Still Waters

Cute, huh?  I mean, what an irresistible little face and appealing expression.

Yeah...except when you've got one down your chimney!

Hubby was up on the roof this morning after breakfast with a flashlight to see if he could determine what was trapped in our chimney.  We'd heard little squeaks and noises last night in the fireplace behind the insert, but couldn't do anything about it--and we thought it was a bird or a squirrel.  But a raccoon?!  Groan.  And it wasn't little.

He hung a rope down the length of the chimney (two stories high) and called animal control.  Believe it or not, they said these critters don't generally fall down chimneys, they hide out deliberately and can get out just fine.  But just in case they don't, drop an ammonia-soaked rag down there and they'll hustle up and out pretty quick.

Knowing they're nocturnal, we decided to wait until this evening.  SweetPea accompanied her dad up on the roof (homeschooler field trip, you know) to…

I was having "one of those days" this week, when a stack of bowls slipped out of my hands, sending my Most Special Bowl crashing to the floor--with this result. Did you know you can cry over the demise of an inanimate object?
Bowl and I have had a long and very special relationship.  Twenty-five years ago I spotted this lovely in an antique store and immediately had visions of perfect bread loaves I would knead to perfection in it.  At $15, it was a bargain and thus began our memorable history together.
At the time, I was working at a "dude" ranch in Colorado as the back-up cook.  My job was baking all the cookies, cakes, pies, desserts, and breads for our mouth-watering daily menus.   Bowl was my constant companion, providing just the right size and temperature for high-altitude bread rising and lending me an primal sense of homestead-woman as I pushed and punched the springy dough.  It's large size, the thick, cool crockery and heavy feel stood up well to th…

Lilacs!  A full three weeks early this year, popping out in all their glory to keep up with every other green and flowery thing in our area.  This is an incredible spring--no complaints here!


Seems like I'm scrambling just as fast as the green things around here, trying to keep on top of the immediate demands and fit in the catching-up things...when all I'd rather do is sit and soak up the sunshine to my very bones and just drink in the fragrances wafting around me.

Since my last post, I made a whirlwind trip to see my family and help my Mom's book get launched at the Tucson Festival of Books.  Wow, what an affair!  One hundred thousand people plus, on a sunny weekend to enjoy all things books.  It was great fun and a very satisfying wrap-up to the months of editing and preparation for publication we put in.  If you want a clean, fun read, check out her book, "The Magnetic Connection", available through Amazon and the other link on the website.  You'll  find …