The edge of nowhere

I have heard it said that Charles and I have moved the middle of nowhere. Heck! I might have even uttered that once, but I have to tell y'all that after the driving that Charles and I have done this weekend, we do not live anywhere near the middle of nowhere! I can now say that I have been to the middle of nowhere and have returned to tell all about it. Charles and I were invited by some very sweet friends to join them at a weekend rodeo event. We were supposed to go on Friday night and stay until Sunday, but because Friday was so rainy we decided just to go on Saturday instead. The rodeo was great fun and I have lots to tell and show about that, but right now I'm gonna share a different tale.

On our way to the rodeo Charles was consulting his printed map from Google. He was using a Google map at his own choosing even though Ann had provided directions via a text message. Charles being Charles decided on using his Google map. The Google thing took us the back way. (Cue the "something-bad-is-gonna-happen" music!) We start driving on an interstate and after a couple of turns after our exit, we find ourselves on a back country road. This looks normal, like a lot of the roads I am becomming familiar with. Then the road starts to change. It is not a 2-lane road anymore, it is about a 1 1/2-lane dirt road. As we drive further on this road, the trees seem to close in on us and in spots grow over the road creating a tunnel effect that blocks out most of the sunlight. With little light and a dense tree scape, it made me feel like we could easily have been swallowed up by the woods. I asked a number of times if this was the right way, and after consulting the Google God, I was told we were doing fine. I was spotting fewer and fewer houses, and the ones I saw seemed straight from a movie set-a few dilapidated outer buildings, overgrown yards, inside furniture used on the outside, rusted farm equipment scattered across the yard, smoke coming from battered containers... I jokingly turned to Charles at one point and said, "Paddle faster...I hear banjos!" After another 10 minutes on this same road I saw no more houses, just the hint of a house here and there like a mailbox at the road...a path cut up the mountain...the sound of a dog barking from the woods. It was getting darker and I knew that if we didn't find the rodeo grounds soon, we would have to back track to the interstate and follow Ann's directions and we would be driving these roads in the dark. Charles didn't want to admit that his precious Google map had gotten us lost because...well...because he has testicles! But he did let out a maniacal laugh at one point and admit that we were possibly in trouble! We came to a fork in the road that Charles couldn't find on the map and had 3 (!!) houses near. At one of the houses there was a teenage boy standing out front with his dog and I rolled down my window and asked where the road was that we were supposed to be on. He polietly asked, "Are you looking for the rodeo?" (How in the world he knew that two people in a Vibe with Florida plates and 2 chihuahuas on their laps were looking for a rodeo is beyond me!) After following the boy's directions and a few minutes extra for Charles to pull out that blasted map to "orient himslef" we found the rodeo sight! Thank goodness and a teenage boy!

Yes we do live off a dirt road. Yes there are miles and miles of forest behind our house. Yes deer and the occasional bear visit our yard. But Casa Peck is 10 minutes from downtown Manisfield, 8 minutes to the Walmart, 12 minutes to McDonalds...we are far from living in the middle of nowhere. Maybe we just sit on the edge of it...

Should be charging an admission!

Here is tonight's entertainment! Charles has been thinking of a clever way to rid the wall of the yellow jackets. His idea is to super-heat the area and blow them out from the inside that they will think it is an undesirable hive and abandon it. Good luck my man! This is actually a funny show to watch and I couldn't stop myself from snapping a few shots. I really think I could have sold tickets to this one!

From the inside of the house, Charles removed the outlet, cut a hole in a storage container, attached my hair dryer and is blowing the wasps out of the hive! I am trying to convince him to add a bit of pesticide, but he is such a numskull about using toxic chemicals even in major circumstances that it is a tough battle!


At the hive opening outside, Charles is laying in wait to suck them up in the vacuum cleaner. You can put your hand on the hose and feel them flying in!


Now he gets smart and sets it up as a hands free death machine!


Here he is laughing at the wasps hanging on for dear life!


My question to him was what was he going to do with the vacuum bag full of angry yellow jackets. He grinned and said, "Tonight's a good night for a fire!"

P365

(D242) Finger meet Fiskars!


(D241) Supper tonight...veggie Italian sausages with grilled mushrooms & onions is a Guinness gravy!


(D240) Elphaba, the kitty, finds a sun spot. (PS-upper left side of the photo is where the bear appeared from)

The coffee shop

Last weekend went by with not much happening because we never made any plans. We decided to just go with the flow. Well, the flow went and we stayed. That was last weekend-this weekend I marched into the bedroom this morning and said, "This is what we're doing, get dressed!" We started our morning off at one of the coffee shops in Mansfield, The Night and Day Cafe. We had breakfast sandwiches and coffee. I had the white chocolate=hazelnut that Leisa and I discovered was so tasty while we were in Utah last. YUM! Anyway...as we were sitting there enjoying a leisurely breakfast I was people watching. A favorite pastime of mine. What I noticed was there was a very unique and diverse group of people coming in for coffee and whatnot. When we arrived there was a farmer sitting in the front, bump-out, old fashioned store-front window, a college professor sitting in the back reading his morning paper and a clearly foreign couple trying to decide what to order before they headed to PA's Grand Canyon (I think they might have been Italian). Then after we sat down, in walks a couple of college students who had just rolled out of bed(I know this because they were still in their PJs(, a woman in a business suit who seemed in a hurry and a family straight from church. Next comes in two motorcycle dudes dressed in their leathers and had bandannas on their heads. They take an outdoor seat when in walks a cowboy and his lady. He was in shiny black boots, a HUGE belt buckle and a HUGE black cowboy hat. They order and I notice a cyclist coming in with his super tight shorts on followed by a snooty, uptight mom with her family. It was odd looking around at so many different "types" of people in that tiny little cafe in our tiny little town. All I could think was, "how cool is this?" Now if I could get someone to open up an Indian joint somewhere in Mansfield life would be pretty close to perfect!
Oh, and the rest of the day was spent in the big city of Elmira. We did our "city shopping" with stops at Michael's, Staples, Target and Panera. Got some supplies for the Spooktacular Crop, Eclipse in paperback and some Halloween decorations. After that we and saw Inglourious Basterds. It was a fun film. I love me some Tarin-tooty movies-and he re-wrote history in this one!

On the way back home we spotted two kitties on the road very near our house. One young cat and her very new kitten. We stopped and Charles jumped out to give them something to eat. Happens that the only thing we have for them is 1/2 of his chocolate chip cookie from Panera-they ate it! I tried talking him into bringing them back to give them some real cat food, but he wasn't buying it. He did come home and pack a Ziploc with cat food and put in his car because he plans on putting food out for them on his way to work tomorrow. What a softy!
All in all a pretty darn good day!

One Hit Wonder-September

Here is the sample I created for next months One Hit Wonder class at Whim So Doodle. If you are in the Tampa Bay area, you need to head over to the Doodle and check out this class. In this class you get the supplies to create a double-sided layout during your lunch hour. Yep! The class is only one hour AND they feed you lunch too!



Head on over to their website to check out this and more classes:
Whim So Doodle's classes.

Dinner with friends/P365

Tonight we had some company come over for supper. Before they got here Charles and I sat out on the front porch with the pooches! It was nice, but after our company left, we were back out on the porch with a couple of drinks, pooches in laps just watching the stars and enjoying the 69 degree weather, the motion of the rocking chairs and the fantastic breeze blowing through the trees. Imagine, if you will, my view this evening as XM's Cafe station plays acoustic music in the background...Luna in my lap, the porch railing softly lit by the inside lamps, darkness beyond, tree line illuminated by the moon and every now and then by lightning bursts, fire flies flitting around the yard and thousands of tiny stars twinkling everywhere in the sky. For me, life just doesn't get any better.

A happy surprise/P365

This morning the mail lady pulled up the drive, honked her horn and when I went out the greet her she said, "Good morning, Sweet Potato Queen!" I had no idea what she meant by that, but I took the two packages she had for me and took them inside. After I got my shower, started the laundry, etc I decided to check out those boxes. There were two boxes from the lovely Miss Dianne. She had written on one "Jen Peck, The Sweet Potato Queen"! What a hoot!

I rip open the boxes to find one filled with tons of tiny wrapped packages all in Halloween colors and the other filled with...sweet potatoes! I've got to ask her just why sweet potatoes, but I know I'll be making Sweet Potato Bisque tomorrow night!

I had a grand time opening up all my goodies. Someone knows how much I love Halloween, (and that there is NO Joann's up here-yet!), and filled me up with new spooky stamps and embellishments. There were two sets of gloves in there. I'm gonna need gloves and one was even Halloween-themed. The envelopes were great and I'm saving those to give out AND there was my cute little jacket that Dianne had altered for me! Wow! What a great afternoon going through my boxes!


Thanks 'lil missy!