Spring News...

| 1 Comment

A Patch of Old Snow


There's a patch of old snow in a corner,

That I should have guessed

Was a blown-away paper the rain

Had brought to rest.

 

It is speckled with grime as if

Small print overspread it,

The news of a day I've forgotten --

If I ever read it.

              -- Robert Frost, Mountain Interval, 1916

A Tale of Two States...

| 1 Comment

Finally, after a long winter (and it's not over yet) we had a decent weekend.  Temps in the high 40's, bright and sunny, no storms on the horizon.  A perfect chance to get out of the house (remember -- I work at home, so winters feel twice as long.)

Winter Visitors 3...

| 1 Comment

Well, it's been a couple of days since the "big storm" and digging out is still happening around the Chesterville area. Around 28 inches of new snow fell here, and snow banks are dangerously high all around the roads. More than ever, signs of life around the old farmhouse seems to be waiting for a far off spring to come.

Except for the birds.

Winter Sport?

| 2 Comments

It's been too cold this winter to really enjoy the great outdoors, here in Chesterville -- for me, anyway. Not that I'm a warm-blooded southerner, used to swaying palm trees and soft ocean breezes (by the way, doesn't that sound great right now?) 

An Affinity for Farmers

| 1 Comment

As many of you know who read this blog, from time to time I write about growing up on a dairy farm in the Adirondacks in the 1960s and '70s. As a kid you don't always know the struggles your parents go through when times are tough on a farm, but you know enough.  You know life on a farm is a struggle and there are good time and bad.  Mostly bad, lately for the small farmers. Living here in Maine now, I see there's bad time ahead for farmers again. This time, it may have a huge impact on all of us

Parrish Light

| No Comments

Morning in New England. Dark slowly fades to murky light. Birds stir and flutter, sending a flurry of snow sifting down. Dim red through the trees in the east. The perfect Maxfield Parrish time of day has come.

Hope Springs Eternal

| No Comments

The catalogs are arriving in a flurry each day. The trek from the old farmhouse down to the corner mailbox is an adventure, bundled against the cold that bites cheeks and nose.  Heavy boots, heavier coat, muffler, gloves and hat cover all against the biting cold and wind.  Stirring out of the house on days when the temperature hovers around zero can be a challenge.  But, oh the rewards of the gardening catalogs!

Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend

| No Comments

Abby's gone.  No other way to say it really. The constant companion for my wife and I for the last sixteen years is no longer with us. The cat who would be human, (not to insult her in any way), had to be euthanized. We will miss her every day.

-24 below and Counting...

| No Comments

Well, it's been a while since I lived through this kind of a cold snap for so long of a period, certainly not since I moved to Boston with my wife in the mid-1990s. So far this winter, we've dealt this frozen pipes to the kitchen at least four times. Personally, I'd rather be battling snow.

Winter Visitors ... 2

| No Comments

I've written earlier blog mainly about the four-footed visitors to the farmhouse.  This time of year, the opportunities abound to observe the two-footed kind. The bitter cold this year seems to be driving more birds to the feeders.

Recent Comments

  • Alma Lisa: Sounds to me like the wood stove is the best read more
  • online games: well, its good to hear bout farms and all that read more
  • online games: acTually, iM not that good at sports but as you read more
  • online games: wOw, as for..i do love cats and this move me read more
  • online games: wow! even when its snowing, birds are still there to read more
  • online games: well, so nice to read this one...i never thought how read more
  • online games: well, i can say that you felt so afraid and read more
  • Linda Federman: What a lovely heartwarming story..........Thank you for sharing. Linda Federman, read more

Recent Assets

  • LoonPhoto2.jpg
  • snowwindows.JPG
  • P9156086new.jpg
  • P9156084new.jpg
  • Zsarina.JPG
  • P3040005.JPG
  • P1230045.JPG
  • Ring_NeckedPheasant.jpg
  • Red_BelliedWoodpecker.jpg
  • BlueJay.jpg

Find recent content on the main index or look in the archives to find all content.