flood

In spite of all the rain we’ve had in the past few months, this is the first time I’ve seen the creek look flooded. It’s high and silty brown. The rain started at about quitting time at the bank yesterday, growled into a thunderstorm, settled into a downpour, and continued through the night. Because of the silt, I suspect it was raining on a good part of the creek, upstream.

Although this has been a beautifully cool summer, the rain has necessitated that the windows be cracked, instead of wide open at night. Hence, the house is stuffy and smells of mildew, stale cigarette smoke, and cats. The house is built on a concrete slab, which is covered with carpeting, so I’m seeing blotches I’m assuming are caused by the damp, leaching up through the carpet. There’s an infestation of small black ants, which appear to be munching on the shoe molding in the kitchen, not to mention errant pieces of dry cat food. All in all, I’m meeting roommates I wasn’t aware I had!

cycles

Yesterday, I had what I consider a productive day. Lots of resolution of issues, some chores accomplished. I felt energized.

Then I spent a restless night. Today my brain is sluggish, my thoughts scattered. I’m not sure which is the cause, which the effect, but the cats’ actions seem to reflect my state of mind. Either they are playing out my indecision, or I’m just projecting my frustration on their usual activities.

Life is like that, filling and draining.

This could be a perfect day to have lunch with Rita!

My first post

Although I’ve spent years writing and editing, I’ve never had this large a prospective audience. I hope I’m up to the task.

Some background: I’ve lived in the western shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains for better than twenty years and expect to die here. Having grown up near Detroit, I didn’t know the comfort and awe-inspiring quality of mountains. Add to that the pleasure of a large creek and its attendant wildlife, and it can’t get much better, at least for me.

I live in what was the caretaker’s cottage, near a summer camp for handicapped children. At this time of year, there’s some traffic, particularly when the kids are arriving or departing. During the winter, if a vehicle comes down the road, it’s either the caretaker of the camp or the mailman.

Every morning, the cats and I sit on the back porch and watch the creek. Truth to tell, I usually have a cup of coffee and my first cigarette of the day. I watch the creek and the cats and any wild life (mainly squirrels doing their trapeze act), while I think about things. My connection to nature is more philosophical than physical.