Fridays are Golden

The girls start getting excited when I put on my hiking boots.  Not certain whether they will be going along, they prance excitedly around the hallway outside my bedroom door.  It isn't until my husband brings in their portable water dish and their water bottle that they know for sure they are going someplace fun.

Ellie licks her lips in anticipation.

Oh boy!  I can hardly wait!

 Lucy watches my husband lock the door.

Why on earth does it take him so long?

Too bad the girls never appreciate the beautiful greening of the forest.

They are far too busy running up and down and up and down the hill.

Can you sit for a moment?

Smile for the camera.

Lucy takes off again, still smiling.

The weather has been nearly perfect for us.  Cold nights and sunny days.  We did have three nights with hard freezes and some of the vulnerable apple trees will be significantly affected.  Other apple varieties were past the point of harm and the strawberry crops are fine.

We get so caught up in the unconditional love our Golden Girls give us that we need to remember what Ann Landers said:
Know yourself.  Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful.

And Dr. Seuss gives us the quote of the week:
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.

Take care on this Friday the Thirteenth.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE!!!

Oh, and if you haven't done your taxes you have until Tuesday to do so.

Just sayin'

Fridays are Golden

The first cue is the water bottle.  When we fill it, the Golden Girls know that we are going for a ride and a romp at the lake or hike on the trails.  At the first sight of the water bottle Lucy starts her "stress" whining.  She runs to the door, then back again, then back to the door.  I am so glad she cannot talk.

Lucy looks out the open door wanting us to get in the car and go.

Two happy Goldens, running in tandem.

Look at that smile!

Ellie sits for a minute to catch her breath.  The smile doesn't leave her face.

North Carolina is called the Tar Heel State.  (I'll have to write about that sometime.)  UNC Chapel Hill (which is the REAL University of North Carolina) sports teams are the Tar Heels.  Their team color is sky blue.

So we say around here, "You know that God is a Tar Heel because he made the sky Carolina Blue."

We have had these gorgeous blue skies and unbelievably warm weather all week (along with the occasional thunderstorm).  It looks and feels much more like late April than mid-March.  The bears have been foraging for weeks now.  The fruit trees are blooming and some of the farms in the middle of the state already have strawberries.  Our average latest frost in Transylvania County is in early May and we have had significant freezing weather in April.  A hard freeze next month will be devastating for some of the apple crop.

Speaking of politics, Newt Gingrich made a statement last week that Romney was not a certainty as the GOP presidential candidate.  He noted that he and Santorum together have a lot of delegates to take to the GOP convention.  To which Jon Stewart quipped, "Yeah.  And me and LaBron together made 36 points."

Our quote for the week is again from Marcus Aurelius:

The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.

HAVE A GOLDEN WEEKEND, EVERYONE!

Fridays are Golden

How can it be Friday again so soon?  The waning days of 2011 are just flying by.  Our weather has been bipolar this week.  Heavy rains, followed by a cold front.  Fortunately the predicted snow did not appear and by week's end the sun burst out to brighten our lives (and show every little particle of dust and dander).

We often take the Golden Girls to places where they can run free.  Sometimes we go to large cemeteries or our less popular community trails but most often we go to one of the four lakes within the community.  The girls love racing up and down the steps leading to the various docks along the lake.  And it is great exercise for them.

They always run in tandem starting up the stairs.

Still together as they race to the top.

 You already know that they often lie in the same bed.  Surprisingly enough, they also lie together on the hard floor.  It is rare to find one dog without the other.

The holiday season is in full swing.  Everyone is anxious and busy.  Like children, we get so caught up in the mad rush that we never slow down.  And because we have been so rushed and anxious, many of us suffer a post-holiday letdown.  Stop.  Take a deep breath.  (just don't forget to exhale)  Repeat often and remind yourself that this is a season of peace, not panic.

Seneca the Younger said it well:
Expecting is the greatest impediment to living.  In anticipation of tomorrow it loses today.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE!

AND SLOW DOWN TO ENJOY THE PRESENT

Fridays are Golden

It was a sunny, windy and brisk day.  Perfect weather for Golden Retrievers to run free, so off to the lake we went.  Our community has four lakes so we always have new adventures.  The dogs run and run, smiling all the while.

The wind is blowing Lucy's hair and she loves it.  Ellie prefers to have the wind in her face.

 Even the hair on Ellie's ears is blowing in the wind.

 Lucy abruptly heads down to the water.  She knows she is not allowed to jump in so she puts her paws as close to the water's edge as she dares.  What has caught her attention?

 Canada Geese!  Every time one of them honks, Lucy becomes stiff as a board, raising her tail higher each time.  You can see the ripples on this usually calm lake.  It was that windy.

 So what do they do afterwards?  Once again Lucy uses Ellie for a pillow.  She gazes out as if recalling the fun day at the lake.  Or perhaps she is admiring her reflection in the glass.

 "The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" brought the signing of the Armistice that marked the end of World War I in 1918.

So today (which is the eleventh year as well), we honor our veterans of all wars.  No matter what you believe or how you feel about the wars we are fighting today, you must honor the ones both living and dead who have fought in our armed forces.

In case you are wondering:  there are fifty days remaining in 2011.  If that doesn't motivate you I don't know what will.

HAVE A MOST WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE!

Fridays are Golden

Lake Wanteska is the second largest lake within our community.  It has a lovely earthen dam and is one of  Ellie's and Lucy's favorite running places.  As soon as we are out of the SUV they run at breakneck speed across the dam.  Then they turn and come running back to us.

Running free is such a treat!

 This is the only dam in which the girls can actually run up and down the dam itself.  They love it.  And we love it because they get such good exercise and spend a really quiet afternoon.

Ellie loves to sniff the wind and smell those wonderful autumn smells.

The fall color at the lake is past peak but beautiful nonetheless.

And how was the color on parts of the Blue Ridge Parkway yesterday?  White.  It was all white around Craggy Gardens.  Rime ice covered the forest.  (Rime ice is ice that forms on the trees or roads from water droplets in the fog.)  In the mountains you always hope that you will see the ice on the trees before you feel your car slide in the invisible (black ice) rime ice on the road.

Above photograph from the Asheville Citizen-Times taken by Bill Sanders.

Our quote for the week comes from Pulitzer Prize winner Edwin Way Teale:

Change is a measure of time, and in the autumn time seems speeded up.  What was is not and never again will be; what is is change.

Someone said that our time here is not a dress rehearsal.  This is it.  Make the most of it.  Now.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE.   FULL OF LIFE AND LOVE

Sailing in Cardboard Ships

Give a group of club members five large sheets of heavy cardboard, a very large roll of plastic, a large roll of masking tape, six bolts and nuts and what happens?  Whether high school teens or somewhat older adults, those items scream for a home-built boat and a Cardboard Regatta.  Our community regatta involves more than building and launching a boat.  Entrants also write and perform skits to entertain everyone beforehand.  (It is always better to do any activity PRIOR to setting out in the boats.  Some of them are surely going under.)

The largest of our four lakes is the scene for the Cardboard Regatta.  Teams are made up of the many clubs within the community.  There are two primary categories; single sailor and two sailor.  There is also a contest for the largest number of sailors to go down in one ship.

The fire chief leads everyone down through the park to the water's edge.

The crowd gathers by the lake.

These sailors made it high and dry.

These sailors did not...but they surely had just as much fun.

Trophies are awarded and everyone moves to the pavillion for hot dogs and hamburgers.

Community spirit abounds here in our community.  There is always something to do.  We have a club for almost every activity you can imagine.  And if we don't have a club for it...you can get a bunch of people together and start one.  We recently added a Pickle Ball club.  (I must admit I had never even heard of pickle ball before the club was organized.)

While everyone enjoys being a club member, not all the clubs are designed for sports or fun.  We have a "Good Neighbors" club that provides meals when someone is not well, whose members will drive others to appointments, pick up medicines, etc.  They organize cookie bakes for a nearby prison.  The cookies are sent so the incarcerated parents can share homemade cookies with their children when they visit.  Perhaps best of all they maintain two large lending closets.  They have accumulated a large amount of therapy supplies, wheelchairs, walkers, shower chairs, lift chairs, and even hospital beds that residents can borrow if necessary.  In response to the number of grandparents living here, they also maintain a large inventory of cribs, playpens, strollers, etc. that residents can borrow when little grandchildren visit.

Life is good around here.

Fridays are Golden

Our dogs get plenty of exercise.  They have at least one really long walk and three shorter walks every day.  We take them hiking on the forest trails.  They get to run and play in our woods.  Playing in the woods is not so much exercise as you might think.  Yes, they chase each other for a while.  But most of the time in the woods is spent smelling, sniffing the ground and picking up sticks.

Their favorite exercise comes when we take them to the top of the dam of one of our community lakes.  Summer will bring swimmers and fishermen, but during spring, fall, and winter we have the place to ourselves.  And we take advantage of it as often as possible.

Lucy is our sprinter.  She doesn't know how to pace herself.  She just runs and runs until she is exhausted and stops to rest.



Lucy, slow down a little.  We're going to be here for a while.

Can't stop.  Gotta run, gotta run, gotta run.

Lucy, you act as if we aren't here...that it's only you.

OK  I'll smile for you next time I run past.  But I gotta run.

If you will make me a cape, I can be airborne like Superdog!

All right.  I'll slow down, but only just a little.

Lucy, don't go in the lake.

Why would I do that?  You can't run in the water.

I can run even in this tall grass.

Maybe I can be a pointer.  I will point out to Ellie that you posted only photographs of me.

There used to be a television show that I liked.  It was called "That Was the Week That Was."  And that's how I feel about this week.  So many important happenings in the lives of Americans and people with whom we share this planet.  Some of us have heart break because of the flooding,   Some of us were excited about the royal wedding.  And all of us harbor mixed feelings about the execution of Bin Laden.  There are so many feelings that fill us this week.  Not to mention personal losses and triumphs.

I hope you have an outlet for your emotions.  There's no other way to get through life.  Lucy tells us to let it go and enjoy every minute we have.  So this weekend I hope you will do that.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND, EVERYONE

Evening at the Lake

Our community has four lakes.  We live near Lake Atagahi, the largest of the four.  [Our house is only half a million dollars away.]  I often go down to the park on Lake Atagahi near sunset.  I especially love it this time of year because I rarely see any other people.  It's too soon for the evening picnics and late swimming that will fill the park later on.  I'm happy that so many people enjoy the lake and the park, but it surely will disturb my solitude.  But at this time of year the lake is all mine.

I'm always thrilled to see the Barn Swallows as they go about building their amazing mud nests.  The netting you will see in the photographs was put up to discourage the swallows from nesting under the roof of the cabana.  Fortunately, the clever swallows use a gap in the netting to anchor their nests.

This swallow stares at the intruder with her camera.

Another flies up to assist.

They become more suspicious of the clicking and fly over to sit on a beam.

Finally one of them returns to the nest.

I put down my camera and watched the swallows skimming along the lake for insects and grabbing mud by the shore for nest building.  It is an amazing sight to see such large numbers of these beautiful birds flying around.  After a while my presence went unnoticed.  Oh, what a treat.  I sat there for quite a while until a pair of geese caught my attention.

A pair of Canada Geese pass by.

When I looked up at the sky, I saw the dark clouds heralding a storm.

While I was looking out over the lake I failed to notice the darkening sky.  I quickly headed for home before the storms began.  Once safe again at home, we sat on the screened porch and watched the lightning streak across the sky.  We had some rain but were spared the really bad parts of the storm that did severe damage throughout the state. It was a lovely evening.

An Evening by the Lake

The lake near our house is usually quiet. No loud motors, no jet skiis. Just kayaks, pontoons, canoes smoothly gliding through the water. The other side of the lake is louder, with a large park and a swimming area. The sounds of children playing and swimming echo over the lake.

But our end of the lake is almost always serene, and never more so than at dawn or dusk. I especially love the lake when the mist is rising.

I sit there, letting my mind go blank and momentarily forgetting about anything I might be worried about.

A little swallow takes in the last rays of sunshine.

The trees turn black as the sun sets behind them.

As I leave the darkening lake, I always feel calm and refreshed. I would love to see the lake awakening at sunrise. I am definitely a night person but perhaps I'll make it one of these mornings.

There's Always A Swallow

I often wish PBS would do the "News Hour" at a different time. Watching the reports of news around the world often makes me a bit uneasy in the evenings. I find the in-depth reporting disturbing as I learn more and more components to big business and political madness. So afterwards I try to find ways of relaxing my brain and soothing my troubled spirit.

Many evenings I go down to a nearby lake and just sit and watch the swallows. I love the way they dip and zip and skim over the water snatching insects. Watching them is especially nice this time of year because they have nests full of little ones.

There are about six nests in this shelter so there is plenty of action. Watching the swallows go about their work is somehow soothing to me. It affirms that perhaps things may be all right after all. In a very short time, this spot will be filled with fluttering fledglings and what a sight that will be. It's comforting to know that year after year the swallows return to nest here and provide an evening's entertainment.


As I turned to leave the lakeshore, I stop to admire the Rose of Sharon. Not a rose at all, it is nonetheless a lovely bush that flowers all summer long.

So while I can't stop watching the news, I can still find peace at the lake and let my mind drift away from the troubling news of the day.