Camden – Page 4 – Louisa Enright's Blog

Turkey Tracks: Counting Joys

Turkey Tracks: June 30, 2013

Counting Joys

I am counting joys today.

Sunshine, after days of rain.

The new Corian kitchen counters are in.

And aren’t they beautiful? I have snagged my sweaters on the shredding formica for the very last time.

The whole kitchen seems brighter and lighter… The color is beautiful with the oak floors and white cabinets…

Many, many thanks to Lynn Gushee of Dream Kitchens in Rockland. She’s amazing and is also helping me with some other details in the kitchen that needed tackling.

The leaky 70-gallon water tank is gone. Mark and Cappy of Mark’s Appliance said they had never seen the inside of a water tank so corroded. Friend Meg Barclay, an architect, tells me that was probably due to the acidity of our water from local granite.

We did more than replace the tank–we replaced the whole heating system, which was old and getting cranky. The old boiler sat on the floor and was about 2 feet by 5 feet. It took up the whole utility room and put out a constant wall of heat–so that in the humid summer, everything in the utility room was covered with a layer of running, condensing water.

Here’s the new boiler and the new water tank “helper.” This system is more efficient and will use less propane (my house is heated by water, which I love). The new helper has a lifetime warranty.

Yes, the new boiler is that little white box on the wall.

A new dog fence has been installed. Penny is delirious and so am I. She will not be patrolling the street below and nipping at feet peddling bicycles. Thanks to Sarah Rheault and the folks from Invisible Fence.

The moss has been cleaned off the roof. Thanks Horch Roofing.

The garage stairs, open to a bad fall from either the stairs or the floor of the attic, has been walled in. Thanks to Ronald VanHeeswijk. Neither I nor the grandchildren will fall off that death trap onto the concrete floor below. Best of all, they can make the attic of the garage their own space this summer.

The back deck privacy wall has been painted and shored up for another year. It’s pretty much rotten, and I will replace it next year. Thanks to Margaret Rauenhorst, Ronald VanHeeswijk, and John Marr.

All the leaky faucets have been fixed, thanks to plumbers Wes Avery and Ben Varner.

Mulch and weeding and all the spring tasks have been accomplished, thanks to David Hannan.

Hope’s Edge, our CSA, has started, thanks to Tom Griffin and crew.

The strawberries are ripe in the garden. The garlic scapes are ready to be cut. The peas are coming in. The cold frame is full of lettuce. And, it’s summer in Maine!

Turkey Tracks: She’s Back: Two New Nests

Turkey Tracks: June 27, 2013

She’s Back

Two new nests have appeared on the far right side of the porch.

She’s sitting on the furthest away one.

She’s a ROBIN!

Phoebe has been singing his heart out for days now, and last night I noticed that the pair is settling back into the nest over the kitchen door.

So, another nesting is starting…

Summer is such fun…

Turkey Tracks: First Strawberries

Turkey Tracks: June 23, 2013

First Strawberries

Well, they’re the second picking actually.

Sister-in-law Maryann Enright got the first bowl as I assured her I would be picking more later in the afternoon as they ripened in the sun and that she MUST eat some before she had to leave for her drive back to Boston.

This strawberry is “Sparkle,” and it is known for its delicious taste. It does not always keep its rich color if you freeze berries–and I do–but it always keeps its delicious taste. These are as sweet, sweet as can be–though they are a bit larger than normal. That would be an effect of all the rain I suspect.

Still…

Delicious!

And no comparison to those sour store-bought babes.

Turkey Tracks: June Days

Turkey Tracks: June 13, 2013

June Days

Today is one of those quintessential Maine spring days.

The air is clean, crystal clear, fresh, and smells of the lilac which is blooming everywhere.

It’s sunny, but a long-sleeve cotton shirt feels perfect.

By nightfall, the cool streams in and a sweater is nice. A blanket on the bed at night feels lovely, especially if you sleep with an open window at your head, as I do.

Sister Susan just spent a week here. We got a lot of rain while she was here, but on rainy days we went to movies and found indoor pursuits. (We loved the new Star Wars movie and the Robert Redford film, THE COMPANY WE KEEP.)

We had a glorious time up in Acadia viewing the view from the top of Cadillac Mountain. No camera shot can capture that 360 degree vision of lakes, mountains, ocean, islands, rocks, green trees, colorful mosses, blue sky, sailing ships, and on and on. I have renewed interest in taking the older grandchildren up there this summer.

We had a sunny lunch at the Waterfront one day, and you can see that the harbor is filling up with boats now:

In Belfast, Susan was fascinated with the lively window boxes that are just starting to plump out. Window boxes line the rows of shops in all our little towns and they are so beautiful.

Here’s a close-up of one of the above window boxes. Soon these flowers will spill and drape over the box’s sides.

I love the way these window boxes are enhancing the paintings in the store:

The striped yellow and white petunia in the middle of this window box is the “petunia of the year” this year. I think it’s called “lemon stripe.”

We were both amused at this Belfast visitor:

We visited Mainely Pottery, of course. And, had a late/lunch/tea at Fromviandoux, which is always so much fun.

The lupine is blooming, and I don’t have a single picture. Susan had never seen them and was fascinated. I have posted pictures in the past, so if you search on lupine at the search button on the right sidebar of this blog, you can see lupine pictures.

Susan loved the rock walls you see in Maine as much as I do. This time of year you can see them clearly. Later, perennial plants grow up and fill in the spaces in front of the rocks. Here are two rock walls from neighbor Sarah Rheault’s garden:

And:

The rock walls in my garden are embedded into the hills, so they function differently. Here’s the end of one, which “Sky Watcher” guards. I gave him some shade and a cairn of his own this year:

The garden is lush, lush. The strawberry plants are loaded with fruit:

Beedy Parker’s kale came back AND reseeded itself. It’s blooming now, and the bees love it.

You can get Beedy Parker’s kale seeds from FEDCO. (Their catalog is an amazing document–there is a wealth of information about growing all kinds of plants in it.)

The white violets are gone now, but weren’t they gorgeous! They’ve spread in the shady bed on the north south of the house.

The tomatoes are hanging in there with all the rain. The garlic is thriving. The zukes are up. Ditto the winter squash and many of the beans. The peas are thriving. The cukes are laggards so far, and the cold frame is full of radish and lettuce:

I’m pulling radish now and will transplant some of the lettuce to the radish side of the cold frame.

These summer days stretch before me, beckoning and teasing with all their pleasures. Life is full and rich with…life.

Turkey Tracks: Giovanna McCarthy’s Birthday

Turkey Tracks: May 25, 2013

Giovanna McCarthy’s Birthday

My friend Giovanna has reached the magic age.

She now qualifies for the senior discount at the Belfast Coop.

Monumental!!

We celebrated with tea at Fromviandoux, a wonderful restaurant in Camden, Maine.

Here’s Giovanna taking a picture of the awesome plate of sweets that finished our tea.

They asked if there was a celebration when I called for reservations–which is a nice thing to do as it helps them plan.

Fromviandoux’s tea selections also include savory platters–cheeses and pate’s for instance. Also available are many small lunch dishes for those who want something more substantial. They do a really good job of dealing with my gluten issue. Everything on this platter is gluten free, for instance. And they are really good about mixing up crackers and breads with gluten and non-gluten selections so everyone is happy.

Tea is served from Wednesday to Saturday after 2 p.m. Sunday is a day where many dishes are also served.

Tea at Fromviandoux…

Anything at Fromviandoux…

YES!

Turkey Tracks: Golden Brook Farm

Turkey Tracks: May 20, 2013

Golden Brook Farm

Old friend and former neighbor Gina Caceci visited last weekend, and I think we talked nonstop for three days. It was so good to see her.

One of the things we did was to go up Howe Hill to Golden Brook Farm to get some spring greens–which are filling Susan McBride Richmond’s hoop houses now.

These spring greens are the best spring tonic I know.

Susan and her husband Chris added two more BIG hoop houses this year, and no one is more delighted than me. I have so loved watching Susan and Chris, little by little, work on their house, their barns, and their land. Truly, Golden Brook Farm is a real farm, selling beautiful produce, eggs, and seasonal turkeys.

Here are two of the four hoop houses. Eliot Coleman of Maine pioneered the ability to grow food year round in Maine’s winter in these hoop houses. That book is, I think, FOUR SEASONS GARDENING. You can’t sprout seed in the darkest winter months, but you can plant fall crops and harvest and eat them all winter long–with the help of interior coverings. The back hoop house is the newest one and was installed just a few weeks ago.

Here’s what the inside of a working hoop house can look like.

Look at this lush planting of pea shoots–a favorite spring green in Maine:

Or, this one–a kind of cabbage:

Here’s Susan herself.

One day last summer I walked into one of these hoop houses that was filled with ripe tomatoes, basil, and other herbs. I have remembered the rich heady smell for all this past long winter. Warmed ripe tomatoes, basil, and herbs… What a treat.

I planted Sun Gold cherry tomatoes myself and augmented with cherry tomatoes from Susan’s crop. I cut them in half and dry them and have them all winter for salads or just to eat. They’re so sweet they taste like chewy candy.

Think what you might be able to do in YOUR yard with even a much smaller hoop house. They come in all sizes, and some are on sliders so they can be moved to new dirt while the old dirt recovers. You can often find used ones.

Here’s a picture of the back side of the forsythia hedge that lines the road outside the farm. It’s spectacular, even from the back side. Forsythia in Maine lasts for weeks and glows against the sky or with the light on it. We know spring has truly come when the forsythia blooms.

Turkey Tracks: Rainy Day!

Turkey Tracks: May 20, 2013

Rainy Day!

Finally, a rainy day!

My apologies for not posting sooner, but I have been OUTSIDE for days in this glorious spring, putting the garden back into order.

I’ve been in a planting frenzy, actually, and have really needed this rainy day. With the generous and kind help of David Hannan, many tasks have been completed: putting up the chicken fence and the vegetable garden fence, bringing out all the outdoor furniture from the top of the garage, putting away the boarding walk, rebuilding the rock wall on the drive where the snow plow folks couldn’t see where the rocks were, bringing out all of the container pots (I think there are at least 25) and filling them with dirt and planting them, mulching, mowing, weeding, pruning, edging, seeding, and planting a now-shady bed with shade plants and, in the sunny part, an herb garden that I hope will be more permanent.

Electrician David Dodge came and fixed the back outdoor plug and installed a new plug at the front door–which will make mowing with an electric mower and a LONG cord much easier. And once he showed me how to take out the prong-plug expensive halogen bulbs in an under-the-counter kitchen light, I got new bulbs and replaced them. I’m afraid I had to touch the bulbs though–the oils from your fingers can make them blow–but they were too tiny and slippery to grip and get into the two out of four right holes. Anyway, right now, it’s working.

I’ll take pictures soon. Meanwhile, here’s how the green scrappy quilt is coming along. I’ve been quilting in the late afternoon through the early evening, and that’s been so relaxing. This quilt is a green copy of Bonnie Hunter’s “Blue Ridge Beauty,” in her book LEADERS AND ENDERS. I’m calling my version “Camden Hills Beauty,” and right now, the trees on the Camden Hills are so fluffy and are so many greens that I know this quilt is well-named. The block is a traditional Jacob’s Ladder block, but I love Bonnie’s method of combining color with neutrals. I used light greens, but Bonnie uses true “neutrals” in her quilts and just mixes them all up. I LOVE this quilt!

Here’s a close-up of some of the blocks. You can see I’ve mixed in some color–bits of pink and orange. I like the way they are working in the quilt.

I started sewing together rows in the last few days–and realized I need 14 rows, not 12!!! So, it’s back to piecing more blocks. But that’s ok as I’m really enjoying this project. AND, my green stash is diminishing, diminishing–which is a lovely feeling of usefulness.

At night, in front of the tv, I’ve been appliqueing the “Green Turtles” quilt turtles for new granddaughter Cyanna. I am on the eighth turtle–of nine. So as soon as I get the Camden Hills quilt off the design wall, up will go the Green Turtles. You can see some of the blocks on the left side of the first picture.

The 14 rows will mean the quilt will have the DARK line predominant, which is better visually I think.

Turkey Tracks: Pea Soup Fog

Turkey Tracks: May 13, 2013

Pea Soup Fog

Friend and old neighbor (Falls Church, VA,where I lived for nearly 40 years) Gina Caceci visited this weekend. It was so great to see her. And I let her get out of here without getting one single picture of her. But, I think we talked nonstop for three days. And did a little driving around to see the sights.

We had “soft” days while she was here–and they were badly needed. It has been soooo dry here, with fire warnings and “no burning” allowed for weeks now.

May and June can be quite foggy on the coast, and we’ve had a fog bank sitting on the coast for about a week now. I have always been fascinated with how the fog can move in and out, like a slowly flapping curtain in the wind. Sometimes as you are driving along the coast road, the fog will start to come across the road, moving in with long, white fingers. And sometimes it’s really dense, so that visibility is only a hundred feet or so. That would be called a “pea soup” fog, and that’s what we’ve had off and on for two weeks now.

I tried to get some pictures. Here’s Camden Harbor–can you see the island at the mouth of the harbor? Beyond is a solid white bank where you can’t see a thing. And there are islands and boats all out there in the white.

To contrast, here’s a picture I took of Rockland Harbor one day last week. There is nothing so blue as Maine water when the sun is shining. See the light house at the end of the breakwater? That breakwater is a mile long, and people walk it for fun. The white balls in the water are boat moorings, so you can see that boats are not yet back in the water in any force.

Here’s a video of Rockport harbor in the pea soup fog:

And, here’s another, which features lobster traps being staged for use. I love the lone dorry (I think that’s right) tied up to the float.

I love the “soft” days of spring. I don’t know how to describe our Maine woods in spring except to say that tree tops look “fluffy” and soft with the emerging green leaves–that spring green that is probably my favorite color. I didn’t get a good picture this year of a lone tree with the green leaves against the blue sky. Those leaves are like lace clusters. And, I suspect, the moment has passed for the year.

Here’s a picture of a budding tree draping over the Camden Library amphitheater entrance. The picture I took of the library itself came out wonky. I probably had a wrong setting by accident. I’ll get one soon. Our library is gorgeous and has gorgeous views of the harbor.

This picture of our Main Street, taken from the northern end of town, just below the library, is nice. See the church steeple and the trees of the village green at the south end of the street. Camden is a beautiful little New England town. But we are surrounded by little towns that are each beautiful and special.

So, happy spring everyone!

Turkey Tracks: Beaver Dam

Turkey Tracks: April 2, 2013

Beaver Dam

I’ve been fascinated with the beaver dam at the foot of Howe Hill, where we live.

Below our house is a wetland that is fed by the stream that runs just beyond the wood line that flanks our house. Our stream feeds into a stream that runs through culverts under the road intersection below our house where Howe Hill Road meets Molyneaux Road.

Across Molyneaux Road is another wet land that feeds into the larger stream that runs all along Molyneaux Road and gets fed from yet another stream a bit further along that comes down from the higher elevations up Howe Hill.

Anyway, there has been a beaver dam all winter controlling the wetland stream across Molyneaux Road. Now, though, with the spring melt-off, there is a little waterfall over the dam.

I stopped today to take a video so you can hear the rushing sound of the water–a familiar sound these days as water is pouring off all the mountains.

Turkey Tracks: Shine On

Turkey Tracks: March 18, 2013

Shine On

A year before John died, my quilting chapter, Coastal Quilters, of Camden, Maine, brought us the most beautiful quilt.

“We are bringing you lots of hugs,” they said.

And, we felt each and every one of those hugs over the next year. Some, many times over.

I called the quilt “Shine On” because it is a heritage quilt that will be passed on to a grandchild and will carry with it all the hugs and love that reside in its depths. This quilt glows with light and warmth and will always “Shine On” down through the years with its beautiful colors and memories.

Here is a picture I took of it on my bed upstairs, where I take a picture of all the quilts.

Here is a close-up of two of the many beautiful blocks that so many in the Coastal Quilters chapter made.

Here is a picture of the border fabric and the binding, each put on by Sarah Ann Smith, whose blog link is on the right sidebar. Sarah designed the quilt; bought, washed, and ironed the fabrics; made kits for each interested quilter; squared up the blocks; and assembled the quilt. The quilting was done by Marge Hallowell’s Mainely Quilting in Nobleboro and is beautiful. Marge also donated the batting for the quilt.

Here is a picture of the label, made by Barb Melchiskey:

And here is a picture of the downstairs room that son Mike and I put together for John for the day when he could not manage the stairs any more. This room was formerly John’s office, so we thought he would be close to his computer as well.

John never made it to this bed, choosing instead to die in his own bed and in his own time. And now I spend a lot of time in this room. I’ve moved my computer down here. And my quilting and research books. And my quilting supplies are now in this closet.

The quilt speaks to me as I pass it many times each day, reminding me of all the love and the many hugs it holds. For it “shines on.”

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