September Book List

Nine books on my list this month.

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot was the first book of his memoirs. Even though I read it out of order, I enjoyed it just as much as the second, which I read first.

Stolen Prey, Silken Prey and Field of Prey are #'s 22, 23, and 24 in the Lucas Davenport series by John Sandford. I'm still loving his books. I suppose they follow some formula, but each one stands alone with only a cast of characters linking them.

A Time Of Love And Tartan is the 12th in the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith. When I first began reading this series, I thought it was so good. But either it has lost its luster or I am losing my interest in the characters.

The Summer Before The War by Helen Simonson is the second book of her's I've read. I always like books set in the eras of both WW's. This one, during the summer of 1914 in Sussex, England was no exception.
And while both books touch upon the prickly subject of a country 'taking in' refugees, I liked her Major Pettigrew's Last Stand slightly better.

Cold Is The Grave by Peter Robinson. Thanks to a streaming service HD (Hubby Dearest, not High Definition 😉) signed up for, we've been enjoying some English drama series on the telly. DCI Banks was one of those - so good I decided to read at least one of the books it was adapted from. As usual, for me at least, the book was better, but both were very enjoyable.

Gathering Prey and Extreme Prey are #'s 25 and 26 in the Lucas Davenport series by John Sandford - only two more books before I am caught up and then I'll have to wait for him to write and publish another more.
I especially liked Extreme Prey because it was set in Iowa. Davenport is no longer a Minnesota BCA agent enjoying his non-employment - spending time expanding and renovating his northwoods cabin.
Then his former 'boss', the governor of MN, who is now on the campaign trail in Iowa, running for president, but in reality for a spot as VP with front-runner, Michaela, 'Mike', Bowden, asks Lucas to investigate some credible threats against her.
Once Lucas starts asking around among members of some political radical groups, people begin dying, murdered, which gives credence to the threats against Bowden. It is up to Davenport ("just like the city") to find the killers in time - before the candidates take 'the walk' down the Grand Avenue concourse at the all important Iowa State Fair.

Sandford has had his characters visit Iowa before, but this is the first time one of his books has been set almost entirely in Iowa which made it doubly enjoyable. It is obvious he took care researching and placing the various Iowa towns in their proper locations. A detail I greatly admire in any book - but especially one set in my home state.

Porch Party

"The people in your life are like the pillars on your porch. Sometimes they hold you up, and sometimes they lean on you. Sometimes it is enough to know they are standing by." (Merle Shain) 

Last month my daughter-in-law posted some photos of their porch after having it entirely rebuilt. Their builder did a beautiful job and saved the original porch pillars.

Last Sunday, a date when all the kids and grandkids could be there, she and my son hosted a porch party. The weather was perfect and I knew it was going to be a good day for this great-grandma because....

....these two little cuties, Ayden and Greyson, pictured here with their Aunt Kathryn, came running to greet us. They each gave me a hug and let me kiss them and said, "I love you, Grandma!" Way to start my day! (Picture credit to Bud.)

Ayden had this paint brush attached to a long rope. Here he was sweeping the sidewalk.

Greyson wanted the rope and brush, but waited for his turn with it by bouncing on a big blue ball.

Eventually the two little ones worked together to tie up Dominique and Ian as their Dad, Ki, and Grandma Shalea looked on. Such fun!

Ayden 'brushing' Grandpa Bud's hat. Never a dull moment with these little ones.

Shalea has been having fun decorating around the new porch. It wraps around half the south side of the house and all the way across the front. A real, old-fashioned sittin' porch.

For a porch party gift, I decided it was time to give up this piece of petrified wood.

It is the one Ki and I found in the remnants of an old coal mine near Carbon several years ago.

I love it, but it is time to turn it over to the kids. I told Shalea she could care for it until Ki decides he wants it for his home.

"Porch Party" - a great reason for an end of summer get-together with family. 😍💞

Cool Nights, Warm Days

The full moon nearest the Autumnal Equinox is known as the Harvest Moon.

The photos I took of it were at 6:00 a.m. before it set on the 24th.

So I could get the moon and its reflection sparkling in the pond.

An hour later, the sunrise was tinting the high clouds a pretty blush pink as a morning breeze pushed some low gray clouds out of the way.

As the sun moves back south, sunsets are back to where my view of them is less obstructed.

More dramatic - and colorful.

Two days later as the Harvest Moon was setting over the pond.

Today is National Good Neighbor Day - a national holiday in the U.S. according to my Google search. Maybe time for me to meet the new neighbor across the street?

On the First Day of Autumn

My love pointed out to me ...

... three deer foraging - a doe and her twin fawns. It is the first we've seen of the deer for a couple months.
There was a noticeable difference in size in the fawns which I wondered about.

You can really see it here. Then I noticed something about the shoulder of the smaller one.

An injury must have slowed its growth.

Autumn began rather chilly at 44° with steam coming off the pond.

And long morning shadows.

I'm ready for fall - just not the season which follows it.

Donna Was Her Name

Seven years ago (already!), my high school graduation class celebrated their 50th reunion. Yesterday my friend Ellen shared this photo of six of us taken that day.

It was as I was naming everyone, Ellen, Donna, Ramona, Donna, Donna, Glenda, that I realized how many Donnas there were in our class. (Also, if the third Donna and Glenda had traded places it would have made naming everyone more lyrical - Ellen, Donna, Ramona, Donna, Glenda, Donna - or do I mean more even?)

There were six Donna's in our class. At the time of our 50th class reunion, five of them were, and still are, living. The sixth died of cancer in 2007.
During the decade of our births (1940's), Donna was the 17th most popular girl's name. Ellen was 64th and Glenda was 92nd. Ramona didn't even register in the top 200. 😢

During the second semester of our sophomore year, the song Donna, by Ritchie Valens, was moving up the charts as was its flip side, La Bamba. I remember going to class on February 3, 1959 and seeing one of the Donnas (not one of the three in the picture) crying. Naturally everyone (well, at least the girls) wondered why she was crying. When she said it was because Ritchie Valens had been killed in a plane crash, it still didn't register with me. "Who's Ritchie Valens?", was my first thought, then she related what I hadn't yet heard and what was later to become known as The Day the Music Died.

Obviously, I wasn't as up on the music scene as she was. I was more interested in the local news of a fire in one of the town's stores that same night. Also, one of my best friends, one of the other Donnas, wasn't crying and carrying on about Valens' death. We were sadder about Buddy Holly and 'The Big Bopper', J. P. Richardson who also died in the plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.

What I have always thought, but now know can't be right, was that seeing Donna F. crying and why, occurred during typing class on the third floor, southwest corner of the h.s. building. But I didn't take typing my sophomore year - another one of my imperfect memories. My diary for that day doesn't even mention the plane crash, but it does the downtown business fire. Four days later I came down with the measles and didn't go back to school for two weeks. My biggest concern then was getting my make-up lessons done.

I had a girl
Donna was her name
Since she left me
I've never been the same
'Cause I love my girl
Donna, where can you be?
Oh, Donna Oh, Donna

Clearing The Forest

This year's volunteer sunflowers turned into a forest, overshadowing our deck and the neighbor's house. Yesterday we decided it was time to cut them down.

Once again opening up the view. 

This is one of the stumps. I thought I could easily dig them out.

I opened the car trunk for the shovel and was startled by this little tree frog. He hopped off and I was able to direct him to the safety of the flower bed.

What I was not able to do was dig out those two big roots.

My idea was just to leave the entire plants for the birds and squirrels to snack on, but Bud thought it was better to harvest the flowers/seeds and haul off the plant portions. I think next year I will only let one grow instead of three.

This will be the next big job, cutting down the cardinal climbers - but not until after frost.
This is the circle Kari and I were looking through in July. You wouldn't be able to see us there now.

To Feel Like A Kid Again

One of my favorite pictures of my daughter showed up in my FB Memories this morning. Taken when she was around age two, possibly when we were visiting grandparents on the farm. I had scanned and used it for a Throw-Back-Thursday in 2010. (Yes, I am one of those mothers/grandmothers who enjoys embarrassing remembering the kids with old pics.)

The photo reminded me further of a recently shared post on FB from her brother - my youngest, Preston.

One of my favorite photos of him - around age four. The post he shared was one he originally wrote nine years ago:
"Realized that I missed being a kid..not school age, but the age when you are 4 or 5 and you run around in circles and fall into the grass looking up at the clouds and you have that sense of wonderment ..wondering what the world is all about and where the clouds are going and how can you catch one to ride.."

My reply: "The trick is to find something that makes you feel like that kid again. I felt it when I moved 'back home' in '78 -- standing in the rain, watching the water tank fill."

A few days later, Hubby Dearest left for his morning walk/run in a light rain. It wasn't long before the light rain became a downpour and he came back soaking wet, running down the middle of our street where the water was deepest.
After he got dried off and warmed up I asked him how it had made him feel. His reply: "Like a kid again."

So maybe all one needs to feel young again is to play in the dirt or rain - or a combination of the two - mud!

What makes you feel like a kid again?

Some September Sunsets

Sept 7

Having clouds and silhouettes always helps.

As do reflections.

Sept 8

Criss-cross blues.

And gray striations.

Sept 9

Setting sun, clouds, water - lots to work with.

Like a close-up of that 'perfect' tree up on the ridge.

Or a more distant shot of it.

A final 'sinking of the sun' photo with a first star to wish upon.

7:44 p.m. - clouds of cotton candy reflecting the final glow.

8:05 p.m. - Good night.

Sept 10

With no clouds my only photos would be a peachy afterglow, nothing too interesting. Maybe tomorrow night.

8:17 p.m. Almost full dark, a final glance out the window.

Wait. What do I see?

Just possibly the best opportunity ever to photograph the new moon in its waxing crescent phase.

This is the first phase after the new moon. And, even though I took the photos through the window, I was elated by the chance sighting and my photo op.

Tonight, even if I am taking sunset pictures, I'll be looking for the setting moon.😉