Thursday, July 24th, 2008
We had to wake up extra early today because of a few chores that needed doing. The first thing was to drive Holly to the vet. She has been there a few times since we arrived in this part of the world. Apparently, she got some wound on her tail that needed tending to. She went in this morning to get a little operation, but when the vet looked at the tail, she decided not to go ahead with it. She thought it would heal by itself. That’s good for Holly and good for the wallet.
After that, we ran up to Super Stop and Shop in Glastonbury for some food shopping. Laura’s family is stopping by for a visit in a few weeks and that is going to require an entire Costco ordeal. In the meantime, the local food store is good enough to hold us over.
I stepped on the scale yesterday and noticed that I weigh 190lbs. I am not sure what the ideal weight for a strapping 6′3″ genious is, but I feel like I am five pounds overweight. I am really going to have to hit that indoor tennis center in East Hartford soon. After all, that is about 90% of the reason I wanted to move over here. It’s the little things with me. I am serious about the tennis though.
Since I am waiting for the cooler weather to come to join the tennis club, and possibly because Laura thinks I am getting fat, we decided to go for a nice long walk down the road today.
In general, I usually have no complaints about walking down the road, except for the hill. The hill is where I usually begin to sweat and I hate that. The reason I hate sweating on the walk up the hill is because I cool off on the way down the hill and that usually means another shower for the day. If you are anything like me, you understand multiple showers per day during the Summer.
I thought we could beat the sweating today because it is cooler than it has been lately. Unfortunately, with all the rain, it is also very humid. I didn’t beat the sweating. Either way, I did take some nice nature pictures along the way.
Walking trail in woods.
Water in marsh near walking trail.
Slow river near walking trail in woods.
Road approaching the hill.
Larger river down the road.
Same river at the other side of the street.
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Saturday, July 19th, 2008
Well, well, well…guess what I found.
Today, I decided to venture outside into the wall of humidity to dig up and re-plant some rhododendrons. We had a few here and there that needed to make their way up the hill for a nice rhododendron line in the front. I think it will look very nice, come Spring.
Anyway, enough about that. Upon digging my second hole for the rhododendron, I discovered about four while oval things sitting approximately six inches beneath the dirt. I thought they were bird eggs. I left them there and went inside to tell Laura about my find. I knew she would get up and research what they were for me. She enjoys that kind of stuff.
I went back outside and took a few pictures of these things and then covered them back up. I had a feeling they weren’t bird eggs, but turtle eggs. I planted all the rhododendrons and then went back inside.
After I showed Laura all the sweat on my face, she revealed to me that I had just stumbled across Black Rat Snake Eggs. For photos of these creatures, click the link above. For photos of Black Rat Snake Eggs, look below…
Me holding a Black Rat Snake egg in my fingers.
Showing the size of the Black Rat Snake eggs compared to my hand.
Good thing I covered these eggs back up. I did have a strange feeling something was peering out from the woods…straight at me…
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Wednesday, July 9th, 2008
This was a long one. At least the air was nice and hot for us during the entire hike…oh man…
We knew which trail we wanted to hike when we arrived at Gay City State Park yesterday. We have been looking at the trail map and we (I) thought we knew exactly where to go. Sure, we started off great, but apparently, we were on the wrong trail from the get-go. I think we started off great because, well, at least we were on a trail.
By the way, Gay City State Park lies in three towns…Bolton, Hebron and Glastonbury. It’s pretty big and does the area just fine.
Ok, here is what I wanted to do – I wanted to start off at the yellow trail and go to the end. That would’ve been .8 miles. Then, at the end, I wanted to make a left onto the red trail for another 1.16 miles. I thought that would have brought us back to the road so we could walk back to the car. The problem is that we unknowingly started on the blue trail. I really don’t pay attention to those minor details sometimes.
Well, as it turns out, the blue trail went for .26 miles. It led us to the blue/red trail for another .4 miles. At this point, I said, “Hmmm…this is an awefully long trail. Mileage in the woods certainly seems to take longer than the same distance on the road.” We made a left onto the red trail and walked .91 miles and then (finally) made another left onto the yellow trail for .8 miles. About another .2 miles and we were back at the car. It took a lot out of us, being over 90 degrees and all.
The good thing is that we saw some pretty cool stuff. I could’ve done without the fly that was flying around my head the entire time, but otherwise, it was a good walk.
Here are some photos…
This is the very beginning of the trail. I thought this was the yellow trail. Apparently not.
About half way down the blue trail, we arrived at the Blackledge River. It’s nice a shady and a great place to sit down and take a break. There is a nice bridge and a picnic table. How do you like my Summer haircut?
Back in the day, Gay City State Park was a mill town. Today, all that’s left are some foundations and cellar holes. The top photo above is a foundation that is right next to the brige that goes over the Blackledge River on the blue trail. The lower picture is a cellar hole that (I think) was along the yellow trail.
This is just a random shot of a big Oak tree. We we saw it, I thought that it was pretty straight. The photographer in me wanted to get a neat photo of it.
We haven’t seen any mountain bikers yet, but there are lots of them in these trails. Probably more mountain bikers than walkers. It can get a little lumpy though. Near the wetlands of the red trail, the trails get quite rocky.
This is the lake (swamp) that lies in between the blue trail and the yellow trail. It’s not really a clear lake and I believe it may be responsible for all the rocks and insects.
Finally, a little cooling off at the pump in the camp on the blue trail.
We were going to go back today for another hike, but it’s pretty bad outside. I mean hot. Maybe later on this afternoon or something.
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Sunday, June 15th, 2008
I hadn’t taken much notice of it until a friend mentioned it to me a few days ago. He said, “You might want to do yourself a favor and take that Tulip tree down while it’s still small.” Upon later reflection, we noticed it wasn’t a Tulip tree, but most likely a fast growing softwood.
I don’t know about you, but I am not interested in having a fast growing softwood tree about 30 feet away from the house. I remember in my past life, we removed a 20 year old Tulip tree that was about 80 feet tall. I couldn’t believe it when the homeowner told me that.
Since I haven’t figured out what kind of tree it is, I thought I would put it out to you. I know it’s not a Tulip…the leaves are nothing like them. I was thinking it could be a Poplar or an Aspen, but the leaves don’t quite fit. Thereare over 40 different types of Poplars, so it could be one of them.
If you know what kind of tree this is, please let me know while it’s small enough to cut down and drag into the woods. I can always replant an Oak in its spot. They seem to be springing up all over the place.
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Saturday, June 7th, 2008
Every time I visit either Lowe’s or Home Depot, I try to go into the nursery to grab a few shrubs. I can always find a use for shrubs, I just wish they were free. That would be wild.
I need about 50 Rhododendrons. I would like to line the entire wooded area up front as well as both sides of the driveway. I love the look of fully grown Rhododendrons. They are great cover and have wonderful flowers.
I remember one house down in Yonkers that I did some work at years ago. It was owned by an old (rich) dude. He had everything looking just perfect. There were huge Rhododendrons, Japanese Yew, Hemlock and all the rest. It was so green and so was I, with envy. I still have the image in my mind and that’s what I would like to have one day.
But for now, I will have to do with small Rhododendrons to start.
I bought three of these during my last trip to Home Depot.
This is one of the areas I would like to line. When the plants grow larger, they will hang over the rocks and all I will have to do is push the mower under the plants. I know, I am too slick.
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Saturday, June 7th, 2008
You are going to want to kill me for this one. I put such a great title to such a great event, but got such a lousy picture. You just wait.
Yesterday, I was sitting here doing some work when Laura ran in telling me there was a turkey running through the back yard. I got up and grabbed my camera. I thought this would be great to catch on “film.” I stood up and looked out the window, and wouldn’t you know it, there was a turkey walking through the back yard on its way to the woods. It was a big sucker too.
I held the camera to the window and shot. Here is what I got…
I am really sorry about that.
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Tuesday, May 20th, 2008
I finally finished raking the leaves. There were a lot of them. I can’t say I liked doing this particular job for many reasons. One reason I didn’t care for this activity would be that it wasn’t much fun, with the presence of gnats coming in at a strong second. Apparently, gnats live in old leaves. When you rake them, instinct tells them to swarm around the closest face they can find. That would be mine. They flew in my eyes, in my ears and one even made it into my mouth. I hope the neighbor didn’t see me staggering across the front yard gagging while trying to force the artifact from the back of my throat. Laugh…go ahead.
This is a section of the back yard that is right up against the woods. It has a cute little area you can sit and read, “Gone With the Wind” (Joe, that’s for you).
This is just a random shot looking up the side yard. I guess I wanted to show that the grass actually is getting green. I go out and talk to it every day.
Joe, here’s that little area again. Don’t worry, I am going to put nice plants in there for you.
Now, this is a small garden area that is right next to the driveway. I am guessing it may have been a vegetable garden in the past. I decided to replant the Iris from way up on the hill in the front, split them and put them along the driveway. I think they will multiply and fill in nicely. I also am transplanting some other plants (that I can’t quite identify) as a second row. Then, I am going to get some Boxwood as a third row and make it reaaal nice.
This is looking up towards the road, from the house. Yes, I raked all that out. I plan on getting some more Rhododendrons and scattering them around in this area, to fill it in.
Yes, we have the first bloomed Iris. Isn’t she pretty? I really like Iris because they are so easy to take care of.
A quick shot of a Rhododendron in partial bloom.
Just a shot looking down at the house.
Ahh, the mailbox again. I know you can’t get enough of this. These are the plants I was talking about above. I have no idea what they are, but I took them from the hillside and placed some of them around the mailbox. If you know what they are, please let me know. Thank you.
It’s like we are having a mini “Azalea Festival.” Check this one out showing its colors. Man, I sure hope this is an Azalea.
And finally, this is the front sidewalk. I even raked out behind the bushes in the front.
I don’t think I am going to have to endure this much raking again. I plan on getting a back-pack blower to keep things in check. It should be easier next time.
I’m outty.
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Monday, May 12th, 2008
Yeah, I keep saying I am going to run to Home Depot to get the mailbox stuff, but I just haven’t found the time yet.
I feel like I’ve been stuck inside for days…wait, that’s because I have been. I am doing so much stuff. Unfortunately, it’s all at the same time. I take breaks to rake leaves, which, by the way, are all finished in the front. I even sweat a bit. You should have seen the bugs swirling around my head.
I have a list for the next time we go to the Depot. I need a new mailbox. I am thinking green would be nice. I am going to get a nice traditional post, like many others on the road. I am also going to pick up some more Thompson’s Water Seal (with UV protection). I am going to treat the entire post, from top to bottom. Then, I am going to dig a nice deep hole and actually use cement way down deep. If it’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s having a crooked mailbox post. I know how they get crooked…it’s because of the snowplows slamming snow against them all Winter. With my installation, I am going to try to beat the plows.
I also have to get a 5 gallon plastic gas container for the ride-on lawnmower I plan on getting towards the end of the month. Right now, I only have a push mower and that’s not going to work so well up near the road. The kind neighbor offered to mow up in that area when she does hers. I thought that was nice. I explained to her that I really don’t want to be “that guy” who just moved in and now the grass is too high.
My brother came over yesterday for a visit. He works up North of Hartford, so it was only a 28 mile trip for him. I thought that was pretty cool. We went for a walk down into the woods and then down the nature trail. Then, we got the dog and walked up the road to the dead end. I wanted to show him all the nice houses. It’s good that he is so close now because we can hang out more. I keep offering to make him dinner, but he wants to keep eating in restaurants. One day…
I am planning on taking down the basketball hoop that is set up near the driveway. I offered it to my brother and he accepted. It’s in very good shape. I’m just wondering how deep that sucker goes into the dirt and how much cement they used as the footing. It may be a long day of digging.
I’ll show you some pictures of the new mailbox when I get it in.
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Thursday, May 8th, 2008
We took another trip to a different town today. We went food shopping at Stop and Shop in Colchester. Colchester was a pretty neat town, but a little busy for my taste. It was cute with a nice park right off main street. I think it may have seemed busy because rush hour was getting close.
While in Stop and Shop, I felt a bit tired. I kept wondering why. Then, I remembered what I had done all morning…raked leaves. By the way, Stop and Shop’s prices were waaay lower than Whole Foods. We got about triple the product for just a little mo’ money. That’s cool with me. I think we are still going to go back to Whole Foods because I like the atmosphere. Stop and Shop seemed much more like just buying food to survive. If I am going to go out somewhere, I like to have an “experience.”
Anyway, back to those leaves. Since this propery is a bit larger than our other one, it is taking a little while to get used to. One thing I noticed was that there needs a lot of raking to be done. There are many gardens (which are very nice and right up my alley), but they need a bit of TLC because of the Winter. The good thing is that they have a nice variety of plants already planted. There isn’t much in the way of running out to the nursery to get new stuff. Yesterday, we went to Home Depot for some spruces and pachysandra. I got the spruces, but there was no pachysandra to be found. When we got home, I noticed there was pachysandra already scattered throughout the front. They were just kind of buried with leaves.
A few days ago, I decided to it would be best if I picked one area per day to rake. There is no sense me killing myself and I can always use a nice break from the computer. I already did about three or four areas and things are starting to come together. Today, I did part of the big front garden and along the front of the house.
Believe it or not, this area had three tarp fulls of leaves. One tarp full equals about four wheel barrow loads. Crazy. If you are wondering what the heck a tarp full is, it’s me laying a big tarp on the ground and raking the leaves onto it. When it’s full, I pick it up like a big sack and carry it into the woods.
The front of the house was easier with only one tarp full. I needed to get the leaves away from the house because, well, it looks better and I can also get to the foundation for insect spray.
After I am all done getting all the leaves up, I am really going to focus on getting the lawn in order. I already have been doing some stuff, but it needs to be raked and reseeded.
Also, this is the month I get my new ride on lawnmower. I am planning on this towards the end of the month, so there maybe one tough day with the push mower.
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Monday, January 7th, 2008
Today was an awesome day. It was one of those days that makes it worth it to live in the Northeast. It was 60 degrees today. Weather.com said it was only 57 outside, but my thermometer said it was 60, and that was in the shade.
I had a bunch of things to do today. One of them was to pick up the rest of the sheetrock that was laying at the end of the driveway under some black plastic. I had about two garbage cans worth.
When I first went outside, I was in a short sleeve shirt. I was working away, breaking up the sheetrock, putting it into the garbage cans. I was working so hard, I started to sweat. Because of this, I had to take my short off. Some cars drove by and were probably wondering what the weird guy was doing in the driveway with no shirt on. Whatever. I think I am the only guy in the neighborhood who takes his shirt off when working outside. I think we moved into a conservative area.
It was so nice outside, I thought it would be a nice idea to share a short walk in the woods with my faithful viewers. Now, this is not an exciting walk, but you do get to see what the woods in back of our house look like and you get to hear my voice. So here goes…
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