Sunday, June 21, 2009

Happy Solstice

Happy Solstice
Hope you have a wonderful longest day.
Here we see we are near the end of planting opportunities.
As the daylight slowly wanes again, we are reminded of the winter darkness to come.
Cast it off, cast off the darkness.
Bathe in the light here today.
We put in Levon Helm's midnight ramble series volume 2.
See ya later.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Summertime is here...shhhhh

Summertime is here......shhhhhhhhhhh a friend said softly.
In case the Gods should snap it away just as it can happen in our beloved changeable Vermont.
So I wrote Summertime 2009 all rights reserved by Mary E. Gerdt
First draft.
Summertime

Summertime brings the heat and sunshine except for days like this where it is gray and raining. Our artichokes are happier with these soakings that really infuse the plants with that healthful rain. Plants love rain even more than the mineral water that comes out of our well. I love the rain when it is a work day. To work on a nice summer day is asking myself, “What are your priorities?”
On a rainy day, I say to myself, “Good job-you made it to work.”
In the dead of winter I sit and think, I really should get up and do something. The lack of sunlight runs our batteries down and says, “Sit by the fire awhile…Later…Just a few more minutes…Later…Snowing again? Just go to bed and dream.”
In the summertime, I think things like “What do I have to do? What do I want to do? My calendar fills up. Everybody awake now. Our formerly hibernating bodies cast off the dream world.
Last Sunday I planted a tray: 48 onion plants and then got up, stretched and sauntered to the greenhouse to get another tray. They are great little plants we started early May.
At 300 I stopped and said-we will plant 200 more next weekend. Then I sat in the sun for a little time.
I thought about how the sun warms us and lights the summer with long days.
In the winter we have to burn wood, corn, oil, propane, depending on which commodity is cheapest and available. We use plastic to cover the windows and draft dodgers made of fleece tubes filled with rice.
In other words, the sun enables us human to create all of these warmth giving/warmth preserving items.
Because of the sun, wood grows, as does corn, oils and gas mined from decayed organic materials, plastic and fleece created from petroleum which is oil.
I wanted to somehow save all the sunshine in Sunday so we could let it out in the winter.
I wanted summertime to come a little earlier than it did this year.
As much as it oppresses me to be too hot, a day just like Sunday is welcome anytime in Monkton. We have one summer day for every 3 days of winter.
Ahhh…Sit in the sun awhile. What a rare day.

addendum.different subject.politics?or comment on how people treat each other.i believe this is about the latter.do not hate me because i like sarah palin or her family.that would be weird, wouldn't it? NOW this time denounced the reference to some scummy ball player jumping her 14 year old daughter.Defendants of D.L. said he meant the 18 y/o. My reply is, AND that makes it OK? She is a new mother with a desire to help others. IS SHE open game for sick comics? No, this went too far and NOW took too long.Don't ignore abusive language towards women, no matter what your political opinion is.
Where was NOW then?When Sarah Palin's family has been being ridiculed all along?
Don't join in on gossip which you wouldn't want cast upon yourself.
No matter the religion you are or aren't, Remember the Golden rule is universal on Earth. Even when you hate someones political views.
Hate is icky.
mary gerdt in monkton and i approve this message

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Less pain with Injections

I have been meaning to share this tip for less painful injections or fingersticks.
Look for
Alcohol swabs with pain reliever/benzocaine.
It is not good if you are allergic to the "caines" like lidocaine so be careful.
Otherwise it is useful for swabbing your injection site, let dry and then inject. I find it helps the surface pain the most.
Spread the word. We got ours at walmart for 4 cent more per hundred over the traditional alcohol wipes. Also available at many pharmacies.
Have a great, less painful day.
Mary Gerdt

Monday, June 8, 2009

Hunter and Fred's Birthdays





It is hard to understand how the world rotates in a grand circular orbit where a full lap around ends up being in a certain place relative to the sun and that day is our birthday.


Hunter just had one (literally number 1) and Fred's is tomorrow.

So I thought it worth mentioning that here we are in our grand orbit trusting the universe to steer our spaceship while youngsters like Hunter remind me why.
Fred and I plan on dinner of salmon, yellow rice and fresh asparagus.
Then we will be watching one of the Levon Helm Midnight Ramble series he got from his loving wife to soften the blow of being another year older and the aches and pains of life after
one.

The artichokes are struggling but have some hopeful new leaves.



Tuesday, June 2, 2009

A Wicked Wind

A Wicked Wind
Blew through Monkton and neighboring areas on Sunday.
Of course we had felt compelled to plant our artichoke plants on Saturday during a brief window of sunshine.
Rain was predicted to continue and we assumed they meant a drizzly May shower.
But defying prediction by even Roger Hill, a Wicked Wind came up or actually he explained in his post cast that cold dense air was tumbling down on us. The branches pitched and twisted and the poor artichokes took a beating. I found a piece of remay and covered them to keep them from total destruction. Then a frost last night just added insult to injury. Today I uncovered the plants that are mostly hanging in there. No frost now for a while and hopefully that sinister wind will dissipate and lose its destructive nature.
We lost one apple tree that snapped off at the base. Friends had a tree uproot and crash on their house and car. Luckily again no one hurt.
A wicked wind shows us how just a puff of air to the earth can be so large in our life on the surface.
June first we had to burn a fire to keep warm.
Still skeptical about gl*bal w*rming.