Monday, August 22, 2016

monday already

It rained last night, but I slept right through it - quite a surprise when I went out to do the morning chores today and found a world soaked and dripping. And cool! Today has been the most pleasant day in ages. Breathable air! A refreshing breeze! Ahhhhhh!

I rarely sleep through rain, but maybe I was still tired from Saturday, which was - by my current standards - an event-filled day.



It began with an amble around the Hardwick Fair, camera in hand. I've never been to the Fair at that time of day. It was quiet and relaxed and I took lots of photographs. But chasing the morning light was not the reason I did chores at dawn and got down to Hardwick so early. No. It was all about the Pancake Breakfast.



I have never been able to make pancakes, and after many, many disappointments and wastings-of-food over the years, I am willing to admit defeat and just go somewhere every year or two and buy pancakes made by someone who possesses the superhuman skill apparently required to make a decent pancake. It's worth it!



As the day started heating up, I headed home but stopped at a yard sale and found some treasures. Highlights: a small hardwood turntable-thing which will be beautiful with just a little sanding, I think, and a deep Pyrex frying pan with lid. As I was trying to decide on a small lamp (would it fit on the porch windowsill? would it be heavy enough that I wouldn't knock it off, like the other one?) I got a text from a friend inviting me to ride shotgun on a trip to the distant feedstore where our Chaffhaye is delivered every six months or so.




A trip along forest-lined roads, with someone else driving, in a vehicle with real suspension? Heck, yeah!  It was a fun trip, talking goats all the way in both directions. About four hours later I was back home with ten 50-pound sacks of feed in the Little Green Sportswagon, offloaded from my friend's truck when we got back to her place. (I had only 500 pounds; she had a ton. It's swell to have a friend with a truck and a sharing attitude!) I also bought Piper a new toy at the feedstore; don't tell her. It's a surprise to celebrate her recent dental work :)




So if Saturday was a madcap romp, Sunday was more or less a recovery day. I did drag the feed out of the wagon, but apart from that and the routine chores, very little got done yesterday. Not even drawing! I've missed three days of #DrawingAugust, so today I made this ink sketch of a little larch branch I'd picked up on a walk with Piper last Autumn. I'll try to keep up the drawing momentum for the rest of the month, even if it's a only a few minutes each day. It's often hard to start, but once begun, I get pulled right in to the process and it's really enjoyable.



I hope you had a great weekend, and your week is off to an excellent start!
~~~~~

14 comments:

  1. Great post
    Pancake breakfast sounds wonderful. That's one of the best parts about autumn, getting out to the fairs. I hope you got plenty of rest.

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    1. Thanks :) This may be the only Fair I get to this year, but I'll try to get back up to Vermont again for the one that hosts the Cashmere Goat Show.

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  2. Very pretty drawing, busy but enjoyable week end. I don't know if we will make it to the fair this week or not. Ours is over this Sunday. Beautiful weather yesterday and today but already had work scheduled. Heat and humidity setting back in Wed. I don't do either one of those well anymore.
    Only in a necessity. Give Pepper a pat and talk to the lovelys for me. Be safe.

    P.S. I'm still waiting for photos of those flower boxes.

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    1. Humidity knocks me out even when it's not very hot...this summer has had plenty of both! Whew.

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  3. Aren't small town fairs the best! So much fun and so many photo ops! And yes to pancakes on the weekend - especially when the mornings are cool.

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    1. I wish there was a bigger livestock component to this one, in addition to the dairy cattle. Would be nice to see pigs, as many people in this area seem to raise small numbers.

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  4. What a busy weekend! I wish our fair was smaller. It's gotten so big and commercial we never go any more. Did you get the little lamp after all?

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    1. I know what you mean about the big fairs - crowds wear me out pretty quick. Yes, I got the lamp :) in fact, when I hesitated, the nice woman offered it to me for free, so I bought a couple of other little things as a thank you. And it does fit on my porch windowsill!

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  5. Pancakes are always something that looks better on the plate than it does in the mouth - probably because, like you, I haven't had many good ones. Sounds like you had a great weekend, filled with interesting things to do.

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    1. I've had lots of good pancakes, just not the ones I tried to make myself ;)

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  6. You had a very productive day Quinn! I'm sorry to hear you have to travel so far ... to get a good pancake! I wish I could whip up a batch for you. We make really good pancakes when camping. I don't know why they turn out so much better when we cook over the gas camp stove on a big griddle (rather than on electric heat in the frying pan at home). But it's something to look forward to for our "big breakfast" in the woods ... that's the day we try to go on a day-long hike to work it off.
    Love the shots of your town, especially the row of red tractors.
    Your drawing is lovely! I like this one very much.
    Wendy

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    1. Well, I am impressed with your pancakes, and I haven't even eaten one! And they must taste even better since they are eaten in the woods. In my experience, everything does :)

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  7. Yes I have, and thanks for nice description. Have a nice time since next meeting on your blog. Regards from Loredana. Croatia.

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    1. Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment :)

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