Steens Mountains July 23

 Birthday trip to top with Julie and John 

Summer 2022 Update

 

I have had problems trying to pull photos from my computer so I haven't been posting to this blog.  I think this photo of me and my magpie baby friend will post.  She fell out of the magpie nest and I found her on the ground one Sunday morning this summer.  I fed her and she rejoined the family in about ten days.  They flew off together as magpies families will.  Maybe I'll see her next year.  It was a delightful interlude with nature.

I'm working on novel No. 12, another historical fiction which requires a lot of research. It is set in San Francisco and Sacramento CA in 1868.  The history will probably cover the women's suffrage movement, indigenous peoples of California, and the making of the transcontinental railroad, among other events.  I'm drawing the characters from my first two Wings books.  

The weather this year has been awful.  A cold spring with the same forecast everyday - cloudy, cold, windy.  The summer has been highs in the 90s, sun, heat advisories.  At least we haven't had too much smoke.  Our garden has suffered. John harvested onions and garlic.  Tomatoes are pitiful. I harvested beets, although I planted tons of seeds.  We are getting ready for winter now.

Relatives and Friends

Cousins Kendra and Twila.

Their mother always includes a photo with their Christmas card

Niece Lynda, brother-in-law Dennis, sister Pat,
nephew Scott and niece Kimberly

Nephew Scoot and Niece Jen and
their family. 

Niece Kimberly, Scott, and Lynda

Niece Lynda who lives in Phila 

It has taken me forever to assemble this collection of photos of the relatives and friends, some from the 2020/21 Holidays.  I've had problems with upload photos from my photo file to blogspot. What a pain. But here are some of the photographs I collected from the holidays. 

We're still in the pandemic. There was an attempted insurrection on January 6 and a polar vortex in February that had friends in Texas without power for several days.  Someone is trying to tell us something. Maybe we should listen.  

Our Christmas decorations

John with Fairchild in her
blankie

Our dear friends Marlis and Ralph Hodges in
Cat Spring Texas

Nephew Bob and Niece Kimberly
at their house in York PA

 

Midnight the cat

Iris Stahl and my sister, Kay,
the one with the big mouth

David, niece Lynda's husband, with their collection of cats.

Cousins Eleanor and Larry, who live in York PA.
 He retired the end of 2020. Happy Retirement!

Nephew Eric, Eric Jr, Mandy, and Kylie
at their home in PA

   

Niece Holly's dogs. See below for her family

The view looking east from the Lazy J

 Niece Holly with husband, Lucky, and sons Dayton, Zander and 

 

God daughter, Kimberly, attorney in Texas

Niece Annette and Steve with their children, Ian, Liah, Dublin and Ui.

Fairchild

Summer/Fall Garden

This is just some of the veggies we raised this summer. Also turnips, dragon carrots, lots of beets - white and red, sorrel, mustard, arugula.  Fresh and nutritious.

Carrots from library seeds

Greens in pots: tats, kale, spinach

newly planted elm trees in our new elms grove

Amaranth in pot in sun porch

Amaranth again

My experiment with greens in pots indoors

amaranth again

more amaranth

more amaranth

greens in pots

greens: tats, kale, mizen, spinach, raddichio

 

Life in a Pandemic

We've been sheltering in place during this terrible pandemic. We are fortunate that we are retired and don't really have to go anywhere.  We stocked up early but already had quite a store because John, being a Red Cross volunteer, believes in being ready for a disaster.  We were thinking earthquake not virus. Speaking of earthquakes on March 31st we felt the effects of a 6.5 earthquake centered in Stanley Idaho about 300 miles east of here. The house moved, curtains swayed, and it set off the grandfather clock. That was the excitement for that week.  All the while the pandemic was becoming really serious.

So I've been taking drawing lessons on YouTube during this time. One of my efforts is here.  I'm thinking to draw the cover of my work in progress, Wings of the Dawn, set on the Oregon trail in 1853. It would involve a covered wagon. The heroine is going to California to escape her past in New Orleans. So every morning I'm traveling the Oregon trail in 1853. It requires a lot of research which is interesting.  My biggest takeaway from the research was that the over landers were crazy to pull up stakes and move 2,000 miles west.

 Above I'm setting in the first garden seeds which have finally sprouted. I've planted beets, two kinds of peas, kale, carrots, spinach, and turnips in different raised tubs.

To the left are some of the greens I grew inside for my baby greens garden. (See previous post) They are quite yummy and turned out well.  I grew radishes, kale, sorrel, spinach, tatsoi and cauliflower, which needs to go into the garden but we are still having freezes.

 Here is a Russian Olive tree with a magpie nest over our pond.  A larger photo is below. The nests are an amazing collection of woven sticks that withstand strong winter winds and storms. Magpies renovate old magpie nests. This one hadn't been used in a while. But a noisy threesome moved in this spring. They are now setting on eggs, hopefully.  We both love magpies. They are very noisy and funny and smart.

 Here's the big blue spring moon last month looking east from our place.

This is one of the lilies John bought me for Easter. I also have a drawing of this. My drawing instructor says to practice, practice, and practice on things from real life.

 Fairchild enjoys a tough afternoon of sunbathing.

First radish from the greens garden. We got about a dozen. I sautéed the greens with olive oil and garlic.

Snow Geese on Sewer Ponds, Hines, Oregon

My friend, Terry Keim, sent me this photo today. She lives in Hines and walks on a nature trail that goes by the town sewer ponds.  What looks like snow on the ground are actually snow geese on the sewer pond. They like the warm water and I've heard you can trace migrating geese from city to city on their sewer ponds.  Terry is active on Facebook and posts her photos, poems and observations on a regular basis. Thank you, Terry.

Baby Greens Garden

Last week when it was sunny I snapped a photo of our baby greens garden. I started cool weather plants on our sun porch which is not heated but gets warm durning the day.  My idea is to grow "baby" greens which seem to be all the rage now. I can snip them off before they get big and have salads for us. I also sprout mung beans in a jar which are great in salads. I'm growing seeds from that the library gave out for readers to grow. I got tatsoi, radicchio, sorrel, radishes, bunching onions, cauliflower, and kale. The idea is to let some go to seed and give back to library.  I also planted spinach and three different kinds of tomatoes from seeds we saved. I also planted a row of spinach in one of our raised beds and the snow will be good for them. I'll plant more spinach outside this week. I've already transplanted some of the greens into bigger pots.

Greens are a little bigger.  Photo below shows a robin outside the window look for a bite to eat.

I've transplanted quite a few more and they are growing well. I planted more spinach, lettuce and peas in the raised beds outside. We had a few radish greens already. But the plants need to get a little bigger.