Cows in the Hood

Our neighbors heifers are starting spring early.

They are having BABIES.
Today it's trying to rain. I hope it does. We have had a very dry January with lots of sunshine.
I took these photos a few days ago when the sun was out and it was a nice, warm afternoon.
These cows were loving all the winter sunshine.

They look like the proverbial "Happy California Cows" don't they?... with a touch of  "Don't get too close to my baby."
The littlest calf, born a few days ago, was lying on the warm dirt looking sooo cute.

I just wanted to hop over the fence and walk out there... you know... pet the little sweetheart and play with him a little, but then I realized that someone was watching me.

I don't think this was the little calf's mom but with that look on her face, I wasn't going to discuss it with her.
Maybe she was just having a bad day. We moms can remember days like this.. Maybe the "teenager" next to her was giving her some "lip". Who knows.
I thought it best
                  to move on
                               down the
                                           road.

Joni Mitchell in my head

I've had a song going though my head all morning. I haven't had a song come to me like this for a long time.
I can hear every word, every tone, the key and that voice.
 Do you remember? Joni Mitchell sang it. Do you remember the music? The lyrics?

Tears and fears and feeling proud
To say "I love you" right out loud
Dreams and schemes and circus crowds
I've looked at life that way

Oh but now old friends are acting strange
They shake their heads, they say I've changed
Well something's lost but something's gained
In living every day

I've looked at life from both sides now
From WIN and LOSE and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all

I've looked at life from both sides now
From up and down and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all.

(This is only the last half of the song.)

I haven't heard it for years.  I don't know where this came from or why it's in my head today. But, here it is.

How I remember Joni M.

Growing older with grace and music...

And the beauty of being an older woman.

Not sure why this song has come inside of me today... but it's here and it feels good.

Carl, on Farmlady's absence

She was gone again...

Farmlady said she was leaving for a few days. She told us that she was going to see her friend in the Delta, and the little dog Max.

I'm always sad when she leaves but we make due, Cutter and I, because the other human in our life (the Prospector) always makes up for being the only caretaker.
Like he lets both of us get in his lap at the same time.

And he gives us extra treats and lets us run outside more. Sometimes he sits on the couch with us, like Farmlady does and rubs our tummies at the same time.

Cutter gets kind of spooked about it all.

and doesn't understand where she is. I, of course, being older and smarter, understand that she will be back.

***********

See?... what did I tell you. She came home last night and everything is back to normal. We had our Latte on the couch this morning and watched the news together.
I'm glad she's home. Her clothes smell like that dog Max, but it's OK. That will wear off.

Farmlady was so happy to see all of us and she told the Prospector that she helped her friend, "C", unpack more boxes and clean more spaces to put things. She said that they ate at a place called Pineapple. I, personally don't like pineapple. I'm more a steak and chicken dog. But, she said it was the best Chinese restaurant in the Delta.
They also played with THAT dog ...a lot... maybe a little too much, in my opinion. But, he is a single dog, and very small, so he probably needs more attention.
He was fun when he came up here one time. He plays well and knows his manners. Maybe he will visit us again.

Cutter is watching Farmlady's every move.

 He's still worried that she will leave. But I know, because I understand these things, that she will be home now... for a while.

One night's stand... with my camera.

"Softly the evening came.

The sun from the western horizon

Like a magician extended his golden wand o'er the landscape;

Twinkling vapors arose;

 and sky and water and forest seemed all on fire at the touch,

 and melted

 and mingled

 together."

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow~

Evangeline (pt. II, sec. II)

Well, La De Da!

I got up early this morning ( having stayed up way too late last night playing with my new toy, the Nexus tablet) and decided that I should just get up and stop trying to go back to sleep. I sat up, coughed, put my slippers on and stood up. OK, I was on my feet. It was going to be a good day.
 I heard a small whine from the corner of the bedroom and knew that Cutter, our sweet Corgi, was asking me if I was really getting up this early and could he come too. I  let him out of his crate and opened the hallway door.  Cutter ran ahead and stopped at Carl's crate so I let Carl out too.
It didn't matter that it was two hours earlier that usual. They are so locked into their routines. First the unabashed happiness of freedom..., the running around, the jumping and making little leaps of joy. It makes you feel happiness just watching them start the day as they do, with the expectation that something wonderful is happening and that life is something to get really excited about. It's contagious.
 Of course, all dogs don't have what we offer, here. Our dogs are in a five star resort hotel and they know it.
They are fed on schedule, have their own "spot" on the sofa, listen to us tell them how wonderful they are and generally think life is about them. It kind of is.
 I also gather that the dogs can read because they obviously heed my wall hung advice.

So this is a post about happiness and what I do to keep the scary fearful "what ifs" away. It's kind of an "in the moment" post that just needed to be written by me today.

After breakfast the dogs and I went outside. The air took my breath away. It was cool and overcast. The fragrance of campfires was in the air. My neighbor was burning near his house. It smelled wonderful.

The dogs disappeared behind the house and I thought about the excitement that ensues when they first go through the front door. They do it many times during the day, but there is always the same enthusiasm. How we could learn from them about the simple joy of the moment.
They aren't "into" the beauty of their surroundings, as much as I am, but they have moments when they make me notice something that I might otherwise miss in my search for beauty. Sometimes they don't find things that are exactly beautiful... but this slug,  in its own way, is a work of art in the natural world.

It's a mollusk and a big one. "It" (I need a better word than "it" because they are both male and female) didn't seem too concerned with "dog face" but then Carl didn't actually touch it. These slimy little creatures are crawling about because of all the moisture.
A long time ago, in my wild youth, I was staying with my grandmother and I walked down to the creek on her property. I sat down and leaned back on a rock to rest. My hand landed on one of these slugs and I was "slimed" for the first time in my life. I guess Carl knew better. He sniffed it and walked away.
I don't care for them but they are interesting creatures.

It actually has a beautiful pattern on its slimy little body. Still don't want to touch it.

 I walked over to the fence and looked out into the driveway. That was when I saw the "paperwhites."

To all of you who are suffering in the frigid north and back east... this is for you.
To remind you that Spring will come and Winter will not stay away forever.

Even in the deathly cold of winter, Spring will push its way through and have its day.

Nothing stays the same... all things come in their time.
 Look death in the teeth, as scary as it is, and think about our impermanent life,

 This cow scull is slowly becoming part of the plants and the earth...like everything.

Slugs only live for about four years, if they're lucky. Dogs only live for eighteen years... max.
Try to live in the moment. It's all we've really got.
 Get a camera. Take pictures of anything that makes you happy..  things that you love.
Buy a puppy. Unleash your joy or at least find what it is that makes you happy and do it. You don't have to leave town and start a new life. It's about small steps within the context of your existing life. Start small... with a smile. Life is short. Lighten up.

I do believe that this is true....

But the flip side is...

And as my favorite poet, Mary Oliver, asked...

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and precious life?"

Wordless Wednesday: My father's parents

Girlfriends on the old buffet and the pleasures of grown sons.

The old buffet were I had the "German" Christmas tree sitting, has accumulated some very special items on top of it over the last few months.
 I  have collected many things on this buffet from before my trip to Germany and before Christmas, mixed with other wonderful reminders of two months that went by far too fast.

There is a big box of Italian Torrone, with little boxes of assorted almond candy inside.

A tradition, started by my friend Dawn, when she found this candy (a staple of my childhood at Christmas) online and decided that I needed to have a box sent to me every year for my birthday.
Next to the candy, leaning against the lamp on one end of the buffet, is a beautiful birthday card and letter from my friend "D" in Montana, who sent me this card filled with photos of her trip to the Festival of the Cranes at the Basque Sanctuary in New Mexico.

She wrote about her adventure at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. How she and her husband would go to the ponds early in the morning to photograph these magnificent  Cranes...how cold it was... the photo classes that she took and how excited she was to be so close to these birds. I live vicariously through these letters and photos.
Then, there is a small felted bird on the other end of the buffet. It's yellow and sits on a spool of thread.

A creation from the friend who made the felted christmas trees for me. She added this cute little bird to brighten up the holidays "just because" and there it sits lifting the spirits of all who see it.
My sister was here for a few days last week and we had so much fun. Our creativity had no bounds. We made flowers out of Raley's paper grocery bags.

And decorated some old bottles. (She took hers home before I got a picture of it.) It was beautiful.
Mine was a small almond extract bottle. You can see the bottle on the bottom corner where I didn't cover it completely.

The metal lid was covered with a wood epoxy clay that I still need to paint and finish. Her shawl is sea shells and her hair is an old bunch of embroidery thread. The rest is lace, fabric and other things that were glued on with Mod Podge and stuck on with a glue gun.

The back of the bottle has a wolf hiding in a small piece of felt and feathers, under a shell. It is waiting behind her. Protecting her... or laying in wait for her... I'm not sure. It represents the unknown fear we carry around with us. It's the first altered bottle I've ever made. Sis did a larger one. It was beautiful. We had so much fun with this. The Prospector was gone for a few days so we had the house to ourselves.

The buffet is filled with these things that mean so much... from friends that always share their lives and their hearts with me. These friends give me courage to try... to create... to push myself beyond my limits.
Being creative is an extension of yourself. Giving... when you know that someone loves a certain candy that holds memories. Sharing... a brave life of adventure and beauty. Sending a small felted bird that wasn't ordered but came as an "extra"...just because. Sis, showing her older sister how to create something beautiful out of the ordinary... These are real gifts.
When my friend "C (who I just helped move into the home of her dreams) knew that I was nervous about my plane flight to Germany she created this for me.

A card made, with love, to celebrate and send me off with on an airline called "Serenity" and a small zippered container with a good luck token attached... a place to keep my jewelry, money, small items, etc, that would all make me feel more secure about my upcoming trip.

I carried this with me... the little plane token was inside. In my bleakest moments this bright little bag lifted my spirits and helped me through my first trip to Europe.

Friends are gifts that give you courage, ideas, love... and part of themselves. What a perfectly sympathetic relationship it can be.
My mother's old buffet is filled with an accumulation of things that are important to me... that represent the connections of friendship. I'm a lucky woman.
*****************

Our oldest son spent the weekend with us.We love it when he comes up here. He just lost his old cat, Lucky, and needed to distance himself from the sadness of losing a longtime pet.
We took walks, talked, laughed and had a really good visit.
He helped me with some computer glitches and  then he went with me to buy the latest, coolest electronic device on the market.

It's the Nexus 7 android tablet.

 It's my new Google, "Farmlady finally arrives in the 21st century", tablet... with a stylish magnetic case

 and all the computer  "apps",  email, web browsing and  video chatting that I will ever need... on my lap... in the comfort of a recliner, outside on the porch, on a trip or in a hotel. I am comfortably connected.
And I now have WiFi. in my home as well. My house is now a "hot spot" like Starbucks and MacDonalds. Wow! WIFI!  I don't know what I would do without a computer genius for a son. He helped me start and hook up everything... and gave his mother a little *Nexus 7* 101.
All we did was feed him. Amazing.
Thanks son.



 

Lovesong

"You don't love someone for their looks,

or their clothes, or for their fancy car, 

but because they sing a song only you can hear"

Wordless Wednesday: with a quote.

The question is not what you look at, but what you see.

~Thoreau~

Home is where the heart...

My girlfriend moved from her apartment in Sacramento to her "forever" house in the Delta this week.

I know this road well, now.
The Prospector and I drove out to "C"s new home last Sunday to take some furniture to her. We spent part of the day walking from the house to the river...

 

 Talking about all the wonderful things we would do in the summer,

And how beautiful the Old Sacramento River is.
We laughed at the audacity of our generation who still does crazy, wonderful things like buying old houses in our "almost 70's" and how we will keep grabbing life and "seizing the day" until we can't do it any more. 

I took a photo of the Prospector and "C" giving the "for sale" sign the old heave ho.

Here are "C" and Max collecting some things in the backyard and talking about what they want to do with all this space after living in apartments for years. Max seems to LOVE having room to roam that's safe and enclosed.

The painters were working diligently transforming brown walls into white as fast as possible because the movers were arriving on Wednesday.
We left feeling that maybe life on the Delta might seem like a good idea, for us, in a few years. "C" told the Prospector that he could store a boat in the garage, any time he wanted, for easy access to the river and fishing. I saw the light in his eyes at the thought of it.
So, we drove home feeling that our long time friend had made the right decision and that the house had a good feeling about it.
 For a hundred plus years this house had survived a move from another island, the removal of a third story, floods, wind and fog, all while waiting for my friend to find it.
Her father and uncle were overseeing the whole renovation from the kitchen.

She had an old photo of them, temporally hanging on a cabinet, to give her moral support.  They  are both gone now, but I think that their presence was felt by all of us. Not "ghosts". Just a good feeling that lingered throughout the house.

On Monday I got a phone call from "C". She had backed out of the front door, trying to get Max out at the same time, tripped on the step and fell. She broke her right arm. Could I please come on Tuesday instead of Wednesday.... pleaseeese!
So we two old ladies, with the help of her brother, packed up that apartment. The movers came on Wednesday and took the furniture, boxes and all the other big stuff. We caravaned through the Delta and arrived to find the painters still painting. So, we just found a place to park and and started unloading.

  We were on a mission. We forced ourselves to keep moving. How my friend did this, with a broken arm, I will never know. It was an amazing feat.

By late afternoon the movers left, the painters went home (yes, they were there too... painting the walls and woodwork.). "C" brother said goodbye and drove back up to Marysville. I don't know what we would have done without him. The prospector couldn't come down again because of other commitments, so her brother was our wingman... that's "angel" wings I'm talking about.
We finally stopped long enough to realized that we hadn't eaten anything since early morning and so we went to dinner (in the rain that held off until we were finished moving), drove two blocks to a wonderful Chinese restaurant and ATE OUR HEARTS OUT. Then the day's activities hit us like a brick.
When we got back to the house, "C" took her pain meds, I rubbed my old standby, Aspercreme, on every part of my anatomy (Well, almost.) and took some Advil as well.
We found some glasses and sparkling apple cider in the fridge... and cookies. We sat in the upstairs parlor, amidst the boxes, furniture and the accumulation of my friend's life,  toasted the move and "C"s new home. We ate cookies and cider until we started fading into a medically induced, cookie stuffed haze.
I went into my new little room... my "When Farmlady comes to visit" room and never lifted my head until morning.
I woke to this.

That's the early morning sun just coming up on the levee. The great Sacramento River is just across the street. It was a very cold, but beautifully clear, morning.
We dressed and ate breakfast at the cafe across the street.

 I love being able to walk to everything... the post office, the local store, places to eat.  I had the best french toast I've ever eaten.

The painters came and finished the downstairs. We did another run to Sacramento and brought another load of stuff back. Then, I said my goodbye's and drove home, as the sun dropped into the western sky.
There was still so much to do. Moving is not for sissy's. It's stressful, scary and a lot of hard work. But it was worth it because, you see, I know that this is where my friend needs to be. She knew this the minute she saw the house. The road has been long since that hot summer day when we drove into this little delta town and saw the "for sale" sign.

Now it is your house, my friend. It was your vision that persevered. It was your passion that made this happen.
Be happy!  Let that arm heal and let the boxes sit until you're ready to open them, one at a time. We will be back to help. We will dig in the garden and help you make this place your own. I will bring some spring bulbs and (if no one is looking) we may even go swimming in the river. Or not... It's your call.