The Years To Remember

Was this my last time  kayaking on the local lake down the hill? With the Autumn Equinox, the weather went from sunny 80 degree days to 60's with clouds and rain. I'm not complaining, just observing. I do better at these temps, just adjusting the wardrobe takes a little time.  I've been paying close attention to details on my walks and took some photos. I've seen quite a few of these crawling around, a red humped oakworm caterpillar.   I like the texture of these (burdock)? Pretty purple wildflower. These tiny weed flowers were no bigger than a pea.      I went to dinner with a few friends to discuss the reshaping of the adventure book club that Peggy started. Our next read is God Of The Woods: A Novel by Liz Moore. It is set in the Adirondacks and by a somewhat local author so I'm hoping it will be a good read. I'm just finishing up our last pick, Great Circle , by Maggie Shipstead which came highly recommended by the bookstore owner. It is good, but long...

I have dabbled in composting for over 30 years, and never felt really satisfied in it. The scraps pile up, and have to be turned, etc... My best method so far was to buy an old blender at Goodwill, blend up my kitchen scraps with water, then just dig a hole and dump it in. The only problem is that digging in winter can't happen, and the blender motor gave out. I have so much garden and kitchen debris that I decided to buy a tumbling composter. After researching many models, the Black and Decker composter was high on every list, and on sale. So another attempt at being a master composter begins. I found the box deposited on the bricks, so it being happy hour, I poured myself a glass of wine and got to it. So many boxes and parts! I'm not sure if the wine helped the construction process, but I was at least very chill and relaxed about it! A flat packed barrel took shape. The instructions said 2 people are needed  to put this together, but they don't know me. No help required....

  I am enjoying these flowers every day, collecting seeds,  and making notes for next year. Tuesday I woke up and decided to just get on with painting the deck. I proceeded to paint for 6 hours and got most of the railing and posts done, then went on to paint the insides of the roof which were just too ugly to look at. After a quick dinner, I had my first proper soak in the hot tub. I'm going to love this thing! Still not done, but so much better than before. Wednesday Trimming trees and shrubs to make way for the fence was today's agenda. My reciprocating saw lets me trim very sizable limbs from trees which is probably bordering on dangerous considering ladders are involved as well. Wisdom did prevail when I used the 10 ft ladder to climb into a tree to reach a branch that was shading my garden. I ended up not cutting it as I envisioned the several disasters that were likely to happen if I attempted the one armed feat while clinging to the tree with the other. I called the to...

Upper Hudson River  The past week started off with a kayak excursion to Harris Lake and the beginning of the Hudson River. It was a 2 hour drive just to get to the lake, which I'll only do if it's worth it. Luckily it was worth it - a remote, pristine wilderness paddle, but also a town park with a fabulous beach for swimming. We kayaked for 3 hours, had lunch and a swim, kayaked another hour, then swam again. It was a fantastic day of savoring the late days of summer. Ginny, Sue Ellen, and Charlene were in the small group. We wanted to stop somewhere for dinner, but there really weren't any options that far out in the wilderness - and it was a Tuesday when many restaurants are closed.  Harris Lake Parked for our second swim of the day. Cardinal flower Turtleheads The yard remains a mess and its going to be another 2-3 weeks until the fence is installed. I'm trying to remain patient about this. Anyway, I do have a hot tub! (or spa as the sales person kept saying). It was...