November Reading List

 The count creeps up - nine books read this month.

The Lightkeeper by Susan Wiggs is one of her earlier books and does not compare to the books she writes now.

All The Devils Are Here by Louise Penny is her 16th novel in the Chief Inspector Gamache series. The setting for this book is Paris, a departure from familiar Three Pines and Canada. The Gamaches are visiting their children and grandchildren as well as Gamache's godfather. When the godfather is killed in a hit and run accident, Gamache knows it was deliberate and sets out to prove the man was murdered.

Soon the whole family is involved in intrigue. Penny is a master mystery writer and this is one of her best books yet. Of course I say that about all her books. 

a family of strangers by Emilie Richards begins with one sister asking another for help when she becomes a suspect in a murder and ends with the unravelling of a family because of the secrets it kept. 

The Searcher is Tana French's latest novel and my favorite of her's so far, also my #1 read this month. I love books set in Ireland and this one really, really makes me wish I could go back there again. French is my new 'Adopted Author' at the local library, so I won't miss any of her books from now on.

The Book Of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate - I hadn't read Wingate for several years, but could not resist the cover of her latest offering. This is an interesting, well-written novel told in alternating time periods of post-Civil War South and present time in the same small town. 

Dead Ringer is #8 in Lisa Scottoline's 'Rosato & Associates' series and the first of her's I've read since July. I've been reading my way through all these. I really like all the smart, funny, fallible women of this law firm.

Divine Right's Trip by Gurney Norman is sub-titled 'ANovel of the Counterculture' and was sent to me by my son Douglas. The story of Divine Right, who goes by D.R., and his hippy-painted, 1963 VW microbus named Urge, first appeared in somewhat different form in the 1971 The Last Whole Earth Catalog, which is where Doug and I first read it. We were both big fans of the catalog and huge fans of Divine Right and Urge. I was not even aware there was a more complete book until Doug sent it to me for my birthday. Reading it brought back memories of a time in our lives when we were very close.

The Silent Wife is the latest (#10) in Karin Slaughter's 'Will Trent' series. I used to think Kathy Reichs' books were so good because of the forensics investigation, but Slaughter's is so much better and she is a better writer, in my opinion. Book #10 takes us back eight years to some of Jeffrey Tolliver's cases and a, possibly, wrong conviction. It appears a serial killer is still out there and forensics proves it. 

Killer Smile is Lisa Scottoline's next 'Rosato & Associates' book (#9) and features my favorite associate of the all female firm, Mary DiNunzio. For the first time ever, this South Philly Italian-American, goes way out of her comfort zone, all the way to Montana, to research the 1942 death of an Italian immigrant interned there during WWII, even though his American-born son was serving in the Army. While there, Mary learned "If you can't be brave, be determined. And you'll end up in the same place." Good advice. 

I found this copy of The Last Whole Earth Catalog listed on eBay for $49.99. I remember our's being in a much more used shape.

I think it went with Doug when he moved to his own place. Later I found another copy at a garage sale for two or three dollars. I don't know what eventually happened to that copy.

It would be interesting to read one of these again. 

A paragraph from An Afterward at the end of Norman's book gives you an idea of what The Last Whole Earth Catalog was and how Divine Right's Trip was a part of it.

"Divine Right's Trip originally appeared in tiny segments threaded through Stewart Brand's The Last Whole Earth Catalog, that hugely successful (National Book Award, sales of almost two million, etc.) California-based mail-order supermarket of the counterculture, one segment of DRT in the lower right-hand corner of every right-hand page, amidst a cornucopia of survivalist gear, handtools, Moog synthesizers, environmentalist hectoring, geodisic dome blueprints, psychedelic desiderata, tie-dye cook books, VW repair manuals, anarchistic social manifestoes ... all the myriad toys, trappings, and indispensables of what was called, in the hippest argot of the day, the Alternative Lifestyle."

The Last Thanksgiving Turkey

HD (Hubby Dearest) and I were talking about our Thanksgiving plans - they do not include seeing any of our family this year due to, need I say it?, the Covid crisis - so what else did we have to discuss except, "What are we having to eat"? He asked, "Are we having turkey?" To which I responded, "When was the last time I fixed a turkey?" Not in the twelve years we've lived here, so when?

It was most likely when Mom was still alive and I helped her make the Thanksgiving meal for all of us who could be there - her children, grandchildren and great-grands - sometime in the late 1990's?

And we would have cooked the turkey in her mother's old electric roaster, just as Grandma Ridnour did when whe was still hosting her VERY LARGE Thanksgiving dinners.

(Insert much nostalgia here.)

Today I'll start the meal preparations by making my favorite raspberry/cranberry/pineapple jello salad with sour cream/cream cheese topping.

Everything else can wait until tomorrow.

We'll have these, not as 'candied yams' but rather 'savory sweet potatoes' along with ham loaf, dressing, green bean casserole, my one concession to a 'traditional' side dish, dinner rolls and hot tea.

Sounds like a lot for two people, doesn't it? 

Oh yeah, I saved two slices of Bud's birthday pumpkin pie for dessert. 

We shouldn't need to eat again for awhile - and when we do, it will be leftovers. 😉

Celebrating A Birthday

♪ All the leaves are brown, and the sky is gray

I went out for a walk on a November birthday ♪

Another nice spell of weather and another walk at Green Valley State Park. It was a good way to celebrate my 77th birthday except for the wind! I decided to walk on the west side of the lake on the grass trails because it was more sheltered there.

A couple was leaving as I got there, so I had the area all to myself - I thought. 

Just as I was going down this hill I saw a large brown dog racing toward me. First thoughts: "What do I do if he attacks me. I hope his owner is with him." Before I had time to do anymore than be startled, I realized the dog was a deer and as surprised as I was. It stopped then darted off into the trees. Whew!

 There wasn't a lot of color except some reds.

Mostly it was the wind and waves.

Blues, browns, green and gray.

It was the pleasure of being out in nature on my birthday - an unexpected treat this time of year.

"Truth walks toward us on the paths of our questions."                                      (Jacqueline Winspear)

It does seem I'm always questioning.

Like A Jackdaw

 

Like a Jackdaw

He picks up shiny objects

Brings them home 

Love offerings for his mate

My Wondering, Wandering Mind

The origins of knot tying may date back centuries, but it wasn't until the Macramé craze during the 1970's that I gave it a try.

But not until my sister Betty led the way. She began making hangers for Mom's, mine and her own houseplants. 

Those were easy compared to most of the designs in the many Macramé pattern magazines. 

I was never good at arts and crafts, but I really wanted to try making at least one of those patterns I saw in the magazines I bought. But which one?

Then there it was - a smaller wall hanging design titled "Ramona".  With many hours of frustration and do-overs I made it - and swore I would never try my hand at macramé again.

For whatever reason, this morning I started thinking about my Ramona macramé piece. I gave it away not long after I finished it and then regretted doing so. I never even considered trying to make another one until now.

Could I even find a pattern? Well as it turns out, yes I could.

Right there on Etsy: "Vintage 70's Ramona Wall Hanging Pattern Instant Download" for $2.66. 

I did take photos of the one I made before I gave it away, but even those are lost now. I do remember I used brown yarn and maybe(?) tan beads. 

But just taking a close look at this photo chased any lingering thoughts I had of trying to make one of these again right plum out of my wondering/wandering mind. 

If I was frustrated making one forty five years ago.....well.....

.....but if I did, I would use Ivory yarn with Burnt Umber or Venetian Red beads.

First, though, I would savor walking the shores of a lake or banks of a river hunting for the perfect piece of driftwood from which to anchor my second Ramona Macramé.

Because Someday Never Comes

 ............Just Do It....

Our lovely extra summer weather comes to an end today. It is overcast and won't be as warm, but it was mild this morning with temperatures in the 60's. I decided to get one more walk in at Lake McKinley.

It has been awhile since I went up there to walk and I use different paths when I do go so the last time I walked on the west side of the lake may have been when I took this picture July 23. Forms like this one were in several spots. At the time I deduced that we were going to get a lighted pathway along that area.

 

And --Voilà!

I also noted a rectangular platform across from the tree in this picture, and assumed there will be bench there eventually.

I was only going to walk to the end of the path, about 15 minutes, then turn around and go back to the car. But I found myself thinking that someday I would walk all the way around the lake.

Then that little voice in my head said, "Why not today?"

Besides, I could see a bunch of garbage in the parking area on the other side of the road and was curious about what it was.

A box of Borax, a jug of glue, a bucket to mix it in, a spoon to stir it and some red coloring....?

I had to Google to find that these are the ingredients to make rubbery slime. I have the feeling these lab techs were amateurs without a recipe for proportions - the stuff in the bucket looked solid.  

Across the dam, at the SE corner - only the east side to walk to get back to my car.

No worries about me breaking the speed limit.  😏

I can see the car - that little white dot under the tree - I'm going to make it!

I looked at my watch and was surprised that I had walked only five minutes longer than I had planned.

Bud had told me it was a little over a mile around the lake. I decided to drive around it to see - 1.3 miles by my odometer.

That and my time surprised me some - but what really surprised me was this:

When I got around to that cement slab on the west side, there was already a bench there! And a little farther down, another bench. I didn't get a picture of it because the worker who had installed it was sitting on it. 

Maybe some evening soon I will drive around the lake and take a picture of the lights and the other bench. Or, maybe we will have some more nice weather and I'll walk that side again yet this year. It would be pretty to see the lights in the snow.

Married in Veils of November Mist

 "Married in veils of November mist,

Fortune your wedding ring has kissed."

(A second of those New Zealand wedding superstitions.)

It is another beautiful Indian Summer day today just as it was eleven years ago when my younger brother Les and Susan were married.  

I remember my brother saying that being wed in November seemed to be working out for his siblings so he and Susan decided on a November wedding too. 

Their's was a small wedding with only a few friends and family, held at the home of the bride. 

I've shared most of the photos I took that day except this one of a guest adorned in vintage clothing and lucite heels. 

This was taken surreptiously with my old camera, so the picture isn't too clear, but I was so impressed with this woman.

Another photo showing her dress.

Continuing with the beautiful November weather theme:

I realized after finding delight in Thursday's Wildlife Management area that in addition to searching for nearby state and county parks, I should also look for look for wildlife areas and found 'Meadow Lake' north of Greenfield.

So yesterday morning I kiddingly (sort of) said to HD, "Where are we going today?" After I told him about the Wildlife Mgmt. area less than 30 miles away and agreed to go there, we both had the same idea - go see this year's Freedom Rock which was only a few miles further.

The first thing I noticed was how blue the front of the rock is this year.

It honors the 75th anniversary of the Raising of the Flag on Iwo Jima.

Mr. Sorensen always does such a beautiful and meaningful job of repainting this rock each year in time for Memorial Day.

On the lightpole at the left are some of the many mementoes left by visitors.

This is the little square under the guard rail to the left of the light pole in the photo above.

"It's hard to forget someone who gave us so much to remember".

Other sides of the Freedom Rock.

From here we went to Meadow Lake.

The first thing Bud found when he got out to take photos was this bone.

I was kind of excited because I thought it had begun to petrify, i.e., it was old.

 

Then I found this:

and it became pretty obvious that a deer had perished here. 

The bone Bud found went back on the pile. 

The lake takes up about 1/4 of this Wildlife Management area.

The balance of the 317 acres is upland game hunting.

We saw no hunters around, only this one lone fisherman out in his boat.

A few muskrat lodges and this little island are toward the south end of Meadow Lake. I can imagine geese and small animals appreciating the safety of an island home.

At the end of a jetty, algae covered limestone.

And one large chunk of limestone with a sparkly dimple......

.......complimented by a dried plant arrangement.

As we were leaving Meadow Lake, Bud said, "We should try to find a dirt road and do a little rock hunting." I said, "Go down this road, I have a feeling we might find one." At the end of that mile of gravel, here it was: a mile of dirt road along the south border of the 317 acres. We hunted rocks, picked up a few and headed home. The perfect ending for another Indian Summer adventure. 

💛💚💙

Taking Advantage of Our Indian Summer

I know we aren't the only ones enjoying these implausibly gorgeous days this first week of November, but we're doing our best to take advantage of them. Yesterday we headed to Taylor County and a nearby state park we haven't visited for quite awhile.

Lake of Three Fires was the state park my family visited most often when I was growing up. It was the closest to our farm South of Corning. The above clip is from a 1937 Iowa State Parks and Preserves publication I found online. 

In a previous post about the Lake of Three Fires (January 2016), I shared some childhood photos and memories - one of those memories was about crossing the bridge from the beach area to the campgrounds. I remembered it as being a long trail and a long bridge. I loved crossing it because I felt so grown up. When I saw that bridge yesterday I was flabbergasted. "It's so little!!"

Toward the northern end of the lake, I was taking pictures of muskrat houses and dead water lilies when a flash of white caught my eye.

Is it?

Yes! It must be our week for eagles.

The water was so still.

Those leaves floating on it weren't even moving.

Still water and clear. There was a tiny frog swimming around, but I couldn't get a photo.

Dead lily pads; dead tree branches - a study in still life.

There is an area north of the state park shown on a map as Simmons Tract Park. I couldn't find any information online about it, so naturally I wanted to see what it was.

Signs identify it as a Wildlife Management Area open to public hunting. And there was a pickup parked along the road. I assume pheasant hunters were trying their luck.

My photo is of a dry stream bed along the west edge of the tract. 

It is a water source for Lake of Three Fires - when we aren't in a dry spell. 

It was the swampy area across the road from the public area I found most interesting - and photo worthy.

A sea of algae didn't deter these ducks.

Upon my approach, dozens of frogs jumped into this stretch of water, its verges marked by hundreds of critter prints.

There must have been some kind of crossing here once upon a time.... and old road?

For me, this waste land was more interesting than the state park - a serendipitous find.

"Sometimes you sense how faithfully your life is delivered, 

even though you can't read the address."

        (Ted Kooser)