Water Dogs

This is Bailey my 6 year old chocolate Lab.
She is a seal water dog.

This is Jake my 7 month-ish rescue mutt dog.
It was Jake's first time in the water.

He seemed to take to it pretty quick.

But after a few times of chasing the stick,
he shook off and was reluctant to get back in.

While he's got some Labrador Retriever in him,
he doesn't have the Lab insulated coat

and the water was just too darn cold.

 So he stayed on the beach and waited for Bailey to do the heavy lifting.

That's Big E's 9 year old Lab/Border Collie mix shadow on the right.
She also preferred Bailey to do the work.
Then they all had a 3-way tug of war.

Jake won.
Though I think it had more to do with the older girls
thinking he's an annoying younger brother
and it was easier to just let him have it and wait for the next one.
In the end, we had a very wet and sandy car 3 pretty tired dogs.

M.I.A.

My blogging here has been non existent sporadic at best.  I blame the wedding plans.  Seriously, if you've ever planned a wedding where you decided to save money and do most of the decorating- including flower arranging- yourself, you know what I'm talking about.  I leave work (which is highly stressful and at the peak of our busy season) tired and stressed to juggle Brat Child activities then go home to try to get something done.  Currently I'm refurbishing a 1970's Radio Flyer wagon we'll be using in the wedding.  I also have 21 burlap tablecloths to finish by sewing a 9"wide lace ribbon down the middle, 140 feet of pennant banner to make which means cutting out 8"x10" triangles and stitching them (or hot gluing shh!) to rope, 150 favor tags to print, cut out, tie ribbon to and affix to bells and trees, 40 quart mason jars to decorate with burlap lace and ribbon, scan and print and frame photos of family that has passed for a memory table, and come up with the entire wedding playlist, organize said playlist and figure out how to run it on the new "Wedding DJ" app on my iPod.  And that's just the stuff I can think of off the top of my head. It's overwhelming.  So, forgive me if my blogging slows in the next month and a half.  I promise sometime after my wedding and honeymoon I'll manage a more regular blog schedule (not because I think there's such a massive readership waiting for their daily Deltaville blog but because I have a personal goal for myself personally).  In the meantime, I am blogging here and there on 2 of my other blogs, so if you want to read about some of the wedding preparation (like my attempt at restoring a wagon) check out Wannabe Farm.  And if you're interested in how I've managed to find a way to turn my honeymoon into a paranormal field trip (or if you're just interested in the paranormal) check out Gettysburg Ghosts

Three Years

Today marks 3 years since the tornado went through Deltaville. 

 A boat in the middle of a field

 Telephone pole sheared off at the bottom

 This pine tree was literally twisted by the twister

 The tennis courts

 My dad demonstrating just how large that root ball is

The area where our shed used to be.

No, the tornado didn't dump junk in the yard, 

that was in the shed.

Note the neighbor's vehicle with the large hole in the windshield

I believe that was from our paddle boat being thrown into it.

 Zoar Baptist Church with a large bite out of the middle

 A house that was tossed into the creek

 Removing the large oak trees off of our house

 House behind us

the pool

There was a lot of destruction, but there was no loss of life.

No one was even injured-

not even the various pets that were sucked out of homes 

or buried under debris.

Things changed though, and that's the hardest to deal with (for me).

I'd rather Deltaville stay the same as it was in the late 70's and 80's.

Instead it just seems to keep changing and growing and 

getting too big for the britches I'd prefer it wear.

A "funny" coincidence- delta Δ  is the mathematical symbol for change.

You can read about the tornado on these posts:

This is Not a Test!

Miracle Monday

The Bright Side

Our House- Not So Very Fine

The More Things Change

Miracle Monday- Rita

Before and After

Remnants

Remnants 2

The First Deltaville Tornado

The Boy Across the Creek

Some time ago, 

back in my middle school days
(I think it was middle school but I'm old and my brain is going not sure of the exact time frame
other than it was some time before dinosaurs cell phones internet ago)

I had this summer romance with

"The Boy Across The Creek".
(that's how he was referred to- in all caps.
My grandmother would say "Jamie the boy across the creek is out")

 This photo shows the area in which he would appear-
to the left of that white shed-
on his 4-wheeler
and proceed down to the dock.
(this photo is a post-tornado photo of the area- imagine more trees and bushes)

You could hear his 4 wheeler coming
and I'd go outside with binoculars and watch him piddle around on the pier
(piddle doesn't sound particularly sexy but whatever)
He was typically shirtless
dark haired
and tan.
I tended to be in my bathing suit and sunbathing on our pier around the time(s)
he would show up.
He started showing up more often.
This went on for days.
Until one day while in the Pharmacy
(or maybe Hurd's I can't remember exactly)
My cousin and I came around the corner and there he was with his mother.
Needless to say,
it killed the mystery and intrigue and neither of us made as many trips
to the docks.
And my cousin,
she laughed and laughed and laughed.

(You can read about our other summer romance here)

Monday Meditation: Tree Edition

I've photographed this tree many times over the years.

Not only did I find it photogenic,

but I also found it to be metaphorical.

Here was this dead tree

still standing at the end of the Chesapeake Bay.

Standing through hurricanes,

nor'easters

even a 6 foot tsunami.

(really, I'm not joking, an actual tsunami)

It screamed strength.

Oozed perseverance.

And in an odd way,

it gave me hope.

It showed me that despite what was thrown at you,

you could still stand tall and strong and persevere.

And still be beautiful and photogenic.

Sadly,

the tree succumbed to the tides and erosion

and came down.

That stretch of beach looks naked.

I did a lot of thinking about the symbolism of the loss of the tree

(I get that overthinking about a tree and what it means isn't normal,

 and I truly do not care)

and I've come to this conclusion:

It's been a rough few years.

There have been several nasty hurricanes in my life

with some wild Nor'easters

even crazy unexpected tsunamis

thrown in.

And I can throw in the towel 

lay my head down and wail and cry

or I can be strong

and let the weather shape me into something different

something beautiful

something unique.

Maybe the tree stayed long enough for me to realize that.

Or maybe I'm crazy

Tree found further down the beach

 “Where there is ruin, there is hope for a treasure.”

~Rumi

The Longest Winter

 It could also be called

The Winter That Would Not End.

Either way, I'm sick of it.

Much like these deer are probably sick of it

(they've been eating bushes and shrubs like mad)

so Big E and I are packing the car

loafing the 3 dogs (one of which is a car barfer-yay)

and heading south.

I'm anxious for some homemade ice cream from Short Lane

(I heard they opened today for the 2014 season)

and some time at the beach.

Even if my favorite tree is gone

(which it is, sadly)

Grandmother

“Don’t grieve. Anything you lose comes round in another form.” 

~Rumi

Best.Photo.Ever. Brat Child with "Great Mother"

Infant me with grandmother in Deltaville

Grandmother and her poodle Ernie in Deltaville

  Today was my grandmother's birthday.

I miss her.