Do They Know Something I Don’t Know?

February 23, 2009

frontdoorroses

I was surprised to find the box in the picture above leaning against the front door Saturday afternoon.  Betsy and I were busy working with our new computers and we didn’t even hear the mailman come to the front door.

I recognized the box as soon as I saw it — I didn’t even have to read the name.  I’ve been a customer of Jackson & Perkins for many years, and I knew that we had just gotten a bare-root rose which we ordered for our garden this year.  The reason I was surprised is that Jackson & Perkins does a good job of getting roses to the customer at the proper planting time.  And quite frankly, I was expecting to be planting roses anytime soon!

Rose Spellbound, Fairfield Glade. June, 2006.

Rose Spellbound, Fairfield Glade. June, 2006.

This rose, Spellbound,  is a replacement for a plant we’ve had in our garden.  The picture at the right shows Spellbound in 2006, the year we planted it.  But two years of drought had reduced it to a single blossom on a weak stem last year.  Since we like Spellbound when it’s healthy, we decided to try again with a new plant.

So I was delighted with this sign from Jackson & Perkins that spring is near.  The only problem is that we got the rose Saturday afternoon and it snowed Saturday night!  Oh, well, at least Betsy was happy.

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Posted in Garden | 27 Comments »

Scenic Sunday # 32

February 22, 2009

Sunrise on Mt. Nebo, Arkansas. December 4, 2008.

Sunrise on Mt. Nebo, Arkansas. December 4, 2008.

This is my post for Scenic Sunday.  You can join and share your scenic pictures with us, or visit beautiful scenes from around the world, by clicking HERE.

The picture above was taken last December at Mount Nebo State Park in Arkansas.    Betsy and I got up early one morning and went to Sunrise Point, which overlooks the Arkansas River valley.  In the picture, which can be enlarged, you can see the river at the extreme left, which is just beginning to show some reflected color from the rising sun.

The sun has not yet risen above the mountains on the other side of the valley, but the low clouds in the east are already sunlit.  It was the beginning of a beautiful day.

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I’m happy to report that both Betsy and I are now using our new computers.  We had a small hiccup or two, but the file transfers went well.  I know I’m very happy with my new computer, and I think Betsy is as well.

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Posted in Scenic Sunday | 23 Comments »

We’re Helping the Economy

February 21, 2009
Our new computers. February 20, 2009.

Our new computers. February 20, 2009.

Betsy and I have been doing our part to help the economy.  So if things don’t improve soon, it won’t be because we haven’t been trying.

Yesterday we had to take our Prius into the dealership for her 120,000 mile service.  Let me just say that the service required was fairly major and I’m sure we helped contribute to the paychecks of at least a couple of mechanics.

We then headed over to the Apple store and made a MAJOR contribution to the economy.  We’ve been discussing new computers for over a year now, and we finally decided to take the plunge.  We like our Macintoshes and so we stayed with them.

Now all we have to do is transfer our files from the old computers to the new computers.  Hopefully much of that will be done overnight.  But if you don’t hear from us for a day or two, you know we’ve encountered a problem.

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Posted in Technology | 25 Comments »

Skywatch Friday # 32

February 19, 2009
Sunset in Fairfield Glade. February 8, 2009.

Sunset in Fairfield Glade. February 8, 2009.

This is my entry for Skywatch Friday.  Last week over 300 people from around the world shared their views of the sky.  To see more sky pictures, or to join the fun and join, click HERE.

Earlier this month I took my walk a little later than I usually do and captured the sunset above.  I usually view the sunset from the 14th tee of the golf course, but this picture was taken from the first tee.  This fairway is not quite as wide as the 14th and it is more level so the trees appear more numerous, but the sky is as glorious as ever.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 36 Comments »

Tennessee Weather

February 19, 2009
Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. February 18, 2009.

Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. February 18, 2009.

Mother Nature put on quite a show here in the Glade yesterday.  We had rain when Betsy and I made our weekly run to the grocery stores in the morning.  The rain was steady, but not too hard.  However, shortly after we got home, the sky got darker and the tornado-warning sirens went off.  A few minutes later it started to rain and hail.  That’s when I took the picture above from our small front porch.

I stayed on the porch for a few minutes to watch the rain and hail and to see if the water was washing away parts of the rose beds (it wasn’t).   The hail seemed to come in waves — lots of hail for a minute, no hail at all, and then lots of hail again.  As is usually the case, the hail was mostly small pieces of ice — less than about a quarter-inch in size.

A large piece of hail. February 18, 2009.

A large piece of hail. February 18, 2009.

I was about to go back into the house when I heard a ‘thud’ above my head and this large chunk of ice (right) bounced off the roof and landed on the driveway.  I was quite surprised by the size and by the fact that I only saw one piece ice that large.

I was also very glad that I had a roof over my head at that moment!

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Posted in Weather | 26 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 23

February 17, 2009
Wetumpka Falls, Tullahoma, Tennessee. February 14, 2009.

Wetumpka Falls, Tullahoma, Tennessee. February 14, 2009.

This is my entry for Watery Wednesday, a weekly meme that features scenes from around our watery world.  To see more pictures, or to join and post pictures of your own, click HERE.

There isn’t a great deal of water in this picture (which can be enlarged), but I am posting it since it is the latest waterfall that Betsy and I have added to our waterfall ‘collection’.  Wetumpka Falls is the 301st waterfall in our collection.

Sunday I wrote about Pond Falls, which was 300th in our collection.  Wetumpka Falls was a footnote in our waterfall book and is located about half a mile from Ledford Mill.  We went right past it the first time we tried to find it, but spotted it the second time.  It can be seen from the road if you know where to look.  Wetumpka Falls might be small, but it’s a nice start to our second 300 waterfalls.

In trying to find more information on Tennessee’s Wetumpka Falls, I found two more waterfalls with the same name — one in Alabama and one in New Jersey.  So it looks like we have a couple of more waterfalling trips to make.

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 29 Comments »

My World # 18

February 16, 2009
John Marshall High School, Cleveland, Ohio. May, 1964.

John Marshall High School, Cleveland, Ohio. May, 1964.

The building in the picture above was a big part of my world from 1963 – 1966.  The school is John Marshall High School in Cleveland, Ohio.  John Marshall was my first job after graduating from college.  The high school was on the western side of Cleveland, practically in the suburbs.  When I was there it contained approximately 1200 students in grades 9 – 12.

It was quite a change for this farm boy from Indiana.  Living in a large city was quite a change.  Looking back I’m amazed that I got along as well as I did, but there were about twelve new teachers my first year and we quickly gelled into what would now be called a support group.  We attended many school functions together.

During the summer my department chairman told me that I would be teaching mostly first-year algebra, with ‘one other course’.  I spent more than a moment or two during the summer wondering about that ‘one other course’.  On the first day of new teacher orientation Mr. Allen called me into his office to give me the bad news (his words).  John Marshall was going to be offering AP Calculus for the first time and since none of the teachers with more seniority wanted to teach it, I, as the new kid on the block, would have to do it.  I think I did a pretty good job of hiding my ‘disappointment’.

John Marshall remained part of my world until the summer of 1966, when I went to the University of Illinois to get my Master’s degree.

To see more of our wonderful world, or to join and share your part of the world with us, click HERE.

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Posted in My World | 20 Comments »

A Valentine Day Hike

February 16, 2009
Betsy and George at Short Springs State Natural Area. February 14, 2009.

Betsy and George at Short Springs State Natural Area. February 14, 2009.

As I mentioned yesterday, Betsy and I did  some hiking and waterfalling on Valentine’s Day.  It’s becoming something of a tradition for us.  In February there tends to be more water at some of the smaller waterfalls and the bare trees make it easier to find a waterfall when bushwhacking.

The longest hike we had on Saturday was at the Short Springs State Natural Area near Manchester, Tennessee.  Short Springs has a well-developed trail system which is both well-maintained and well-marked.  We hiked the Machine Falls Loop, which got us quite close to the base of Machine Falls.

Most of the time the trail was very moderate, although the descent into the canyon containing the waterfall was very steep.  There were several stone steps that would be difficult for my short-legged beautiful bride to climb on the way up.  To continue around the loop would be a longer hike, but what would the climb up out of the canyon be like?  We didn’t know.

But one of the nice things about hiking is that you meet some of the nicest people on the trail.  While we were admiring the stream below the falls, we met a boy scout leader who was familiar with the area.  (He’s the one who took the picture above).  He recommended continuing around the loop.  The ascent up Jesus Hill — so called because he felt that would be where he would meet Jesus when climbing up — was steep but contained no rocks to climb over.  We made it up the hill (slowly)  and had a nice hike around the rest of the loop.

Most of the time when hiking we have the trail to ourselves, which we very much enjoy — it’s a great way to feel close to God’s beautiful creation.  But once in a while we meet another hiker who shows us another aspect of that beauty.

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Posted in Hiking | 23 Comments »

Scenic Sunday # 31

February 15, 2009
Pond Falls at Ledford Mill, Tullahoma, TN. February 14, 2009.

Pond Falls at Ledford Mill, Tullahoma, Tennessee.February 14, 2009.

This is my entry for this weeks’ Scenic Sunday.  To see more pictures from our beautiful world, or to join in the fun and contribute your own pictures, click HERE.

Betsy and I just got back this evening from our Valentine’s Day trip.  For the second year in a row we have gone waterfalling.  This year we managed to see six new waterfalls.  Saturday started out rainy in southern Tennessee, but it cleared up enough to make hiking very enjoyable.  We had one moderate-length hike and several short hikes in our search for these six waterfalls.

The waterfall in the picture above is the 300th waterfall in our ‘collection’.  It is Pond Falls, one of two that can be seen from the Ledford Mill near Tullahoma, Tennessee.  This falls is formed by overflow from the retention pond that supplied power for the mill.  The Ledford Mill is a gristmill built in 1884 and is listed on the National Historic Register and on the Tennessee Heritage Trail.  Restored in 1996, the mill is now both a museum and a bed and breakfast.

Betsy and I were delighted to add this pretty little waterfall to our collection.  We are also looking forward to adding more waterfalls to our collection in the weeks and months ahead.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 31 Comments »

Skywatch Friday # 31

February 12, 2009

Sunset off St. Maarten. September 11, 2001.

Sunset off St. Maarten. September 11, 2001.

Welcome to Sky Watch Friday if you would like to see more of the sky from all over the world click HERE.  Last week over 300 people shared their skies.

Cruises are very nice — there’s (too much) good food and beautiful scenery.  Betsy and I especially liked sunrises and sunsets at sea.  They were almost magical moments.

The picture above, which can be enlarged, is of a sunset off St. Maartens in the Caribbean.  We watched the sun sink toward the horizon, the ocean get darker and darker, and the sky fill with golds and reds.  It looked like a perfect ending to a perfect day.

Now look at the date — September 11, 2001.  We had heard about the World Trade Centers and had seen television footage.  There were many more questions than answers at that time.  How can such horror coexist with such beauty?

I don’t know the answer to that question — just as I don’t know the answer to many other questions.  But this I do know —

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
. . .
”Be still, and know that I am God; ‘”
— Psalm 46, 1 – 3, 10

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Betsy and I hope to celebrate Valentine’s Day by seeing some new waterfalls, so we will be away from the computers for a couple of days.  Hopefully we will be back Sunday.  Have a happy Valentine’s Day and a great weekend.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 37 Comments »

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