Monday, May 31, 2021

A Busy Day



Mr. Moon and I go out together every morning to let the chickens out of the coop and take the babies out of their nursery. We stand around for awhile and laugh at Darla's frantic scratching. There is no other word to describe her frenzy. It's as if she's possessed. I think she's doing her best to uncover bugs for the babies and they search diligently in the freshly uncovered dirt. They must be getting something because they're not eating very much of their feed and yet, obviously, they are healthy and well. 
After we spend a little time with the chickens, we go on to the garden to see what may have happened there overnight. For those of you who garden, you know what I'm talking about. How many of us have returned home at night after a few days away and gone into the garden with a flashlight to check things out? 
This morning I took a picture of the squash blossom you see in the picture above and then immediately, a bee flew down its throat and so I took her picture too.



 Can you see her down there? 

Squash blossoms are so lovely. And so are bees. 

I took a walk today and again, I walked on White House Road. I did not see Philly or her human nor did I see any humans except a few driving cars. I did notice that many of the Trump signs and banners have finally been removed although as it is Memorial Day, the Stars and Stripes were flying in great abundance. 

I took a picture of a gnarled tree instead of flags, though.


That tree has probably been here since long before the United States had anywhere near fifty stars on its flag. 

When I got home, my husband was nowhere to be found. He had left the house before me to go look at a go-cart that was for sale a few miles away. "I'll be back in a few minutes," he said. And yet, after I'd been gone almost an hour he still wasn't home. 
Strange. 
I texted him and got no reply. 
"He's fine, he's fine, he's fine," I chanted to myself. 
And then I called him. It went straight to voice mail. I left him a message. "Where ARE you? Please let me know."

I hung the clothes on the line and cleaned the toilets as if trying to appease the gods with my domesticity, all the while knowing that he was absolutely okay and yet at the same time fearing that he'd been in a terrible accident or murdered or had had a heart attack or...something very grim. I can't help it. My mind just goes to those places. 
When he finally texted me I was so relieved. He was indeed fine. He'd decided to buy the go-cart and had come home for the trailer while I was still out on my walk and it had taken awhile to get it loaded and and so forth. 

"Why didn't you just call me?" he asked when he got home. 
"I did!" I said. "It went straight to voice mail."
"Huh. Well, I'm sorry."

My number one rule of all rules is DO NOT WORRY THE MAMA!
Of course, it takes so little to break that rule that it's understandable when it happens. 
Sigh.

I dragged the canning kettle out of the pantry this afternoon and went through recipes for pickled green beans and retrieved six pint jars and the lids and bands for them. I put the jars in the canning kettle along with enough water to cover them nicely, toted it to the stove, sterilized my lids and bands, got the green beans out of the refrigerator and began to trim them to be jar-size. I also made up my pickling brine and set it on the stove. 
While I was in the middle of this, Vergil came out with August and Levon as he was bringing us his leaf chipper. The boys were thrilled with the new go-cart, of course, although it's going to be a long time before that thing is in any sort of running order. Another project for the men! 
August came in and helped me with the beans and we chatted. I asked him if he liked it when I told stories about my grandparents and he said he did so I told him the story of how my grandparents met because of a garden that my grandfather wanted to start on a piece of property that my granny's father owned. I told him as much about it as I knew and ended by saying, "So see? If my granddaddy hadn't wanted a garden, he would not have met my grandmother and I never would have been born!" 
I'd actually never thought about it that way but it's the truth. Granny's father had been so impressed with the young man who made a garden on his city lot that he invited him for dinner where his daughter (the baby of a family of ten children) and that young man fell in love. 
I showed him the diamond in the ring that my husband had made for me which had been the one in Granny's engagement ring. 
I am quite certain that I get far more pleasure in the telling of these tales than the grandchildren get in hearing them. But- you never know. I remember that story from when my grandmother told it to me and that diamond in my ring is a brilliant reminder. It has a visible flaw in it- a speck of carbon that looks like a tiny seed and I can remember Granny telling me that because of that, Granddaddy had been able to afford it. That flaw is my favorite part of the stone. It's so small that you have to know it's there to see it which makes it like a secret message from the past. At least to me. 

Well. I need to go make our supper. The clothes are off the line and put away, the kitchen is somewhat tidied, the beans are out of the canner. 


I fooled around with the basic recipe. They have vinegar, of course, water, garlic, dill, salt, sugar, mustard seed, and red pepper flakes. I hope they're good. I'll have to open a jar just to see, of course. 

We should be getting cucumbers soon and I have a feeling that my new pantry is going to be filled up before the summer is over. 
I love that pantry. I love the man who built it for me. I'm so glad he's okay. 
He's more than okay. He is fine. 

Love...Ms. Moon




































18 comments:

  1. I remember the stories my dad told. Mom wasn't a story teller, but she was happy to pass along the facts.
    And I leaned in and took a look and recognize the towel your beans are cooling on. Glad to know, still going strong.

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    1. Yes! I use those towels every day! Just about, anyway. They are the best.
      YOU are the best. Thank you, Joanne.

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  2. My mum told me a few stories and I never knew my grandparents but I want to do this for my grandson, tell him our stories.

    I'm going to try making jam this summer, haven't made it in years but what the hell. Have a lovely day tomorrow.

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    1. Jam making is so rewarding. It's beautiful in the jar, on the bread, and on the tongue.
      I think that people have a need to pass the stories on to the younger generations. I really do.

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  3. I have to remember to do that - tell the family stories to my kids and grandkids so they know about the past.

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    1. You will. I think you will absolutely remember to do that.

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  4. Both Mike and I have a wealth of stories from our grandparents. We do remember and retell them a lot. They are treasures.

    Glad Mr. Moon was just fine, and oh my your beans look delicious! As does that squash blossom with attending bee.

    Chris from Boise

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    1. You're right- those stories are indeed treasures.
      I'm glad my husband was fine too. I knew I was being silly to worry.

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  5. I bought one tomato plant, it put on one tomato and never grew. the butternut squash growing in the compost pile is doing great though. when the twins were oh maybe 10 - 12 or 13 I would sit up late at night with them when they came for their visits and tell life stories. tell me a story they would ask but I wouldn't know what to talk about so I made them ask questions and then I could remember.

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    1. That is a terrific idea- make the children ask questions! I love it! You are brilliant!
      Sorry about your tomato. I, too, have had lovely squash from compost piles.

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  6. One of my favorite things to do when I visited my grandparents was to sit with them and my mom and just listen to their conversations. I learned a lot about my "people" that way. I think kids get a tremendous boost in knowing something about their ancestors -- more than just names and dates. So yes, I'm sure your grandkids are absorbing all those stories!

    Love the squash blossom! We have NO VEG in the garden this year. Mrs. Kravitz didn't dump her unwanted plants on us as usual. LOL

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    1. Seems like all of my children loved to sit around as quietly as they could to listen to me and my friends talk. I'm sure they learned an awful lot that way! Hank, especially. And Jessie too. She was always happier hanging out with grownups than with kids. I don't remember my mom talking to my grandfather much about memories. Maybe they did. But I know my kids liked it when my mother told them stories. She seemed to be best at telling stories about my childhood fuck-ups.
      Sigh.
      You and Dave should try growing a little bit of vegetables. Great rewards in it and no harder than flowers.

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  7. Blogger is being crazy at the moment I had trouble finding you!
    anyway, while it is working thought i would drop this off for you.
    https://lithub.com/on-the-long-debated-origin-story-of-domestic-chickens/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Lit%20Hub%20Daily:%20June%201%2C%202021&utm_term=lithub_master_list
    Now you know which came first!

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  8. Glad your chicks are good and that you'll enjoy stocking that pantry. I am realizing all the stories the grandparents did not tell...

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  9. I'm sure there are a LOT of stories that most grandparents don't tell and they would probably be the most interesting of all.

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  10. That story about your grandma and grandpa meeting like that is just beautiful, and don't believe for one minute you enjoyed telling it more than the boys enjoyed hearing it!

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  11. How wonderful that you shared with August the story of your grandparents meeting, all because of a garden. I suspect he will remember the story as somehow magical, because that's how it sounded to me. I also love the diamond's secret flaw, and how precious that makes it to you. Also worrying over our men? I think sometimes we are the same person in different casings.

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Tell me, sweeties. Tell me what you think.