looking

This commentary on changes in the natural world and otherwise has existed in some form since 2007.   So the number of new entries has certainly decreased over the years. Most of the observations are repeats of years past as we recycle through the seasons of the year here in Vermont. So I especially enjoy seeing something that I don't remember seeing before, and reporting on it.
It's been a hot and dry summer, and more than ever I have opted to park Allyn's car in the shade rather than in the driveway where the sunlight has been more direct. In recent days that has changed. The shadows of trees to the south of the drive now cover the driveway most of the day. We all know that the sun is traveling lower in the sky, but here is direct evidence of it. I have never noticed this before.

What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry, no matter how well selected, or the best society, or the most admirable routine of life compared with the discipline of looking always at what is to be seen?
Walden
Henry David Thoreau

Season of sunflowers

Thank you!

Spent the weekend on Martha's Vineyard. On Friday morning I took the car in for a checkup. The aide in the service department said that he spent his honeymoon on the Vineyard. I said we had some good friends who had invited us there for a weekend every year for many years. That it was the most summery place I know, and that we were very grateful for this ongoing opportunity in our lives.
This weekend was The Last Waltz so to speak as this aspect of our lives is drawing to a close. We have always packed a lot into these weekends; the porch, morning walks, walktoit beach, jumping off the bridge, hydrangeas, raucous dinners, ice cream, the stars, the boats, the light.
Of course, it is the people that make  these weekends particularly meaningful. The Blodgetts, Dudas, Crowleys, and others have been such interesting and amiable companions over the years. We met our future son-in-law, Andy at one of these weekends many years ago. We were happy to meet Corey's new girlfriend, Julie, here on this particular occasion.
Dick and Lisa are the people who have made all this possible. They have been so very kind to invite us back year after year. They have been so hospitable, and have worked so hard to make sure that every such weekend has been a time to remember and treasure. Thank you so much!

Vermont

Yesterday I had an occasion to visit Shrewsbury, Vermont. It is a beautiful area high in the mountains outside of Rutland. I stopped at Pierce's General Store there. It is the last of its kind in this area. I asked the woman behind the counter if they sold ice cream cones?
"Sometimes." She said. She brought me over to a small stand-alone freezer that contained pints of ice cream and some novelties. "We have ice cream and ice cream bars here. Knock yourself out." She said.
I pulled out an ice cream bar, and headed to the counter to pay. I told her I'd like an oatmeal raisin cookie as well. "Oh, I highly recommend our baked goods." She said. "We got in some gluten free muffins this morning. This gluten free product has really become a pain in the butt."
I told her I wanted to take a photo of the place, and I asked her to be part of it, to animate it. She obligingly walked behind the counter, and said, "Do you want me to look at you, or pretend I'm doing something?"

"Too late." I said. I've already taken it."
"You probably got me with my mouth open."
I wanted to say that there was a pretty good chance of that, but for once I kept my big mouth shut.

yellow

In many ways this is the season of yellow here in Vermont, sweet corn and St. Johns wort among others. Goldenrod is ubiquitous. Sometimes you feel it in your eyes before you see it.

awe, reverence, and gratitude

Frank Tyrlik on Google Photos

Last night I headed south to Rutland after the sitting in Shelburne. I was hit right between the eyes by the three celestial objects blazing in the sky. I immediately knew that the brightest one was Mars, quivering like a tulip in the evening sky, as so eloquently expressed by my son John in a poem many years ago. Above Mars was the planet Saturn, and below was Antares, the heart of the scorpion in the constellation Scorpius. Incidentally, Antares comes from an ancient Greek word meaning "equal of Mars."

I watched them sink to the south and west all during the ride home. I arrived about 10:30. Allyn had thoughtfully left the outside lights on for me, but I turned them off, and went out to see what I could see. The trio were barely above the horizon now, but the constellation Sagittarius had assumed center stage along with the Milky Way. I could make out the Andromeda Galaxy far off in the northeast. The Milky Way was exceptionally bright. Sagittarius actually looked like it was the victim of light pollution from a shopping center or some such in the southwest except there's nothing out that way. The usual feelings bubbled up, awe, reverence, and gratitude.

I ran into Pete this afternoon, and told him about it. I guess he was out with his binoculars last night as well. Some of the local astronomers are getting together tonight at the Castletown University observatory. I plan to be there. The same trio dancing in the sky should be visible again tonight.

Goodnight stars.

Goodnight air.

Margaret Wise Brown

Zen page a day calendar

not amused

Allyn's tomato plants are bearing fruit, literally. Last evening some deer were munching on the tomato shoots. Allyn was not amused.

drought

Went to pick up Allyn at the Rensselaer train station last evening and drove home through a good, soaking rain. This is a time when one usually sees a lot of frogs on the roads. There were some, but not as many as usual. The current drought has been difficult for many animals, frogs included. There was an article in the Rutland Herald yesterday about this. It said that "bears, snakes and ants are among the species having to venture further afield in search of food and water." It said that "herons and other birds have been feasting on frogs that have become more visible in ponds."
This is a photo of a small stream near our home. Believe it or not, it has more water in it after yesterday's rain than it did a couple of days ago when there was basically no flow at all. What is an inconvenience at best for us is a matter of life or death for species in the natural world.

thick

The lawn and fields are thick with crickets and grasshoppers. Late summer is upon us.

Lightning flashes!
So bright in the eyes of those
clutching at the thought of death.
Issa

curlier

Hot and very sticky over the past few days. Curly hair is curlier than usual. Salt clumps up in the salt shaker. One of my all time favorite "signs of the times" observations.

basil

tansies

Parking in the shade on hot days. Smell of basil coming in through the front door.

bees

As I said in an earlier post, we've seen honeybees around this year for the first time in a long time. I noticed the other day that we have a new neighbor who is keeping bees. His house is about 500 yards away. I wondered if that was close enough that we might be seeing his bees. Wikipedia says that honeybees forage up to two miles from the hive so it's likely this is where they're coming from.

star gazing

Another beautiful day. Even though the nights have been great for star gazing, I haven't done any for a long time. I got a call about a week ago from a former co-worker who was looking for operating instructions for a new telescope. I volunteered my neighbor Pete. Last night we went out. The scope wasn't the best, but we got some good looks at the moon, Saturn, the wild duck cluster, and the Hercules star cluster. It was great to get out there again.

But it is the stars as not know to science that I would know-the stars which the lonely traveller knows.
Henry David Thoreau
Zen page-a-day calendar

Blackberries

Another beautiful day. Blackberries ripening. Harvesting in the fields. Cacky playing with her dogs in the Ira brook.

Such stillness
the cries of the cicadas
sink into the rocks.

Basho
Zen page a day calendar