gone to seed

In the country, goldenrod is thriving

but most of the wildflowers are easing into their last days.

I was thinking about seeds

how sturdy they are, withstanding 

wind, birds, all kinds of intrusions and obstacles

then freeze, frost, snow, ice

  until spring, when it will be their turn to come to life.

thank you

The frog pond, on its way to becoming a meadow.

I started this blog as a way to help me stay connected with the store when I wasn't there. I thought that customers would read it. As it turns out, only one customer ever mentioned it to me. Instead, something unexpected happened--I found you. You kept me company through my ups and downs, provided encouragement, support, and friendship. You, the people who comment here regularly, are all around the world--mostly from outside the U.S. (which is sort of interesting). You have entertained me with your own blogs and help me feel connected to a larger world than the one I inhabit. I started the store as a distraction from grief--and it was a lot of fun. The best thing that came from it is the people I met, and friends I made--in "real" life, and here. I tend to be reclusive, and don't make friends easily, so this was a real gift. I deeply appreciate all your kind words and good wishes when I wrote that I had spent my last days in the store (selling--there's still cleanup to do...).

 Thank you.

Jen

Catskill weekend

It was my last weekend working in the store. I feel like I should have something meaningful to say about that, but I don't. Doubts, angst and bittersweetness are in the past.

 It was a beautiful weekend--we had a full house, people in and out, cooking, eating, drinking, naps in the hammock, trips to the farmers market, long walks, a party given by a friend I made through the store. 

I went wading and worked on my observation skills. I tend to view landscapes/nature in an impressionistic way, and am trying to focus on details.

Pine needles in the water.

Leaves tumbling down stream. 

Autumn is coming.

I read a wonderful book--charming, magical, haunting--the kind that stays with you.

(read about it here)

I hope you had a good weekend too!

Jen

last days

Last days of summer...

Last days for Country Weekend, the store...

I should take & a little store in the Catskills off of this blog header.

I'll leave 

Home History Nature.

I can work with that.

Thanks for keeping me company on this part of the journey.

Enjoy your weekend,

Jen

Thoreau's cabin

I wrote about Thoreau's cabin in the early days of this blog. Rather than repeat, you can see that post here, and this post will focus on the site. When I visited Walden Pond last week (here) I saw the site of the original cabin. It's on a slope above the pond. Thoreau, grieving from the loss of his brother, decided he wanted to live a simple life in the woods and write a book. He was 27 when he built the cabin (in 1845) on land owned by his friend Ralph Waldo Emerson.

This is the view today from the cabin site. He wrote his first book, A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers while living there, as well as the first draft of Walden, his most well-known book.

 Stones mark where the cabin was originally thought to be, though later study sited it a short distance away. It was solitary, but not remote. He often walked into the village of Concord (less than 2 miles away) to visit friends and family.

I love these little sculptures built by visitors. 

They make me think of Scottish cairns. 

There are some in the water too. I saw a couple of teenage girls working on this one.

Thoreau studied nature closely, and started writing his journals while living at the cabin. The journals, which he wrote for the rest of his life, are filled with detailed observations of nature, and are used by scientists today. (See here.) It is said that he built the cabin to find a home and to find himself. It seems that he did both.

The cabin has inspired many people to build reproductions. You can see Thoreau's original list of building materials here. This company will build one for you, or sell you a kit so you can do it yourself. 

By the time I completed my walk around Walden Pond, I decided I need to build a little cabin in the Catskills. I think that will remain a fantasy. If you have small cabin fantasies you will enjoy this site. 

Jen

the bees were plundering the jessamine

 I own beautiful vases,

but my go-to container for flowers is pitchers.

 I gathered an armload of late-summer flowers and spread them thoughout the house.

The kitchen table.

Mantle

 Entry table

 Kitchen window sill over the sink. 

(Vases are nice too. My father gave me this one.)

A bit of hydrangea in the powder room.

I found a battered old copy of Les Miserables at the recycling center and decided to recycle it, which felt kind of sacrilegious, but it's unlikely someone would read it in the state it was in.

But as I deconstructed it, I found the most amazing quote:

The whole of the day seemed to be composed of dawn: all nature seemed to be having a holiday, and laughing. The pastures of St. Cloud exhaled perfume; the breeze from the Seine vaguely stirred the leaves; the branches gesticulated in the wind; the bees were plundering the jessamine; a madcap swarm of butterflies settled down on the ragwort, the clover, and the wild oats; there was in the august park of the King of France a pack of vagabonds, the birds.

I read that and wonder how I ever thought I could write about nature. And then I read it again. Plus he's a master of punctuation.

It's that Monday we all look forward to--Jane's Flowers in the House. 

My kitten is more low-maintenance than hers.

But hers are so clever she's got them writing her blog posts when she's busy!

Jen

a peaceful Sunday (with recipe)

 I can't remember the last time I read the Sunday paper on Sunday.

Or made blueberry muffins on the weekend.

I did both today.

 We are readers around my house. Not at the dinner table, 

but breakfast and lunch are fair game.

Vintage Ellery Queen is a sign of one of my sons.

 Me with Orion. 

I read the paper on the deck with my first cup of coffee. 

The blueberry placemat and blueberry mug are not staged to go with the muffin. 

They are always there. Muffins come and go.

 I stayed in Massachusetts this weekend--Harriet is running the store.

Next weekend I'll be there--it's the last official weekend the store will be open. I love my store, but I'm glad to be closing. I want to have time for other things on my weekends. 

Like reading all afternoon. That's today's plan.

And maybe collages, laundry, picking flowers for Jane's Flowers in the House,

 and an evening walk. 

And more reading.

And for you a super-easy blueberry muffin recipe:

Ingredients

1-1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

cinnamon sugar 

1 egg

1/4 c. vegetable oil

1/2 c. milk

1 c. blueberries

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Preheat oven to 400

mix dry ingredients

mix wet ingredients

blend wet and dry, then add blueberries

put in muffin tin/cups

sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top

bake 12-15 minutes or until they look done