Another Vacation in the Works.

Hi all,
I can't believe how time flies! Does this happen to you? You wake up one morning and it is a month later?

Storm coming in Vermont

A week before Hurricane Irene

We have weathered tornadoes, an earthquake, Hurricane Irene, flooding and another week of rainy day after rainy day! I was so sad to see the devastation from the flooding in Vermont. I love that state!
 

Deerfield River, a week after the hurricane/flood

Today I was shocked to wake up to nice warm sun. I'm so happy-and so are my plants. All my cherry tomatoes were split open from the overabundance of moisture. I'm hoping for a new crop that will stay in one piece!

Shelburne Falls, a week after the flood-usually a trickle here

High water mark. That WAS a used bookstore.

Tomorrow, I go on another adventure with my friend Trisha. We have rented a cottage on Cape Cod. I love the Cape after Labor day, when the crowds have gone and the weather is still balmy. I'm taking my laptop and hope to post some pictures of my trip during the week.

Bardwell's Ferry Bridge, near Bill Cosby's house

Our little brook

So I am cutting this short to get my packing done. Have a great week, everyone!

Hugs,

Sherry

My MiniVacation

Hi Friends!

Last week my friend Trisha and I took a mini-vacation. We drove 8 hours west--and I do love to drive WEST!--to Scio, NY to visit Trisha's old friends the Browns. Scio is a small town in Western NY, which we affectionately call Boringsville. It's not that boring, though.

A few of the Browns

The Browns have a big family and we visited with them all and cooed over the newest baby. Then they took us to Letchworth State Park, which has the Genesee River Gorge, aka the Grand Canyon of the East.

It is SO pretty--and I do love a good waterfall!--There were three beautiful falls through a deep rock canyon. The top falls has an old railroad trestle over the top. My pictures are not great, but you get the idea.

Oops, was I supposed to wear Pink?

We picnicked on stone tables in an oak grove near the lower falls. The woods were so pretty there. Trisha remarked that the tables looked like sacrificial altars. They were pretty cool sitting atop stacked slabs.

Trisha-left, Andrew-right

The next day we followed the Browns to Bully Hill Winery overlooking Keuka Lake. The view was fantastic and it was a gorgeous day. We toured the winery with a cute young guide, who was very adept at walking backward and telling the story of Bully Hill.

They used to be Taylor Wineries, till they sold to Coca Cola. Then when a family member wanted to go back into the wine making business he found out that Coke owned the exclusive rights to his name! He had to come up with a different name. The man was quite an artist, so he designed his labels with a goat on them. He said, "they got my name, but they didn't get my goat." There's a lot more to that story, but you get the general idea.

Patio overlooking Keuka Lake

After the tour and lunch on the patio and the gift shop, I tasted a couple of sweet wines. (I used to love dry white wine, but it doesn't agree with me any more, so I had the idea that sipping a little sweet wine before bed would be beneficial.) I ended up buying a few bottles.

Rolling hills of New York

Trisha and I then wound our way north to Route 20 and headed to the Finger Lakes region. We stayed in Skaneateles. A pretty very upscale town on the north end of Skaneateles Lake. The next day we did a little shopping, (I'll tell you the earring story later!) drove around the lake, stopping at antique shops and scenic spots, then meandered our way home. New York has amazing hills, farms, lakes, countryside!

In Imagine, my fave gift shop overlooking the lake

I do love to take a drive whenever I can. Dad used to take us for rides when he wasn't working at one of his many jobs. We drove all over New England, mostly Vermont. Trisha and I are naturals at it. We try to quote the end of The Blues Brothers about road trips, though we never really remember the words.  We also burst into song whenever appropriate-something will prompt us and we burst... She remembers the words and I remember the tune. We're a good team. Our Moms did the same thing. Our songs are a little more modern, but it's the same!

Maybe I'll try some of that wine tonight, before I bundle up and go sit under the stars looking for the meteor shower, though the moon might be too bright to see any meteors!

Have a Lovely week, dear friends!

Hugs, 

Sherry

A Nice Way to Spend Sunday Afternoon...

After a rather lazy week, I was glad to have a plan for this evening. The weather was ideal--breezy, dry, sunny with occasional puffy clouds.

 In honor of their birthdays, Trisha, Tamara and I packed our chairs, snacks, drinks and cameras off to an outdoor concert at the Three Sisters Sanctuary in Goshen, Mass. (http://threesisterssanctuary.com/)

Tamara & Trisha

Built by Rich Richardson to honor his three daughters, it is a wonderland of stone, sculpture, flowers, water, glass, sprites and mermaids.

Everywhere you turn there is something else to see, outdoor "rooms", sculpture, standing stones, flowers everywhere (repeating myself!)

A big feature is the dragon fireplace. I've never seen it burning, but smoke would come out of it's mouth. Its spines are glass, it's wings are airy metal sculpture. Its tail is wrapped around a hearth set in glass, stone and metal with all sorts of curious objects in every nook and cranny.

The band was Jim K and Co, a bluesy, rock-and-rolly, jazzy blend of really good music by three real professionals.

We ate our snacks, strolled around the grounds and took pictures. People danced, drank, laughed, wandered around. Lots of cameras were in evidence.

 

 

What a great place for a party! We hope to come back for the Full Moon Concert and stay till midnight!

Well, Trisha and I are off to western New York state this week for a visit. Hope to see the Grand Canyon of the East in Pennsylvania and something of the Finger Lakes on the way home.

I hope you all have a wonderful week and I'll catch up with you soon...Happy August!

Hugs, Y'all!

Sherry

I Live for Summer!

Hi Everyone,

I finally put aside a little time...I've been missing you all! 

Somewhere about June 21st summer actually did come to Western Massachusetts. (Though we've had a few doozie storms!) I bought a crusing bike, very retro...My plants and flowers are finally coming along like they should and I've been eating little yellow pear tomatoes and swiss chard and basil for a while. I planted baby lettuce mix in a big pot and have cut it a couple of times-very yummy-It's called "cut and come again" and it does!

I'm pet-sitting at the most gorgeous place, it's sort of a mansion high on a hill with the most amazing views over mountains and forests! (did I mention the indoor pool?) My computer is on the dining table overlooking the views and the bird-feeders through a wall of 8' high windows. The dogs, two Australian Shepherds, "aussies," are each chewing on a buffalo horn, one under my feet and one beside me. They are both sweet and hyper-exuberant.

 

 
Just a few minutes ago a neighbor stopped by, ringing the doorbell and causing all sorts of excitement. She made me go outside and see the pink cloud with a bright red/orange/yellow rainbow coming out of it. Wow, what a scene! By the time I took the picture, the rainbow was almost gone, but the glow was still intact. I love summer evenings!

Summer mornings are not too bad up here either! Away from the traffic noise of my house, I can sleep like a baby, till the phone wakes me or the dogs need me to get up. Sometimes after feeding and letting them out, they let me go back to sleep.

This morning Paul and his sister came up with their kayaks and we took a winding dirt road to a lovely long narrow reservoir for a paddle. It is so quiet there, no roads go around the lake, just one on either end.  The water is very shallow where you load, and after scootching downriver for a quarter of a mile or so you are in the reservoir/lake. It is surrounded by deep forest and granite cliffs. It is so refreshing to be out on quiet water in the morning. It made my day!

 

Paul's tee shirt reads: Paddle Faster, I hear banjo music! (ref: the movie Deliverance) He wears it every time we go out paddling.

Well, time to sign off for now, or I won't have anything to say next time! The sun has set, it is as quiet as .....?..... Really quiet! Too cloudy for the full moon.

Kahlua and Cream anyone?

Hugs,

Sherry