Thursday, September 04, 2008

A Few Things

This morning, I was sitting at the computer with my first cuppa Joe, trying to get my eyes open and make some sense of the world around me, when I heard this sound through the open window. It was like someone had bit into the world's largest stalk of celery. I looked outside and saw a rather large squirrel standing atop one of the older, drooping sunflowers, gnawing through the stalk and harvesting the entire seedhead. Pretty impressive.

What was less impressive is that my camera had just enough to battery to turn on and tell me I didn't have enough power...and by the time I'd recharged fifteen minutes later, the squirrel had fled with the object of his affection.

However, a few minutes later one of our neigh bor hood gold finches showed up to do a little harvesting and munching of his own. The lesser sunflowers are certainly providing a great breakfast buffet to this little guy and his family.

Meanwhile, you might recall me recently mentioning the canna lily and pondering what color it's flowers might be. Red is, I believe, the standard shade for these guys, though I've also seen some nice yellow ones.

But I'm not sure I was expecting such a lovely shade of orange. What a treat!

Now, my friends, I must offer in advance an apology. I'm about to include something a little less pleasant than I often like to...in fact, you may find it downright upsetting. If you don't, I'm inclined to actually be a little concerned that we're friends. But I've learned something about Sarah Palin, the Republican nom for VP who's been ALL over the news this week...and it's too important, too dastardly, for me not to make sure you know.



Again, I'm sorry. I've been hearing about these aerial hunts for a while now, but I never imagined, innocent idiot that I am, that we could be faced with the architect of such barbarism as a possibility to lead our country. As if we weren't in enough trouble already.

Now, take a deep breath, and look at these pretty marguerite daisies I found in a planter outside my friend Jane's office in Chatham.

You may recall my mentioning Jane back on June 12th, when I was celebrating Best Day Ever and treated myself to a massage (it was complimentary, actually) at Jane's new practice, Cloud Nine Bodywork. Hoping to mitigate some of the stress knots that I'd been accumulating in my back the past week, I called Jane and got myself an appointment for today, my day off.

To sweeten the experience, when I arrived, Jane offered me a nice discount if I'd let her practice her new hot stones technique on me. So, a few dollars less and a little minor scarring later (ha ha, only kidding, Jane dear...it was absolutely lovely!), the Midnight Gardener greeted the afternoon a soothed man.

After collecting my paycheck from work and doing some banking, I got myself a nice deli sandwich and headed for the beach. I'd thought to spend my lunchtime in the company of the Atlantic proper, but the beach parking lot at Nauset Light Beach was absolutely packed, and so I opted for my favorite bench at First Encounter Beach, on the bayside.


It didn't take my liverwurst sandwich and I any time at all to be targeted by an assortment of gulls, those seabirds known for having invented the expression, "You gonna finish that?"

They were pretty entertaining, though. I was more inclined to slip a few scraps of bread crust to the little guy, but he was deferring to the big one, who wasted no time in muscling the smaller one out of the way to grab what bits I was willing to share.

The tide was nearly all the way in and since it was a windy sort of an afternoon, there was a bit more splashiness to the bayside surf than we normally see there.

The wind also supported that interesting thing you sometimes see shorebirds doing, where they seem to pause in the air floating on the wind currents. As Douglas Adams once wrote, hanging in the air exactly the same way that bricks don't.

It's a neat trick, that. Unless, of course, they are hovering right over one and one's sandwich. I didn't dally with the sandwich, just to be on the safe side. I've never aspired to being Tippy Hedrin.

It was a beautiful day, for sure. Sunny and bright and clear, a touch of humidity sneaking in at us today, probably a prelude to the arrival of Hurricane Hanna and/or her remains on the weekend. The sun was pretty strong, so I didn't stay for too long, as I had other fish to fry and no sunscreen handy.



Next stop was my new digs, where I wanted to confirm my continuing interest in the place. I was greeted in the driveway by this wonderful hedge of roses.

Just a few weeks back it sported but a single blossom, but now, it's covered with them again. Oh, and the scent from these was quite delightful...just what I might have wished for!!

It was nice to get another look at the place today and start to get a sense of the layout of it all. I measured the ceilings for consideration of moving some bookshelves, and then talked paint colors and gardening opportunities with my friend L, who will also be my landlord.

On the latter front, I was happy to hear that there's plenty of room to play...and a pretty open form to it all. Apparently one of the neighbors also gardens, and has been occasionally discovered planting her divisions in the yard here. Colonizing, I suppose. Sounds like a fun place to bring some plants.

It sounds like this will be a great place for me and the cat, very comfortable and spacious, with lots of light and character. Here's a look at the place--the second story will be the gardener's new nest. To the left is one of several large lilac bushes all around the house and property.

It's also very nicely located for not only groceries and possibly walking to work, but it's also very near the bike trail and just down the road from Rock Harbor...and the nearby marshes I enjoy so.

11 comments:

Birdie said...

We had the remains of Gustav yesterday, just a steady but gentle rain. Gulls have their place, but most people think it's somewhere else. Your day off sounds like a good respite. I can't wait to see what you do with your new place.

MartininBroda said...

Thanks for introducing your new home; I’m glad you’ve found a good one.
And about Sarah Palin(I’m hesitant a bit to express my opinion about American politicians at this place), they tell us here, the Republicans fell in love with her, it’s of course upsetting. I guess those people a more aliens.

MartininBroda said...

Correction: “are more aliens” of course (argh). But so I have the opportunity to say how much I've enjoyed the walk, you’ve shared with us.

TigerYogiji said...

I couldn't bring myself to watch that video. I can only imagine the barbarism that it contained.

Heaven forbid that they get elected! :(

Anonymous said...

What an AMAZING POST!!! I think this is your best! I too had recently read about the wolf and bear killing and other horrible issues. But hadn't seen this film; I watched it. And I THANK YOU for posting. NEVER feel bad for posting something like that just because it's hard to watch. You are helping more people awaken. I hadn't known about that aspect of her until I read about it on another highly reputable site. So you go for it, because many don't know about it and need to. It's horrible and she LIVES in Alaska, a beautiful wild place. Tragic.

Also, Greg, I was SOOOOOOOO heartened to see you have found this nice place to live and it has gardening opportunities. It made me SO HAPPY for you as well as VERY proud of you. It shows your courage, your hunger for Life and your willingness to listen to the truth your heart's telling you.

I loved the gull, so peaceful and precious. Great photos with this new camera. :)

You are in my thoughts.
Hugs,
Robin

Anonymous said...

Palin is toast. She's been the Veep nominee for the least part of a week and already the scandal is starting.

That said, I find gulls interesting. They're phenomenal gliders.

Butch said...

The Sea Gulls have great eye sight and can spot a wrapped sandwich at quite a distance. You don't see them but they have already seen you and will wait close by and see if you leave anything for them. When we had our boat, it was the same thing. No birds in sight but bring out the food on the back deck and ten to twenty of them appear in an instant! ;-)

You new place has a nice feel to it from those few pictures you took, the best of luck in your new home. Amy the dog must be Owen's I presume I guess she'll have him take her for her evening walks.

Palin is what republicans have become. There seem to be very few Eisenhower republicans left in a party now run over by neo-cons. I can't imagine her as a V.P just an heart beat away from the presidency. Woe betide us all, if they steal the election. (again) I guess, that gave away my political leanings, eh?! ;-)

Java said...

It's encouraging seeing such an upbeat post today. Love the shot of the house and yard. I'm excited for your gardening opportunities. And the location sounds fantastic.

I enjoy feeding soda crackers to gulls. I toss the crackers up in the air and watch the birds grab them in flight. Yes, there is a Tippy Hedrin vibe with that action, but last time I did it, I hadn't seen that movie yet. Would I do it again? Dunno.

I like the shot of the whitecaps in the bay, too.

dykewife said...

yay!! the midnight garden will proceed. you must make sure to take the canna lily. what a glorious flower that is :) oh, and lots of other things.

Joe Jubinville said...

The canna is loverly... as in wouldn't it be. Icy orange. What a nice surprise.

Your new digs have possibilities galore Greg. The new flush of roses is welcoming you there.

Sarah Palin described herself as a pit bull with lipstick. So what is the surprise here? Four more months!. I've begun volunteering an hour or two at the local democratic headquarters... cool people, good feeling, every little bit helps. I recommend it highly.

Anonymous said...

You have a lovely blog, and though I couldn't stand to watch the palin video...it would just irritate me....I thought you might enjoy a sarah palin inspired plant selection at my blog http://greayer.com/studiog/?p=169.