Summer nearly over

When I was a kid, to me, "summer" lasted from the day school was over to when school started again in September. So I can remember being puzzled when my grandmother would sigh and say, "Fourth of July already. Summer is nearly over." I'd think, What??? How silly! But in the fullness of time, I understand; it seems like it is the fourth, then Wham! it's Labor Day, time to cover the pool and rake leaves. Of course, *I* don't have grandchildren to impress with my wisdom. Phooey.

We are building a new barn for the horses. Our once-charming wooden barn, which we built ourselves with the help of friends and neighbors some 20+ years ago, now looks like a derelict slum-barn. Wood is weathered, chewed, or patched. Roof is bad, those adorable Dutch doors hang all crooked (because the horses beat on them when they are bored) and the entire thing is too small. So, we will soon have a 36' x 40' metal post building, pre-fab stalls with *sliding* doors and grillwork all around, and a heated tack room and workshop. Plus a much enlarged hay storage area, which will make for a smoother winter at the least. But it is very complicated. One guy to do the site prep and gravel the road to the barn (behind the house rather than beside, which will certainly thrill the neighbors across the road), the power company to install a new line and pole to the barn (for which we had to cut down 5 scraggly trees), an electrician for the wiring, a plumber for the water, a paving company to pour the cement in part of the barn, getting the stalls assembled (maybe we can do that), and at the very end, dismantling the old barn and hauling it away. We'll reuse some of the wood in it, but so much of it is horse-chewed, it can only be used if the bad parts are cut out. We are going to be busy. Besides cutting down the trees (and getting poison ivy, ick!), we rehung several gates and moved the fencing to accomodate them. The barn guy said, did we think he could get a tractor-trailer in there? We looked at each other and in one voice said "NO". Tiny little one lane road with a sharp bend has defeated many a modular home trying to squeeze past. You have only to look at the creases in the phone pole at the bend to believe.

Oh yeah, we also must assemble a storage shed for the mowers, etc. outside the fence.

On another topic, the on-line photo class has been fun so far. The first assignment involved making something inanimate appear alive. Here is the photo I submitted









and also this one








Both of them are of an alabaster statuette about 10 inches tall. Most of the light was supplied by flashlights.

Memorial Day

Well, I'm a few days late, but anyway...

We went put to flowers on the four graves in Braxton County the weekend before Memorial Day, and while we were there, we went out to the old farmhouse. I'm amazed it is still standing, it isn't safe to even enter now. Here is the "now" photo














and here is a photo taken in 1904 when the house had just been completed. The husband and wife are my greatgrandparents, and the tall boy is my grandfather.




It gives me a chill, to see how heavy the hand of Time has been, not only on the farmhouse, but on the family. Only two left of my mom's generation; the eight cousins of my generation, seven living since my sister died, mostly never see each other, except at funerals.

I'm feeling really blue tonight, I have other things to write, but not tonight.