Meellting!

Pleeese help me! I'm meeeelting!

Not only is it a balmy 74 degrees outside, it is a hot, sticky, uncomfortable 84 degrees inside at work today!   It's a bit hard to concentrate with the sweat is trickling down your back.  AARRGH.

On a lighter note:  We are having a groovy Halloween-type office party at the picnic shelter in the park at Broughton State Mental Hospital.  (Which is a spooky place in and of itself!  I read on the internet that those woods are haunted, as a woman was murdered there a long, long time ago.  Oh, well. . . aren't we all just a little spooky, too?)  I think I'll dress up as my "evil twin sister!"

That's it for lunch time notes!

Halloween - Now and Then




HALLOWEEN NOW
October, 2010
My T-Shirt reads: "The Nagging Will Continue Until the Job is Done."
Above the skull and cross bones it says "Pirate Wench"
Arrgh! Watch out matie or I'll put a spell on you!
Photo courtesy of FOCUS newspaper

 


HALLOWEEN THEN
Halloween Night - October 31, 1987
That's me, Sara, the blonde witch.
To protect the innocent, the other folks here shall remain nameless.
Photo courtesy of FOCUS newspaper

I love Halloween.  No matter how old I am, come October 31st I put on my "wig hat" and have such a good time the memory of it haunts me for the rest of the year!  These photos have both appeared in FOCUS free weekly entertainment newspaper - all the news you can use and more! Remember:  All you need is love ... and FOCUS!

I'm a free-lance editoral writer for FOCUS.  Be sure to check out the newspaper online at http://www.focusnewspaper.com/.





Cruising Down Waterfall Road



Where The Water Falls

This waterfall is located on Waterfall Road in Caldwell County, N.C.  The road is just off 321 North and happens to be on the way to Blowing Rock and Boone, where I spend much time during the year - it's my favorite place to escape!

Years ago, the waterfall was dotted with grafitti and litter.  Some things never change.  The low rocks still had some grafitti (usually it's a proclamation of someone's love such as "Tony Loves Judy," or something like that).  However, it was good to see the litter was gone and this place, which is little more than a pull-over along a winding road, was quiet and serene last week when I was there.  I stopped for a bit to muse and inhale the heady scent of water and earth.  Small treasures of nature like this one remind me to take life on glorious day at a time.

Rows of Color





Is There Anything More Beautiful Than High Country Color?

  The most beautiful surroundings I once took so much for granted I am now seeking out as a measure of peace within my being. The blossom of youth did not allow me to appreciate the grandeur of them as I do now.

I've taken time off this week to photograph some of God's most beautiful country.  I never have to look far,  for it is practically right out my back door.  A Carolina blue sky with high, fluffy clouds, deep forest greens, scarlet red and golden yellow dotted my color palette on a beautiful sunny afternoon spent in the higher elevations of Caldwell County, North Carolina.  And, while I'm Charlottesville, Virginia born  and Thomas Jefferson is the my personal hero,  it is the wonderfully rich land and hospitality of the Carolina hills to which my heart truly belongs.

More to come ...

The Pumpkin "Perp"

Hmmm. . . yummy pumpkin!



Scarecrow is smiling because to the naked
eye the pumpkin on the left seems intact.
In fact, the backside of it has been nibbled
on daily by the Pumpkin "Perp!"

 






The Pumpkin "Perp." 
"Book Him Dan-o!"

   Every autumn I invest in a couple of small pumpkins with which to decorate the entrance to the courtyard of my home.  And . . . every year there's  a rascally squirel who delights in nibbling away at the pumpkin buffet! This little critter loves pumpkin rind and has now nearly nibbled his way completely through one of my glorious orange orbs!

Arrrgh! I placed the pumkins at the foot of my seasonal scarecrow, which might be scaring crows, but it's sure not doing anything to fight the onslaught of that cute but pesky rodent!

Alas, I bought a nice carving pumpkin recently but had to steal it away to the fireplace hearth where it waits for Halloween. 

One year, I decided to attach 3 ears of  Indian corn to my mailbox as a seasonal decoration.  The very next afternoon, upon arriving home from work, I discovered 3 completely bare corn cobs. 

Oh well... such is life when you live in the woods.

Indian Summer

It's been an altogether long Indian Summer.  It's 85 degrees today!  Where is the crisp, cool air? The wind rustling through the leaves? Chrysanthemums in bloom??? Ack! I've invested in some nice sweaters from Goodwill (currently my most favorite boutique).  I sure would love to wear them!


I'm writing this missive during my lunch hour which will be followed by a PMP by my supervisor.  PMP means Personal Management Plan . . . or something like that.  Hm... it's just another way to say yearly review.  I am, I believe, among the bottom 5 making the least amount of pay in a government department where I've worked for 13 years.  Needless to say, my motivation at the moment is not stupendous. I am a glorified secretary.  A couple of things I've discovered though:

1. Without the low-end support staff, the upper-end staff (with fancy degrees) is basically lost.
2. The secretary/receptionist/ processing assistant - whatever - is the one person who is likely to know the most about what's going on at any given time.

Hey, you wanna know something? Go ask the secretary.  'Just saying.


Okay, well . . . now that I've finished my macaroni salad I guess I better freshen my breath and lipstick and brace myself for the rest of this day!


Over and out for now.

October Beauty

October Geese in Morning Flight

Table Rock & Hawk's Bill in the Background

I love the warmth and color of October:


The smell of the fresh, crisp morning air.


Plump geese flying from one pond to the next.


A cup of hot tea sitting in my old rocking chair on the porch, watching the sun set low on the horizon.


The smell of wood smoke.


The morning mist hanging over the Johns River as I cross it each morning on the way to work.


Pumpkins scattered about! And the anticipation of donning a special disguise for an upcoming annual Hallowee party at friend's house on the lake!


Toasty warm sweaters found at the Goodwill Store for a mere song!


Snoodling with my pooches!


And finding time to read "World Without End" by Ken Follett - a huge novel I purchased this summer to read during these glorious fall days!

Ode To A Belated Labrador

I passed a handsome young black male Labrador Retriever on my way to work one morning this week who lay freshly dead from a mortal hit along Hwy. 18 between Lenoir and Morganton, NC.  He was a handsome critter.  I thought sadly to myself, "Surely he must belong to someone.  Hopefully he won't be there this afternoon on my way home."  But...he was.  Stiff in the afternoon sun he made a statement to me. The next morning, as I passed, the stiffness had gone from him.  I passed him once again. This time, however, I could not continue on down the road.  I turned back and returned to the place where he lay on the shoulder of the road near a deserted parking lot. 

I pulled in, put my flashers on and walked up to the the fellow.  He was well fed, but had no collar on.  He seemed to be intact so I bent down to move him off the shoulder of the road. My hands became soaked with dark, cold blood as I reached all the way around him. This did not horrify me in the least (although it might have any other time).  I walked to the car, found a bottled of water and some paper towels.  I rinsed the blood off my hands and dried them.  The smell of death could not be removed though - that was going to take something stronger. I found an old bath towel in the back of the car and took it back to the dog where I covered him up and tucked it in where I could so the wind coming off the large trucks passing by wouldn't blow it off.

When I got to work, I called the DOT to come pick him up. A nice gentleman answered the phone and listened as I told him the reason I'd stopped was because he'd reminded me of a dog I had recently lost. And, also, I said, "You know, children who pass by and see that sometimes get upset.  I know I used to."  "Yes mam," he said.  "I'll have someone go get him right now." "You'll find him under a blue bath towel" I replied. "You can't miss him"

Damn, it makes me mad to think someone hit that dog and didn't have the decency to do what should have been done.

Summer's End

Wilson's Creek in mid-June

Alas, summer's coming to a close.  It is as it should be I suppose. There are acorns on the oak tree outside my balcony ready and willing to rain on me.

The leaves on the dogwood have begun to turn red. This summer is but a lingering memory in my head. Rainy day winds are beginning to blow and the tea kettle's on the stove simmering low.

And so it's to bed I now will go with my cup o' tea and slip into dreams of would could be.