Old McCay Chest Freezer

We have an old commercial McCray freezer in our house. It's huge, I'm not sure of the dimensions at this point but I will have a picture posted soon. We want to sell it, just to get it out of the way. It belonged to my grandfather who ran a bar/pizza shop. I've been looking online to see what an approximate price would be, but I can't find much info. If anyone knows about these types of freezers could you please point me in the right direction?

Snow Mobiles

Wow, our strange neighbor across our street was out on his snow mobile until 11:30 last night. I could not sleep. He was driving it up and down the main street (which faces our bedroom window) reving the engine, and just being all out rude. It's one thing if there is a trail near your house, at least you know the snow mobiles will pass on by. This guy was racing back and forth on Main street all night long. He was like a renegade snow mobiler terrorizing the town. What's that all about?! Ugh, I'm tired.

Christmas trees

I just love cutting down my own Christmas tree. There's something victorious about tromping through the snow and chosing the perfect tree from the wilderness that it grew from. Being as though we are not in short supply of evergreens in this area, I don't feel so guilty about cutting them down for selfish, make me feel warm inside beacuse it's Christmas, reasons. I have planted some from the Arbor Day Foundations though, just to keep the balance. Does it help? I don't know. Happy tree hunting!

There's is a tree farm in Kendrew Corners on 812 towards Heuvelton/Ogdensburg that lets you cut your own tree and they serve you warm cider! Went there last year with a friend and we found a great tree.

1844 House

Great restaurant: The 1844 house in Potsdam. All meat is bought from local farmers. They use local veggies when they are in season too. Bread is from the Carriage House Bakery. I'm very excited about it. It's about time. We need to be more responsible with the food we eat. I also know for a fact that the food is mouth watering good. The money stays within the community. It's great! Let me know if you try it out. I like to promote places like that. Click the link. http://www.1844house.com/

originally posted 5/16

Cougar

In Old DeKalb, my brother-in-law claims he encountered a cougar. (Cougar, Mountain Lion, Puma- all the same animal) He said he heard his dog barking at about 5:30 a.m. and he went out to investigate. He then heard a loud growling sound, that sounded like a cougar. He shined a flashlight around the property and said he saw the animal in a tree. This was the begining of October and some leaves were still on the tree. He said he didn't get a good look at it but his dog (a Shephard Husky mix) put her tail between her legs and stayed right by his side. He saw a tan body of a big cat and white on it's face. He had his gun with him and he went to load it but when he put the flashlight down, the creature jumped out of the tree and ran off. The year before, the neighbor called and said he saw what looked to be a big cat up on their hill. Are there mountain lions around here? The DEC website says not likely but there is a small chance. My brother in-law is convinced. I have heard other stories too.

Robert Frost

The Sound of the Trees
I WONDER about the trees. Why do we wish to bear Forever the noise of these More than another noise So close to our dwelling place? We suffer them by the day Till we lose all measure of pace, And fixity in our joys, And acquire a listening air. They are that that talks of going But never gets away; And that talks no less for knowing, As it grows wiser and older, That now it means to stay. My feet tug at the floor And my head sways to my shoulder Sometimes when I watch trees sway, From the window or the door. I shall set forth for somewhere, I shall make the reckless choice Some day when they are in voice And tossing so as to scare The white clouds over them on. I shall have less to say, But I shall be gone. -Robert Frost-

Moose everywhere

I can't remember a time when there were this many moose sightings in St. Lawrence County. I would love to see one up close. Heck , Id like to see one far away too. I've only ever seen a moose in pictures. Sad isn't it.

Some times

Those were some times we had under wispering willows
some times I think back to those days
I layed my head dreaming on leaf pile pillows
I wished for my life to stay paused that way
It's harder now to trust as I did
Things were so simple living life as a kid
the willows are still there and might always be
I still love to watch them sway
I sometimes think back to when we played under those trees
and wish that my life had stayed paused that way

Bible thumping

I've just started to read the bible a little bit. No reason other than boredom, but it's worth a look. I suppose you can't argue religion without knowing the source. So I started with your standard Christian bible, nothing extreme...except the stories. Ok, Genesis is always a heated debate and frankly it is a beautiful uncomplicated sugar-coated story about the origins of man. Done. Then I skipped to Job. It's scary. It's about this guy Job who is the happiest, most faithful man on the planet. He love God, God loves him and everything is rosey. Then one day Satan approaches God and says "Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan then makes a wager with God that Job will not be so happy and faithfull if everything is taken away from him. God, without much of a fight I might add, hands Job's life over to Satan with the understanding that Job himself must not be harmed. Oh, but Satan kills Job's children, livestock, and destroys his house and land. God... completely ok with it. Job... not so much. He gets pissed at God and self detructs out in the desert and his friends try to cheer him up but they can't. But, In the end Job gets new children, land, livestock, and a house and he and God have a good laugh and they're on good terms again. Did I miss something? This is what the bible has in it? This is what Christianity is based on? Since when is God a gambling buddy of Satans? I think I've been sheltered from this stuff. I guess Good & Bad isn't so black and white after all. I need explanations...

originally posted 1/29/06

Father

He told me many things but showed me more than he knew.
Sincerity was intended many a time he told.
Watching made me wonder only after he wasn't there.
Wondering caused me uncertainty.
I waited for him to tell me more.
He showed me how to listen for untruths.

(fist published 1/9/06)

Bad winter good winter?

How's it gonna be. I keep hearing different predictions. Most are saying the winter will be hard this year though. I'm inclined to believe it. The hunting season should be a good predictor. People are getting prepared now, they know the north country can be brutal. What do you think?

Tomatoes

My tomatoes still have not rippened! Everyone around me has fat juicy red tomatoes and I still have green ones. I'm hope to be seeing red very soon. I had the sweetest corn I have ever tasted last night. My mother had bought it from a stand somewhere near Pyrites I think. I'll have to confirm that and post the actual location of the stand so others can discover this amazing corn. It tasted like someone had sprinkled sugar all over it. It's true!

Debt Angels

I need a "get out of debt free" card. I can't believe the setbacks we have had financially . I'm not one of those people who max out credit cards on frivolous things. I am even a pretty good book keeper and accountant. I know there are many others in the same boat. There has got to be a network of caring people who donate what they can to a general fund for those in need to access. Once I got on my feet I would most definately contribute a large sum back into the fund. If anyone out there knows of a system like this, let me know. This working 40 + hours a week is not cutting it. I work very hard and I have only ever taken a day off for two funerals and an occasional clean house day. Where are we getting? The economy is getting worse. Cost of living is going up and the pay rates are still the same. We don't have debt collectors calling us yet but who knows how long we can keepp our heads above water. I'd say we're are about chest deep in debt. As soon as we get it down a decent amount, something else hapens. I need a solution.

Haven't written

Haven't written in a while. Great weather tends to do that to a person. PLease enjoy the blog. More entries to come.

Behind every powerful man is a strong woman

Ok, I have a theory that the reason we (The U.S) were so successful (or so the story goes) in WWII, is because of the great PR work. Posters were every where recruiting everyday people and especially stay at home women to pick up the cause. It's a pyscological thing when you see a poster of a strong woman holding down the fort. The men fighting probably felt secure, in a way, that things were being taken care of at home. I think in this war and much more so in Vietnam, the soldiers feel seperate from the rest of the population. We do not want to islolate our fighting force. It makes them either feel inferior or superior. I think a strong woman in the military could even appreciate seeing civilian women supporting the cause. Suberbia is run by cunning, smart women who can network like crazy. Someone knew that during WWII and used that to our atvantadge. Now, the only glorification of these women is Desperate Housewives. It's such a waste of a valuable resource... our citizens.

I love this joke. I borrowed it from a blog called Walt's mind.

A teacher told her young class to ask their parents for a family story with a moral at the end of it, and to return the next day to tell their stories.In the classroom the next day, Joe gave his example first, "My dad is a farmer and we have chickens. One day we were taking lots of eggs to market in a basket on the front seat of the truck when we hit a big bump in the road; the basket fell off the seat and all the eggs broke.The moral of the story is not to put all your eggs in one basket..""Very good," said the teacher.
Next, Mary said, "We are farmers too. We had twenty eggs waiting to hatch, but when they did we only got ten chicks.The moral of this story is not to count your chickens before they're hatched..""Very good," said the teacher again, very pleased with the response so far.
Next it was Barney's turn to tell his story: "My dad told me this story about my Aunt Karen.... Aunt Karen was a flight engineer in the war and her plane got hit.She had to bail out over enemy territory and all she had was a bottle of whiskey, a machine gun and a machete.""Go on," said the teacher, intrigued."Aunt Karen drank the whiskey on the way down to prepare herself; then she landed right in the middle of a hundred enemy soldiers.She killed seventy of them with the machine gun until she ran out of bullets.Then she killed twenty more with the machete till the blade broke. And then she killed the last ten with her bare hands.""Good heavens," said the horrified teacher, "What did your father say was the moral of that frightening story?""Stay away from Aunt Karen when she's been drinking..."

We need a revolution

What ever happened to the free thinking society of the 60's and 70's. Yeah, drugs were a factor but seriously you would think that some of that revolutionary idea of love and peace would have worn off on following generations. Is it just that the cause is being carried on quietly? Taylor Hicks should be President. Anyone see the movie American Dreamz?

View Tax?

I just recently returned from a trip to New Hampshire and a friend of mine there was telling me about a proposed view tax in her area. It left me wondering how soon that trend will be here. It's essentially a tax based on the type of view that can be seen from your property. My friend was obviously outraged and so am I. Who approves these things? Just because your town is small and boring doesn't mean you shouldn't attend town meetings. Look what happens when no one is there to dispute new laws and ordinances. It's just like the Wal-Mart issue. Any comments are gladly welcomed on these two issues. I think this beautiful area has a lot to lose if we don't start paying attention. We don't want to become New Hampshire (the live free or die state... ha)

Wal-Mart Invasion

As rustic and natural as Northern NY can be, there apparently seems to be room for Wal-Mart amidst the pine trees. Employment is a major issue way up here. Yes this is NY, but no we are not living off city wages and minimum wage+ Wal-Mart is awfully enticing to many around here. What's a back woods town to do?

The Herbal Apocathary

Look at the links! The Herbal Apocathary now up and running. I would appreciate your input on that blog as well. Now is the perfect time for harvesting wild roots and vegetables. Find out more about scrumptious fiddle head ferns. Click on Herbal Apocathary in the links.

Gypsy Wind

I remember a time when the wind was unchanging.

Predictable, it came from the east.

Lately the wind has been lacking in power and at times it has even ceased.

It's not saying that things will be alright

It's not saying that we will be safe at night.

The warm wind now blows cold in the middle of the day

and I keep my jacket on.

A little sun through the clouds may be what it takes

to keep us from wandering and to stay in place.

The tiptoe ballet

The tiptoe ballet was performed on the decrepit, rusty, won over by nature rooftop of a stage at dawn.

The symphony played the beautiful classics dripping with harmonious melody.

Somehow, the cold carried the notes of sorrow-filled raindrops to dance their dance in the early-spring air and to make the metronome notes even crisper.

Tapping shoes soon replaced the ballet slippers; tapping in time, rattling the rooftop in a tin based tune consisting slightly of jazz tainted blues.

But what is a piece without a grand finale?

Thunderous base roars over the sky emphasized by a light show that would provoke power in even the meekest of souls.

Looking from beneath the stage, one can only see the rain draped off the balcony where the audience had poured into like a stream given vent. And the music played on until the sweet ballads subdued in somberness were lulled to an extended drop of a note in G Clef.

~`~`>

Bend and you will be whole
Curl and you will be straight
Keep empty and you will be filled
Grow old and you will be renewed
Have little and you will gain
Have much and you will be confused

-Chinese Proverb-

Had to be there

I'm hoping there is someone else out there who will get this hillarious situation: An Amish man who we know came to our mother-in-law's house where it is just crazy with commotion. Anyway, the man had never seen T.V before and wouldn't you know it; The Oscar-Worthy (lol) Sci-Fi Horror flick Army of Darkness was on. If you have ever seen Army or Darkenss you would see the humor. Give me some sugar baby...

Repetition

It is in this feeble state of consciousness
that an unconscious mind arose.
It grew in the somberness of teardrops,
It grew like a hunger grows.
The salt bit my lip so un-caring.
Thoughts writhed over in pain.
The flooded remorse almost daring,
to dig up the already slain
and it happend again and again.

Gurl

A girl sits alone on the curb in a pink sequined top
smoking a cigarette and holding flip flops
the night before she was queen in a world of misfits
something she'd looked forward to all that day:
Dancing and grinding her way to the center of the floor
she had attention but she wanted much more
fake smiles and drinks filled the void for the time
submerging her sorrows in sparkle and shine.
girl life is too heavy for your light hearted games
you can't live your life this way day after day.

Spider Webs and Lollipops

Spider webs glistened in the sun
No one saw them but me.
The birds were singing
No one heard them but me
The sun was sweet but the air was sweeter
No one tasted the day.

Unfinished

Under the rotten, soggy and green wooden plank laid a dirty key. The key I knew well. It was like an old friend I hadn't seen in ages. I rubbed its muddy surface between my fingers and little balls of rich dirt fell to the ground. The feel of the cold metal from the key and the thick fog that hung in the air made me hungry and even more excited. I looked off in the distance wide eyed, trying to focus in on the old house that the key belonged to. The organic smell of forgotten land hauntingly made its way to my nose and I shut my eyes for a moment remembering the last time I was here. I was sad for a fleeting second but then curiosity and the quest for understanding took me over. There was no turning back...
20 years ago: A young Indian (Native American) girl was running through a large corn feild when I arrived at my new foster home. Her hair was long, dark and wild. She looked about 10 years old. I didn't see the little boy at first but he was trailing behind her whining that she was going too fast. She stopped short and hugged a giant corn stalk with her right arm as if it were her best friend’s shoulders. She starred at me with her dirty face; her chest heaving and her mouth open a little, trying to catch her breath. The little boy, who I figured was her brother, stood behind her and tugged at her faded and stained tweety bird t-shirt.

I turned and looked out the opposite window in the back seat of my counselors Chevy Cavelier. As the right side of the car faced the corn field and the house, the left side faced a large empty meadow with an old rusty swing set in the center. At the far edge of the meadow was a row of huge willow trees standing somberly at guard. It was a hazy, warm and silent day. The clouds hung so low in the sky that they seemed to muffle all of the daily sounds of the world. A crow cawed from somewhere in the distance and I noticed the screen door to the house open up to welcome my counselor. The house was plain. It was a faded white farmhouse that faced out towards the open meadow.

Days

I once talked to an old woman
She was offering advice
when I asked her about love she said
"listen well, I'll tell you twice"
Love is a warm breeze of freedom
it's a painful yet effortless dance
Love is a game you don't know that you're playing
it's an intuitively strong alliance

When I questioned, she nodded
said "you'll know love you won't have to be prodded.
I told you this first and I'll tell you this last
this thing you call love has got a long past.
You won't hear this last but from me you heard it first
Love is the water that quenches your thirst.
and it plays with the curls on the back of your neck
it's the knowing queen of hearts at the top of the deck
only you can posses it in it's purest form
but what is a rose without it's thorns?
remember thorns can cut, love is meant to pierce the skin
so don't love too sharply or try to take a hold
of a soul that's only yours because thats what you've been told
You've got to feel it in you, and feed it, and see it grow
a boat will not glide through the water unless there's someone who will row.

Gossip is Queen here

I love small towns simply for the stories that are generated. Example: We own a wood lot up the road from where we are living. Last summer my husband drove by one day and noticed an umbrella under a large tree by the side of the road. He then noticed a pair of shoes coming out from underneith the umbrella and realized a man was connected to the shoes. He stopped on the side of the road and yelled out to the man to see if he was ok. The man sleepily awoke and told him (in a foreign accent) that he had been walking a long distance and was tired so he fell asleep under the big oak tree because it had a lot of shade. My husband noticed the man had a large black bag and felt a little strange about the situation. We are in the middle of nowhere and for this man to be sleeping under our tree was odd to say the least. Also, my husband is a former Marine who served in Iraq so his paranoia is a lot higher than most. He went to our neighbor's house and they decided to call the Sheriff just to be on the safe side. The Sheriff came, checked the guy out and actually gave him a ride to where ever he was going. He had an Italian passport and was presumably harmless. We told only our family members about the situation because it wasn't a big deal; it was just out of the ordinary.

A week later:
My friend called me and asked me why I hadn't told her what happened. "What do you mean?" I asked. She explained to me how her husband had been in the grocery store and a woman he knew asked him if he heard anything about the strange Middle Eastern man with a black bag who had been arrested for snooping around on our property! I couldn't contain my laughter. The most bizarre part of the whole ordeal was how this woman in the store had even heard about it in the first place! ----->Gossip is Queen here

The Moon

The Moon dipped it's tail in black inky sea and it floated on top of the waves
It wanted to dive to the bottom but decided instead to behave
So only at night when the water is just right will the moon voluntarily sink
Down to the depths of the shell crusted floor
To light up the ocean from bottom to shore
And then in the light of the water at night
The sky will be black as black as ink
Then only at night when the sky is just right will the moon voluntarily sink