two views

John's big house and kite store (taken from Hannah's) for sale $1.2 million

Kate Knapp's view of John's house (and Hannah's) from the beach.

blown away

Well, something's growing on the dunes in front of the house—not the rosa rugosa that was deplorably planted (according to the President (Emeritus) of the Garden Club. Dusty Miller (wormwood, call it what you will) is thriving as are a few clumps of beach grass. I hope they cling to life, as hurricane season is upon us.
BTW, Internet issues at my dwelling (as always).

summer's end

One last beach day, and now the wind has begun to howl. Better than a hurricane—it's sunny—but unless you want sandburn, the beach better wait. I have moved into Claudia's Surf City after a weekend at Hannah's Hideaway. Will be here for the rest of the season. There's one more week rented at Hannah's, but it's all houseguests all the time from here on out.
  Also, does anyone want a washer/dryer or refrigerator? They have minor issues.

post prexy

 You will be charmed to know that I had the treat of visiting with the ex President of the Garden Club and her delightful and talented seedlings. And the ex-prexy's gardens were looking fabu too, though she claims a long dry summer.

child's play

Child's play: The Wend in the Willows

Adult's play: Hold the Phone

piece of cake

The theme, as you cannot tell from this picture, was unicorns. The weather was uncooperative but still permitted of  cake and a pinata in the back yard. They came, they played, they ate and they sang. Camilla requested the piece of cake with the 5 on it. Happy birthday!

first day

And off to preschool, nervously speaking with a Larchmont lockjaw accent.

boing

Just can't make up my mind: city/country. Love both, so keep on boinging between the two. Boinging off again tomorrow, to see some country friends in another city.

hot town

 Some cityfolk stayed in town this Labor Day weekend. Partying in Tribecca with Donna Ferrato and a cast of real characters. Partying on the Upper White Side with former Time Inc types. Good food, good company, good times. And no traffic!

labor

There are no unions for waitresses. And every night when I saw the waitress who works at the cafe across from the Goose putting the chairs on the tables and mopping the floors after a long day of few customers, I felt terrible. (Disclosure: The woman in the picture is not the waitress but a friend who I asked to stand there—I felt too awful for the waitress to ask to photograph her in this depressing way.) The real waitress always seems cheerful, doesn't complain about the dearth of diners and so of tips. I think her mother is the cook. There are women all over this country trying to support their families on 50-cent tips and dollar-an-hour wages. Even if a higher minimum wage is enacted, it won't affect them. All I can do is overtip.

roundup

There's a little more to go before I get my heart out of the Ozarks. Here's a music video by some local artists in some of the area beauty spots. Turns out, our own West Plains makes one of the most redneck cities. On the other hand, here's a reminiscence about the Shaws, the richest family in Thomasville, where I live.
   But I am starting to think Block Island as well. Not as redneck. but. Or should it really be called Block Island? Yes, it was the Isle of the Manisses. But then Verrazano named it Claudia's Island. Block is least historical.
Meanwhile, here are a few photographic, links.
Maggie Steber talks about the image of the dead Syrian child on The Takeaway.
If you'd care to investigate The Erotic Eye on Mallorca with Donna Ferrato, sign up here. For her recent work for Mother Jones about the war on abortion, see this and this.
Chien-Chi Chang is doing a workshop in Bangalore.  I suggest you go to that page and click the link to his Instagram feed, which is amazing.
I think that's all the links anybody can cope with right now. You have the weekend to catch up.

why i like nyc

why i like the ozarks part 2

I wish Falling Spring didn't appear to be plashing on Dianne's head (in other frames it appears to be plashing on Frank's) but in any case the curmudgeon and the lady-of-all-work are two of the main reasons I like the Ozarks. The scenery—even Falling Spring which erupts from a cliff face—is immaterial in comparison with  great friends.
   I will miss all of you.
   Til next year!

why i like the ozarks, part 1

Cane Bluffs, Eleven Point River

Old oaks,  McCormack Lake

Both of these places are close to the Goose, and on one of the last days, we went on an expedition around Oregon County, where I sometimes dwell. It was the perfect day, the perfect light, the perfect company—and the perfect opposite of where I am right now!

surprise!

Toby turned 75,  and her daughters planned a party. Alas, the surprise was blown the day before, but she still had no idea that her ex-husband and daughter would be in from Portland, Oregon. Nor that so many other friends would be there. The food was delicious (special nod to Delia's vichyssoise with a swirl of parsley oil), the company divine and—yes, we're all another year older.

dry season

My sister took this pic of our fresh water pond. I have never seen it this dry before. OMG!
Meant good beach days, though.
WSJ article about Chinese food delivery on BI.
A video of a whale frolicking off BI.
Article about Cape Cod with pix by Hannah's friend Rachel.
Pal Dr. Bobrow debuts his Huffington Post column with one about babies and allergies.

another day, another home

Find the Freedom Tower

the last supper

Well SOME people were sorry to say goodbye! For those who want to know, I am just across the border of Ohio.

closing up

The tomatoes are over, the apples are starting. This morning the temperature was 56 degrees in the Ozarks. Time to pull up stakes and roll. Got the river float tubes deflated. Need to move the outdoor furniture indoors. Same thing every year, as regular as the seasons. Shutting down.

happy birthday isaac

IZEE is 2 today! I guess I better B there or B square next year. He doesn't quite get it yet. But, ah, the cake. The motorcycle cake. He gets that!

end o' summer

Often, when the produce becomes overwhelming, I go to gazpacho. This summer, I tried a modification of the New York Times best gazpacho in Spain. I like it with a bit of lime, heirloom tomatoes and somewhat less olive oil. It's particularly good when you can't eat.

on the road again

The Texans prepare to depart the Goose after a gala adventure through Yukon Territory and Alaska.

so

So. This is my life. Writing about the woman who just dumped me for the third time.
Oh Boy. She is going to be So Sorry!

how she rolls

I forgot to post these pix from CBA's visit. Even without the four cats, she does not travel light. She brought her down quilt, pillows, reading light, sugar (for her coffee), paper towels and all of these bags (plus another row not visible in picture) full of I-don't- know-what. Personal possessions. For four days.
Puts my What's-In-the-Truckloads of couches and chairs and food to shame.

art news: knapp is back

Well, you've missed the opening on Block Island, but there's still time to see the show.

And here's Kate Knapp herself on the very same porch: hers on Block Island.
In other publicity news,
An incredibly moving book by Darcy Padilla, a photographer I have worked with called Family Love is out—pretty much her life work. Watch the video. And a story about her story.
On the latter website is a story by our own Donna Ferrato as well. I wrote copy for the exhibition of this work at Vanderbilt University last year.
Also, my daughter, Hannah, has posted an article about her struggle with postpartum depression you can read here.
Maybe look at Kate's cheerful pix after watching Darcy's story and reading Hannah's.

droning in the gloaming

The rest of us used  conventional photographic techniques.

A couple of park employees continue their project of flyover films in Arkansas parks. We stumbled over them after some fine catfish at Fred's Fish Fry in Mammoth Springs, Ark., when we headed over to admire the spring and the wildlife (ducks, muskrat, sandpipers) at the park.
  The pair expertly flew their craft up and down the river and over the falls for more Visitor Center footage. Here is an article about how drone flyers have been getting in trouble lately.

humdingers

My life has shrunk to providing nectar for a dozen or so birds who suck down approximately four cups a day. And they sure do become angry birds if not fed promptly. They remind me of Gasners. What are they going to do when I depart the hinterlands?

out of ice

And if ever there was a summer we all needed cooling, this is it!
In other news, CBA has rejoined her desolate cats and her movie crew (casino scene) back in Georgia, I can't keep the damn hummingbirds fed, and we had a hella storm last night during which Dianne and Frank lost their electricity. The Goose (aka bunker), however, is still sitting pretty.

ozark eats

After a fine breakfast of cold steak and quail eggs, we headed off on an expedition and wound up at the Stray Dog barb-b-q. Frankly, menu items like The Dog Pile did not entice me, although the bite I had of a fellow diner's sandwich was unexpectedly good. We then explored the substandard housing market in several Ozark towns (not on my account—I already have my very own piece of substandard housing!), topping off the gastronomic journey with a soft serve ice cream cone.

catherine's world

In her continuing search for derelict properties, CBA has located yet another dream house, in somewhat better shape than the prior House of Her Dreams (pic tk). This one is in the backside of beyond, not far from the Goose. The interior has a dog trot hall with a room and porch on each side. Not sure what this kind of architecture represents or how it functioned. (Cookhouse in back?) But it's pretty old for this neck of the woods. I warned her about chiggers (and about getting shot), but she did not listen!

fine merchandise

We attempted to rearrange the FREE display for more traffic, but seeing as about three logging trucks and two cars pass per day, with nary a soul on foot, we did not have great success. Though one lone customer tried to take the peanut free sign home for the kids. We are now guarding it carefully. . .

the advent of cba

 I turned the house out of doors to clean up for Barrett.
All was ready.
And she arrived and unpacked all her stuff.
Thank goodness she did not bring the four cats in their cages!
Stay tuned for the free-table setup, which is bound to be a winner. That CBA can sell snow in midwinter.

full moon luna

On the night of the full moon, I had an unexpected visitor. The moth came tap tap tapping on my bedroom window and stayed as long as I kept the light on.