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We’ve had a banner crop of grey squirrels this year.
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I know people hate them because they eat the bird seed, but I love watching their acrobatics.
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And they can shimmy up a pole faster than any stripper.
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Our guys are well fed.
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And don’t even bother burying anything for winter.
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😊
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When we moved to this house in 2002, the woodshed was half filled with logs. Since we have a fireplace, we burn a few now and then for ambience… but since we don’t use it as a heat source we never really put a dent in the huge stack.
Over the years (Decades. Damn, I’m getting old!) my husband has cut and split trees on our property and dutifully stacked them in the already full shed.
It’s only recently that he decided enough is enough. We’ll never burn a fraction of the stockpile and there’s literally no room for anything else so…
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He’s letting go of the birch, apple, poplar, maple and pear.
And with the current cost of firewood? He let it go at a very reasonable price.
In no time at all, a couple showed up with their truck and started loading.
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It was an 8 foot bed and they were sure they could fit it all.
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But a second trip was required.
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And when the wife saw we had a tree full of crabapples behind the shed? She asked if she could harvest some for jelly.
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Everyone was happy.
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The local couple could fill their wood stove cheaply.
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And we could finally see the interior walls of our shed.
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Which after 23 unseen and untouched years, are going to need some serious work.
🥴
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The husband and I were searching for a bakery in Windham but found a wonderful new restaurant instead.
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Stumbling in at noon right after they opened, we had the place to ourselves. For a strip mall location, it was surprisingly nice inside, kind of boho rustic.
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And the cocktails were next level good.
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I felt right at home with chickens over my shoulder.
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And we discovered their menus are seasonal as well as locally sourced.
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Everything was fresh and utterly fabulous.
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My mini beef Wellington appetizer melted in my mouth.
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Husband’s garlic and white wine mussels with saffron butter, chorizo and pine nuts were huge and flavorful .
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Naturally we sat at the bar.
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And naturally my husband made a friend.
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My cast iron chicken with mushrooms, mashed potatoes and a lemon thyme gravy was amazing and after a recommendation from the owner … who claimed they had the best pork anyone had ever tasted…
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Husband had the best pork chop he’s ever tasted, bar none.
Perfectly prepared, the chop was massive. Hard to tell from the photo but it was easily 2 inches thick. Cider brined, grilled with a char but tender and juicy inside. Topped with caramelized onions and Honeycrisp apples and served with fresh green beans and butternut squash puree.
It wasn’t an inexpensive meal, but damn. It was perfect.
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Another day of oddly high viewing stats (almost 700!) had me stepping back in time again and reading old posts.
This one is about my relationship with lobster and the cruel twists of life.
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Take a gander, since you’re here.
https://riversworld.live/2018/08/25/now-theyre-just-screwing-with-me/
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We’ve been having some crazy weather lately.
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As you can see from the storm clouds rolling in around our property.
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High winds and rain.
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At times it was downright spooky.
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The next morning?
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Fog.
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Which is always hard to photograph.
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Another beautiful fall day called for another scenic drive.
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I’m sorry, but autumn in New England is hard to beat.
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The air is crisp and the trees give us a splendid tableau of color.
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It also means the last gasp of yard sales and antique store sales that my husband can’t drive by. This particular shop had auxiliary rooms made out of tractor trailer boxes and were filled with vintage horrors.
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Ack!
😱
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Wow.
Please note the base table of this lamp lights up as well.
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Inside, my husband combed the shelves for treasure but thankfully came out empty handed.
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I’d much rather view foliage.
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Statue of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain at Bowdoin College. Hero of Gettysburg, he taught rhetoric and modern languages as a professor and later served as the college’s president. His home is across the street.
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Strolling around the property last week , His Lordship spotted an intruder.
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Lord Dudley is a gentle soul. Mild mannered, sweet and usually quite skittish, but when he spotted the neighbor’s cat Silas?
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Our resident Royal went full blown Jekyll and Hyde and started growling, hissing and screeching.
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He tried to give chase but thankfully his harness did its job and saved me from running for the garden hose and paying a large vet bill.
I doubt Silas will be back after that frosty reception.
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Continuing our walk, I noticed the sedum was thoughtfully color coordinating with the Man Cave/Barn Mahal.
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And some of our backyard trees were putting on an autumn show.
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My two weirdo daisies that only bloom after the first frost were doing their late season thing as well.
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With some very sluggish bees taking final advantage.
😊
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Another beautiful fall day, another scenic drive.
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To a festival called Apples and Artisans.
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Crafters, pumpkins, apples…
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And gorgeous foliage.
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Had to laugh at this license plate.
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No dogs allowed.
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The trees really put on a show last month.
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🍁 🍂🍁
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It’s been squirrel central at Casa River lately.
Our beef feeder pole is out in the open, and with our resident hawk patrolling the skies we usually only have a single squirrel show up to nosh.
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Seven is a record.
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But after something scared the others away one brave little guy took advantage.
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I know people hate squirrels because they eat the bird seed, but we’re equal opportunity feeders here and all critters are welcome.
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I enjoy watching their gymnastic performances.
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Rats with bushy tails?
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Maybe.
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But they’re still sweeties.
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I found a few more photos from this year’s Damarriscotta Pumpkin festival and they’re too good not to share…
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Now that’s some clever use of pumpkins!
😊
River's world..... 