There and Back Again

Keoni, Aidan and I listened to Rhapsody in Blue via one of the iPhones blu-toothing thru the car system during part of our two and a half hour drive to New Windsor, NY. Nice drive, good music. (Why is there so much fuss about electronics? They're wonderful. Everybody is just getting used to them and working out new codes of conduct. It'll get figured out. I'm now so old I remember in my early reading years the fuss was that comic books were a detriment to minds. Did Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel or Superman hurt my brain? Well, I guess we're all mad here.)

We pulled into the Econo Lodge that, of course, didn't look like the pictures. India-Americans have largely turned to garden-variety Americans to cover the front desk I noticed last week and during some stays along last spring's road trip. I received a very nice email of apology from the young woman after I'd submitted the "Tell us about your stay" electronic form where I'd listed the physical deficiencies and the amazing luck we'd had by taking our showers before the water supply disappeared during the night. I hope it helped that I commended the clean linens and helpful front desk service; she and the cleaning staff truly earned their tips. Alas, a disappointing stay but the kids and I still had a good time for all the tackiness.

We made it to Storm King Art Center just in time for the bike rentals before they closed for the day and I got on the last tram ride around the 500 acres of grounds. It was worth every bit of the trip to see and hear the grandsons' amazement and expressive remarks when we drove onto the grounds and the wonderful sculptures came into view. They did a lot of pictures on their trip, but events have been so thick and fast since we returned to PA that Keoni hasn't bounced them to me as yet. I don't see them on his Facebook page yet either. Mine don't do much justice having taken them from the tram. I was on the last circuit of the place so I didn't get off my ride. Still, it was a great going around, and the tram driver most helpful about stopping where I could see the best.

A shoutout to Janie: Your sister Lynda has made some amazing contributions to art!

Lynda Benglis'.

From the tram...

These are in perpetual motion.

New installation going in. Amazing one in background.

The (dry) wall wove its way over a lot of the landscape.

This "wave" earth sculpture is for Jackie...

...because of what's in the foreground. What could be better, Jackie.

The boys and I met back at the Visitor Center and spent more time with Lynda's Water Sources. I don't know what was wished for, but the they used up all my change tossing the coins into the fountains for silent desires. It was a beautiful relief walking around the tree-shaded, Center grounds after our bike and tram tours that hot, humid afternoon. We took our time.

After the tram: Lynda's on the Center's grounds...

We headed back to our motel to clean up and find some hamburgers at Woody's nearby. They turned out to be the best hamburgers we've eaten.

The grandsons loved how the sculptures fit so well into the landscape settings and understood the landscape helped the sculpture and vice versa. Aidan couldn't wait to go up close to them to see how they were made. Both totally got the art idea. It was so worth the time and efforts to go there.

We made our way back to PA the next day after a visit to West Point: US Military Academy, and their museum there. The short drive there took us along the Hudson River.

It poured rain the last half hour of the trip home and stopped as we pulled into the drive. The boys were quickly off to other commitments in the late afternoon. But, not before Aidan constructed a playing card foundation for stuff he stacked on top...

Karma oblivious to possible collapse. Aidan oblivious to her possibly collapsing it.

Wednesday: Last night Keoni emailed over some of his pictures from the trip...

Gone Girl

Ah well, so much for beautiful Queen Anne's Lace blossoms; by my next walk, the blossom I admired and surrounding grasses had been mowed for hay.

Later, it was all baled up and gone to a barn somewhere.

On a bright note Keoni is back. Very nice to see him and catch up a bit on his month in D.C. There were plenty leftovers in the fridge from company visiting and he dug right in.

Aidan has been occupied in his dad's shop. The result is a crossbow.

Crossbow testing grounds off the back steps. The arrow went past the shed--it aimed left. He's made many modifications improving performance during these hot days that returned to us. 

Mostly, existence is about getting through the day's heat by staying occupied in front of fans which we have all over the place including the shop where Aidan labored.  It is beautiful out this morning and early temps were a welcome relief before the scorching starts. I hope it is decent enough to enjoy the Storm King Art Center.

Another evening a thundershower took place just before I took a walk.

The prolific green growth is alongside the "shoulder" of the road traversing Crooked Creek.

Weather Report: Reprieve from Extremes

Aidan is certain now that he is not addicted to an iPad since he is some days away from the demise of his. He continues to get some time on his mom's Mac Air. Still, he looks for a word or gesture or minimal cue that an iPad is somehow going to materialize in his near future. However, he is not bored, as yet.

He and I attacked a 750 piece puzzle of New York City with a second puzzle overlay with 126 plastic buildings and bridges to install on that surface.

Adding skyscrapers.

All finished.

On Tuesday he and his mom went for the day to NYC to meet his Tucson friend Wali and his family visiting their NY relatives. Yesterday, Wendy and Aidan drove to meet John after work to spend the evening at the Philadelphia Zoo which was rented for the sig.com employee outing. Another couple from Tucson is expected any minute for a weekend visit. And, Keoni is due back from D.C. on Sunday night.

The neighbor that put in the long road/drive over "Crooked Creek" at the far end of this property is now building something. I'm assuming a dwelling. Aidan and I once walked down to the end of his new road and saw a clearing made in the woods. By the looks of the equipment distantly observed, so far, I believe a septic system installation must be in progress. It was interesting one day to watch an enormous dump truck load of gravel slowly backing down toward the site for about a quarter mile--sharp 90 degree angles and all.

Twyla's milk is superior, but Penelope's is very goaty and oddly textured leading Wendy to retire her from the milking. Twyla is giving all we need it seems to me. When the goats are let out of the barn they all, youngsters included, go right to the fence to scratch themselves; first along one side and then they turn around and all do the other side.

I wasn't quick enough to photo them all scratching. Maybe later.

The young goats still play, but the boys had to be separated from the girls and weaned besides; poor dears. The boys go out to the pasture with their daddy Snickerdoodle during the day. T-Bone, the whether goat, still keeps Austin company in the horse pasture. The female goats graze the yard at the back of the house, around the barn and round pen. Lots of room so now and then a young one will find it has drifted out of sight of the others, then the air fills with raucous back and forth bleating until a reunion takes place.

One of the brown hens has stopped laying, but the other brown and three whites are still at it. I wonder about the brown one. She might just be too old.

Catching some rays in the empty planter.

The humidity and temp dropped for a few days; a most welcome event. The growth is still fantastically green and flowers are everywhere. I still love seeing the Queen Anne's Lace swaying along the roadsides in the swoosh of the passing vehicles...

...or up close on a walk.

The allure of the raspberries took Aidan and I outdoors yesterday...

The cool, stiff breeze made the porch inviting and Aidan read another chapter of Harry Potter to me.

Wendy took advantage of some of the great local produce, and put together her veggie layered lasagna complete with her first batch of goat cheese mozzarella.

After soccer practice Aidan and I remembered to record July's progress on the piece he is practicing for his eventual auditions. This is Month 2 of the possible 30 months this will take to fully conquer. You already know he likes a challenge.




Today...

At 10:30 a.m. I am at my desk uploading some pictures to my laptop to begin a session of writing. Aidan has awakened and is knocking on my door. He has sleep in his blue eyes and sits on the edge of my bed. I am in the one chair in the room.

"I thought of something we can do," he says. "We could go get some strawberries and chocolate chips  and make chocolate dipped strawberries. Do you want to?"

My thoughts review this. Shall I set aside time I'd planned hours earlier? His sleepy eyes win me over as I think about how much fun it is to wake up with an idea and jump into the day with it.

"Yes, we could run down to the Landis (local supermarket) for supplies. Check with your mom and see what she says since she is heading out on her errands very soon. I'll finish loading pictures here while you do that."

He is back in seconds. "Yeah, she says it's fine. But we have to go soon because the last of Nate's hay is coming and she needs us here."

We look up a Food Channel recipe. We only need a couple of ingredients and instructions are simple.

For a few short minutes we are distracted while we try to access his text messages. (His precious iPad is dead. I am almost as grieved as he is with the loss. It is his second one after the first disaster when that one fell from his music stand and slowly went to pieces over weeks--eventually replaced. This one had a similar slow death by cracked screen when without its case it was broken in his mother's purse during a long car ride. Now very reformed and conscientious about keeping it protected he must still go without until some later date when negotiations with parents has yielded a path to a new one. In the meantime, he gets very limited use of his mother's MacBook Air.)

Shopping is swift and we devour a doughnut apiece. Landis makes good pastries, pies and cakes. We return home and his mom is already gone. We text her so she knows we are watching out for the hay.

Well it all turns out OK. The chocolating endeavor is a success though the warm weather keeps the chocolate a little gooey. The hay comes as expected and I find out Nate won the election with plenty to spare having garnered substantial Democratic support besides his own Republicans.

Keoni has been busy in D.C.

NSO Summer Music Institute Orchestra-Strauss' "Don Juan" & Sibelius's Symphony No. 2

We enjoyed watching his quartet and, also, the July 7th solo. Some of his friends (some as far away as Tucson) have gone to the same SMI along with him.We follow him on Facebook and texting as well. I think he's talked to his mom a time or two. We've grown used to him going somewhere in the summers, but this time I miss him more; perhaps, because I know he'll be off to Georgia next month.

This morning during the time of chocolate I needed some white vinegar for my laundering in the wash machine. The machine needs a small dose each load or stinky molds grow somewhere in the drain system and waft over the porch outside. The vinegar keeps it down. But, the gallon jug was empty, and the toilet paper in the "powder room" next to the washer and dryer ran out. The supplies are down the rickety, inhospitable basement stairs.

Me to Aidan, "Please, would you fetch a gallon of vinegar and three rolls of toilet paper from the basement?"

The stairs rumble and I hear Aidan below, "The toilet paper is packaged. Throw me a scissors."

I take careful aim wondering at my sanity; then, ever so gently lob the scissors handles first toward the bottom step where it lands and bounces to the still rain-wet floor. Success! Nothing is impaled.

Aidan quickly has three toilet paper rolls in hand.  "Catch!" he says, and tosses them up to me one at a time and I catch them all. Holding a gallon of vinegar he bounds up the stairs, two at a time.

...............

This evening another trip to the park for some basketball. It was a short stay--not his forté. A couple evenings ago he wanted to figure out how fast he could run. Using my iPhone feature I clocked him over the 30 yard course he'd measured off. Later we sat at the kitchen table and turned the data into MPH--18 MPH from a standing start, 22 MPH from a running start.