Sadie

I haven’t posted very much about Sadie lately as we were going through a difficult time with her. She recently became blind. We had noticed that she was very clingy and always wanted to be held and picked up. Finally we realized that she couldn’t see. Added to that her back legs were collapsing just as her front ones had done. We still were carrying her everywhere but it was hard for her to stand even briefly when she went outside. We knew the time had come to let her go. Don could not bring himself to go to the vet but Chris was here to help us through it. I held her and went to vet with Chris but I couldn’t be in the room at the last minute to see it through.  Chris was there for her at the end.  The vet remarked that she was an amazing dog and commented on how we did our all for her and how she went everywhere with us. 

  Don was at home crying when suddenly he knew she had passed because a strange calm came over him. I think it was Sadie’s soul comforting him. You know how strongly I believe in the afterlife so I know she will be there for me when it is my turn to cross over. We will grieve for her and never forget the companionship and love that we received from that little bundle of fur who stole our hearts. 

Dinner date

What a cute couple...Wendy and Chris.  Don and I met them at the Beef and Barrel for dinner. It was a great way to get acquainted.  Wendy is such a nice girl. It gave her a chance to get to know us a little.  Since she has known Chris only a week she got a chance to learn a little more about him..and us.  We really liked her. She was delightful.  Here they are sharing a Toll House sundae. 

What’s up?

Soooo....maybe I overdid it just a little?  Chris came home last night for the weekend and even though I never bake anymore I got carried away. I made salted caramel cookies, zucchini bread, and cinnamon rolls. Since we rarely have a lot of sweets in the house I took this opportunity to load up. I don’t think Chris will appreciate it since he is on a diet. 

  He is going kayaking and bike riding at Allegany State park with a girl he met in Harrisburg at a meetup for outdoor enthusiasts. She moved to a town about an hour away from Bradford so he came up for a visit. 

Today I will be having yellow squash noodles for lunch. I love my spiralizer. 

Just for fun I set my table for fall using the bowls and plates from Williams Sonoma. The napkin rings were from Pier One. Pheasants and antlers add to the fall look. 

I hope you have a pleasant day. This will be one of our nicest fall days.

Fall has come to my house

Fall is my favorite season and I love to decorate my house with the Autumn colors. As you can see in the picture I have replaced my summer curtains with the black checked ones that are more appropriate for the cooler months. I also have the French chair covers from Pier One over the end zebra chairs. 

At the window you may notice a French galvanized bucket filed with tall summer flowers in oranges and yellows along with a lantern and a pumpkin on a column. 

On the table I have a neutral colored runner with an embroidered wreath saying gather that I found at Big Lots last year. Sitting on top of that is a long wooden trough filled wit pumpkins, berries and candles. 

These little pumpkin lanterns were a gift from my sister Linda. I picked up the birch candle this year. 

This is one of my favorite decorations for fall. 

Other little touches include this square plate filled with grapes and moss and a wire basket with pine cones and pumpkins. 

This is one of my favorite arrangements. 

And of course I had to bring out the bronze stag to stand proudly on the baker’s rack. 

Are you decorated for fall? 

TAking a ride

It is Monday and I realized I haven’t blogged since Friday. I just was busy..so sorry. Let me tell you what’s been happening. 

Last week we had the stump removed from the front yard. I’ve never seen a machine that does that and it was quite a process. When the tree was cut down there was a hollow spot right in the middle which means that old crab apple tree had been dying from the inside out. It was time for it to go. But I still miss its shade. 

Don and I took a ride the other day to Gowanda in New York State. It is about an hour from home. It was such a pleasant day for a ride. Don always loved to fish and he often went up to the Cattaragus Creek to catch steelhead trout which came up the creek much as salmon do. He would hook into a big one and loved the thrill. Many times he’d bring a cooler full home. He took me down to two spots where he fished. It is so beautiful there I can understand how much he loved it. Unfortunately with his COPD he has to give all that walking and fishing up. It is a horrible disease that limits your activity. That is so hard for a man who was always strong and active. 

On the way we saw some interesting things such as this yellow submarine...

And this crazy house. 

But what we really went up there for was to go to the small fruit market. When Don fished he always stopped there to bring home some produce fresh from the local farms. We stopped at that same market and I brought home a trunk full of squash, peppers, pumpkins, and cauliflower. I love the vegetables of fall and will make some butternut squash soup soon. We had stuffed peppers for dinner that night which were delicious. 

These orchids are not just beautiful but are rare because they have so many blooms on the plant. We visited Bill and Jan and she has raised orchids for over forty years. She took me to her basement where it is like a botanical garden with two large stands full of the most gorgeous orchids I have ever seen. Bill and Don have been friends since they were in high school. Jan was a high school biology teacher. They gave us some of the last tomatoes and peppers from their garden. 

This picture is from a few weeks ago but I thought I’d add it since we are catching up. At the Willow Dale cemetery pond just a stone’s throw from my house there is a gathering every year of men who love model battleships. The drive them around the pond shooting at each other and have a great time. 

This beautiful building is the administration building at Allegany State Park, the largest state park in New York. The park is only a few miles from Bradford and on Saturday night I joined my friend for dinner there. The small restaurant is on the second floor and we enjoyed a delicious dinner there. The lake you see is Redhouse Lake and we drove all the way around it to get to the restaurant. It was such a lovely drive. 

Now you are all caught up on my activities. Besides doing all that yesterday I had a burst of energy like I haven’t had since forever. I took advantage of that and cleaned the garage, trimmed bushes and a small tree, put away some summer things, cleaned out my summer closet, changed my bed, and did all the laundry.  Whew! It felt so good to have that much energy for a change. 

Will I walk down this street again?

There are some images you just don’t forget. The picture above is in Aix en Provence, France. I had the most marvelous vacation a while ago with my best friend Yrsa and her cousin and her boyfriend. We were driven all over Provence and saw things that most tourists don’t get to see. Our last three days were spent in Aix. There is a famous street with a moss overgrown fountain where we went shopping. Everytime I see a picture of that street I imagine myself back there beneath the plane trees. So I chose that photo to paint at my last class.

Calum Scott, Leona Lewis - You Are The Reason (Duet Version)

Isn't it wonderful when you make a new discovery? Last night I was trying to get to sleep and listening to Pandora when this artist came on. It stopped me in my tracks with his haunting voice. I had to goggle him and find out more only to discover that he was a contestant in Britain's Got Talent. Calum Scott has gone on to have a singing career. I hope that you enjoy this duet. I think it's amazing.

Sleepless

I know you’ve had one...a sleepless night.  I go through periods where I can’t sleep. I get sleepy and maybe even fall asleep for a few minutes but I wake right back up and am wide awake. So...I lay there  mistakingly thinking I will go right back to sleep if I just lay still. After an hour of that I try listening to a podcast on my iPad.  Thanks not such a good idea since I’m interested in what they are saying and it doesn’t put me to sleep. So finally at two I got up to go in the sunroom and watch tv. My body must have thought that I started the day because I was wide awake at three thirty. Even though I wasn’t tired yet I went back to bed and finally fell asleep about four. Yes, I’ve tried melatonin which relaxes me but doesn’t make me sleep. I’m careful about not having chocolate or caffeine after noon. But it happens once in a while. You too, huh?  

Does Mother Nature know it’s fall?

It was 82 degrees out there yesterday.  This is not a typical fall in Bradford. I spent some time outdoors putting away some more summer things. If I do a little each day I will get it all done before the snow falls. I am still holding on to the summer flowers for a little while. 

  Today I plan on spending some time in the basement.  We do not have a full basement in our house but do have a finished room where I have been putting bins from the attic. Today I need to go down there and sort and rearrange and organize. It is more convenient for me to get my seasonal decorations from the basement instead of pulling down the attic steps and getting up there. 

  Some of the Basement is taken up with boxes and boxes of things I have gathered for a sale.  They will be loaded into my car next weekend and I will take them all to my sister’s house where we will have a huge sale the following weekend. That will leave some empty space in the basement. 

It is good to let go. 

I don’t deal in abstracts

I don’t like abstracts. I like realism. I like things that resemble what they are not some far out composition that is lauded for it’s placement of squares. I never dug Picasso or Pollack. I may not be sophisticated enough for the higher principles of art but I know what I like. 

So taking a class in collage was a new experience for me. Last week we spent all our time painting papers which we would use this week to tear in pieces to collage. Susan is an excellent instructor and showed us three short videos demonstrating collage techniques. 

The we played around with painting and using materials. It was an interesting session and it was freeing to just use gauze and string and randomly paint on the paper. 

But this is not something that I would be interested in pursuing. I will stick to painting landscapes and flowers.

In the interest of full disclosure Susan put on some music to paint by. I love music of all kinds with two notable exceptions....rap and jazz. She put on jazz. To me jazz is just like abstract painting. It is random and the melody is hardly discernible. (To me anyway). I don’t mean to be judgemental for there are many out there who love both and that is fine with me. This is just a personal preference. I guess at this stage of the game it is good to know thyself. 

Bedraggled

Bedraggled...left limp or wet as if by rain

Yesterday I took down all the little Black fencing that surrounded my picket fence area. 

The flowers are fading as they put out their final blooms. It seems that most of the plants are looking worn out and shabby. I really think that it is time to let go of all the annuals.

But it is hard when they are showy like these impatience.  

The herb garden is way overgrown and needs tending to   All this week I have been under the weather and not feeling that great. 

A Little aside...as I was sitting on the porch swing two chipmunks practically ran right over my feet.  

This morning I went over to have my hearing checked. I have hearing aids and love them. No sense missing out on conversation. Everything is fine.  While I was there I stopped at Marshall’s to see if anything would jump out at me. Nope, nothing.  I have no desire to shop lately. Can you believe that Tammy?  

Tomorrow is my last time at Mayville to compete a collage. I have certainly loved taking that class. 

Insistence

Have I ever told you about how insistent Sadie can be? Even though she can’t walk she has a way of getting me to do exactly what she wants at any given moment. She really doesn’t like me to be on my ipad for some odd reason.  Every time I pick it up she decides that she doesn’t like it and whines and carries on until I put it back away. She also doesn’t like me to talk to Linda on the phone. Wherever she is she will come to me and bark and whine and sit up to tell me to pick her up. She wants to be held a lot lately and comforted. At night she insists on being on Don’s lap. And every time..I mean every time... I do exactly as she wishes. 

The celebration continues

Yep, that’s my hubby enjoying a 26 ounce prime is as we celebrate my birthday at the Western Door a fine dining restaurant at the Seneca Allegany casino. 

The service was top notch as we had two waitresses who served our every need.  We started off with a basket of five different breads...focaccia, honey wheat, savory scones, pretzel bread, and Italian. Along with that we had three butters..plain, savory herb and sweet apricot. The salads were huge. I had a wedge and Don had the garden salad. 

The side dishes were so large that we split a baked potato and some broccoli. I had a filet mignon which had so much flavor and melted in your mouth. 

It was a real treat and a great date night out. 

Here’s to new experiences

On Friday I tried a vegetarian restaurant for the first time. Cece and I plus a friend of hers< Susan, went to Mayville for a collage class this week. Cece had discovered this little restaurant in Jamestown, NY that she had enjoyed and I suggested we eat there for lunch. 

I love it when I can find things on the menu that I don’t recognize or are unusual. And the Labyrinth Press Company had many things in that category. 

I ordered the African Peanut Burger (with the egg on the side) and it was delicious. I also got a cup of Asparagus Paremesean soup with potatoes,onion and thyme which was out of this world. I would go back just for a bowl of soup sometime. 

The counter person was so friendly and personable and we got to talking about our mission to go to art class and she paints also. This little cafe is an order at the counter type of place with a lot of specialty drinks. Cece ordered a pumpkin latte. (That’s Susan in the red)

In the alley beside the restaurant there was a sign indicating a potter’s studio but we didn’t have time to explore it. Maybe next trip. 

On the way up to Mayville we did make time to stop at The Artist’s Loft, a unique store which represents many artists. It was just filled with creations ranging from paintings to jewelry and glass creations. I must go back when we have more time to explore it without rushing. Since Saturday was my 74th birthday I treated myself to a bracelet and earrings. The owner of the store and I were chatting and she is the silversmith who created the things I had picked out. 

At the Depot this week we painted background papers for collaging using many methods of getting texture and unusual materials. Next week we will tear or cut these pieces and paste them to make collages. Our instructor Susan is so enthusiastic and thoroughly enjoys the process of teaching us that I always learn so much. She makes me want to enjoy the process of art and not dwell on whether the results are perfect. 

All in all it was another perfect day. 

Goodbye tree

Today I am saying goodbye to this glorious crab apple tree that has stood in front of our house for all the 45 years that we have lived here. When I come back from Mayville today it will be gone. Don has wanted to cut it down for a few years now and says how nice the house will look without it there. I have disagreed and pointed out that it not only gives us shade but provides a place for the birds while they are waiting to get at the feeders. 

How can you not miss this spectacular pink spring tree?

And how the fallen buds make dotted art on the ground. 

It looks like a Serraut painting. 

How proud Don has been of his grafts and the apples they produced. 

Now the once proud tree is broken. I don’t know why I am feeling so very sad at losing it. Is it because it is old? And I am old? Do I somehow relate? Or do I dislike change? I feel like I’m losing a friend. I am glad I’m not going to be here today to watch it fall. (Tears are falling, I’m such a baby). 

All gone....