Into the Wild Wood and Home Again

Sunday morning, 45 degrees, and the neighbor's roosters are in full throat. It's pretty peaceful, if a bit chilly. The forecast is for warming temperatures, but I don't mind saying, I put a sweater on this morning. The pool is almost empty, but the clean up/ put away part of things will take a few days. It needs to be fully dry, and I still have to figure out what to do with the blow-up floats. I ordered some waterproof storage bags that will be here Tuesday, so I think that's what will do the trick. I'm feeling a little melancholy; it's the season, I think. Autumnal blues. It's the dark mornings, the early sunset/gloaming, the chill in the air...  I'm never sure if I'm the grasshopper or the ant. Can we ever really be ready? C

We had an interesting evening out yesterday. G and I went to the Colonial Theatre in Bethlehem to see Lost Nation , which was directed and written by Jay Craven. He was on hand to introduce the film and there was a Q/A after (we didn't stay). The film is set in Revolutionary War Vermont, and focuses on Ethan Allen as one of the two narrative threads. The other thread is the story of Lucy Terry Prince and her family; she is a freedwoman, as is her husband, but they don't have papers for their three children. They do, however, have a land grant from Governor Wentworth of New Hampshire, who, as it turns out, was granting land that New York also had a claim to-- the area that later became Vermont, once it was officially recognized.  The complicated plot revolves around Allen's boisterous, combative attempts to harry and defeat various British outposts, his unsuccessful plot to take Montreal, and the aftermath of all of his blustering and aggressive work. Loyalists to the Crow...

Day "off"-- it's cold, damp, and Holly's here for the entire day. The last part is a good thing, but the cold and dreary part is not fun. At least I have some baking to do to warm up the house. I refuse to turn on the oil heat, and the pellet stove needs a deep cleaning.  Due to the serious drought conditions, we have been dealing with a marauding bear. It's pretty much left our trash alone, but has repeatedly hit Meg's. Last night, the dang beast got into the newly-cleaned out woodshed and wrought havoc with some sealed totes, looking for vestiges of bird seed. We take our feeders in at night, but there were traces of old seed in the totes. Damn. What a mess. G cleaned up ours and Meg's around 5am. The other neighbor didn't even try-- his trash is strewn across his side lawn, right next to our house. I sure hope he cleans it up later-- not a fan of leaving it out there to lure the bear back..  And there's been some Norway rats policing around unde...

The time has come to close some windows. The temp was 37 this morning. Gah. I sincerely hope this is a "cold snap" and not the new norm... those tomatoes are doing so well, and the rest of the garden, and the pool is still up (and will be drained this weekend)... so much to do.  One thing I do NOT have to worry about is the cranky student. That situation has resolved itself, I think, and we are all going to be happier. And it's Thursday, the last day of this first week of school. I'm glad; I'm ready to get outside and pick 'maters, if it doesn't rain on me.  I know, it's time to accept that summer's done with, at least as far as the hot, lazy days. But I'm just not ready for a steady chill.  Slow down, eh? I haven't switched out my closet yet! Have a good day, C

I sure hope I get used to my new work schedule/ work load/ home schedule soon-- I keep falling asleep by 8pm on the couch. I was yawning by 7:30. Not good.  That said, so far, things are okay. I have one student who is a tough nut to crack, but we'll see if I can get her on board to at least stop rolling her eyes and smirking. Ugh. Teens are sometimes a little "much," aren't they?  That said, we seem to be off and running. Today, I have work, then PT, then I get to go home. I'm really grateful for the four day week-- having Friday off to reassess what's working, what needs to be tweaked, etc. will be good. I still need to figure out how to embed some AP Language practice into the class schedule, so maybe I'll get to figure that out over the weekend. Probably not on Friday, really: I have Holly all day.  Which reminds me, I have got to figure out some stuff to keep her happy from 6:30-3:45. I only wish I was not so dang tired. We'll manage. Like I said,...

Last night, I finished Barbara Kingsolver's Pulitzer-prize winning book, Demon Copperhead. It has to be one of the most depressing and well-crafted books I've ever read. Patterned after Dickens' David Copperfield , it explores the ideas of a  "disposable" and manipulated demographic, set in a deeply-impoverished and struggling South. The people are the victims of the Big Pharma oxycontin scheme, and things just head into misery from the very start. It is heartbreaking and deeply upsetting to read about the characters, to come to care about them, and know that they are doomed because of situations far beyond their control. The novel was suggested to me at the APSI conference; there is no way I could give this book to high school kids as a whole group. We'd all be in therapy. But yet, isn't this the real-life literature that might save them from a stultified life of ignorance-- one that would be exactly the kind of life that is so easily manipulated? I don...

It's raining, finally!  And it's the first day back to school. After yesterday's final Sunday in the Barn with Bob, I'm feeling much more "muchier"-- we had 45 people! And what a fun dinner at Iron Furnace with a bunch of super people-- including the NH Poet Laureate!  And so, it's time to get my coffee and figure out my plan for today. Here we go, year 38. I hope you have a great day, and please, hug your loved ones.  C

Sunday-- I'm reading at church, we'll go out for breakfast, and then later today, I'll head up to the Frost Place for the last Sunday in the Barn with Bob reading. It's amazing how the summer, which appeared to stretch forever, has closed up shop in the blink of an eye. Or so it feels.  There will be no more pool days-- the temps at night (except last night, go figure) have been around 40 degrees. The garden is still producing a mammoth hoard of tomatoes. I'll leave the carrots in the dirt for another month, at least. But the beans are pretty much done, and I still have not taken the tired pea vines out. Squashes are tardy-- not enough rain-- but we should have about another month or so for them to do their best. What a dry couple of months, eh?  Last night, there was a thick layer of not-pleasant-smelling smoke covering everything, so we made sure all windows were shut tight and used the A/C. I have NO idea who was burning what, but in this dry spell, it's irre...

I admit defeat. No more pool days. The day temps are lovely, but the breeze is cooler now. And the nights are in the 40s consistently-- the pool water is not going to warm up again. We drained it about this time last year, too. It always makes me sad. It's a material realization that the days of summer are waning, that the easy afternoons of floating and looking at the sky are no more. At least for a space of time. And who knows what will fill that time? The events in the news threaten our peace every single moment of the day, and I fear there will be difficult times between now and next summer. I'm getting older, and more and more I am aware of the shortness of time. "There's always next year" is no guarantee. It's so hard to grasp at the lovely things and watch them slide through your fingers. I don't mean to be morose, although that seems to be where my heart is trending right now. The days are lovely still. And the garden is producing. And I have a lot...

Ahhh, a day "off." While I've been busy at work, things have been going pretty well at home: G vacuumed yesterday, so that's one thing off my list. And I put the laundry in last night when I went to bed, so I only had to toss it in the dryer this morning. It's still pretty chilly/cool (though sunny--and we need rain), so I'll be baking with Holly today. And tidying up the house. And probably mourning the fact that nights are so dang cool (41 again), it's pretty unlikely we'll get one more dip in the pool. I still hold slim hope for tomorrow afternoon, but I am realistic. Ah well. It's been a grand summer of swimming and floating anyhow.  I think I'm all set for tomato picking, too. At least I hope so. I think I'll have to chop and freeze most of the ones I have on the counter right now-- they are getting a bit squishy, and there's only so many I can eat at one time. I'm hopeful I will be able to eat more acidic foods (in moderation)...

Yesterday was the first PD/getting things ready day, and once we got to school (after the whole-SAU thing), I managed to get a lot done. Yes, I jammed up the copier again. And yes, a friend who does magical things with it fixed it for me.  Nothing changes. Today, I'm at work from 8am-6pm (we bundle Open House into this day)-- I have plenty to keep me busy, but friends, that's a long day. I'll be glad to get home. I have tomorrow off with Holly, so it'll be busy, but a good one. I'm looking forward to it.  Have a good day, C

After a bumpy start, the day smoothed out beautifully. Good PT session (looks like just two more to go), then I got word that finally --finally!!-- the summer campers were going to be out of my classroom. They were still there before I went to PT, and I was disgruntled. My boss (bless him) got them out of the room, moved my desk, and emailed me. Holly and I went back to Lisbon and we got the place ready for the usual getting-ready stuff, which will happen in a much saner fashion.  But that's all beside the point. What I want to mention, which is a strange thing to me, is how many great movies are having anniversaries this year, and how many are headed back to the cinemas for the event. List: Monty Python's Holy Grail (50 years), Rocky Horror Picture Show (also 50), Clue (40-- and isn't it odd that Tim Curry is in both?), and Sunset Blvd. (75). All favorites of mine. How cool is that? I may get to see at least one of them, if I can figure out the dates.  See? I can focus...

I think it's fair to say I've overdone things a bit-- I'm purely exhausted, and not at all peppy. I have another busy day today, and then work starts tomorrow. Maybe I'll go to bed at 8:30. I've fallen asleep on the couch more often than not, and this will not serve me well! Thank goodness, there are not that many ripe tomatoes today-- I don't have to go out and pick another bucket full. The only house chore I need to do is sweep/dust, but likely I'll find a few other bits and pieces to do. I want to bring two big bags of stuff to school on my way to my PT appointment, so I don't have to haul those along with me tomorrow afternoon.  Our "convocation" is 8-11 at a neighboring school in our SAU, then I have to get lunch, get Holly, and get to work tomorrow. She'll be with me while I try to make sense out of my classroom-- and then, we'll leave around 2:30 to get home and do more stuff like make dinner. And Thursday is a marathon day: 8am-...

Well, I guess the temperatures are telling me it's time to get back into a work-type routine. G's vacation is done, so he's off to work. Meg starts her new job at DHMC today-- she left around 5:30. Holly will be here around 6:30 to get her ready for camp-- I do drop off/pick up most of the time now, starting today.  I'm not ready to let go of summer, but the signs are all there. It's hard to fathom that just a couple of days ago, I was sitting on a beach getting sunburned.  Today, besides kid duty, I have house chores, groceries, and a phone call with the tax evaluator on my to-do list. The revaluation of property in town more than doubled our home "value"-- but I don't think that it's accurate, because Zillow and Trulia misrepresent our house (we do NOT have three bedrooms and an unfinished basement-- we have two, and a half sized dirt dug cellar). So, we'll see if I can talk some sense into the powers that be.  Ahhh, adulting.  If I have time...

"It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." -Macbeth I'm thinking about the mutability of words. How certain words, in and of themselves innocuous, can shift over time to either be reduced to almost meaninglessness or take on new nuances that were never intended. A lot of that is due to media over-hype and advertising blasts, I think.  New and Improved Breaking News Unprecedented ...the list goes on and on, and the language is never re-energized. It is, instead, deflated, smashed flat, rendered out to a sort of overly-crisped and burnt bit of something that we might have enjoyed once-- like much-overdone bacon.  And here I sit, a minor wordsmith, a poet and essayist, and I am more than frustrated with this contraction of language. Did you know that Shakespeare invented or popularized about 1700 words in the English language? And we are shrunk to emojis, slang (slang is already slang-- short language), and overly-repeated phrases.  It's...

Well, then. We are not going anywhere today, which is somewhat of a change from this whole week! We went to Boston to the aquarium on Tuesday, went to Hampton/Rye Thursday and Friday, and frankly, I'm tuckered out. It was nice to actually "vacation" a bit-- we generally don't. But today, I have the first day of a two-day writing class that I'm super excited about. And it's right here, online. I think we may be able to get in the pool later today, although the 47 degree start to the day was a bit of a corrective to the 90s it has been. I hope so-- the day temps may be pool-friendly, but cool nights work against it. I don't like cold pool water. Soon enough-- likely in just a couple of weeks, I'll have to give up on it, and we'll drain it and put it away yet again. Then, we'll stare at the muddy blank circle in the middle of the back yard. It's all so...final. But not yet. Not yet. I'm really not at all ready to go back to work, but I kno...

  Today is our 38th wedding anniversary--  I'll jump back into blog-world tomorrow! We had a lot of fun at the beach, and now I must unpack before we go to dinner downtown.  Thanks, and stay sane... C

“We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch – we are going back from whence we came.”  –  John F. Kennedy Adventures await. C

The trip to the New England Aquarium was pretty fun, but man o man, packed with people. We got there at 10am,  and by 11, it was intensely crowded. We saw just about all there was to see, but it was like being swept along by humanity at times. That said, I was impressed by the multi-floor size of the central tank. It was interesting to see the layers at which various species make their "homes." And the penguins were really fun-- the African ones "bray" like donkeys. My favorites were the jellyfish. So delicate and beautiful! We had lunch there, then we were on the road just before 2pm, headed north. Thank goodness Meg is such a fantastic driver. I hate large trucks, high speeds, and traffic. We got home around 4:30, and then ... quiet. A good day, all around.  I will honestly say, though, that the smaller, more interactive aquarium in North Conway, Living Shores, is far more accessible for little kids. And less humanity. Either way, it was interesting.  Today is a r...

David Crosby and Lighthouse, " Woodstock "-- My knee-jerk response to the continuing horror show that is our national disgrace is to turn to music. Well, that, and floating in the pool. Unfortunately, the pool won't be up forever, so it's gonna be music that gets me through. I think I'll post a few favorites. My dad taught me well, and I've never been more grateful. I can cling to the music he wove into my upbringing. Here's a partial list: Janis Joan Judy Bob David Joanie ...and so many more. I hope you have a good day. Hug your loved ones and be vigilant. C

So, today I will let my poet-friend Baron Wormser do the talking. This essay, titled "If'" says what I and so many others have been thinking about. I hope you have a good day. Stay cool, C

Well, at least I slept better. Sox lost. Apparently, someone also kicked a 70 yard field goal in a football game yesterday-- all interesting topics for desultory conversation. The weather is going to be hot again.  We avoid talking about the big things now; what is there to say? That anyone can say? Outrage and bluster and woe permeate every waking moment, every interaction. Nothing is normal, but yet, everything is, because it has to be. Baseball season is sliding into end-of-season stats, football is ramping up, school starts in two weeks. The birds are mobbing the feeder, and the carrots look glorious. Tomatoes are going a little crazy. Yet, the news cycle robs us of full joy. So much pain, anger, and damage-- and we have to carry on.  (Carrion.) I hope today is a good day; I plan to go to church, have a good breakfast, and then open up the pool. I'm not ignoring the wider horrors, but I have to do something to push back against it. So, I'll keep going as if nothing is wron...

It was a good night for New England sports: the Patriots manhandled the Commanders in preseason play, 48-18. The first TD of the game was New England's, 52 seconds into the first quarter. Then, the Red Sox beat San Diego 10-2. I didn't watch that one, but it's a good score to start a West Coast series with.  And the birthday dinner/cake for Meg went well, and I got three poems accepted by a journal. Good evening, all around. The poems are all food-related, as the journal, Amaranth , is focused on food, predominantly. It's an international journal, so much of the website is in both English and German. They wanted a photo to go with my bio; I have a few saved on my computer. So, we'll see which one they pick (they requested two).  I had stress dreams all night, with a real doozy that woke me up around 4am. I haven't had stress dreams in weeks, so I don't know where these came from-- all I know is, I hope it's not one night of a series of bad sleep. That is...

Ahhh Friday. That has a lot more meaning when it's a work week, but this week has been pretty regimented with online lectures and craft workshops, so I'm feeling Friday-ish.  I learned a lot of good things this week, and I'm grateful for the printable handouts-- I'll be using a lot of that stuff in my creative writing class, you can bet on it! But some relatively unstructured time, some quiet and "me time," will be nice. I have a nail appointment with Meg this morning, and I already got the carrot cake in the oven. We are going to celebrate Meg's birthday tonight with a family dinner (her favorite: meatballs and pasta). If G ends up working late (it's a possibility), we'll just have to catch him up when he gets here. And Meg asked for the carrot cake, which I have not made in I can't even think how long. It's a heavy cake, three layers, and it has crushed pineapple and slivered almonds in it, too. I got cream cheese frosting for it-- I hope...

Today is the final day of the Poetry Seminar. I am mentally tired, but it's been a good week, for the most part. I did skip the reading last night-- I spent the evening on the deck with Meg, since I can't hang out with her today on her birthday. My eyes are happier, too, that I was not on the computer. That's the only downside to Zoom events--eye strain. We've been given multiple short breaks, but my eyes get tired easily.  That said, I have things planned for tomorrow that should be fun, so after today, I can go full tilt end-of-vacation mode. Nail appointment for Meg and me, then I'll make a dinner/ cake for us to all celebrate. On Saturday, I will get my hair cut. And then, miracle of miracles, G is on vacation for a full week. He so rarely takes time off, this is going to be great fun. We have a couple of things planned, but we've also got some down time, too.  Unfortunately, the summer projects never materialized, again. Maybe we'll get a couple of thin...

I slept in until 6:30 this morning; clearly, I needed the rest. The Poetry Seminar is keeping my brain busy, but not in the same way as the APSI (thankfully). During that conference, all I could seem to focus on was what I needed to do, what I hadn't been doing, and how hard it was going to be. This week, I feel possibilities blooming and a deep appreciation for the creative work others are doing. I don't feel swallowed by deficit, and that's more what I want out of a week's worth of sitting and learning.  That said, it's still braining, and my eyes are burning from too much screen time and the Canadian smoke plume that has blanketed the northeast. I hope today brings some rain to wash this  gloom and pollution away.  I wish there were something to wash away the larger sense of gloom and pollution-- the news cycle is filled with vengeance and misery, ignorance and hate, and real threats to our physical, emotional, financial, and spiritual safety. RFK Jr. is said to ...

UP and rolling... still stuffy/itchy from the wildfire particulates, but hey, so is everyone. I scheduled a physical therapy appointment for 8am, so I'm bleary but caffeinating.  The Poetry Seminar is good so far; great lecture on melodrama yesterday morning, and a very useful workshop in the afternoon. And that is the general pattern of things for the week: lecture/discussion, lunch break, then working on our drafts in small groups. Readings in the evening. Last night's reading was delightful-- I always love hearing a poet read from her own work, and we had two really skilled readers with just the right balance of sad/delight in their poems. I'm looking forward to tonight's, too-- one of the two readers is the nice poet I heard back at the start of July, this year's poet in residence. I really admire his work, so it'll be good to hear him read again. I don't know the work of the other poet, so that will be fun.  So, it's not a generative writing week, b...

The sky is flat gray-- the particulate matter from the wildfires is making things really difficult for most of us, and especially those who are sensitive to smoke and so on. I woke up with itchy, blurry eyes, clogged throat, and a raging headache-- not good, since I will be online for the poetry conference from 9-12/ 1-4 ish, and that already taxes my eyes. I think I'll set up a comfortable spot for the morning-- it's lecture, not workshop-- so I can sit next to the air purifier. What a world, eh? Climate change is real, no matter what the idiots in charge say/wish away. And they are rolling back other pollution controls-- this is not going to go well at all. I'm grateful I don't live in a metropolitan area, that I don't live near factories with smoke stacks, but all of that airborne mess will seep into our air space anyhow, eventually. Don't toss out your masks, folks. We'll need 'em.  In the meantime, I have to rally. I have things I want to accomplish...

Another chilly start to the day, 46 degrees. These cool mornings are really triggering; I'm sad about summer slipping into shadows. I know there's more warm weather coming, but the crickets in the hedge are singing a song that speaks to autumn coming, even if it's not yet, not yet... Geoff is going to go pick more blueberries; I suspect I'll be cooking them down into pie filling within hours. I intend to have a freezer full of good things to get us through the darker, cooler days. And we have another guest poet/open mic today at The Frost Place-- maybe I'll see you there?  Hope your day is glorious, C

Forty degrees. I know it's August now, but seriously-- this is a bit chilly, eh? The forecast is predicting a return to the 80s and sunny with little rain, so I'm hopeful. But this morning, I am typing to you with a sweatshirt over my nightgown.  I have a food-procuring day ahead: groceries, then garden. It's too damp with dew to head out to the tomato jungle just yet, so I think I'll just wake up a bit more, have breakfast and a warm shower, and hit the grocery store mid-morning. The garden will be a lot easier to manage after that, I think. There should be some tomatoes, maybe squash, probably some beans. I'll peek at the raspberries, but that may be something I'll do later on with G when he gets home. I'm much more steady on my feet now (thanks to the PT sessions), but the possibility of stumbling and falling is a lot more likely in that tangle.  There will not be a pool party today, that's for certain. Maybe in about three days? I sent out three poem...

Why does every crisis require stocking up on toilet paper? At least, that idea has occurred to me. Pandemic? stockpile tp- hard to get, no clue when things will be back to normal supply. Tariffs? prices are predicted to go up 25% on paper goods--tp-- so stock up again. And I did get an extra (huge) package yesterday at BJs. I feel like Scarlett O'Hara: "I will never go [drip dry] again!" Not for nuthin', but getting a huge package for under 17.00 was a primary reason for placing a pick up order. That, and a new beach umbrella. Priorities.  Meg and Holly and I went to Tilton yesterday after Holly's last dance/movement class, and we didn't get home until 4:30. We shopped. I didn't get much, other than the BJs order (case of seltzer, too), but I did hit the clearance rack and sale at Old Navy. I found a few short sleeve shirts that are work-appropriate, and a few things for G that he could use. Essentials, really. All summer, I've been wearing snarky tee ...