May 2024 Reading List

 How can it be the end of May already? This month went by so fast, but I did manage to read seven books.

 

None Of This Is True by Lisa Jewell  is the first novel of her's that I've read. It is a psychological thriller that keeps you guessing. Jewell is an English author with several other books which I would definitely read if my library had them.

Tyrannosaur Canyon is the first book I've read by Douglas Preston though I have remarked that I should read his books because Douglas and Preston are the names of my two sons. I thoroughly enjoyed this archaeological thriller and now will be reading more of his books.

The Almost Moon is by Alice Sebold. I remembered reading her first novel The Lovely Bones when it came out more than twenty years ago. It affected me so much I never forgot the author's name which is why as soon as I saw this book on the shelf, I didn't even have to read what it was about to add it to my book bag. This book did not impress me as much as her first one, but it is an interesting story about the thin line between love and hate.

perfect touch by Elizabeth Lowell is a romance/mystery set in the Jackson, WY area. It is the first book I've read by this author, but not the first time - looking back I found I had read it in October, 2015 and did not remember it at all when I was re-reading it this month. Lowell is a good writer and I may read some more of her books when/if I'm in the mood for another romantic mystery.

Blue Labyrinth is the first book I've read by Preston & Child, the dual authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. It is #14 in their Pendergast series. I liked the characters and plan to read more books in this series.

Piglet is the debut novel by English author Lottie Hazell. It looks at the complicated dichotomy between the things we want and the things we think we want. I was hooked by the title before I even looked at what the book was about. (Those who know me understand why.) 🐖

Nop's Trials by Donald McCaig is a book I first read many years ago. When we were at my son and daughter-in-law's home last month, Preston was reading a book about dogs. It reminded me of the book I had owned, read and enjoyed about Border Collies. I mentioned that I had loaned my book to someone and never gotten it back. Last week I received this copy in the mail. Preston had tracked down, purchased and had it sent to me to enjoy once again. (Interesting to me, and perhaps to my daughter, this copy was a discard from the McMinnville, OR Public Library.)

I don't know which came first, my interest in Border Collies or watching them work at trials, but I have attended sheep dog trials several times and love watching the dogs work to pen the sheep. (Maybe it has to do with my Scottish genes.)

This photo ties together those last two books - pigs and a border collie. Though Nadette was only half border collie, she looked the part and had some of their herding instincts. Sadly she had already died by the time I was raising sheep, so I don't know how well she might have worked them.

Taking The Day Off

 

"Delight reigns in the garden" are the words on this little plaque.

Today delight does reign - the first Stella D'Oro daylily has bloomed.

Taking the day off does not have the same connotation it held during all those 47 years of my 'working life'. 

Since retiring, I've been able to take the day off as often as I like.

Mary Oliver offered her own thoughts about taking the day off in this poem of hers....

Today

Today I'm flying low

and I'm not saying a word.

I'm letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep.

The world goes on as it must,

The bees in the garden rumbling a little,

the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten.

And so forth.

But I'm taking the day off.

Quiet as a feather.

I hardly move though really I'm traveling

a terrific distance.

Stillness. One of the doors

into the temple.

So This Happened Yesterday

 

Three or so weeks ago I was certain I would not be buying plants and filling my pots this year. The weather wasn't conducive and I just plain didn't feel up to it.

The only pot I had planted was this large green one which year after year holds geraniums and some kind of accent plant.

I thought that was going to be the extent of it.

Until yesterday. 😄

Moving left from the above and across the edge of the deck which faces the pond - I repotted the Mother's Day flowers from Preston and Shalea.

I thought they needed to be in a larger pot so they went into the empty pot my last year's Mother's Day flowers from them came in. 

Next to the container of hen and chicks that came from my mother-in-law's home after she died, and before the house sold, is a pretty purple Dianthus.

I have wanted to have these flowers again so it was time. They will winter over, so, fingers crossed.

I used the pot that had held the geraniums from Shalea and Preston for some bright Salvia.

These were on clearance for a dollar so I got eight salvia plants for $2.00.

That's more like what prices used to be!

The other five Salvia plants went into this large pot in front of a piece of driftwood I've had forever.

The hanging tray was given to me by some old friends. Around the edges it reads: "Cares of life/Slip away/In the beauty/Of a garden."I don't know its intended purpose, maybe a bird bath as it does hold water, but I have some of my collected rocks in it.

The above scene is along the north side of the deck on the right.

Between it and the green planter of geraniums are these two hanging planters of petunias.

Those who know me will be surprised by my color choice. I hardly ever choose anything but shades of pink. I even surprised myself with these lavendar blue ones.

From the large deck at the back of the house, all the way along the side to the corner by the steps going down to the patio, sits the base - the unbroken part - of a bird bath.

I tried to match a pot to the base and this is as close as I came. In it is more Dianthus - a beautiful deep purple/pink color.

Stair-stepping down to the patio are these three matching planters - large, medium and small. They have held salmon colored Impatiens, my favorites, each year.

Inpatiens do best in shade which is why they are here. Did I say salmon? I thought they were all salmon, but each four plant container from the nursery had one pink one. Those two plants went into the baby pot on the bottom step.

The old mailbox my parents had on the farm has been my herb container on the patio many years.

It always contains a basil plant. This healthy speciman was given to me by my daughter-in-law, Shelly.

On the left side is a small rosemary plant - for remembrance. 

Then my Celtic pot and another Dianthus, with some more hen and chicks and ditch daisies in the flower bed below.

Another pot of bargain (clearance) Dianthus.

This is a mystery pot. There were no blooms on it so I don't know what color the flowers will be.

An old pot of Mom's and more of the blue/purple petunias.

It doesn't show in the photo, but the pot is also a light blue.

Lastly is this concrete planter with a couple of geraniums. I think it looks like it needs either another geranium or an accent plant.

So maybe I'm not done planting yet. 😊

But I'm happy with the results so far and I am actually feeling better for having accomplished what I did.

I also see a lot of watering in my future. 😍

 Each morning I read the news - world, national, state and local, check the weather and facebook - which doesn't take long any more since it's nothing but ads and whatever FB thinks I should see - and then move on to my puzzles, both crossword and jigsaw. Doing those is supposed to keep your mind working as you get older. I really do think they have helped.

Today's daily puzzle was only a fifty piece one which took me about three minutes. So I picked this 100 piece one to do as well.

I think I picked it because the color reminded my of Mom's choice to paint her house after Dad died. In fact we painted every building on the farm that color. If I remember right I think she said the house was yellow when they moved there but Dad wanted all the buildings to be white.

By the time Mom died in 2003, the buildings were needing to be painted again.

But she got to enjoy her choice for more than twenty years.

I've always loved this picture of her with her cats. She made a pan of oatmeal every morning, ate a small dish and then fed the rest to the cats.

A view of the front (west) and side (south) of the house shortly after it was first painted.

And another of the chicken house, corncrib, milk house and barn. The barn was the only building she hired someone to paint. All the other buildings (hog house, granary, two garages, lawn mower shed, coal house, wash house and toilet) were painted by us, her children and grandchildren.

I've always loved this photo I took from down on the road east of the farm. It looks to the northwest across the oat field and cornfield.

There is a lot of nostalgia connected with looking back at photos and memories of the farm where I grew up. Not only my children but also my grandchildren have many memories of visiting Grandma/great-grandma Ruth on the farm and enjoying her love, good cooking and the freedom to roam. I imagine some of my grandchildren wish they could still take their children there and pass on their memories of what the farm was like. 

It was one place we all knew we were welcome, loved and cherished. 💛

Appropiate for Memorial Day

 

 

It seemed to me very appropriate that this beautiful Mourning Dove was on the deck this morning.

What could be more apropos for remembering and honoring lost loved ones on Memorial Day?

"And there my little doves did sit, with feathers softly brown and glittering eyes that showed their right to general nature's deep delight." Elizabeth Barret Browning

When I wrote about going to the cemeteries Saturday to decorate the graves, I mentioned that I had forgotten to take a picture of my parents' gravesite. This is the one I took last year. Dad's funeral and burial took place 46 years ago today.

And when I was showing the photos of my flowers around both sides of our house yesterday, I should have shown a picture of how much the ferns, snow on the mountain, hostas and other plants have filled in more than half the north side.

Neighbors Neva and Russell Vogel had ferns all along the north side of their house. I thought they were remarkable and always wished I had some like them.

After they died and their daughter and son-in-law & family moved there, they were taking all the ferns out. I stopped and asked if I could have a few. Which is how I got a start of them when we still lived on Mom's farm. I only had a few plants to transfer when we moved here in 2008, but they have finally expanded. And I love them. They remind me of Neva and her gracious and kind mien.

It Is About The Flowers

 

If you've ever wondered why Memorial Day is celebrated in May, there are two reasons: On May 5, 1868, Decoration Day was established as a time to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers.  It is thought that May 30th was the date chosen to do so because more flowers would be in bloom at that time.

Decoration Day officially became Memorial Day in 1967. In 1968 the holiday was moved from May 30 to the last Monday in May.

Poppies are a symbol of remembrance of veterans for both Memorial Day and Veterans Day. My first poppy bloomed this morning, just at the right time. 

I took a walk around the house to photograph all the other flowers in bloom.

The miniature yellow rose is full of buds, but the leaves have been decimated by, most likely, Japanese Beetles. Though I didn't see any on the foliage they love rose bushes and I have seen hundreds of them on the red rose bush in past years.

The small start of sedum I transferred here from Mom's plants on the farm have spread all over, including between the stepping stones...

....and pictured here, around and on, the metate my Aunt Leona gave me. The grinding stone is one she found sometime after they moved to Arizona in the early 60's. 

The white flower is the blossom of Snow on the Mountain. (AKA, Bishop's Weed or Goutweed.)

Still on the south side of the house, the chive blossoms are fading. They too are spreading from the small plant I began with.

I have the new mulch to put between the stepping stones, I just haven't done it yet.

Continuing on are my "ditch daisies" which are usually a large mass in this area. This year there are only a few plants and the blooms don't seem as large as usual.

But it is okay. At least some survived and I still love these happy little 'weeds' as most probably consider them.

That metal is one of the handles and connecting bar of the old hand plow Bud found in the dumpster and rescued for me. 💝

A couple of the snapdragons I had in a row in front of the old plow last year survived so I moved them to my Great-grandmother Matilda's iron kettle.

I love the color of these and I'm so glad I saved the old bean pot even though it was almost rusted through the bottom when we moved from the farm. 

The bottom is gone now but it is still a viable and venerable planter. 

A little past the above planter are my Blanket Flowers (Gaillardia) which I also transplanted. These from a vacant spot down the street. 

I had them when we lived in Valley Junction (West Des Moines) and always liked the cheerfulness of their colors.

That is a Day Lily bud getting ready to bloom at the left side.

Around to the other side of the house - I knew the Peonies were in bloom because I brought a bouquet into the house a few days ago.

But what about the red roses? Ah, looks like they are just beginning to bloom. It also looks like something has been nibbling on their leaves, too. 

The aforementioned Peony bush. Between the roses and the peonies, the perfumed air smells so good here.

Peeking between the two peony blossoms is some Wild Columbine, also known as Eastern Columbine.

This plant has self-seeded from the original one near the mailbox. That one was one I moved here from the farm which was originally moved there from my sister-in-law Ruthie's shade garden.

Ten or so years ago my niece Kristi gave me a start of this plant. At the time she told me what she thought it was, which I don't recall now, but I didn't think it could be what she said.

I searched for the right name a long time and at last know it is Celandine Poppy. It easily self seeds and is now in several locations around our house.

The magenta Clematis is doing very well with many blooms already and plenty of buds. I does seem to like this location overlooking the pond and the very verdant lawn, pasture and trees beyond. I was so worried of the drought continuing but we have had a lot of rain. (Another .55 last night.)

This is the only pot I've planted so far this season. Usually it is salmon geraniums but this year they are pink - with an accent plant of Sprengeri Asparagus Fern.

I did also get some Blue Verbena plants for the two matching deck planters. I keep rocks in these to discourage the squirrels from storing their acorns later in  the year. 

It is quite possible I will get some more of my pots planted in the coming days - I'm now more in the mood to do so. 😊

My granddaughter sent me new pics of her boys last night.

It is quite possible that her message saying they plan to come to Iowa in three weeks has contributed to my good mood.

I am so ready to meet Henri Oliver and hold him for the first time.

As well as seeing Louis again. He has grown so much. Has it really been more than a year since I saw him last?

If so, I've got some catching up to do - if he'll stand still long enough. 😍

Memorial Weekend - Cemeteries and Company

 

Over the years we have established a routine of going to the cemeteries on Saturday morning of Memorial Weekend. The first stop is at East Fairview Cemetery in Lenox where Bud's parents and many of his uncles and aunts are buried. When he went to decorate his parents' graves, he found the exact same flowers already there. His sister had also brought Mom and Dad bouquets. The little flags were for his uncles' graves - the ones who served in WWII.

"I know who'll put flowers on my grave, but who will put flowers on yours?" 

That was a question my Grandma Delphia asked me when I was taking her to decorate graves when she was in her 90's. It was her way of letting me know she appreciated me taking her to the cemeteries and seeing that there were flowers there. I was surprised that no one else had yet been to Grandma and Grandpa Ridnour's gravesite in Maple Grove Cemetery north of Guss. Usually there are several floral offerings already. But then even we grandchildren are aging, so maybe it's not too surprising. And now I can answer Grandma's question: "No one. Because I won't have a gravesite." At least that's my plan if my children and husband follow through with my wishes.

Our next stop was at Prairie Rose Cemetery SW of Corning to decorate the graves of my parents and sister and nephew. I don't know why I didn't take pictures there. We also stopped at Walnut Grove Cemetery in Corning where Bud and I both have family members. Again, no pics.

The final stop was at Oakland Cemetery south of Quincy where we both have relatives buried. I put flowers on Grandma Bessie's and Grandpa George's graves as well as Aunt Leona and Aunt Evelyn's graves. They were Dad's sisters.

All the way from the cemetery in Guss to Corning to Quincy and home past Lake Icaria and through Prescott, we could see evidence of Tuesday's tornado - the path tracking southwest to northeast. Damage to homes and businesses and outbuildings and so very, very much tree damage. At one property east of Lake Icaria almost all the trees were down or had lost limbs but the house had practically no damage. They were fortunate. 

We were expecting a visit from granddaughter, Dominique and her husband Ian, so next stop was home. We had so much fun visiting with these two.

Dom brought us a loaf of her homemade honey mustard bread which we couldn't wait to try. It is so good.

I know what I'll be having for supper - a slice of cheese between two slices of this bread. Mm-m

They were only here a couple of hours, but as I said, we really had a good time visiting with them.

Ian had just gotten his new truck this week so I had to get a picture of them with it before they left.

They left with: "We'll be back to see you again and I'll send you a copy of that picture I took of all of us."

And here it is, just in time for me to add to the end of this post. I don't know what we have in store for the next two days of this holiday weekend, but it certainly started off well - a mix of honoring those for whom the holiday was founded - and enjoying the company of family. May your weekend be similar. 

Sooner or Later, Chances Are....

 ..... yes, it is the name of my blog. Originally it was the title I imagined using if I ever got to write a column for the Free Press when I worked there in the mid 90's. I did get to write a number of feature stories while there, but never a column. 

This morning my thoughts are about the chances we have been experiencing the past few days - and maybe well into the summer - the chance that one of those destructive forces from Mother Nature will hit us or our loved ones. Tuesday's bad weather knocked out our internet, t.v. and phone service but we were able to see what was going on because HD (Hubby Dearest) had bought and put up an antenna on our roof a few years ago after another tornado had hit our area and we were without power, i.e., a way of knowing what was going on. So at least we could track the storm and know if anything was headed our way.

But it was the next day before we learned that a woman had been killed in Adams County when her car was blown off the road north of Corning.  (Not someone either of us knew. This photo is from the DM Register.) Adams County was where we lived most of our lives before retiring and moving the Union County. I was concerned about a cousin and his wife near Mt. Etna and was glad when their daughter posted they were okay with only minimal damage. 

The photos and video from Greenfield are unbelievable and so heartbreaking. While at the same time, hopeful and heartwarming - to see how much clean up and temporary repair has been accomplished already - how the willingness to help and generosity are making a difference. 

So while I was aware there were more storms moving through Iowa early this a.m., I didn't think we were in any danger. I did hear some thunder in the night, but not the wind. (We sleep with white noise in our bedroom.) So I was surprised this morning when I saw these photos:

Great-grandsons Greyson and Ayden in a storm shelter in Ankeny.

They live in a mobile home so when the warnings went out their Mom took them to shelter. (Along with the cats.)

We have a storm shelter here in our mobile home park, but we've never used it - even in times when the sirens have gone off. I suppose 'chances are' that behavior might someday catch up with us. 

 A couple hours after the above photo I got this one from their Dad, who lives just outside of Guthrie Center, of tree limbs down just behind his garage and vehicle. Lucky they weren't any closer. 

I've messaged his sisters, one near Cedar Rapids, the other near Davenport, but haven't heard back. I'm sure they are okay and at work, most likely.

I was surprised to see that Iowa had more tornadoes this week than Kansas or Oklahoma. But with all the states and towns being affected by them so far this year, I can understand why FEMA said they will be out of funds by August. By then we'll be well into hurricane season! At least in Iowa we don't have to worry about those. We've already had hurricanes with names of family members - Andrew and Katrina. I see this year is predicted to be above average in number of hurricanes. If they get to the L's younger brother Les(lie), and all the other Leslies out there, will have one named after them. 

As mentioned we did have rain, wind and hail Tuesday. There was a small chunk of siding knocked out of our house. But what we can't figure out is this baseball on the neighbor's deck. Where did it come from? No kids around here and it happened around the same time as the wind and hail. Is it possible the ball was picked up by one of the tornadoes and then dropped later? Even though we didn't have a tornado close by? One of those mysteries I'll probably never know the answer to. 

Mother Nature is powerful, unpredictable and many faceted.