Word from the home front

Murphy Update: He had his staples out Monday and as of yesterday seems to have turned a corner on his getting around. He's back to following us around, going out front in the morning and checking his pee-mail and generally alert and looking good. The vet said he looked great and was doing well.

Fuzzy is so glad to have us back he wakes us up at night a couple of times just to tell us how glad he is :-).  Here he is playing with the neighbor cat on the back fence.

Rufous hummingbirds are here and fiercely aggressive - here's one of the plump little devils. He chases away the males but doesn't seem to harass the females when they come to the feeder to drink.

And finally one of my favorite subjects - light and dark!

Hanging around

Fishing with Declan last week - he had caught a rainbow in the river under the bridge before so wanted to come back. Classic shot.

A couple more from the boat show.

One of the enjoyments of attending the antique boat show were the reminders of a slower pace of life without electronic gadgets.  Here's a couple of shots - the boat with it's small motor and layout for conversation seems like just the thing for a journey. The Johnson motor is one I remember as a kid in Minnesota.

Notice the ability to lean and richen the fuel mix both at slow and high speeds!  

Skaneateles Annual Antique and Classic Boat Show

We spent a good deal of time walking down memory lane looking at antique and classic boats today. I've included a large number of photos to cover most of what I really liked. Much fun and good energy amongst the participants and spectators and the weather cooperated quite well.
 Which is your favorite?

Syracuse Day 4

Cardinals singing from the treetops opened the morning and the day just got better and better! A late brunch with family, then off to spend two hours touring a private 30 acre garden (Sycamore Hill Gardens), a nap and then dinner with Erika and Paul in West Seneca.  Tomorrow the wooden boat show in Skanateles.

The photos are just a sampling as there were many from the gardens but those will come together for another day. These are a few of what I liked from today.  And no, I don't follow any other logic than I like them.

The family bible below was shared by our host Kathy - her husband Dave's family has writing in it from 1810 that we found.

A pair of tuskers watch the path in the gardens.

The green man on an old door with a rock frame.

Stepping stones across a koi pond in the gardens.

Big boy guards the ponds!

On a hill above a cemetery.

Syracuse Day 3

Not a lot of new photos today; spent time with in-laws doing various things, then drove down to Ithaca to have dinner with Elizabeth, Diana's granddaughter. Excellent food and wonderful to reconnect to 'Lizard'!
Here's a flower and the sky and a grin on a 6 year old big enough to light up the day!

Kendall LOVES riding her bike!

Day 2

We traveled to a house on the Salmon River near Redfield, NY, which is about an hour north and east of Syracuse. My brother-in-law is friends with the owner of the house and we packed hot dogs and coneys and hamburgers and headed out of town this morning. It was raining lightly as we left, but stopped somewhere along the way. Cooler today, in the mid-60's, until the sun came out and made everything more beautiful.
We had 5 adults and 3 kids between 6 and 9. Grandpa Jon had bought them bikes and tossed them in the back of his truck. We stayed busy biking, walking, hunting snakes and crawfish, playing games and generally having a good time. Just after we got to the place a Redbone Hound puppy joined us and would not go home. So he hung out with us during the day and we took him to his place on our way out and dropped him off.  He is a beautiful hound dog!
All in all a very good day that tired us out and we are just relaxing tonight.  Here's a few shots from the day, starting with a day lily that just shouted "Take my picture!"

Redbone hound

Hound in action!

Snake hunting!

Crawfish hunters!

The Salmon river

Our play place.

Biking heaven for the kids.

Syracuse Day 1

We slept late, enjoyed a nice fruit breakfast, with Riley the dog and various cats that come by for food. We met Bailey the horse and wandered around the property a bit before heading over to relatives for the day.
Our BnB has a pool and hot tub along with the afore-mentioned animals. Riley is a shaved Golden Retriever who weighs 90 pounds and behaves like no one has ever petted him before. What a riot! Glad Murphy is not here to see this or he would be very jealous.
A good rain last night left lots of droplets on the flowers and stems as well as provided water for the small frog you will see in the day lily. A very peaceful place and comfortable to be at.
Here's some shots of the day..

Bailey watching me closely

Back of our place with pool, hot tub and great flower gardens.

Riley, the perpetual overgrown boy!

Bailey

Find the frog!

very nice.

A Walk in the Park

Our friends' place is about two blocks west of Central Park. We took a walk there last evening, enjoying the movement, the shift in energy as as we walked from the street into the park. From a feeling of being 'enclosed' to a feeling of spaciousness and quiet in the park. The sun was setting and the full moon was rising; we wandered through the Great Lawn, around a reservoir, by a free concert pavilion with a band warming up, escorted at times by runners, walkers, and police on horseback or in scooters.
Our friend says this place is what keeps NYorkers sane and I can see why.

On our walk back we stopped and had dinner at a very nice Greek restaurant with good food, watching the lights come on in the apartment buildings.

I'm told that garbage is picked up everyday here in the city, so part of the sidewalk scenery is the bags of garbage, piles of cardboard and other miscellany waiting for disposition.

We're off to pick up a car and drive up to Syracuse today, overcast skies and a bit of light rain so far.

Four generations - that is incredible. This is on a park bench in Central Park.

Ready! Set!

Street art