On one of our random scenic drives around Vermont we stopped at a diner for lunch. Wondering if there were any points of interest nearby, we asked the locals who promptly sent us to Huntington Gorge.
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At first glance it didn’t look promising.
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And to be honest, the second and third glances weren’t any better.
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Everywhere we looked there were warnings.
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And while I’m not normally obtuse, I was beginning to get the feeling we weren’t wanted.
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So of course… after all the Danger Will Robinson! signs?
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My mountain goat husband had to investigate.
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Right at the very edge they warned us about.
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Please note yours truly listened to robot and was well out of danger range.
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Yeah. That limb will hold you honey, no problem.
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Needless to say he survived. But it wasn’t for lack of trying.
Because there’s an infinite supply of ridiculous headlines and I like to share the wealth.
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No good can come from arming squirrels. Trust me on this.
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Apparently your bladder is just like your cell phone battery. Drain it all the way down before you recharge… and don’t tinkle until you’re full.
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Gee, that sounds like fun.
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Unexplored avenues. Guess that’s one way to shrink the population.
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Yes, they really had to warn idiots to stop looking ( or licking, as the case may be) for a free high.
Hey there! Here is the “ribbiting” late night content no one asked for. Yet here we are. The Sonoran desert toad (Bufo alvarius), also known as the Colorado river toad, is one of the largest toads found in North America, measuring nearly 7 inches (18 cm).
These toads have prominent parotoid glands that secrete a potent toxin. It can make you sick if you handle the frog or get the poison in your mouth. As we say with most things you come across in a national park, whether it be a banana slug, unfamiliar mushroom, or a large toad with glowing eyes in the dead of night, please refrain from licking. Thank you.
I have a friend who does a different type of Christmas tree every year. Some years it’s weird and funky, some years it’s traditional. This year I made a suggestion I wish she would have followed…
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She was not amused, but damn. That’s epic.
Every couple of years the lazy Susan cabinet in our kitchen goes off track…. and every few years my husband asks why we need so many cans.
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Someday I’ll have an answer.
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I need this in my life.
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Who needs pie when you have martinis?
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Isn’t it sweet my cat loves rocks as much as his human mother?
And finally, a Christmas tree for Mark who has an affinity for awkward pink birds….
Since 2014, I haven’t done much holiday decorating. My mother adored our house when it was decked out in red, green and gold, but the year she died my heart just wasn’t in it. The following year we started traveling for Christmas… a different destination each time… and there didn’t seem to be any reason to decorate an empty house.
It doesn’t look like we’ll be hitting the road in 2022 and after hearing how much the neighbors missed our displays, I caved and decided to put out a few things to get into the spirit. Wreaths on the windows and doors, white candles and snowflake lights, a lighted deer and tree on the front lawn.
Outdoor finished, I only planned on dressing up the tables. Dining room with Charlie Brown Christmas tree….
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And kitchen with mini tree and snowmen salt and pepper shakers.
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I thought I was done, but I bought a poinsettia.
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And then I thought why not put that garland with the pinecone lights on the kitchen shelf? And while you’re at it add a few reindeer.
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And if I dragged that garland out, I might as well decorate the mantle too.
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And if I did the mantle, I should probably do the hearth.
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So much for just a little decorating.
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A snowman Christmas card box, a few randomly scattered reindeer, tea towels in the guest bathroom, a red jingle bell heart wreath on the kitchen door and I was finished. Yes. Definitely.
Well, except for my line of rampaging, pitchfork wielding snowmen.
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But that was it, really… I was done. Until the husband walked in, looked around and said now we need a tree.
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Lord Dudley Mountcatten was ready.
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But once the tree was in the house … I began to worry.
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Please note the little devil is literally licking his lips. That can’t be good.
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Shiny colored balls? Please mom, hang them now!
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Alternating white, red and green lights. Alternating garlands of gold leaves and weeds. Red, green and gold ornaments, a star on the top and it was done.
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I can’t swear to it … but I think Lord Dudley was waiting for us to go to bed.
Day tree –
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Night tree-
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Decorating the tree this way takes a lot of time and effort. But I’m always pleased with the results…
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The problem is…
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So is Lord Dudley.
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And now I’m wondering if I can stay awake every night until the New Year when it’s time to take it down.
Because there’s never a lack of ridiculous things to talk about.
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Do I need to color rainbow animal poop? I do not, but speaking of pooping animals…
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The required new Lord Dudley Mountcatten shot.
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Another item has been added to the husband’s man cave display of torture implements old tools. A hobbler as seen on the upper left. He says it’s for cows, I’m wondering if it will fit in my purse so I can use it on him the next time we go antique shopping.
And lastly, something for Mark…who has a thing for flamingoes and likes to decorate for Halloween.
On our second day in Vermont we headed for New York. Seems crazy, but stick with me … it was worth it.
Of course we didn’t make it very far before my husband had to turn around and check out an old Ford truck.
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It looked just like his… same year, same color except this was a 250 instead of a 150. Price tag, for a truck made in 1994? $22,000. That is beyond insane (and made me want to list his for sale as soon as we got home).
Back on the road, we pointed the car towards the Champlain Islands.
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If you’re unfamiliar with this area, Lake Champlain is large. 107 miles long, 64 foot deep. There’s often talk about adding it to the Great Lakes but nothing ever comes of it.
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There are a few ferries that cross it from the Vermont side, but the ride is pretty and we weren’t in any rush.
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South Hero, North Hero….
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And Grand Isle.
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Miles and miles of nothing but farms, mountains and lake. (spellcheck changed lake to kale. No one wants miles of that!)
When the headless version started walking around, I shivered.
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I didn’t understand half of that description, but the mere thought of first grade coders running amok sends a shiver down my spine. Keep little Johnny away from the computer… teach him to be a plumber. For the future safety of the planet, not to mention your leaky toilet.
I always see news reports of the traffic jams in California and sigh. While I grew up in New Jersey and saw my fair share of highway clusterf*cks, I have to admit the traffic issues in rural Maine are much more pleasant to deal with. Like this one we came upon the other day…
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Someone got loose and decided the grass was indeed greener on the other side of the fence.
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While it wasn’t a heavily traveled area, that section of road was a straightaway and people tend to fly by. Not wanting to see a large pile of hamburger on our return trip, we tried to coax the soon to be road block back into the field.
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That did not go well so we knocked on the farmhouse door. No one was home, so we tried a neighbor.
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No luck there either, so we tried again to convince the bovine to rejoin the herd.
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Ever try to argue with a cow?
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We lost the battle, but left a note on the farmer’s door.
The road was happily pot roast free when we came back from our appointment so that’s a good sign.
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Where there's only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.
River's world..... 