HEADING OUT FOR GRANVILLE OHIO......
JUNE 10 2011...........................

I'll be leaving for Granville shortly, will be setting up for the first large art festival of the season.  I wonder how many really important things I will forget to pack.  You lose track of all that you need when it has been 6 months since the last major festival, I know I have my tent, my panels, my pictures, but what little things do I need I don't have.  I guess that is why there is a WalMart everywhere.

Yesterday morning I worked in my garden (flower this time), then shopped for necessities for Jerry so he would have easy stuff to eat while I am gone, then in the evening loaded the van. 

Right now, with mowing under control, weed whacking caught up, flowers blooming, the place looks pretty darned nice. 

This is my iris garden, as seen from our patio, which opens off the dining room / kitchen area. 

The pink flamingos were a gag 50th birthday gift for son Jerry last year, so I have two in the Iris bed, the second one is on the other side.  They and my goose keep guard over the irises.

This is from our dining room window.  The three tier flower bed is in the foreground, our patio is just to the right, and what you see is part of my back yard.  It goes from the trees on the left to the trees on the right, and stops at the "farm" part of the farm. The brown you see is where field corn has been planted for cow food this winter for Tim's cows.  The green on either side is hay and will probably be mowed and baled when I get home, more cow food.

Also this week I spotted more turkeys dancing in our orchard, on the left side of the yard. Since I don't have any pictures of them, had to take some.  No wonder my computer groans every time I connect the camera to download.

We have apple, peach and pear trees in the orchard, along with grape vines, and my vegetable garden is below the orchard, closer to the house. 

Everyone always remarks on how nice our place looks, but no one has the remotest idea of the amount of work, day after day, it takes to keep it looking nice.  Hours and hours of mowing, whacking, pruning, mulching, cleaning up -- but the result is more than worth the work involved.

Now to change gears.  My good friend, Pastor Linda, who lives in Munhall (a piece of Pittsburgh) has cats.  One of her cats doesn't know it yet, but he is going to become a famous cat.  His name is Napoleon.  He is a white long-hair.  He is sporting his summer hair cut right now.

When Linda lived in West Alexander this cat just appeared one day, nasty disposition, hissed and spat, you name it, he did it.  For some reason he latched on to Linda, and began staying on her porch, so of course she had to feed him.  Over time he became what you see now.

Why do I say he will be famous?  As you all probably know (if you didn't you will now) that I have written a three volume series of books entitled IF ONLY I COULD TALK.

Each book contains 20 short stories, written from the subject's viewpoint, what I think that particular subject would say if it COULD talk.  Volume three is scheduled for publication this fall, and Napoleon is telling his story.  And quite a story it is.

All my stories have pictures accompanying them, and the books are listed on my web-site.  I usually have one or two at festivals also, kids love the animal stories, adults like them all. 

Photography and writing - two of my favorite things, next to my family, my friends, my traveling, my gardening, The Phantom of the Opera stage play, along with several others I have seen throughout the years, having holiday meals, cookouts, cook-ins, CSI, NCIS, CRIMINAL MINDS, HARRY'S LAW, and a whole slew of other TV shows, surprise parties, and not so surprised parties.  I guess I could go on and on. but running out of time.

Better gather up my last minute stuff and hit the road.  I won't be blogging on Saturday and Sunday, but will touch base on Monday morning, hopefully with a big smile on my face.  And a new actually working refrigerator.

Time will tell.  Have a great weekend and God Bless.