Beltaine

I think this is a bit dated. And it obviously didn't happen in Black Mountain (where someone would have hound dogs out to put it down!) 

Walpurgistnacht faun

How long have I been blogging?

 Somewhere there might be a stat listing when I started each blog - there are about 8 of them currently, some of which are private. Did you know that's an excellent way to keep track of notes on a similar subject? Well I'm doing that.

Anyway, I know I've deleted at least one blog, as no longer being something I wanted to have known, even if just by Mr. Google/Blogger.

The oldest one I found had been started in Nov. 8, 2008.

Wow. 

I retired in August, 2007. So I must have found this a fun way to record the doings of a retired person, enjoying making pottery, going to various interesting (to me) functions, and sharing my life here. Actually that blog was one I posted about the clay studio here in Black Mountain. I kept it up for years. But now I no longer make things with clay, and focus more on photos and writing on this keyboard rather than on paper.

So I guess I should mark that date and consider the next time it comes around as my blog-a-versery.

Today's quote: 

Create a soft place to land in your home a refuge from the stress of the day.

THis week's goings on

 

My new orchid, which my friend has found the name for.  A Clivia. Thanks Susan!

My homemade immitation crab salad. I stopped halfway through to take a photo.

What looking out my window gives today. The maple leaves are at a small size still, so the mountain is still visible.

My friend drove up to the Spruce Pine area where we passed these mines.

Spruce Pine has a history of mining, but I think now they just mine silica for technological use.

My friend was given this wonderful steel cart for holding ware boards. It was welded steel, and several guys loaded it onto her truck. I hope Cathy finds two more strong people to unload it. 

I loved these wonderful tall pines. Not sure the movie I took will work. It's a good test.

My second cataract removal went well, not quite as much fun watching the colors while my eye was completely numb and being altered. But you only have your first eye surgergy once! I'm thinking my level of anxiety was lower, so perhaps that affected my psychedelic experience. I thought it interesting that all the young nurses would say, "Oh you're from that era." when I used the psychedelic term. They would just say, kaleidoscope colors. Yep, I'm a old hippy. Love them physhedellic colors!

Sharing with Skywatch Friday.

Today's quote:

Between the dark sky and the dark earth we hang a light in a dark tree and sing of our wonder together.

PIR ELIAS AMIDON

The cycle of blooms

 

My little cactus doesn't care for the holidays, and decided to give me a bloom this week. She had one a few weeks ago also.

The orchid blooms are falling off the stem now, one or two each night. The other plant's blooms haven't started to die yet.

Sharing with Floral Friday Blooms. 

Today's quote:

Sometimes a part of us must die, before another part can come to life.

Plastic-free Asheville

 Thanks to Mountain Xpress for writing about this issue. If I lived or worked in Asheville, I could take the survey. I live in Black Mountain, in Buncombe County, so I can work for their becoming plastic free (or reduced plastic use!)

"Dear readers, Plastic trash is everywhere. Sure, I occasionally see bottles, bags and foam cups overflowing from trash cans at park picnic shelters or in fast food parking lots. But I didn’t realize just how prevalent plastic has become until I asked river watchers at MountainTrue why they are urging the city of Asheville to ban single-use plastic bags. When plastic stops being a bag, bottle, wrapper or cup, it breaks down to become plastic film, choking small creatures in our otherwise pristine national parks and remote rivers, says Anna Alsobrook, watershed science and policy manager for MountainTrue. “A lot of people would assume that if you took a water sample in the middle of the national forest it wouldn’t have any microplastics in it but that’s not the case anymore. These microplastics are carried by wind and dust and rain and weather so we have found them everywhere,” she says. You can weigh in by taking the city of Asheville’s survey online through Sunday, April 30. Don’t forget your reusable bags,

— Greg Parlier, reporter" As I mentioned in another post, micro plastic fibers are everywhere, in our food, drinks, and the air we breathe. You may think you're reacting to pollen and allergies but think about how micro-plastic might affect your breathing also. I bought a red micro-fiber blanket once (and gave it away!) and found it let float off of it little visible micro-fibers. Because they were red they showed up everywhere. So I totally believe plastic is in the air, water, and soil where fruits and vegetables are grown. I wonder if they can be washed off from organic produce. Just a thought. So to combat the plastic revolution which started maybe in the 40s-50s, we do know how to live without it...think of how MAGA folks think life should return to those times. They are right that pollution hadn't become recognized. But by the 60s we saw what man was doing to the environment, and the clean air act, and the Environmental Protection Agency came about. So to reduce single-use plastic, we can do simple things like carry reusuable bags to grocery stores.The recycling stories are mainly about how little actually can be recycled. And talk about it with friends. What are we each doing to reduce single-use plastic? It's not such a bad conversation to have! OK, I've brought my opinions into the Black Mountain blog...my bad. But to let you know my personal status, I'm having trouble looking at screens, so am thinking I may not be able to blog at all after getting the second cataract done, at least for a few weeks. Sorry dear friends. But we'll see how it goes. It will take a while before I get my new glasses because my eyes will have to adjust to the new lenses in them. Not the lenses in the glasses.

Today's quote:

Grateful hearts truly love. Grateful hands reach out. Grateful eyes see generations. Grateful minds imagine big ideas like justice, peace, and health. Our world needs no less than grateful living.

KATIE STEEDLY CURLING

Another watershed just over the continental divide ridge

 A recent post of the Swannanoa Valley Museum and History Center on FaceBook shared a great sounding event.

Hike to headwaters of Catawba River on old wagon road.

Join us on Saturday, May 6th, for a hike on a section of one of the oldest wagon roads into the Valley from Old Fort. The hike starts at Arthur Joe and Mary Hemphill’s pavilion at Fortune Fields and follows the Old Wagon Road to Hungry Gap, just above where the Catawba River bubbles out of the ground at its source. Afterwards, there will be a campfire/cookout with stories from descendants of the first settlers of the valley. To learn more and to register, click here:

Old wagon road hike

DETAILS:

Join us for this moderate 4.3 mile round trip hike on a section of one of the oldest wagon roads into the Valley from Old Fort.  The hike starts at Arthur Joe and Mary Hemphill’s pavilion at Fortune Fields and follows the Old Wagon Road to Hungry Gap, just above where the Catawba River bubbles out of the ground at its source.  Arthur Joe’s ancestor, Capt. Thomas Hemphill (1746-1826) was an original Revolutionary War patriot who owned part of this popular stage road up from Old Fort. Arthur Joe and Mary donated this large tract to conservation. Stick around after the hike for a campfire/cookout with stories from descendants of the first settlers of the valley. The hike will be led by Rick and Melinda Halford, who are the caretakers of the tract.

Cost: $50 for members/$65 for non-members. Some fees apply. 

Difficulty:  Moderate, 4.3 miles round-trip. Learn more here. 

Please e-mail svmhikes@gmail.com with any inquiries. 

Catawba Falls is near Old Fort, NC, just the other side of the continental divide from Black Mountain. It has been a popular hike and summer wading area, but was closed last summer for some changes, perhaps to make it more difficult for eager young people to fall and be injured. We're all hoping it will open again this summer.

Today's quote:

We can remember that today we can be a gift to each person we meet, just by looking at them with eyes of love.

TERRY PATTEN

Rewards for cat sitting

 Well of course I was paid by owners of Miss Ella cat. But in order to feel very special, I treated myself, and a friend to a cup of fresh coffee and a scone before going home.

My friend happens to work across the street from this sweet locally owned coffee shop. She's the daytime attendant at the Ingles big gas station...in a little office where she sells things like cigars and lottery tickets.

Situated in a little strip mall, with a great Mexican place next door, is Moment's Coffee Bar.

Several comfy aread with wi-fi, easy to sip and read news.

Besides fresh roasted coffee they have scones. I keep trying different flavors, because they always are sold out of my favorite (nuts and cinnamon) by the time I get there!

They are actually in the next little town closer to Asheville, NC - not Black Mountain. Shhh! Swannanoa is unincorporated, and named after the river and the valley in which we all live.

Today's quote:

From our first breath to our last, awe moves us to deepen our relations with the wonders of life and to marvel at the vast mysteries that are part of our fleeting time here, guided by this most human of emotions.

DACHER KELTNER

Earth Day 2023 - BONUS edition

 Last Saturday we had our big CELEBRATION at Lake Tomahawk, hosted by the Climate Conversation Group of the Unitarian Universalist Church.

I've already posted some of the photos I took while we were setting up. HERE.

The SWAN Action Network display with some of the members, Carlos, Barbara. Hannah, and Robertson.

First some appreciation for background music, from Annelinde Metzner, Bill Altork and Sue Stone.

Linda plays many instruments! She is also the Music Director at the UU Church in Black Mountain.

Bill Altork was our strolling guitarist. He also writes his own songs for YouTube recordings.

Linda playing the recorder. She shared that when the wind was blowing (it started coming off the mountains (very cold) around noon.)

Sue Stone sang tunes and played her guitar. She is the pianist often at the UU Church.

I doubt that Bette is signaling a "stop" to Bill, more likely expressing something about the display.

The conversation starter...Climate Disruption, Human Displacement. This is just a small sample of the 300 figures in the original installation. 

Kate shows Anna how a rain garden works...a display that included take-home information that was popular.

Some of the participants looking at each other's displays. The free seeds and plant starts were popular. 

As the woman in the foreground considers a packett of free seeds, in the background Kerrigan Monk from the Black Mountain News interviews one of the participants.

Susan Moore brought a lot of free seeds, here she's talking with Bette Bates.

Linda Tatsapaugh discusses her display about Plastic-Free Buncombe County with Larry Pearlman.

A petition for (our county) Buncombe County to be plastic free...with lots of information on the dangers of plastic in our own lives (we each probably consume a credit card's worth of micro-plastic-fibres every week.) This display included a place to sign the petition to limit single-use plastics in our county!

R. J. and Helen Bell discuss the plant-based foods display.

This display focused on the industries' pollution in raising animals, and the animal rights hurt by meat based diets, as environmental impacts.

Two artists discuss making small paper books, Suzanne Ziglar on the left, and Jean who demonstrated her techniques on right. I missed seeing if anyone else came over to make a paper book, but it was a great idea.

Some of the SWAN members who put together today's "action" - Barbara and Hannah seated, R.J. and Kevin standing.

Interested couple looking at the Swannanoa Watershed Action Network display

Here Carlos explains the "Save the Planet" game to Kate. It came originally from a double spread page in the New York Times last August. 

I was surprised when I asked Kerrigan if she wanted to play it and she said "Yes."

Barbara, Kerrigan, Hannah and Carlos played the game, a cooperation between players to reach a certain score in so many turns. We were just 5 points short of saving the planet...it only takes about 15 minutes, and is educational. I think school age children would enjoy it, but we didn't have many children come through our Celebration.

Hannah explains something about the watershed, just west of the Continental Divide and flowing along the drainage through the Swannanoa River to the French Broad River in Asheville. Sue Ellen is signing up to get more information from SWAN.

After a rainy night, blue skies were welcome. This was my view from the picnic shelter.

The inside view of the banner.

Bette strolled her grandson outside the shelter, perhaps inviting other young families to come explore our displays.

We all felt the event was a good use of time and energies, and were happy with the outcome for our first try at this. 

When I asked these triplet girls if I could take their pictures (later when they came to the SWAN exhibit) they said "no." So I'm glad we had this one. Photo by Susan Moore.

Dealing with that north wind coming off the heights (we're just 15 miles south of Mt. Mitchell here!) we all cleaned up pretty fast. 

And by 1:10 we had left the tables to the next people (and ducks and geese) who wanted to use them!

Deepest thanks to all the participants who brought their displays to make this event successful. We all went home with a sense of learning from each other, and having shared with the public our hopes in dealing with climate change. 

Cat sitting

A lovely drive up to the house where Miss Cat lives. Friends decided to go to FL to see her sister, so they asked me to drop by twice a day to feed Miss Ella Cat. I've done this before for them when they had 2 cats.

Anyway, here are some photos I snapped last night on the drive up the mountain in Swannanoa.

A lovely variety of Azalea - at first I thought Rhododendron because of the color...but the leaves are wrong.

Two views of a bit of a mansion, with lots of landscaping all around.

Next house up the slope is also well landscaped and architect designed.

View of same house through windshield as I left the next morning. That sounds like I spent the night, but I went up and down the mountain each time!

First view of my friends house...he is an architect so designed it himself.

Finally at my destination. 

Cat hasn't come out from under the covers on the bed yet. But yesterday she ate all her food. I'm thinking she must be nocturnal. We shall see tomorrow.

I did peek under these covers to make sure she was alright. She looked back at me. Eye contact made!

Today's quote: