Gone to seed

Broccoli gone to seed in my husband's garden last spring.
Currently, his garden spot is grown up in weeds as he was not able to plant anything this year before he died.  I'm not sure what I'll do with it next year, but I'm going to keep the fence up and keep the weeds beat down this year until I decide.  I have visions of becoming the old widow woman in the gardening hat with hoe in hand in a garden full of flowers.
We'll see what next year brings.

I am going to halt The Barn Collective for now.  I don't know if I will continue it at a later time or not.  I will be happy for someone to pick it up.  Just let me know.

Thank you to everyone for your kind comments and emails.  Words can be of such great comfort in times of grief.  We are very fortunate to have friends who have visited both at the hospital (two hours away) and at home, brought food, ran errands, looked after my mother, fed the cats, and even mowed the lawn.  My son and I are plodding along with each day.  He will be starting his permanent job next week after a delay due to the illness and death of his father.  I am glad he has something to occupy his mind.

Until next time.

Loss

Rest in peace, my sweet husband.

My husband, Tony, passed away this past week.  He was a wonderful man, husband, father, son, brother.

We miss him very much.

She's got curves

Onion top

Beet red

Swish Chard Color

Lake Guntersville State Park

Late summer at Lake Guntersville State Park.

An Alabama State Park.

The lodge is beautiful and has recently been renovated.

The bottom photo shows the camping facilities which lost many trees in the April 2011 tornadoes that devastated much of Alabama.

Plan a visit to this beautiful lake or one of the other Alabama State Parks.

September evening

We didn't have a summer garden this year, but Hubby has planted greens.

That is cotton behind him (not ours).  Most of it is shoulder height, but I understand that cotton is way behind this year due to our cooler, wetter summer weather.  Last year at this time, those plants were full of bolls opening with white fluffy cotton.  There are plenty of bolls out there, but very few of them are opening.  Hopefully, there is still time to get a decent crop.

See last year's cotton here.

 Even the dying Zinnias are pretty.

There is a bumper crop of poke salad along this fence also.

But not as pretty as last year's that you can see here.

Looks out of hand, doesn't it?

That's because it is. :)

And, finally, here is the other side of my friend from the other day.

Sharing with:

Rurality, with Madge Bloom at The View From Right Here

Progress

The iPhone camera did a great job of capturing this beautiful day.

The day was extra special because my husband felt like hitting golf balls.

After hitting a bucket, he wanted to play nine.

He made it the whole nine holes.

Progress.

Joe Wheeler Golf Course

Rogersville, Alabama

Batman

This building is called "The Batman building" and is in downtown Nashville.  This photo was from our August visit which was just for fun.  Little did we know at that time that we would be back in Nashville a month later for not so fun activities.

The first thing I saw when we entered the waiting room at Vanderbilt was a great view of downtown Nashville with this building front and center.  So, this building will be forever etched in my memory.  I only hope it will be a good memory.  I'm getting sappy, aren't I.

Husband update top right sidebar.

Links II

Hubby plays and I shoot

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail - The Shoals

Links

On the links

Last day of summer

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail - The Shoals

Sharing with:

Weekly Top Shot

Western

What town has burrows on the sidewalks?

Yes, burrows everywhere.  And, of course burrow poop too.

Oatman, Arizona

 2006



What's going on with my family

Where to start.  The beginning, I suppose.

My husband has cancer.  We found out on September 5, 2012.   According to the ENT (ear, nose, and throat), it appears to be Stage 3 or 4 which is typical for a squamous cell carcinoma on the base of the tongue.  The biopsy indicated that it is a cancer that responds well to treatment and is relatively slow growing.  That bit of news made us feel so much better.

We are scheduled for Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee on September 27.  My husband insists that we will carry on with our normal routines until we can’t.  That means he goes to work, our son goes to college, and I do whatever it is that I do every day.  So far, my days have been bleak.  There is no shortage of chores around here to keep me occupied, but getting started each day is a challenge.

I will spare you the gory details of this cancer as you can search and find all sorts of details for yourself if you are interested.  I have done too much research and have vowed to stop.  Our case will be its own.  My husband has none of the other diseases that plague our nation these days.  He is not overweight, has great blood pressure, eats well, stays active, and all these things will go far in his withstanding treatment and recovery.

He is scheduled to retire next summer.  He has a thing he says about it.

The 4 G’s.

Golf.  Garden.  Gourmet.  Gone fishin’.

I have made a page (top right) where I will try to provide updates after our initial visit at Vanderbilt.  No guarantees on the frequency, extent, etc., of said updates, but I will try to keep it current.  It will be easier than trying to email so many thoughtful and concerned friends.  As far as visits from me, posts, and comments through this whole nightmare, I have no guarantee on those either.  I certainly hope everyone understands.

Please send positive thoughts our way.

Thank you,

Amy

Winner, winner

Our son is returning to campus this weekend so he got to choose last weekend's meals.

He asked for steak on Saturday and for Sunday he wanted chicken, dressing, creamed potatoes, gravy, etc.

Essentially, Thanksgiving, but without turkey.

My husband loves to cook.  He can make a mean roasted chicken.

At the risk of getting a bit raunchy, he cleans it, rubs it, stuffs it, and dresses it.

I didn't get a photo of the cooked chicken because it fell apart and just didn't look very photogenic.

(BTW, that red enameled iron pot is the best thing we've bought for cooking in a long time.

It's not that really expensive brand, it's a Lodge, and we recommend it highly.

We bought a second one in a smaller size.)

The nineteen year old's plate.
(first plate, that is)

Better men than I

They just walked right up to the edge.

And peered over.  Multiple times.

Even looked up and away without flinching.

Were they as smart as they thought?

Yes, I did go to the edge, but crawled down there on my behind and sat the whole time.

Grand Canyon, Arizona, U. S. A.

2006

Keeping the critters out

The fence around my husband's garden is definitely not a permanent fixture.

There is the occasional deer print in the garden, but I think it works pretty good.

Linking with:

Friday's Fences

Doin' laundry and a vegetable follow up

 These kittens jump in my son's laundry basket every chance they get.

I wonder if it's the socks?

 My friend, Kerry, correctly ID'd this plant from yesterday's post.

My husband does just about everything with an eggplant (everything food-wize, that is).

Parmesan, marinated salad, or just sliced, breaded and fried.

 Yes, eggplant, aka, aubergine, is pretty to look at, but it's not for me to eat.  Blech.

It's bitter and the texture is spongy.  I just can't take it.

One website I visited to find interesting facts said that long ago people thought eggplant was linked to

insanity, cancer, and leprosy.

Sounds like a good reason for me to just shoot it and find something else to eat.

Mt. Zion - more from July 4th

Mt. Zion is a few miles away from Appleton and we always go there too.  

Sugar Creek runs by this old church and cemetery.

My handsome hubby on the swinging bridge a couple of years ago.

My mother on the bridge this year.  I didn't think she would walk across it.

One of my favorite shots from a couple of years ago.  These cows live next door to the church.

We also go wading.  At least our feet get cooled off.  I would like to just lay down in the water.

Linking with:

Rural Thursday

The Blackberry Whisperer

Can plants have a whisperer?

Maybe only animals can be whispered, but my husband has petted a wild blackberry patch into about two acres.   He alternates cutting half of it each year because they bear fruit on old growth.  I told him if he would cut in rows that I might help him pick.

He's not a hill-billy.

He's a better man than I am to dress like that in 94 degrees with 90% humidity on a sunny day, cover yourself in Deet to ward off chiggers to get a gallon of wild blackberries.

Here's the product.

Yum.Yum

Rural Thursday @ A Rural Journal