All posts by Laurie Graves

I write about nature, food, the environment, home, family, community, and people.
Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday: Lunch with a Blogging Friend

90 Comments

This post is part of a series called Thankful Thursday, where I list some things to feel thankful for. To some extent, focusing on what is wrong appears to come naturally to most people, who often complain, complain, complain when they get together with family and friends. (I’m no exception, that’s for sure.) So focusing on things to feel thankful for seems like good spiritual practice, a way to counterbalance the tendency toward negative thinking.

Lunch with My Blogging Friend Judy

One of the great pleasures of blogging is making friends with different folks, some far, some near. I love getting glimpses into their everyday lives—to see what it looks like where they live, to read about their comings and goings, to see pictures of what they eat, to learn which books they’ve read. And every once in a while, I get to meet a blogging friend in person. This is always a treat.

On Tuesday, I met Judy, of NewEnglandGardenAndThread, for lunch at Stonewall Kitchen in York in southern Maine. This is the second time we have met. Last year we got together at beautiful Bedrock Gardens in New Hampshire, and what a great time we had.

In September, southern Maine is still a busy place, and Stonewall Kitchen is on Route 1, the lovely but clogged-with-traffic corridor that goes along the Maine coast. Knowing this, I suggested getting together early, at 11:00 a.m. (This turned out to be a good plan because around noon the cafè  became very busy.) With minimum fuss, we were able to order our food and find a place outside on the veranda to eat our lunch. The dining is extremely casual, which meant we were able to sit on the veranda for about three hours.

I had a delicious salad with apples slivers, candied pecans, and dried cranberries. (Judy had the same thing.)

There might have been a pumpkin scone for dessert.

As we ate, we chatted about family, gardening, and exercise. I mentioned that the exercise bike really helps my creaky knees but that I have a hard time motivating myself to use it. Judy acknowledged that indoor exercise is boring, but she has made it a routine in her life, something she does at the same time every day. (Inspired by her example, I have used the exercise bike for the past two mornings. Before breakfast seems to work for me.)

Judy is a master gardener, and her sharp eyes spotted this tree not far from where we sat.

Neither of us had ever seen such a tree. After taking a picture on her phone, Judy was able to get an identification—a magnolia tree. Those red pods are both unusual and striking.

As if getting together with Judy wasn’t treat enough, she also brought me some plants. More hydrangeas for my shady yard—she gave me some last year, and to my utter delight they have thrived—and some oh so lovely Japanese grass that does well in dry shade. Holy cats, I was thrilled to get these gifts. Next week, they will be planted.

Many, many thanks, Judy, both for your delightful company and for the plants.

Thankful Posts from Other Blogging Friends

A Curious Introvert from Cimple extols the virtues and value of Time. Amen!

Ju-Lyn from Touring My Backyard celebrates her favorite uncle’s imminent return to his home from the hospital.

Barbara from Thistles and Kiwis enjoys two new shirts with snappy designs—one with cats and the other with cassettes.

Eliza from Eliza Waters celebrates zinnias and dahlias from her fall garden.

Xenia from Tranature features a walk with her adorable dog on a beautiful beach. Oh, that dog’s happy face made me smile.

With a friend, Carol Ann of Fashioned for Joy hikes to Assateague Island where there are grazing ponies, salt marshes, and sand dunes. Who could ask for anything more?

 

 

Celebrate, Food

A Birthday Weekend of Simple Pleasures

73 Comments

Sunday, September 15 was my 67th birthday.  By a fun coincidence, it was also the anniversary of Agatha Christie’s 134th birthday. (I have been reading Christie and have joined our library’s Agatha Christie Book Club.)

Instead of getting a small present from Clif, I asked for a weekend of simple pleasures. He readily agreed, noting that we have a house full of lovely things, and we don’t need any additions.

Fortunately, the weather gods were on our side, and the weather was absolutely perfect—sunny and warm but not too hot.

On Saturday, we went to Bolley’s Famous Franks, not for their hot dogs—we are all vegetarians—but for their utterly delicious hand-cut fries. My oh my, they were good. Clif is a fan of onion rings, and we added that to the mix. Because the weather was so fine, we were able to eat outside.

After that, it was on to Hallowell to sit by the Kennebec River, eat donuts, and watch the rippling water.

A couple resting and enjoying the view
Upriver. Those clouds are irresistible.

 

By the river, two things happened that made me smile. First, when we got there and decided to move our chairs into the shade, a group of women jumped from their chairs to help us with ours.

The second was a hobbit’s birthday kind of thing, where you give rather than receive. As we left, I notice two bike riders, a man and a woman, not far from us. Clif and I were once keen bike riders, and I stopped to talk to them. As we spoke, I could see by their red faces how hot they were from their ride. I remembered feeling that way. I also remembered how warm the water would get in our water bottles on the bike. That water was better than nothing, but it wasn’t refreshing. In our cooler were a couple of cans of sparkling water, kept cold by an ice pack.

“Would you like a can of sparkling water?” I asked.

The woman hesitated only for a moment. “Why, yes we would.”

We tried to give her two, but she insisted that one was enough.

She thanked us kindly, and as I made my way to the car, I reflected on how we had received and we had given, a good balance, it seems to me.

Then home we went, to enjoy drinks on the patio and after that to watch the movie Get Shorty, still delightful after nearly twenty years.

Sunday, my actual birthday, was another fine day.  And what did we do? Longtime readers will not be surprised to read that we went to the movies in the afternoon to see the excellent thriller Speak no Evil. (For those who are little squeamish, the way I am, I want to assure you there isn’t much gore and no jump-scare scenes.)

Because it was my actual birthday, after the movie we stopped at Fielder’s Choice in Manchester for ice cream. Mine was a hot fudge sundae with peanut butter soft serve. So good!

Supper that night was by the fire pit, where we roasted veggie sausages and had  s’mores for dessert.

Here is the line-up.

We had never cooked veggie sausages over an open flame. As it turns out, they do very well cooked over a fire, and during the fall, we plan on roasting them again this way.

In the next to the last picture, you might have noticed two candles—making the number 66—in a bowl. Those were from my cake last year, and I decided to keep them until my 67th birthday, where I could burn them down.

In with the new, and out with the old.

Note: Next weekend, Shannon and Mike plan on coming to Maine where we can celebrate both Clif’s birthday (September 27) along with mine.

We certainly are a family that likes to celebrate.

Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday: In Brief

64 Comments

Yesterday, I had a Covid booster, and I am feeling a little under the weather today. It’s nothing serious, but my energy level is way down, and I’m going to spend most of the day on the couch, where I’ll alternate between reading and napping.

Nevertheless, I am very grateful for science and medicine and booster shoots. Wouldn’t want to live in a world without them. In fact, as a breast cancer survivor, I wouldn’t be here without them.

Next week, there will be a regular Thankful Thursday post.

Now, back to the couch.

Books, Fall

Fall Is Tapping on Our Shoulders; Reading Agatha Christie

68 Comments

On Sunday evening, it was a little too chilly to sit comfortably in the screen house.

“Let’s have a fire,” I suggested.

For Christmas, Dee had bought us a new fire pit, and in early spring we had tested it once on the patio. We wanted to see if the fire pit worked properly—it did—and after that trial run, we set it to one side to be used come fall.

Fall, it seems, has come tapping on our shoulders. Both Clif and Dee agreed that a fire was a good idea, and soon we were having drinks around the fire pit.

I realize this fire looks out of control, but it really didn’t seem that way when we were sitting around it. I am happy to report that the fire stayed in the pit, and the only thing that burned was the wood that fed the fire.

As we chatted and had our drinks, the neighbor’s cat came for a visit.

Fortunately, he left without catching this little chipper.

Above us, the sky was a brilliant blue.

In Maine, September is surely one of the most beautiful months of the year—warm days, cool nights, and usually not too much rain. I probably should have saved this post as an item for Thankful Thursday, but here it is on Monday, a grateful way to begin  a week that supposedly will be filled with blue skies and sunshine.

********************************************************************

Reading

Agatha Christie: The Mirror Crack’d , A Caribbean Mystery, and Nemesis from Five Complete Miss Marple Novels

Confession Time: Until this past month, I had never read an Agatha Christie novel. Seems incredible, I know. I am nearly sixty-seven, and I hadn’t read the grande dame of mysteries.

My excuse? I am not a huge mystery fan. They are not the books I naturally gravitate toward. (That would be literary fiction and fantasy. Not the usual combination, I know, but there it is.)

So what changed my mind? Shane Malcom-Billings, a librarian extraordinaire who work at our town’s library. He has put together an Agatha Christie book club, and I thought, why not? Somehow, it sounded fun. Shane is a wonderful book club leader, and I’m looking forward to his take on Agatha Christie. Our first meeting is this Friday, and it will be one where we discuss Agatha Christie in general. After that, we’ll be reading specific books. I figured I should read a few novels so that I would have something to add at that first meeting.

I found a compendium of five Miss Marple novels—the three I read are listed above—and off I went, staring with The Mirror Crack’d.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started reading The Mirror Crack’d. Would I like it? Would the writing be full of clichés? Would the story come at the expense of the characters? Here are my answers: Yes, no, and somewhat.

The writing style is solid and is not loaded with hackneyed phrases. Miss Marple is a wonderfully sympathetic character, a woman who is dealing with aging and all that this brings yet who is still sharp enough to solve mysteries. If I were younger, I might not be as drawn to Miss Marple as I am, but as I approach my seventies—my, that sounds old!—I am completely sympathetic with her frailties.

There is also a fair amount of humor in the books, especially when Miss Marple puts on a doddering old-woman act to trick characters into revealing more than they want to.

The other characters, I’m afraid, are more one dimensional. They are there to commit crimes, to be suspected of having committed a crime, or to help Miss Marple. Not much nuance.

Never mind. I like Miss Marple so much that I’m willing to overlook the lack of depth in the other characters.

What will I think of Christie’s other protagonists?

I don’t know. Stay tuned.

 

Books, Food

Thankful Thursday: Mexican Food, Corn, and the Return of Interlibrary Loan

61 Comments

This post is part of a series called Thankful Thursday, where I list some things to feel thankful for. To some extent, focusing on what is wrong appears to come naturally to most people, who often complain, complain, complain when they get together with family and friends. (I’m no exception, that’s for sure.) So focusing on things to feel thankful for seems like good spiritual practice, a way to counterbalance the tendency toward negative thinking.

Mexican Food

After going to see the movie Sing Sing, which I wrote about on Monday’s post,  Clif, Dee, our friend Joel, and I headed to Buen Apetito for Mexican Food. Along with the tasty food, one of the things I really like about Buen Apetito is how willing they are to let customers split a dish. Not only does this save money, but it also allows better portion control. While some things can be taken home for later, what we like to order doesn’t make for good leftovers.

And what did we order? Buen Apetito’s delicious potato flautases, which are shells stuffed with mashed potatoes and fried until crisp. I suppose day-old potato flautases might be worth reheating, but Clif and I prefer them hot from Buen Apetito’s kitchen.

Over dinner we talked about Sing Sing and other movies we might be interested in. We also talked about politics and did our best to solve the world’s problem. As usual, we fell far short of the mark, but nonetheless, we try.

Corn, Corn, Corn

I know, I know. I’ve listed corn in a previous post, but I just can’t help featuring corn again. Yesterday we received eight ears from our own Farmer Kev, and my oh my they were good. Soon, the corn will be done for the season, but until then, we rejoice in those sweet ears slathered with salt and butter.

The Return of Interlibrary Loan

I’ve saved the best for last. Maine has a terrific interlibrary loan system where participating libraries can freely order requested books they don’t have from other libraries. We have a lovely but small library with both a limited budget, limited space, and thus a limited collection. For someone who is an eclectic reader who, say, particularly likes mid-twentieth century British women writers, interlibrary loan is a godsend. I go online, see if the book is available at other libraries—often it is—and order it. The book is then shipped directly to my library.

But a terrible thing happened at the beginning of summer. The interlibrary loan system, run by the Maine State Library, was temporarily suspended. Most of the routes are run by vans that are hired from a private company. Every few years, the Maine State Library has to get bids for this service, and this year they chose a different service that no doubt charged less. The incumbent company decided to appeal the decision and this shut down the interlibrary loan service until the court made its decision.

Readers, I am not one to complain, but I have to admit it was a dark three months without interlibrary loan. No longer did I have the larger world of books open to me, available with the click of a mouse. My only consolation was that I knew this interruption of service was temporary and that eventually the system would be up and running.

That happy day came on Thursday, and giddy with relief, I promptly ordered seven books not available at our library.

“Greedy,” Dee observed when I told her how many books I had ordered.

Guilty as charged. When it comes to books, I am indeed greedy.

Thankful Posts on Other Blogs

Cimple celebrates the return of fall and cool weather.

Debbie, from Musings by an ND Domer’s Mom, also celebrates cooler weather.

Ju-Lyn, of Touring My Backyard, writes, “With each sunrise, I give thanks for another day of possibilities.”

Barbara, of Thistles and Kiwis, features food, glorious food, some eaten at restaurants, some she cooked herself.

Carol Ann, of Fashioned for Joy, shares a week of delights, ranging from tea and scones at a tea house in Virginia to trips to a museum.

Movies

The Roles We Are Given: A Review of the Movie Sing Sing

41 Comments

Last Saturday, at Maine Film Center in Waterville, I think I just might have seen the best movie of 2024. A bold statement, I know, as  many movies have yet to be released. But Sing Sing was such a good movie that it would take something really special to surpass it.

As the title suggests, Sing Sing takes place in the well-known prison on the banks of the Hudson River in New York. The story revolves around Divine G, played by the great and good Coleman Domingo, who has been imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. Along with other inmates, he belongs to a theater troupe that provides creativity and meaning in a place where these qualities are in short supply. The plot of this movie is based on the real-life story of theater in prison, made  possible by a  program called Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA).

A younger inmate, Divine Eye (Clarence Maclin), joins the group and challenges the authority of the men who are seasoned members of the troupe. With only a bit of grumbling, the other men give way to Divine Eye and his desire for comedy rather than the drama the men usually perform. Hence Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code is born. It soon becomes clear that the troupe members are doing this out of generosity, hoping that Divine Eye, a sullen young man and a drug dealer, will be nurtured by art the way they have.

As the movie progresses, a friendship develops between Divine G and Divine Eye. They talk about where they came from, the roles they were given, and how they were boxed in by them. Acting allows the two men to see that there might be different roles for them that were not clear (or available) when they were younger.

Unlike most prison films, there are no scenes of brutality in Sing Sing.  Instead, there are scenes of everyday incarceration where the men’s cells are searched, and there are security checks.

Even more surprising, in Sing Sing there are moments of pure joy as the men rehearse and become friends with one another.

In the wrong hands, Sing Sing could have been a horribly sentimental movie with swelling music as the inmates are redeemed through art. However, the directing, the script, and the acting are so tight that the film never becomes maudlin. At the same time, Sing Sing has heart, and I was rooting for both of the Divines in this film.

As the credits roll, viewers learn that most of the actors in Sing Sing are men who were formerly incarcerated and members of the RTA program. This provides a note of poignancy and authenticity to this fine film.

Readers, if you have a chance, go see Sing Sing if it comes to a theater near you. If it doesn’t come to a theater near you, be sure to see it when it is available through streaming.

Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday: An old Friend, Basil, and a New Leaf Blower

65 Comments

This post is part of a series called Thankful Thursday, where I list some things to feel thankful for. To some extent, focusing on what is wrong appears to come naturally to most people, who often complain, complain, complain when they get together with family and friends. (I’m no exception, that’s for sure.) So focusing on things to feel thankful for seems like good spiritual practice, a way to counterbalance the tendency toward negative thinking.

Getting Together With an Old Friend

Last Friday, on a most beautiful day, I got together with Doree, a friend I have known since grade school. Over the years, we had lost touch with each other, but thanks to Facebook, we reconnected a year so ago. As we both live within driving distance of each other, we decided it would be good to get together now and again.

And so we have. Usually, we meet at Barnes & Noble for tea and talk, but last Friday we went to Sully’s Tavern in downtown Winthrop. We both had something a little peppier than tea: pineapple and rum drinks, fries, and a delicious dessert of bananas with a salted caramel sauce.

Even without tea, there was still plenty of talk. How good it is to have a friend who has known me since childhood. Growing up in a small rural community in central Maine, we have so much shared history, and that means the world to me.

Basil

Our backyard is half sun and half shade, which means certain herbs, such as basil, don’t grow very well. But because I am a huge fan of basil, I plant it anyway, and I figure whatever I get will cost less than buying it at the grocery store.

But this year, the sun, the humidity, and the plentiful rain all came together to produce a crop that went beyond  my wildest dreams.

As a result, we’ve had basil with all kinds of dishes, and I will be sorry when the frost comes—probably sometime in October—and nips one of my favorite herbs. Until then, it’s basil, basil, basil.

Our New Leaf Blower

For forty years we have lived on the edge of the woods without feeling the need for a leaf blower. Sometimes Clif has chopped up the leaves with his lawnmower; sometimes we have raked them. (Our old tar driveway fell into the latter category.)

But then came our new driveway, a crushed-granite beauty that can neither be raked nor gone over with a lawn mower. We want those little stones, which cost us plenty, to stay in our driveway.

Enter the leaf blower. We ordered one that runs on a battery, and as we Mainers might put it, the leaf blower works like a chahm. It does a good job of blowing the leaves off our driveway and into the woods, and it does an equally good job of leaving the gravel in place.

Sometimes old dogs do learn new tricks.

Thankful Posts on Other Blogs

50 Happens: Thankful Thursday (sorry, vegans)

Cimple: Thankful Thursday

Each week on Monday, Barbara, of Thistles and Kiwis, posts a piece  featuring simple pleasures that are always a delight to read and are certainly things to be thankful for. Henceforth, Barbara’s posts will be included in  my Thankful Thursday links.