Salmon, fog and extremely good company....

Went to Lubec today - driving in fog the whole way - to interview two amazing photographers - a husband and wife - who have collaborated on a new book about Venice. They live on Cobscook Bay in a beautiful house with weathered shingles and amazing gardens all around - not manicured city gardens. Winding paths, little benches, a bowl for water, birdhouses. Nearby was a lovely guest house for when visitors come. Two cats waited by the door: one the color of vanilla ice cream and the other a soft grey with lime green eyes. We had pate and wafer thin slices of smoked salmon and goat cheese and hearty bread and homemade potato salad and good red wine followed by lemon-soaked pound cake and tea.

They were beyond charming. His work has been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and hers hangs in museums.
So, as we lingered at the lunch table, we talked about Venice and newspapers and John Glenn and raising sons and what a joy granddaughters are....I toured their home so they could show off their photographs of a church tent revival and wardens tagging a hibernating bear and a beached whale on a foggy beach and I almost swooned with envy because they have a real, honest to goddess DIVING SUIT hanging over their bed.

They call him Richard.

And then we began talking about their book and Venice.
What does that have to do with Maine? I asked them.
Everything, they said. Look out the window. The beauty, the fog, the history. It's all the same, they said .... well, I was thinking, not quite.
Look at today's picture, a picture I made nearby the photographer's beautiful coastal home.
What you see here is aa typical Down East yard: fog shrouded garage, lobster pots everywhere and a boat. A very large boat. On dry land.
No canals. No men in little striped shirts singing gondola songs wearing tiny little hats.
Not here, no - here we have hearty fishers in high rubber boots with yellow waterproof overalls and flannel shirts. With deeply tanned and lined faces and hair bleached blonde by the sun and salt of the sea. With arms the size of logs and deep laughs and boats in their front yard and colored ropes coiled by the back steps and piles and piles of brightly painted buoys by the driveway.

And this is the mystery for me, what I can't figure out in the month that I've been here: Why are all the boats in the front yards and not in the water?

It was skunk'n time last night!

Right at dusk I let Emma-the-dog-that-hates-water outside and expected her to hover right around the back door - she usually does. Instead she hot footed it around the corner of the house. I followed, calling her, when she suddenly came streaking back to me at 121 miles per hour, every hair on her back standing up straight.

I picked her up and that was when it hit me:
SKUNK !!!!!

TWO baths later and cream rinse for her, a full load of laundry for me (since I picked her up and it was all over me - a fact politely pointed out to me by my kids next door who sent me packing when they got a whiff), and a shower and shampoo in tomato juice for me, and I think we smelled a lot better. Of course, the scent of skunk hung so heavy in the air that I couldn't tell if it was me or the atmosphere. The "incident" happened just outside my bedroom window (of course) so the smell even woke me up several times in the night.

The perfume is still so heavy in the air this morning that I have scented candles burning everywhere. So now my house smells like: cider vanilla, juice of orange, creamsicle, clean linen, and eau de skunk.

Today I'm teaching Emma to use the potty.

wild blueberries - amazing!

I went to the wild blueberry field day today at Blueberry Hill, the University of Maine research center in Jonesboro, and among many other things scored some fabulous blueberry recipes. I was promised that this one was one of the best (I won't get to make it until Sunday) so I'm sharing it with you:

Chicken Sate with Wild Blueberry Peanut Butter Sauce

Sauce:
3 T. grated fresh ginger
1 shallot or 1/2 cup onion, finely diced
1 t. olive oil
6 oz. water
3 T. crunchy peanut butter
1 1/2 cups frozen wild blueberries
1 t. cornstarch
1/2 t. salt

Heat oil and briefly saute ginger and shallot. Add water and peanut butter over medium heat and whisk together. Add frozen berries. Mix small amount of water in the cornstarch and add to berry/nut sauce. Bring to a boil and then simmer for three minutes.

Sates:
2 double chicken breasts
1 T. olive oil
salt and pepper
wooden skewers

Cut the chicken breasts filets lengthwise into thin strips. Flavor with salt and pepper. Put the strips in an accordion manner onto a lightly oiled skewer. Heat oil in deep fry pan and cook the skewers on each side for three minutes or until done.

Serve with the blueberry sauce. Serves four.

More recipes can be found at www.wildblueberries.com

ENJOY! and if you try it, let me know how it was!

Fairpoint finally found me....sort of.

The man with the truck and the know-how arrived this afternoon. Took him 10 minutes and he had my two phone lines hooked up. But - and I love how half-assed this is - no Internet. He has to put in an order.

PUT IN AN ORDER ?!$%????!#&***@???????????

We put in an order six weeks ago............................................still have to pirate the signal from next door.

4:22 p.m. Fairpoint is lost. Their headquarters just called for directions.

This is the funny part: I told them the end of Water Street. Instead, they wanted the phone number of someone on my street. Do you suppose that helped?

4:02 p.m. No Fairpoint in sight.

2:28 p.m. Still no Fairpoint.

1:37 p.m. No Fairpoint yet.

Today I wait for Fairpoint...

It has been SIX weeks since the work order was first put in for a land line and Internet service here in my office at Sweet Pea Cabin. It is now 11:19 a.m. Let's just see how long it takes them to find me.....

The fabulous chairs project.....it was an overwhelming success!

There were 18 chairs in all - all either donated by Walpole Woodworkers or sold to sponsoring businesses at cost - What a generous, giving company, especially in this economy! This first chair was painted by Jim Hammond who patterned it after an Icelandic jacket that his late daughter had as a child. Jim's chair is displayed in front of the salon where his daughter worked.
This one is a lady going to the local Egg Festival by Pam Peltier Dickinson of Detroit. All the chairs gathered Friday night for wine and cheese and schmoozing. Many of the artists had not met each other so it was really a great time! Pam's chair is in front of the town office.
This is Connie LaGross's chair - which fittingly is at the town's library! so special...
Glass artist Alyssa Oxley did up this beautiful pastel chair - it's at Mill Pond Pizza.
This one is by Jill Schwartz, the art teacher at Maine Central Institute, our local high school. It is at Bud's Shop 'n Save.
My good buddy Hazel Mitchell's chair is none other than Humpty himself! It is also at Mill Pond Pizza.

Bonnie Mitchell took an old photograph of the original Peltoma Bridge and rendered it in black and white....what a history lesson. It is at the town office at the special request of the town manager.
And here is Russ Cox's creature - we put it at the library so the children could sit right in its mouth!
What a group of talented people, right?
I started this community art project as a goodbye gift to the people of Pittsfield after working there for 23 years as their reporter. The project is called "Get Comfortable In Pittsfield,'' which is just what I did and I hope people will use the chairs to also get comfy there! They were a gift to the town and in the fall, the council will hold a silent auction and the highest bidder for each chair gets to keep it - the proceeds will benefit the chair replacement fund at the community owned theater.

Aren't they spectacular....aren't I lucky to know or get to meet such creative, artistic and generous people??? This project turned out to be a real gift for me, to get to see the spirit of the town, the companies that sponsored the chairs and the artists that brought them to life.

One more day of rain....that's all I can stand.

This is my poor bird bath, getting pummeled by rain - big rain. Do you see the size of those drops???? And notice that the columbine has gone beserk with all the wetness and is trying to drown itself...Even a rock has thrown itself into the water in despair.

29 days of rain in June.
rain every day so far in July.
eye yi yi.

Everything here is so wet - the rugs are wet, the towels won't dry, what hasn't rotted in the garden is stunted from lack of sun and heat, the doors won't open and if you get them open, they won't close. There is mold in the shower - attacked daily but it grows back in minutes.
There was a murder of crows in my back yard this morning and they were brazenly walking and eating - a slug was every two inches, an entire yard for a buffet.
I washed a scatter rug and it took four days to dry on the clothesline and even then, I had to finish drying it over the back of a kitchen chair.
And if I hear one more joke about building an ark....

Last Saturday night a brilliant moon peeked out for six minutes. My friends that were visiting from P'field and I jumped in the car and drove 8 miles to the beach, hoping for a view of the sea by moonlight. By the time we got there, it was raining again and we had to settle for a peek by the light of Donna's mini-flashlight. (It amazes me how prepared for everything Donna is. Need a Band Aid? She pulls one out. How about hand sanitizer? Coming right up. A bologna sandwich or a refreshing beverage? No problem.)

Yesterday it was 52 degrees in Eastport and the wind was howling off the bay so hard that I thought it would blow the hairs off my head. I built a fire in my woodstove when I got home but nearly killed myself out getting some wood because my deck is so wet that it is now covered with a fine layer of mossy mold and has become a 24-foot Slip 'N Slide.

I have had it. I'm ready to do a sun dance naked on the top of Cadillac Mountain if it will only stop. And believe me, no one - including the sun - wants to see that. I think when the rain finally stops, thousands of Mainers are going to believe they have suddenly gone deaf...no drips on the metal air conditioner housing, no rumble through the gutter pipes, no hiss from the roadway traffic, no shhhhhhh from the leaves on the trees.

And then we will finally be able to hear it - it's coming closer, louder, nearly on top of us now:

The Drone of the Mosquitoes.

Finally I slept...

I have been having some sleep issues here in Paradise. Sweet Pea Cabin is dark and cozy at night, the window by my bed is always open and if it is not the sound of rain lulling me to sleep, it is the sound of the Machias River through the woods....sometimes I can hear night birds calling too.

So, it's not the setting and it is the setting. I think since the job is unchartered territory for me here, I'm being hypervigilant and I just can't shut it all off when I go to sleep. I think: did I call Calais today? Have I checked with the Machias cops? When is the next meeting...interview....call....story....

Yesterday, I awoke at 2:30 a.m. Wide awake. Of course it didn't help that the Coast Guard shouted out a bulletin about a disabled ship every 15 minutes.....I was so used to the sounds that my old scanner made that it never woke me unless it was important. My brain even filtered out the useless stuff and could kick in only when a dispatcher or cop's voice sounded a bit urgent. But here, it is all new: the voices, the sounds, the call numbers. And even though it is far less busy here, with lots of empty air time, that scanner is driving me cuckoo.

Washington County is the size of Delaware and Rhode Island put together. That is a lot of territory for one person.....I think I'm just going to have to accept that I can't do it all and just do the best I can. Knowing me, however, that is a lot easier said than done.

Last night, though, I really slept. I was sacked out by 10 and didn't wake until 6:30....a solid, hearty night of sleep. Thank goodness. Today the kids and baby leave for a little trip to Portland so I will really have a quiet night (no playing tag before bed, no splash fests at bath time, no more little feet coming to visit me in the office for the next five days) I'm also leaving on Friday - headed back to Pittsfield for a special project (pictures will follow soon!) and a much needed visit with friends. Dominoes, laughter and hugs all await!

Let's hope I can sleep in my son's guest room!

P.S. Yesterday I stopped in The Commons in Eastport (a don't miss for anyone traveling up there) and while I was looking around at the extraordinary art work for sale, I found two handmade bowls created by my dear friend Renata. It was like a hug from home - I could have cried. Sometimes those little touchstones in the midst of a lost day can really work...

What did I do when the interviewee lit up a cig and popped the top on a PBR?

I smiled.
I said, sure, it was okay. After all, it's your business.
And I took a shower as soon as I got home!
That was the bad part of the day.
But then I thought about where I was......see above and below. And I smiled for real this time.

I'm back! Did you miss me? Here's what I've been up to...

First - here is the anchor that I ran over in South Addison Harbor. Scraped up the fender. Tire okay. The entire anchor was 22 feet long - how did I miss that, anyway?????

Look! It's Janet, Marian and Donna at Quoddy Head Light - I had my first summer company this weekend. This intrepid trio came up late Saturday, we had a big dinner and a bit of a slumber party and then Sunday hit the road for Lubec. We did the lighthouse, visited some art galleries, watched children hold relay races carrying a 20 pound salmon (Could I make this stuff up?), walked on the beach and had a dinner out. We came back to Sweet Pea Cabin for blueberry pie and then they left......suddenly Sweet Pea is so very, very quiet!

This is the entrance to one of the beaches at Lubec - the Rugosa roses are all in bloom and the air is heavy with their scent.

Janet and Donna scanned the Lubec harbor for seals and eagles (or were they looking across the water for hot Canadian men???) while the remants of a dory and a lobster pot are trapped in the seaweed at low tide.

Yup - that's a dead old salmon in his arms. I told ya.

Good food, good laughter, good friends. Add a beach, a lighthouse, and the scent of wild roses.
It doesn't get much better, does it?

Unbloggable!!

Here are the bride, Cassie, and the groom, my nephew David. For their first dance they sang the love song from Moulin Rouge and she sang the girl's part to him and he sang the boy's part to her - as far as those two were concerned, there was no one else in the room. So romantic!! It was a fun, lovely wedding - lots of dancing, laughter and surprises. Cassie is a swim instructor at a huge YMCA in Connecticut, and Dave is a swimming and diving coach at Central Connecticut State College. They recently bought a home and have spent most of the winter and spring renovating and doing a spectacular job! They are just wonderful people!

For the past two days, Blogger wouldn't let me in to download these pics - sorry for the delay!

This is my daughter-in-law Amanda and my daughter Faye watching that incredible first dance at the wedding.
Isn't she just such a beautiful bride?

Things here are chaotic!! I relocated on Tuesday and have worked my arsky off every day since. Work had to come first so you can imagine the looks of the house - even though I'm working this weekend, it will be at a slower pace than the last three days so I should start putting things in order. My son-in-law is getting the washer/dryer/air conditioners out of my office today so I can start straightening there. This will be a much needed improvement! I don't know about you, but I need my work space neat and in place before I can work. If not, my thoughts are all jumbled!

I haven't had a chance to enjoy the coast because it has rained every day and today we are completely socked in by fog. Is this almost July??? I had to wear a jacket last night and this a.m. I have a sweatshirt on! I will say that all this dampness has my flowers positively exploding - for first year growth they are truly impressive! But inside the house, I can't open some doors and can't close others. The deck is so damp that moss has started to grow on it!

The other bad thing is that FAIRPOINT - the spawn of the devil - still can't find my house. I'm pirating the Internet from my son-in-law next door. I have no Internet, fax or land line for work. urg.... Let's hope next week brings the sun and the Fairpoint service man!

The good ( ?), the bad and the just plain ugly.....

My sons Russell and Daniel - now known as The Blue Brothers - think that my brother Christopher is the funniest person on earth. Apparently, from these expressions, he is. We had a great time at the wedding and I'm only sharing the worst pictures....The pretty ones will come tomorrow. No - there wasn't a two-for-one sale; Danny lives in Maine and Russ lives in New Jersey so the twin blue shirts was a pure coincidence.
This the Y of YMCA - too bad everyone forgot how to spell it after this.....
My daughter Faye was apparently suffering from a bit of gas...
And my little sister Robin, Mother of the Groom, was thoroughly disgusted that she forgot her breasts.
And here is the final bonus: My grandson James and the Amazing Tower Of Onion Rings. James - 0, Onion Rings - 1.

Today I leave my beloved Pittsfield.

Well, this is it...Today I leave for the family wedding in
Connecticut. At first I looked at this as if it were the worst of
timings - I finish today in Pittsfield (You should see my car -
I look like a homeless person who now lives in her
Chevrolet) and start work Tuesday in Machias. But now I am
hoping for a respite, four days to breathe. I'll get to hug
brothers and sisters, love my sons to bits and take my
grandsons to the movies.

It is also absolutely amazing that a mini-reunion has been
set up for Saturday in CT. During my pre and teenage years,
I was a member of the Windsor Locks Cavaliers, a color
guard extraordinaire!

We marched all summer with the drum and bugle corps, but
in the winter we competed on our own with dozens of other
color guard drill teams and we were good, really good - for
many years we were the reigning New England champions.

I started off at about 10 years old as a rifle. Was promoted
to flag (whipping them around took some strength!) and
eventually got my saber! I KNOW - you are quaking in your
boots at the thought of me whirling around a sword. You
should be, too.

Oh the stories from those days: mooning a car load of nuns
from the back of Joyce Asselin's father's station wagon;
learning to smoke from a very hot bugle player; stabbing
captain Terry O-Donnell just under her eye with my saber;
spinning that same saber but losing control until it flew
through a closed window on the second floor of the practice
hall and ended up spearing the lawn - just feet from the
sidewalk; being able to throw myself completely into an
activity that for just a while, enabled me to forget a
miserable home life. This was my teenage sanctuary.

Whenever I hear a song with a terrific beat (some of the
new hip hop stuff has actual snare drumming) I cannot help
but march around the house. I still remember the counts
from our last drill: 12 forward, turn right, eight
forward...and don't even get me started on the movie
"Drum Line."
Today this type of activity might be thought a bit nerdy. But back in the early 60s, we were the absolute coolest - walking the halls of the high school with our Cavaliers' jackets...we were hot!

Ten of us are meeting for lunch Saturday - can you imagine?
We have not seen each other in 40 years! I'll definitely be
posting pictures for you...

Between the wedding, the reunion and the move, posting
here may be sporadic for the next few days. Forgive me - I
will be having the time of my life crying and laughing all over the place!

Two new paintings are headed to their new homes.

The first is a pair - a journey from the owners' home (bottom left) in Pittsfield, to their camp on Unity pond. This one was lots of fun - the dancing trees and the oversized daisies give it plenty of movement and each of the buildings has special meaning for the owners. My patron is picking it up tomorrow - I hope she likes it too!
And then there is "Forget-Me-Not, Trudy,'' a gift of a bouquet of forget-me-nots for my BFF Trudy. I'll give it to her before I leave for my new home.....I KNOW she'll never forget me, silly, it's symbolic of course!

We had a "Not Going Away Party"

There was of course the most amazing food - plus veggies, meat on the grill and lots of good wine!
And the dearest friends anyone could have....
We gathered all evening, it wasn't maudlin. I made no speeches. No one cried - we would hug and say, not goodbye, but see you soon.
We ate and drank and had a delightful carrot cake baked by Karen (how fabulous!) I was given a Home Depot gift certificate to continue remodeling Sweet Pea Cabin. Midway through the evening I felt a hand on my shoulder and there stood Dustin! My BFF Trudy's son who has been in France this semester! What a surprise and a beautiful sight!
Nearly the last to leave was Trudy and we didn't want to let go of each other but we managed to keep it all together.
Four more days and then a family wedding and then I'm in Machias. This is getting kind of scary.

Thanks for all your kind words...Miss Emma is well.

Just like someone flipped a switch, all symptoms are gone. She's still a bit tired but recovery is here! When I got back to Pittsfield yesterday, I built a big fire in the fireplace and she curled up on her pillow and cooked herself well. Snored like a jet plane. Farted to beat the band. But didn't choke, didn't reverse sneeze and didn't chew her little feet. WAHOO! Crisis passed.

Thanks to all the kind words about my vet experience...I've decided to make an appointment with the vet once I'm settled in Machias, update her on Miss Emma's allergies and reactions, and tell her what happened when I sought treatment last week at HER clinic. I want a GUARANTEE from her that if I come running in with a dog in distress, that dog WILL be treated. I won't settle for anything less.

I really didn't need that mess on top of everything else. I'm like a split personality right now:
I have one foot in Machias and the other in Pittsfield - trying to think in two places. My brain is scrambled eggs and I feel like I'm not accomplishing much in either place. 12 more days and I'm permanently in Machias. I hope things settle down then. But of course you know the rub: that's just 12 more days of saying goodbye down here. Actually only 7, because I head out of state for a wedding before I make the final step to Machias. How about this for a schedule: next Thursday - I work in Pittsfield; Friday through Sunday - I visit family in Connecticut; Monday - I come back to Pittsfield; Tuesday - I leave for the last time for Machias. Who's on first? Who's on second? Where did I pack my underwear?

Meanwhile, the best thing that happened today was meeting my friend Hazel for lunch and having a great dish of shepherd's pie. I loves me some shepherd's pie. And I loves me Hazel too.

Hazel and I have made a swap: she's going to watch Emma while I go to my nephew's wedding, and in return I will stay at her house and watch her dogs and her horses when she and Mike want to get away. Isn't that a great deal? Maybe I'll make her a shepherd's pie and leave it in her refrig as a little surprise!

I am shocked at the treatment we didn't receive...

Miss Emma has been in the throes of an allergy attack for two days. I have been dosing her with children's Benadryl (per my vet's advice) but yesterday afternoon I felt this choking and breathing problem had gone on long enough.

I had my daughter call HER vet - since I'm up here in Machias and 2 1/2 hours away from my beloved vet - and she explained the situation and the breathing problems and how Emma should get a steroid shot asap. The vet's asst. said she needed to see the dog right away.

We drove lickety split to the vet and were told WE HAD NO APPOINTMENT!!!!
We said it was an emergency.
We said there was difficulty breathing.
We said the dog was clearly in distress.

Sorry, the vet tech said - with a smirk, I might add - you don't have an appointment.
Drive to Brewer, we were advised, which has an emergency clinic, because this vet had no time for non-appointees.
Brewer, by the way, is about two hours away.

If the dog had been hit by a car, would the treatment have been the same?
If she had STOPPED breathing, would the treatment have been the same?

To put your mind to ease, we dosed her with a higher level of benadryl and she seems to be breathing much better. (Since there is no other vet up here our options were limited. I will be home in Pittsfield tomorrow and take her to MY vet for a shot.)

You can see that since I am moving here, and this is the only vet for hours, I am beyond thrilled at this lack of care......what to do. what to do. I think I will be dropping the vet a note, explain what happened and ask if this is the kind of treatment I can expect for Miss Emma if I choose her as my vet....and I will still be exploring other options.

My heart is heavy today.

Sea Cup - Lili's amazing entry in the Bra Project

This certainly speaks for itself - inspired, inspiring and just plain gorgeous! This is Fearless Nesting's entry in the Bra Project. She titled it Sea Cup and added this little script:

Adrift and lost, amidst sea creatures and Mermaid tears,
I return,
washing up on shore at your feet.
You are the one that can help save me.
You are my cure.

Everything she used was found on the beach of her seaside home in Maine. Just superb.

Of carnivals and shadows and Lili by the sea -

The Amazing Kiley rode on a mini-train today at a small carnival in Machias with her friend Faye-bulous, and then got to go in the bouncy house and down a big puffy slide. But it was nothing compared to the joy she found when she discovered her shadow....At first she was a bit concerned that it kept following her, but she quickly decided she had found a new friend. She ran all over that parking lot, clapping her hands and squealing! Look at those turquoise socks....what a sense of style that girl has!

Yesterday, on the way to Machias, I stopped at Fearless Nester's (a faithful reader of my blog whom I had NEVER met before - please go visit her blog and see her amazing Raku pottery) to pick up her bra for the breast cancer auction. I'll post a picture tomorrow - you are going to be amazed and awed!
This sweet new FRIEND baked a banana cream pie (oh my goddess it was spectacular) and we toured her beautiful home and gardens by the sea. We talked and laughed and the visit was much too short so we are going to have to do it again really soon! It was so great to meet you Lili - and thanks a million for the tip on the antique shop in Dexter!

I spent much of today gardening (I planted a bleeding heart given to me by my dear friend Sue - "every liberal needs one,'' she said) and put a whole bunch of lobster compost and cow manure around the gardens. All that rain last week has everything looking so lush - there are 42 blooms on my begonia - all peachy and beautiful. I was going to say there were 27 blooms but I thought maybe I was exaggerating (who me?) and so I just got up and went outside and counted them. 42...so so pretty.
I also spent a bunch of time getting my office in order. It is all set - just waiting now for Fairpoint to get off their .....es and hook up my phones and Internet. Luckily I can pirate a wireless signal for a while from my daughter's house next door....

My desk(another gift from the Stunning Sue) is right in front of two large windows that look out into the woods. There is a small section of lawn right under the window and I plan on making this a bird station with bird houses, bird feeders, bird baths, bird carnivals....whatever will attract them and make them happy. Wait! Wait! How about a bird spa for the ladies and a bird dude ranch for the gentlemen...or space camp. I could even create a mini-McDonalds, complete with a fly-through window for their Egg McMuffin in the morning. (OH MY GODDESS!!! EGG McMuffin??? What was I thinking?)

Any ideas for bird feeders or feeding suggestions will be much appreciated!! Right now I have just one feeder, in the back yard, and although the chickadees came last fall, the only thing I seem to consistently attract is crows!

I never could keep those boys from climbing on things.

It's my beautiful Eric - standing proudly atop one of his helicopters in Afghanistan. I mean, really, couldn't he have just stood by the door or posed in front of the nose or even peeked out from underneath?
Considering all the crazy stunts he pulled in the past (canoeing the Allagash in APRIL???? at just 17??!) I'm surprised he didn't tether himself to one of the propellers and go for a spin.

Ooops. I may have just given him a new idea.
Prayers and love, my sweet Eric. Stay safe and Christmas cannot come fast enough!

The move is official!

I will be leaving The Mansion and heading Downeast to my Sweet Pea Cabin before the end of the month!

I am replacing the Calais, Maine, reporter, who is retiring, and starting a Washington County Bureau in Machias - all for the same paper that I have worked for these past 23 years - the Bangor Daily News.

I'll be working right from my home...just think, if a winter storm rumbles in, I can report the news in my pajamas. Miss Emma can sleep at my feet as I work and the Amazing Kiley can toddle over for a pb&j! And before I have to write about mischief and mayhem, I can take a pit stop on the beach and sit for a while.......heaven....

We are moving the office itself this Friday and I will be up there getting acquainted with officials and meeting with my new editor on Tuesday. Then I head back to Pittsfield, work for the next two weeks, cry my way through a good-bye party (which my friends are calling the "I'm not saying goodbye" party, and go to Connecticut for my nephew (the superior swimming/diving coach) and his beloved Cassie's wedding.

My last day of work in Pittsfield will be the 18th and by the 23rd, I'll be writing from Machias. I'll be a bit schizophrenic for a while since I will be covering some things in Pittsfield via phone and email until they replace me.

I am so excited: how challenging is this to explore new territory, meet so many new people and gather such new stories. All with my family next door!! It will be invigorating and I'm sure it will shake me out of my comfort zone...Sweet Pea Cabin here I come!

The downside is saying goodbye: the fire department in Pittsfield recently invited me to their annual supper and gave me a plaque and a standing ovation for chasing them around for more than 20 years. I told them it was my HONOR and they are my HEROES, and I meant it. The work goodbyes are hard - these are some of the finest people to work with. They have opened their homes, their offices and their hearts to me. So I'm saying goodbye to them:

"For the past 23 years, I have served as your local reporter
for the Bangor Daily News. As I prepare to relocate to
Machias and new writing and life adventures there, I want to
thank the thousands of people that I encountered while
here.

To the troopers, police officers, deputies, firefighters, EMTs
and rescue personnel: my admiration for the heroic work
you do knows know bounds. For the many times you let me
tromp through fire scenes, get too close at accidents and
provided me with critical information, I thank you.

To the town managers, council and select persons, state
legislators and town clerks: I could not have done my job
well without your cooperation and assistance. For the
unselfish dedication you have shown while serving your
fellow citizens, I thank you.

To the farmers and others in Maine's agriculture community
who have let me wander through your barns, welcomed me
into your kitchens and walked me through your fields, I
thank you. You are the heart and soul of Maine and your
work often goes unnoticed and unrewarded.

To all the artisans, craftspeople, business leaders, and just
plain people next door, I am so grateful that you let me into
your lives and allowed me to share your joys, your sorrows,
your successes and your work. It has been my pleasure to
tell your stories.

To all of you that called with information, tips and story
ideas, you were my backbone and I thank you.

It has been my great honor to have written the history of
Central Maine for the past two decades and tell the
remarkable stories of the people who live and pass through
here. I hope I have treated you fairly and have adequately
represented the amazing people that live here. There will
always been a large part of my heart running up and down
the back roads of Pittsfield, Detroit, Burnham, Skowhegan,
Newport, St. Albans, Hartland, Canaan, Corinna, Plymouth
and Palmyra - and beyond. I will sincerely miss working side
by side with many of you.''

But the goodbyes to all my friends - my dear ones - I cannot put that into words.

Just tears. Lots of tears.

Remember the bra project?

Well, here is the first submission!!!! It's called Twin Peaks and has little clay lemmings on the front, straps and inside. Sorry, the flash washed out the rich colors...

Hazel Mitchell, a book illustrator and a dear friend, created it! She sewed wire in the bra and along its edges to keep its shape and then applied four layers of Plaster of Paris. She sanded it, created the little lemmings and then painted it. She wrote an inspirational little note that is attached.

For those of you who don't know, 42 women are creating bra art projects for an auction to benefit breast cancer. They are being made of glass, steel, beads, quilted, floral, etc., etc. We have a retired fashion photographer who has volunteered to photograph them and we will soon have a website.

The auction is not until the first week in August - but we need plenty of time for publicity. I really am excited about this project and I have to admit, it was pretty emotional to see the first bra. This is real - dozens of wonderful creations are under way!! When I first started the project and put out a call for entries, I was hoping for about 20. I figured at $20 each, we could send in about $400.....Now, my goal is way higher. Some of the bras should be exhibited in galleries - they are that special. Every one of them represents the sincere efforts of someone that cares. We have 42 entries coming from Connecticut, Florida, Maine...I am amazed.

I can't wait to see everyone else's efforts to save the ta tas! I'll keep you posted with pictures as they continue to arrive!

And speaking of toenails...

I like mine blue. I have been painting them sort of a shimmery, light blue for about two years now. I just like it. It makes me smile.
Red makes my toes look like they are bleeding and pink is just so wrong. I've tried green but that makes the little piggies look like they are growing some sort of fungus....

Let me defend toenail polish.
I don't wear makeup. My hair is so short it is hardly hair, really just a fuzz now. I don't paint my fingernails or even get a manicure. Sometimes I go MONTHS without shaving my legs and my lip gloss is used only to stave off chapping. I wait so long between eyebrow shaping that I often can't even find my tweezers.

But, I really like my toenails painted. It's the one girlie concession I make. I feel good with my piggie toes all shiny and new. Even if the little toe has now completely disappeared under its neighbor. Ahhhh, age.

So, I like the blue. Problem is, some people feel the need to comment on my color choice in a professional setting. You know: open toed sandals, board of selectmen, "OhMyGod, Your toenails are blue!"

Like did they think they weren't when I hopped in the shower and, sort of like mood rings, changed color after I dried off on the towel?

Today, however, it was all made right. A little old lady, a really OLD grammie, like about 85 or 86, put her little crepe-y hand on my arm in the grocery store and whispered "I just love your toenails dear.''

There you go, you stuffy little town clerk. Blue it is.

If you like real life, REAL life, this book is for you...

Little Bee was hard to read at times. The gruesome truth of Nigerian oil wars and the status of refugees; the impact on those around them; a woman's choices that destroy her family and nearly herself...and a hard-hitting ending.

Okay, I've warned you. But the language. Oh my word, the language. It is a beautifully written book and I highly recommend it for those of you who like REALISTIC reading and not fairy-tale happy endings.

I am so engrossed in this book!

"Little Bee" by Chris Cleave - unbelievable. I cannot put it down. It is an extraordinarily beautifully written ( I just love good words!) story of choices, everyday choices and extreme choices, and how they affect our lives. Gotta keep going - I'll tell you about it tomorrow.

By popular demand = PANTS WINE!

picture this....I forgot to give it to you yesterday...

This is a blueberry barren - millions of low (8-10 inch) bushes, topped with blossoms being furiously worked by a gazillion honeybees....Click on the picture and you can actually see some of the bees in the air. Some of the blossoms are white, while others are pink or creme - it depends on the variety of the bush.
Wait until August when I'll take the same picture but everything will be blue as the bushes will be laden with berries. Then I'll take another for you after the frost has hit and turned the fields scarlet. These are wild blueberry bushes (although they are managed by farmers who de-rock the fields so the bushes can spread, control weeds and bring in the commercial bee hives) and Maine - mostly in Washington and Hancock Counties - produces more than anywhere else in the world. There are so many that native bees cannot keep up and commercial hives are trucked in from Pennsylvania. Just before they came to Maine, the honeybees were down south in the citrus groves and apple orchards. When they leave here, they head to New York to pollinate pumpkins.

If you eat a 1/2 cup of blueberries a day, they can help stave off cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease and high cholesterol. Those Native Americans really knew their stuff, didn't they? I prefer to take inoculations of blueberry wine, sweet and cold; or blueberry jam on hot biscuits; blueberry muffins, pancakes, crepes, pies......yummmmy any way you fix 'em. If you don't know the difference, wild blueberries are small berries, packed with flavor and goodness. Commercial, high bush berries are much bigger and plumper but lack the intense flavor.

Some fields are harvested with mechanical processors but most are harvested by hand. Workers, bent in half, use a big scoop with long metal tines. They pass the scoop through the bushes and the berries are pulled off. It is hard, hot work.

And since many of the fields are remote and not near any kind of development, theft is a major problem. People sneak in under the cover of darkness and steal TONS of berries, selling them on the sides of the road as their own. Me, I'd be afraid of those bears that roam the fields (you can't see it, but there is an electric fence around that stack of bee hives in the picture.) I learned this week that the bears aren't after the honey - they actually want the bee larvae. Stupid bears. BTW - we only have black bears in Maine. No grizzlies. Grizzlies skip the bee larvae and go right for the humans.

There. Now you know all about blueberries. And stupid bears.

What a weekend: Pants Wine, fires, candidates, horses and potato salad!

It was a great Memorial Day weekend - weather cooperated, a great cookout was held and I invented "PANTS WINE.'' Pants wine is what happens when you have a HUGE potato salad in your left hand and a HOT broccoli/cheese casserole in your right hand and you NEED to carry the very large bottle of wine. Stick it in the back of your pants! From this day forward, we will be having Pants Wine at all affairs....

The weekend began when I hit the blueberry barrens to do a story about commercial bee hives - there are millions of them arriving in Maine this month to pollinate the blueberry bushes. It was fabulous and beautiful : 8,000 acres of low bushes blooming with white, pink and cream flowers. There were so many bees working that the bushes actually hummed!

I had just sat down at my kitchen table in Machias to write the bee story when my daughter called that smoke was pouring out of the building across the street from her deli! Off to the fire - I have not had a chance to see the Machias firefighters at work and I am impressed...the contained the fire to minimal damage and remained incredibly focused, even when one of their own men collapsed. The next day, I attended a forum for seven selectmen's candidates...it was a great opportunity to see what people felt the issues were.

The rest of the weekend was spent planting flowers, playing with the glorious Kiley (who is trying to say Queenie and it is coming out knee-knee-knee), eating, painting and spending time with my daughter and her husband. It was restful, relaxing and very much needed. Especially the Pants Wine.

P.S. I discovered an incredibly easy but delicious casserole:
1. cook up a couple of heads of broccoli (cauliflower and/or carrots would also work)
2. put them in a casserole dish
3. make a sauce by blending a softened package of cream cheese, about 1/2 cup of milk and a package of the ranch salad dressing mix (the powder stuff) - blend well. Add more milk as needed to make a smooth, thick sauce.
4. pour it over the broccoli and liberally sprinkle shredded cheddar on top
5. bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes

EVERYONE, including Kiley, raved about this at the cookout. If you try it, please let me know if you liked it.

Oh, I almost forgot - it is best served with Pants Wine.

Well after yesterday's mystery post, anything will be an improvement!

I could not post. Blogger just wouldn't let me.
The result was a bit like constipation - my words got all backed up and today I can't get rid of them fast enough!

Yesterday was never-ending: Two fires; a truck pulled down a telephone pole causing a chain reaction that dropped two more; there was no quorum at a town council meeting; but one of the councilors walked with me to a nearby ice cream stand and bought me sherbet. Nice. Lemon. Not the councilor, he's a giant sized state trooper and father of two sweet girls. The sherbet was lemon. The councilor is also nice, but he's definitely not lemon. I'd have to call him rocky road with nuts.

Today I spent a ton of time packing - I'm headed up to the house in Machias for the long weekend and am taking all non-essentials from The Mansion. This includes dishes, plants, artwork and painting gear, warm clothing, the big t.v., a bench, and I don't know what all else. I do know there is no room left in the car. Only one spot for the dog.
I've left myself two plates, two coffee cups, one glass, three forks, a knife and a spoon. A saucepan and a frying pan.
And two half empty bottles of wine. That should do me nicely for the next few weeks.

The Mansion is getting very empty and echo-y and there is a tremendous excitement building in me for my move. At the same time, there is a ribbon of sadness running through me and pulling me down and making me cry over stupid stuff, like this morning's news. Did you see the story about the lady that rescues all the dogs? Had me on the floor.
This is such an emotional roller coaster. How will I say goodbye to my friends, my son that lives nearby, the places and people I know so well.
Once I'm settled in the Sweet Pea Cabin, who will meet me for breakfast on Tuesday mornings?
How will I replace Holly at the library, who knows what I want to read even when I don't?
How will the new restaurant know when I walk through the door that I want a chicken Ceasar salad with no bread and a bottle of peach iced tea?
How will a new hairdresser know that I have two cowlicks and my hair grows sideways in the back?
No one will call me by name in the stores. No one will wave at me when I'm walking down the street. No one will call me up for an impromptu game of Saturday night dominoes.
I can see that I have to build a new circle, new friends, and I know that will take time, but the gratitude I have for these ones here in the Pittsfield area will not wane - I can see I'll be coming back VERY VERY often! It has taken decades to develop these friendships - that really doesn't even seem like the right word. I LOVE these people. This is not a house of sand - these relationships have a solid foundation and I hope they all know just how often I'll be taking advantage of all their offers to sleep in spare rooms.

Tonight, however, the firefighters have invited me to their annual dinner - this is getting so hard. Now I have to say goodbye to all my local heroes! Let's hope the 11 o'clock news tonight doesn't focus on children, puppies or grandmas. I'll be a real goner.

I have no snakes...but I do have 42 bras!

SOOOO sorry to disappoint all you reptile fanciers but there were no reptiles this weekend. I ended up at a town meeting instead. I know! How disappointing is that!

Anyway, I am very excited because one of my favorite high school students is giving a presentation at school tonight. He is so gifted! He read "Their Eyes Were Looking At God" and then composed a piece of music to tell the story! It's Jin, of the apple pie at Thanksgiving success.

I am some excited this week about a face-to-face meeting with "Fearless Nester,'' a fellow blogger and artist here in Maine, who has created one of the bras for the art bra project. I'm going to meet her Thursday and pick up her bra! I saw a picture of it in mid-creation: shells, seaglass, etc., hanging from a beautiful piece of driftwood.

If you don't remember the bra project, we have 42 women decorating and creating bras for an auction to benefit breast cancer research. Some are glass, some are welded steel; there are beaded bras, quilted bras, even a cartoon strip bra! Some of the decorated bras belong to breast cancer survivors even. It will be amazing. Right out of the blue, a retired fashion photographer volunteered to photograph them and the hubby of one of the bra artists is creating a website. As soon as we confirm the address, I'll post it here and you can check out some of the wonders (and possibly make a silent bid?) for yourself!

Off to school now, to hear the beautiful music. Wearing my bra, of course. Where else would I hide my cell phone and keys?

Snakes and such...

I'm working all weekend and it starts today with a reptile event. Should be interesting, she says in a sort of shaky voice while backing away....
Then I go to an annual 10-mile yard sale and a town meeting. A very full day.

We had a party at The Mansion last night, probably the last one I'll have here before the big move.
Food was superb, as usual - everyone always brings their best. We had jambalaya, dips, enchiladas, salads, including one with fresh local greens and another with tortellini, and three different kinds of brownies. By the looks of the pile of empty wine bottles, it was a great success! Trudy narrated a slide show of her trip to Europe - it was fabulous. She's a great photographer and her shots were not only wonderful, but oh so interesting. Including shots of what she ate! The food was amazing and its a good thing she walked miles and miles each day!

I invited a new couple - they moved here from Pennsylvania. He is an artist and began talking about starting a local Art Club. Two of my other guests are also artists so something exciting is brewing. It was interesting to watch all my OLD friends with NEW people - they were so welcoming. They each took turns getting acquainted with the new folks, chatting them up and finding out common interests.

I am thinking of this as my goodbye party, although BFF Trudy says they will have an official goodbye party in two weeks, because it was not maudlin or sad. It was a fun, laughing, silly, celebration of having my friends together in my home. Surrounded by good wine, great food and the best friends I could ever have asked for and love so much - what could be better?

Well, it could be better if those snakes I have to interview today are all asleep and are not interested in me at all...

I was bitten by a tick

and really, this is scary. Apparently the little bastard climbed up my sleeve while I was raking leaves and dug in just behind my armpit. I never felt it there, even in the shower. But I did feel the result: a saucer sized, raised welt that really, really hurt. It was absolutely disgusting to think he was there and I didn't know.

My best friend, Dr. Kathy, prescribed me antibiotics and the swelling and pain in the bite area is WAAAAAY better but the drugs make me feel like I fell off the house. Achy. Grumpy. Nightmares. And I went asleep in my chair yesterday afternoon in the middle of the day.

So today I head out to a horse farm - I'm doing a story on the impact of the horse industry to Maine's economy. What do you want to bet there will be more ticks there?

I'm going over myself with a magnifying glass when I return.

By the way, does anyone know if I can drink alcohol while on antibiotics? I definitely think that would help.

temporary beauty, long-lasting destruction

The tiny little snowflake seeds of this dandelion are so tricky. Tricky, tricky, tricky.
Get close, really close, and their beauty is staggering. Thin filaments with little rotors on top to propel the heavy seed on the bottom to its new home. And the dandelion flower that preceded it - wasn't that the first one you ever picked for your mother? And the first flower ever presented to you by your child?

Well, GET OVER IT! The lawn here is COVERED with dandelions and I feel so bad for the homeowners. They put mulch on a flower bed in the front of the yard two years ago and the ENTIRE thing is covered - it's a carpet, I tell ya. A feast for the bumblebees. You can't even find the tiny purple violas in there!

And it will be doubled or tripled for next year. Every one of those creamy yellow blooms contains about a million seeds.
Beware - there is deceit in those beauties...

Sweet Pea Cabin - or home sweet home..

Here is my front door: an old pew, some pots still awaiting spring annuals, a rusty witch hanging from the eave and the "sweet peas" sign. Last year I put moss in a blender with beer and poured it in all the cracks around the paving stones. I think it is working - little mosses seem to be appearing this spring. You can see the pile of pine cones and needles in the background. I rake them up and save them in buckets to start the woodstove - they work amazingly well!
This is my living room. And no, that is not dog pee on the rug. I had to wash up some spilled soda. When I peeled up all the floor tiles I found an oak floor - why do people do that? - and so I'm having it refinished this summer. The drum is from the University of Maine marching band and there are four of those long windows - two on each side. The side walls are chocolate and the end walls, where the brick is, are copper. I want a larger carpet (this one has big loops and Miss Emma keeps catching her toenails in it - ouch!) Any color suggestions?
This is one corner of the living room - you can really see the chocolate and copper walls here - and some chairs I picked up at a flea market for my grandchildren. The cupboard is painted with goddesses and was inspired by the winter solstice. The drapes look white but they are really a dark tan see-through. And isn't the lampshade attractive all tipped over like that? Tsk.
Here's my shotgun kitchen. Would you believe this was all dark brown paneling? I painted it three shades of green, tiled the backsplash and will replace the sink and floor this summer. I'm also hoping to get a new window for by the kitchen table. I'm also on the hunt for a retro red and chrome 1950s kitchen set - I think it will fit perfectly and I can't wait to replace this mismatched set.
MY STUDIO!! This was my former kitchen table but it is much too big for this house so it has been pressed into duty in the studio. This room is on the front of the house, overlooking a wooded area, with light on three sides. Great for painting, tiling, any craft project. This room sold me on the house - my own studio!
And here is half of my bedroom. OH DEAR LORD look at those tiles! Couldn't you kill yourself? They are coming off this summer and I'm painting the floor white with wide light blue stripes. Eventually I want a wood floor but it is not in the budget this year. I made the whimsical goddess that hangs over my bed and the pillows are cut from old chenille bedspreads. The rugs are also chenille. The other side of the room is sort of a sitting room, reading space. I love all the ocean colors and I'm hoping to make some plain white valances for the windows.

So there you have my house in Machias - where I have been trying to move to for a year and a half. The good news? It looks like the move will only be about a month away!! YAY WHOOPEE AMAZING FINALLY STUPENDOUS FANTASTIC THANK GODDESS WHEW and did I say YAY?

Oh, and why Sweet Pea Cabin? My grandmother always called me sweet pea and I've taken to saying that to Kiley, who lives across the driveway. I found the sign in an antique shop in Cherryfield and it was perfect - a place for sweet peas to gather, love and thrive.

Creme brulee French toast with fresh berries: do I have your attention?

That was the fabulous Mother's Day breakfast my son-in-law made for my daughter and I. I got to travel to Machias and visit my little house! I was able to hang these bathing beauties I made in glass class in the kitchen window. See the grass? It is already turning green!
Today I had to go to a funeral so I'm cutting this short....HAPPY Mother's DAY to all of you mom's out there! Tommorrow I'll post some pictures of my house - Sweat Peas Cabin. You will love it!

Rain is green and so solitary.

It is raining as I drive through the woods of Maine this morning, headed west, and the greenery is exploding.
Trees are popping their leaves before my eyes, a kaleidoscope of colors: yellow, red, every shade of green. I know how the deer, the cows feel: this green is so tempting I want to eat it, to rip the little budding leaves from the branches and swallow them.
The water has made the tall evergreens so dark that with their limbs tucked so close, they seem to be tightly hiding secrets in close to their trunks. I can't see, but rather sense, the little birds weaving and weaving a safe little home of twigs and string and other bits of refuse for their lovely blue eggs.
Flowers, freshly bloomed, bow their heads under the weight of the rain, genuflecting to Mother Nature in awe of the spectacle she has wrought.
Fog lingers along the edges of the fields, slowly retreating into the forests, and there, right there in the water-filled ditches, the wood ferns are unfurling their stiff stalks.

The car windows are wet and it mutes and wobbles the view. I stop at an intersection and the neighborhood and its little houses become a Monet.

The truck ahead of me tosses up the water from the roadway in little misty clouds while my wipers beat a steady rythmn: wap, wap, wap, wap.

I am thinking how lonely rain can be. It puts me in a solitary state of mind. Reflection is almost a requirement.
I must drive slower, slower still, so as not to miss a single color, a single tree or flower that is awakening for me. Everything is clean, fresh. Renewal. Rebirth. A chance to start again, perhaps to get it right or do it better this time.

And so I drive on, accompanied by the hard splat of rain on the windows and Vivaldi on the radio.
I am lost in the rain,
lost in my thoughts,
lost in spring.

This is a great day. A great, great day.

This is so important that I'm offering up the formal press release.

I could not be more proud of Maine - the fifth state to legalize gay marriage. As a dear friend of mine said "We make California look like Texas.'' Amen.

AUGUSTA – Governor John E. Baldacci today signed into law LD 1020, An Act to End Discrimination in Civil Marriage and Affirm Religious Freedom.

“I have followed closely the debate on this issue. I have listened to both sides, as they have presented their arguments during the public hearing and on the floor of the Maine Senate and the House of Representatives. I have read many of the notes and letters sent to my office, and I have weighed my decision carefully,” Governor Baldacci said. “I did not come to this decision lightly or in haste.”

“I appreciate the tone brought to this debate by both sides of the issue,” Governor Baldacci said. “This is an emotional issue that touches deeply many of our most important ideals and traditions. There are good, earnest and honest people on both sides of the question.”

“In the past, I opposed gay marriage while supporting the idea of civil unions,” Governor Baldacci said. “I have come to believe that this is a question of fairness and of equal protection under the law, and that a civil union is not equal to civil marriage.”

“Article I in the Maine Constitution states that ‘no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor be denied the equal protection of the laws, nor be denied the enjoyment of that person’s civil rights or be discriminated against.’”

“This new law does not force any religion to recognize a marriage that falls outside of its beliefs. It does not require the church to perform any ceremony with which it disagrees. Instead, it reaffirms the separation of Church and State,” Governor Baldacci said.

“It guarantees that Maine citizens will be treated equally under Maine’s civil marriage laws, and that is the responsibility of government.”

“Even as I sign this important legislation into law, I recognize that this may not be the final word,” Governor Baldacci said. “Just as the Maine Constitution demands that all people are treated equally under the law, it also guarantees that the ultimate political power in the State belongs to the people.”

“While the good and just people of Maine may determine this issue, my responsibility is to uphold the Constitution and do, as best as possible, what is right. I believe that signing this legislation is the right thing to do,” Governor Baldacci said.

Yes, John, it is the right thing to do. And the right thing is not always easy. Thank you for hearing the thousands of people in this state that wanted the right thing to finally be done.

100 Free Pizzas!!

My daughter Faye owns The Fat Cat Deli in Machias. Tonight, from four to closing, she's giving away100 free pizzas to thank her customers for sticking with her this winter in a tough economy.
The sauce it will be flying!

Can you imagine if Toyota decided to say thanks with 100 cars?
Or Sears with 100 washing machines and dryers?
How about the local grocery store, it could give away 100 meals, from soup to nuts...
Or businesses could give away 100 fishing poles to children, or 100 pairs of sneakers to teens or sit down for 100 hours worth of card games at a local senior citizen center...
How about 100 cleanings at a local pet shelter?

What could you be challenged to do 100 times?
Or maybe it is what you could be challenged NOT to do...

How about walking to the store or the library 100 times rather than drive the car?
Or how about picking up debris or litter, 100 pieces worth?
You could read 100 stories at a nearby day care center.
You could make 100 thank you cards and send them to everyone who has touched your life.
How about 100 kisses for a special someone?

Let me know what you think about this 100 gratitude expressions idea....

Me? I'm going to make sure I say ''thank you" 100 times over the next two weeks to special people....the first one was Amanda, my daughter in law, who called this afternoon to tell me she and my son Danny were having a boy!

Here is my second: thank you faithful readers for giving me a place to ramble, think and brag...THANKS!

I was totally poopified last night and went to bed as soon as Movie Night was over.

We watched Bride Wars which was cute and made us laugh a couple of times, which was the point since we have been sobbing over the past three movies.
So everyone grabbed their eggs (not THOSE eggs, silly... I sell organic eggs at Movie Night for my ex-husband, the farmer). I went to bed with Miss Emma curled comfortably behind my knees.
About 3 a.m. I awoke to a NOISE, a tiny little noise that sounded very much like chewing.
"What is that?" I quietly asked Miss Emma.
Snore, snore, snore, she replied.
"Does it sound like a mouse in the kitchen?" I asked.
Snore.
"I left a bowl of peanuts on the counter," I whispered.
A grunt, a sigh, another snore.
"I think there is a mouse eating my peanuts,'' I breathed in her ear.
More snoring.
So without my 12-pound watchdog to assist me, I took matters into my own hands.
I grabbed the tennis racket by my bed which I know you all have too, strategically placed there to whack the dreaded bats that I hate and fear and appear each spring to torture me.
I began creeping out of my bedroom with the racket ready to whack.
I creeped through the foyer.
I creeped down the hallway.
I peeked around the corner into the kitchen while simultaneously turning on the lights.
"I'm blinded,'' I shouted, which would have scared any sneaky mouse to death, but

No mouse.

What I heard was the sound of the rain dripping off the eaves. You know, it was almost a let down after all that careful creeping.
Seems as though the snoring Miss Emma figured it out looooooong before I did.
Next time I'll pay attention to those little snores.