A banner day!

I. Am. So. Freaking. Happy!  I now have freaking high speed freaking internet!!!!!  Yes! I can look at youtube, I can open pictures and see my grandbabies, I can stream freaking TV! I can join Netflix. I can open my Etsy store. I can launch my website. I can take classes. I can listen to Pandora. And, yes - OH YES - I can watch General Hospital! Woohoo! Ohmigod, I am so happy!! And it's all because of this man:

Well, and Fairpoint Communications. Thank you thank you a thousand freaking times thank you!!
In other news, this morning was the very first morning since I got here last month that the heat has not come on! Can you believe? Yup, 80 degrees today. It feels sort of unnatural after so much cold and fog and rain. The creek next to the house is usually a trickle by now. Check it out:

 These are wild iris growing at the mouth.

I. Am. Connected. Yes!!

I want to apologize to those of you who received spam in an email that looked like it was from me. I was hacked!! I have talked with aol and changed my passwords so I trust this will not happen again.
Very embarrassing to hear from my friend George in Northern Ireland, asking me why I was sending him info on Viagra.
Zoiks!!

Mother Nature

I took this picture of my front garden I think, about five weeks ago.

 Just look at it today!

My sister sent me a great oped piece from the Boston Globe yesterday, titled A Season of Strong Women. You can read it here:
 http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2011/06/21/a_season_of_strong_women
This is an excerpt that spoke to me:

"That jaded view of marriage — that it’s one of life’s relationships, but not the be-all one — has bled perfectly into this season’s political sex scandals. There’s something infectious about the wives’ newfound intolerance for bad behavior. Maria Shriver knew where America’s sympathies would lie (besides, Oprah was in her corner). And no one questioned why Anthony Weiner’s wife was absent from his self-flagellating press conferences. She left the shame where it belonged, with her husband alone. That’s a great lesson for young women of America: For better or worse, take care of yourself before you just stand by a man."

Right on, sister! 

* * * 

So, in other news, meet Dave!

Yes, I bit the bullet and hired an assassin to get rid of those HUGE spiders. Dave gave me quite an education around my infestation of Wolf Spiders. More than I really wanted to know actually. I would have been happy with, "I am now going to annihilate those ginormous spiders," but Dave is very fond of this subject. For instance, did you know that the wolf spider got his name due to an early belief that the spiders would actually hunt their prey in a group? Hello!! Living proof right here! Your's truly!  At least four of them OUT TO GET ME! Also, that their bite is venomous - although not lethal. And, they have four small eyes in the bottom row, followed by two large eyes in the middle row, and two medium eyes in the top row. How creepy is that. Also, that they are quite robust and agile. duh.  Anyhoo, I chose the organic option for what that's worth and if it works, they should soon be dying like, uh, flies.

GROSS!

Happy Solstice!

Only June, and I got the first tomato off my cherry tomato plant. Shout out to Beth's!

the plant

the tomato

the day

FYI

In case you were wondering what I do with my Sundays . . .

 LizzieAlone, Courtesy Boat Inspector! Defender of the Lake - out dam invasive plants! Here I am on the public boat ramp where I check boats coming in and out of the lake for invasives like Hydrilla and Milfoil, horrible plants that choke the life out of lakes and streams and rivers. I have not found anything yet but I have my CSI ziplock bags at the ready to send off to the State should I need to i.d. any suspicious looking plants.

When I drove home yesterday, I took the backroads to enjoy the scenery on such a beautiful day. Came across this farm in the middle of nowhere. If you can't read it, it says "Cow$hit Corners." I went through little villages called Alna and Chelsea and Knowlton Corner and Winslow Hill. Stopped in Augusta for some lunch and then meandered my way home for some work in the garden.

I title this picture: The Love is Gone.  Get it?

My poor former house looks so sad. I've been packing my things, sifting through many years of memories. What a waste. But enough about that.
I got home to the Lake last night with the rumble of thunder all around and the girls and I went out on the dock to watch the storm come in. So, the first thing that happened was four loons came swimming by and one had a baby on it's back. I don't think I've ever seen that before. Awesome nature moment. Here is what it looked like - not my picture.

But hold the phone. Then, two seagulls chasing the eagle flew by right in front of me, wheeled around and came back towards me. When he was right in front of me, the eagle dropped his fish right in front of the dock. It SMACKED the water hard, must have been about 8 inches long. I managed to grab Sophie before she went in after it. Cool, right? Here is what it looked like - again, not my picture. (Man, it's amazing what you can find on the internet - like, everything.)

Then, the storm was upon us and we ran for the house. 

Here is what it looked like from my living room. In a big rainstorm with lots of wind, every single freakin window leaks. The water runs like rivers down the wall and over the floor in search of rugs.

Today is my 55^th birthday. Never ever ever in my wildest dreams did I ever ever ever imagine myself to be where I am today at this age, well any age really. Surprise! I didn’t have too much time to think about anything as I worked a busy solid eight hours today. Got home feeling tired and sad, sorry for myself. Boo-hoo - How boring.

Well, all it took were presents waiting for me from my mom and my sister, cards from Sue and Stacy, email from my BFF AND an hour communing with the Lake, doggies at my side.  Could I be any luckier? Any happier? No way. I am filled up with gratitude and love for my life and my family and my friends. Happy birthday to me!  And here is my sweet little cottage tonight:

What a happy birthday, none better. Period.

Weekend Project

Chris came over and built me a closet this weekend! I hated to give up the open space but oh, my closet is wonderful! Finally, a place to put my stuff. I spent a few hours nesting yesterday when it was all done.  Here are my before and after pics:

My hero

Gloria and David stopped over on their way north. I had to leave the house first and when I got home, dead body gone! Gloria disposed of Spidey's remains! Now, that is a true friend! So, one more word about the spider situation: I had ANOTHER one! Also ginormous. I will not go into the gory details but I will be calling pest control tomorrow as soon as they open.

Here is my loon couple in residence. (No! Not the couple above!) They must be nesting nearby because I see them for most of each day and hear them calling out to their friends at night.

 I thought this was kind of a cool picture of Lucy at sunset. Well, except for my foot in the foreground. oy

Two days ago, I was forced to assassinate the biggest spider known to man. (I apologized and told him, live and let live, but not in my house.) He was in my bathtub. It was not too bad as I filled up a water jug with hot water and washed him toward the drain while turning on the shower and down he went. I ran the shower for a good five minutes just to be sure . . .
Well. Last night I got home late, so tired, fed the dogs, sat in my chair and looked around.  Across from me, on the wall, the MOST biggest spider known to man (obviously a relative of #1 come to seek revenge.) Just look at him!!

Now, the wall is a bit different from the tub. No using water to take care of him. No drain to send him down. I totally am not afraid of spiders (I'm not afraid I'm not afraid I'm not afraid I'm not afraid) but this was an extreme case. Seriously, this spider could have carried Sophie away.
I checked my arsenal. I rejected the more benign sprays in my house, like benadryl, linen spray, even the windex. Out came the Clorox Clean-up. I backed away and pulled the trigger. The spider leapt from the wall - yes, leapt - and ran for cover. I continued firing as he took refuge under a basket of kindling. I gave it a moment and then grabbed the fireplace poker and moved the basket. He did a speedwalk toward the floor heater, obviously undeterred by the cleaner. Now, it was him or me. I may have emitted a few modest and feminine shrieks because the dogs started taking a nutty. So, I let them out and went to the shed to check for a more lethal solution. Ahhhhhh, yes: Ant and Roach Killer, range of 20 feet. Yesssss Back in the house and I shone a flashlight under the heater, saw a leg sticking out. Gotcha! I aimed and shot. Got him. He catapulted - yes, catapulted - out from under the heater and did cartwheels across the floor, coming STRAIGHT AT ME. I fired again and he went down. Again I pulled the trigger, and after a couple of twitches, he was gone.
Well, not actually gone because now I not only had poison all over the floor, I had a giant corpse to dispose of. So, after a brief respite, I cleaned the floor up but how pathetic is this? His body is still in place with two towels covering it. I went looking for a snow shovel to pick him up with - I swear I am not making this up - but I don't have one. I'll get to it later.

Toast of Maine

About a month ago, I signed up for this bus tour thru Adult Ed. We gathered in the adult ed parking lot yesterday morning at 8:30am where the bus was waiting and off we went. I thought I would be the only single person so I was gratified when there were quite a few women and only two couples. I can't tell you how luxurious it felt to be a passenger for the day - one of the things I miss about being married.
Anyhoo, the first stop was unscheduled but it was such a beautiful day, we decided to stop at the Penobscot Narrows Observatory, billed as the tallest bridge observatory in the world (which says to me that it is the only tower on a bridge to call itself that. . .but maybe that's just the cynic in me.) I pulled this pic off the internet as I couldn't get a shot of the whole thing. It is MASSIVE.

Right next to it is the old bridge. Once upon a time, my husband and I drove miles and miles  out of our way to avoid crossing the bridge - too scary. So, what do I do when our leader asks who wants to go up? Like a total bonce, I raise my hand. Hey, I need to conquer that fear and I am determined. Plus, I figure if I zip lined I can do anything!

 So, this is the tower (zoiks! See those windows at the very top?) and that is the old bridge in the foreground.

 The old and new side by side.

 That is a giant construction vehicle up on the bridge. Makes you realize how far up the top is.

We took an elevator up 420 feet and you step off and see this - 2 feet in front of you, floor to ceiling. I was like spiderman, clinging on to the concrete wall behind me. Then up two flights of stairs...

 Here is a view of Bucksport across the Penobscot.

That is Fort Knox. I zoomed in. It was the first and largest granite fort built in Maine, in the mid-1800's. A consequence of getting beat up in the Revolutionary War, although it took forever to actually build it.

Here is a shot across the bridge to the other tower. Terrifying. But I did it! Plus I was with a bunch of strangers so I had to maintain my composure. I must say it was tough taking pictures while keeping one hand on the railing the entire time.
So, our little side trip behind us, we continued north all the way up to Winterport. It was wonderful to get reacquainted with the mid-coast. Our first stop was the Winterport Winery and Penobscot Bay Brewery.

We had a short tour and then an outstanding lunch:  A smoked chicken white pizza with gouda, mixed greens, Winterport Winery's Pear Wine summer sangria, and for dessert, strawberry rhubarb ginger crisp served warm with vanilla bean ice cream. Oh my. Then, a tasting.
Maine has such as short growing season, it is virtually impossible to grow grapes and make traditional grape wine so most of it is from blueberries, apples, raspberries, pears. So, it has always been sweet dessert wine. However, the three wineries we visited are doing a bit more experimenting with blueberries and hybrid grapes and making wine that tastes a bit more traditional. Not so much at Winterport, but oh well.
Next stop was the Cellar Door Winery in Lincolnville. The owner is an ex-Wall Street fast tracker and a bit of a chatty cathy. She seems to be trying to duplicate California wine country. It is a beautiful building, beautiful views, beautiful grounds. Looks like California (well a greener lusher California). The wine? so-so. Don't get me wrong. It is a wonderful place to spend a Sunday afternoon. She's done a lovely job. Here are some pics.

I was excited when I saw the oak barrels, and the oaked wines were noticeably different from those fermented in the steel tanks, but not necessarily in the best possible way.  If you know what I mean. Oh, you don't? Never mind.

The vines

Beautiful spot. So, the last stop was Sweetgrass Farm Winery and Distillery. It was a humble little place with, in my opinion, the best wines and spirits of all. The owner was educated at UC Davis with a master's in viticulture and has been at it for 20 years. And, you could tell. Their wine was decent but I was really taken with their ports and brandy and then there was the gin. Talk about juniper berries. Yum. So the next person who comes to visit me is going to get a gin and tonic out on the dock. I also bought a maple liqueur and some nice free range grass fed ground lamb. baaa

Lovely to see the scenery along the way with the new album by Alison Krauss playing on my ipod. Everybody snoozed on the way home.

I think this is Searsport

 And, here is what my lake looked like when I got home. Perfect ending to a perfect day.

A cold and windy day today and I finally got to do a little bit of sewing. Miss Elna is running like a top since her check-up. I love this remnant I found at Mardens. Sewed it up into a table runner for my long table.

White caps on the Lake today and the wind is sneaking in around my window frames. Never got above 60. Loving it!

 And, here is our little patient, sleeping the day away. All better.

 Gratitude fills me up.

I looked at my blog from a year ago.  It was my 25th and final wedding anniversary. I was in Glasgow, having a fine time. Emotionally, I've come a long way since he left, it's almost like reading about a stranger when I look back. So, I was trying to think about some words of wisdom about the divorce (5 weeks ago) and maybe one thing I've learned by living alone these past 22 months. So here goes:
Spread your wings. That's right. Use every inch of the bed. Until a few weeks ago, I was still sleeping on my side of the bed. Now? The whole thing, baby! So, spread your wings.

Here is what my BFF sent me this morning:

One lazy Sunday morning the wife and I were quiet and thoughtful, sitting around the breakfast table when I said to her unexpectedly, "When I die, I want you to sell all my stuff, immediately." "Now why would you want me to do something like that?" she asked. "I figure a woman as fine as yourself would eventually remarry and I don't want some other a$$hole using my stuff." She looked at me intently and said: "What makes you think I'd marry another a$$hole?"

Sophie update:  Staples and stitches out! Still has interior stitches that will dissolve. On antibiotics for mild infection. On the mend! Good prognosis! What a gift.