I was looking through some old pictures and came across my first publicity photo, taken many years ago. Notice they spelled my name wrong.
When I was thirteen we moved and that doll was left, sitting on a top shelf, all alone. Heavy sigh! My mother kept insisting it was packed. She lied! During those thirteen years, I only touched it once and that was for this picture..
My mother thought it was cursed or something.
I had gotten very ill after that picture was taken and nearly died. So, no matter how many times I told my mother I wasn’t dead, she still wouldn’t let me play with the doll.
I remember staring up at it, sitting all by itself, in its box, thinking how pretty she looked. Every day I said, hello to her. One day I made an attempt to drag a chair over to the shelf and try and reach her. I nearly fell off the shelf, and I nearly got caught.
Luckily my sister, my partner in crime, had wanted to play with her, too. She had been holding the chair steady. She stood by silent, as my mother waggled her fingers at us and told us over and over again, how that doll got me sick…
Poor pretty little doll! She seemed so lonely.
My mother must have thought my comics were cursed; she tossed them out when I was fifteen.
I copied the flip side of that newspaper clipping; Frank Sinatra, Rita Hayworth and Kim Novak.
Do you have something special, that your parents tossed out when you weren’t home?
The Musk Thistle is considered a Noxious weed in Illinois. These Thistles were growing near the road. If you want to read about them click on the link below.
I wrote and rewrote this Blog. I had a hard time writing this.
On June 3rd in the middle of the afternoon, just when I decided to slather my face with a face mask someone knocked on the front door. I splashed water on my face and hurried to the door. I was worried about Uriah, he was wandering around the back and he could get hurt when a car comes down the driveway.
I was surprised by a state police officer informing me that a neighbor was going to be working on the drainage tiles…Long story, very stressful.
In 2008 this neighbor, the one who told me to get a gun because of the Cougars and Wolves wandering around- We don’t have Cougars or Wolves!- He filed against me and another neighbor to tear up the drainage tiles. This man had bought the lowest area of land in 2004, and it flooded regularly. He wanted to replace ancient drainage tiles, without putting a retention pond on his property. He also broke through the Aquifer so he could have a swimming pond on his property and he wanted to attach the pond to the tiles that would add to the water problem and tap into the fresh water. Bad idea to go into court thinking this is crazy and someone will listen-when you don’t have a lawyer.. *
I asked the policeman, why now? He had told me two years ago, that he was working on the tiles, and it would only take two weeks. But he never touched anything. The police officer said, that neighbor had been waiting for approval from the, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, concerning the wet lands. And he, the policeman, was sent to tell me what my neighbor was up to…
I will call this neighbor, Bob, not his real name.
I asked when Bob, would be digging. He didn’t know.
How long would it take? He didn’t know.
I didn’t trust Bob; I asked how much digging would he be doing? I was told he would only take out a fifteen foot wide section of trees, running along the tiles.
I told him Bob couldn’t bring his young kids on my land. If they got hurt I could be sued. He agreed that could happen. He said, he would inform Bob, not to bring his children on my land.
The police officer told me Bob would replace my fence and toss around grass seed.
Grass seed? He needs to replace the wetlands vegetation!
The policeman shrugged and said nothing.
My thirteen year old was graduating from eight grade that evening, so I went back inside and made a note to send out and email to the county and find out what was going on.
I didn’t have a chance to send the email that night. The next morning before I got up, Bob had torn out the trees. He ripped through the wetlands destroying nesting areas of countless birds and animals. From the deck I watched the birds circling and screaming.
He pulled out more than fifteen feet; the least was twenty feet wide. I need to measure to be exact, but it looks like he tore a crooked line of up to thirty feet wide. The length from north to south is around five hundred feet.
I was under the impression it was illegal to tear out vegetation during nesting season. Or am I wrong…?
This may be small compared to the oil spill in the Gulf. But each time a tree is ripped out a nest destroyed, a plant or fish is killed. We are losing a little bit more of nature. A little more fresh air, a little more life is gone. It makes me ill to think of all those baby birds that died. I have a hard time wondering what else died under his wheels.
I was shocked at how someone could come onto my land and do so much damage. Later that evening I took Uriah out for a walk. I watched Bob driving along the road in a four wheel, off road vehicle; he turned into the farm field, next to me. He wasn’t on his land. He saw me with Uriah and turned away. His two boys were with him. He was taking his kids to check out the area he tore up..
Here is a very small list of the birds that live around me. There are some odd birds and songs like the bird that looks like a Miniature Blue Heron; it has a loud screaming call. Or the one I can’t seem to see very well through the trees, it has a throaty growl. There’s a beautiful bird with reddish-brown back and head, with a beige underbelly that holds itself like a Jay. It might be a Cuckoo or maybe a Brown Thrasher. I didn’t add the foxes, skunks, muskrats, or coyotes.
This is not a complete list at all.
Great Blue HeronBlue JaysCrowsHorned OwlCardinalsRed-Tailed HawksTurkey VulturesScreech OwlPheasant Peregrine FalconSedge WrenDucksGeeseWoodpeckersRobinToadsIn the video I turned and faced the neighbor’s house, you can see where he dragged the downed trees. This pile, earlier, was circled by birds franticly searching until they finally gave up.
The air is still hot and heavy with moisture. Add to that a mixture of bug sprays, chemicals and manure, spread across the fields by plane or tractor. At that point, breathing becomes an inflexible process.
The skies this morning were blue, then deep, dark angry grey that rumbled and barked, spitting out streaks of light, then changing back to blue.
I took Uriah out for his morning walk by sitting on the front step and waving him off. With a happy wag of his tail he headed to the pond where he startled some ducks and blackbirds. As I waited for him to return I was bombarded by annoying mosquitoes.
Uriah took his time. So I just stared out over the field grass and watched it grow.
I had the tractor running a couple of weeks ago. It had roared to life, with as much exuberance as Uriah running to the pond.
*If you didn’t get that reference, well, Uriah walks slowly sticking his head in every hole sneezing and rolling in everything that smells bad… The tractor coughed, wheezed, chugged and rolled, jerked and smelled bad…
I checked and filled the tires, added water and oil. Brushed off the cutting deck and oiled anything that moved. Once I pulled her out of the barn I decided to move that downed tree.
I was very careful..
Before I took her on the path, I stopped the engine and walked the area, poking at the ground. I didn’t want to get stuck in heavy mud, or caught up on a stump. I backed into the path and tried to get as close as I could to that tree. Driving backwards is not within my tractor maneuvering ability, so it took me a while.
Satisfied I wasn’t going to be stuck in the mud; I turned off the engine and gracefully slipped off the seat unto a wild rose bush. Ouch!
Finally I was able to wrap the chain around the back hitch and around the middle of the tree.
Once back in the driver’s seat I slowly moved forward, dragging the tree not forward but sideways, just as I planned. The trees roots were facing south and its upper branches to the north. I could only move it a few feet, or it would get caught up on the Bog Willows.
Slowly I inched forward.
Uriah was watching me from the edge of the path. As soon as I made my first lurching movement his tail disappeared between his legs and he ran towards the house. Smart dog! He remembered when that same chain broke free from the last tree I moved and went flying, taking out some branches. I had found it hanging in a tree some fifty feet away.
I hesitated for a moment and watched Uriah run. For a second, I debated what I was doing and thought that maybe this wasn’t a good idea…
That lasted for a minute.
Then I set the tractor in forward motion, slowly the chain went taut. I was very surprised when the tree moved off the path and ended up right where I wanted it to be, top facing west and roots to the East.
Nothing tried to bite me. I didn’t get the tractor stuck in the mud. The best part, I didn’t see one tick!
I removed the chain from the hitch. Then I put Uriah in his outside kennel. And came back to cut the path, I was tempting fate by not walking the path first.. But even that turned out well, so well in fact I took Uriah out for a walk..
A walk that ended with us being chased by a few angry Bumble Bees, luckily they only sting if cornered…
Sweat ran down my back and I felt light headed from the heat and humidity. The sky above me was a hazy, darkening blue-grey with soft, puffy white clouds. The tops edged with a hallo of white sun. I watched a Blue Heron fly towards me from the west. He nearly disappeared inside the glaring setting sun. This is his usually way of approaching the pond. His large wings barely moved as he glided in. His long legs held out behind him and his thin neck stretched straight ahead in elegant splendor. Slowly, his heavy wings caressed the air as he slipped between the trees into the pond. His goal was to feed on frogs and catfish.
I was standing next to a giant Blue Spruce. It towered overhead as I pushed into its soft prickly branches. Uriah was half hidden underneath the thick needles. His choppy movements shook the upper branches and a pinecone hit me on the head. I tried to drag him out by his chubby body.
He had something in his mouth and he wasn’t giving it up! In the expanding darkness I couldn’t make out what it was. All I could hear was a loud, “Crunch! Crunch!”
I pushed Uriah to the side and yelled at him to drop whatever was in his mouth. He rolled his eyes up at me and refused to open his mouth. Like a spoiled kid caught eating a candy bar he swallowed his prize.
Using my walking stick I scrapped at the pile of grass that accumulated along the bottom of the tree. Uriah had his nose to the ground, digging at a specific pile of grass; he pulled out what looked like the remains of a nest and a decomposing rabbit. I saw the back feet and a sort of body, but no head or fur, except for a fuzzy tail. The entire rabbit was covered with the grass clippings and dirt.
Uriah and I started a little dance of power.
He tried to pick up the remains.
I yelled!
He dropped it!
I skipped backwards away from it!
He jumped forward and grabbed it!
I yelled!
He dropped it!
This could go on all night…
Finally I stepped between Uriah and rabbit, and pushed him towards the house. I could see his little mind whirling. He was storing this information, so in the morning he could reclaim his prize.
Mental note to self: Tomorrow get rabbit before Uriah does…
In the morning, I walked out with Uriah. The heat hadn’t abated, rather someone turned up the thermostat! I hurried around the house and grabbed a shovel and a plastic bag.
Luckily, Uriah spotted a bird near the garden and decided to chase him away.
I dragged the shovel over to the Blue Spruce and carefully scooped up the carcass holding it as far away as possible. I was surprised it didn’t smell. When I reached the drive way I opened the plastic bag and tired to figure out the easiest way to get it into the bag.
I looked up and saw Uriah trotting over to the Spruce, nose to the ground hunting out the dead rabbit. After minute he looked up at me and ran over. I knew then that this plastic bag wouldn’t keep Uriah away from the rabbit, and I certainly wasn’t going to bring it into the garage.
My next thought was: The burn pile! I could bury it there, under the ash.
It was relatively easy, the ground bowed to the power of the shovel and I dug a shallow grave. In the meantime Uriah had run off into the trees so I thought I was getting away with something..
When Uriah finally came back we took a walk to the pond where he happily swam in circle, then promptly ran out and shook all over me. He probably figured he was doing me a favor. It was very hot, and I was melting.
I stood in the heavy humid air, with the hot sun already burning my skin. It was only eight-thirty in the morning. Birds yelled at me! We scared all the toads into the water, I couldn’t see them, but I heard their heavy bodies making contact with the water the same way I do a belly flop. Ouch! With Uriah stirring up the mucky bottom I couldn’t see where they went to, even when I pushed through the grass and searched the waters edge. I had taken a picture a week ago of one floating lazily in the water.
I could hear my neighbor cutting his grass and a truck passing by on the road.
I shielded my eyes from the sun and motioned to Uriah to follow. We headed back to the house. I washed off the shovel with the hose before I went inside.
While I did that Uriah was nosing around the burn pile…
With one of my cats, PJ sitting to my right I finally began typing out this Blog. The past week has been full of gardening fun, rain, high humidity, cold weather and todays temperatures pushed me into air-conditioning. The range has been maddeningly painful.
Last Saturday a family of magical beings came by and helped turn over the garden and plant some vegetables. They stayed only about three hours, but during that time I was able to talk to, and walk around with three little boys, while their parents grunted and groaned, as they dug, straightened and chopped up large chunks of dirt and moved around rocks.
When the boys spotted the rocks, the middle one was enthralled by the odd shapes and sizes. He wanted to take some home so they could make their own, Stonehenge under a tree in their back yard. I was in agreement, so a pile was formed and a box appeared from the barn, a sturdy box that would hold all the rocks. Their father didn’t’ realize those rocks, when placed in a box, would weigh a ton and a hernia, until he tried to pick them up.
Being a magical family, the boys had hoped to float the box of rocks above the ground. But alas, they forgot their fairy dust and had to settle on using a simple dolly.
In the meantime, Uriah was being ridden like a horse. A horse that was too tired to stand. He laid on the ground while the youngest boy sat upon his back and held tight to his ears. I was worried Uriah wouldn’t like this, but when I saw his furry face he had a happy doggy grin. Finally, Uriah got tired of the game and stood up. Luckily the littlest guy was expecting this to happen, so he jumped off Uriah and gave him a big hug.
Uriah heard something in the trees and did his slow walk towards them. He kept looking back at me. When I finally turned my back, he slipped in-between the trees. Totally vanishing between the green leaves and heavy branches
Uriah’s normal disappearing act caused great distress to the youngest boy. He called Uriah’s name over and over, it must have seemed like hours to him instead of minutes, until Uriah reappeared to hugs and kisses. Uriah looked up at me, I shrugged and he happily trotted off with the little guy running along behind him.
Because of that extra help, I was able to plant a large amount in a short time.
This morning the rain was still pouring down, watering the seeds and plants, allowing the garden to take root, now, that also means the weeds will have a fighting chance too. I haven’t used weed killers or inhibitors in many a year. I prefer the old fashion wrestling techniques… I pull and the weeds pull back:-)
This tree is growing in my neighbor’s yard and a couple further out back on my property. They are in bloom. Multiple bright orange flowers, with a center that is an odd misshapen ball. Flower pedals that are tube shaped, bright orange and soft sticking out all over it. The pedals are closing and melting in on itself. Odd..
We have had a large amount of water and the North side of the property is under water and the front pond is over flowing. We aren’t in the tropics and this to me, looks similar to a less spiky, Sea Urchin. I wouldn’t mind living in Hawaii, but even there I don’t believe Sea Urchins live in trees. I could be wrong..
Sorry, can't find the link to this picture. I thought it was from Wikipedia. It is a Sea Urchin.
I did a Google search and couldn’t find a flowering evergreen that even came close to this description.
Years ago my neighbor may have told me those were Cedar trees. Hoping I remembered that correctly, I Google ‘orange flowers on cedar trees.’ What came up was, that this tree maybe infected with Cedar-apple rust gall, which is described as an orange gelatinous with telial horns protruding.
Strange days indeed…
This is rather odd, but a pretty fungus, at least from my prospective, as I snapped these pictures.
I did see some galls (abnormal outgrowths) from the previous year connected to some of the branches. In this picture you can see one directly under the orange flower.
Even after finding the information on, Cedar-apple rust gall, I am still wondering “is this real?”
Over the years, I have seen those odd galls growing on the branches and never saw any damage to the Cedars themselves. On the other hand, I have had some fungus issues with my apple trees. I just thought it was old age, too much water, Uriah and the deer nibbling on the branches…
A migraine followed me around all day. It lifted slightly around dinnertime. That’s when I started hunting out something to eat. In the freezer I found one steak. We have plenty of ice cubes and some chicken, but only one steak left. To defrost it quickly I set it on a plate and slipped it into the microwave.
I walked out of the kitchen and came back two minutes later; Sanosuke was climbing over the microwave. He wanted that steak. I gave him a hug and set him on the floor and removed the steak from the microwave and set the plate on the counter.
I started fussing around the kitchen; I pulled out the frying pan and grabbed an onion. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Sanosuke silently jump on the counter. As I turned towards him, he grabbed the steak and jumped from the counter. When I yelled, he held his head up high, so the steak wasn’t dragging on the floor and ran faster down the hall. Michael spotted him and instead of stopping Sanosuke he started laughing. Without hesitating, Sanosuke raced into our bedroom. I was right behind him and grabbed him just before he dragged my dinner under the bed.
Michael was still laughing when I came out of the bedroom. I held the steak out of reach of Sanosuke who followed behind me complaining loudly.
Sanosuke sat on the counter and watched me cook the steak and potatoes with onions. I sliced a tomato and added some corn to the plate. I carefully sliced the steak into strips.
By this time I had three cats watching me. One sat on the kitchen chair the other on the floor. Sanosuke stayed on the counter and glared at me.
I announced to the frowning cats. “Alright guys! You can all have one piece, no more.”
They all stood up, tails flipping and watched as I slowly sliced up a small piece for each of them into tiny cat bites. I gave them each their own plates. Then I took my food and went into the living room.
Ooops! I forgot my napkin. I got up and went into the kitchen for two seconds. I wasn’t looking for Sanosuke; I assumed he was still in the kitchen eating his piece of meat.
What I didn’t see was Sanosuke hiding under the table waiting for his chance. When I got up, he quickly jumped on the table and started eating, fast!
“Bad Kitty!” I yelled when I saw him with his face in my food.
Within those few seconds he ate a lot! I was left with two small pieces of steak. Sanosuke had raced out of the room when I yelled. He knew he did something wrong, but he was just having such a good time he didn’t care.
PJ in the meantime, slipped up from under the table and quickly grabbed one piece of steak and slipped back under the table. When I bent down to check on him, Sanosuke reappeared and grabbed the last piece and raced off down the hall again.
I ate the rest of my dinner in peace.
They even stole the piece of fat I left in the pan for Uriah..
Michael wouldn’t stop laughing. I yelled at him. “If you thought it was so funny, then while Sano was running around the house with my dinner, why didn’t you grab the camera?
He answered, “It was just as funny yesterday when he grabbed your salmon.” Michael picked up Sanosuke, and rubbed his tummy.” Hey little guy! What’s for dinner tomorrow?”
