My friend's Hydrangia and a preview of a garden in which I like to eat

 

I was surprised to be greeted by this lovely bush as I walked to her door last week!

This lovely setting is a favorite breakfast/brunch stop...I'll share more about it soon!

Sharing with CDP Theme Day for August, Gardens

Today's quote:

"Do not grow old, no matter how long you live. Never cease to stand like curious children before the Great Mystery into which we were born.

~ Albert Einstein

Just a quick note on locks and keys

 I went out last evening (Fri. night) to a pot luck and movie at church. Good food, mostly vegetarian. I brought brownies, not vegetarian because eggs were in them. Some of the plant based people ate them.

Movie was Life of Otto. It was very good...Tom Hanks playing a grumpy old man was excellent.

I came home in the dark. I  didn't leave my porch light on because the woman across the way says it shines in her bedroom window (which only has a blind across it). So it was dark, and I was thinking of bears mainly as I got out of the car, and carried the 4 remaining brownies to my house.

Put the plate on the banister, and reached to open the storm door, with key in hand to unlock the house door. Storm door wouldn't open. Now what?

I turned about, which always helps one think. No scratching of head here. Looked around. No help. I could call the emergency number for the maintenance man and get him to come over, but what could he do? Cut the screen to reach in and unlock the storm door? It had no jiggle nor way to slide a credit card in.

So I looked at my keys in hand, and chose one I don't ever use, and pushed it against the screen, about 1/2 inch from the frame of it (there seemed no way to move the screen frame out of the door either.) Pulled the key down the screen, and a neat cut appeared. Tried to get my hand through, needed a bit more room, cut some more.

Then reached in for the button under the handle, and pushed it back into unlocked position. Voila' and I could open the storm door, and somehow found the keyhole for the house door, and there was my kitchen light on.

Unlocked

Locked (and yes, it's easy to close while locked.)

I used to not lock my house door if I was only going to be gone 15 minutes or so, and most of the time I go out in the daylight. This was my first driving since cataracts removal at night, and I noticed how bright and clear the lights were. But I had decided that a movie meant I might be out past dark, which is now at 8:30 here. So I locked up. There is no way the screen door handle had been in the locked position when I left. It can't just be slid into that position.

Conclusion. Someone tried to get in, couldn't, and then set the lock on the storm door and pushed it closed. At least it wasn't a bear. But even if people are awake in their apartments, there aren't any outside after dark, or at least not many, just those coming home, like me...a rareity. I wonder who might have been brazen enough to do this to my door. And why.

It took me a while to get to sleep after all the excitement of Tom Hanks as Otto and the other wonderful actors I saw. Shall I tell you another part of my deciding I was the Key Holder that night?

The church has a lock box, which some people have the combination to, in order to get the two keys that open the doors. The woman who usually sets up for this pot luck decided not to come. So there were four people waiting with their covered dishes in the parking lot when I pulled up. I said, ok, I've got the combination to the back door, here on my phone. So I walked around back, and put in the code, and it didn't work, and so I went back around front, saying the code I found on my phone says lock box, so I tried it on that keypad. No luck either. So we called the woman who usually lets us in, and asked Mary for the code. She gave it to us, and it worked! But the trick of lock boxes is, you have to enter the code again to close the keys back in. And by then it was dark. A friend held his cell phone up so I could see the pad, and we finally got the lock box open and installed the keys, then unlocked it again to close the lock box. Whew.

By then for some reason my phone was battery in the red. So when I got home, and dealt with all my own door problems, I didn't have any light from it to help.

The first thing I did was plug it into the charger! This Key Holder had had it by then!

Today's quote:

Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.

MARY OLIVER

The porch garden at end of July 2023

 

Some cuttings seem to be doing ok in the square bed. I had to severely prune the begonia (see below) and just stuck a stem in the dirt to root. We'll see if that works.

Nobody really likes the afternoon sun, so coleus is kept most of the time where just morning sun hits it.

Another blogger suggested when I top off the buds to throw them in my dinner, so basil buds were a good addition to leftover stew that night.

The hanging geranium continues to produce blooms, and survives the heat up there! I have to make sure to flood it with water at least every other day. Our forecast rain storms seldom happen!

I tried hanging up the peppermint plant, because it's got these long stems going out so gracefully, but it was too hot, so it's back on the porch floor.

The Nonstop Joy Begonia looked so beaten down after the one storm we had last week. So I've tried taking off all the sad looking flowers and leaves. But yesterday I cut every one of the growth buds on the stems, like I do on the Basil. It wouldn't really help the plant to keep growing longer stems that just fall down. So maybe now it can make some new growth closer to the stem. That's my fingers crossed.

Here's the porch yesterday. But I've switched the mint and the coleus as hanging planters, to keep both of them happy. Neither one can take that afternoon sun that comes directly at them. This was taken in the morning.

I confess I haven't worked much on plants...2 orchids are demanding to be repotted, and I hang my head in shame. 

Today's quote:

Fearing no insult, asking for no crown, receive with indifference both flattery and slander, and do not argue with a fool. 

-Aleksandr Pushkin, poet, novelist, and playwright (1799-1837)

The wonder of a sunny day

 

At the top of our Town Square park is one of those "Splash Pads" play in water features. Here I was waiting in traffic and got to watch a young girl take her tiny little dog in with her (in her arms) and other smaller children yelling from glee at the cold water hitting them. Parents and grandparent watch them. I moved on, so you'll have to make up your own ending to the story of the girl and her dog.

As you can see in my header, I did take a pano shot. When I was the first car waiting at the red light, it was a great opportunity! Here you can see the block long store of Tyson's Furniture.

A favorite General Store (Town Hardware) is visited by locals and tourists alike, perhaps with different purchases in mind!

Going west on State St. (US 70) will eventually take me home. I will try to find the old photo of this intersection to add here.

Nobody knows when this photo was taken, between 1930 and 1950 is their best guess. The American Cafe is now Keller Williams Realtors with a red awning, see photo just before this.  That interesting  marquee covering the angled entrance on the left doesn't quite comouflage those curved upper windows on the Town Hardware Store. (Go back 2 photos before to see they are still there.)

Sharing with Skywatch Friday

Today's quote:

Everyone confesses that exertion which brings out all the powers of body and mind is the best thing for us; but most people do all they can to get rid of it, and as a general rule nobody does much more than circumstances drive them to do.

 -Harriet Beecher Stowe, abolitionist and novelist (1811-1896)

Climate Conversation continued

This shows you the kind of work we do...talking about bulk buying of ethically produced goods...here the sunshine of S.'s shirt matches a roll of "Who Gives a Crap" tissue wrap. I think it's made of bamboo (the tissue.) After I try it I might go in for a small part of a bulk purchase.

 Several of us decided it was a beautiful day and we'd replenish our calories with my favorite Mexican restaurant, Ole' Guacamoles.

We enjoyed sitting out under these "whatever they're called." 

No that's not razor wire along the handrail on the bridge...but twinkle lights.

And the Flat Creek flows on it's way to the Swannanoa River.

PS, I decided to go back to basic white background, whew, what a relief. And I couldn't wait till my birthday to take down my photo.

TOday's Quote:

A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep.

 -Saul Bellow, writer, Nobel laureate (1915-2005)

Meet you at the Drip...

  Dripolator CoffeeHouse that is...

My iced decaf Americano didn't last long!

A bit of change to the seating area. The whole place was rennovated a few months ago, and the differences are somewhat underplayed. New counter, and more space behind it for baristas.

They still honored my "special customer card" which will eventually give me a free something or another (after 10 purchases.)

I noticed the entrance and exit door doesn't press to close on you, which definitely used to make it hard to go out with a drink in hand. There is a lighter color scheme, but less area for singles to work (now just 3 bench seats with tables). Lots of folks come here for free wi-fi still. But they'd prefer to use a table for 4 rather than sit right next to someone who can look at your screen. Of course!

But you know I'll be back. It's a traditional meeting place for Black Mountainers.

And a PS for today: I just figured out why we eat toast with the buttered side up. I had to try a few bites the other way, and found I had a buttered lower lip as well as chin. Who knew...

Second PS is that I've decided writing two blogs daily has gotten out of hand for me, so find me doing updates on my other blog When I Was 69 (now 80).

Today's quote:

A writer must refuse to allow himself to be transformed into an institution. 

-Jean-Paul Sartre, writer and philosopher (1905-1980)

There's gold in the flowers, plus a blogger friend loss

 Before I give my post today I want to confirm that we've lost fellow blogger John, of Beans And I on The Loose. His wife Janie wrote and said...

Hello follower's from Beans and I on the loose...

I am sad to report that John passed away July 21, 2023 in South Dakota. It was very unexpected, he was 74 young. It was a peaceful passing, he went to sleep in motorhome. I am his wife of 53 years. I knew something wasn't right when he was not replying to my texts, emails, or calls. I was able to find him with help of our two adult children. Beans is doing fine, however misses him a lot too. He was a good man and will be dearly missed by his family, and his followers. He loved his followers these past 10 years, as much as he loved reading and writing. There may be additional posts here in near future. Hold him in your daily thoughts...

I added this comment:

 Sending heart felt condolences to Janie and family, and poor old Beans. I just decided to check (his) old post again, and was somewhat relieved, but mainly shocked that John is gone from our blogging community. Thank you Janie for letting us know what happened. That is the relief. My heart goes out to you all as I'd been chatting as a commenter here for the last couple of years, and not expecting many answers. The posts were always interesting. I understand other bloggers have been followers for much longer. There is now a gap in our network, in the shape of John.

I've lost other blog friends, and there was often a sickness that was known about, so their sudden disappearance was kind of understood. One  blogger said she moved to be with her daughter, and we never heard from her again...which I hope means she was getting good care. Our blogger-land is fragile, where there are new people every day starting to post, but not as many as there were 10 or 15 years ago. 

The Swannanoa Histry Museum is the next entrance, then the Fine Arts Center. But this historic marker should really be placed in a less visited place, and the one down the hill which nobody every sees since it's in a driving area, not walking, and it talks about Black Mountain College and Bucky Fuller teaching one summer...it should be here in town where all the visitors would see it. Michaux had little influence on anything!

Yep, I think I'll update my header again...on the other blog...this one is waiting for my birthday, which is still a month to go!

Today's quote:

People change and forget to tell each other. 

-Lillian Hellman, playwright (1905-1984)

Cold Wet Thursday

 How about some good news?

As Wednesday let go of it's heat, a wonderful cool breeze came down from the moutains to the north. I sat with other residents on the porch in a rocking chair enjoying the change in the weather!

My weather app said Thurs had a chance of showers and storms all day long. It wasn't wrong.

Thursday wasn't just wet, it was very cool. ALL DAY LONG! Sorry to all you folks in the southwest. It was too cold by 4 to have the windows open, and I'd been wearing a shawl all day on my shoulders... It also was damp feeling, so I'm glad to have cooled down, and now maybe dry off things.

I was happy to capture these sweet planters which were arranged by some of our residents. I like the combination of different plants.

Today's quote:

The ultimate sense of security will be when we come to recognize that we are all part of one human race. Our primary allegiance is to the human race and not to one particular color or border. I think the sooner we renounce the sanctity of these many identities and try to identify ourselves with the human race the sooner we will get a better world and a safer world. 

-Mohamed ElBaradei, diplomat, Nobel laureate (b. 1942)

Latest treatment option, maybe

 

A very weird appointment Monday morning at the pulmonologist. No other patients waiting at 9:30 am. And there also were no nurses checking in patients, weighing them, taking their temps, reviewing their meds, doing a BP and Pulse Ox test. Nada.

I heard my doctor's walk through the wall behind me, which has preceded his entering the exam room for years. He called my name and we went into an exam room and discussed my frustration with chronic coughing which tires me out - thus ever bronchiectasis is.  He put me on a short term antibiotic, and said it was time to start using the vest.

I got it from a friend who has since died. She got it from an organization which funded her, but she'd never used it (they are quite expensive, and used for Cystic Fibrosis patients also.)

So I dug it out of all it's cute suitcases and figured out what went where. It actually included a owners manual in English. But I didn't tackle the actual wearing of it and looking seriously at the different settings on the machine itself (which must weigh 40 pounds easily!) Fortunately it lit up when I plugged it in, and started blowing. I unplugged it till I figured out how to stop and start the mechanism (that button I'm pointing at).

At first I thought it would be too small, but it's all velcrowed together, shoulders and around the chest. So I finally got into it.

And put the hose to the intake of the vest, and turned it on. Loud, I shook everywhere. No reading here. Maybe can watch TV. Instead of my doctor's recommended 30 min. per session, I just did 5 to start. It worked...helped me cough up the stuff that's stuck down in the furthest recesses of my lungs. 

But the next day I didn't like how it felt to have my entire body shake so much, so I'm wanting to make sure it won't cause damage to my inner organs besides my lungs. Heart is highest on the list. I tried to call the pulmonologist's office, but they were having phone troubles. I want some verification that it won't cause problems to other parts of me before I use it again. You'd think the Dr. knew that, but he just asked me if I had questions...and I hadn't thought of this at the time.

Today's quote:

"I didn't have any idea we were poor. Back then, nobody had any money. We were so poor, and everybody around us was so poor, that it was the '40s before any of us knew there had been a Depression." Chet Atkins, musician

NOTE: as of 10:30 am I spoke with two people at the manufacturer of the vest...their phone number is on the tag inside the vest. They of course said since I didn't have a prescription for that, they couldn't help me. But the second woman, also very nice, said she understood my hesitations about my other conditions. Then I asked her what settings she might use if she were wanting a bit of relief. That was clever of me, I must say. She said since she was 50 and didn't have any conditions, she would probably just use the frequency around 8-9 htz. And then my other brainstorm of the day was to just put it behind me in a chair and lean back on it. Believe me that still vibrated me plenty! I still want feedback as to how the vibrations will affect the rest of my innards! But things are progressing!

And the cardiologist that is on call while mine is on vacation said there's no reason I can't do the "Smart Vest"!

A quick vist to my friend's garden

 Helen has a very nicely planned garden with lots of butterfly attracting flowers!

First the flowers up next to the house as you walk along the driveway.

Tom told me orange blackberry lily! Want to remember it by typing it heere!

Aren't these cute daylilies that copy tiger lilies!

A nice seating area in her back yard...with more flowers around to the right, but we had places to go so I didn't get to walk around and take more photos.

I told my friend I liked this big evergreen (the first one) because it's branches droop down then sweep up at the ends. Her favorite was the next one, a white pine. Now I have to identify this one, she thinks might be a hemlock.

(I know it's not this one...because, Eastern Hemlock below)

I'm guessing it's a kind of fir...hope my tree-savy friends will save me here!

(Yay, Tom came through with Norway Spruce!!)

Sharing with Floral Friday Fotos.

Today's quote:

It's like, at the end, there's this surprise quiz: Am I proud of me? I gave my life to become the person I am right now. Was it worth what I paid? 

-Richard Bach, writer (b. Jun 1936)

Blessings and singing

 Entering the Quaker Meeting House, an aromma of making popcorn greeted us last Saturday afternoon. We gradually met in two areas of chairs...one for the Sahara Peace Choir, and one for friends and family. This hadn't been a publicly announced program, and Helen and I were happy to be friends to enjoy this!

I liked fining this poster ready for another march, as Quakers are known for their social actions.

Here the choir members get ready by having all the sheets of music they will be singing in honor of the various divine feminine godesses who represent waters.

A lovely wall hanging in the food prep area of the meeting house.

An easy sharing of beautiful voices. I was able to meet a few new friends. I have some old friends from when I sang with this choir, the name of which is a combination of the two major religious forces from feminine mothers Sarah and Hagar - in the Bible. Sah-hara Peace Choir. May there be a coming together for these two again in peace.

These three beautiful females represent three generations, with our blinking grandmother having her birthday this day!

Here we find out what the popcorn was all about...an environmental way to send blessings onto the Swannanoa River.

Some of us stayed on shore, while later (not shown here) others indulged in walking into the shallow rockbottomed river.

An older view of the river taken at the same locatiom 2016

Another view of the river, taken 2019.

Today's quote:

Pray, verb. 

To ask the laws of the universe to be annulled on behalf of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy. 

-Ambrose Bierce, writer (1842-1914)