Roof Time

 It is 2:30 in the afternoon and I am up on the roof. This particular roof has a soft slope making it fairly easy to walk on. Currently I am taking a break from paint scraping to write this and watch the clouds meander overhead.

In the back, thrown weapons practice is happening.  Even with the loud traffic passing by the house, the roof seems peaceful.  

It is late in the evening and time for me to reflect on other happy things from today:

• For a little while there was a friend to help me with the paint scraping.  He had more experience and taught me a little more about some of the finer details of scraping paint from a house and some of the reasons why things are done the way they are.  The scraping and wire brushing is done for today.  The replacement clapboards on this small upstairs section are up too.

• At some point I took a break from the roof to practice throwing knives.  I had trouble making them stick but one time, all four knives landed well.

• The full moon is a few days away.  Tonight it was bright and beautiful.

• Aesop, the dog.

I call this picture, "You don't see me."

☮

Currently reading:  Mount Washington A Guide and Short History, by Peter E. Randall.

Thank you for being part of my happy things. Stay safe.

Happy Birthday, Keziah

Happy things: 

• On this day, thirty-one years ago, I became a mom.  Zed took a break from work so we could do a little celebration before I go to sleep.  His gifts to Keziah were themed for the season and he had a pun to go with all but one of them.  

Things like, "Apple of my eye," and
 "Do-nut what I would do without you."

We sang and she had cake.

• Zed didn't come up with a pun for the apple cider he gave her.  The friend that is staying with us did though.  I don't remember exactly... something about being ex-cidered.  It was a fun little party.
• Earlier, I practiced throwing knives.  We have a thrown weapons range and the use of some of the loaner knives.  The knives landed on the ground either with or without hitting the target way more often than they stuck to the target, but it was fun.

• Aesop, the dog, smothered Keziah in birthday kisses!

☮

Currently reading: Mount Washington A Guide and Short History, by Peter E. Randall.

Thank you for being part of my happy things. Stay safe.

Happy Birthday Zed!

This morning my walk with the dog, Aesop, went really well... until I fell.  Even then it could have been much worse.  Having let go of the leash to fall,  Aesop came right to me when I called him from the ground.  He was such a good dog and let me hug him before I got up.  I'm happy that, other than being a little more bruised, I'll be okay.  Other happy things for today:

• .I decided to go back to the store for more of the raised bed kits I got yesterday.  There was no time to make them today... soon.
• There was a thrown weapons practice here.  I got to throw knives and even managed to make some stick to the target.

• Keziah has been planning and preparing for Zed's birthday by making a big dinner for friends to come by and have.  Everything came out delicious.  
• There have been a few butterflies that I have had a hard time photographing.  I was able to get one of them today.  Lens identifies it as a cabbage white butterfly.

I think it is pretty.

☮

Currently reading: The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner, by Ann Larkin Hansen.


Thank you for being part of my happy things. Stay safe.

Butterflies

 Today Aesop was part terror, part cutie.  I will try to remember the cutie parts.  Some of his good moments include choosing to sleep by me on the couch and calmly greeting me when I came inside.  His best moment was when he was chewing on a piece of grass.

Chewing on a piece of grass...

It was a busy day, other happy things include:

• Aesop also had a bath today.  The reasons for the bath would fall under the terror category, but the soft, clean, nice smelling dog that emerged after the terror was nice and what should be remembered.

• Early this spring we had a houseplant that was dead.  I was busy attempting to grow new things and the inside plant was placed high away from the cats and forgotten.  Keziah brought it outside and I cut all the dead off leaving a pot of dirt.  I placed the pot on a shelf outside the shed.  Today Keziah noticed that it is growing again.

• There were people at the house today.  Each person or couple came by for a different reason.  It was great to see them all.  We now have two targets for thrown weapons so we can have practice and packages have been exchanged.
• There were so many flowers blooming that the plants had their own dance as bees and butterflies would take off and land.  Lens helped me identify two butterflies, the great spangled fritillary and the painted lady.

Bindweed.

Great Spangled Fritillary and a Monarch Butterfly.

Painted Lady Butterfly.

☮

Currently reading: Backpacking: A Hedonist’s Guide, by Rick Greenspan and Hal Kahn.

Thank you for being part of my happy things. Stay safe.

Target

 It is only 7:30 PM and I have sat down to write this at a reasonable hour.  Writing earlier is a goal that I should work harder to achieve.  Tomorrow I am picking up Keziah in Massachusetts and will need to wake up earlier than I have been.  Hopefully I will be able to fall asleep tonight.  I didn't spend as much time outside as I might have liked, but I had some errands to run.  I brought home pizza to throw in the oven for dinner; that made everyone happy.  Other happy things for today:

• I planted some of the marigold that I started from seed a few weeks ago.  They are still small, but the roots are coming out of the seed starter.  I put six of them by the strawberry plants.  

The good looking part of the strawberries.

A wee little marigold.

• There is still a lot of pulling of weeds that needs to happen by the strawberries.  I didn't clear out like the area above yet (with the burlap) but I pulled around the other strawberry plants so that more sun can get in.  Someday I hope to purge the area of the many cypress spurge that want to overwhelm the plants I want.

Cypress spurge.

• Keziah noticed someone was giving away large log rounds for free and thanks to a person from out Barony some of these are now in the back.  These will become targets for thrown weapons.  It is one of the things we will need in order to have a thrown weapons range on the property.  

☮

Currently reading: The Burgess Book of Nature Lore, by Thornton W. Burgess.

Stay safe.