Sonnystone Acres

morning glories 9/27/09, originally uploaded by rightbug?.

the sunshine blew in with a cold wind—ready or not, here comes autumn! sunday i repotted some herbs to try to overwinter and took up the last tomatoes. those late-season zinnias are blooming and the hardy mums are bursting their yellow and maroon buds to herald the season. back in the veggie garden, these volunteer morning glories (i actually planted them last year and they surprised me with their vigor this year) haven’t missed a day of opening to where the sun should be. one of the lessons of gardening is that i’m not really in control; just a caretaker.

the h1n1 thing has me confused: both hospitals have said they have cases in their critical care units, however, the health department says there’s none in our evansville. health department has identified cases of typeA flu and lots of what they call “influenza-like-illiness” or ili, but NO pig stuff. this is highly interesting, since the health department is our branch of the cdc and in charge of testing and identifying. i’m with them and think the hospitals have cases from out of the area and are covering their asses. we have a teleconference with the state health department this week and i’ll have to sit through all the stupid questions people ask. i am receiving daily updates and must tell you: it’s just flu. watch for fever and call your doctor. doctors, also, are in the loop with the health department and reporting any incidences of ili as well as testing for the h1n1. right now, the mold is blowing off of the leaves of the trees and causing us to have snot and sore throats. don’t worry, check for temps above 100degrees fahrenheit. (using a thermometer or other specially-designed instrument for measuring, not your hands). in fact, wash your hands and keep them to yourself. you get the drift.

it’s looking like we’ll have to forego the spook walk this year. we all had such a good time last year that we could hardly wait to recapture the magic. sometimes, though, you can’t replicate these things. i’m open for a cook-out sometime in november, if the weather is okay, but it could snow in november, so we’ll have to wait and see. the path after dark is always spooky and we’ll do a little abbreviated course with lights and actors if we can.

this is my sunrise smile……; )

kunstfest 9/20/09, originally uploaded by rightbug?.

i am so sick of this gloomy, rain-saturated weather! it’s got my smile way off-kilter—-almost upside-down.

but tomorrow’s friday, thank god. the weather’s not supposed to improve much, but at least i have lively plans for the evening. as soon as i see something i want to remember, i’ll take some pictures. for now, enjoy last sunday’s new harmony pictures.

>grimly smiling<

berk’s bday party, originally uploaded by rightbug?.

the rain didn’t dampen the spirits of the friends and family who attended berkeley’s birthday party. the festivities were moved to a skating rink and everyone had a great time. the sno-cones were a perfect way to beat the sweat and the ice cream cake looked delish. i really loved taking pictures of the various states of skating: almost vertical, almost horizontal, wobby, arms akimbo, and then the general fun watching someone try to get up after falling. these are just a few that i took. great fun, as usual, and thanks for inviting me.

actually, berkeley turns 7 tomorrow. Happy Birthday, Berkeley!

 

9/19/08, originally uploaded by rightbug?.

i was facinated by the prospect of a “zestfest” down in jimtown. i heard about it on facebook and thought: wtf? this dude from austin,tx bought the old zesto on franklin, off n. main and behind the buy-low in a run-down, lead-poisoned neighborhood inhabited by mostly trash and has ideas to have music festivals at the site? hmm….the building is original and you could be entranced by the idea of owning one of the few remaining zesto chains, but did he notice the abandoned houses across the street? anyway, he roped off the parking lot (pissing off a bunch of “regulars”) and brought in some terrific blues musicians that played for a handful of people sitting in lawnchairs. the music was wonderful during the hour that i was down there. it supposedly went on until 11pm, but the rain came. i wish the guy well, but after dark i wouldn’t want to be down there. the music was great, though.

there’s something i love about saturday mornings that are free–nothing on the list but some “could do” or “that would be fun”.   it’s at this time of year, when Summer and Fall are holding onto each other in one last kiss, that i want to look at the product of my summertime garden work.  you might call it harvest time.  i’ll cut back the herbs except for the basil. before i can bring in the basil i have to be ready– basil turns brown and loses its flavor very quickly as it dries, so it’s best to freeze it in a pesto sauce.  the mint is done for the year, the lavendar needs to be severely cut and some containers moved, and it’s time to buy a bunch of gourds and pumpkins.  since my mums never die, i’m stocked with fall color, balancing out the fading summer blooms. 

it’s a beautiful, partly-sunny day, a blue-jeans and t-shirt and walk-in-the-woods day, a marvel-at-the-order-of-the-universe day. there’s just a few days in each year that are at this cusp of seasons and i’m hoping that you are out there when that day happens at your house.  and i hope it’s a saturday morning that’s free.