mid November thoughts

My Yiayia’s sister Thea Elaine would have been 109 (I think that is her number) on Sunday, the day after my birthday. She lived the longest of anyone whom those of us still living have met in our Greek family. She got to be over 92 by a couple of months.

There were rumors of family members in Greece making it to 100 or so. Our Papooie would regale me with stories of the longevity of his clan in Greece.

He also told me about the time he was "dead"!

Apparently he was laid out and his body all washed and dressed (albeit prematurely) by the village woman. His family of Mildreds and Katherines and Louises and Nicks (remember they used those same names over and over for centuries) were in deep mourning when he “came to", all sobbing and whaling loudly. He loved telling me this story of how he had been thought dead and how crazily everyone reacted to his coming awake. His take on it was that he had gone into a deep coma after hitting something when in the sea swimming. So he almost drowned, and maybe that was from his first receiving a concussion. He was not sure of the order.

He was swimming and things just went blank for him and next he knew he was on a slab at the village where the village ladies prepared the dead for the funeral service and burial. They did not embalm, fortunately. He said that he was about sixteen years old at the time.
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He apparently at the time had no near death experience and he never once mentioned Jesus or God in the telling of these stories, nor were there dark tunnels or such, which is interesting to me. I seriously doubt that he was very religious when I recall this story and how he told it.

What he did stress to me with a smile and his crinkly eyes though was that if he had died, then I would not be born.!That really make me think! Getting to be born seemed pretty special and a result of everything going just right. I started to grapple with all this at my Grandfather's knee.

As I turn 65 it is a real pleasures is having Aunt Mary, his youngest daughter, to chat with a bit each day. She has lots of stories for me of when I was very little. Not so many folks have those memories these days. I love the stories about my hiding under tables to avoid Yiaya's watchful eye. She loves to tell me this one and I love to hear her tell me. Family stories are just family stories, but I think they have great importance to us.

(pictured to the right is Aunt Louise, Yiaya and Papooie's 2nd daughter and my Godmother - taken a couple of years before she passed at 87+ and to the left is a photo of my Aunt Mary, Papooie's youngest daughter of his eight children. She is holding Aunt Louise's great-grand-daughter, Lilli)

Fisher, our new neighbor! Run, Porcupine, run!

Our orchard as many of you may recall has suffered for several years now at the claws of Porcupine who climb our fruit trees, the cherry and plumb being favored and eat the tender shoots, leaves and tear away and discard the branches.Disassembling a fruit tree doesn't take many days and metal wrapped around trunks and fencing only usually helps. Sometimes Mr. Porcupine gets through the barriers. A stripped tree cannot photosynthesize properly and some of our trees have died. Numerous have become misshapen.

Something very nice happened in our neighborhood today. We have a Fisher! The fisher is the primary predator of the porcupine. I could not be happier. Kill and eat, Mr. Fisher. Smack those lips. We love our fruit trees:)

We will try to catch some mice - will this result in a Pool of Tears?

I saw a little furry brown fellow scurry behind a big piece of mahogany furniture in the Library. He turned around and looked at me. He was really very cute but he turned and high tailed it to the opposite wall and the security behind the heating pipes just under the bookcases. He was gone in a flash actually. But he is instilled in my mind.

I posted my Mouse and his arrival on my Face book page. People made comments trying to be helpful:
Lee Saltzsieder said:
"Well fed kitty's tend to lackadaisical hunters. Either sharply reduce the kitty kibble or buy a couple of traps. The old fashioned snap kind work best. Just a tiny dab of peanut butter in the bait hole works wonders. "
Rachael Snedden:
"Want me to send Kobe? He's got two kills & scared a rat right out of the house! Danny want everyone to just be friends. But Kobe's got killa' instincts!" (*These are her Labs - my previous Blog as to their lineage)
Beth Vogel:
I used to have a big fat cat that would sit on the sofa and watch me chase the mouse around......I'd offer to rent out Sophie to you but now that her thyroid problem is under control and she isn't hungry all the time, not sure she would still be a willing mouser..... :)

Yes, we had tried Quincy the big fat resident cat and she just has paid no attention to the concept of mousies at all, so Clark bought traps.

This morning we baited the those standard issue mouse traps from the store with peanut butter and are waiting.

But like Alice in Wonderland, after catching them will we reside in a pool of tears?

So Innocent, but not Forever. Thoughts on the Doggies' Little Sister

This is my newest friend on Earth. Her name is Concordia Elizabeth Howland Snedden. She is a Pisces and that must make her almost seven months old now.

Already I feel love for her (I swear this) but I have never met her in person yet in this life time, as she lives near Ithaca, New York, while I am in Maine. I have adored her Mom and Dad now for a few years. I have gazed at many photos of her, and I did hear background babbles as I chatted with her mom the other day.

I know how much she was desired. I watched her parents give love and "parent" two Chocolate Labs for several years before her arrival. Now these strong mischievous Lab boys are her older brothers, Dani and Kobe. She may believe them to be her siblings at this point in her early innocence. I would guess that if she attempts to figure out relationships in her world of Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and so on, she will see the dogs boys as other kids of her Parents. And this is true, but only figuratively, of course.

The pups may most likely think of her as a late arriving litter mate. The boys never really asked for a little sister, but, hey, one day there she was! I am told that they are respectful of Concordia and have discovered quickly that their parents' attention on the new little one has given them more opportunity to be more free. Many a night I hear they have had to be rounded up after figuring out how to leave their Momma who is busy with with Concordia and run out into the night to frolic. Boys will be boys. "Brothers", thinks Concordia, "don't always behave!"

At what point will her innocence give way and she figure out the truth?

When will Concordia Snedden figure out that Kobe and Dani are the family dogs? When will she realize that she is not just their little adored sister but indeed their Mistress/Master?

And along with that revelation and the fact that she is as smart as that proverbial tack, there will be more revelations to her.

She will learn that wood stoves although giving warmth are also very hot and can burn. She will find out that stairs are a bit dangerous and tricky although very accommodating to get from one floor to another . She will discover that roses smell nice and are beautiful but that rose bushes have prickly thorns. She will learn so very much and so very soon now.

It hardly seems fair that such unblemished innocence cannot go on forever in the completely innocent state we clearly see in this beautiful baby candid photograph. It is a good thing that there are the pictures though!

Welcome to the World, Sweet Concordia! I know that you will have some fine adventures and wonderful times -- and from the looks of you now, that you will be able to "call up" that "innocence" with a seconds notice whenever needed!

Should you have 23 - 24 hours to devote to a recipe, may I suggest . . . yes, seriously!

Extra-Tangy Sourdough Bread
This bread, with its mellow tang, is perfect for those who like their sourdough bread noticeably sour, but not mouth-puckeringly so. For extra-sour flavor, add 1/4 teaspoon sour salt (citric acid).

Ingredients View by: Volume Weight
1 cup "fed" sourdough starter
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
5 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon to 5/8 teaspoon salt
8 ounces "fed" sourdough starter from King Arthur dirctly or a friend (mine came from Poet friend Darla)
12 ounces lukewarm water
21 1/4 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/2 ounce sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon to 5/8 teaspoon sour salt or salt (citric acid), optional, for extra-sour bread
Directions
1) Combine the starter, water, and 3 cups of the flour. Beat vigorously.
2) Cover, and let rest at room temperature for 4 hours. Refrigerate overnight, for about 12 hours.
3) Add the remaining ingredients, kneading to form a smooth dough.
4) Allow the dough to rise in a covered bowl until it's relaxed, smoothed out, and risen a bit. Depending on the vigor of your starter, it may become REALLY puffy, as pictured; or it may just rise a bit.
5) Gently divide the dough in half.
6) Gently shape the dough into two oval loaves, and place them on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 2 to 4 hours. Don't worry if the loaves spread more than they rise; they'll pick up once they hit the oven's heat. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.
7) Spray the loaves with lukewarm water.
8) Make two fairly deep horizontal slashes in each; a serrated bread knife, wielded firmly, works well here.
9) Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, until it's a very deep golden brown. Remove it form the oven, and cool on a rack.

This recipe needs your attention for over a 23 to 24 hour period, so you know, but it is beyond delicious with its hard European peasant bread crust from any old ordinary oven!

Gravitas

A blog, started with frivolity and the lightest of hearts a couple of months ago, and suddenly now there is "gravitas" here as I sit in front of my lap top.

Yes, last night I could "Fiddle De Dee" it, but tonight is different. Tonight (for the first time) I have an audience. I actually have two followers! Well maybe it is not really a big a deal, but somehow it all feels "different". The words I type may be read! This is no longer for my own amusement.

If the tree falls in my forest now someone may hear it. I feel a bit self conscious. It sort of feels like company is coming. Should I get out the linens, better china and the sterling?

Sour Dough Starter Under the Teapots*

Keep the sour dough starter fresh and going and you can have bread for life. (In addition, one only needs some flour, salt, maybe a bit of sugar and water - and these are the ingredients plus lots of patience and some time). The starter I am using was started a couple of hundred year ago according to Flour Manufacturer, King Arthur.

Sour dough bread from scratch without a quick rising yeast takes time. There is an over night required after you mix the ingredients and then a five hour resting period and then a two to three hour rising after shaping the bread before baking. And, oh, yes, the starter needs renewal and mixing each week, whether you make bread or not.

But the outcomes are worth the time.

Give us any day our daily bread and it is a good day.

Even better I suppose the starter came from a poetess friend who had acquired some sour dough bread starter from King Arthur Flour, and it is seemingly a fine quality starter, as is my sweet friend. I am a lucky woman to know fine folks and beautiful experiences. I know this to be so.

And so far we have had several breads, rolls and tonight a pizza flat bread. The variety of possibilities seems endless.

Everything in life deserves a good start . .

*I'll blog on this some other day, but from my kitchen ceiling hang some 30 or so tea pots, each from a dear friend. . .

Crock Pots

I have had them for years, but necessity is the Mother. I need to not walk the stairs to the kitchen because it can be a constant up and down and up and down. (Suffering some Spinal Muscular Atrophy attack at present and hoping it goes to remission -- trouble walking on top of peripheral neuropathy.) So I had a Butler's Pantry installed in one end of the big dining room, Maine floor of course. Now with fridge, sink, dishwasher and some crock pots and electric skillet and and microwave and a toaster oven I no longer have to trudge those stairs to the downstairs kitchen. Tenants have the main floor kitchen, but now I can function and cook on the first floor, too. Today one crock pot did baking potatoes and the other one did a small pork roast and turnips, onions and some other veggies. What can I say? Guess that I HAVE IT MADE IN THE SHADE!

Sometimes I imagine Alice B. Toklas with me when I am cooking and here is a thumbnail photo of her.

To Blog or Not Blog . . .

Why would I need to blog? I must think that I have something to say. Perhaps, and more to the point, there must be something that I need to say, and I think that by blogging I'll eventually figure out what that is. Can we learn to blog by just doing it? If we don't have so much to say, will we have stuff to say by just saying it. Are we the tree the falls in our own forest that we can only hear if we are present. OK. Let's boogie, er I mean blog.

Keeping in Touch with my Aunt Mary

Every day now I have been calling my Aunt Mary just to say hello and make sure that everything is OK in her part of the woods. Her part of the woods being about 1400 miles from my part of the woods.

Well all day long today I tried to call her, but there was no answer. I became worried after a few hours of this futile calling. My aunt is not so steady on her feet these days at nearly 86 years. She gets confused rather regularly and is quite forgetful. The scary and most amazing thing is that she still drives her car. All this about her makes me very nervous and concerned for her welfare and the welfare of others in her driving path.

So, after not being able to reach her all day I called my cousin Mike in Chicago who in turn called our cousin Jennifer in Carmel, Indiana. Mike had Jennifer go check on Aunt Mary in Indianapolis. We were all far away and rather scared and helpless about what Jennifer might find at our aunt's apartment or, maybe worse yet, that our aunt would not be there at all, with her car gone. Maybe she would be off lost somewhere or an accident victim, unidentified and alone.

Jennifer got dressed (it was getting late) and drove over to my aunt's who had just come home from my sister's house. She never just goes to my sister's house ever. This was certainly not typical. She had a us very worried. Like with a teen anger out late, we worried. We needed to know where she was as it was nearly ten PM.

Yet we were all happy that she was safe and had been having a good time, but she needed to have told us where she was going and that she would be out later than usual. It seems little to ask of her, but then she is an adult. I would certainly resent her checking up on my whereabouts at ten PM! But perhaps there is an age when an adult slips backwards and is a kid again I suppose.

So, here is my question: when did I become my Aunt Mary's parent? I guess it was sometime between August and October.

So I put a post on FB quoting Paris Hilton. I did not mean it kindly. A friend innocently makes a "so true" comment about it. So do I comment and "set her straight" or just ignore it? I am opting for ignoring her comment. Face book reveals a lot about the people we know.

The human beings who live in the United States deserve to have Health Care. Coverage should be free and a right like public schools and affordable mail service. The Socialism arguments are so frinking bogus. How did we as a people get so "dumbed down" that we have accepted the take-over by Pharmaceutical companies and HM Os. Norway, England, Canada and France all live longer, loose less infants and have free health care where you choose your doctor and all that reasonably can be done to keep people well and healthy is done. These countries all have forms of the single payer system, funded by tax dollars, costing citizens way less than any health insurance. What has happened here? Why are we so on the wrong side of the health care argument as a nation? I do not understand.

September 2nd., 2009

Caeli and Matt come to visit in Castine tomorrow and I am definitely excited. My Grand Pup, Remy will stay with his Great Aunt and Great Uncle in Arlington, VA.. We have lots of wonderful things planned to do together. Matt has never visited here before, so let's see what he thinks.

Goodnight Moon. Goodnight August. See you in September.

The Ultimate Day of August in 2009

The students started back to school today at MMA and Adams School in Castine. How can that be? Labor Day is still a week from now. It seems strange to me. Our schools when growing up waited properly until after Labor Day and we became reasonably well educated. I doubt that school extending beyond Memorial Day and starting before Labor Day really does much to educate. Maybe more camps and free time (supervised free time if needed) where children can dream? What about lying on the grass and allowing the crisper air of oncoming autumn tease you into a fantasy from and of pure imagination. I have a big belief in unencumbered time, especially in late August, the ultimate last month of Summer.

An Alexander in very late August

On the penultimate day of this August an Alexander appeared. I was awaiting his decision since early in August, but he and I had not anticipated one another actually until today. So just exactly how do we anticipate those whom we have never met? That must involve some projecting?

Anyway now there are four tenant students, three seniors and one sophomore approaching our home for the Winter/Spring 2009-2010 term at MMA - and I feel more complete!

Originally it seemed I might want to rent only three bedrooms, but I kept going back and fourth. Did I want the extra rent money more or the additional room upstairs more? The extra income seemed like the right path, but an appropriate tenant was not appearing until today, and Alexander is the choice. We have two young men and two young women and that works pretty well. There. Complete.

We now have no rooms available, and that is something new and different from yesterday in late August. Maybe a sub-theme of August was "getting the place rented"?

Full houses work for me. Four Kings, Four Queens if you count the cat and the dog, girl boy, girl boy. Actually August brings four full houses - and no need for folding, laundry that is, as late August means no more Summer People and linens to fold. I like this. The house and I are smiling.

There Are No Accidents

That was no accidental blog because there are no accidents as they say. But then I suspect that there are accidental Augusts.

Accidental Blogging

August is almost over. In my six decades I cannot recall a more uneventful August actually. What was August all about? Was there a theme? What did I do? The days came, and the days went and it seemed all I really was doing was trying to keep Aki Dog quiet so the Summer people who rent from us could have a peaceful time in our home and enjoy their vacations. I read some and watched a lot of Netflix and held the dog's big furry paw. I called my elderly aunt, Mary Orr, every day just to say hello. I learned that my neurological issues most likely have a genetic component on Chromosome V. It remains to be proven, but I most likely am showing symptoms of Spinal Muscular Atrophy Stage IV . It appears to run in the family. The babies in the family do not do well with it, so maybe in August in a conversation with my Cousin Artemis I have an explanation for my newborn baby's early death that was a puzzlement to the doctors back in 1980. This is because they didn't start to understand the disease until the mid 1980s. Interesting stuff. So maybe August was about understanding a family disease. Maybe August was about my Inner Life. Maybe August is winding down and I won't really miss it?