WW2 Bomber Tour and Swing Dance

October 30, 2018November 11, 201812 Comments

As a fan of Big Band music, I was happy to see the announcement for a WW2 Bomber Tour and Swing Dance last June, an event promising a retro evening of dinner and dancing to a 23 person orchestra in an airport hanger, just like they did back in the wartime. Tickets were $75 per person, with the proceeds going to a children’s charity, but a bit too steep for most of my friends as it turned out. While I have “medical/work” friends, (shop talk and free dinners from drug companies), “artistic” friends, (art galleries and theatre), “book” friends ( book clubs and literary talks) and “shopping” friends, I have no one who shares my love of history and museums. My mother was not interested, she had already lived through that decade once she said and had no wish to revisit it. My mother had worked in a war plant for two years (1942-1944), from the time she was 16 to 18 years old. She remembers the young boys in her hometown volunteering for the war effort, and many did not come back. At ninety, she does not like to go out at night, but she was interested in seeing the airplane as she is always looking for new subjects to paint. So off we went to the local airport one sunny afternoon, along with a hundred guys, including a whole brigade of firemen on their lunch hour. There may have been a few other women there, dragged along by their spouses, but certainly we were outnumbered. My mother was not able to climb the stairs to tour the airplane but sat under one of the wings out of the sun and had an enjoyable chat with the pilot in charge, who was from Mesa Arizona but whose Canadian mother was from her hometown and had also worked in one of the war plants. Although he had moved to the US when he was younger, his mom had died the previous year at age 89, so he was happy to reminisce about her Canadian roots.

The Flying Legends of Victory Tour is organized by the Commemorative Air Force Air Base out of Arizona. Their mission is to take antique bombers on tour around the country, to educate people so they do not forget this important part of aviation history, especially now that there are fewer WW2 veterans left and those remaining are well are up in years. They tour all fifty states and Canada and you can sign up on their website to be notified if one is visiting your area next year. The plane they were flying that day was a B17 bomber. A four engine bomber, they were manufactured during WW2 – about 13,000 were made, about 5000 were lost during the war. (see Wikepida for more info). Those are not good odds, although the bomber developed the reputation of being able to bring their crews home safely despite being badly damaged. There are only about ten surviving in the world which are fly-worthy, restored versions which had never seen action, including The Sentimental Journey on display. The cost to tour the inside of the plane was only $5, so off I went, leaving mom visiting with her new friend.

Before we start the tour, a bit about the crewman positions on the plane. Here’s a link to a very excellent B17-Queen of the sky blog explaining the various crew positions and also a link to a Wikepedia article with more information than you might care to read. I wish I had made notes at the time but it was over a year ago, and I scarcely remember what everyone did. There was no official tour, but you could ask questions if you wished. Of course, all my questions came later, like how they decided who got which position?

This B-17 bomber, re-christened Sentimental Journey, had a picture of Betty Grable, a famous pin-up girl from the wartime, painted on the side. This nose art, as it was called, was designed to boost morale and although the planes were often named after women, sweethearts or wives, other subjects included hometowns, states, cartoon characters, mascots or something designed to scare the enemy.

I climbed the six steep steps to the front of the plane, which gave you a view of the cockpit and the pilot seats, off limits of course.

They were in town for a whole week, with certain days set aside for touring, and others for flights. The flights, ranging from $425 to $850 US, were all sold out, and well worth the money for flying fans because when would you ever get such an opportunity again. I did see the plane overhead periodically during the week, flying low along the river, and once over the farmers market but by the time I grabbed the camera the photo-op was gone. Even though you could hear its rumbling roar coming, I still wasn’t quick enough to capture it. It made me stop and think about what an air raid must have been like, the planes upon you before you could seek shelter.

Behind the cockpit, the bomb bay doors were open below, and there was a bridge with ropes you had to walk across to get to the rest of the plane, but with my fear of heights, I decided I just couldn’t do it. It was not for the claustrophobic either, as it was very tight quarters inside.

I exited back down the stairs, and went in the back entrance (below) to tour the rest of the plane.

First up after the bomb bay were three seats, two on one side and one on the other, for the navigator, the wireless operator and the bombardier, whose job it was to get the bombs dropped on target.

The next time you are on an airplane and tempted to complain about the seats, think about these. Note the overall lack of insulation, it must have been cold as hell up there despite their flight suits. I can’t imagine those poor kids (and they were mostly 18-25 year old’s), spending 12-14 hours in those tin cans, because that’s exactly what they were……pieces of steel held together by tons of rivets.

Next up was the ball turret position, and the turret jettison kit. Pity the poor soul who got that position. Located on the underside of the plane it was designed to prevent attack on the aircraft from below and was usually manned by smallest member of the crew.

The left waist gunner below. I asked a guy to take my picture here but he missed and took the floor instead. Note the spool of ammunition attached to the machine gun. There’s a better picture in this article link.

The rear/tail gunner position was also bad……so exposed, but important for protecting the back of the plane.

For me, the most poignant part was reading the signatures written on the bomb bay doors. Back on the ground, I looked underneath, where visiting WW2 veterans were encouraged to sign their names and list the number of missions and their crew members. Here’s a sample, written on July 21 2014. Earl Morrow, age 93 years old, but still able to remember everyone and their position, and his three crew members KIA killed in action – something you never forget. The “Delores” was shot down over Germany after 17 missions, POW 5/45. The doors were covered with signatures from the stops around the country. I wish I had taken more pictures of these.

Back to those rivets, while my mother was not a Rosie the Riveter, she worked on the inspection table at a die casting plant making aircraft engine parts – nose cones similar to the ones in this picture, but she says they were larger.

Her job as part of the inspection team was to check for holes in the unit, and check the threads for any defects. About 3 in every 100 were sent back. She left school at age 16 and was lucky to get hired so young, but an aunt had pulled her in. Coming out of the Depression, money was not plentiful, but her parents and brother had decided to try and save enough to buy a farm. They worked long shifts, sometimes up to 10 hours if it was busy, barely seeing each other for weeks. Because of her young age, she was put on the inspection team. She can’t remember her exact wage, but thinks it was less than $20 a week, or about $1000 per year. She said some of the farm girls who came in from the countryside paid $35 every two weeks for room and board and their wages barely covered the cost. She worked there for almost two years, with no time off for vacation, and when they had enough money saved for a down payment they bought a farm several hours away, right across the road from my dad’s farm, so essentially she married “the boy next door.” The 100 acre farm cost $5000, but with the expense of buying a team of horses and other livestock and supplies, they had to take out a mortgage, but it was a start to a more prosperous life.

My grandmother worked in the Brass factory, but married women had shorter hours, as this plaque explains.

These pictures are from a museum in her hometown which we visited this past summer. She had not been back in many years but was showing some art as part of a jury art show in the adjacent gallery. The museum was just down the street from where she used to live, so we went to visit her childhood home, and the owner let her come inside. I had knocked on the door as I didn’t want them to think there was some random stranger taking pictures of the outside of their house. It was quite nicely renovated. It sold for $1000 when they moved. My mom remembers my grandmother sending her down the street with a dollar to pay the hydro bill at what is now the museum building. And now eighty years later, she is showing her art there, which just goes to show life holds surprises, even when you are older. Like most women of her generation she did not work outside the home after she married, so it’s nice she has this chance at a late in life career.

The plane tour over, we stopped at the airport office and although I knew all 300 tickets had sold out quickly, just out of curiosity I asked if there were any tickets left for the dinner dance, and it turned out there were two cancellations, so we grabbed them for the following evening, my mother having now been enticed by the prospect of a nice meal and some big band music. (When my parents were dating they used to go to dances at a venue on the lake, where Glenn Miller and other famous Big Band musicians played). You were encouraged to dress in the style of the era, (and a few people did), but because it was so last minute, I ended up raiding my closet – thank god for that 80’s closet. (see The Vintage Corner) I had made a quick trip to the vintage store looking for some evening gloves or a hat, something to make it more retro, but no luck. It turned out the night was so hot and sultry, there was no need for gloves. The first thing I noticed near the entrance to the airport hanger was a yellow dress on a mannequin, similar to mine, only mine was a Laura Ashley sundress with a fuller skirt. But I do think mine was nicer, yellow is not a color I wear well but the material was so lovely I had kept it, even though I hadn’t worn it in decades. (I will admit, the waist was a bit tighter than I remembered).

They had made an effort to dress up the space with white tablecloths and chairs and army décor, but it was still an airplane hangar. The smell of diesel lingered in the air because the side doors were closed to the evening breeze.

Here’s the orchestra setting up, The Toronto All Star Band, none of them over the age of twenty-five. That surprised me, as I did not expect young musicians to be too interested in Big Band music, but I suppose a gig is a gig. You could attend the dance itself for $25. (Perhaps it was a good thing the airport hanger was so spacious, as last Sunday at the International Symphony Orchestra’s tribute to the Big Bands, we just about got blasted out of the back of the theatre, the music was so loud it drowned out the female vocalist, all those lovely Gershwin lyrics basically inaudible. So this band in the corner was a nice comfortable distance from the tables, with the dance floor up front the way my mother remembered). The buffet meal was excellent, well worth the price. Unfortunately, our table mates were not exactly great dinner companions. Three couples, who didn’t seem to know each other, two of the guys well on their way to being red-faced inebriated. The guy beside me was a pilot from a nearby city, but that was the only information I got out of him. His wife never said a thing all evening. It’s annoying when you sit beside someone you don’t know at a dinner function and they can’t be bothered to make conversation. I had introduced my mother as a local painter and said she had worked in a war plant – here is a living piece of WW2 history, in case you want to ask any questions. No one was interested, except in another drink. And while the music was excellent, no one danced. I saw the same ten couples on the dance floor all evening. After the dinner and speeches and silent auction, they opened the side airport hanger doors to let in some air, and a big gush of wind blew all the table decorations over. There was lightening in the sky and a storm threatening, so we left after the second set. My mother was tired by then, and wanted to beat the storm home, which we did, barely. Before I left, I said, goodnight to my table mates and said, hey guys, don’t forget to ask your wives to dance. You can bet those young WW2 soldiers did. It may have been one of the last evenings of their too short lives, but I hope they danced. Lest we forget.

If you wish to read more about the airplanes of WW2 I can recommend two excellent books. The first, Unbroken, by Lauren Hillenbrand, was made into a movie a few years ago, directed by Angelina Jolie, and is based on the true story of a plane crash in the Pacific, the pilot adrift on a raft for weeks, and then rescued and held in a Japanese POW camp. The thing that struck me about the first part of this book, (his training and missions), was the poor condition of the planes. They knew a high percentage of them would not even return from the first flight, and the chance of death was even greater when couldn’t parachute to dry land……but still they sent them up. If they came back damaged, they’d repair them as best they could and send them out again.

The second book, A Higher Call, by Adam Makos and Larry Alexander, is also a true story about a German flying ace who escorted a badly damaged B-17 Bomber (flown by a 21 year old US pilot on his first mission), back across the English channel to a British airbase, instead of shooting him down. Flash forward fifty years later, and the US captain sets out to find the German pilot who saved his life, they meet and become friends. This too may sound like a Hollywood movie, but a similar thing happened to a local man here. Late in life, he hunted down the POW’s from the German submarine crew his ship had captured in the Atlantic, and they held a reunion in 1992. He said it was one of the highlights of his life….a reminder of how the world has changed……and how much it stays the same with war still raging. Lest we forget.

A Gothic Read for Halloween

October 27, 2018October 30, 20188 Comments

Here’s a spooky book to read while handing out the Halloween candy….and a link to last years blog on decorations, Come In For A Spell.

(I had not intended on doing a Halloween post other than this short book recomend, but the opportunity arose for A Visit with the Paranormal – so stay tuned for Fright Night at the Museum early next week).

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had enjoyed British Crime Writer, Ruth Ware’s earlier books (In a Dark Dark Wood and The Woman in Cabin 10) but found this one very slow going at the start, to the point where I thought I might abandon it altogether, but I am glad I stuck with it because the ending was brilliant. The stage must be set, but I don’t know if we needed seventy or so pages to establish the protagonist as poor, cold and alone, and then the next seventy pages to establish the Gothic mansion as decrepit, cold, creepy and full of magpies…and well Gothic. I noticed she used the same descriptions over and over……her breath huffing in the frosty air……the cold draft at the window…..shivering in the rain etc……it made me long for a cuppa hot tea. But once the story got going, it took flight just like those menacing magpies…..and I couldn’t put it down. Even though I had guessed part of the ending half-way through, there was still a surprise twist. Jolly well done.

Add the soundtrack from some classic Hitchcock….

A Chestnut Wreath

October 22, 201815 Comments

Autumn is very late this year – the trees are just starting their annual decorating. I remember gazing out at this tree when I was in grade eight, as my desk was close to the window. While the teacher would be droning on about some uninteresting subject, I would be rejoicing in the glorious fall colors. We used to play soccer in the field after school, kicking the ball around under a canopy of orange and gold. It is still standing, although the other trees are gone, made way for a parking lot. I still get the pleasure of looking at it when I walk, I think of it as my tree, even though we are both a bit the worse for wear after forty plus years.

Chestnut trees are also a fall favorite of mine. My grandmother’s farm had chestnut trees in one of the fields and every Thanksgiving (Canadian, so mid-October), my little brother and I, brave but ready to run at the first sign of a big dumb cow, would gather them up and then use them to build fields for his barn set – what fun we had lining them up as fences for his toy animals. As a young girl who was horse-crazy, their glossy finish always reminded me of a chestnut mare or the sleek racehorses we would see at the fall fair. We have two giant chestnut trees in front of our library so when you go inside to pick up your books, you’d better beware lest you be boinked on the head by a falling chestnut. Last year one of the librarians displayed a chestnut wreath she had made on the checkout desk. She emailed me the instructions, but I was too late, so this year I was prepared and gathered up several baskets after the first windstorm.

First I shellacked them with a coat of acrylic varnish to maintain the shine, as they will dry out quickly. I raided my mothers art cupboard and used a spray can, which was quick and easy but you might get a more even application by painting it on. I did this a few days ahead of time to let it dry.

Next I took a ten inch straw wreath, (but any size would do, I started small to experiment, but hers was quite large and impressive), and wrapped it tightly with some nice decorating tape. Make sure any loose ends are secured with straight pins, as you don’t want it unraveling after the glue is on.

Then using the trusty old glue gun, attach the chestnuts in any pattern you wish. I must admit my first attempt was not perfect, as I have too much spacing between some of them. When collecting it is better to find chestnuts of different sizes and some with flat bottoms for odd spaces. The librarian had filled in the holes in between with Spanish moss, but after googling I found others have used small acorns to fill up the spaces. I prefer mine having the pretty decorating tape showing through.

It could be hung up with wire, but is fairly heavy so a table wreath with a candle in the middle is a nice option. I decided to place mine on a wicker tray and added some bows in the corner and some fairy lights.

You could use this for a centerpiece for American Thanksgiving, and then swap out the bows for something Christmasy. These are not the kinds of chestnuts you roast on an open fire however, as these are horse chestnuts, which are toxic to humans and animals. (The difference is in the shells, smoother vs spikier and the point).

horse chestnuts

Total cost – around $10 – $4 for the straw wreath, $4 for the ribbon (with Michael’s coupon), glue sticks, chestnuts free for the taking. All told it took me less than two hours to make, so this would be a nice idea for hosting a tea/craft afternoon.

Since the weather is cooler now and more conductive to baking, I made Date Nut Loaf, using the recipe from my farm cooking bible.

This is a quick and nutritious tea bread – buy the bite sized dates to save time.

Date nut loaf

If you are interested in more fall decorating on the cheap, check out last years (unpublished) blog, Autumn Decor, for some dollar store finds.

Book of the Day:

For more decorating ideas and recipes, see the Susan Branch book – Autumn from the Heart of the Home (published in 2004), for typical New England (Martha’s Vineyard) fare, or check out her website and sign up for her free monthly newsletters….they are always a cheerful read.

Autumn from the Heart of the Home by Susan Branch

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As a big fan of anything Susan Branch, this book one of my favorites. I re-read it every year to get in the mood for the season, for the inspiration, the decorating tips and the yummy recipes. Let the leaves fall….it’s time to get cozy.

After the Harvest

October 15, 2018October 15, 201814 Comments

After the Harvest – An Update on the Potager plus what to do with a twelve pack of snakes.

I had high hopes for The Potager back in June, but there may have been a reason my dad planted his garden in the corn field where it could sprawl among the rows of corn. Sprawl is the key word here. My potager was a testament to good soil, it was so prolific, but then it was a hot humid summer with lots of rain, ideal conditions for a rain forest.

Where are the monkeys?

It rained every weekend, and during the week, every few days in fact. This made the mosquitoes plentiful, and some new species of tiny black bug called no-see-ums appeared and left bites which itched for days. I had never seen a no-see-um before, but they left a lasting legacy of scratch marks. I gave up and refused to go out. Luckily, I did not have to water as Mother Nature did it for me, even as she left us bereft of any beach days.

The romaine lettuce was bountiful, and after the first crop, I replanted and it was bountiful too.

Three cucumbers sprouted from the small-garden plant, just the right amount for a Greek salad, with some tomatoes if only I could find them, and when I did find them, many had split from too much rain.

The tomatoes threatened to strangle everything so in early August I gave it a haircut. By mid-Sept it had grown back, requiring a regular trim every 4 to 6 weeks.

I untangled the sole squash, mistakenly uprooting it’s lifeline, and leaving the fruit to wither on the vine. Not deterred, it re-blossomed, producing a final harvest of five smallish orbs.

I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of the multi-colored carrots, and so were the bunnies. We were both disappointed.

While the tops were luxurious, the carrots were sparse, spindly and white, (and maybe useful for the Simply White Dinner). They say you reap what you sow, except I planted three seed potatoes, and got two.

In mid-October (no frost yet, leaves barely changing), I dug up the rest of the russet gems. Not bad for a first crop, but hardly enough to get me through the winter like my Irish ancestors.

Luckily the orange carrots were plentiful, if somewhat deformed from being crammed into too small a space. The bunnies were delighted, as God is my witness, they would never go hungry again. (Scarlet O’Hara – Gone with the Wind). Due to the intricate web of netting I set up, the birds didn’t get as many of the strawberries, but then neither did I – it was too much of a hassle to open and re-close all those wires to pick one or two berries. While reading about another bloggers garden adventures, she recommended rubber snakes be set among the strawberry plants and moved every few days in order to fool the birds. Thank god she told me Walmart sells them online, because I don’t know where you would buy a twelve pack of snakes, and also thank god, those birds aren’t too bright. I’ll keep that in mind for next year, or maybe I’ll just freeze some of the carrots. I also wish I had put spacing and gravel around my boxes like Empty Nest Adventures did, for easier access.

Next years orange snakes?

After the Harvest is a time to reflect on lessons learned….next year plant less, no matter how much you may anticipate the early specimens being carried off by nighttime woodland creatures.

Plant one of everything, one squash, one cucumber, if it’s something you don’t want to breed like rabbits or possibly two like Noah and the Ark, two tomatoes, two potatoes, but no zucchini – ever.

Or just buy more boxes……the New England Arbor charity sale is coming up…..

After the Harvest

PS. There is nothing so wonderful as a golden field of wheat being harvested, or so awful as After the Harvest when you would have to bale all that straw into small bales, with a baler which was forever breaking down, and then load them into the hayloft, a process which was hot and dusty and took hours. Now every time I pass a field with those really big bales that are scooped up by a front end loader, I wonder, why didn’t someone think of that sooner?

Song of the Day: Harvest Moon – Neil Young

The Farmer’s Market

October 8, 2018October 8, 201821 Comments

If you have ever dreamed of packing in city life and moving to the country then this book is for you. Canadian author, Brent Preston turned fantasy into reality in this account of starting an organic vegetable farm and ten years of trial and error and back breaking labor before finally achieving a profitable outcome.

The New Farm: Our Ten Years on the Front Lines of the Good Food Revolution by Brent Preston

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A must read manual for city dwellers and lovers of the organic food movement about a family who chose to leave the rat race and follow their dream of running a profitable organic vegetable farm. Dust off those fantaseeds and learn the gritty reality of where your food comes from.

Although he might have started out with a simple plan in mind, by the end of the ten years he had mechanized his operations, hired agricultural co-op students for summer labor, perfected a delivery service and marketing campaign, and ended up specializing in just three crops, one of which was lettuce. One of the things he did initially was to participate in the local farmer’s market every Saturday morning, but after a few years of this he packed it in. If you think about it, never a weekend off for you or your kids, up at 4 am to load up the truck and then later in the day unloading the unsold produce. Plus, while he said while he enjoyed the social aspect with the regular customers and the other vendors, there just wasn’t enough profit in it to continue. Better to cater to the fancy restaurants who would pay premium for anything fresh and organic.

There is no doubt we are what we eat and organic food is in – food in it’s natural state. Ask a person who has been lucky enough to live to be over ninety and chances are they grew up on a farm. So farmers markets are booming because organic food is so popular, but are the farmers doing well? I grew up on a farm, 100 acres, so I know how hard it is to make a living on one and how much work is involved. We had a dairy farm with Holsteins when I was a child and my dad had a small herd, three milking machines and a cream contract. He got up at 4:30 am every day to milk the cows, then he would come in, shave and have breakfast (bacon and eggs and perked coffee), as we were getting up for school, by 7:30 he would have left for his other job, home at 4:30, early supper, then milk the cows again, and he would be in bed by ten or falling asleep while reading the paper. On the weekends there were all the other chores to do. Even back then you couldn’t quite make a living on a farm without a second job, and with a growing family, he finally switched to beef cattle instead and cash cropped corn, soybeans and wheat, and while that was a lot of work too, we were finally able to take a family vacation without being tied to the milking schedule. Now farming is big business, a thousand acres or bust. There was an article in the local paper recently about the International Plowing Match which listed a combine as worth $500,000, and a tractor with GPS the same. My dad’s first tractor in 1948 cost $1000 and had a side seat upon which we kids would ride – heaven forbid, no one would let kids do that now. My elderly grandfather who died in 1951, was against the new-fangled modern machinery, as they had to sell his beloved Clydesdale horses in order to buy it. The last tractor my dad bought came equipped with air conditioning and a few years after he died, they had CD players, now they are steering themselves. While farming may be mostly mechanized now, organic vegetable farming is still labor intensive, especially during the harvest. It’s not a job many people want to do, and often the farmers must hire seasonal workers from Mexico or Jamaica to help out.

September is the best time of year to visit a farmer’s market as it is bursting with the last of the summer produce and the early fall harvest. While the peaches and berries may be almost done, the plums, pears, squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, new potatoes and onions are coming in.

Our local market is open Wednesdays in the summer and Saturdays year round. Even in the winter, the inside of the old building is full of root vegetables and cheese and butcher shops, but in the nice weather the outside stalls see the most action. They really need more space, but it’s been in the same place for eighty plus years and you don’t mess with tradition. Located in an older residential part of town, there is one small parking lot and you have to drive round and round waiting for someone else to leave. With about 50 spaces for 200 people it’s kind of like musical chairs for grownups. Luckily, no one lingers long. While you can get a pour over coffee with freshly roasted beans, there is no cafe to sit in or cooked food available. We don’t see a lot of homeless people here but one day a woman with her cart piled high with all her worldly possessions asked me for some money, and with my hands full I shook my head no, but then after putting my produce in the car, I went to find her, and gave her ten dollars, which I suspected might go to drugs but who knows? A friend of mine keeps Tim Horton’s coffee shop gift cards to hand out for this reason, but there is something so very sad about begging in front of a place with so much plenty.

Even in the winter I will visit about once a month, because there is still cheese, and apples and oranges to buy, but I’ve often wondered why they open at 6 am. All the vendors are yawning by noon, or closing up early as they have been up since four loading their trucks. Wouldn’t 8-2 be more civilized hours? If they are supplying restaurants do they need to buy that early? If I don’t get there by 11:30 (or I’m still playing musical chairs), I may miss my favorite cheese stall or they might be out of Gouda.

The cheese wars can be fierce. There are two cheese vendors, right across from each other, and the Battle of The Gouda got so bad last year, they both decided not to post their prices. They will glare across the aisle if they think you have abandoned camp, but if they have run out, what is the alternative? My grandmother was Dutch, so I grew up on Gouda, the mild form, not the spicy seeded variety she bought from The European Shop.

Dutch Inheritance

The market cheese is better than at the grocery store and they will give you a sample if you are undecided. Even if you know you will like it, a sample will often tied you over if you got up early and missed breakfast. Buying cheese at the market is also much cheaper than in the grocery store so I usually stock up on aged cheddar as well as the Gouda. The one cheese vendor has recently retired and been bought out by the egg lady beside them, who I don’t think has gotten the hang of the weigh scale yet as she is very generous with her pounds, or kgs. I don’t buy eggs from her though as I can’t stomach those brown eggs with the bright yellow yolks. It reminds me of the eggs growing up on the farm, but I know free range chickens are all the rage and I am sure they are full of omega-3’s.

I like to look at the flowers, the glads are out now, but I seldom buy as I have lots of flowers at home.

I have my own semi-successful potager, so I don’t feel the need to buy tomatoes, cucumbers or lettuce, but one whiff of the dill brings back memories of my mother canning dill pickles. You can get a free bunch of dill with every large purchase.

The early apples are starting to come in, which will soon mean spies and pies. I can smell the cinnamon now.

My favorite time of year is when the summer fruits are available, the strawberries and peaches. You can get a bushel of overripe fruit for ten dollars and make a whole batch of jam for what you might pay for two jars. There is a jam vendor also, for when you run out, who also sells homemade fruit pies. So definitely there is a cost savings, and the food is so much fresher and better tasting, not to mention not loaded with tons of preservatives and artificial ingredients.

Not everything is better at the market though. Sadly, it is home to the world’s worst bakery which sells the most tasteless bread ever baked, not to mention tarts with uncooked dough and a scant quarter inch of fruit filling. The next time I walk pass, the owner asks if I want something so I venture a tactful complaint – I figure if no one tells him he can’t fix it. He tells me he hired a new baker so I bought butter tarts this time. Same thing. I gave up. There must be an art to making play-doh like that? Butter tarts are a national institution in Canada but I have a fine recipe inherited from my mother. We have much better bakeries in town but I suppose once a vendor has tenure in the building, it’s for life, and so many people don’t know what good pastry tastes like. But the bread – there’s simply no excuse. Bread is the staff of life, but so is good nutritious food. If you ate today, thank a farmer!

PS. Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving today!

Wild Turkeys

Three Coins in the Fountain

September 30, 2018September 30, 201811 Comments

While trying to take a picture of a water lily in my neighbors fish pond I was struck by how lovely the music of the waterfall was.

There’s something about the tinkling of water in the background that is so relaxing, be it a small backyard waterfall or fountain, or one in a local park or in a big city like Rome.

concrete structure with group of people statues

Photo by Sarah Acconcia Norris on Pexels.com

The Trevi Fountain in Rome is one of the most famous fountains in the world. They say if you throw a coin in the Trevi that your return visit to Rome is guaranteed. Back in the last century during the Audrey Hepburn/Roman Holiday craze there was a movie called Three Coins in the Fountain, a 1950’s chick flick, about this same legend. I watched it recently (inter-library loan having managed to locate it in some obscure archives, thus saving me the $60 advertised on Amazon), and while as a movie it was rather dated, the scenery and especially the fountains were…….bellisimo. (Coins are meant to be thrown using the right hand over the left shoulder. An estimated 3,000 euros are thrown into the fountain each day. The money has been used to subsidize a supermarket for Rome’s needy; however, there are regular attempts to steal coins from the fountain, even though it is illegal to do so. Wikepedia)

If you are a Frank Sinatra fan like me, the best thing by far about the movie, other than the stylish clothes of the era, was the song of the same name.

While replying to a comment back in August, I stumbled upon a travel blog about Rome, with lots of gorgeous photos. So if you wish more information check out this blog……there’s no point in me recapping the whole history of the Trevi fountain when there is a very excellent blogger (Musings of a Whimsical Soul) who already has.

There are two fountains near where I live, one in a local park where I should be walking every day for exercise but don’t. There is often a cold wind off the river in the winter and in the summer it is too hot, but I have no excuse for spring or fall. Still, is is lovely to look at while driving by.

The other one is a larger more expensive fountain downtown. Someone with a lot of money and no heirs (or spending their inheritance), bequeathed $250,000 to the city for a waterfront legacy. Although officially named after it’s benefactor, it is commonly known as the Fish Fountain, because of the fish on the sculpture, thus destroying any hope he might have had for lasting fame. It looks nicer on a clear blue sky day, not foggy like here. Although still warm, we have had many cloudy, rainy days in September and a whole week of the same forecast ahead.

For those of us with less money, the craft store, Michael’s has their fountains on end of season clearance now.

Not quite the Trevi…..

A small indoor fountain can provide some tranquility over the winter as well as add moisture to the dry air.

The local garden center was all sold out of outdoor fountains, although they assured me that one of their landscape architects could design me something like this.

No thanks, it looks like a cross between a fake fireplace and a sacrificial alter/crypt. Still, something smaller for next summer would be nice – gardeners like to plan ahead. In the meantime, I will throw a coin in one of the fountains, and make a wish that the warm weather would never end.

Arrivederci Summer! I know someday you will return…

A Farewell to Summer

September 21, 2018September 21, 201810 Comments

Please join me while we take a last peek at summer and enjoy the first signs of fall….no pumpkin spice or mums involved!

Let’s say goodbye to the flowers first. The petunias fared well with all that rain.

The dinner plate hibiscus are always late to the party, but they are like Beyonce, they make such a statement when they finally arrive that nobody minds.

The Rose of Sharon was so full of flowers it bowed down to Mother Nature.

But the morning glories were not so glorious, lots of foliage draped over the back fence but no buds in sight.

They were very late last year so I still have hope, but here’s a link to last years (unpublished blog), A Glorious September Morning, plus a bee having his last drink of the summer.

The nectar of the gods

My mother always grew glads and zinnias in the farm garden, but this year my glads were a disaster both in color and form. My vision of them lining the back fence like little pink soldiers faded into the sporadic appearance of a spike of pale lavender or orange. Lavender is okay, and peach I could handle, but I dislike orange, and pale orange is even worse. Is it too much to expect the color on the box is the color you get?

glads

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Next year I’ll just buy some at the farmer’s market.

I have never had any luck growing zinnias but my neighbors were prolific,

Zinnias

and the water lilies in their pond finally bloomed.

The sunflowers are drooping but are decorative enough for a vase.

Sunflowers in a Vase

The lavender was late as I replanted it all in the spring, but it still bloomed if not extravagantly.

The hot humid rainy summer produced a rain forest jungle of a vegetable garden which desperately needs sorting out. More on the potager in another blog, after the harvest.

Where are the monkeys?

The monarchs have all flown south, except this little guy with an injured leg/wing who I rescued from a parking lot. He was able to crawl a bit so I brought him home to lie among the lavender.

This year I have seen more monarchs than I have in years. After the township sprayed all the ditches, they almost became extinct, but now that gardeners are planting milkweed again, they are slowly making a comeback. They tend to congregate in Point Pelee Park in southern Ontario on their annual migration route, before crossing Lake Erie to the US and eventually Mexico. Tens of thousands cluster to rest and wait for the right wind conditions to cross the 40 km stretch of lake – the park posts the daily monarch counts on it’s social media pages. One picture is of a friends backyard near the lake, and one is a weather-watcher picture of Point Pelee. I wonder how such a small creature can make such a long journey? For more information on monarchs, check out garden blogger Invitation to the Garden‘s wonderful post on The King of Butterflies. She also has posts about the different kinds of milkweed you can plant to attract butterflies.

just dropping in to say goodbye

Rendevous at Point Pelee Park

Our last look at the beach, and my favorite photo of this summer.

Beach Day

Our first look at fall, the maple leaves they are a changing….

The chestnuts are starting to fall from the trees near the library. Chestnuts always bring back memories of gathering them on my grandmother’s farm at Thanksgiving. Last year one of the librarians made the nicest wreath from chestnuts…..nothing I would attempt as I’m sure it involved lots of glue.

The crab-apples are ripening and getting ready to drop and annoy all the grass cutters.

The first of the apples are being harvested. We stopped at an orchard last week and they had Galas and Mac’s just picked that morning, a bumper crop.

The scarecrow festival has started with a large party in the town square.

The crunch of dry leaves underfoot and the smell of wood smoke reminds us summer is winding down. The days are growing shorter, it’s getting dark by 7:30, time to go inside, light the candles and welcome fall. And if you are in the mood to feather your nest check out last years (unpublished) Autumn Decor blog for some cozy fall ideas.

Fall Flowers

There will be a harvest moon on Sept 24, so here’s some music for a fall night. This song is about as jazzy as I get but it has great lyrics and it always reminds me of my student days and walking home through a park after pub crawling….not sure anyone would do that now in downtown Toronto, they’d probably be mugged or shot.

Song of the Day: Moondance by Van Morrison

“Well, it’s a marvelous night for a moondance
With the stars up above in your eyes
A fantabulous night to make romance
‘Neath the cover of October skies
And all the leaves on the trees are falling…”

Back in Class

September 17, 20187 Comments

Remember all the fun stuff about back to school when you were a kid, before the reality of homework set in? Please join me for some arts and crafts and some back to school shopping in pursuit of classic plaid. Sorry this is so tardy, I know it’s mid-September already, but the dog ate the first draft…

When I was a kid in the sixties, art class was a rare treat, saved for special occasions when the teacher was too frazzled to do anything else. I recall making mothers and fathers day cards but that was about it. I was never a Brownie or Girl Guide. In older grades, I got a C in art which nixed my dreams of becoming a fashion designer. I can’t draw a straight line or paint. But today I am a regular patron of Michaels the craft store. Their 50% off coupons lure me in every time.

I ran into someone a few weeks ago and she was looking for plants for her parents grave-sites. We started talking about those hideous purple and yellow gravestone wreaths, and I asked why are you buying those when you can make your own much nicer and cheaper, with a green wire hanger from Michaels and some flowers from the dollar store. She thought that was an excellent idea, so I hope someone else might find some of these ideas inspiring. Here’s a link to last years (unpublished) post Arts and Crafts 101: (As I recently explained in my one year anniversary post, my blog was private last fall for the first three months).

I had a quick look through the mall recently and the stores are full of plaid flannel tops, despite the fact that the forecast this weekend is for the same hot and humid weather we have had all summer. You would think we were a country of lumberjacks, but then plaid is a perennial fall favorite. Here’s a link to my blog from last fall, Mad for Plaid. Enjoy!

(I bought a new pencil case at the dollar store for old-times sake – it might be good for stashing makeup in or all those small things which fall to the bottom of your purse).

All That Jam

September 12, 20189 Comments

The farmer’s markets are full of peaches right now, a little past their prime which is perfect for jam-making. Last Saturday I bought a big box of peaches for $16 and made 3 batches of jam on Sunday as they had ripened so fast as to be almost spoiling – two of freezer jam and one the old-fashioned boiled on the stove way.

Unlike last year, where I experimented with different types of pectin, I just used the Bernardin No Sugar Needed brand as I don’t like jam to be too sweet, although I did add 2/3 of a cup of sugar as the package insert suggested. I like to be able to taste the peaches. Of course there is nothing so lovely as a big bowl of peaches peeled and sliced on their own, or mixed with some vanilla yogurt.

I woke up with a sore right shoulder (probably from carrying the box), so I recruited my mother to help peel the peaches, which she enjoyed very much as it reminded her of all the canning she did on the farm. My nostalgia for homemade jam was one of the memories which lead to the creation of the homeplace blog (see Out in The Country).

For more canning memories, you can check out last fall’s unpublished blogs, Jamfest and Lavender and Pears, (although it is not quite pear season yet).

Peach jam is best served in January during a blizzard while looking out the window at two feet of snow and dreaming of summer….

(200 words – almost makes up for the last weeks 4000)

Peaches for Sale

One Year Blogging Anniversary – More or Less

September 9, 201838 Comments

(Some musings on blogging – this is a long post but I’m tired of editing it, so I’m just going to throw it out there, sink or swim).

WordPress recently congratulated me on my two-year blogging anniversary, but it’s only been a year – more or less. While I created the blog in August of 2016 I only posted once that summer, a short entry about one of my mother’s paintings and a photo of the sailboat which had inspired it, plus a song link to Sailing by Rod Stewart. One of my initial reasons for blogging was to get some local PR for her folk-art, and one of my plans was to fit a song, photo, painting and/or book into each weekly theme. The person who helped me create the account had gone back to school and no one I knew blogged, so I quickly abandoned it – it all seemed too complicated, (now it just seems routine). In August of 2017 I edited that first post with a comment “I wonder how many abandoned blogs are out there floating in the WordPress sea” and mine would have remained one of them were it not for a summer student at the library who blogged herself on WordPress and who was an enormous help with the setup. And so I launched my ship, on my way to a new adventure, tacking into the wind or whatever you do on a sailboat. (I know nothing about sailing other than the sails are so pretty).

I made a personal commitment to blog once a week and wrote out a list of ideas in a pretty journal, with one page dedicated to each month and so had 50 or 60 topics lined up.…more or less.

For the first three months I kept my blog private. My writing skills were rusty and I wanted to achieve a certain level of comfort before taking it public. As a high school student, I had been good in both English and chemistry but chemistry seemed more practical and so I trained for something medical. (Back then you were either artsy or a science nerd, never both, techies didn’t even exist). I had a wonderful career for 35 years and don’t regret my decision, there was always a part of me that wondered what if? While I was and always had been an avid reader, my only writing for decades had consisted of medical shorthand, which may have been a forerunner for those texting abbreviations like OMG and LOL. Only in this case SOB means shortness of breath, and F/U means follow up in 1 week, (not quite what you were expecting eh)? Brevity was valued. My grammar and punctuation skills had also deteriorated accordingly. I am still unsure where to place commas and brackets but am too lazy to try and find my high school Mastering Effective English textbook in the basement (I had two copies at one point), and too cheap to sign up for Grammarly.

Like many Canadians, I am a reserved person by nature, so it was a big step for me to take my blog public, which I did in October of last year but only because I needed help in the WordPress forums (I had the free plan then). My very first follower had a blog about all things paranormal and she went back and read all my weekly postings which was very encouraging. My second follower had a blog about Indian food. She said she liked all my pretty pictures, but I didn’t have the heart to admit I couldn’t eat spicy food. She unfollowed me shortly after I declined one of those chain letter type awards, (when you only have a few followers you can tell who unfollows you), but I honestly didn’t have any blogs I could pass it on to because for the first three months I didn’t even know that READER section tab was there – that’s how naïve I was. (or maybe it wasn’t there because my blog was private?)

My goal for the year was quite modest, to post once a week and to get 100 followers. My intention was to write about interesting uplifting things and to share a little bit of loveliness in what is often a depressing world. (In Real Life there are always plenty of things to be discouraged about – just turn on the evening news). There would be no angst in my blog, but plenty of books.

Have I achieved what I sent out to do? More or less.

I don’t quite have 100 followers….only 85 but I have until my Oct. public anniversary date. I seem to have plateaued this summer, but I find WP quiet lately, views and likes down. Is this just a normal summertime dip or a general trend?

I have blogged once a week …..more or less….56 posts so far since Aug 8 of last year. (I never quite got the other features on my main menu off the ground, Favorite Books, The Vintage Corner or product reviews under The Scoop). November was a difficult month, I only got three up (I like to plan ahead for Christmas, then don’t go near the stores in December). May and June were difficult too, but we had such a cold miserable spring that I was able to get 6 or 7 blogs ahead, mostly gardening stuff and just filled them in with photos and edited when the time came to post. Once the hot humid part of the summer started, it was not a chore to stay inside and write. For me writing the initial draft is always the hardest part. I don’t mind editing, although I can be obsessive and waste too much time on finding just the right word.

What surprised me most about blogging?

Meeting people from all over the world, and how nice and kind, and similar we all are. Somehow, I had expected that only readers from your continent saw your blog, so the international aspect was one of the pleasant surprises about the WordPress world. I have had readers from the UK, France, Italy, and recently Cambodia, and some from tiny little countries I have to look up to see where they are.

How much time it takes to do just one blog per week. I tend to be perfectionistic, (is that a word), and edit a lot, right up until before I post. I use all my own photos and it takes time to take, edit and upload all the pictures, plus my photo files are such a disorganized mess I can waste hours looking for the one I want. (Sometimes I think I might just like to have a photography blog). Most of my posts are personal topics, not requiring a ton of research, but even at once a week, it was more of a time commitment than I had expected. I don’t know how bloggers who post more often do it? Maybe their words flow more easily…

How much I have enjoyed the whole creative process, especially the layout design, putting the pictures, music and books together for each topic. (I think I might have enjoyed working for a magazine). I had great fun doing the Jane Austen interview and the historical posts. I love history and anything vintage so I found researching my Irish Roots and Uncle Charlie’s WWI post time-consuming but fascinating.

What would I do differently?

Begin as you want to go on, as the saying goes.

I wish I had spent more time researching the title and theme. I chose the Sela theme initially (well my helper chose it for me), but I don’t like the thin font so I have to bold it, but if I edit the font then it changes all the previous posts. I grew up on a farm so I knew I wanted the homeplace for my name but it was taken so I had to add web on the end which just sounds awkward, plus somewhat misleading as people might think my blog is about homesteading or farming, when really my aim was to find a simpler more peaceful existence. Although many of my initial posts referenced growing up on a farm (see Out in The Country), my blog evolved in different directions. I still want people to drop in and stay awhile though! So think twice when you chose that title.

I wish I had signed up for the paid plan initially, instead of the free one. I switched in February and some of the layout of my earlier posts got messed up. I upgraded to get rid of those annoying ads. (I know that’s how you make money but if a blog has too many ads or pages in it, I don’t hit next, I hit exit – I don’t care how suspenseful the title).

I wish I had kept my blog TOTALLY anonymous. In the initial excitement of blogging, I shared it with a few people (less than ten), some close, some not so close who I felt might give me honest feedback. With a little encouragement six signed up as email followers, but when my screen froze back in February and I lost my email list, none of them noticed or have inquired about it since. I told the only person who eventually asked that I had stopped blogging, it was too much work. Lesson learned, no one cares about your blog as much as you do! You may want to share to get feedback but be prepared for a lack of interest. People are busy with their own lives.

Also, try to develop a thick skin, especially important if you are sensitive soul. Of those initial shares the reaction was muted and the constructive criticism basically non-existent. I may cringe when I read my earlier posts, but were they so bad as to deserve total silence? You can be prepared for anything but silence is especially unnerving. What new bloggers need is support and encouragement not apathy. (I’m a big fan of the if you can’t admire someone’s creation then at least applaud the effort school of thought). There was the person who had suggested I blog in the first place, but then never read it. The person I emailed it to and never heard from. When I inquired as to what she thought, she said she was still reading, and then I never heard anything further. The person I mentioned it to over lunch who said that’s nice and changed the subject to something more interesting. Or the person whose sole comment was that it had spelling mistakes (I use British English), but couldn’t name any. (I am sure it did, and still does, and will in the future, typos creep in, and there are many many days I think I could benefit from a good editor). Or the person who was very encouraging at the beginning but who stopped reading once she realized her comments were public…at least she had warned me she wasn’t a reader. And the one who said with surprise, oh it’s a personal blog. What were they expecting, a treatise on the serotonin theory of rat rewarding behavior in lab mice? (Sorry, but I’ve left all that behind). Some of them were puzzled as to why I would even want to blog in the first place. Besides, isn’t everyone a writer these days with social media – what’s the big deal, it’s nothing special. It’s hard not to take it personally when people you know don’t share your enthusiasm or even pretend to share it enough to read for ten minutes once a week. (I can write this freely as I am quite confident none of them are reading). So now I wish I had just kept it totally anonymous from the beginning. Plus I think then you are freer to write what you want without worrying if someone will take offense to it, especially family members who might worry that they are in it. My mother knows about the blog of course because of the artwork, (she calls it my blob), but then she is ninety and doesn’t have a computer. (Some of her artwork is listed under The Artist on the main menu).

A Timely Topic

What time of day/week to post? I have not noticed any difference whatsoever in terms of response, but I tend to prefer posting in the morning as if I work on it too late at night I will sometimes edit in my sleep and wake up thinking I must change that word! Lately I have been posting on Mon/Tues but I have posted other days too. Although I know it is important to have a regularly scheduled day, I don’t seem to have one. Sometimes two weeks would go by before I could get something up, but I mostly stuck to my four per month quota. (This post is 3 weeks late as I couldn’t find the time to edit it).

A Timely Subject

Some topics (gardening, books) get more attention than other more obscure subjects – The Simply White Dinner, The Insta-Pot review etc. My topics are all over the map because I post about what interests me, but it’s very easy to get discouraged when you spend hours on something with little feedback. Books are always popular because all writers are readers. My last post on Beach Books got the most views all summer.

Your Target Audience:

If I had known how many excellent blogs there were out there in the WordPress sea I doubt I would ever have proceeded – sometimes ignorance is bliss. Before I signed up with WordPress I had only ever looked at two blogs – Susan Branch and Victoria magazine. In fact, readers who enjoy these blogs plus baby boomers might be my intended audience. My blog is a lifestyle blog so it’s general to begin with, but if I label my blog for baby-boomers, am I then eliminating a potential portion of my audience, even though they might not get my music links? You know when some people first follow your blog and you check theirs out they are not going to stick around and vice versa, (like me with the Indian food). While you can’t really predict who might be interested in your blog, there must be some better way to reach your target audience than random tags and hit and miss following. When I started a year ago there were 33 million followers on WP, now there are 45 million bloggers. It’s a big sea out there, with a lot of boats going in different directions who might not have any interest in joining your regatta. Would it have been better to have self-hosted and steered my own course instead of bobbing around in the water hoping someone will notice? Does anyone have any experience with self-hosting they would care to share? Should I hire a consultant to make my blog more seaworthy? (or should I stop with the ship metaphors at risk of being made to walk the plank)?

The Golden Rule

Thou shalt not compare…..followers….easy to say, hard to do, and don’t we all count our stats?

The whole followers/readers/views/likes/comments situation remains a puzzle to me. I don’t know how people get so many followers – when I click on their blogs and see they have 500, 1000, or 5000 followers – what did they do to get that many? How many years have they been blogging? I follow and read and like about 30 other blogs, although I don’t comment as often as I should. Some of these are people I have followed right from the start, and they seem to have a steady uptick in their followers, but others seemed to have dropped off the radar completely. Their posts never show up in my Reader, or they will for awhile and then they drop off. Notices about some posts will show up in my email, but others do not. If it is an algorithm like Facebook, where you only see the posts of people you like and comment on, if their posts don’t show up, how are you suppose to read them.

I appreciate all my readers and am happy if a few comment that they loved my post or said that was a great read, but we always want more don’t we? And now that I am aware of the like-pirates who scroll down and plunder your posts with false likes, I wonder if it’s comments I should be counting, but who has time to comment on everything they read? (Conversely, when you want to comment but the comments are turned off, that can be annoying too as that is part of the fun).

Statistical analysis: (or Followers do not equal Readers)

Being an analytical kind of person, I tried to do the math. If you have 5000 followers, it is physically impossible for all those people to have your blog show up in their reader, (and vice versa), unless they have signed up with a personal email, and even then, they may not click on it. Statistically if someone has 5000 followers and they get 50 likes that is only batting one percent (like baseball). If you have 100 followers and ten people like your blog that’s 10 percent, so you are actually ahead stats wise. So having more followers, gets you more likes but certainly not proportionally. It’s the law of diminishing returns. And what if you get a lot of views but not many likes (maybe you kissed the blarney stone and your posts are too long and meandering like mine and people give up). Maybe that is why WP recently deleted the views from the published post section? Do you shorten your posts to the length of the average attention span – 500 words…..or write on?

Incidentally, one of the best bloggers I follow has very few followers and her blog isn’t about anything I really care about, but her writing style is so fine and entertaining that I enjoy reading it anyway. Many of the bloggers I follow are small in number and sporadic in posting. Two of the bloggers I really liked appear to have quit. I saw a blog the other day about the adventures of a dog that had 1700 followers. Who can figure it out?

Flogging your blog on other social media sites:

Yes you should do this, but I admit I have not. If you didn’t grow up with social media and aren’t comfortable with self-promotion, all those sites can seem overwhelming. Recently I joined Pinterest in an attempt to increase my readership. I posted a photo of my purple salvia and a link to my gardening blog The Color Purple, and down below there were fifty purple photos much nicer than mine…..the Competition Purple. Plus if you don’t spend a ton of time on those sites following others, then you don’t get followers. It’s reminds me of the rats in those old biology experiments – you are rewarded with a like each time so you continue with the same pattern of behavior, accumulating followers instead of food pellets, but what if you want to eat at a restaurant outside of the rat cage? The first person I followed on Pinterest (recipes) had 10 million followers which is why they showed up at the top of my feed. The rat reward system obviously works but is it worth the time investment if you are just a small mouse? I think Pinterest will have to wait until winter when I need a good recipe for Sticky Toffee Pudding.

I find it is harder to get new followers now that the community pool has closed. I will sometimes drop in on blog parties or tea parties and those can be fun. I enjoyed the Quotes contest and that Sunshine Blogger Award brought me the most views – 52. Most likes in a day was 18 for The Potager. We would all like to have more followers, but really what does it matter in the end if you have 100, 1000 or 10,000? It is discouraging to compare, as there is always someone with more. (I am sorry if this is depressing anyone – there is a cheery song at the end). Perhaps the most important thing to remember is you are writing primarily for yourself, if others enjoy it too, that’s a bonus. Plus there is a certain level of satisfaction to be had in having an idea, getting it down on paper and editing it to exactly the way you want – a post can be a thing of beauty on it’s own even if no one reads it.

Show Me The Money:

Stats are important for financial gain. I have heard 35,000 is the magic number to make any serious money at a blog, but there is a vast gulf between even 1000 viewers and that number. Is even a bit of advertising financially worthwhile? I don’t know – I don’t know anyone lucky enough to play in the big league. Having a financially successful blog takes good writing, a major time investment, dedication, commitment, social media PR and sometimes a lucky break (and it helps if you have a dog as everyone likes dogs, except me, I’m more of a cat person). Having your post re-blogged or promoted somewhere can give you a huge jump in followers. But it’s all beyond my scope of practice. I will never be a big league blogger and am not sure I would want to anyway – it’s too much of a commitment for a newly retired person with a long bucket list. Not to be discouraging to anyone who aspires to that. If you can get some financial compensation for all the time invested, so much the better. We all like to write, but I am sure writing for profit would be so much more rewarding!

Future Goals:

The race may be off course, but I’m not going to abandon ship just because the skies are stormy and the water is rough at the moment,

but I may cut back to once or twice a month, (I really disliked the schedule), or I may just tread water for awhile. My mother is having an art exhibit the month of September (38 new paintings framed and ready) and I will be busy with that, so I may re-post some of those initial blogs which never saw an audience last fall, if they prove not too cringe-worthy, with more likely a mixture of new and recycled.

Or I may change course and set sail in a different direction. I have enjoyed the creative process too much to quit totally but I may try some other kind of writing….I think a murder mystery might be fun. (I can picture it now….six hundred pages with the clues cleverly scattered amongst all those superfluous details, lengthy descriptions and annoying brackets). So, if this blog has served no other purpose than to jump-start a dormant English major, then it may prove useful yet. I’ll have to give it some thought….a year at the least. (Give me a topic and I can write something on it but give me a plot-line and I may be stuck forever…see the sometimes ignorance is bliss quote). The Woman in Cabin Ten, (a murder mystery about a passenger on a small luxury cruise ship who thinks she saw someone being thrown overboard), made the bestseller list and god knows how much money. Time to get that notebook out…….ahoy maties! Full steam ahead!

PS. If you hear nothing further, I have sailed off into the sunset or been swept into the Bermuda Triangle….(now there’s a mystery that was never solved….) Thanks for reading…those who stuck it out. (4000 words……more or less).

Song Link: Triangle – a sailing song by Gordon Lightfoot (Canada’s national folk-singer)

Quote of the Day: “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” (The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald)

Discussion: My apologies if I have offended any of my initial readers, on the remote chance they may be still reading. My intention was to highlight one of the frustrations of blogging, lack of encouragement and support. Any bloggers care to share your experiences with any personal good/bad feedback you may have received about your blog from family or friends? Or is your blog anonymous? Do you find it difficult to get followers? Are you satisfied with the progress you have made with your blog so far or did you expect more?