August Bounty - Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

A bounty of flowers, both outdoors and indoors, for your viewing pleasure.

My zone 5b garden near Binghamton, New York has gotten more than its fair share of rain, plus thrived (while many of us humans suffered) through a couple of heat waves.

I have so many flowers, I can't even show you all of them, and are depending on some collages so you don't get tired of scrolling.

I got this hisbiscus at a plant sale this spring and it's rewarding me with beautiful blooms.

This glad, and several others, survived last winter and are putting on quite the show. 

I think this is the third season for this tall phlox.  I could look at previous GBBD's, which is the beauty of this monthly event - a sneaky way to write a garden journal, at least once a month.

This yellow rose was a potted plant and it is thriving, still in its pot, in my back yard.

Now for some collages:

A selection (not all of them!) of my impatiens.  The blight hasn't struck this year (yet), knock on wood.

For the first time every (I think) pansies in August.  In August!! The bottom right one was a "plant in the fall, bloom in the spring" variety and I was so happy with it.  Unfortunately, I bought it near Erie, Pennsylvania on a vacation and don't know where to get these types here.

Geraniums (again, a selection).

Daylilies!  I still have a number of varieties blooming.

My indoor plants - two moth orchids and an African violet.  The left hand orchid has been blooming since March or April.

Now, back to the single pictures.  Alaska nasturtiums.  This is the best nasturtium year I've ever had.

Cranesbill (hardy geranium).  Another plant new to me this year.

I forgot what this is, and again, too lazy to hunt it down in my blog.  It's in my shade garden.  My astlilbe and hostas, alas, are spent.

The blooming season is almost over.  The first signs of impending fall are here and I know the first frost could come as early as next month, if we are unfortunate.  Alas, the end of the growing season, and the beginning of the dreaded storms of winter.  One day, I will look at this post and think "did this season ever happen?"

But until then, we have our blooms.

Thank you, Carol of May Dreams Gardens, for hosting this party every 15th of the month.

What's blooming for you today?

Day Lilies #WordlessWednesday

The daylily season is approaching its end in my upstate New York yard, but I have some pictures from the last several days to share with you.

Tomorrow, why not visit my blog for Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, to see what is blooming on the 15th of the month.  Technically, I can't use these photos, so consider this a "sneak peak".

So many colors - here, yellow.

Red lilies after a rain.

And one of my favorites, a frilly peach yellow.

I grew up in a New York City housing project and now I have a front yard.  During te summer I have flowers a few feet from me.  I am so grateful.

Join Esha and Natasha each Wednesday for #WordlessWednesday.

Love Story

Erich Segal's "Love Story" was a best selling romance novel in 1970, a year after the iconic Woodstock music festival.  What follows is a real life love story.

A headline I read today reminded me of this post I first wrote in 2015.

From August 15 to August 17, 1969, a music festival was held in upstate New York that became one of the most famous music events of the 20th century.  This Thursday will mark its 50th anniversary.

This museum is on the site of the concert, which was not held in Woodstock, New York

Almost every week in the summer of 2015, I passed the exit for where Woodstock took place on the way to my long distance care giving duties in a suburb of New York City.

I remember seeing posters advertising Woodstock on New York City subways in 1969.  I had a summer job in Lower Manhattan, not far from the late World Trade Center, and commuted back and forth on the #5 subway from my home in the Bronx.  The concert sounded so good and I wanted to go but my father forbade me.  I was 16 and couldn't do much about it, as I blogged yesterday.

But a couple who did go to that concert had their picture taken and, on the 40th anniversary of that photo, were still together.

So, about that couple: Nick and Bobbi Ercoline went to Woodstock, and ended up on the cover of its record album. They fell in love, and married in 1971.  They have two grown children.  Bobbi is (or was) a school nurse in Pine Bush, New York, where they live.  Nick worked for the Orange County Department of Community Development until his retirement in 2014.

Now, fast forward from 2015 to today. What about Woodstock's 50th anniversary?  Is the love story still alive?

YES.

This couple is still together, married nearly 48 years, and now have four grandchildren.  But it's a sad anniversary for them because the man who drove them to Woodstock passed away last year.  That's how life is: happiness and sadness all mixed together.

What a love story!  May the Ercoline's experience many more years of happiness.

 I can feel joyful that Binghamton University (some of their buildings are blocks from where I work), incidentally, is doing some archeological work at the site, which is now a museum and arts center.   

The little things.  They make the world run.

By The Time We Got To #MusicMovesMe

It's Monday and it's time for #MusicMovesMe.  

Who are the #MusicMovesMe bloggers? We are bloggers who blog about music each Monday and if you have music to share with us, you are most welcome to join! (Music Posts Only on this music train, please!)   First, there is XmasDolly.  Her chief co-conductor is Cathy of Curious as a Cathy. Her other co-conductors are:   Stacy of Stacy Uncorked, and me.  Callie of JAmerican Spice blogs from time to time. 

 John from the Sound of One Hand Typing is our guest conductor for today.

<! His theme for today is "Your Pick".

We are coming up quickly on the 50th anniversary of Woodstock and I wanted to find some songs from that iconic festival to feature today because the official Woodstock 50 festival - well, it never happened.  It's a long, strange story (I won't say "trip") and it really isn't worth discussing.

Fun fact: Woodstock (1969) was not held in Woodstock, New York, but rather, on a farm near Bethel, New York, which is now the site of a museum and performance site called the Bethel Woods Center of the Arts.  Another fun fact:  I wanted to go (the concert was advertised on New York City buses and subways), but my father wouldn't let me go (I was, incidentally, 16 at the time.).  Maybe I should have snuck away and gotten there somehow but I'm secretly happy I didn't.

Later this week, there will three nights of concerts at Bethel Woods (as it is called now) featuring Santana with the Doobie Brothers (Santana was at the original Woodstock), Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band, and John Fogerty (formerly of Creedence Clearwater Revival, a band that also played at Woodstock).  Canned Heat, another Woodstock band, will be there in mid-September.

So, Jefferson Airplane and "Somebody to Love".

Richie Havens and "Freedom". When you listen to this, know that this song was made up on the spot.  Havens was the first act to play, and many of the festival goers were stuck in a 10 mile traffic jam trying to get to the festival site.  So he played and played, for some three hours, and finally ran out of songs he knew.  So he had to make this song up as he went.  Would you have ever guessed?

Joe Cocker and his cover of the Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends".

So, got time for one more?  We can't forget the closing act: Jimi Hendrix, and his encore:  "Hey Joe"., but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be available on You Tube.

So instead, The Who and "My Generation".

Have a great week - see you next Monday, same time, same place.

Is Love All We Need?

Our local newspaper had a supplement today celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Woodstock Concert - peace and love in the midst of a country at war thousands of miles away.  Our streets were full of protestors. Assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Kennedys were very much on our minds.  Much out there was anything but peace and love.

Now, 50 years later my mind turns to  Charlottesville, Virginia. Today I remember August 12, 2017, the day the white supremacists rallied under the guise of protesting the removal of a statue and one of them drove a car into a crowd and killed a 32 year old woman by the name of Heather Heyer.  Two police were also killed that day, and many people were injured.

Tomorrow, I, and many others, will remember Heather Heyer, the act that killed her and injured dozens of others trying to exercise their right of free speech, the rallies the night before meant to terrorize, and that day that we now remember with anguish.

The driver/killer is in jail, convicted of the crime.  A 32 year old woman's life was cut short and our country still struggles to make sense.  How could there possibly be fine people on both sides? We are afraid to face what our country is becoming.  We pause.  We feel that we've lost our way.

Here are some signs of that day.  It amazed me, in a May 1 visit to Charlottesville, that "Love" seemed to be one of those reactions.

Is love all we need, though?

This is near the scene of that tragic act on May 1 of this year.  A message to those who hate: "You just magnified her."

The street memorial. 

Think about it.  Are we stronger than this hate?

A young woman died here, killed by hate.  We struggle to maintain our democracy.

"We have met the enemy, and he is us" - Walt Kelly, who wrote it in a different context.  But never mind that. Will we have the strength for the days ahead? Slogans are good, but the right actions are better.

Sobering thoughts for a Sunday.

Patriot Blueberries

It's blueberry time again!

Actually, it's been blueberry season since mid July here in the Southern Tier of New York State, and we have possibly another week of picking left.  We try to pick twice if not three times - the berries last for a long time and they are soooo good.

Here are some pictures to whet your appetite.

This was our first picking, of a blueberry variety called Patriot.  It's the earliest one this U Pick It farm has.

They were so good!

What I did with these is use this recipe:  Brown Sugar Blueberry Quick Bread  from a website called A Big Green House.  It uses almond milk and plain Greek Yogurt. and is fairly Weight Watchers friendly (such as baked goods can be).  I figured it came out to 48 points for the entire loaf. I highly recommend the recipe.

Here's a picture of the finished bread.

Here are some more of my posts.

A mystery "white admiral" butterfly on blueberries.
Blueberry skies
A low calorie blueberry dump cake

Alas, the season will be almost over.

Balloon Watch #SkywatchFriday

Pictures taken Sunday morning at the Spiedie Fest and Balloon Rally at Otsiningo Park, Binghamton, New York.

Wouldn't you like to ride in one of these balloons? So far I haven't summoned the courage.  But I love watching the launches.

Watch them get ready and launch.

Watch them float upward.

Watch them disappear into clouds.

Watch them line up in the sky.

Watch them in shadow.

And if you are wondering what a spiedie is, it has nothing to do with balloons.  Rather it is marinated meat grilled and served on bread. 

They are the specialty food of our area - you will find them in few other places (except, perhaps, parts of North Carolina, where many Binghamton area people have settled.)

Here are some recipes.  

After you make some, why not join Yogi and the other bloggers who watch the sky at #SkywatchFriday?

Guarding the Balloons #ThursdayTreeLove

So calm.  So peaceful.

This past Friday, Saturday and Sunday, a popular annual festival called the Spiedie Fest and Balloon Rally was held in Otsiningo Park in Binghamton, New York.

Upwards of 60,000 people attended the festival this year - some years it's been 100,000 and if the weather on Saturday cooperated, we may have come close to that number.  But you would never know the size of crowds from this peaceful picture of hot air balloons soaring over a cluster of trees in this beautiful park.

I imagine the trees guard the hot air balloons, even as they provide welcome shade for many.

Join Parul at Happiness and Food and other bloggers each second and fourth Thursday for #ThursdayTreeLove.

(More Spiedie Fest pictures tomorrow).

Dog Statue #WordlessWednesday

Today, I want to show you a dog I met in my travels.

Near the entrance of Engine Company 102/103 on Meeting Street in Charleston, South Carolina, is a Dalmatian statue.  Or, at least it was there in 2015, the last time I visited Charleston.

In this picture on the Charleston city website, you can see the dog statue, barely.

 

I'm hoping it's still there.

Join Esha and Natasha each Wednesday for WordlessWednesday.

 

Colors from Paradise

My heart isn't in blogging today.

When I am sorrowed I turn to music or photography.

Adults can take art classes and learn how to draw.  I know so many baby boomers who have done so.  But for some of us, including me, it would be nice if we could buy a kit  Something, perhaps, like a modern, updated version of something dear to those of us who grew up in the 1950's and 1960's.

This is one of my favorite blog posts of all time.  I originally posted it in August of 2011 and it remains true today. Imagine - women are even forming coloring clubs (although, apparently, with freestyle coloring, not coloring kits).

Recently, I won a contest where the prize was a color by number paint kit for adults.  The reviews online were glowing.  I decided to order an "easy" kit. So what happened when I ordered the kit?  It's sat on my chair, though a stomach bug, shoulder issues that have me going to physical therapy (a cortisone shot helped a lot) and now, back issues.

So I need to open up that package! I promise I will, and blog about the results.  In the meantime, here is part of my post from 2011.

I loved Venus Paradise coloring sets, 

Yesterday evening, the sky reminded me of the sky of a color by number painting.  All those shades of blue and light purple.  And, with that, I will repeat portions of my original 2011 post.  Enjoy!

Do you remember color by number?  It was popular in the 1950's and early 1960's, when I was growing up.   You can still find color by number in paint today.  But what my family loved was the Venus Paradise sets.  They were color pencil color by numbers.  They had sets geared to all ages - from children old enough to color to adults.

The pencils were numbered, and you got the pencils you needed for your set with the set.  My favorite was #7, Peacock Blue. You can even find the list of colors online (except for two "mystery colors").  It would seem that some older artists miss them, too - they were high quality but as a child, I just took them for granted.

My Dad and I would color together.  I would have my child's set and he an adult set.  I remember one in particular, set with famous buildings.  I remember him in particular working on a Taj Mahal picture.  I looked at him color with great concentration.  He put wax paper on top of the part of the picture he had completed so it would not smear.

His picture had so much detail.  You could barely make out some of the numbers in the small portions.  But I would grow up one day and be able to do complicated pictures just like my Dad!

Except I lost interest, until my son was born.

I went to all the stores (when he was old enough to color) and no one had them.  In fact, I couldn't find any kind of color by number pencil art set, period.

Venus Paradise is out of business.  And, I couldn't even find a set on eBay (I did find a couple of auctions for the pencils.)

The good news is that there is a pencil color by number set out there now. Better yet, the people who own the business remember Venus Paradise.  So perhaps a new generation of children will remember pencil by number sets fondly.

In writing this post, I find my spouse remembers the sets too.  He thinks when he retires, it might be fun to buy one.  But sadly, this is something I'm not sure will ever return to favor for the general population.

So....do you remember Venus Paradise?

Or, would you rather find colors from paradise in paint?

Who Let The Dogs Sing? #MusicMovesMe

It's Monday, the first Monday of this month.  This means #MusicMovesMe, and it means a new guest conductor.
 
Who are the #MusicMovesMe bloggers? We are bloggers who blog about music each Monday and if you have music to share with us, you are most welcome to join! (Music Posts Only on this music train, please!)   First, there is XmasDolly.  Her chief co-conductor is Cathy of Curious as a Cathy. Her other co-conductors are:   Stacy of Stacy Uncorked, and me.  Callie of JAmerican Spice blogs from time to time. 

Welcome, John from the Sound of One Hand Typing.

His theme for today ‘Songs about dogs (or any pets) in honor of the end of the Dog Days of summer‘
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This is going to be fun!  I'm going to take some liberties with the theme, though.

I grew up in public housing in New York City, and one of the things they didn't permit there (there was a pretty long list) were cats and dogs.  So my first pets were goldfish.  That didn't go well.  Meanwhile, an aunt had a canary (and two cats!) and I fell in love.   With the bird. Two canaries later, I realized my true love was parakeets.  I've been between pets for perhaps 10 years, though.  Maybe one day.

 I have never owned a dog or cat in my entire life.

I will go ahead and feature some songs about various types of pets, not just dogs.

This song was so popular a few years back:  The Baha Men and "Who Left the Dogs Out?"

My spouse made sure I included "Jingle Bells" as done by The Barking Dogs...

In honor of my spouse, who loves Led Zepplin -  Black Dog.

A song from my childhood - in fact, my Mom had this on a 78 rpm record.  Patti Page and "How Much is That Doggie in the Window?"

Another song of my childhood - The Tokens and "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". (Lions are cats, right?)

Now, it's time for birds: another song from my childhood - Rockin' Robin by Bobby Day (I hope everyone can play this video.)

I'll end with a group I really enjoy - They Might Be Giants and Birdhouse in Your Soul.  This is such a fun video and song.  They Might Be Giants also do a lot of children's songs.

So, how about it?  Music heals, and we need so much healing right now.

See you next week, same time (almost), same place.

Flowers for a Tragedy

I went to a balloon launching this morning and when I came back home, I heard about the mass shooting in Dayton Ohio.  So, in less than 24 hours, we have 29 dead in two shootings, one in El Paso: people in a Wal-Mart committing the crime of back to school shopping for their children and one in Dayton, Ohio: people enjoying themselves on a Saturday night.

In many Eastern cultures, white is the color of mourning. In many cultures it is also the color of purity.

I share some white flowers with you today to honor the 29 (as of the time I blog this) dead.

Rose of Sharon

Same bush from another angle.

Queen Anne's Lace

A Japanese Anemone from my garden.  They bloom in the fall.

Impatiens, looking like miniature roses.

The statistics are staggering.

That we even keep these statistics, like some kind of sporting event, saddens me, even as I link to one list.

Hundreds of active shooter situations this year- I believe I've heard the number 249 as of yesterday.

Thoughts, flowers, and prayers aren't going to help. We know that. I think our Creator is saying "My children, you caused this problem.  It's up to you to solve it.  I'm waiting."
The Onion, a satirical newspaper, publishes this article every once in a while.  How sickening that they'll need to publish it yet again.  But, in a way, it says it all.

I wish I could have gotten on one of those balloons this morning and just drifted away.

Up Up and Away But We Can't Escape

Still another active shooter situation, this time in El Paso, Texas.  The heartbreak of our country continued.

One wishes you could just go up, up in a way in a beautiful balloon, and escape this national nightmare.  Of course, it's not possible.

In Binghamton, New York, it is time for the 35th Spiedie Fest and Balloon Rally.

For today, I am bringing back my guest photographer to show you a series of balloon pictures taken a few miles from Binghamton the other day, before the rally began, near a village called Port Crane.

She has a much better camera than I do (mine is an iPhone and it has its limitations) and was even able to get this close up.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get some balloon launch pictures later today or tomorrow.

But for now, still another community goes into mourning.

And, in one more slightly unbelievable twist, when I went on NBC news online to get the latest report on El Paso, I was presented with a video that started with a commercial for Cologuard (a home noninvasive test for colon cancer.) 

I'll agree with one thing.  Gun violence is a cancer that we can't seem to find the treatment for.

Post Precipitation Purple #SkywatchFriday

One of several storms that came through our part of New York State earlier this week, it was drizzling (and thundering!) when the sun set, and the color show began.   I couldn't resist going out there.

I got these photos.

The radar didn't show anything that close (my spouse has an app which zooms right in on our house) but I wouldn't recommend doing this to my readers.

I didn't dare try to get a reflection shot in the middle of the road, though, even if it was a quiet residential neighborhood.

What a glow.

Once again, I meet up with Yogi and the bloggers who watch the sky each Friday at #SkywatchFriday.

Adventures of the Heart

You could say I'm putting heart into this post.

A little over a month ago, my spouse of 45 years was released from the hospital after a two night stay.  The diagnosis:  aFib, short for Atrial Fibrillation. It's an irregular heartbeat that can lead to some serious complications, including stroke.

The drama started on a Monday morning, when spouse woke up not feeling well.  His heart was acting strangely.  It had happened a couple of times in the past weeks (not that he told me) but it resolved when he started to move around.  This time, it didn't.

My spouse had the good sense to call 911 (our emergency phone number in the United States) rather than try to drive himself to the hospital.The paramedics were able to start treatment right inside our house (my spouse thought he was having a heart attack - thankfully, not the case.)

Calling 911 resulted in two nights of hospitalization while the doctors managed to get his heart back into rhythm and establish him on a new medication.  The condition requires new medications (including a blood thinner) and some lifestyle changes. There is some enlargement of the upper chamber of his heart, meaning there has already been some damage.

In a way, it is not a surprise. There is some family history of aFib.

The good news is - he knows now, and there are treatments.  We were told that people can live with this condition for many years.

I am thankful to my co workers, especially the one who helped me get spouse back home after he was released, and stuck with me during a glitch getting one of his prescriptions filled (it turned out well).

So, now we go from here.  The bills are coming in.  He had several small episodes right after leaving the hospital but none in the last three or so weeks.

The other good news: at his post hospitalization checkup, his heart sounded good.  His cardiologist ran tests this past week and all was normal.

This is only the beginning of the realization that our lives are not forever.  We were fortunate enough to reach our 60's in good health.  Not everyone does.

Now it's going to be our turn, knowing for sure that we are not mortal.

But it could be worse - much worse.  That's not a fib.

The story will continue.

Community Garden Flowers #WordlessWednesday

The community garden plot my spouse has in Otsiningo Park in Binghamton New York grows more than veggies.  We grow zinnias and sunflowers, too.

For some reason, the zinnias aren't doing that great this year but here's a selection of what was in bloom on Sunday.

Red.

White.

A bonus sunflower.  An animal nibbled on our sunflowers and they are late.  A couple are finally blooming.

We are back to the heat now after a temporary cooling down.  Perhaps it just hasn't been hot enough for much of this year for these heat lovers to thrive.

Gardens aren't just about veggies.

Sending love and support to Esha, the co-host of #WordlessWednesday.  Her Mom was diagnosed with cancer earlier this week and is having surgery.  Esha introduced me to this and another favorite weekly blogging event, SkywatchFriday.  

Joining up with Esha and Natasha at #WordlessWednesday.