Thursday Threesome: Fluffy Bunny Rabbits

Onesome: Fluffy-- is as fluffy does! It's almost lemon meringue season at that pie shop. Do you do fluffy pies? ...or is it fruit all the way for you? (Okay, Southerners: go ahead and expound on rhubarb...)

I like ice cream pie, chocolate pie, peach pie, strawberry pie, and party cheese pie (that was Mimmie's specialty) but my favorite is apple pie. I make a mean apple pie, and with fall approaching, I'll be getting out the rolling pin.

Twosome: Bunny-- slippers? Yes? No? Barefoot? Shoes? What do you schlep around the house in when it's cold outside?

I wear my shoes at all times, unless I am sleeping. With my orthopedic problems, I have no choice. Before they became serious (a long time ago), I wore LL Bean Wicked Good Slippers in the winter.

Threesome: Rabbits-- Have you ever had little furry pets? What varieties? Are there any in your future?

My sister had a rabbit. He was a rescue, and quite mean! You had to wear gloves to handle him. I've always had pets; most have been our family dogs, but as a kid, I had a goat Heidi and a sheep Buffy (and fish, but they aren't furry), my mother had and still has horses, and as an adult I have had dogs (the dearly departed and still missed Howie, Penny and Rudy). Now I have two dogs and a cat. Sam and Edna are quite furry, but Sophie has hair issues. None of them are little, though; Edna is a big 14 pound cat (and that's not from being fat), and Sophie and Sam are 50 pound dogs. Yes, there will always be pets in my life, I can't imagine it any other way!

I finished my Fall syllabi and various other updates for classes. That's a relief. Next on the agenda is getting this house into better shape before my semester schedule starts next week.

Two things he conveniently omits in this article (I assume because they don't fit with his anti-goose theme): only a few of the geese at the airport are from Collins Park, and the airport staff reports that they have always had a lot of geese there, even before some came over from Collins Lake.

And, continuing on with the animal mistreatment theme, here is a story about what all too often is the outcome of the annual abuse fest which in a just world would be illegal.

Thursday Threesome: Name that Tune

Onesome: Name-- Ah, what about names? How did your blog name come to be? Is there a story there?

The Gully Brook is a little stream at the farm in Samsonville. It runs behind my house.

Twosome: that-- and this. We've all thought about a change of locations from time to time: is there any place you'd like to try living for a while? (You can go back home when you're done with the tryout .)

Not really. I have lived in Boiceville, West Shokan (both in the Town of Olive), Oneonta (in Otsego County), New York City, Brewster (in Putnam County), Waterford (when we first moved to the Capital Distict), and now in Castleton (in Rensselaer County) and Samsonville (in the Town of Olive in Ulster County); they are all in New York State, and with the exception of those months in New York City, they are all in upstate New York. I spent the first 17 years of my life in the Town of Olive, five years in Oneonta, about 18 months downstate, another ~18 months in Waterford, for the past 20 years I've been in Castleton, and for six years I've also had a house in Samsonville. I was born in (upstate) New York, I have (nearly) always lived here, someday I will be planted here, and that's the way I want it.

Threesome: Tune-- us into what you're listening to lately. ...anything on your radar we should be aware of?

I like music, and have a lot of CDs, but I really haven't been listening to much of anything lately. I mostly prefer silence. In the car, sometimes I listen to CDs...lately what comes to mind are Bare Naked Ladies, the Prarie Home Companion soundtrack, and Dolly Parton.

More great news! This time, for horses.

This Freeman article is a somewhat unfair report, but the good news is that the large parcel goes down in flames again! Hooray!

The phone just rang...it was an automated message from Andrew Cuomo about the primary for Attorney General.

This article in today's TU doesn't exactly show the university in the best light!

Had a lovely weekend, the weather was supposed to be rainy and overcast, but Friday night and Sunday were warm, and so I was able to swim. The pool is still hovering around 80 degrees. Precious last weeks of summer. Today I went with my niece who has taken a new job nearby, looking at neighborhoods and a house.

Last week I noticed that some of the cucumber vines were wilting. I feared the dreaded bacterial wilt, caused by the dreaded cucumber beetle. There is no good organic control. Cucumbers are one of my best garden crops, and they are just starting to produce. I searched desperately on the Internet for answers. Through observation, I determined that it isn't cucumber beetles after all, but squash bugs! Ugh. They are destructive, but luckily, unlike bacterial wilt, the damage can be controlled. So I became a predator. I sat in the tomatoes and cucumbers, silently stalking those horrible bugs. It will probably take me several days, but I think I can win this battle.

Too bad I cannot say the same thing for the flea infestation. I am now on round three of laundering everything, flea combing, bathing. Sophie alternates between tolerating it, and being vicious. Sam is terrified of the baths, and a bit too playful and wild for the combing. Edna is, as in everything, a good patient.

As I was watering the plants today, I noticed that someone ran over a squirrel right in front of the house. It is definitely dead (it is totally flat) but it is really bothering me. I think I should bury it. No doubt the culprit was not observing the village speed limit (so many drivers use this steep one-way street as a highway that I always get out of the way when I am on the passenger side of the car and I see a vehicle coming). Honestly, it's amazing I don't see more smashed animals in front of the house, considering the large number of squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits and groundhogs in the yard, and the speed demons who think 30 mph is just a suggestion.

Thursday Threesome: Free Amazon Prime

Onesome: Free-- isn't always free! What "freebie" have you discovered over the years that really isn't?

I can't think of anything. In my experience, freebies usually aren't. Amazon Prime is "free" for me for the next three months, but then I will have to pay $79 per year to keep it. But I knew that when I signed up.

Twosome: Amazon-- It's been a bit since we've done our Amazon Survey: do you use Amazon? Good? Bad? Indifferent?

Funny, since the subject of yesterday's post was Amazon Prime. Yes, I use Amazon a lot and have for years. It's very convenient and I have never been disappointed. It's wonderful for sending gifts. I'm expecting my grocery order today, in fact.

Threesome: Prime--Time! Are there any shows you are looking forward to seeing in the Fall lineup on TV? (okay, football counts ).

I don't know what's in the fall lineup and it would be an understatement to say I also don't care.

Recently, I was offered free Amazon Prime for three months - so I signed up, and yesterday, after receiving a $10 email coupon, I placed my first grocery order. It was tough to find items where it is worthwile to have a dozen huge boxes to store...so I selected Poptarts, tea, and biscotti. There were some others that seem promising, but I couldn't remember how much they cost in the market, so I'll have to do some research to figure out what are the bargains before making a commitment.

Two posts in one day! My summer session grades are done, yippee!

Here are two pictures I took this weekend:



The day lily in S'ville



The hay is cut!

Thursday Threesome: Disc Golf Season

Onesome: Disc--overy channel madness: did you catch the Mythbusters show with the bit about the Mentos and Diet Coke (episode 57)? Have you tried it at home yet? What am I talking about? Psst: it's a fun project with the kids...

I don't have cable and have never heard of this before. And I'm not into cola, any type, at all.

Twosome: Golf-- Do you play? Do you watch? Do you care? Even the Opens? Just wondering...

No, no, no, no. Enough said.

Threesome: Season----ing salt? What spices do you routinely use when you're cooking up a little something for yourself? A little tarragon? Cinnamon? White pepper? What perks up a meal for you

I love spices, and I grow basil, oregano, parsley, chives, dill, and rosemary. Some years my mother and I grow garlic. I like other spices too, but garlic is my favorite, I use it in almost everything.

Back in Castleton since last night after a very busy few days in Samsonville. It is not as hot now, but last week was boiling - humid too - and yesterday was also very warm. The pool got a lot of use, Thursday's water temperature was 86! I don't think it ever got near that last summer. Went to my brother's birthday party on Thursday, friends from Buffalo visited for several days, went hiking and walking and site seeing, went to the casual mixer night for the high school class of '71 reunion on Friday, got in hay on Sunday, went for ice cream, visited with an endless stream of people and hosted many BBQs on our deck. The animals are tuckered out (and so are we). Now I am facing my grading deadline for the summer class...Thursday, 11:59 p.m. I should make it without a problem if I don't procrastinate much more. I am going to pick my first green beans from the garden this afternoon! Yum!

Thursday Threesome: Time to Fill

Onesome: Time-- wasters in your life... Just a brief jump onto your soapbox: What is the biggest bother you have in this department? I mean, something you can post without incurring familial or job related problems ...

Phone calls from telemarketers. They always come when I am doing something that should not be interrupted, such as cooking, or showering, or eating dinner, or gardening, or concentrating on work. So the pan gets burned, or I get water all over the floor, or the dogs try to get my plate, or I practically break my leg running to the house, or I lose my place. Whenever I remember to bring the phone with me (outside, or in the bathroom, or near the stove) it doesn't ring, but I always does otherwise. Must be Murphy's Law. I am on the Do Not Call Registry, and it has worked well, but charities and companies that you have done business with in the past can still call.

Twosome: to-- beat the heat! It seems like it's all sort of hot all over the Northern Hemisphere this Summer! What are you doing to handle the heat? ...and for those Down Under? Well, your turn may come in just a few months; do you have any plans for then?

When in Castleton, use the A/C. When in Samsonville, swim!

Threesome: Fill-- your cup with a cold something! What are you drinking this summer to keep cool? ...and if you're a tea drinker: is it "ice tea" or "iced tea"? Just curious...

Bottled water or Polar old-fashioned ginger ale. And I say "iced."

My class ends tomorrow, and I am off to S'ville this afternoon until Monday night. Lots of fun activities planned!

I was interrupted twice by the phone while I was eating dinner. The first was a recorded message from Tom Suozzi, asking for support in the primary. That's the third time I have been called. But I guess it was intended for Bob, since I can't vote in that primary.

The next call was from a fundraiser for the Shriners. He asked if I knew all the great things the Shriners do for handicapped children, and I said "no." So then he delivered the pitch. They are looking for donations so they can take kids to see the circus. I patiently listened, and when he got to asking me to contribute, I said, "I am against the circus and I would never pay for anyone to see it." Which is true, even as a kid I detested the circus. So he said, "would you be willing to donate a small amount, how about $10?" I thought, hello! Did you listen to what I said, or are you just reading off a list of responses when someone says no? But I replied, "the amount is not the issue. I think the circus is animal abuse." And then he hung up on me!

Ha. An amusing end to a story that is personal for me. (Did I mention I emailed the congressman's office the day after my failed attept to educate the campaign workers and let him know that the petitions would include a lot of bogus signatures? No? Well, I did.)

Something interesting that is mentioned in the linked post is that Long, who is Gillibrand's attorney, is considering challenging the challenge, to see if he can get some of the thrown off signatures reinstated, because of "the part of New York’s arcane Election Law that requires signers to write the town or city in which they live, NOT the hamlet or village."

When the two men asked me to sign the petition, I noticed that the column for town next to names of my neighbors was blank. They told me not to fill it in, acting like it was to save time; they would do if for me. I wasn't really comfortable with that, but since my signature was no good anyway, I didn't argue. And remember, there were those bloodthirsty mosquitos. Now I wonder...was it because they had been instructed to fill it in since people do it incorrectly (listing village instead of town), and that gets the names invalidated, or was it because they wrote in town names from the 20th district? (I'm generally not a suspicious type, so I'll go with the former.) Too bad that wasn't the reason the names were thrown out! And too bad they didn't spend some time learning more about which towns are in the district! Oh I forgot, Kirsten's local.