Another lovely day at the Cape.....
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| Dave + pepper + lobster roll = heaven |
beluga
Friday, September 5, 2014
Thursday, September 4, 2014
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
On the road again.....
It feels really good. To be back on the road again, if only for a week, rejuvenates us all. We sleep better, we're more cheerful and even the dogs have gotten into the spirit of the trip.
We're taking a week's trip to Cape Cod with Cindy P and Walter right behind us. Tonight we're staying only a few hours from home - the Villages at Turning Stone Casino in Verona, N.Y.
None of us are gamblers or have any interest in stepping into the Casino but their campground is one of the nicest we've stayed at anywhere. The sites are far apart with lush grass separating us from our neighbors. Numerous ponds and lakes dot the grounds and tonight Beluga nestles into the mature trees next to the Pond's SunnyBrook.
Tomorrow we'll finish the drive to Bourne, Massachusetts and our home until Monday. We'll walk on the beach and eat Lobster til we can't eat any more....care to join us?
We're taking a week's trip to Cape Cod with Cindy P and Walter right behind us. Tonight we're staying only a few hours from home - the Villages at Turning Stone Casino in Verona, N.Y.
None of us are gamblers or have any interest in stepping into the Casino but their campground is one of the nicest we've stayed at anywhere. The sites are far apart with lush grass separating us from our neighbors. Numerous ponds and lakes dot the grounds and tonight Beluga nestles into the mature trees next to the Pond's SunnyBrook.
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| Walter checks out their chosen site |
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| Beluga is happy in this lovely, shady spot |
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| she has a nice view too! |
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| Dave consults with Lewis on the next leg of our trip, he's been there many times and his advice is invaluable |
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| Cindy waits patiently for her cocktail |
Tomorrow we'll finish the drive to Bourne, Massachusetts and our home until Monday. We'll walk on the beach and eat Lobster til we can't eat any more....care to join us?
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| reflection of fall color |
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
What do I say
I'm sitting here in Beluga, trying to think of what to say about our recent encounter with a real live frontier woman. A woman with a wanderlust to rival the most devout of us rv'rs. She travels alone, well not completely alone. She travels without a human companion or cell phone. She travels slowly, carefully, taking in every small detail as she passes by. She pays attention to every thing, her penetrating blue eyes see all. She meets new people in ways we never will, leans occasionally on their kindness, their curiosity, accepts their hospitality and changes their view of this country, what it is to be a woman, a human being and sometimes even their lives.
She has a ballet dancer's body and posture, an open friendly face with an always ready smile, and a gaze that looks right into your center. Her hands are large and competent, her love of life evident in every move she makes.
Her name is Bernice Ende and she calls herself a Lady Long Rider. This long trip she will be on the road for 2 l/2 years and will cover 8000 miles before she returns to her cabin in northwest Montana. Her traveling companions are Essie Pearl, a 13 year old Norwegian Fjord pony and 5 year old Spirit, a Norwegian Fjord Pony/Percheron cross. Their ample bodies, strong feet and steady temperaments make the trip possible. She treats them with utmost care, their comfort before hers, always.
I won't presume to tell her story, please go to her website, endeofthetrail.com if you want to really know who she is and what she does.
She was passing through Geneseo on her way to Rochester to see Susan B. Anthony's home. Cindy P was outside when Bernice and the girls rode by and couldn't let her pass without offering a bit of shade and perhaps a little pasture rest for the horses. It turned into a two day visit and we were lucky enough to have happy hour and dinner with them all on Saturday. Bernice took Cindy's invitation and set up her tent in the back yard next to the girls temporary pasture. She's one cool lady with so many stories to tell.
Monday morning we went back down to watch her pack up and load the horses for the next part of her journey. After seeing the Susan B. Anthony House, she'll head east to Seneca Falls and the home of the National Women's Hall of Fame and the Women's Rights National Historic Park. After that she wants to ride along the Atlantic Ocean and will perhaps winter somewhere in Maine. Her return trip will take her the entire length of Canada. She doesn't plan far ahead, she thrives on the unexpected.
I wonder where they are tonight.....
She has a ballet dancer's body and posture, an open friendly face with an always ready smile, and a gaze that looks right into your center. Her hands are large and competent, her love of life evident in every move she makes.
Her name is Bernice Ende and she calls herself a Lady Long Rider. This long trip she will be on the road for 2 l/2 years and will cover 8000 miles before she returns to her cabin in northwest Montana. Her traveling companions are Essie Pearl, a 13 year old Norwegian Fjord pony and 5 year old Spirit, a Norwegian Fjord Pony/Percheron cross. Their ample bodies, strong feet and steady temperaments make the trip possible. She treats them with utmost care, their comfort before hers, always.
I won't presume to tell her story, please go to her website, endeofthetrail.com if you want to really know who she is and what she does.
She was passing through Geneseo on her way to Rochester to see Susan B. Anthony's home. Cindy P was outside when Bernice and the girls rode by and couldn't let her pass without offering a bit of shade and perhaps a little pasture rest for the horses. It turned into a two day visit and we were lucky enough to have happy hour and dinner with them all on Saturday. Bernice took Cindy's invitation and set up her tent in the back yard next to the girls temporary pasture. She's one cool lady with so many stories to tell.
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| all the comforts of home |
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| Bernice introducing me to Spirit |
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| she covers them with sheets to keep the biting flies away |
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| in the background, Cindy's mini horses wonder where these newcomers came from |
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| Spirit's dorsal stripe (typical marking on Norwegian Fjord ponies). It runs from between her ears all the way down to the tip of her tail |
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| the girls enjoy a mutual grooming session |
Monday morning we went back down to watch her pack up and load the horses for the next part of her journey. After seeing the Susan B. Anthony House, she'll head east to Seneca Falls and the home of the National Women's Hall of Fame and the Women's Rights National Historic Park. After that she wants to ride along the Atlantic Ocean and will perhaps winter somewhere in Maine. Her return trip will take her the entire length of Canada. She doesn't plan far ahead, she thrives on the unexpected.
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| a place for everything - everything in its place |
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| Essie Perl has plenty of padding between her and Bernice's saddle |
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| Spirit dons her pack saddle |
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| Bernice gets ready to lift those big saddle bags and secure them to Spirit's pack saddle |
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| a girls got to have a little bling.... |
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| Bernice, Essie Pearl and Cindy P - Walter looks on |
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| out the driveway they go |
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| up the hill on Reservoir Road |
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| a last minute adjustment for Spirit |
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| happy trails Bernice.....I hope we'll cross paths again someday |
I wonder where they are tonight.....
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Good Things
Yesterday was a good day. Our builder broke ground on the lake cottage.
Its a mess over there, I'll miss second cup/cocktail hour beside the water but they'll finish quickly I'm told. Its just a tiny place. Stay tuned!
Last night we had dear friends Barb and Bob over for dinner. It was such a lovely night, warm and clear. We were able to eat our dinner outside on the farm's patio and then, as the evening cooled, we enjoyed Barb's peach cobbler in front of a roaring fire in the chiminea. Dave outdid himself and it was a blazing hot fire. Barb just loved it but we were expecting her toe nail polish to burst into flame at any moment!
One last good thing happened yesterday. A really good thing.....my frustrating health insurance snafu was finally resolved and I am now fully insured. Let me tell you, its a frightening thing to find oneself without any insurance, and really frightening to be told (at every turn) there was nothing anyone could do to help me. Long story short, all my formal complaints to NYS finally convinced the insurer to re-consider and re-instate me retroactively - WHEW!
It was a good day.
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| Dave talks with the builder |
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| Please be careful of my beautiful Copper Beech sir..... |
Its a mess over there, I'll miss second cup/cocktail hour beside the water but they'll finish quickly I'm told. Its just a tiny place. Stay tuned!
Last night we had dear friends Barb and Bob over for dinner. It was such a lovely night, warm and clear. We were able to eat our dinner outside on the farm's patio and then, as the evening cooled, we enjoyed Barb's peach cobbler in front of a roaring fire in the chiminea. Dave outdid himself and it was a blazing hot fire. Barb just loved it but we were expecting her toe nail polish to burst into flame at any moment!
One last good thing happened yesterday. A really good thing.....my frustrating health insurance snafu was finally resolved and I am now fully insured. Let me tell you, its a frightening thing to find oneself without any insurance, and really frightening to be told (at every turn) there was nothing anyone could do to help me. Long story short, all my formal complaints to NYS finally convinced the insurer to re-consider and re-instate me retroactively - WHEW!
It was a good day.
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Thursday night, cruise night - Friday, work day
Thursday night we drove down to the Charcoal Corral's Super Cruise Night. We took John and Pam there earlier in the summer for "dinner" and a small sampling of the local hot rods and classic cars regularly displayed on Thursday nights.
The Corral is a great summer evening's entertainment for families in the area. There is a restaurant serving everything that can be cooked on charcoal, hots, burgers, chicken, bologna and onions, etc., a pizza parlor serving knock-out pizza, and an old fashioned ice cream parlor.
Outside is a very nice miniature golf course and, for later in the evening, a two screen first run drive-in movie theater.
Thursday nights in the summer folks drive their restored hot rods and classic cars to the Corral and park them on the expansive lawn for folks to oggle. Twice a year, however, its Super Cruise Night and the lawns and surrounding farm fields are filled to capacity with cars, trucks and campers of all ages and conditions.
We've been to lots of car shows, an exclusive and very high end one in Palm Springs, a really colorful street rod show outside Las Vegas, etc., but this one is different. There were probably 300-400 cars in more or less neat rows and lots of people of all kinds wandering around.
Kids competed in chicken dance competitions, "how low can you go" limbo contests and even got prizes for the silliest dances they could come up with. People spilled out of the restaurant eating everything from slices of gooey pizza and huge ice cream cones to bbq chicken dinners and hot dogs. Everyone enjoying a beautiful summer evening smack in middle of acres of corn and farm fields.
The cars on display ranged from carefully restored pristine rods through brand new street cars to old rusty works in progress. One man's trash is another man's treasure I suppose.
Towards the end of the evening, people gathered along the shoulder of the road, waiting for these cars to show their stuff as they left the show. They were rewarded with a few rather spectacular
burn outs. The local police looked the other way, with smiles on their faces.....
We're expecting our builder to arrive later this week to begin work on our little cottage on the lake. In preparation we placed a call to the legendary Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Service, recently purchased by Mr. David's Lawnmowing and Tree Trimming Group. They were able to send someone over on Friday to trim and remove whatever foliage and trees were necessary for the coming excavators .
He did a stellar job, filling his black trailer with wood a number of times. I'm looking forward to a great campfire with what he couldn't take to the landfill. S'mores anyone?
The Corral is a great summer evening's entertainment for families in the area. There is a restaurant serving everything that can be cooked on charcoal, hots, burgers, chicken, bologna and onions, etc., a pizza parlor serving knock-out pizza, and an old fashioned ice cream parlor.
Outside is a very nice miniature golf course and, for later in the evening, a two screen first run drive-in movie theater.
Thursday nights in the summer folks drive their restored hot rods and classic cars to the Corral and park them on the expansive lawn for folks to oggle. Twice a year, however, its Super Cruise Night and the lawns and surrounding farm fields are filled to capacity with cars, trucks and campers of all ages and conditions.
We've been to lots of car shows, an exclusive and very high end one in Palm Springs, a really colorful street rod show outside Las Vegas, etc., but this one is different. There were probably 300-400 cars in more or less neat rows and lots of people of all kinds wandering around.
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| the cars spilled over into the drive in |
Kids competed in chicken dance competitions, "how low can you go" limbo contests and even got prizes for the silliest dances they could come up with. People spilled out of the restaurant eating everything from slices of gooey pizza and huge ice cream cones to bbq chicken dinners and hot dogs. Everyone enjoying a beautiful summer evening smack in middle of acres of corn and farm fields.
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| chicken dance competition |
The cars on display ranged from carefully restored pristine rods through brand new street cars to old rusty works in progress. One man's trash is another man's treasure I suppose.
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| a 32 ford with an attitude |
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| 61 chevy impala "bubble top" |
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| beautifully detailed 68 camaro engine compartment |
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| a not so beautiful DeSoto |
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| 87 grand national (don't ask Dave how the tire tracks on our garage floor got there - hint, he had one of these cars and he occasionally enjoyed its power off the line...) |
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| a fairly rare 60's hood tach (ometer) |
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| low rider truck and trailer! |
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| lovingly painted 34 ford 3 window coupe |
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| thunder clouds building |
Towards the end of the evening, people gathered along the shoulder of the road, waiting for these cars to show their stuff as they left the show. They were rewarded with a few rather spectacular
burn outs. The local police looked the other way, with smiles on their faces.....
We're expecting our builder to arrive later this week to begin work on our little cottage on the lake. In preparation we placed a call to the legendary Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Service, recently purchased by Mr. David's Lawnmowing and Tree Trimming Group. They were able to send someone over on Friday to trim and remove whatever foliage and trees were necessary for the coming excavators .
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| corner stakes |
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