A fire

Several months ago I purchased an odd looking torch, it was made for burning grass and weeds in the cracks of sidewalks and such. It has actually been used for that purpose but only in a minor part of its role. The major part of its usefulness has been in the control and extermination of a very annoying and painful species of pismire – better known as the fire ant. This process irritates them very much – but not for very long.

A new role has emerged for this tool. It is now also used as a fire starter, or sometimes in my case, a bonfire starter and has been used many times for this. Sometimes the fire comes from the burning of a pile of weeds, grass and pruned limbs – I wait until the pile is dry and no kindling is needed. But for the campfires down at Fort Gruntmonkey, kindling is necessary – it is split into small sticks and placed under the other wood.

My normal method of campfire prep is to place some larger chunks of wood on the ground, put kindling on top of that and build a sort of tepee over that with smaller sticks. Then once the lit torch nears the kindling, a roaring fire is just minutes away. The kindling I use under the wood for a quicker start of the fire is “fat lighter” – found here on the property in the stump holes of long dead and rotted pines.

The local gruntmonkeys are out of town this week but after my evening walk a couple of nights ago I got a hankering for a fire. I changed into bummy clothes, got the torch, a folding chair, some cutting tools and wandered down to the pond all by myself. In the lingering light of sunset I pulled some large fallen branches up from the water’s edge and chopped up part of these to put atop the pile of wood already in place.

As darkness began in earnest I unfolded the chair and placed it in the midst of Fort Gruntmonkey. The torch was fired off and shortly the kindling was ablaze with the rest of the wood following posthaste. Then the fire enjoyment started. I just sat and watched the dancing flames, soaking up the sounds and warmth of the fire. If I had been troubled with stress it would have been dissipated in the peacefulness of this ancient scenario.

I watched the sparks fly upwards with the breeze carrying them toward the pond that I could just make out in the darkness behind the fire. The crickets were giving a serenade all around me and occasionally I could hear a frog trying to break into the song with a bass note or two – even though it is a bit late in the year for this noisy critter. Soon all that remained were glowing embers so I gathered my stuff and headed back to the house.

It was a good time of reflection, pondering many things and communing with my very best Friend. How else can I say it but – God is good, all the time. ec

PS: The photo is of the ‘burner of grass in the sidewalk cracks/ant torch/bonfire starter’.

Fort GM

Fort GM
On our side of the pond there is a small point of land that in the past has been known as Stump Peninsula – I hereby change this to Gruntmonkey Point. The reason for this is because I have started building fires down there for the “grand” ones – better known as the gruntmonkeys. On an evening a few days back I had GM3, GM4 and GM6 over for one of these fires, to just sit around it and tell stories.

As we made our way down to the point the young ones noted that my stacks of firewood looked like a fort. We went on with the adventures of the evening but the thought stuck in my mind. After the fire and their efforts at defending the ‘fort’ we went back up to the house and did some late night swinging and sliding. They later went home very tired but happy little boys – I remained at my house a very tired but happy old man.

Time slid on through Halloween, the dawgs lost and we had exactly zero little goblins come to our door to get treats – both bummers! We live in the last house on our side of the street and the candy we would give evidently is not deemed to be worth the energy expended to take the extra steps to get to our place. It also poured down rain during most of the best time for those ventures.

Time wandered on through Sunday with a combined service – with inspired singing and a very meaningful message. We then exited to the upper parking lot for what we called Hope Fest – our substitute for Halloween festivities. We also had a chili cook-off and I was one of the many tasters and sampled several before I cast my vote. This voting narrowed the chilies down to six with three judges deciding the top one.

The event was massively attended with many events for young and old – also with lots of food. The Spice and I visited with lots of folks – some for the first time in a while. We finally wore down and headed for the house. Later that evening my stomach questioned my wisdom of tasting so many types of chili.

Monday arrived and I decided to act on the thought I got from the GMs – to build a ‘fort’. Three large trees shade this particular shore of the pond so I used these as supports for the firewood I stacked to make walls for the fort. I simply restacked the wood that was already there – I did so but still needed more to complete the ‘construction’. The solution was to split more wood to finish up the walls – so I did so.

The completed project was three walls stacked about 5 feet tall. The forth side was left open in order to feel the warmth of the fire. It has been named Fort Gruntmonkey. They were over again a couple of days later and imaginations ran wild. They had stopped by with pizza; we took it down to the Fort, chowed down and built a fire. With the amount of firewood down there this tradition could continue for a while.

Even though we as Christians are front line soldiers in a spiritual warfare, we need a ‘fort’ or safe place to go to rest or find help in time of need. We have this safe place in the presence of God and He wants us to come to Him anytime but especially when we have reached our limits of endurance. I’m so thankful He is always there to comfort and guide – we sometimes hesitate to go to Him – not sure why because God is good, all the time! ec

splitting

Today was a day like many others but only in the respect that the sun came up and was actually visible for a short while until it clouded over again. It started out with the taking of nourishment of physical and spiritual natures. Then I loaded up the trash and ‘trucked’ it to the gathering station. I stopped by the post office for the mail then it was on to Wally world. Upon arriving I tried to find a cart without bumpy wheels – almost did.

Picked up several odds and ends and a few grocery items – came to over 30 bucks – cheap from the usual. Back home the Spice and I dined on leftover chili – still very good. Then I kicked back in the recliner, had a dessert of vanilla frozen yogurt with walnuts and apricot preserves on top – yum! Then I had a cup of hot Ovaltine in their chocolate malt flavor and gathered my thoughts and energy for some outside adventures.

I decided to split some firewood – I do this by hand – or more correctly said, I use a manually operated splitting maul and wedge. This went well but the stack was getting tall and a bit shaky, so I went to find a scrap pipe to drive in the ground to steady the stack. I found one with the diameter of 1½ inches and picked it up to see if it was long enough. To my great surprise and shock, a snake fell out the other end!

My brain instantly recognized that it was non-poisonous but my feet were not listening to the message sent to them and they were doing their weird little escape dance. By the time I had got them under control I was unable to find the snake and was never able to see it face-to-face to identify it – if they really have faces. With the heartbeats back to normal I drove the pipe into the ground and it braced the stack nicely.

With the light nigh unto fading, I quit this effort, went in the house, changed to walking gear and went for my evening walk. With a near perfect temp for this endeavor, I put the legs in nearly top gear and finished my three miles in a second under 45 minutes. Exercise of this nature helps keep a person active – even if it does take a few minutes to recover from it. A little later I went to the basement for exercise of a strengthening nature.

FYI – The Spice’s Mom is still in the hospital and still needs prayer. She seems to be slightly better but has a long way to go to get back to where she was. If you didn’t know, she is living with us now and went to the ER last Wed. Not a fun time but a part of life and you never regret the time spent with loved ones like this. Even in this God is still good, all the time. ec

summer 09 recap continues

Our Florida kin departed for home on Saturday, June 20th and on Monday the 22nd OD and her young ones arrived from Texas – FSIL was unable to come due to work. Then the massive family type stuff began with all the gruntmonkeys. GM1 spent several nights with us to be with GM2 and they seemed to have the most fun that could be had in the allotted time in which they had to have it.

All the gruntmonkeys had a great time together with much loudness and laughter, as is the norm. We had several occasions of family times during the week and as much fun as a barrel of monkeys – or more accurately, a basement full of gruntmonkeys. Their time together ended on Saturday when YD and crowd left town for MI to visit with SSIL’s folks – an annual event of siblings gathering with their parents.

It was determined that I should take GM5 on his first adventure of fishing. The rods and reels had to be dusted off and prepared for the venture with hooks, weights and floats applied. Having not fished for some time and not wanting this to be a fruitless adventure, I called our neighbor and she suggested a certain spot on their pond where bream could readily be caught. Then it was to the bait store to purchase some crickets.

With all the prep made, I put the equipment in my garden cart and included a 5-gallon bucket for the caught fish – an act of faith. GM5 and I made our way down to the pond and a baited hook was cast forth upon the waters. Our wait was short and with my help the young one was soon reeling in his first fish. After the 3rd or 4th fish, the attention span of the 4 year old started to wander and after a total of 7 it departed for other adventures.

OD came down for some photo ops and we asked the young one what he wanted to do with the fish. He didn’t want to eat them or throw them back in the pond from which they came and finally decided to put them in our pond – just below the one in which we fished. I carried the bucket down and he poured them out to be re-caught another day. We gathered all the gear and trekked back to the maison, happy for the event and photos.

A smile is the quickest and best way to improve your looks – I don’t think I have ever seen an ugly smile. TBC ec

PS – Photos are of GM5 with one of his ‘catch' – and the other is of all our gruntmonkeys.

son of summer recap 09

If the events of a summer are not written about, did they really happen? June 15th arrived, as did our aunt, her daughter, her SIL and grandson. This aunt is the sis of MIL and she came to visit with us and check up on her sis in the “skilled nursing facility”. They stayed the week with us and it was a hoot!

This was the same week that “the saw” came to Blueberry Hill to stay. The aunt’s SIL, my cuz, helped in the putting together of “the saw” and after purchasing oil and fuel, we set about cranking this new chain saw. We were unable to bring it to life that day, next day I found out that one step in the instructions was misunderstood and when I tried the proper way, it roared to life with a vengeance.

Of course any important tool at Blueberry Hill has to have a name – and one this awesome had to have a special one. I ‘saw’ right off that this tool was a real ‘cut up’ so I named it Ethyl – no particular reason for this choice, it just seemed to fit somehow. Ethyl’s first victim was an oak that was hollow and leaning over the pond. With my Florida cuz aiding and abetting, we managed to pull the tree sideways and dropped it on the pond bank.

The saw was working great and was cutting the tree like a hot knife through butter. That is it was until I got the end of the bar into a small, unseen mound of dirt – if anyone ever asks if dirt will dull a chainsaw, you can tell them that it definitely does. The day of cutting was finished out with a dull chain and next morning, with the help of the same cuz and BIL, we dropped a large pine that had been troublesome for years.

The troublesome part was the fact that it dropped pollen, sap and pinecones on the driveway and car parked there. The tree was just over the line in the neighbor’s yard but with their permission it was cut. The somewhat amazing thing is that it fell in the exact spot I wanted – this was due to planning, two people on a rope and maybe a little luck. It was slow going with a dull chain, so I took it to the equipment place for sharpening.

With a sharp chain again, the large pine was disassembled limb by limb and the slow process of cleanup was started. The whole tree was hauled – piece-by-piece – to a large pile down next to the pond to be used for campfires with the gruntmonkeys. It took about a week to get the limbs, straw, cones and such cleaned up.

If what we chase in life is happiness, it will not be caught – but if we follow hard after God, He can not only be found but also will abide with us – and then the happiness we chased will overtake us. TBC ec

PS – The photos are of “Ethyl” and one of her ‘victims’ – and two Florida cousins, the twins and son of NWT

summer recap 09

The filmy, flimsy wings of summer are beginning their whisper beats of departure and yet my personal narrative of such has not been completed. My hope is that my busy time is mostly over, at least the part that precludes writing about it. There is still plenty to be done about the place but some of the most pressing issues are past.

Going back to June 12th – we returned from the beach shortly after my cousin and her husband arrived to stay a couple of days with us – YD came over and allowed them entrance. They came to attend our annual family reunion out at my bro’s place. We had a great time renewing kinship and even laughed a fair amount.

Next morn we arose to put the finishing touches on the dishes we were to take and I constructed a banana pudding by “popular demand”. We loaded up and made the 30-minute ride to the bro’s. Some kin were already there with others arriving all along. Dishes from loving hands populated several long tables and none asked which were low calorie – those concerns were mostly suspended for the day.

During and after the time we were possibly eating a bit too much, we talked and laughed followed by conversing and chuckling – we even did some gabbing and guffawing with a bit of chatting and chortling thrown in. The crew was a little smaller than usual but just as much fun anyway.

All good things seem to come to an end and this happened to us as folks had to leave for home. We headed back home also and continued enjoying the presence of my cuz and her hubby another night. Next morning they went to church with me – the Spice went to stay with her Mom at the “skilled nursing facility”. Excellent service as always and after we came home and had lunch they departed for their Tennessee residence.

In everyday life we tend to overlook the extraordinary things because they are so well mixed with the ordinary. Plus some of the ordinary is in fact part of the extraordinary. Make an effort to find these really great things and give God a chance to wow you. TBC ec

PS – The photo is of the whole “motley crew” at our June ’09 reunion in Augusta.

MB 0609 2

Although our beach trip is ancient history now – many very busy factors being involved – I feel compelled to finish the story and narratively get us back home.

Tuesday, June 9th, found me on the 7th floor balcony of our temp residence overlooking the beach and ocean in Myrtle Beach, SC. And although I was looking intently eastward, I still was unable to glimpse Europe – has to be fog or something. The time was early afternoon and the day was clear. I was ensconced on the shaded side of the building and just soaking in the fresh air and enjoying the sounds of the ocean.

One could hear the occasional calls or squeals of young ones enjoying the beach – and even the voices of older ones urging them to not do what they were doing because they would hurt or do away with themselves. Many games were being played, waves were enjoyed, skimmer boards were ridden and/or fallen from and birds of several types were flying and calling to each other – probably discussing the human critters on the sand.

Kites were flying to one degree of expertise or another. One particular one was ‘piloted’ very well indeed, with loops and swoops toward the sand, yet without colliding with the beach or any occupier thereof. A game was being played on the shore – Bocce ball – and this reminded me that I intended to buy one of these for the home front last year. Of course my normal tendency is to straightway forget this after I return home.

This was another relaxing day for us both, the weather was sunny with a light breeze and although I had a garden to tend and blueberries to pick back home, I just soaked up the peacefulness. Several small planes flew by, paralleling the beach and towing advertising signs behind them. Also an old red bi-plane flew down the beach and back a couple of times – probably rented by someone for the ride.

A full moon rose over the ocean on Sunday and Monday nights and was absolutely awesome. Tuesday evening found the moon hidden by clouds and showed the lightning of an approaching weather front – awesome also. The balcony contained two rocking chairs and if properly employed these can be much of a stress reliever.

We ate out a few times but mostly ate our meals at the condo – more relaxing. The rest of the trip seems a blur now – we did go shopping another day – relaxing for the Spice, not so much so for me. Early afternoon on Friday, June 12th, found us packed and headed back to our home once again, having enjoyed the getaway but needing to continue our normal lives back at the home front.

During this trip I found and viewed with awe many extraordinary things – these amazing things are hard to find because they are so mixed in with the ordinary parts of a day and have to be searched out. I remain convinced that some of these were made by God just for me to enjoy – God is good! ec

PS – The photo is of a small island of landscaping between the condo and beach.