The Coppery Gilt of Autumn

This week, Raymond Pert assigned our sibling assignment. IEG's is here, and RP's will be here soon.

Write a postcard, in poetry or prose, patterned after Ted Kooser. His are winter postcards of winter morning walks. Ours will be autumn postcards and we'll make our observations however we want...walking, driving, sitting, whatever....and time of day is up to us...

His postcards:

1. State the date
2. State the weather conditions
3. Capture physical detail of the moment
4. Reflects upon that moment, either implicitly or explicitly


September 26

Warm and breezy

The view from my backyard
is a perfect mixture of evergreen trees in the mountains
and deciduous trees on the ground.

As the sun sets this evening, it casts a perfect
autumnal glow on my view, covering
the trees and hillsides with a coppery gilt
that can only be experienced
as the light of each day is more rare, and
the autumnal equinox adds more darkness to our nights.

by Silver Valley Girl
September 2009

Kindergarten....A Time of New Experiences

It is time to get caught up a bit on some of my Sibling Assignments.

A while back I gave this assignment:

Write about one of your earliest memories of being in school.

IEG's post can be found here, and Raymond Pert's here.

Kindergarten brought many changes into my life, and I have many vivid memories from that first time going to school.

My Kindergarten Class. Of the 22 people in this picture,
15 graduated from Kellogg High School in the Class of 1981.

At the time, Kindergarten was private, and you had to pay to send your child to the half-day session of kindergarten. I was in the morning session.

As I look back over the year, here are some snippets of my first year of kindergarten, in the basement of the old Junior High School on the corner of Main and Division Streets in uptown Kellogg.

I remember standing in line for a drink at the drinking fountain, and both BG and BE being mean to me.

I remember wearing red rubber boots with black fur around the top.

One time we walked outside with black construction paper and caught snowflakes on the paper to look at the different designs.

At the end of the year program, we did a presentations on the holidays of the year, and I was part of Christmas, and I said a short poem about a top.

Now I don't remember this, but I was told that I could read in kindergarten, but I wouldn't read out loud to anyone, but Mrs. Clark, my kindergarten teacher, knew I could read because if she handed me a stack of papers to hand out, I could read the names on the papers to hand them out.

Kindergarten was a good and exciting time for me.

September Images From My Garden

One of the sunflowers that has bloomed in the back yard. How can you help but smile when you look at sunflowers?
Moonbeam Coreopsis is one of my favorite perennials. It starts blooming early summer, and doesn't stop until fall.
I've got a few gourds growing this year. See these gourds reminds me of Veggie Tales.
My Wagonwheel Herb Garden has been overrun by grass. Time to do a little weeding.
Happy Birthday to me!! Last July I received some money for my birthday, and I purchased some roses to plant. On the To Do list for this week!!
ATTACK OF THE KILLER NASTURTIUMS!!! They are taking over everything!! Think Audrey II in Little Shop of Horrors.
I love asters. They are such a cool autumn flower. They have really made my pots look colorful.
Sedum, another one of my fall favorites.
More colorful pots in the front of the house...I am so glad the weather has been so wonderful, so the flowers have stayed so colorful this year. There is beauty all around!!

A Very Productive Sunday

Today has been a very productive day.

This morning we visited a new church that we are thinking of attending. It is the church I grew up in here in Kellogg. It used to be called The United Church of Kellogg, but it is now called Mountain View Congregational Church. It was fun seeing people who attended when I was growing up, and other people I know who I didn't realize were at this church. We really enjoyed the Adult Sunday School Class, and also the service. I think we may have found a new church home.

Then I came home to spend the day canning.

Yesterday, I canned Apple Pie Filling.

Today I made Spicy Apple Chutney and canned it. This is so delicious. It tastes a little like Green Tomato Mincemeat, but with a bite, because there is crushed red pepper, jalapeno and chili pepper in it as well.


Then I sliced zucchini and crookneck squash and canned some pickles.

I also went outside and did a tour of our yard and garden. Things are slowing down out there, but there are still some things on the vine.

I have about four small pumpkins growing, and hopefully they will be ripe in time to make pies for Thanksgiving!!

Still need to pick all my ripe tomatoes. I think they may turn into salsa!!
My green beans didn't do that well this year. But there are some to pick, and cook on the stove all day with some bacon. One of my favorite ways to eat green beans.
Still have a few crookneck squash growing.
And at least one zucchini.

Here is a new addition to our yard. It is a peach tree. We received as a gift from the Pastors at the church we just left, to remind us that we will be bearing new fruit in our new church. They were very generous and loving to share with us such a gift. I'm really looking forward to some peaches next year!!! And it is a kind of peach that is suppose to produce fruit in Kellogg.

Well, that is enough for today. I have some more pics of the yard, but I'll share those later. I'm getting tired, and it is almost time for bed!!

School Days, School Days, Dear Old Golden Rule Days

Yes, it is back to school around this house. Kiki Aru started 8th grade, Z2 is now a sophomore, and PKR teaches Sophomore English, Drama and Speech at Kellogg High School. I'm at both Kellogg Middle School and KHS, continuing to work with my Gear Up program. I have a great office at KHS this year, and will be teaching a weekly "Freshman Success" class to all the new freshman to help them as they transition into the high school.

It is great looking back over summer, and what a wonderful few months it was. Directing the two melodramas with PKR was an absolute delight, and our casts were so great. I'm going to miss all of them!!

Last night and tonight were auditions for the fall show, "Here We Sit", directed by Joy Persoon. I'll be in this one, and PKR will not, since he will start rehearsal for the KHS play that will be at the end of October.

PKR and I are also starting work on our January musical "I Do! I Do!", that we are going to perform at the Sixth Street Theater. I'll talk more about it later.

I also enjoyed this summer because it didn't seem to fly by like most summers. I had time to relax, and go on vacation, and get some things done, but it wasn't quite as busy. Even the girls were ready to get back to school this year.

Last weekend it was wonderful having my brother Raymond Pert and his wife The Deke here in Kellogg for the weekend, and we had a great visit, and I fixed everyone breakfast Sunday morning. The August melodrama ended Sunday, then we had a cast party, and said goodbye.

Kiki Aru turns 14 this weekend. She is having an 80's party on Saturday night. Should be fun!!

I love my life. Life is good.

Flowing Along At The Oregon Coast

I think I'm a few behind on my sibling assignments, but I thought I would try to at least get the latest one done, which is Sibling Assignment #103, given to us by Raymond Pert.

Our family trip to Rockaway Beach has come to an end. Reflect upon what you enjoyed about being together as a family this past week.

Raymond Pert's post is here, and IEG's post is here.


What I enjoyed most about being at the coast, was being in FLOW.

People enter a flow state when they are fully absorbed in activity during which they lose their sense of time and have feelings of great satisfaction.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced chick-sent-me-high-ee) is chiefly renowned as the architect of the notion of flow in creativity.

Csikszentmihalyi describes flow as "being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the utmost."

At the coast, we didn't have many schedules.

We could just get fully absorbed in daily activities and lose our sense of time and did indeed have great satisfaction.

Such as the morning walks with the dogs. We could get up, feed the dogs, then put on their leashes and head down the beach, not having to be back at any certain time.


Life just flowed along.

Playing games around the table.

Visiting tide pools at Hug Point State Park.

This picture cracks me up. It looks like the starfish
is in a somewhat seductive pose!!

Cooking and eating meals around the table.


Taking photographs of family, dogs, sunsets, tide pools, rock formations, seagulls, clouds.


Reading "The Gift of the Sea" by Anne Morrow Lindberg.

What a luxury it is, to not have every minute of your day scheduled. To just relax, and be in the moment...to flow in the moment.

And to have this experience surrounded by my mother, brother, sister, brother-in-law, husband, and three daughters made it even more special.

Still Delicious After All These Years

Seven years ago I ate the most delicious food that had ever passed over my palate.

Today, I ate the same food, and it did not disappoint.

This epicurean delight is fresh crab on the Oregon Coast.

There is something about getting fresh crab freshly caught out of the ocean, taking it home, boiling a pot of salt water on the stove, and adding the crab to cook it for about 15 minutes.

Then you pick the tender white crab meat from the shell, dip in butter, or not, and eat.

Words cannot describe the taste sensation I experience when eating fresh crab.

I was a bit worried. You know how time can play tricks on you, and you really think something was really, really good, but, as time goes by, the memory is better than the actual event.

I am so thankful it wasn't the case with the fresh crab.

It was delicious seven years ago.....and it was delicious again today. Yum!! Yum!!

Here we are enjoying our yummy crab feast.
Doesn't that look GOOD!!!
We also purchased some clams and steamed them to add to our yummy seafood supper.

Living in a Gray World

Since arriving on the Oregon Coast on Monday, we have entered a world of gray.

The sky has been gray. It is foggy. The rain drizzles. The wind blows. The waves crash in various shades of gray.

Gray is a bit like being in limbo. There is no extremes in gray....it is a balance between black and white.

It feels good to be in this gray world at the moment. Just being. Just existing. Time doesn't exist in this gray world. No schedules. No appointments to keep.

I'm thankful today for this special gray world.

PKR and I in our special gray world, with Sadie along side.

Sadie and Peaches chasing seagulls.

PKR and Z2 looking for treasures.

The beautiful grayness of Rockaway Beach, Oregon.

PKR and the dogs.
Walking along the beach with the dogs is such a great way to start the day.

A New Joy...Walking Dogs on the Beach

PKR and I headed down to the beach this morning with Peaches and Sadie, and walked along the sandy beach for over an hour. How relaxing and joyful this experience was for us. The dogs love the beach, and so did we!!!

The Princess Turns Nineteen!!

Was it really 19 years ago I was wheeled into the operating room at Glendive Medical Center in Glendive, Montana to give birth by C-Section to my beautiful first baby daughter?

Where does the time go?

Her last year as a teenager begins today. Wow!!!

You've come a long way in 19 years, beautiful girl...a long ways!!!

Happy Birthday, Princess!

Oh Baby, You're My Handy Man!!

Last night I went and had a wonderful "Ladies Night Out" with some wonderful friends. When I returned home around 10 p.m., I was greeted to a wonderful surprise.

PKR had pulled up the carpet in our dining area, and had brought up the hardwood flooring we had brought from our old house, and said he was going to see if he could install it.

Well, he laid it out last night, and figured out a way to do this project.

Here are some of the pictures at the beginning. We'll add more as the floor progresses.

What a blessed woman I am!!