Retreat in Bedford

Lisa Rodenfels,Anne Bisdorf and I met in Bedford PA for just a shepherd's escape. Where did we stay???? ON A SHEEP FARM, of course. We rented the Shepherd's Chalet in the hills surrounded by sheep studded pastures. 1800 sheep, but who's counting. It was fun to watch moms and lambs and not have chores to do. Saturday's dinner, made by Lisa was amazing... after we cleared the smoke, that is. Lamb of course. MMMM. Diane Kelly another BFL breeder who operates a weaving studio in Bedford joined us for dinner and laughs.
Sunday we toured the Coverlet Museum. Not air conditioned, we glistened with sweat but the gentleman giving the tour was too interesting to hurry. The second room was suppose to have AC but you could have fooled me. I can't wait to take what's left of my coverlet collection out of the blanket chests and study them with my newly acquired knowledge.
We drove the covered bridge tour which included an aside to GRAVITY HILL. The Bedford travel brochure writer gets kudos for his clever way of attracting tourist to this spot. The advertising is so humorous that you simply HAVE to go. You travel on a tiny road and follow the GH's spray painted on the road and the back of the stop signs.
Once there you stop..put your car in neutral, and when you let off the break your car rolls backwards UP HILL. (No we were not drinking before this excursion.)We were just as the ads said,"awed by the laws of physics breaking", AND laughing hysterically. So of course, we had to do it again. Sufficiently awestruck,we headed back to town only to see several more cars arrive for the experience. We all waved and smiled as we drove off. Silly but fun. It's the little things in life.
Back to reality and my own shepherd chores today, but thankful that I have such great friends to share such a laugh filled relaxing weekend with.

Ninety Degrees in the Family Room

Brogan and I retreated to the basement to escape the temps in the rest of the house. She watched the Disney channel while I tried to read. Ever tried to read while the Disney channel is on???? Don't. Ears cannot block out the stupidity of the programming.
The ancient AC in the basement is on its last legs but we can get the room to 75, which is a great relief. If I could find a T shirt that said, "I survived 100+ in the USA" I'd buy one for Brogan. Bill attempted to go to the store in an atheletic T shirt. When I protested he said, "young guys wear them out all the time".(I'm sure he's recalling the 1950ies.) My reply was that Michael Phelps wears a Speedo and looks great but when the old man up the road wears his size 40 Speedo to mow the lawn everyone just laughs. He got the analogy and Molly got him a shirt. Aside......Speedos should not be made in size 40.
Coward that I am, I am leaving town. Meeting Lisa Rodenfelds and Anne Bisdorf for a few days of R and R in Bedford, PA. sounds heavenly. Spinning,knitting, someone else cooking and sheep talk. Sounds heavenly.
I promised Brogan to take her to the beach on Tuesday for her last big USA trip then we are off to NYC on Thursday. We'll ferry out to the Statue of Liberty on our way to the airport. Her month in the great oven will end. Back to cool rainy N. Ireland.Sounds wonderful doesn't it?

NYC in the Heat or Melting in the Big Apple

Molly and Brogan had a trip to NYC on their wish lists so we went up on Friday. Stayed in NJ with family on Friday and drove off to "the city" on Saturday morning. Over 90 and so humid. Waiting in the AC for the Empire State Building elevator line was long but bearable. The view on the 86th floor was fairly clear. It had been years since I had been there but the view is still exciting.It is hard to believe so many buildings can stand in such a small area. We walked down to the Mesa Grill (Bobby Flay's) but without a reservation there was no way we could be seated. Should have planned ahead. A little hamburger joint in Greenwich Village wasn't exactly the dinner we had in mind but it was good and very affordable. Anything that didn't run too fast would have tasted good by the time we ate we were so hungry. Great street entertainers to watch in Washington Square. This part of NYC is my favorite. Residential and quiet. The train ride back to our hotel in Jersey City was a nightmare. Too few trains and too many people. We were stuffed in like cattle, sweaty and miserable. Finally back at the hotel room, I put the AC down to 65 and we wrapped up in covers, enjoyed being cold and watched the NY skyline light up out our window. Beautiful.

Sunday morning up at 6:30, I took my coffee to the dock and watched the Chinese ladies do their AM yoga routine. To my amusement, when they finished yoga they began teaching each other to dance...ballroom style. It was so cute to watch. Jersey City is sooo different now from what it was when I lived in NJ. It is safe,clean and completely revitalized.

When the girls finally got going we braved the train again where we met the nicest man who gave us the skinny on all his celebrity shoe store clients.It was fun meeting him and made the train ride seem too short. Subwayed uptown to Bergdorf Goodman, Henri Bendel and all those stores near the Plaza that we can't afford. The girls loved it. As for me, I just felt hot, dumpy and poor. Again, not fit to be seen in such places but who cares. The girls dumped me whenever possible,but they found me when they got hungry. I hope Brogan, who was suffering from the heat too, will remember NYC as a fun place and not just remember it for the heat. We tried to make it fun. Hope your 22nd birthday was memorable, Molly. Let's spend the next one in a cooler place.

GGGRRR

Spent all day Tuesday locating and hauling in large square bales of hay for my starving flock. Pastures are gone so the bales were greatly appreciated. Now for our dinner. I had seen someone make Pad Thai on the TV in the morning so after getting all the ingredients I started cooking what was to be an easy meal. It was TERRIBLE. Mine went in the trash as Bill ate his afraid to tell me how it really tasted. Going for a bike ride seemed like a good idea to relax. Later as I sat in my horribly hot house, hungry and glad the day was over, the rains came. The next hour was spent covering the bales with tarps by flashlight. Some days just never end.

Drove to NJ to get Brogan yesterday. She was with some fellow Irish and American kids for a few days. She needed a break from the heat here and the company of kids her own age. She stayed with the wonderful Torres family. Thank you guys so much for your hospitality. We'll get together again next week.

The drive up was fantastic. AC on, coffee, with MY CDs playing. I could play and replay favorite songs without complaints. Played one song 5 times, just because I could. I love being alone.

Brogan didn't get to the beach while in NJ due to rain so we drove just to see the other side of the Atlantic. Amazingly,it was sunny for a few minutes so she got to put her feet in. The sun didn't last long so we headed home. My favorite ice cream shop was gone. This economy is really taking its toll on long established businesses that you expect to be there forever. So disappointing.

Rain? What Rain?

Well the rain that was predicted seemed to fall on everyone else yesterday. We didn't get enough to penetrate the mulch in the garden. Soo disappointing. The front did blow out the humidity and reduce the temperatures so we took Brogan to Washington, DC today. Seeing the White House was on her list of American "must sees". We went right into DC without getting lost, like I did when I took Garrett there in April. We found 3/4 of a parking space right on the Smithsonian Mall. My lucky day! My Honda Civic squeezed right in. No parking meter...free parking for as long as we wished to stay. It doesn't get any better. We walked to the Washington Monument with the sun beating down on us. Brogan asked,"I thought we were going to DC when it got cooler?" My reply..."it's only 90 with low humidity, this IS cool for DC in the summer." The White House is so guarded now that we couldn't see the south entrance or the rose garden at all. The front is still visible for pictures. Brogan was surprised at the size, expecting it to be much larger and more imposing. After lots of walking we retreated to the AC in the Museum of American History. Super place. There were Dorothy's ruby slippers, an original Kermit the Frog puppet, AND Julia Childs' kitchen. The science exhibits presented a American genius that really made me proud to be an American. In all my trips to DC I had never been to this museum. I really have been missing a good one. Glad we went. With so much more to see, we plan to go back in 2 weeks.

Another squeezy parking job in Chinatown got us into a restaurant for a great lunch. Finally. We were so hungry from lots of walking, but that's what you do in DC.WALK!

The heat and drought continue with high humidity added to the mix. Torture. This weather always makes me grumpy as I feed my winter hay to the flock. Brogan,Lillian and Molly and I have worn out our welcome at anyone's home where there's a pool. I am so grateful for friends. Thank you all so much.

Tim manages a pool. At night he relates tales of poolside brawls that challenge his management skills. Yesterday he called the police 3 times. The weather must be bringing out the worst in everyone. Time for a rain dance on the front lawn... or where the lawn used to be.

Brogan is a real trouper and deserves an award for enduring this weather with humor and smiles. Nothing like this in N. Ireland. Maybe another round of Mini golf tonight will get us all laughing.

Heatwave

Trying to find anywhere cool, we have been to the mall twice (I hate it) and the theater, which I love. Brogan loves to shop so the mall is great. She loves American bargains. Yesterday she got a pair of jeans for $5 and lots of other bargains. No wonder...she's a size one..short, and I'll bet there's not another person in York County that is that small. She HAD to wear her new jeans today when we went to Lancaster to see JOSEPH at the Sight and Sound Theater. It is an amazing theatrical performance in a huge theater. Bigger and more spectacular than some Broadway shows I've seen. The show was "cool" in more ways than one. A fellow BFL breeder, Kyle McCleary, trains the animals which are included in the show. Today he amazed me by walking 3 Jacobs sheep through the audience, onto the stage during a song no less. No halters were involved. I can't even get a sheep to walk on a halter through the barnyard without music!!! Lisa, we need to hire Kyle for Wooster next year.