Sounds of summer arrived in spring with the pulsating cacophony of cicada hordes. Red eyed winged 2 inch long insects with no useful purpose other than to breed and die. Arriving in late April their deafening den overpowers all other sounds right into June. Apparently there are two cycles .... a 7 year and a 14 year. They should be a feast for the birds ..... as of this moment, that has not been witnessed.
Maybe fish would enjoy this treat. Alas, this is on the side of a mountain not a river bank. Now that would be a vision as one might topple into the water from an overhanging limb. From below, a 4 pound Bass would spy the ripples, then the red eyes and think YUM as it charges the surface breaking the stillness in a gigantic leap. The rising greenish silver sides and tail flail sending sprays of water back and forth in every direction as the bucket of a mouth inhales the "bug" and the contortions cease sliding back into the water. What if that had been on the end of your 4 pound Spyder Wire line. That could have been a world class tussle ..... head shaking, digging for deep water, a stump or overhanging rock. Makes your fingers tingle just the thought of the bowed ultra light rod, line straining through the guides, giving and taking back, keeping the head up ...... holy cow, this could take awhile. Then from the comotion there would be multiple Bass moving in for dinner..... WOW! [Just a little flight of imagination, wishful thinking or past experience remembered].
Funny, briefly the mind was filled with the sound of gills rattling, water splashing and blood pounding in the ears; rather than the racket outside. Maybe it's time to repair the trailer tires and head to the river. Oh, right, we were talking about the obnoxious CICADAS. Perhaps I perpare for the quiet little Mayflies ...... put new line on the fly rod. Yep, that's a good idea!!!!! Want to go fishing????
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Noble Inhertance and Superman's Reward
Entering into the barn, the sweet scent of straw and hay, plus the sound of crunched grain pervaded her senses. The drumming clatter of rain on the metal roof made this the most perfect place. As she strode down the hallway passing each door, the nickers grew more insistent. Those magnificent bobbing heads emerged to greet and receive the honey dipped slices of expected apples they hadn't tasted for months. It was a long time since Spring Break.
She had trained them for Dressage and Stadium Jumping, the monster black Friesian [Noble Inheritance] and the sleek liver chestnut crossed bred Welsh Cob/Thoroughbred [Superman's Reward]. Dad had taught her from the age of 3 or 4 everything she knew about horses. The memory of his leaving was dim .... a Chief aboard the Franklin in the Pacific Theater WWII .... the picture above the two stalls was his burning ship.
The rain had stopped; the hall filled with "Noble Inheritance" and "Superman's Reward". Brushed, loved, saddled, three heads turned at the sound of the baritone voice. "Did you think you would ride both at the same time?" Her laughter caused both "Noble and "Re" to nicker tossing their mane and heads. She had spent hours working out their names. As they were descended from Medieval War Horses, synonyms of the legacy of heroes seemed appropriate. "No, Dad [her biggest hero] ..... thought you might go with us; afterall, it is Memorial Day."
She had trained them for Dressage and Stadium Jumping, the monster black Friesian [Noble Inheritance] and the sleek liver chestnut crossed bred Welsh Cob/Thoroughbred [Superman's Reward]. Dad had taught her from the age of 3 or 4 everything she knew about horses. The memory of his leaving was dim .... a Chief aboard the Franklin in the Pacific Theater WWII .... the picture above the two stalls was his burning ship.
The rain had stopped; the hall filled with "Noble Inheritance" and "Superman's Reward". Brushed, loved, saddled, three heads turned at the sound of the baritone voice. "Did you think you would ride both at the same time?" Her laughter caused both "Noble and "Re" to nicker tossing their mane and heads. She had spent hours working out their names. As they were descended from Medieval War Horses, synonyms of the legacy of heroes seemed appropriate. "No, Dad [her biggest hero] ..... thought you might go with us; afterall, it is Memorial Day."
Saturday, May 14, 2011
It Really Happened
To Saturday Centus .... April 27th a day of serious tornadoes assailed the Chattanooga, TN area beginning at 8 a.m. and finally ending by 9 p.m. Unlike so many loosing , literally, everything; lost power [thank goodness for generators] and comcast [phone, internet, tv]. Power was restored by Sunday and comcast took 2 weeks to get us back on line. I must say, having participated here only a few weeks, this challenge I missed most. So, hello ..... again and my 100 word offering of It Really Happened.
The air hung in riverlets against the skin as The Spindrift, a 22' Mako open sport fisherman, drifted in the flat, windless gulf stream. "Arrrr me maties" didn't stir a soul; after hours of trolling the broken weed lines, the only recourse was to head home. Changing the heading, she breezed through the deep blue. Only days before, the storm had brought the seas to 6' and 8" swells. Frigate birds wheeled and dropped. The ride had been a roller coaster into the feeding fish.
The first outrigger bowed and the pin snapped. "Fish on!!" Then almost at the same time the second outrigger bent relentlessly. "Fish ..... really, BIG FISH on!!!!" Oh my word .... Bulls ... 2 huge bull Dolphins ... 55 to 60 lbs each .... a boat load of schoolies [5 to 8 lbs] is one thing but BULLS. They can hurt you once in the boat .... and we have two!!!!
We had been sing/humming Gilligan's Island and the Brady Bunch; suddenly we broke into " Hush little baby don't you cry .................... " as we hurled ourselves onto the thrashing fish. The watch, we later found on the forward deck.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Opening Night
"Right, well, we may not be Ringling Brothers, BUT we have always been quality .... right??" The group of painted and costumed clowns sat looking up at the spectacle. Their exaggerated shoes patting together in an agitated manner.
O.K., the boy arrived 10 months ago with no skills, no presence, nothing except a wish to be a flyer ... a trapeze artist ... he almost got a nose bleed every time he went up. BUT, there he was ... opening night.
The wigged, red nosed clowns were intent. "Can you believe THAT'S his costume?" We'll never live this down!!!" "Wilbur, he's in white tights!" " You better look at yourself .... you've taken the Velveteen Rabbit to an all NEW LOW .... really !!!"
O.K., the boy arrived 10 months ago with no skills, no presence, nothing except a wish to be a flyer ... a trapeze artist ... he almost got a nose bleed every time he went up. BUT, there he was ... opening night.
The wigged, red nosed clowns were intent. "Can you believe THAT'S his costume?" We'll never live this down!!!" "Wilbur, he's in white tights!" " You better look at yourself .... you've taken the Velveteen Rabbit to an all NEW LOW .... really !!!"
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Bathing Suit and the Preacher
Mother was ..... apparently, I have no idea who or what she really was. Regal, proper, willful, stubborn, exacting, with moments of pure insanity, Southern lady about covers the description. At the University of Alabama, her intentions of being a concert pianist ended with the sudden death of her father; then settled on Primary Education. She met and married daddy in 1938 .... these are the facts.
Funny how you can live everyday for 18/19 years with these people and, actually, not know them except for little snippets of a glance. There was this one time when our pious minister dropped in, unexpectedly, for a visit.
She loved to dig in the garden!!! That hot summer afternoon, to improve her tan while planting daylilies on a bare bank below the newly built house, she was wearing a 2 piece bathing suit..... very risque for the early 50's. Apparently, she had heard his car arrive cause she was clawing her way up the bank, like a cat, on her stomach. Looking up, she spied me in the windows on the way to answer the insistent knocking at the door. With desperation on her sweaty, dirt streaked face, lip reading and arm waving were emphatic ... "Don't let him in!!" Irrepressible laughter bubbled up, bursting out at that sight. It still brings a smile. My prim and proper mother was a total mess and her dignity had definitely slipped. Oh, my word, how was she going to avoid being caught. More determined knocking .... he was a tall, severe man with no sense of humor and not to be admitted! The last sight of mother, she was slipping around the corner of the house.
Opening the front door gave full view of the stairway and hall, mother's only route to her bedroom. I could hear her in the downstairs bathroom washing up, but .... trapped. "Hello Mr. Kennedy, please come in!" Well, he had to move out of the door and that hall. Ushering him into the living room, he stood at the windows commenting on all the gardening opportunities. We stood nodding our heads in agreement with the vision of mother's recent mad scramble up that bank. "Yes, sir, we have a lot of grass to cut." Really don't believe he heard her bare foot fall on the stairs or the click of the bedroom door. Excusing myself,"I'll just find mother .... be right back." Never knew anyone could get dressed that quickly and actually appear cool and calm. She swirled into the room like Loretta Young making an entrance on screen [a very elegant actress of earlier times].
When the insanity was over and Mr. Kennedy had departed, she looked around erupting into laughter and trying to talk at the same time. "I .... thought.... I .... was having .... a heart attack!!!!" "You let him .... in the house." "Are you .... crazy?" With tears streaming down our faces we had daddy near convulsions at dinner as we retold the events of that summer afternoon.
Recently, heard many moments and times shared with her friends that opened a door into a life unknown to me. Could sink a putt from anywhere. Was great to have as a Bridge partner as she generally won. As a couple, they were the life of the party. Isn't that ashame to have missed seeing that part of our parents .... maybe you didn't.
"I Remember Mama" was a t.v. show of the 70's or so and has been strolling through my thoughts the past few days. She slipped away peacefully last month 6 days shy of 98. You see, for the last 21 years, she has been .... figuratively .... patting her foot, sitting on go, just waiting to join daddy. She's gotten her wish and they're probably off together playing golf, again.
Funny how you can live everyday for 18/19 years with these people and, actually, not know them except for little snippets of a glance. There was this one time when our pious minister dropped in, unexpectedly, for a visit.
She loved to dig in the garden!!! That hot summer afternoon, to improve her tan while planting daylilies on a bare bank below the newly built house, she was wearing a 2 piece bathing suit..... very risque for the early 50's. Apparently, she had heard his car arrive cause she was clawing her way up the bank, like a cat, on her stomach. Looking up, she spied me in the windows on the way to answer the insistent knocking at the door. With desperation on her sweaty, dirt streaked face, lip reading and arm waving were emphatic ... "Don't let him in!!" Irrepressible laughter bubbled up, bursting out at that sight. It still brings a smile. My prim and proper mother was a total mess and her dignity had definitely slipped. Oh, my word, how was she going to avoid being caught. More determined knocking .... he was a tall, severe man with no sense of humor and not to be admitted! The last sight of mother, she was slipping around the corner of the house.
Opening the front door gave full view of the stairway and hall, mother's only route to her bedroom. I could hear her in the downstairs bathroom washing up, but .... trapped. "Hello Mr. Kennedy, please come in!" Well, he had to move out of the door and that hall. Ushering him into the living room, he stood at the windows commenting on all the gardening opportunities. We stood nodding our heads in agreement with the vision of mother's recent mad scramble up that bank. "Yes, sir, we have a lot of grass to cut." Really don't believe he heard her bare foot fall on the stairs or the click of the bedroom door. Excusing myself,"I'll just find mother .... be right back." Never knew anyone could get dressed that quickly and actually appear cool and calm. She swirled into the room like Loretta Young making an entrance on screen [a very elegant actress of earlier times].
When the insanity was over and Mr. Kennedy had departed, she looked around erupting into laughter and trying to talk at the same time. "I .... thought.... I .... was having .... a heart attack!!!!" "You let him .... in the house." "Are you .... crazy?" With tears streaming down our faces we had daddy near convulsions at dinner as we retold the events of that summer afternoon.
Recently, heard many moments and times shared with her friends that opened a door into a life unknown to me. Could sink a putt from anywhere. Was great to have as a Bridge partner as she generally won. As a couple, they were the life of the party. Isn't that ashame to have missed seeing that part of our parents .... maybe you didn't.
"I Remember Mama" was a t.v. show of the 70's or so and has been strolling through my thoughts the past few days. She slipped away peacefully last month 6 days shy of 98. You see, for the last 21 years, she has been .... figuratively .... patting her foot, sitting on go, just waiting to join daddy. She's gotten her wish and they're probably off together playing golf, again.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Singing in the Rain
There they were, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor. Their yellow slickers filling the screen .... "Singing in the rain, just singing in the rain, what a wonderful feeling" ..... the darken theater enhanced the mood .... "I'm happy again. The suns up above" ..... eyelids slid closed, thoughts drift to him. Was he right? How could he possibly know? He's not that attuned; o.k., smart. Oh, lawrd .... the pain ... THE PAIN! Funny when you're being wheeled on a gurney through halls of lights and doors open and close ... alone ... then all those people in white ... where is he? ... counting backwards ... Mother always said, "April Showers bring May flowers" .... baby shower, April 12th; born May 15th, Rose.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Ordinary Things
Genetics, DNA, ancestors .... stubborn, willful, submissive, happy, orderly. Why on earth these thought flood the mind while doing ordinary things is a conundrum. All the same, those nightly rituals: check the doors, turn out the lights, slip into the gown, tie the hair back, cleanse the face. Every night those clear eyes survey the years of effect from sun baked fishing and winter frozen hunting but at this moment an unexpected awareness. Picking up the tooth brush, suddenly there appeared in the middle of her line riddled cheek a highway sign ... EXIT 181, 1/2 mile ahead with an arrow ponting toward her mouth. She broke into a wide smile thinking "I earned every one" and began brushing.
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