I was looking out what will someday be my bedroom window when I saw this "tree" I have been told it is an azalea. I have been very fortunate to find so many "surprises" on my property

Just a few lilypad flowers in my friends pond

The town of Floyd is trying to build a park so last week they had a benefit concert with four bluegrass bands, the music was good but I think I have had my fill of blue grass for a while

It’s been a while since my last blogg but I have had a lot going on. Between work the cabin and keeping up with friends my days have been full.

First things first, we have been having a LOT of rain, A LOT!... but in a way this is a good thing. The work on the cabin has been great. There is paint on the drywall, the trim is almost done, they are working on the floors right now and the cabinets come in next week. Now I’m not holding my breath that this pace of work will continue but I am hopeful. The weather is supposed to be better next week, we will see if they come back.

I am discovering a disadvantage to living in the country; socializing with friends takes a lot of time. At the beach it takes at the most 15 minutes to get most of my friend’s homes and for the most part I could walk. At the beach having a morning cup of coffee with a friend could be spontaneous here almost everything has to be planed out. I am adjusting but I miss those unplanned morning coffees with friends.

One of these days, when the stars align just right I will be moving into a little 750sf cabin that I am having built. For the past few days I have been sick. The stay in the bed except to do what has to be done sick. The, if I still lived at the beach one of my boys would have had to feed the dogs and wait on me hand and foot, sick. Today I realized one of the disadvantages of a small house; there is no place to hide stuff. I had to wash cloths while I was sick but I did not fold them. They are piled on a bed in the back room. Dishes got put in the dishwasher that I seldom use. Thank goodness the new kitchen will have a dishwasher. The house looks cluttered, not very presentable. I am living in a small house but it is bigger than the cabin is. I can imagine what the cabin would look like after 2 days of me being sick. The moral of this story is that if someone is not family or a really good friend, they can’t come to my house if I’m sick. Period!!

Frost on a Japanese Maple

A friend and I were discussing how nice the weather had been and the planting of summer crops. I was telling her how bummed I was that I had not been able to plant anything. On the beach I would have already planted my tomatoes. In Currituck the farmers would have already planted sweet corn, so that it is ready for the 4^th of July. I wanted to plant something. Things are different here she informed me, she said that she never planted any summer plants until after her 20^th of May, when I asked her why she said because that is when the risk of frost is over. Early this morning, on the 19^th of May we had frost. You see my friend is a master gardener so I guess I should listen to the master gardener, I might learn something.

Ok boys and girls here goes, I don’t go around telling people that I like sci-fi and fantasy but I do. And while Star Trek was not my first sci-fi venture, I was reading Bradbury, Asimov and Norton and watching the Twilight Zone and Astro Boy before I ever watched Star Trek. When Star Trek originally aired my parents had control of the TV, so before it hit syndication I rarely got to watch it, when I was finally able to sit down and watch episode after episode (thanks Cathy for introducing me to the Trek world) I was hooked. While I can’t tell you the name of every episode and I don’t know all the minor characters I can tell you with in 5 seconds what the story line is. I think the Star Trek universe is awesome but for the most part I have not been impressed with the movies until today. Today I saw the new Star Trek movie and it was really good. I was totally impressed. I won’t go into detail about what happens in the movie because I don’t want to ruin it for anyone. The makers of this Star Trek movie came up with a great way to continue the franchise with out having to worry about continuity. I know that sounds negative but its not. I am looking forward to more of these movies. Go Trek.

Oh boy did I meet the right person. I met her last summer out by my mail box and we would talk to each other every once and a while, out by that mail box. We have been promising each other that we would have coffee together “sometime” but it never seemed to happen. Last week we finally exchanged e-mail addresses and yesterday we had coffee at her house. This woman is amazing, she is in her 70’s has chickens, honey bees and a green thumb to die for. She can use a chain saw and just learned how to use a back hoe. I don’t know what I have to offer in this friendship but in just those few hours we spent at her place I learned a lot.

I have been very fortunate in the people I have met here. I have met so many willing teachers, people that answer my questions no matter how “dumb” they might be. I can’t wait to put some of what I am learning to practice. Who knows in 20 years maybe I will be the teacher.

I sent the Arbor Day foundation a donation of $20 a while back. As a gift I was promised 10 trees. Last week I got my “trees”. I had to laugh at the twigs in the bag that counted as trees but c’est la vie, I put them in water when I got them, I just did not have time to plant them but yesterday I put them in pots. I don’t mind that I got twigs for trees after all what do you expect for $20 and it’s for a good cause. It will be interesting to see what happens.

They hung dry wall in the cabin this week. The dry wall gives me a real feel for how things are gonna be. The bath room is going to be TIGHT, TIGHT, TIGHT!

Welp I'm off to the property gotta do some weed eating.

Know how to tell when its gonna rain? Just ask me what day I'm scheduled to be off. It’s been a bit rainy today but that did not stop the dogs and me from taking a walk this morning. I think its funny how people think it’s so quiet in the country. When I take my walk my ears are filled with the sounds of the out doors. Birds, water and the wind along with the rustle of wild life is really quiet noisy. Noise or no there is something to be said for getting outside, I don’t care if you are in the county or the middle of a city, having the sky above your head is up lifting. It allows your soul to be free. Being outside can help clear the mind and walking can relive stress, I know it does for me. Its spring get out side and let your soul be free.

They have stained the cabin and I am happy with the color. I am thinking of painting the doors to match the roof....

I’m sitting here this afternoon listening to the sound of the weather as it rolls in. The sky has darkened and the wind is picking up. I can hear thunder in the distance and the air is noticeably cooler. To me this is so relaxing to the girl dog that is not the case; she is curled at my feet, head up and ears back, to her thunder is a frightening thing, one of the few things that will slow her down and make her willingly heal to me. This weather draws me to sit by the window where I can see the pond. Drops of rain have begun to dance on its surface. With the window slightly ajar I can hear the tin roof sound off as each tiny drop of rain hits it, this noise rises and falls with the passing of rain clouds some times building to and almost deafening crescendo. Outside the grass looks greener in this filtered light and the air smells clean and fresh. Oh what a lovely afternoon.

I can honestly say it has been a busy week. This time last week I was pulling on to the OBX. I spent last weekend visiting with friends and family which translates into eating a lot. I could not have asked for better weather, the weekend was nearly perfect. I needed to get away from here and clear my head and going to the beach did that for me. By Monday I was ready to come home.

And speaking of home…. The boys have been hard at work on the cabin, plumbing and electric are roughed in and inspected, most of the insulation is in and the outside should be stained shortly. It might even be done I worked last night so I haven’t had time to check on progress today. Again I’m not getting my hopes up, this whole project has been stop and go, their going right now but they can stop at any moment!

I woke up this afternoon to some hot temps. Its 80 degrees outside and its supposed to be a warm weekend. There is a high danger of fire warning out right now. The humidity may go down to 20 %, that’s not something I have not seen in forever. Low humidity on the Outer Banks is in the 40% range. This hot weather can go give me the cooler spring temps; I’m glad I changed my mind and installed central air!

peach blossoms; the first to come out on the property

It has been brought to my attention by a few folks that is has been awhile since I have written in my blog. Well I have been in the dumps as of late and have not felt like writing. It is spring and I’m still not in my cabin. I’m still living out of boxes. By now I had hoped to be looking for new furniture and other stuff for the cabin. I haven’t been able to start the garden I had hoped to start this year. I can’t start anything because I can’t protect it from the wild life. I saw a herd of at least 8 deer on my property yesterday. When I’m living there the dogs will discourage the deer (that’s the theory anyway). And to top it all off I’m working at a job I’m not real happy with.

The weather here has been…… wet but is going to be a beautiful spring. Already the grass is coming in and when the sun hits it, it glows an almost neon green. I love the way the clouds seem to roll over the mountains, I love the fresh crisp feel of the morning. I see something new every day; a new bird, animal, plant. I love the wild life. What is bringing me down is the flocken cabin. It’s like a bad pregnancy; No matter how crappy it makes you feel its going to last as long as it lasts and there is nothing you can do about it!! I’m ready for this baby to be born!!!!

If I can get off work for a few days I think I will head on back to the beach just to clear my head. I need a mini vacation!!

This last day of March started out bright and sunny but as the day wore on the clouds and dampness set in. I guess you could say March is going out like a damp lamb. It is hard to believe that we are 90 days into 2009. It has been a bumpy 90 days for the country and gosh only knows what’s going to happen in the next 90 but its spring and anything is possible. Heck there was work done on my cabin today, go figure. With luck the electrician will be there tomorrow and once he is done the insulation can go in. I am trying not to get excited about the cabin but things are starting to move along and it’s hard to keep that “it will be done when it gets done” attitude.

How can I tell its spring? I have 3 main indicators: how much hair do I have to sweep up every day (I have 2 dogs and a cat), how many small animals and birds do I have to rescue from the cat (2 birds so far) and……. how badly do I want to plant something. About 2 weeks or so ago I planted some basil just to have something green around. I told myself that I was going to hold off on the flowers and plants this year but I needed something from the store and saw some pansies and I just could not resist. I did resist the magnolia tree, barely. It was beautiful, but I could not figure where I would put it so now it’s on the sometime in the future list.

I have been paying attention to what is starting to bloom and bud now. Yellow tips and daffodils have bloomed. Willows have tiny green leaves on their branches giving them a green silhouette and many other trees have a slight red tinge to them, an indication that they are getting ready to show their new spring growth. On the bank next to my driveway the previous owner planted many different types of spring flowers. I know she planted daffodils they are every where. There are other things coming up also; I think I see what could be irises but I don’t know. Until I see the flowers I won’t know what gifts the previous owner has left for me. I wonder how much of what I see now will turn out to be weeds. This year is for learning and boy do I have a lot to learn!

I was talking to my #2 son, venting was more like it, when he said to me “things haven’t gone too great for you up there (the Mt’s)” Lets face it, it took longer than I had hoped to find a contractor to build the house and its taking even longer to actually build it. Every thing I have wanted to do has cost a lot more than I had budgeted. Someone burned my barn down and now…. I hate my job. Humm. I will admit that lately I have wondered if I did the right thing in moving up here. I miss my family, I miss my friends and god knows I miss my job. I am not where I wanted to be by now. Things are not going the way I want them to go. So why am I here?

Rounding the corner, just before I turned on to road that leads to my house I saw the Buffalo wrapped in clouds. I saw the first live skunk I have ever seen up here. I saw baby cows jumping and running. When I got on my road I felt at home. A house is just a house, some day it will be finished. A job is just a job I can always find another. I miss my friends but I have been very privileged to meet a lot of very good people up here and the phone and internet allow me to keep in touch with my distant friends. The reason I am up here is because I want to be. Its not heaven but for me it’s close.… kinda.

touch of spring

It was a very pleasant week here in the Mt’s . It felt a lot like spring and I spent as much time as I could outside. I spent a good deal of the day Thursday removing wild roses from around my fruit trees and while that was not all that fun it was “rewarding”. I have been reading the seed/plant catalogs that have been coming my way, and while I don’t plan on doing a lot of planting this year these magazines are giving me some ideals. I won’t get away with out buying something but my goal is not to over buy. I want to live on the property and in the cabin for a little while before I buy that walnut tree that grows 60 feet tall and 40 feet wide.

The cabin roof has been shingled. We will see what gets done next week.

A touch of spring

What a difference a week makes. Last Sunday I was slipping and sliding on my way to work yesterday we reached 73 degrees. In the afternoon I opened up the house to fresh air and sun today I am planning on working in the sunshine and fresh air at the cabin site. March came in like a lion of sorts, we had an intense but brief bout of winter and in less than a week we are having a touch of spring.

This weather and the nature of my job is exposing me to new bugs and I have caught a head cold. Ever since I reached the age of 40 I have been getting colds in the spring and fall. I don’t remember this bi-annual illness thing prior to that age but no cold is going to keep me inside today. I need to be in the great outdoors even if it is only time spent picking up trash from a job site.

The view on my way home today... gotta love it

I woke up this morning, stumbled into the kitchen let the dogs out, turned the coffee on, checked the fire in the wood stove and looked at the digital thermometer. At first I thought it said 21 degrees but after I fixed my cup of coffee and put my glasses on I took another look at the temp. It had changed to 1.6 degrees that’s when I realized that the 21 had been actually 2.1. burrr rabit!!!

I took a ride to the local convenience store yesterday afternoon to get some sour cream for my home made chili when I came across another Jeep owner. This guy has a red Jeep with a 4 inch lift kit, beefed up tires, wench and all kinds of stuff. He is a real Jeep enthusiast, kind of a Jeep jock. well I love my Jeep but I only know how to drive it and I haven't gotten any "attachments" YET , so a lot of what he had to say went over my head. But we had a good conversation anyway. He told me how he had some fun whipping around on Buffalo Mt rd in drifts that came up higher than his wheel wells. I told him how I got stuck and then pulled out by a range rover. "His reply; oh no I know that guy and I'll never hear the end of it!" It’s a small world.

Some day that will be home

We had a bit of snow Saturday and Sunday. While getting to work on Saturday was no big deal it took 2 hours to get there on Sunday. On the way to work Sunday I took a little “slide” trip. I got a little cocky and went a little too fast for the conditions. My south bound Jeep and I wound up in the north bound lane; I came close to ending up in the ditch. It was a good thing it happened where and when it did because pretty much as soon as I came out of the skid and was back in my lane a road scraper followed by 3 or 4 cars, one a sheriff, pass by heading north. Needless to say I watched my speed the remainder of the way home.

Coming home this morning was no big deal until I hit Burk’s Fork road. As soon as I turned off 221 the snow was at least a foot deep. I was putting along just fine until I came across a group of vehicles stopped on the road. The land rover driven by a man named Lynn and his son Wyatt was in the process of pulling two pick up trucks out of the ditch. I was asked to back up a bit and in doing so I got stuck, so sad to say my wrangler got pulled out of a ditch by a land rover. I will be getting a wench before next winter. It was a good thing I did get stuck because just a little further up the road the snow drift was so high that there was no way I was going to get by. Lynn recommended a different way and I got home, no problem at all.

The dogs loved the snow the cat was not impressed

The snow was so beautiful and to me it feels warmer with snow on the ground, less depressing. I hate that I have to go to sleep today because snow only last for a few days then it either melts or turns yellow.

Its feeling a lot like spring this last day of February; this past week we have had warm temperatures and periods rain. I have seen the green tips of what I hope are lilies on the road bank near my driveway gate. I have been warned by the folks that have been living here a long time that March is truly a month of transition. I have heard tails of blizzards and ice storms where folks were stuck in their homes for weeks!!! March is promising to start off like a lion (cub), we are expecting a wintry mix tonight and tomorrow.

Things are moving along on the cabin. The windows and doors have finally been set and they have started on the soffits. While it’s predicted to be cold next week there is no rain in the forecast till Friday so hopefully something will get done.

What a nice day it has been. It started out with a snow shower and a walk with the dogs, followed by music and brunch with friends and finished with home brewed beer and snack food at a new friend’s basement Irish pub. Days like this are what life is all about.