Into the Stretch

When I turn the calendar to August I know summer's days are numbered.   This is a "blue moon" August.  Don' t know what that means?    It's the rare occasion when we get to enjoy two full moons in the same month.   There was a full moon August 1, and we are in the waning stages of it.  But the 17th of the month brings a new moon, and August 31 will see a second full moon.
Yesterday as I drove Route 1 through the Scarborough marshes I saw they were very flooded.  We have not had significant rains so I am assuming we were experiencing a very high tide.  No doubt the creeks were full of minnows and the bigger fish that follow them.   I am not sure what is "running" right now, but the bridges and piers were lined with fishermen;  men, women, little kids of all sizes, shapes and colors.  

Wherever I lived before I had a quince bush.   At my home on Dane Street in Kennebunk there were huges ones.   WHen I had my first home on Maine Avenue in Portland I had one; and when I moved to Virginia Street I had one.  The leaves always began to fall off on August 5th.  And the hard green apples were exposed for ripening.  But you wouldn't eat one even when ripe.  If you were ambitious you might make quince apple jelly, but don't try to compare it to Smucker's Apple Jelly.   It takes a lot of apples, a lengthy  cooking, draining and straining and the result is not very flavorful.  

In my yard here at my condo there are yellow, pink and red roses coming into second bloom.   The Stella D'oro lillies, hardy and plentiful, hosta, and honeysuckle in bloom.  The Rose of Sharon which I thought was dead two years ago when we moved it, has grown to three feet tall and loaded with buds about to burst. 
The butterfly bushes in front and on the side are in full bloom. 
I am aware that their days are short so will enjoy them while I can.

As I have mentioned before, Maine has a plethora of music events in summer.   Every park, pavilion and gazebo is booked. Last week there was a concert in the Scarborough Downs property.   Thousands of people gathered to hear Wiz Khalifa and
In Portland the Gentlemen of the Road are appearing on the Eastern Promenade.  It will be a huge event which will temporarily (hopefully) transform the Promenade into a mini-arena.  

This is now August 20.  I am playing catch-up and saw that several issues were still in draft.  I don't know why that happened, but I have not put them all into "publish" so if you're interested in the mundane happenings here, it's there for you.

My grandson Noah leaves today for Ohio State, third year.  We had a nice visit Saturday and went to lunch.   He is all grown up, finding out that what you think when you are 17 and 18 is not necessarily what you will think when you are 20.  But he is smart and  I feel confident he will find his passion in due time.   He is the last to be in college until the next generation comes along. 

All is well in the Northeast Corner - I like that thought.  Look at a map if you don' t believe we own that title.  The crickets are chirping tonight, or maybe they're some other leg-rubbing creature.   They are noisy and all around the  patio, along with a horde or herd of mosquitoes and night flying moths.   I sat for about three minutes and decided I was seriously outnumbered.

Two nights ago there were thunder showers for several hours; last night the delayed fire works from Summerfest shook the earth for 45minutes; tonight it's the crickets.  And when Nick settles down on his bed on the floor (since he can no longer easily get up on my bed) , he will begin his nighly groans which will give way to snores.   Comfortable sounds that tell me I am not alone.  And he doesn't complain about my snoring, so I won't complain about his.  

Happy Blue Moon   
jmajor2@maine.rr.com

From the Northeast Corner

The Northeast Corner of the US is a beautiful place to be today.  It is not too hot, but nice enough to go to a beach, either at the ocean on on a lake.  The air is clear, the sky is blue and the land is lush.  Lobsters are plentiful, therefore, a little less expensive; the fresh vegetables are ready for picking if you like new corn, cukes, and tomatoes.  Not sure who is growing spinach outside, but I would be glad to have some.  

But across the country - nearly all the way across - there is chaos.  And because news travels fast in todays electronic world, it is coloring the lives of people everywhere, even here in the Northeast Corner.  It is hard not to listen to the news, watch the televised reports.  There is no good explanation of why we are fixated on such a tragedy.  I certainly do not get a thrill out of it.   I can't help anyone; even if I knew them, I couldn't help htem.   I can, like most others, say a silent prayer for the comfort survivors, the relatives of the living and the deceased.  I can even say a prayer for the perpetrator because he must surely be a tortured soul.   It is tragedies like this that make me question my faith in a higher being that would allow such a thing to happen; that a child should die at the whim of a nut case. 

Lest you think the Northeast Corner is totally devoid of them (the nut cases) let me remind you that several years ago a parishoner laced the after Sunday service coffee with arsenic which caused deaths and lasting illnesses.  

Back to the Northeast Corner, the purple butterfly bush is truly gorgeous and yes, the humming bees have returned.  Their memories are good.  Where ever you are when you read this, remember -

"There is a crack in everything.  That's how the light gets in."
Leonard Cohen (1934 - ?)


jmajor