Next door the crocus are blooming although the yard is mostly still full of snow. These are the first little signs of warmth that give us assurance that winter won’t last forever.
I am looking forward to the hydrangea shrubs blooming, since my business depends upon my floral photography, but that will be a while.
Summers are short here in the northeast so we make the best of them.
There have been no cats in my life for so long that I had forgotten the one thing about them that is uncontrollable if they roam the outdoors.
They will catch anything smaller than them that moves.
Richie, in the picture, showed his hunting skills just after he was adopted by us by catching a mouse in my kitchen in the early morning hours. And even though he and Fontana came to live with us in the middle of winter, Richie sat at the slider each morning begging to be let free.
Once we felt that he had become accustomed to this area, we started letting him out and he immediately began catching mice and voles. We’d always know when he had something because he would bring it up to the door and meow (with the creature dangling in his jaws) and beg to come in.
Everyone who has outdoor cats know that they do this. They love to show off their prize.
We have numerous large gray squirrels and also many smaller red squirrels in my area and Richie would crouch on the porch watching them steal the birdseed. Occasionally he would make a try for one, but the snow was too deep for him to get close.
The red squirrels are quick and I told my son that he (the cat) would never be able to catch one of those.
This picture proves me wrong and I don’t know how he did it, but he had to show me.
The chipmonks are coming out of hibernation now and he has also caught a few of those. I always feel badly when he kills something, but it’s his instinct and I won’t keep him indoors because he loves being outside.
My grandfather belonged to The Grange when I was growing up in Massachusetts. Other than that, I knew very little about why there are buildings called by this name. So I thought I’d find out.
Wikipedia says that the full name of a “Grange” is the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry. The grange hall was the meeting place for farmers and the order of the grange was an advocacy group for farmers and their needs.
Everyone was welcome to join, and even women could hold positions of importance.
The headquarters is still in Washington, D.C. even though membership is now less than it was back in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman were members of the National Grange along with Norman Rockwell. Read more about the history of the grange here.
The Antrim Grange is a place where various meetings are held to honor community members for service and once or twice a year they have art shows there. Since the number of farmers has declined, most grange halls are used for meetings such as this now.
All my life I’ve chosen “favorite spots” to go to when I need a break or to be rejuvenated. A place that is quiet and peaceful where I can take time to think or not think.
My latest spot is this rock by the lake. Except for the summer months, there is no one around when I go here and the view of the lake is perfect.
Once I sat here an watched a loon dive under the water and over and over only to surface in some surprise spot. They stay under water for quite a while, like little submarines.
Being outdoors keeps me sane and no matter what the season I greatly appreciate the fresh air, my ability to walk and see the glorious world around me.
New England's Narrow Road 