East Coast Happenings

[Diane Amberg]

What a week. Lost another longtime friend to lung disease. It was chronic but the end was sudden.
Al had his three month bladder scoping . No new tumors found, but now we wait to see if there are any free floating cancer cells.    Looks like I'll be going to 4-H camp in June. UD called to see if I would do a fire safety program for the 4-H day campers age five to eight at the AG farm just south of me. MOO!
Now I can drive a few on here goofy because I can "indoctrine " those poor captive kids in fire safety. After all ,isn't anybody who makes Some Mores a lefty commie?   .
I just might have to stop at the creamery before I leave the Ag school that day. Yummy!
More wrens have arrived. Now we have house wars in both the front and back yards.
One male hummer buzzed me while I was planting petunias in the hangers on the front porch. Still no catbirds.

[Diane Amberg]

 We had offical fire company photos taken yesterday evening for our 125th book. All spoofed up in our class A's. We are really looking old!. Today was just beautiful but still rather cool. I have a section of front yard that I won't let Al mow yet as it's all in buttercups and looks so nice. The nose garden is in full odor today..lilacs, wysteria, lily of the valley and more. it looks like it might rain again. Salmon cakes, baked acorn squash and rice for dinner. This weekend I want to go out for soft shell crabs.Yum.

[Diane Amberg]

The cat birds arrived in full ''meow" this morning and I heard a wood thrush in the woods across the street. That pretty much completes the usual gang that comes here.
The one garden shop I visited had the cutest watering cans. I couldn't go home without a big gold fish and a large pink pig called Babs Hope everyone has a nice frost free gardening day.

[Diane Amberg]

We had frost warnings last night and the heat came on. Very unusual! Petals are flying everywhere and the azaleas are beautiful.
I may get to go visit three college girlfriends for some girl time at Beach Haven NJ in Sept. The one girl, who is a professional artist and teacher, who retired to Maine,  has her brother's place at the beach available. It did have some Sandy damage but has been repaired. Two are fighting breast cancer. It's a two hour drive for me but worth it. Al has developed new back pain right over his kidneys...It's a worry. Hopefully he just overdid the yard work.  Pork chops on the grill tonight.

[greatguns]

Just sat down and caught up on the East Coast Happenings.  Just love to hear about what is going on back east.  Enjoy hearing about Texas also.  Hope you and Ms. Bear had a good Mother's Day.  I'm up to about 5 hummers at my house.  Getting a little gardening done.  I really don't think this will be much of a year for the garden here.   Ladies take care.

[Diane Amberg]

Thank you.It's always nice to hear what you are up to also.
We're on the downhill run to finishing the new Newark Charter JR. SR. High School. Except for details it will be completed next month. Hope to get the C of O in mid June. It really looks like a school now and not a big industrial building.It will eventually hold about 1200 as we grow into it over several years. It will be another four years before they have a class graduate.

[Diane Amberg]

So yesterday we risked putting out the toms and peppers. It is sooo late as compared to usual. I've got my  assortment of herbs and mint in big pots on the back deck and hanging baskets on the front porch. My Rosemary wintered over in the basement in it's big pot, but looks kind of scraggly. I'll wait a bit yet to plant the cukes and beans. The big pots of pansies, petunias, snapdragons, nicotinia,  tuberous begonias and red salvia look good and have kept the hummers happy.  My favorite iris are in bloom, but I lost my old blue grape scented one and will have to try to find another one somewhere.
     Al's test came back clear for bladder cancer cells, so now we just wait for three months for the next scoping. We are very relieved.
Tonight we get together for parade practice with the Emerald Society Pipe  band that is coming up from Washington DC to parade with us tomorrow in Newark's big Memorial Day parade. Then it's party time afterward.
We will be dedicating our ladder truck and the new rescue truck  to all our local vets.
Lou Angeli,  a long time friend and world renown fire service photo journalist will be coming to do photos for our 125th anniversary. He did a lot of the post 911 photos and programs in NY. Then another lunch and party for the fire and police at our big hall after the parade. Showers are predicted but hopefully it won't be a wash out as happened two years ago.
Hope everyone is having a great weekend .

[sixdogsmom]

Warm, humid and overcast. perfect for spreading mulch and that is what I have been doing. Yard is beginning to look like summer. I planted a passion vine yesterday. Don't find them very often for sale. The blossoms are so very pretty. The first one I ever saw was growing in the wild in a woods in Oklahoma. I fell in love with it, and have been trying ever since to have one of my own. Gene Stratton Porter wrote about them growing wild in the Limberlost swampland. I think that made me fall in love even more. Hope it flourishes, and hope it makes it through the winter, I hope, I hope! Diane I am very happy for Als' good news! 

[Diane Amberg]

Thank you. The first passion flower I ever saw was a huge vine on a long stone wall in Bermuda. It was full of happy little lizards. I know there are several kinds .Which color did you get?

[sixdogsmom]

Purple I think. Iy has buds but isn't in bloom yet. Waiting----------! Not so patiently I am afraid.