Archive for ‘July, 2011’

This Friday

This Friday I had the pleasure of meeting Amy of Amy Elisabeth Photography, and her family – they were in the area on a family vacation…from the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan…territory I know and love from childhood vacations. They brought their lunch, I added a spot of tea and some peanut butter chocolate chip bars for dessert…ON the front porch :)!

A lovely, lovely family and I enjoyed being with them so very much. After some Bear and Bob, lunch and a visit, we took a short trip to Wayfarer’s, Bigfork and a Flathead Lake cherry vendor. I scored hugs from all 4 before we parted company.

Bear did very well. We are still working on a calm greeting, but the good news is that though the greeting phase is a bit over the top, he settles quickly and aside from a side affect that shall remain unmentionable….Bear joined us on the front porch and lay quietly while we ate and visited.

A good and busy week…ending on this Friday.

A Summer’s day

My friend Kris, is to thank for this photo! She emailed me as I was on my way to town…checking to make sure all was well as there had been no posts for several days. I stopped to call and talk for a bit…a full week getting things in shape for a work deadline, another bear!!!, a sore knee & shoulder that has required slower walks on more even ground…meaning not in my woods…AND, just not much I had to say!! I KNOW – THAT is hard to believe :)! I might not be chatty but I do love to post photos and snippets of life and all my profound thoughts…

So, received the email on my phone while I was dumping trash. Pulled out of the dump area to a nice spot off the highway to phone Kris. Before I started off again, I pulled out the camera as the sky, the lake, the fields, the light…perfect. Dbl-click to see it larger.

A perfect Friday

It is just after 10:00 p.m. Friday evening…VERY late for me, but these last several weeks my internal time clock has gone awry and I’ve been working until 8 or 9, to bed late but still up at 5:30 a.m. I’m thinking there will be a day of reckoning at some point…

But, this morning, it was wonderfully cool and it was Friday and I haven’t cooked much since last weekend…

Summer has chased away the little bit of sweet tooth I’ve had and savory is the ticket. A few English muffins, corn tortillas: half made into chips….

…and half for cheese and onion enchiladas with red chile gravy.

7:45 – cleanup is done for the muffins, tortillas, chile gravy and enchiladas and next on the list: a fresh batch of ginger syrup. My current mix of ginger, sugar, molasses, cinnamon stick and cloves chased away the smell of onions and oil, filling the cool house with the refreshing spice fragrance.

Bear and I had both our early perimeter patrol and a pre-work exercise walk, Bob was settled on the front porch and I was showered and at my desk by 9:00.

A good 3/4 of my work day was done by mid-afternoon so Bear and I took off for an afternoon walk and errand run in the Somers vicinity.

The Flathead Valley from an overlook just south of Somers, MT on a beautiful Summer afternoon…

And a cold glass of homemade ginger soda with lime to mark the end of a perfect Friday.

Good night and a Happy Weekend to all!

Our own little wild kingdom…bats, fawns and a bear

Don’t get your hopes up…there are NO…I say NO – photos of the wildlife. I wish there were. But when the wild kingdom visits the fambly Summers, sometimes there is too much going on to take photos. I know…if I were a REAL photographer…

Anyway, you will have to rely on my ability to tell the story in words with a few illustrations from the local talent.

Bats. They were the first. About 10 days ago, at shortly after 2:00 a.m. I woke to the noise of fluttering wings. I thought…that is a really big moth. I turned on a light and noticed the curtain fluttering. I drew it back and thought, “A mouse! – on the window sill!!” But then the mouse flew… Oh… a bat. I closed the bedroom door so that now Bob, the Bat and I were all closed in the bedroom together. A little creepy. Some time later, with much head ducking and a bit of colorful language, Bob was in the motorhome, Bear was in the office, the bat was in the bedroom and then I removed screens from the bedroom windows so the bat could get out. They will follow air currents. I have some experience. Bat gone, it is now 3:00 a.m. I left Bob in the motorhome, put the screens back in, let Bear out of the office and went back to bed.

We pretty much repeated this the next morning except with the same or another bat in the entire rest of the house. This despite the fact that I closed the damper on the woodstove. I did say I have some experience. And NOW I have a reminder in my calendar for next Spring to close the damper on the woodstove, and the doors and the draft thingy on the back of the stove.

On to fawns. Those were fun. They are so sweet and playful and full of the exuberance of youth. But I was working and in an internet meeting and the camera was in another room.

This is how I look when I’m in an internet meeting. I have a wonderful wireless headset so I can actually wander about if I’m just listening. Flipping the microphone up mutes sound from my end so I can get a fresh cup of coffee, put laundry from the washer to the dryer, check on Bob, get the camera…. which usually I keep on my desk…in case something happens outside my window. It wasn’t on my desk when the fawns were frolicking in the yard and I wasn’t just listening. Rats.

And then!! – Yesterday!! Again the camera was not on my desk and I wasn’t just listening and a smallish black bear walked right in front of me…maybe 10 feet from my window. BUT, Bob was on the front porch!!!

Although the above photo is a re-creation, Bear was in the office with me. It was just after noon, I had the house closed against the heat. Bear did not react. I did, though! Fortunately, it was a work session versus a high falutin’ kind of meeting…although I probably would not have done much different…I was explaining something I’d coded when I saw the bear. Mid-sentence I gasped and then shouted “There’s a bear in my yard and my cat is outside…be right back”, flipped the mike up, shut Bear in the office and went to rescue Bob.

Now…bears are omnivores but mostly they eat vegetarian so I wasn’t thinking the bear would decide Bob would be a good lunch, but, still. When I opened the front door, Bob jetted inside to the bedroom grumble-growling all the way.

Wide-eyed, and tail thumping, he kept an eye on the bear as it made its way north onto the state land beyond my property.

He continued a low growl as he watched.

He watched for close to an hour before he relaxed. He declined an invitation to go back outside…

But today, he’s back on duty at his post…

As is the bear dog.

I feel very safe.

Almost Sunset

I couldn’t resist…worked late, took Bear to our little valley subdivision walk spot and as we turned to head back to the car, the sun dropped behind the clouds.

***Edit the next morning (Wed 7/13)… It was 8:00 when I left with Bear…LATE for me :)! I was tired – grabbed keys, loaded Bear and went… didn’t take my big camera. This is from my phone camera. We are having the kind of weather we normally have late spring – juicier air and clouds which produce both the occasional thunderstorm as well as colorful sunrises and sunsets. Sunset is still after 9:30 p.m.