Fall

Usually fall signals a new beginning for me. I always loved the start of the new school year with its clean, blank notebooks, freshly sharpened pencils, new textbooks and of course, the obligatory pleated plaid skirt with matching sweater! This year, though, fall signals an ending here at Red Bell Farm. I'm closing things up and putting the finishing touches on winterizing as I move towards departure on September 22nd. I feel as if a chapter in my life is ending. While I'll return to Red Bell Farm next spring, I don't expect that my life will ever be quite the same. I anticipate being changed forever by my experience of living in France for the winter. Musings From Red Bell Farm will shortly go on hiatus; Melanged Magic has already started taking its place. I've begun mentally detaching from television, tortillas, diet Pepsi, and the luxury of jumping in  my car and going wherever, whenever I want. There are still things to cross of my 'to do' list, but I'm steadily making progress toward leaving the known behind and embracing the unknown ahead. Life is just one big adventure!

Sounds of Summer

Right around mid-afternoon it begins....the cicada chorus! Can you hear them? When it's cool enough to have the AC off and the windows open, the sound of the cicadas fills the house. Sometimes they're so loud I even have to turn up the volume on the TV. Heck, I can hear them now and the house is closed up tight against the heat. Are you wondering about the foggy appearance of the video? That's the humidity that condensed on my camera lens in the few minutes I was outside. My glasses fogged over as well. It's definitely summer in Iowa!

Frogs Everywhere!

It's been SO wet! I see at least one or two of these frogs stuck to my house or windows almost every morning and evening. This little guy was on my front picture window last night. It was kind of interesting to see what his bottom side looks like. Those round toenail-like things are suction cups that enable him to cling to glass and the house siding. I'm not sure why they keep climbing on the house...maybe trying to get out of the wet flowers?

Gorilla What?

Gorillapod! Only the handiest little piece of photography equipment in the world! I first heard of these little tripods this May when I went to Montana. Travis bought one for Becky as a Christmas gift. I was amazed when I saw it. Becky has a big SLR multi-lens Canon, and the Gorillapod worked perfectly for her. Surely it would work as well on my little Canon point & shoot. Travis said they were cheap...even better. They come in different sizes depending on your camera size. I bought this one at the local camera shop for $21.99. My guess is you could find them a bit cheaper at Target or Wal-Mart. It's little (6 inches), light (under 2 ounces) and flexible. I leave the adaptor attached to my camera so all I have to do is slide the tripod on when I want to use it. Slick!

This is where I 'wrapped' its little legs to attach my camera for yesterday's hair close up. If you click onto the Joby website, you can see lots of ways to use the 'pod and lots of other products they make to let you be 'hands free' in your life.

Going, Going.....

....not quite gone! Just a quick update on the hair growing out process. It's getting there. You can see just a smidge of brown here on the sides. There's also a blob of brown at my crown and in my bangs. Jerry, my hair guy, keeps saying the sides are white; I keep telling him they aren't white, they're silver. I think silver sounds a whole lot sexier than white, don't you? I truly don't see myself as a little old lady with cottony-white hair! The back is totally charcoal/ gray/silver colored now. So another month and the only part that will still be brown will be at the crown...and I can't see that part in the mirror, so it won't bother me at all. I actually kind of like the gray, believe it or not!






Come back tomorrow to see how I captured these close ups.

All is Well

In case you're reading all the online and national news about the massive flooding in Iowa....everything is fine so far at Red Bell Farm! The recent torrential rains have hit areas from Des Moines north; living south, I've avoided most all of it this week. The photos are awful, though, and my heart goes out to those people who have water in their basements, in their cars, and in their businesses. And remember, creeks don't just rise in their water level....they rush and roar and rage. The force of water is so destructive and dangerous. How miserable to be flooded and still have to endure the continuing heat and humidity! It just doesn't seem fair.

Polka Dot Clouds

Severe storms rolled across Iowa last night. While this nasty weather is getting real old, there is always some beauty in it. In the aftermath of last evening's storm, I was treated to polka dot clouds. These occur occasionally...I think it has to do with winds aloft or something. I don't need to know the science behind their formation to appreciate their beauty!  I dumped another 1/2 inch of rain out of the gauge from yesterday's storms bringing the total for my backyard to 8 inches since June 1st...about double the normal for the whole month. Guess it's a good thing I can find beauty in this wet, wet weather.

It's amazing how much prettier these polka dots are with a bit of computer enhancement!

Knock, Knock! Who's There?

Did I hear someone knocking at my front door? Stepping to the open doorway, I looked down and saw this guy sunning himself on my porch! It's been so rainy the past few days, I'm sure he was desperately seeking some sun. I watched him for several seconds before he sensed my presence. Slowly, he turned his head and 'neck' to look at me, his tongue flicking in and out trying to discern danger. Then silently he curled back on himself and slithered into the flower bed next to the front step. I shivered a bit as his tail slipped over the edge, and he disappeared in the cool, dampness of the Stella d'Oro lillies. I had felt a bit guilty about the weeds that have started crowding around the golden lillies and thought perhaps I should pull on gloves and weed the flower beds. After watching this guy retreat, I've changed my mind. Let the weeds grow!

Abundance

Along with the abundance of rain has come an abundance of blooms. While I don't have a huge variety of different flowers around my house, the flowers I do have are blooming their heads off! The hollyhocks are plentiful and the Stella d'Oro daylilies are profuse. Even the shade-loving hostas have started to share their pretty blooms. Rainwater is still puddled up in various places around my yard. I hope all this standing water doesn't produce an abundance of a different kind...mosquitoes!

Wet Weather Woes

I've dumped over 7 inches of rain out of my rain gauge since June 1st. Even for lush, lovely Iowa...that's a lot! On top of the heavy winter snows that stayed on the ground far into spring, this day-after-day of rain pattern has absolutely saturated the soil. These low areas in my lawn have been puddles for three days straight...the standing water never soaks in nor does it dry out as the days have been cloudy and humid even when it's not raining. I think my butterflies are suffering. Today these two just hung out on my shutters and my deck most of the day with their pretty wings spread, trying to dry out. They would sit for awhile then sluggishly flutter around before landing again and spreading their wings. We're all praying for sun!

PS....as I write this, it's raining again!

St. Joseph

I'm starting to feel a bit of a sense of urgency about selling my house. I have 'places to go and things to do' and getting this house sold is key to moving forward with some opportunities that commence the end of August. So, I've decided to call in the big guns and turn this over to a Higher Power. My St. Joseph Sell-Your-House Kit arrived in this afternoon's mail. I carefully read the instructions which mainly say it doesn't matter one bit how you bury or place this little statue; what matters is that you believe and place your request in the hands of God. I know..I've heard all the urban myths before...he has to be buried upside-down by your For Sale sign facing the house, yada, yada, yada! But the little brochure says it doesn't make any difference...just pray to St. Joseph to petition on behalf of your request and let it be. So, I said the prayers and  buried him right side up by my sign facing the house. I was pretty specific that this sale needs to happen fairly quickly so I can be out of here by the middle of August. It's out of my hands now. If it is to be...it will be!

Spring Surprise

The room darkened. Thick clouds roiled overhead. A mighty wind blew leaves from the trees as if it were November and winter was knocking at the door. A splattering of raindrops dampened the sidewalk. Within minutes the sun shone again in the west. But in the east...a spring surprise. An arc of color shadowed by its faint doublet, complete, so big there was no way to fit it all into one photo. A pot of gold at each end. A reminder of the covenant, of spring, of beauty. All the colors of the rainbow, a gift to receive this day.

Signs of Spring

My friend, Laury, has been blogging the past few days about signs of spring in Cadrieu...blossoms, dandelions, rushing water from the lavoir. She's inspired me to share a few signs of spring from Red Bell Farm. The canopy of trees along the south side of my house lets sunlight dapple the deck. It's so pretty, and in another week, it will change to pure shade as the big trees become fully leafed out. While the lacy-ness of spring will be gone, the shade of summer will help keep the house cool during the hot months ahead. I, too, have delegations of dandelions marching across my lawn. Clumps of wild phlox dot the sunny places in the timber and violets edge the lawn. The wild plum thickets are profuse with blossoms right now and a few branches grace my kitchen table, fragrancing the whole room. A few delicate columbine nod their pretty heads under the bedroom window.

The Glad Game

Nothing is blooming yet at Red Bell Farm, but I know it's spring. The irises are up. I've heard red wing blackbirds, and frogs are croaking in the creek. This morning I heard a mourning dove calling. There was a tiny snake slithering across the road when I took Lucie for a walk. I could actually smell dirt last night when I opened the slider onto the deck. On Tuesday, the temperatures hit the low 70's in Des Moines, the warmest in 6 months! The forecast for today is 81 degrees. While it might still snow in April, I've taken a chance and hung the snow shovel back in the barn. I am so glad it's spring. Glad the birds are calling and nesting. Glad the frogs survived the winter to croak once again. Glad that flowers are on the way. Glad to smell the rich Iowa soil after a frozen winter. I'm even glad for slithering snakes. I feel like Pollyanna playing the Glad Game.

What makes you glad about spring?

Metes and Bounds

I made a trip into Winterset yesterday to visit the Madison County Courthouse and discuss metes and bounds with the Assessor's Office. It seems during a recent dispute about a small piece of property that lies along my south pasture boundary, the Assessor's Office discovered that the legal description of my property contains pieces of land that are also included in the legal description of my neighbor's property...and vice-versa. If you look at the map to the left, my land is outlined in red; the Cunningham's land boundary is the dotted blue line. The orange hash marks indicate the two pieces that are in both legal descriptions. It seems that at some point in the  distant past, whoever did the legal description for Cunninghams used the creek (dotted line) as the boundary; whoever did my property shot a straight line north to south. Neither description appears to have been officially surveyed. It looks like we're talking a little less than 2 acres in common. Since I have no access (without going thru my neighbor's field) to the piece on the other side of the creek, it seems reasonable to me that should be his; the small piece on my side of the creek should be mine. I'm more than happy to use the creek as the official boundary. Now....how do we make that happen without spending a boat-load of money on attornies and surveyors? Ah, good question!

Happiness Is a New Washing Machine

I'm sitting here listening to the gentle hum and swish of a load of whites washing. It's a sound that hasn't been heard at Red Bell Farm since last August when my washing machine quit agitating, spun itself into a frenzy and spewed water all over the floor! Edith was here visiting, so I had to curtail my usual flow of bad words. I just mopped up the mess and said Scarlett O'Hara-like "I'll deal with it another day." I shut the water off to it and went to France for the month of September. October was busy with work, a trip to San Diego and buying a new car. Then November came--Thanksgiving--followed by the Christmas holidays, and continued trips to the laundromat with the promise to myself that I would definitely deal with it after the first of the year. Last weekend, I did! I even bought the 5 year warranty so that if I sell Red Bell Farm, it will stay under warranty for its new owner. Lowe's delivered this morning and I couldn't be happier with their service. Okay, how lame is this that the highlight of my weekend is washing clothes???

Tools of the Trade....Winter

The sky was clear and blue, the snow was deep and pristine...it was NOT warm, but with the addition of multiple layers, it was do-able. I strapped on the snowshoes yesterday and did a little trek around the back yard and pasture at Red Bell Farm and took this photo to prove it! I have no idea if the 'shoes are strapped on properly; it's been so long since I've put them on, I have completely forgotten how to do it. They didn't fall off, tho, so whatever! It felt good to be outside...can you say 'cabin fever?' This winter has been brutal so far. I did drive into church in Des Moines Saturday evening. My gravel road was well-plowed, but I could see places where it had drifted during the last storm, maybe as deep as 2-3 feet!

These are the tools of the trade for surviving a winter in Iowa. Snowshovel, snowshoes, and of course, snow mobile boots. My neighbors laughed at me when I bought these in Colorado since I am not a fan of snowmobiles, but they are the very best boots for trudging around in deep snow. I love them!

Winter's Beauty

I'm not going to write about the snow, the roads covered with black ice, the howling wind or drifted snow making my driveway impassable. You don't need to be reminded that this has been a brutal winter of ice, blizzards, and frigid temperatures. Travel not advised anywhere in central Iowa, dangerous wind chill advisories, the 'no tow' ordinance in effect...once again I'm working from home. What I am going to let you enjoy is the beauty that winter brings...frosty, sparkle-y traces of ice on the windows...

and the outside viewed through frosty 'curtains.' I'm snug and warm inside until it's safe to venture outside once again.

Surely That Can't Be Right...

I had an 8:30am meeting at church this morning, so I pulled Miz Red Belle out of the barn about 7:30am to let her warm up before I headed to Des Moines. The outside temperature gauge on my dash read -19 F. I scoffed, "surely that can't be right! It's cold, but it's not THAT cold. Miz Red Belle has it wrong." When I drove through St. Charles about a half hour later, the 'time and temperature' sign at the bank said -16 F. It was really THAT cold! I drove back through town around 3pm and the temperature had risen to a whopping 0 F. Iowa winters can be brutal!

These icicles hung from my red bell in December 2007. It hasn't been warm enough this winter to even make icicles!

Miss No Moments of Beauty

I used those words..'miss no moments of beauty' this morning in a comment I made on Laury's blog. My intention was to get a photo of the New Year's Eve Blue Moon. I took a couple of shots last night, but all I got was a big ball of light surrounded by black...not very interesting. So this morning I thought I'd try to catch the setting moon in the half-light of dawn. Alas, caught up in my journal, I missed that moment of beauty! When I looked outside, the western sky was gray, the full moon gone. As I said to Laury, I hope this isn't a sign for 2010 and vowed to 'miss no moments of beauty' again. Laury thought that could be our 2010 motto; I think she's right. So, you'll have to be content with this full moon taken last winter from my front yard looking toward the eastern sky. It was rising in the early evening above a very frozen field. It was a moment of beauty I caught a few days after the winter solstice. In the deep, dark winter, every moment of beauty I can catch warms my heart. What warms your heart when winter settles in?