friends – The Hermits' Rest

It’s My Favorite Week of the Year

What week is that? The week the Mexican plum and redbuds start to bloom in this part of Texas! This means a whole bunch of pretty flowers will be here any day now!

I saw many wild redbuds on the drive from Cameron to Milano.

I’d been afraid I’d miss those trees this year, since I no longer drive there three times a month. But, hooray, today was the day to go out to my friend Carolyn’s to make plans for a field trip to her place to look at the unique wildflowers they have.

Our fellow Master Naturalist, Terri, joined us. She’s been working on a map of the property and its trails and wanted to refine it. She’s also going to make signs to help navigate the trails. She’s so talented!

We had lots of fun looking at the plants that are coming up and finding places of interest to share with visitors, like where the puffball mushrooms are.

I always have so much fun with Carolyn. I promised I’d visit more this year.

We found more than plants! The resident armadillos were wandering around, we saw a deer, and we got to watch ED feed the big catfish in the ponds. Plus, the cattle followed us around hoping for treats for quite a while. They’re very friendly.

Note the petting going on in the background.

It was fun to find a wetland that’s developed between the fancy pond and the well. It should be beautiful in a few weeks, too.

I think the people who go on the picnic will have a great time exploring the property, and I know it will mean a lot to Carolyn to have us visit. Before that, we still have work to do to get ready! Here are some more photos.

What a great way to treat the first official week of wildflower season.

In other news, our much-needed new washer and dryer came and were successfully installed. That impressed me, because I didn’t think we had all the parts, but we did! Our menfolk can work miracles.

Sorry about yesterday’s downer post. I think I’m just rundown. My “glands” hurt and ears are sore. I’ll have to take it easy tomorrow!

Rainy Day? It’s Okay!

It rained a bit today, not too much, but enough to please wildflowers. I didn’t hear as many birds as usual, but there’s always tomorrow.

The time passed pleasantly enough, because neighbor Vicki invited me to have lunch at the restaurant that replaced my old favorite, the Dutchtowne Deli. Neither of us do a lot of socializing without an agenda, so this was daring for us. And we had a good time eating huge Dutch babies with strawberry/rhubarb filling. It was just about the most delicious food I ever ate.

Then we went to the bakery and got more baked goods (for later). I think my friends and family keep that place in business. My son had already been by.

Next we went to the ZX Made in Texas shop and browsed. There I was delighted to find a can that once held Granger pipe tobacco. It reminded me so much of my dad, who always smoked a pipe with that tobacco. I got it and put it next to Dad’s bronze baseball glove and his baby picture.

I never found his pipe smoke to smell bad.

After all that the rain was starting in earnest, so we headed home, checked out Vicki’s new horse, Malone, got my mail, and still didn’t get drenched. Not bad.

He has a better disposition than certain gray horses who live at my house.

The rest of the wet day was pleasant, especially since Kathleen came back for a while bearing Valentines gifts. It’s always good to have someone to talk to!

Alfred covered me with wet dog smell when it started thundering. Poor guy.

And you know it’s a rainy day because I watched two movies, which means I wasn’t outside all day! Both Song Sung Blue and How to Train Your Dragon were good. I really enjoyed the Neil Diamond songs and sweet characters in the first one.

One of my online friends passed away today after a miserable struggle with cancer. I keep thinking about her husband and kids. They were so good to her. Hug a loved one!

Feeling Lighter

I said yesterday that the light was coming, and I really felt it today, and not just because we’re halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox! Not that I’m complaining that the sun is setting later, because I enjoyed the sunset and full moon tonight.

I just feel lighter and a little more positive after a few small pieces of good news, and I enjoyed good conversations with friends again. I need to keep this friendliness streak going! It’s hard when most of your friends trend towards the hermit lifestyle just like we do.

Our friends Martha and Mike, who often invite themselves to Sunday dinner, struggle like Lee and I do to make the effort, but we all praise Martha for making the rest of us spend time together. At least we admit our struggles to each other. You feel lots less alone when you figure out we all have challenges to push through.

Red hat. It fits. It’s warm. I’m trendy.

All in all I enjoyed my day of finishing my red solidarity hat, donning my Imbolc t-shirt, and gazing at the candles on my Brigid altar.

I was even able to spend a little time birding once it warmed up a little, since it was sunny and calm. A Belted Kingfisher flew right over my head! Now it has to warm up enough for me to sit out and see the Bald Eagle that’s hanging out here.

I can’t miss the turkeys though. Darryl Junior really wants to fly, and his legs pound the dirt like a herd of elephants as he runs and flaps his wings. Good exercise, I guess! Both the birds and horses seem glad for the slight warming trend. Tomorrow should be practically balmy, at least in the 60s.

And here’s January 2026 in its cooler glory.

Enough rambling for one day. I’m all rested and ready to tackle another work week.

Here’s my funky candle collection on the hearth. At least I decorated for a holiday!

Chatty Susie

One of the benefits of everyone being home all day waiting for bad weather (it only just now got sleety here) is that there’s lots of time to talk. Or text. Or message. I did those things most of the day. It brought a lot of comfort to me. Yes, I’m chatty Susie.

Rain did fill the back pond, and raised the front one, but I was too cold to take a picture.

Thanks to pretty much my entire family, my old friends, my current friends, and my “daughter” for being there for me today.

If the weather is still bad where you are tomorrow, take a break from your cocooning activity and text, call, message, or write a letter, depending on your generational preference. Heck, I got stationery in the mail today (from a friend in Canada!) so I should write some letters, too!

Knowing we have people who care for us will help us get through these trying times. No one can take away our love in our hearts.

Blessed be.

Happy Turkey, Grateful Human

Darryl Jr and Connie Gobbler are going to be happier this chilly weekend, because they are getting their very own Turkey Hut! It’s a custom-crafted abode made of the finest leftovers from construction projects.

The space is designed to be big enough for the turkeys to enter and exit but small enough to keep them warm. It will be placed against the henhouse wall once completed. The opening faces south, away from the cold north winds.

Lee wants it to look good, so it will have siding, a metal roof (it slants to the rear so rain will drain, and spiffy paint matching the barns here. I enjoyed hanging out with my son on my lunch break, getting supplies and treats from the bakery. Having some family fun helps remind me of the good in the world.

And this rock symbolizes how today felt to me. I’m deeply grateful to friends who have been incredibly supportive and kind for the past few days. I’m much more emotionally stable just knowing that I have real friends, including those from all over the political and spiritual spectrum, and from both inside and outside the US. And heck, my family have also been so good to me today—I feel a little more inclined to look forward to fun someday. I even had a great talk with a coworker about potential future plans after we finished writing some complex stuff.

Rainbow from earlier in the week, compliments of neighbor Vicki.

So yeah, it’s not the most peaceful time to be alive, but I’ve not been abandoned by all my communities, and I know I’ve led as good a life as I could. No one can take that away!

And tomorrow the turkeys will have a hut.

A Technology I’d Like to See

I listened to a lot of CNN News (what Lee likes) and NPR (my preference) today. Much of it was helpful in seeing multiple perspectives on current events, though by the time I was heading toward the year-end awards ceremony for Working Horse Central, I was feeling pretty glum.

Luckily the subject of On the Media switched to a discussion of whether the US is in its worst shape, has lost hope, etc., and while that sounds depressing, it helped me get a wider perspective. Brooke Gladstone talked to Bryan Stevenson, public interest lawyer and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, a human rights organization based in Montgomery, Alabama, and he masterfully reminded her of how far the country backslid in race relations after the Civil War. He told a healing story about reconciliation, which reminded me and the rest of the audience that we still have many good people in this place and that we just need to keep going. (This was the January 2 episode, but the interview was in April 2025—look it up!)

National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery. These pillars are memorials to people who were lynched, county by county. Stevenson directs it.

The point is that uplifting and encouraging stories like the one I heard don’t downplay real-life challenges, but don’t ignore progress and positive actions. And NPR and other news outlets do feature them (and book reviews, science stories, etc.) if you happen to be listening at the right time.

I asked the AI to make me with “pleasant news only,” but it sucks.

So what I wish existed was a service that pings you or sends you a schedule for when non-depressing news and information is coming up. Or one that switched to soothing music each time certain officials are quoted, discussed at length, etc. I can take about five minutes of the latest depths to which this country’s leadership has fallen to. After that, let me learn about something else. Please, someone invent that or point me to it.

Sorry for the rant. 2026 already feels 12 months long. But I did enjoy time with the nice horses and riders this morning, I enjoyed my own horses, especially Apache, and I enjoyed dinner with friends.

I feel better realizing that there has been injustice throughout our history, but there are always people fighting it.

I Did Something Social

I’m proud of myself that I left the house to be social, not for a horse or Master Naturalist event. I used to do that more often, but I got convinced that the whole town didn’t like me, so I stayed home except for lunch each week and when Anita and I used to have coffee. I’ve been down to just lunch, Master Naturalist, and riding lessons this year, even though I’m no longer concerned about anyone’s opinions. I’m just not feeling social.

But I did join the group of more social folks tonight to listen to a friend’s band play. It was nice of Pamela to invite me along! I enjoyed the music and the folks we sat with, too.

It’s fun being in the social hub of Cameron and watching everyone greet each other and mingle. It all seems so darned friendly, especially when you’re blissfully ignorant of any local drama. Heck, I even got greeted and hugged—made me feel like part of the community! All in all, a good evening.

Ooh! I almost forgot to share that right after I turned onto our county road, our local Big Cat sauntered across the road, disappearing into the woods. That was exciting to me, and gave me a good story to tell Pamela. And now Alfred has something more interesting to bark at tonight.

They have such long tails! Photo from Pexels.

Sometimes It’s Hard to Leave

But then it’s good to be back

That’s the story of my day. Lee and I were enjoying our time together in Blanco and almost decided to stay until tomorrow, but we dragged ourselves home. That’s probably for the best, given the strong winds blowing in that early cold front.

I still managed to get in a walk to the only trail I’d missed on this visit, which allowed me to enjoy the resident non-native geese.

And since I figured out Bluetooth on the upgraded camera body, I can now share images from it and the phone. I’m glad I took it on my walk, and look forward to trying the other lenses. I just took the standard one. It took nice tree photos. I was captivated by cypress and sycamore trees.

I also enjoyed leaves, lots of leaves.

Berries? Want to see berries?

Here are other interesting sights and some new ones for me.

And finally, I can share that I was happy to enjoy the windy morning (very few birds), but a bit sad to say goodbye to Jennifer, even though I know I’ll see her at least a couple more times before she moves away. Sniff.

The dogs were glad to see us, as was the human resident, when we got home. I should have more than just photos tomorrow. At least it will be photos of something that is not next to a river.

One More Good Day at the River

I’m not kidding. If I lived on one of these Texas Hill Country Rivers like the Blanco, you’d find me every day sitting under a huge bald cypress tree looking at the river life, marveling at the life within the moving water.

I spent a great deal of time this morning just watching fish being fish. It makes me miss my aquariums.

Look at these bluegill beside a cypress.

The morning was magical in many ways, from the light shining on grasses to meeting some interesting Master Naturalists and birders. That’s one reason I love visiting state parks! It’s so much. Fun to talk about what birds and plants we have on our land.

I did find birds farther down the pump house trail, where my binoculars let me enjoy the crown of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, who also sang his entire repertoire for me.

I also managed to find some palafox and skeleton flowers, which was a pleasant pink surprise.

After that walk, I uploaded everything to iNaturalist until I was invited to lead a nature walk by some fellow campers. We went on the trail that goes under the highway, and I showed them the things I found yesterday as well as finding new plants and a Greylag Goose.

Later in the day I practiced taking pictures with Lee’s newest camera, once I got some help with the settings. Another reason it’s nice to see old friends again. I’d share photos, but they aren’t showing up for me.

I also have no photos of the enjoyable potluck dinner this evening. I got to meet some very interesting newer members and their fun kids and dogs, and enjoyed catching up with others. I’m glad I was able to be more social and really get into some meaningful exchanges.

I’m really going to hate to leave tomorrow, but since the temperatures are going to drop I will need to go bring in some plants. I’ll miss the fish, though.

The Salmon of Knowledge

I said I’d draw a card from my new deck daily for a while. The one I drew today sure fit! It was the Ace of Water (cups), and it has my favorite Celtic symbol, the salmon of knowledge.

Yesterday I drew the 10, which focuses on the return home. The Ace is about starting a new path to your heart’s desire. Spot on!

Today my neighbor, Vicki, and I had our first lessons together with Apache and Drew. I know for her it felt like restarting her desire to work with horses, and for Drew, it was a start working with a new human.

Drew discovers he has to do what Vicki says.

We all ended up very tired after many hours in the sun, but we were happy. Drew was happy to be back at work, especially since he’s so tubby he can’t even buck properly when he can’t canter right. There’s work to be done!

Apache is doing better, too, and everyone survived the trailer experience with Vicki’s vehicle. I look forward to finding out what’s next on this journey. May the salmon grant us emotional fulfillment and knowledge!