Mainely Write

Roadblock? Take a detour? We were A little late; Now we're Lots late. On the island Detours Are little things That mean  A lot.

We had to run up to Gull Haven this afternoon because a snowstorm is headed this way. We had to drain the water tank just in case it froze tonight. There's no heat in the house, so just in case . . . The sky was already getting overcast by the time we got there. And now, on our way home, it is starting a slushy rain. We're supposed to get 6 inches of snow tonight. It was cold getting the house settled in for winter, so we stopped by Moody's Diner and had some good, hot and hearty beef barley soup with hot from the oven biscuits with real butter. Oh, yeah, and wonderful warm gingerbread topped with real whipped cream to go with that hot coffee! Now, I ask you, is there anything better than battening down the hatches?

Posted also on Poetry Friday RoundUp hosted by Random Noodling, and on Gull Haven , where I put updates on this house. The house with the wrinkled wall Stands firmly And squat By the sea The house with the wrinkled wall Waits quietly And longs For me The house with the wrinkled wall Wants warmth And life To tend The house with the wrinkled wall Sleeps still And gray Till then The house with the wrinkled wall Knows the time Is soon To come The house with the wrinkled wall Starts a low But joyful Hum

Today is my birthday! Yea! I will probably have to make myself a cake if I want one. My husband won't make one. My daughter doesn’t live here any more.  And my son, well, he is not a mom’s birthday cake maker kind of guy. He may remember that it’s my birthday though. Whenever I think of making a birthday cake, I remember the time I made Mom a surprise birthday cake. I must have been 12 or 13. It was summer, so I was babysitting my three youngersiblings.  Mom was working at the store with Dad as she usually did, so I had all day. I wanted to get it made and surprise her with a birthday cake when she got home. Well, I got out the red cookbook and then pulled out all the ingredients for a cake; there were no mixes back then. I mixed the ingredients by hand.  We did have a mixer, but I didn’t use her beautiful chrome Sunbeam mixer.  I loved that thing.   I knew just how to let the bowl spin and use a spoon to push the batter back down into the bowl without getting the spoon caught in t

Why I Write Writing is not a choice. Writing is a challenge put forth by my inner me. It’s the reason I write. It has always been there as far back as I can remember. Addiction and obsession are too negative sounding but could be factors. Liberation and communication…now those are the results of the addiction/obsession, but they sound much better! Let’s keep this positive! Writing is a sport: a game of putting the right words together at the right time in the right place.  A challenge put forth by my inner me. “I triple dog dare you,” says my brain.  And then, I have no choice, I have to write it down. It’s time to pick teams. Let the games begin. As the coach, I invite the words to come and try out.  I decide which words I want for the team, which words get to play and which ones don’t. Some words get sent back.  They just aren't playing nicely; they lack sportsmanship and cooperation. Some words just don't make the cut; they’re just not good enough

  For Poetry Friday linked at Jama's Alphabet Soup : Shush! The wind outside Is shushing Listen to the autumn Rolling in Skip to greet the Incoming waves Splash Ankle deep in Leaves Scoop and toss Giggle At leaf spray Sprinkling down On faces and necks Dive into The cool Tidal pool Of autumn.

Do you ever . . . have a question that you don't dare ask because it may sound stupid? wish that it were true that there are no stupid questions? wonder what your dog is thinking . . . and how he's thinking it without words? look up and imagine walking on the ceiling instead of the floor? try to imagine the sun is shining when it's raining? wonder what a butterfly thinks when he finds out he's not a caterpillar anymore? wonder if a butterfly and a caterpillar speak the same language? go the wrong way because it's the way you remember going . . . and it was wrong then, too? wonder what the ocean would look like without any water in it? feel like flying with wings and landing on a high tree branch? imagine how life would be if you were a seal? want to be a character in a book . . . or their best friend?  wonder what it would be like to live outside all the time, like a deer? imagine you can walk on clouds? want ice cream for breakfast? pictu

Little man, Just two months old, My prayer for you If truth be told: That you would come Into the fold, Receive the Love That's pure as gold; And then a wife  To have and hold, A love on earth That God would mold. He just turned two months old.  It is never too early to plan for the future of your grandchild!   This week his great grandmother is going to see him for the first time (not counting his FaceTime debut)!

We are looking for fixtures for the new house, and decided to go to Lowe's to see some in person.  It is nice ordering on the Internet and getting things shipped, but sometimes you need to touch things to get a good idea of size, quality, etc. We looked at lighting first, then went to the washers and dryers, then over to toilets and bathroom sinks.  After that it was on to faucets for both bathrooms and kitchen.  On the way there, we passed the displays of kitchen cabinets, set up with countertops, sinks, faucets, wallpaper and flooring.  A mom and her two sons were just leaving the area. The younger son, probably 5 or 6 years old (I didn't see his teeth, so I was not positive) pointed to a display and said, "That's a beautiful kitchen!  I didn't know they sold kitchens here.  How do they get them out?" I could see the mom smile slightly, trying not to laugh, as she very seriously told him, "I think they take them apart."  They passed by me not

Hello! Yes, you!  I do not appreciate being startled.  I was just leisurely crossing the road, and here you come barreling down the road in your growly, bug-eyed, little vroomything.  Have you ever thought that you could bump into me with that?  I didn't think so.  I had to hurry to the side of the hard-path.  This isn't the first time you've done this.  You should know by now how much I hate when you stare at me.  So just stop it!  I hate it!  I wasn't ready to go off into the woods yet.  I wanted to browse along the edge.  But no .  You had to creep up and stare.  So now I'm down here.  And... you are still staring at me!  What is with you guys?  Go away! Okay.  I'll go away.  Come on, Bambi.  I almost forgot you were here with me.  Did you know you blend in very well with these saplings and the dark shadows?  They didn't see you either...well, until now. They were actually watching me, but now that you've moved, they are watching you, to

Across the road A week ago we closed on our retirement cottage, but with the weather kind of yucky, and my husband working all week, Saturday was the first day we could go up there and really look at it now that it belonged to us.  The weather was absolutely gorgeously warmish and sunny! We went up today to meet the contractor and figure out the renovations we want to do.  When we were done, we just sat for a bit on the front steps and listened and watched.  People we've never met before drove by and waved to us.  We returned the gesture.  Two women walked by and called out "Did you buy this place?"  The SOLD sign was still up. We smiled and called back "Yes." "Oh, I'm so glad!  This is such a sweet place.  You have a great view!  Oh, I'm sorry!  We've interrupted your view time!" Nonsense, we will have more view times.  It was great to meet friendly people there: people who were glad we were in the neighborhood. There are lobste

Is there anything better for breakfast than oatmeal on a sunny, but cold, autumn morning?  Yes.  Oatmeal in my favorite bowl with my favorite mug filled with coffee.    Since I've retired, I've taken to making more foods from scratch.  This oatmeal is not your Quaker Quickies.  It is either Silver Palate, or my new favorite Bob's Red Mill Organic, Extra Thick, Whole Grain Rolled Oats.  Now that's a mouthful...literally!  Silver Palate takes 8 minutes to cook, and Bob's takes 12 whole minutes to make!  Now that's cooking!  Anything that takes longer to make than it does to eat is what I deem cooking.  If the clean up after the meal takes longer than it did to eat it, it's cooking, too. I sprinkle cinnamon on it, then raw sugar, almond slivers or slices, then some Maine wild blueberries (fresh raspberries or strawberries will also do fine), a drizzle of real maple syrup and last a little bit of milk.  Fill the mug with coffee, and voila!  Breakfast is s

I felt like I should write something, but I’m not sure of what, about Apple.  I worked for 2 years as a Specialist at an Apple store.  I was in the core training group before the first (and only) Apple store in Maine opened.  It opened with a bunch of enthusiastic, energetic, creative and intelligent people of all ages and all walks of life.  We went through a month long training together where we learned the Apple products and a lot about each other.  We were a close knit group by the month’s end. I never thought I'd enjoy retail sales, but this was a different brand of sales, a different level of retail.  There was a calm, unpressured sales attitude at Apple, an expectation that you would work with a customer until they got what they needed, even if it was only their questions all answered and no sale.  For me it involved hours after school to closing and all day Saturdays, leaving me little free time. People asked how I could do it, how I could keep up the pace of tea

I see trees and sky over there! Yesterday a bird hit one of our front windows.  He flew off landing in a low branch as I watched.  Many times they are not so lucky. This bird I believe hit it again later in the day and survived yet another time, flying to the porch roof for a breather this time.  I hope he's related to a cat... so he'll have seven to go. Last fall one hit our back sliding glass door and landed on the ground below it.  (We have a new house - only 12 years old - so the deck isn't on the back yet - hey, we have plenty of time to get that deck.)  He must have seen the windows in the front and thought he could fly through back to front.  He sat there for a couple of hours just looking around.  I called Chewonki, which is a place around here that does Nature Education classes and also takes in injured wild animals, to see what I should do.  They were closing for the night, so said to just watch him, maybe put him in a box lined with towels and put a cover

Up, down,  Mom grips,  Runs, Then lets go.  Up, down,  Weaving wheel  Snake prints  In gravel and grass.  Up, down,  Two pedals,  Little bike,  On the ground.  Up, down, Boy’s spirit,  Knee Scuffed.  Up, down,  Little bike  Put away  For another day.  Up, down,  “I will  do that  when  I know how.”  Up, down,  Door slams.  Up, down,  Mom sighs.  There’s no  Explaining That you  Need to Do it  To learn How. There’s no  Explaining  Down, up. That was a hard day.  How do you convince him that he can't just not do something until he knows how to do it?  Of course, now he's grown, having learned how to ride his bike shortly after that incident, and now rides a motorcycle!

This newsletter design generated with Smilebox Do you use SmileBox? Did you know it's free for teachers? Did you know you can make a slideshow, an invitation, a scrapbook, a calendar, newsletters, recipe books/cards, etc.? Did you know you can add music? Did you know you can post your creations online at Facebook, Blogger, Twitter, WordPress and TypePad; email them; print them or burn them to CD/DVD? Did you know it's a great way to post/publish student work? Did I mention it was free for teachers? Below, I've posted a sample newsletter design and a scrapbook design I made with student work last March. For St. Patrick's Day we drew and colored pictures using only crayons that had the word "green" on them somewhere. (It's not the one I originally published, as there are a couple of typos in it!) There are loads of options for backgrounds and embellishments. Enjoy playing! This is not an advertisement...really! I just enjoy this program and thou