are working their webs into everything.  Be careful where you step!

I did some weeding last week and things are looking a BIT more tame.  :)

I worked a LOT on the goldfish pond last week, running the filter and then washing it out about every three hours.  I did that FOUR times.  Then we got a wonderful cleansing rain and now the pond is clear again.  The cats are SO excited!  The fish are NOT.

That’s all for now. We are about to very gently open our first Ambleside Book and do some reading.  We’re having a great day so far.  More specific notes later.

Happy Tuesday!

Lynn

9 comments   Goldfish Pond, Homeschooling, Shopping, Spiders

Argiope aurantia

By admin, on August 18th, 2009%

Oh, I was so excited to see this large Argiope aurantia in the garden yesterday. I don’t think they are aggressive spiders and they are not poisonous in the sense of “that will kill you,’ but I have heard that they can bite fiercely! I got close enough for a good picture, but didn’t want to get too close!

I watered a bit and filled up the birdbaths on a break yesterday and that’s when I noticed it. It left the center of the web to climb up onto some foliage. I apparently got the web wet.

These spiders are known as writing spiders.  I love the zig-zag in the web.  If you touch the web with something, which I don’t necessarily advise, the spiders will shake the web vigorously!

When I got close enough for this picture, the spider changed its stance a bit, so I back off.

Of course this would not be a complete story with your getting to see the back of the web.

I’m off today and working in the garden a little, cleaning up house, planning for school, and calling about a corgi puppy today.   Just what we need. More animals.  :)

Lynn

9 comments   Spiders

Some Things To Think On

By admin, on August 3rd, 2009%

A Child’s Relationship with Almighty God.

I have continued to read on in Charlotte Mason’s Home Education Volume I.  (Thank you so much, Ableside Online, for making these resources available.)

My second son, Joseph, who though dyslexic and not immediately appearing to be the brightest academic star on our tree (just give him time),  has always had sayings and thoughts that made me think he had wisdom beyond his years.  He has always said that little children understand the difference between right and wrong and that you don’t have to give children a lot of reasons for saying no. You just tell them kindly, it’s wrong, and they’ll understand.


Daniel reading his little bible, 21 years ago.

Charlotte Mason wrote:

The most fatal way of despising the child falls under the third educational law of the Gospels; it is to overlook and make light of his natural relationship with Almighty God.  ‘Suffer the little children to come unto Me,’ says the Savior, as if that were the natural thing for the children to do, the thing they do when they are not hindered by thier elders. And perhaps it is not too beautiful a thing to believe in this redeemed world, that, as the babe turns to his mother though he has no power to say her name, as the flowers turn to the sun, so the hearts of the children turn to their Savior and God with unconscious delight and trust.


My morning garden time with my watering can and my camera in my apron pocket have become a nurturing habit. Karen Andreola might consider it a part of Mother Culture.

Charlotte Mason’s words have given me some nice things to think on today.  (And Philippians 4:8 is my own personal memory verse for this week.)

Though I had not nearly enough wisdom when my children were little, I am very grateful to have had wonderful, steady examples in my life, and bible studies to keep me from getting lost in my own way of thinking.


The morning sunlight points out a lovely web for me to photograph for you.

The garden is full of spiders this time of year. While I don’t enjoy walking through a web, I marvel at the creatures and enjoy studying their habits in my tiny little garden.


Spiny orb weaver.

I don’t know the genus and species, but I know this is a spiny orb weaver. It worked away diligently, allowing me to take a picture or two.


Spiny orb weaver up close.


The garden is full and many flowers are totally spent, bloomed out and turning to seed. If I am going to plant any vegetables for the fall, it’s time to get busy planning and doing.

Today, of course, is a work day, but I’ll look forward to breaks in the garden with Lady Earl Grey tea.  This evening I am planning to order some more of the books we will be using with our Ambleside Online this coming school year.  I have much to be happy about today. 

Finally, a resource you might enjoy.  It’s a website that lists books needed for AO and you can categorize them into year, categories, free reading, required reading, etc.   Access To The Classics.   I’ve put the link in my sidebar under “Ambleside Online Helps.”

Happy Monday!
Lynn

7 comments   Charlotte Mason, Spiders   , ,  

Sunday Musings

By Lynn, on October 12th, 2008%

It’s pretty here today!  A bit windy.  Sunny.  Fallish. 

It’s a good afternoon to cut some seed pods for drying for winter arrangements.  The garlic chives have really amazing blooms for this. 

Three bunches are hanging up to dry now.  I’m sure you’ll see them again later. 

But wait there’s more stuff outside!  I love the scarlet sage and it is getting so beautiful.  This fiery red really stands out in the garden.

Clara Curtis Mums.  Again.  Bear with me.  I love them.

I can see myself in a Scooby Doo van with these painted all over the sides.  Can you see me there?

This little spider almost landed on top of my head.  He flew out across the path on this strand of web and made his safe landing on the leaf just before I passed through.  I don’t know which of us is more relieved.

Yes, I’d say this rose is bright. 

And this rosebud is pretty. 

Since Oreo was all under my feet, I figured she wanted her picture taken but she wouldn’t look at the camera.  I had to pull her in really close and say, Oreo, look at the camera and you’ll get to be on my blog.

She might be thinking about my blog.  But she might not.   The latter would be more likely.  Don’t you think?

Lynn 

2 comments   Gardening, Herbs and Wild Edibles, Pets, Spiders

The End of a Rainy Day

By Lynn, on September 6th, 2008%

Oooooh we did get rain. 

Rain.  Rain.  Rain.

This was actually at the tail-end of the rain.  It rained all night.  Everything got a good soaking and the rain barrels are overflowing, as are any buckets or birdbaths that were outside.  I know our ground needed it.

All day I looked outside to a gray sky, swaying trees and more and more rain.

Inside, though, our house was cheerful.  Princess of the Universe has taken to making herself “sunny-side-up eggs,” so with great pride she honored her Papa’s request to make him a couple of fried eggs with some waffles on the side. 

She carried it off brilliantly, having the waffles in the toaster as she turned the eggs (without any help and without breaking the yolks), and then she put it all on a tray and carried it around to Papa Bear who was sitting in the den.

This afternoon late the sun came out and we had a pretty couple of hours before it got dark.  Hubby cooked outside on the grill and we had cheeseburgers.  I had to run an errand after dark and as I was backing out of the driveway I glimpsed a spiderweb so big — it made me shiver!  I can only imagine my screaming if I accidentally walked through it.  You’d all hear me.  All of you. 

I came back home, got the camera and the flashlight and went promptly out to get a picture.

I know you cannot really make out the spider due to the dark night and the flash light, but good granny can you see how big this web is????  Do you see?  That’s enough to wrap completely around…  Well, nevermind.  I’m sure you can imagine.  

I think the spider in the web is the same kind as one that’s building on my front porch every night.  Even as I type.  If not, it’s something similar.  But aren’t all spiders alike?  Scary and gross?  Well, I sort of like what they do, but I just don’t want any direct contact with any of them.  Here’s the big spider on the front porch.  He disappears during the day, so we have not had any conflicts over where he has decided to take up residence.

Heebie jeebies. 

Lynn

13 comments   Spiders
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