The Road to Tupper....

Yesterday I traveled to Tupper Lake to visit several friends. Traveling west from the Lake Champlain Valley this "Adirondack View" unfolds from the top of Spruce Hill.... Rt. 9N between Elizabethtown and Keene...


Continuing west between Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake Rt 3 crosses this brook,...



Between visits my friend Kathy and I visited a place of special beauty,... tune in tomorrow for a visit to a snowy cathedral built by Mother Nature!

Great-Grandma's Fork...

This morning as I was cooking bacon I was using my old fork,...as usual. I always remembered it in my mother's kitchen drawer. When she passed away I brought it to my kitchen. My grandmother lived with us when I was growing up and she always used it. It was old then. So somewhere along the way I began to think of it as my great-grandmother's fork. It could even be older than that.


It has a wooden handle with tiny brass nails holding it together.

And one tine is worn down from decades of use. Obviously by several right-handed cooks!

I'm sure it will survive to be passed on to my daughter or teenaged granddaughter, both of whom are excellent cooks. Thank you to you grandma,... whichever one of you that it belonged to!

Happy Thanksgiving!...

Good Morning! On this Thanksgiving Day I hope that you all have a wonderful time in whatever way that is right for you.
I have counted the things that I'm thankful for, and my new friends here in the world of blogs are high on the list. Now I'll head out to the kitchen to make another batch of rolls to take to my daughter's today. At last count she expected to have 24 for Thanksgiving dinner. See you tomorrow!

It's Here, (part 2) ...

This past Thursday, November 20th I posted about the snow arriving,...it was on the mountain tops in my view to the west. Yesterday morning I woke to snow here in my yard. Not much snow, but definitely snow! As I left for work around 7 a.m. when it wasn't totally daylight yet the pictures show the story,...

My driveway from the house out through the woods to the road,...

My back yard where my little camper is folded down and waiting for spring under a big, blue tarp.

A little tree beside my driveway,...

A pile of campfire wood,...

And this morning, the sun is out, and it's melting out on the deck,...

A lovely day dawns across the valley,...

Breakfast at Gus'...

Sunday morning tradition in the North Country is going out to breakfast. One of my favorite places is in Plattsburgh.

Usually every booth is filled. This time we got our pick of where to sit.

From 1951 to the present time, Gus' has been famous for "red hot" hotdogs. Or as also known here in the North Country of NY, "michigan hotdogs." But I can attest to the great meatloaf dinner, and just about any breakfast meal you would like to order!

My favorite breakfast: crisp bacon, eggs over medium, thick toast and home fries and grape jelly. We won't even calculate the calories on that plate! It's a good thing I only do this about once a month.

And for dessert,... perfect black coffee!

Thank You Shelley!...

Only a few days ago I posted here about a blog I had just discovered,..."Building a Log Cabin"... by Shelley. Her site is beautifully done and leads off with a quote from Henry David Thoreau.

Today after returning from going out to breakfast with a friend and then grocery shopping, I returned home and started catching up on my forums and blogs. To my delight and surprise I found I'd been named a runner-up in a give-away that Shelley was holding. My gift will be lemon curd.

So Shelley,... a heart felt "Thank You" to you,.... a new found sister in the blogging family!

http://logcabininmichigan.blogspot.com/

Bears!...

After a summer of camping and bluegrass festivals and then a busy fall of working a second job for nearly three months I'm slowing down and in the spirit of a bear, starting to hibernate for the winter. I have several bear friends that will hibernate with me! These bears are a few of my favorites... the sketch in the back was drawn by our local highschool art teacher, a gift from a friend. Some of the others have been gifts, some I purchased myself.

This mirror hangs above the little table,... the three tiny bears, one of brass and two of carved wood belonged to my grandmother. Frances,... 1875 - 1963.

On the bottom of the table is a little birch bark canoe. Some of my most peaceful evenings were in my old canoe years ago. This little gift reminds me of times gone by.

Those that have read my blog this past summer know that I enjoy camping on the St.Lawrence River where I can watch the freighters go by. On a whimsical note, here is a bear that goes along on those camping trips to the river,... he is called "Looking for Ships!" When camping on the river, he hangs from a shelf over the camper window keeping watch with his telescope.

Our Blogging "Family"...

Since I began publishing this blog back in June this year, I have been so fortunate to "meet" many people in the blogging community. Some blogs I read once and never return to. Others have become favorites and are part of my morning routine. Today I want to share with you one of these:

http://logcabininmichigan.blogspot.com/

Check out Shelley's world!

It's Here!...

Yesterday's early morning light told the story,... that is snow on the High Peaks of the Adirondacks in the west. There is no snow here in the Champlain Valley, but as you can see the peaks are "frosted" today.

This is "Giant"... always easy to recognize by its dome shape and the bare rock slides,... with snowy trees and slides in the rosy sunrise.

Warm,...

This morning I needed to feel warm. I've been fighting a cold and it's fairly well over, but I still have what my mother called a "hang-on" cough. As it's a workday, I've had my cereal (Total) and o.j. and toast. Usually I wait for my coffee and have it when I arrive at work. But this morning I just had to feel warmer,....

This mug was a gift from my older son many years ago,.. it's surviving with only one very tiny chip,... and filling it with the quick version of a mocha cappuccino really did the trick. I'm warm!

Along the River,...

It seems like this time of year is so dreary,.. the bright colors of fall are gone, and all that is left are drab browns and greys. These leaves are still clinging to bushes along the river near my house. They are actually a copper color. A welcome break in the dull colors.

The Bouquet River (pronounced "Bo-qwet.") with the early morning fog,...

Not a ripple to mar the surface!

Flags are Flying!...

When I was growing up, my father was a deer hunter. I listened to many stories of hunts and he always referred to the white tail on a deer as a "flag." This morning on my way to work I spotted three deer in a grassy field. Can you see them?

As I pulled to the side of the road and got my camera ready off they went,... flags flying!

Wanderlust?...

Every day I drive over this railroad crossing to and from work. Looking south it disappears around a curve, but to the north it stretches in what seems like endless tracks to,... wherever! I wonder how many hobos in years past have been lured to hop a freight car out of wanderlust, not just desire to find work in another town during hard times?

A Salute, and a Thank You!...

Today is Veteran's Day. I hope that people see it for what it is,... a time to honor all those that served our country.

I stand and salute those who have served in our armed service,... and I say a hearty "thank you!"

First and Last Light,...

Early yesterday morning I drove along Lake Champlain after going to vote. The light on the lake was amazing. But,... I didn't have my camera. So this morning I took it along on my way to work. Of course the light was nice this morning, but not the same deep peach color over the water as yesterday. However, every morning gives me the message that it's a new day and anything is possible.

This evening the sky to the west was a solid pale pink.

When I went back out on the deck to get the salmon off the grill it had become a deeper shade, and clouds were making layers,...

And five minutes later it was a deep rose color...

And ten minutes after that it was all over,... dark.

Today,....

.... no photos,... just a simple message,...

Get out and VOTE!

Please!

Hanging Around,...

Almost all the leaves have fallen from the trees, with a few exceptions,...

They just hate to give up, I guess!