November Gratitude Mosaics - C for Coffee

click on image to enlarge

November 3

Continuing with the alphabet of gratitude for November - today it's coffee made my own way.  For many years I've used this odd coffee making contraption, the Toddy Coffee Maker, to ensure that I can have a fresh cup of my favorite brew any time of the day without resorting to instant (yuk!) or brewing a pot and then wasting if I'm only in the mood for one cup.

Here's how it works (starting kind of at the bottom left) 1. insert the rubber cork in the bottom of the white "jug" and then place that round "buff" pad in the little well inside the jug.  2. next add about a pound of your favorite coffee and then fill the jug with cold water and cover.  3. let steep about 24 hours, either out on the counter or, when it's really hot, in the fridge.  4. After the steep time, pull the plug and allow the "coffee extract" to drain into the glass container.  As the extract drains through the "buff pad" all the bitter oils are captured so you have incredibly mellow coffee.  5.  Store the coffee extract in the fridge for over a week.  6.  When you're ready for a cup of coffee deliciousness like the one in the big photo, just mix equal parts coffee extract, water, and milk.  Microwave for about 3 minutes.  Of course, if you don't use milk or cream, just tinker with the ratio of extract and water to get the right strength.  And there you have it--a perfect cup of coffee any time, no fuss, no waste!

You may not be surprised that a coffee lover would also have a thing for the perfect coffee mug or cup.  Mugs are my souvenirs of choice when I travel or go to arts and craft fairs.  The lower right I bought at the Saint James Art Fair, and the brown at the Te Papa, the national Maori museum in Wellington, New Zealand.

Linking to the November Daily Blog at Myanderings .

November Gratitude Mosaics - A for Autumn

My blog and Facebook friend Sandy over at Myanderings, Myanderings is challenging her blogger friends to post every day in November.  I thought I'd give it a go.

November is the traditional month for gratitude--remembering the many reasons we have to be thankful, both great and small.  I'm going to try to do a daily alphabet mosaic of the things,  for which I'm grateful.

To begin, here's A for Autumn -- most favorite season for it's blazing colors, coziness, and peace:

 

click on mosaic to enlarge

If this sounds like an interesting blog project, join in today and for the rest of November.  And check out Sandy's link to see what she's doing with her own challenge.  Now, if you'll excuse me, must start figuring out an "X" for which I'm grateful!

Super Moon and a Break

After a week of frustrating issues with technology--computer freeze up, Internet and DSL disconnects especially--I've decided to take a break from blogging until July 1.  By then hope to get these things sorted out, plus taking care of some issues around the homestead that need attention.  To quote Ballykissangel, my favorite Irish TV series:  "Missing you already!" 

Before I sign off though, have you been enjoying the Super Moon these past few days?  I have, and luckily we've had clear skies these past three nights.  Here are my best photos:

Around 3:30 a.m. June 22nd.

Around 9:00 p.m. June 22nd.

Around 1:30 a.m. June 23rd.

Enjoy these first weeks of summer and I'll be seeing you soon.

Celebrating @ Summit Musings - 300th Blog Post!

Hey out there! Have some virtual chocolate to help celebrate a significant day for me in the blogosphere. Since May 2007 when, with a lot of excitement and self-doubting, I got on Blogger and set up my own web page, I've sat down at my computer on a regular basis to crank out posts or "musings" about living the good life as a retiree. This post is the 300th one I've written in four years.

People start blogs for a variety of reasons. To share family news, work through personal challenges, advance a social or political viewpoint, teach a skill, promote a project or service. Or, they just want to talk about themselves. Most, however, are like me--they need to tell stories and have conversations with many people beyond their immediate circle of friends and family.

Blogger has this great feature called "Stats" which helps you track, for varying amounts of time, the interest readers show in your blog posts: most popular posts, number of hits, search engines used to get to your blog, key word searches, and countries of your readers. I'll admit to finding this rather fascinating as a writer. Exactly what is it about a post that makes people care enough to read it? What I think may have been a great post will often get no attention, being outstripped by the most obscure topic. Just for fun and to illustrate this puzzle, here are the top 10 blog post topics out of my 300--the ones that get the most hits consistently:

1. Frank's House --about the architect Frank Lloyd Wright's house in Frankfort, KY (almost 4,000 hits)

2. Maxine on Age and Beauty --based on the cynical Maxine cartoons

3. Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy (Girl with Dragon Tattoo,etc.)and Scandinavian Crime Fiction

4. Ballymaloe Cookery School and Garden, Ireland

5. Father Peter, Assumpta and the Baby Polar Bear (doomed love affair in BBC's Ballykissangel)

6. Crazy Border Collie Stories (living with Zack, my CBC)

7. Kentucky Derby

8. Time Travel in the Scottish Highlands (Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series)

9. Kentucky Barn Quilts (statewide art project to paint quilt designs on rural barns)

10. Easy Company takes Hitler's Eagle's Nest (visit to Hitler's mountain retreat in Bavaria)

Here's another puzzle, although these posts get almost daily hits, they don't all get many comments. I still haven't figured out what makes people comment on a post except dog stories are guaranteed comment getters!

So, when I started blogging I had a few "commandments" in mind for Summit Musings.

--tell the truth, except for a bit of story-telling license

--be sparing about beating readers over the head with my own social, political and religious views

--don't use my blog for therapy

--write for my readers some days, for me on others (there are stories that I just want in writing)

--be appreciative to people who comment and, if they blog, be sure to comment on their page

From the way I feel today, I think I'll be blogging for many more years--at least so long as I can remember my password! For those of you who enjoy other forms of social communication like Facebook and Twitter, I highly recommend blogging as a next step. You'll be amazed at what you're able to write, the things you learn, and the people you meet along the way!

Stats - A Blogger's Obsession

I have a bone to pick with Karen over at Write Writing Written blog . For about 250 posts I've been trudging along, cranking out at least one post per week. Sure, I hoped people were reading my tales of dogs, travel, Richard Armitage and everyday life of one retiree. I was even happier when someone left a comment because one of the main reasons for blogging is to have conversations with people from all over. Then a couple of weeks ago Karen, librarian and dispenser of information that she is, shared a find that she'd made on Blogger. Apparently I can just zip over to the "Stats" tab on my Blogger dashboard and find out all sorts of information. The who, what,when,and where of blog traffic is all organized and handy for bloggers to obsess over at a click. So thanks Karen for turning me into Pavlov's dog! :-)

For example when I checked "Day"(it could have been Now, Week, Month, or All Time)I could see when most people are viewing my blog and how they're getting to it--google, facebook, individual. Next, I can see which posts have been viewed and by how many people. I've been very surprised at the posts that get the most views. Here are my tops in number of views:

-- Frank's House-tour of architect Frank Lloyd Wright's house in Frankfort, KY
-- Smarter than a Border Collie-tales of living with my crazy border collie Zack
-- John Thornton Makes Me Cry-love post to Richard Armitage as John Thornton in North and South
-- Hitler's Eagle's Nest-travelogue of visiting Hitler's bunker in the Alps
-- KY Barn Quilts-painting quilt designs on barns rural KY
-- Peter, Assumpta and The Baby Polar Bear-my love affair with the Irish Ballykissangel program on BBC
-- Stieg Larsson's Millenium Trilogy-several posts about Girl with Dragon Tattoo trilogy

Of equal interest are the search words that led to my blog. Today it was: funny border collie stories, Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, Christmas ornaments, Peter and Assumpta Fitzgerald, John Thornton, Hitler's Eagle's Nest, Irish cooking schools.

The stat that most intrigues me though is the audience. How I love to see that in addition to the expected views from readers in the United States I also had visitors from Pakistan, Russia, Slovenia, Vietnam, Ireland, Australia, U.K., and Romania--and that's just today! And that people, is one of the main reasons I keep blogging--and facebooking. How else would a retiree be able to make these interesting connections and even develop friendships with people you've never met except through the internet.

So Karen, I guess you're forgiven for showing me yet one more way to spend too much time in front of the computer. The rewards are most satisfying!

Fun Mondays, Coffee, and 200 Blog Posts

How timely. Gattina, our host for this week's Fun Monday over at Writer Cramps asks: What do we drink in the morning? Especially on the dreaded Monday mornings? And from what do we drink our beverage of choice? Well, most mornings you'll find me at the computer happily drinking a cup of hot, milky coffee and checking out blog and Facebook buddies. On Monday mornings I'm concentrating on my oldest blog friends, the Fun Monday group. And this post is special indeed--it's the 200th one I've written since starting Summit Musings in May 2007. If you knew me better, especially my track record for following through on projects, you'd realize what an achievement this is. Plain and simple, I'm really glad to be a part of a community of bloggers, sharing the ups and downs of everyday life with people from all over the U.S. and several other countries. Virtual friends rule!

Now Gattina, back to your assignment. My morning beverage of choice is always steaming hot coffee with a generous slurp of 1% milk. I use a cold water Coffee Toddy plastic container to make a syrupy rich coffee extract that I store in the fridge. To make a cup of coffee, just pour the extract in a mug, add milk and water (equal parts of the three) and nuke for about three minutes in the microwave. Perfect results every time.

I have several favorite mugs, many of them bought when traveling and carefully wrapped and tucked into my luggage to keep from breaking until I can get home. The mug in the above photo is from 2005 gardening tour of New Zealand. I bought the cup at Te Papa (Our Place) Museum in Wellington on the North Island. This amazing museum celebrates the Maori, New Zealand's native people. You can see the similarities in the mug etchings and the the carvings on the walls of this Maori meeting house that was set up in the museum.

Funny how drinking from this mug reminds me of that day in Wellington. Wellington is a harbor city and we were taking the inter-islander ferry across the Cook Strait from the North to South Islands. Luckily, I spent the day in Te Papa Museum learning about the Maoris and buying coffee mugs instead of touring gardens for there was fierce rain and winds--almost threatening our ferry ride the next day. Here's to many more blog posts and cups of coffee to bring back the good times!

Unlikely Romantic

For almost a month the blogger muse has been missing in action from Summit Court. Regular readers of this blog have been patient, but are threatening desertion or, bodily harm, if I don't replace those tired garden photos of May 10 with some fresh postings. I deeply appreciate everyone who checks out "Summit Musings" on a regular basis, so will try to get over this writer's block and get some new posts circulating.

I wish I could claim busyness as an excuse for my absence from the blogosphere. Not the case. At this time of the year if I'm not mowing the yard, walking Willie, or watching re-runs of old BBC mysteries and dramas, I'm trolling YouTube for favorite musical performances.

Here's a little jewel that I'll share with you. I'm a sap for romantic music such as "Plaisir d'Amour", a French love song that's over 200 years old. I was comparing several different interpretations of the song from artists such as Joan Baez, Judy Collins, or my favorite--Nana Mouskouri. And then I found this video by Raymond Cooke, an amateur Aussie folk singer who lives in Hong Kong. Have a listen:

"Plaisir d'Amour" (Original French lyrics)
Plaisir d'amour ne dure qu'un moment.
Chagrin d'amour dure toute la vie.

"The Joys of Love" (English translation)
The joys of love last but a moment.
The grief of love lasts a lifetime.

I confess that when I started this video my first thought on looking at this guy sitting on his neatly made bed in a bare room was that there was a definite possibility for creepiness. And then he began singing in that rich, round voice with all the feelings and wisdom of his years. Here was a man who had probably experienced both the joys and grief of love--an unlikely romantic. Hope you enjoy this video as much as I have.

(Note: As of May 7 I have been blogging two years. I can't imagine not maintaining a blog even though I need a break every now and then. Over the summer I intend to learn how to add a few new bells and whistles to "Summit Musings." Cross "embedding videos" off the list--thanks Geek Squad!)

Blogs, Baseball Bats & Race Horses

(Novice blogger and host for this week's Fun Monday over at Bee Dancers is curious about our obsession--admit it!--with blogging. How and why did we begin? Why do we keep blogging? She also wants to see what person, place, or thing most symbolizes the area where we live and, probably, get a lot of our blog fodder.)


This is my little retirement home, Summit Court, and the place where most of the musings take place for this blog. I've written about my blogging efforts in the past few months, but will review for Bee Dancer and other new readers. I started Summit Musings over a year ago as a challenge in retirement. I wanted to stay connected with friends who are still working and don't have a lot of time to be on the telephone or e-mail with me. I also wanted to keep up and improve what few technology skills I have. Blogging also appealed to my creative side. I love to write and tell stories and I have opinions on many different topics. Blogging has turned out to be the perfect way to discuss issues, interests, and life in general with a variety of intriguing people from the U.S. and other countries. And, lets not forget the greatest bonus--the wonderful dogs I've met along the way. I especially love getting posts about their adventures.

So, most days you'll find me spending entirely too much time in my little office hidey hole on Summit Court either writing or reading blog posts. (Photo disclaimer: this wonderful bed of hostas, astilbes, ferns and green lawn carpet was my passion before blogging. Once I was a gardener, now not so much. . .)

The second part of Bee Dancer's assignment was for us to share an image that best symbolizes the area where we live. I have two places/events that may remind you of Louisville, Kentucky:

World's Largest Baseball Bat--can be seen on Main Street leaning against the Louisville Slugger Museum--120 ft. tall, weighing 34 tons. This bat is a copy of the wooden bat used by the great Babe Ruth back in the early 1920s and by many other famous players since then. The Slugger has been manufactured by Hillerich and Bradsby since 1884.

In 1996, the bat factory was moved across the Ohio River to Louisville and combined with a museum which depicts the story of baseball, especially the art of hitting. Baseball enthusiasts can see a replica dugout, interactive displays, and a major collection of memorabilia from many seasons and players. Visitors can also see all stages of bat production from the block of wood to the final "Slugger" imprint.

Since the museum opened in the mid-90s, baseball fans have elevated it to the same must-see status as the major ball fields
and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

Churchill Downs, Home of the Kentucky Derby --
Said to be the greatest two minutes in horse racing. Every year on the first Saturday in May three year old thoroughbreds race the mile and a quarter track. This race has been run since 1875. The bluegrass region of central Kentucky has always been suited for the breeding and raising of American thoroughbred race horses with a win in the Derby being the career achievement. The Kentucky Derby was modeled after the Epsom Derby in England and the Grand Prix de Paris in France. It is the first race in the Triple Crown which includes the Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes.

If you love horses, but are not that familiar with what it takes to breed these winners, I'll close this post with a little inside story that you may find amusing. Several years ago when I was still working for a statewide agricultural organization, one of my biggest responsibilities was to plan and conduct an annual leadership conference for women farmers from across Kentucky. The conference agendas were a pretty traditional mix of speakers, workshops, exhibits, and agricultural tours. One year, when we we meeting in the middle of the bluegrass region and all its horse farms, I decided to take the women on a tour of Three Chimneys Farm, the premier American thoroughbred race horse breeding farm near Lexington.

Three Chimneys serves as a stallion station and nursery for the next crop of race horses. Winning stallions got to retire from the big races like the Derby and pay for their retirement pensions with handsome stud fees. Nice work if you can get it!

Now most of these women on the tour were not unfamiliar with breeding and raising livestock. However, they had not seen thoroughbred breeding in all its sophistication. The general manager, Dan Rosenberg, personally led the women on a tour of Three Chimneys including a meeting with the great, lovable Smarty Jones who was top stallion in residence at the time. Mr. Rosenberg himself was quite charming, prompting several of the most prim women to comment on his general hunkiness.

After walking us around the postcard beautiful grounds and getting to see the magnificent horses exercising and grazing out in the field, Mr. Rosenberg capped the tour with them getting to see the actual breeding of a mare. And what a show it was. As you can imagine, many of the mares come in the barn either disinterested or very skittish. We were amused to see that they actually use a second string stallion to get the mare in a "cooperative" mood. Dan told the women to think of this stallion as the loser in a bar. He'd be the one to buy the woman a drink and make the opening "come here often?" spiel. Then when he'd done all that, he got the heave ho and the big name stallion, like Smarty Jones, came in to "take the lady home"! The women were right in the moment, not at all shy about the experience. However, several male staffers who were helping with the tour commented that they'd never imagined that watching a mare being bred with 100 Farm Bureau women looking on would ever have been in their job descriptions! I just remember getting really good conference evaluations that year. . . (last photo: Ed Reinke/AP)

I hope you've learning something about baseball bats and horse racing. And, more importantly, discovered that we all blog for many of the same reasons. Now head over to Bee Dancer's site to check out other Fun Monday posts.

Can We Talk?

(Our host for this week's Fun Monday is Lisa over at Lisa's Chaos . And, what an opportunity she's given us with her assignment. We get to ask readers of our blogs the BIG QUESTION. Perfect! I've needed to know your answers to this question since last January when I started participating in Fun Mondays.)

My question to you: "Why do you blog?"

This sculpture by the Ha'Penny Bridge on Liffey Street in Dublin is the perfect illustration
for my answer to the question, "Why do you blog?" To quote a Dubliner, "the oul wans are havin' a chat" on a bench outside one of the city's landmark retail therapy spots, the Dublin Woollen Mills. The sculptor(unfortunately, couldn't identify the artist--can anyone help?) who created the piece called it "The Shoppers". However, like many other sculptures around the city, the irreverent Irish renamed it "the hags with the bags."

I found this sculpture by googling "good conversation". The main reason I blog is to have good conversations with longtime friends and new people from around the world who may want to share ideas, opinions and insights about everyday life. I have stories to tell and am also totally interested in your stories. I blog in hopes of having the good conversations that will help us learn about each other.

For a long time I've thought about conversations I have with friends and acquaintances. And, have been discontented, even sad at times, at the lack of depth and feeling in our communications. How do we get beyond the "So, what have you been up to lately?" I love knowing that about my friends, but after 20-30 years in each others' company, I want to know more about them and for them to know more about me. What are their childhood stories? What do they want out of life and are they getting there? What are their interests and passions? What troubles them? What makes them happy?

Look at the oul hags. Notice how relaxed and attentive they are, bodies turned toward each other so they can be totally present for that moment. Maybe they're speaking of family and friends, the latest Dublin political scandal, or the bargains they just got in the Woollen Mills. It doesn't matter. You just know that they're having a good conversation and that they'll be happy to meet up with their friend at the same time and place next week. That's why I blog--because I look forward to "havin' a chat" with you each week.

Now head over to Lisa's place and start answering those questions from Fun Monday inquiring minds. Hope I get there first before all the original answers are used up!

Blog Celebration

(Our host for this week's Fun Monday, Sauntering Soul, was stuck in Atlanta traffic when she decided on our topic--describe the times when you are likely to act like a jerk. If you've ever experienced Atlanta traffic, you probably are not surprised that people acting like jerks surfaced as a topic for our host when she was in this situation. . .)

The drawing room at Netherfield was the scene of yet another sparring match between Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennet. The cause of this match was Miss Bingley's assertion that Mr. Darcy is a "man without fault." Anyone familiar with Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice knows that this comment would prompt a raised eyebrow and challenge from Miss Bennet to the validity of the claim on Mr. Darcy's perfection. And so it did.

Mr. Darcy responded to Miss Bennet's doubts about his perfect character with this: "I have faults enough Miss Bennet, but I hope they are not of understanding." Exactly my sentiments with this week's Fun Monday assignment. I could describe several instances when I have--and will in the future--behaved like a jerk. Instead, I'm going to use this post to be a wee bit opportunistic, a much more serious character flaw than everyday jerkiness.

Tomorrow, May 13th, is my one-year blog anniversary. Therefore, who could blame me for being somewhat opportunistic by trying to involve as many blogging buddies as possible in the Summit Musings anniversary celebration? Fun Monday participants are some of my most faithful readers. I enjoy learning more about your interests and the characters--two and four-legged--that surface on your blogs. I hope my stories have been a diversion for you as well.

Who knew that this jump off into the blogosphere would be so much fun? I started Summit Musings as a way to improve my technology skills in retirement, to maintain an on-going creative discipline, and to encourage discussion on a wide range of topics from politics to pop culture. Like Hillary, one year later I am still trying to "find my voice". Like Miss Bennet and her music, I'm a long way from becoming a "true proficient."

Back last August '07 I made some blog promises to both my readers and myself. Almost one year later I find that they still reflect my ideas of good blogging:

• post regularly, not daily, but at least three times per week;
• post shorter pieces, paragraphs, and sentences if I can do it--unfortunately more is often more in my view, but I try to remember that reading this blog MAY not be all people have to do;
• write about big deals and nothings, attempting to always keep a balance;
• never whine or rant--opine certainly--but not take the easy way out to good communication;
• respect and appreciate my readers--I'll never slam your views and opinions--maybe give you a little "goose pinch" but never 'dis you;
• work hard to improve the writing and format for Summit Musings so long-time readers will stay with me and new ones will sign on.

So, thanks for allowing me to be somewhat opportunistic by getting you to an anniversary celebration under a Fun Monday pretense. Hopefully, you don't thinking I'm being totally jerky. Next week it's back to following the rules. Now be sure to check out those times when other Fun Monday participants don't exactly act their best! Sauntering Soul

Blogging 101

(For this week's Fun Monday, Ann over at for the long run wants to hear about a web site that's changed your life. A web site you can't live without. A web site whose inventor you'd like to see win a McArthur Genius Award. I'll share the three that launched me into the blogosphere.)

You know how some pretty wonderful things in your life begin with just an off-hand observation or question? For example: "I'd like to meet that guy. When do you want to go? Can we afford it?" Well, life as a blogger began for me in just this casual a way and the rewards have been both unexpected and great. One Saturday afternoon last May while we were out on one of our regular cultural rambles, I commented to longtime friend Kittyhawk that I was interested in starting a blog. The conversation then went off in another direction.

Later that same night I got an e-mail from Kittyhawk with this web site and her suggestion that I play around with it to see what this blogging phenomenon was all about. (Disclaimer time: I'm not at all tech savvy, but I do write regularly, including some pretty amusing e-mails to my working stiff friends from the Summit Court retirement digs.)

I immediately opened the web site blogger and before I knew it was the proud Momma of my very own blog,Summit Musings. Okay, I'll admit that my blog name is not the most clever--in fact, it's borderline pretentious! However, I was already at Step 2 Name Your Blog and didn't know how to turn back!

Before my blog and I went to bed that first night I had set up an account, named it, chosen a somewhat boring, but satisfying to me, brown template. I also figured out how to make that first post introducing my baby to the world. The next morning I had a chance to try commenting for the first time on someone else's blog. In the Sunday papers there was a story about Samantha Larson, the 18 year old from California who on Thursday, May 17, had successfully summited Mt. Everest, becoming the youngest person to climb the highest peaks on each of the seven continents. Samantha posted reports of her Everest trek on a blog. It was a great thrill to join thousands of other bloggers in sending instant congratulations to Samantha on the mountain in Nepal!

I introduced Summit Musings to the world through a mass e-mail to all my friends. I told them that I started the blog as a way of staying tuned in with them--and the world--in retirement. I also had things on my mind and interests that I was never willing to discuss as much as I wanted to in conversations with friends and acquaintances. This blog was to be my platform and I hoped they would join in the discussions. The initial response was very gratifying. Periodically, I would send out "shameless blog promotions" alerting them that there was good stuff out on Summit Musings for their reading pleasure!

There came a time, however, when I felt that I was stalking my friends. They were working, busy living their own lives. My blog wasn't, nor did it need to be, the center of their universe--damn! I began searching for new reader communities and ways to improve my blog so people would want to visit me.

Those of you who use Blogger are quite familiar with Blogs of Note, their rotating lists of blogs that are well done and interesting. I began checking them out regularly and studying them for pointers on how to improve my blog. My first lucky find was caffeinated librarian . This is a very smart,well-written blog that is just chockful of observations and information on pop culture, books, music and current events--just what you'd expect from a mid-30s librarian. My favorite feature is CL's Thursday Tour de Blog. The Tour routes you to many other personal and public blogs and has been a source of other bloggers that are now regular reads for me.

I found Dave2 on CL's Tour de Blog and study it all the time. Dave2 has a great community of regular readers of all ages, it seems. He travels a great deal with work and makes an effort to meet fellow bloggers at blogging conferences that he sets up to coincide with his business travel. He is a great observer of human nature and doesn't suffer fools lightly. At first, I really had to screw up a lot of courage to comment on his blog--fearing getting flamed. But,so far, so good. Finally, Dave2 and his sidekick Bad Monkey are excellent sources of all things computer technology. I may never lust after the latest phone, game, or computer program, but I can read about it first at Blogography.

So, my education as a blogger is just beginning, but the more I study the better I hope my blog will be. I'm looking forward to checking out the web sites that other Fun Monday participants love. And, oh yes, can't sign off without sending Laurie at three dog blog a big thanks for her lesson on clickable links to a URL. Laurie, it worked!