Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday evening and it’s windy as all get out. No idea where that expression came from. Cold and windy out, I’m glad it was only chicken burgers I was cooking on the grill for supper. Carol suggested the other day that grilling ends soon as before long it will be dark at supper time. Between that and the cold, grilling may need to stop for a while. I may move the grill closer to the door and sheltered, we’ll see.

We spent a couple hours last Sunday refolding and relocating all the quilts Carol showed you earlier this week that had been displayed on Paris Hill. It was different and it is over, enough said.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday evening. Dang it was cold at times today especially with the stiff breeze that blew most of the day. It made it feel like fall as I raked and hauled my 4 loads of mostly pine needles off the beach. That brings the yearly total to 15 loads. I need a little more than 100 more loads to match last season. I expect the oak leaves to begin falling in great numbers soon, then the leaves will pile up fast. I did not get them all today, I only managed to get about the middle half done. Ran out of day, good excuse anyway, I’ll stick with it.

Helpers

Carol here ~

Vanessa and Jakob came over this past Friday to help with the raking of the beach.  

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday, nice day today. Wind not too bad and the sun was out so not too cold. I worked on the driveway for a while. I am putting a skim coat of finer gravel over most of the driveway now trying to smooth it up a little. I kinda wish I had counted how many times I bounced this on the ground today. 

Ride A-Bout

Carol here ~ 

Everyone is saying that this years' foliage was the best they've seen in a long time so we decided to go for a bit of a ride a-bout on Monday to see for ourselves.  I would have liked to have made the Rangeley loop but my back would not have been happy with that.  So we ended up heading up to Bethel, then Newry and Upton making a stop at Screw Auger Falls.  We then headed down to Andover, Rumford Point and back home.  And yes, the foliage is gorgeous.  I didn't really take any pictures because you just can't get the color from a phone camera.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan still here ~

Thursday evening. Still here because the Nor’easter was a no show around here. Not complaining, just curious, will this be the norm for this winter, scream and holler about the upcoming disaster of a storm coming,,,,, that never shows up? I did not need extra rocks in my pocket, my regular three were enough. Time will tell if we get more than talk this winter. Matters little to me either way, if nothing comes I have nothing to relocate.

This and That

Carol here ~ 

Not much happening here so will just share some randomness.

We had a visit from grand Evan and also grand Parker and his girl Avery came for dinner Sunday but other than that it's been pretty quiet.  OK by me.

Had a visit from this guy the other morning...

guess he was looking for some breakfast.

Bindings

Carol here ~

How can it be the last week of August?  Summer sure has flown by.  I'm not complaining, September and October are my favorite months.  I've even caught a glimpse of a red leaf here and there so fall is coming!

I finished the bindings on two quilts ~ 2025 35 & 36.  Here they are....

2025-35

The quilting pattern shows up well on this one, it is a digitized pattern called MARMALADE.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday again. The summer is rapidly leaving us. I have absolutely no idea where the year is going. It seems like it is in a hell of a hurry to get over with and move on to next year. Maybe next year will make more sense.

The planters are dwindling down and are about ready to be cut down and made ready for something for fall. Fall, that is a crazy thought. It seems like I just took off the blower from last winter. The seasons do their own thing without our input. That may change before too much longer, hopefully I’ll be gone before that can happen, although our time change ritual may change soon. I don’t know how I will like that either. I guess we can always find something to complain about.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday again. Nice day today, nice in so far that the wind wasn’t howling and it wasn’t pouring. No sun but it was warm, low 50s, I’ll take it. Still, even though the branches I picked up today were wet, it is very dry in the woods. 

There is usually an intermittent stream that runs between Mud Pond and Green Pond. Not this year. Dry as a bone, it makes it very quiet. Normally as soon as the ice is out and it warms a little you hear the wood frogs quacking like they do and shortly thereafter the peepers join in. So far this year I have heard nothing. I guess time will tell if they will just be a little later.

I saw this guy under the feeder the other night munching out on the seed on the ground.

 I haven’t seen the opossum again since the one time this spring. I have no real issue with either one. Checking the beach in the mornings to see if there are snapping turtle tracks from their movement into Green pond. I saw two last year.

Quilt Show

Carol here ~ 

We spent a couple of days last week at AQS New England in Hartford, CT viewing the 700 quilts.  Contestants came from 44 states and 13 countries.

Spring?

Carol here ~

Happy last day of March!  Yesterday was beautiful but I think that's all we're getting for warm temps for a while.  Sheesh, it seems like it's taking forever to get consistent spring temps.

The birds were enjoying yesterday's warmer temps as I was surrounded by birdsong when I went for my walk on the ridge.  I stopped to listen to them and could see them flitting about in the trees.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday evening, I think I need to finally admit winter is coming. That thought was driven home quite solidly with each snowflake that fell down my neck.

I think the bulk of the leaves is behind me for 2025 though. The total tractor bucket load count was 89. I believe that is quite a bit lower than last year. The wheelbarrow may be the removal method for any more. That is OK by me. We’ll see.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

In the studio where I can hear the wind but do not need to feel its wrath. Yesterday was nice, the day before not so nice and today was much like that was. This is what I saw when I went to investigate the sound Carol heard on the roof. She said it sounded like ripping or dragging on the roof. 

 

Dan's Ramblings: Show Quilts Part 4

Dan here ~

Thursday again. I heard an interesting thought on that whole time moving faster as we get older thing. His idea is that as a child we encounter a wide variety of new experiences often multiple times a day. Hence the day is new and refreshing. As we age we get into routines and usually very little new happens in our lives. I know this makes sense to me as pretty much every day is about the same as the day before. Except for meals. I try to have a few days between the different meal ideas. Those ideas are very different than my quilting ideas, there is a lot of repetition. Maybe I need to take up skydiving or something for a new and exciting thing to do. I have a good idea that my immediate new experience will be how well this years snow removal goes.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

The wind finally calmed down, I suppose I could have a fire but I’ve been cold all day. The weather sure did change fast. I takes me a while to get accustomed to the cold and I ain’t there yet. I had almost as many clothes on as in late November as I relocated more of my woodpile and removed leaves and pine needles from the beach.

I do admit, the first thing I do this time of year when I get up I go to see how covered the beach and shore is with leaves. A couple days ago I awoke to this. 

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Thursday evening by the fire. Pretty evening albeit a bit chilly. 

I suppose that is to be expected this time of year. That doesn’t mean I have to like it. The way the wind was blowing the other day I could have sworn that it was raining maple leaves. The pond was covered with them as well and you know where they were heading. The tractor bucket total for leaf removal this year so far, is only at two. I hauled a few wheelbarrows into the woods down here because I knew they contained only leaves and pine needles with very little sand.

A Birthday

Carol here ~ 

Thanks to all of you that sent me birthday wishes for my birthday yesterday.  I don't pay any attention to the number but I am grateful I am still here and able to be fairly active most of the time.

Erin, Vanessa, Kailey and Jakob came over, Evan was already here as he had worked the previous night.  I didn't know they were coming over until just a few hours before they showed up.  

Vanessa, Me, Erin

Sunshine!

Carol here ~

Finally we have sunshine and warmth!

Sister Terri had grands Annie and Alex and neighbor Jeff had a gang in on Sunday.  The kids had a ball playing on the beach and swimming.  Too cold for me but they didn't seem to mind.

Dan and I have gotten a couple kayak rides in.  The black flies are relentless ~ pesky wee buggars.

Dan's Ramblings

Dan here ~

Been nice and at least partly sunny the last couple days. I like it much better than all the rain we had in the recent past. The heavy rains reminded me of a project that has been on the back burner for quite a while. 

When it rains, the water from the roof gutter on one side of the house leaves a track from the rip-rap down to the pond. I have not liked this since it began about three years after the project of the retaining wall etc. was done. 

I proceeded to remove the rocks and try and find the end as left by the landscaper. I finally found it way back at the edge of the dirt before the rip-rap even started.