The Greatest Honor

Just days after we celebrate our country's freedom, family is heading there, where it all began.

Freedoms everywhere are being squelched, civil rights are being trampled and lives are being viciously taken. We withstand it, but there is no communal response.

And so for ID 2016,
          In spite of the challenges of the First (and Second) amendments
               In spite of the bickering and privileged whining
                    In spite of It being far from perfect or fair,
                           I pledge allegiance.

I do not endorse Her fully and whole. I resent the 1%; I am shocked by the callous disregard for the mentally ill and victimized; I see cowardice in its lack of action against violent entertainment that is played out on our streets and in our homes. 

And to the Republic for which She stands.  

         One nation.

                  Under God.

                         Indivisible.

Working for a world of one people, one vision, indivisible rather than splintered by the inequities of  money, power, repute, language, color, culture.  In a world paralyzed by fear, how can anyone not consider it an honor and privilege to raise a voice to vote? 

Don't squander what so many others will never have.
With Liberty and Justice for All.

A Plan Without a Template

The garden is in neglect and the long 4th weekend is just in time for a day tending and fertilizing and providing extra water on these hot, hot summer days. I can't seem to keep Armenian cukes alive this year.  Something is eating them right down to the soil, along with the pole beans.

We've sprayed vinegar and water, snail bait, and kept a look out. Other than slugs, we don't see anything. Around it grows Japanese eggplant, tomatoes, 8 ball zukes, spaghetti squash, tomatoes, red and green bells, and more tomatoes. Did I mention tomatoes? I'll make another stab at replanting, but this will be the third go round.

The Liebster Award

Liebster Award: CityFolk Farmers

Cityfolk Farmers transports you from in front of your keyboard and plants you

in the middle of their life adventures on their little piece of heaven on earth.

Cityfolks shares their gardening process, successes and failures and then if that

is not interesting enough "we" the readers are taken into the kitchen for amazing

culinary creativity using the gifts from the earth! Cityfolk Farmers is a place of

heart and soul and some really cute critters too!

Get your cup of tea and relax here: http://cityfolkfarmers.blogspot.com

Shrimp Louie

Here's a quick and easy hot weather treat.

The Shrimp Louie 

Two minute Dressing:
2/3 c. mayo (homemade or store bought)
2 T. sweet pickle relish
1/3 c. chili sauce
just a tiny, ever so small dash of vinegar
Mix. Chill.

The Salad:
Iceberg lettuce
Medium shrimp, precooked, tail off
Hard boiled eggs, halved
Wedged fresh tomatoes
Sliced fresh avocado
Sliced fresh cucumber
Slivered red and orange bell pepper

Big Brother's Alive and Well

Just for the record, we don't take too kindly to chemical companies messing with our food. What a foolish idea for anybody to let anybody or anything own both ends of the growing process.  These companies are producing the chemicals being sprayed while devising chemical-resistant crops so these poisons can continue to be used. Talk about insider trading.

Lots of folks don't think anything about crop spraying. They've been whipped into believing these killer chemicals are the best and only option to protect our crops.

But that's not true. There are other options for healthy wholesome food.  Consider this: chemicals are being sprayed at nearly every stage of a plant's development. It gets into the roots, up through the stalks into the vegetables and fruit. This level of pesticide doesn't wash off, so that juicy peach has more than juice trickling down your throat and into your bloodstream to who knows where. Stomach. Heart. Kidneys. Pancreas. Breast. Prostate. Brain. 

Like I said, not a fan.

Five!

Like Mary Poppins' carpet bag, we were astonished to discover five fledglings when they finally emerged from the owl box a week ago to finally try their wings.

Five!  

For weeks we have seen only three, and then there was a hint at 4.

We can't imagine how five birds this size could fit in the rather small owl box, but they do.

What a sensational time as they gather their confidence to fly for the first time. In one short week, their very first start has turned into anxious impatience waiting for just enough dusk to do it again.

Murphy

2016 is definitely the year of the bird.


A fledgling fell from his nest 30 feet up in the Pine out back. We hadn't noticed the huge nest at the crest of the tree. It was a Red Tailed Hawk whom we named Murphy after our fondness for our attorney.

We know the family. Father Hawk has a symbiotic relationship with the Hubs and they go squirrel hunting together. (The Hubs shoots, the Hawk eats.) A year ago, the Hawk pair raised three chicks who now include our place in their territory.

Murphy fell a long way. He wasn't scared at all as we gently lifted him and moved him under a shrub, the way wildlife pages suggested - to keep him out of direct sun and also out of open spaces where predators could spot him. We put a little dish of water nearby and waited for Mom and Dad to come.

And Then There Were Three...

Here are the Barn Owlets at about 8 weeks.
Today the Hubs had the first *real* glimpse at the third baby.

An adjustment to the names of this friendly brood is in order!

Introducing

Hoot 'n Toot 'n Holler