]]> http://glgupton.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/a-rainy-night-in-georgia/feed/ 0 glgupton Free $20 coupon http://glgupton.wordpress.com/2008/02/21/its-still-winter-in-atlanta-georgia/ http://glgupton.wordpress.com/2008/02/21/its-still-winter-in-atlanta-georgia/#comments Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:43:32 +0000 glgupton http://glgupton.wordpress.com/?p=33 ]]> Wow, I can’t believe I haven’t written in here for so long! I went to Florida for the holidays to visit my children and grandchildren. While there, one of my sons and his family took me out in the Gulf of Mexico to watch a beautiful beach sunset. It was in the mid-80s the whole time I was there . . . and hot!

My little dog, Abby, who is deaf, wandered away and spent Christmas week-end at the county animal shelter. But, thank goodness, she was safe and taken care of. She had an ID tag; unfortunately no one was in Atlanta to receive the call that someone had spotted her wandering around. All is well.

We’ve had some rain the past 6 weeks and Lake Allatoona in Georgia is now re-filling. I saw one of the boat ramps open yesterday and people were fishing in the lake. Now, THAT’S a welcome sight after being six months in a drought and having water conservation to contend with. Usually Atlanta is full of beautiful winter flowers (especially pansies) and this year nothing was allowed to be watered so no color in the neighborhood entrance beds.

Hope you’re having a wonderful February. Spring is around the corner so let’s get ready!

http://www.winanmri.com/viewer.php?videoID=91

It has been soooo dry around here that I suspect the leaves will just dry up and fall down instead of having a colorful autumn, as usual. Actually, the lake near my own house is down about 12 feet. Not good.

Anyway, the cabin was near some treetops and I did get to see some leaves turning reddish. Those were the early ones, I suppose. Don’t know the name of the trees.

The Chattohoochee River runs right through downtown Helen as more of a wide creekbed. One of the restaurants we ate at overlooked the river, which during the summer has hoards of people tubing on it – bubbling over the rocks in the river’s path. But this year with the drought, the river was really low and I wondered how anyone could have enjoyed a tubing trip with water so shallow. I felt for the tubing companies who must have lost money this year.

My friend had a bad cold and we didn’t get a chance to sight-see much, but the cabin was definately cozy (and with a fireplace for those cold wintery nights)!  I would recommend little get-a-ways like this to anyone.

Since I live in a wooded area, on a small hill, and in an almost secluded neighborhood, tucked away from the malls, etc, it was another haven of nature for this family, whose environment includes flat land and beaches.

My son loves to fish and the little boys love the water. So, naturally they were drawn to my backyard fish pond.

A couple of weeks before my son got here, I had the shock of finding my prized yellow koi lying dead on the ground with flies all over it. For the last 5 years, a beautiful (but bad) hawk soars through the yards around here every summer. I had seen it fly off with some other fish from my pond, and this time I could have kicked myself for not protecting the water more.

The hawk had been screeching through the trees all day. When I wasn’t looking, it must have swooped down, grabbed the king-sized koi, then dropped it from the surprising weight of it.  It only made it about 2 feet from the pond surface before the koi slipped out of its talons. I was soooooo mad at myself!!!! I realized the hawk was only doing what came naturally, but there’s a whole lake only a mile away!! Of course, my fish pond is more convenient and a whole lot easier for the taking. 

But getting back to the day at hand . . . . Grandchildren can be so cute. The boys, during their visit, had a riot watching baby grasshoppers jumping all over the lawn where ever they stepped. Of course, as typical little boys, they had to catch them and hold them until the grasshopper hopped off the palm of their hands, which was the instant they caught them!

 Reminds me of my own youth. . .

I fed the fish earlier. I have 8 goldfish and HAD one very large 24″ yellow koi (beautiful). I’ve had the koi about 5 years – starting with an inside aquarium tank; then moved outside about 3 years ago. He grew tremendously in his 4′ x 6′ fish pond next to my deck.  He was so cute to watch eat with his big fish-mouth opening wide to swallow the little tid-bit pond food pellets which he would scoop up. Plus he liked to frolic in the waterfall and would often jump up and splash when I came around.

I went out back about 7:30 PM and the prize of my pond was laying dead on the stepping stones with flies covering its body. Eyes wide open. Stiff as a board. Imagine my shock!

Darn!! Darn!! Darn!! – Not the hawk’s fault, but mine, for not protecting my nurtured stock. The hawk was just looking for dinner and saw something shiny in the shallow water below.

So, now I’ve covered the water to protect the goldfish from the same unfortunate fate.  Once before I used large bubble wrap sections which float on the water to keep the hawk from taking more (yes, it’s been here before). I remember one day going out there and the bubble wrap had been crumbled up and tossed back down. It must have seen the shiny golden movement underneath but got surprised when his attempt was foiled by transparency.

Now keep in mind, this hawk is a beautiful creature in itself. With a huge wing span that soars across the tree tops, it’s a sight to behold. But, I have a whole lake about one-mile away – why can’t it go THERE to fish for dinner? Ah, because the water’s murky, not clear. And deep, not shallow. My fish are perfect targets

So, dear reader, if you have woods and you have a pond, learn from this blogger’s experience and protect your investment. The koi I lost today would cost at least $300 to replace.

I decided to lay in the backyard on my deck and get some tan.  But I started sweating after about 15 minutes. Even the dog thought it was too hot! She went out with me, then scratched at the door to be let back into the air conditioning. I guess we’re all spoiled.

When I was a kid, most of the air conditioning was in stores. So, I used to spend a lot of summer time at the local theater. Sometimes I’d go into a department store and just walk around to get cool. Swimming or water skiing was popular, too.

Of course, back then, schools were not air conditioned at all. We had big floor fans on tall stands – one at each of the front corners of the classroom. Nobody complained – it was just hot – and I lived in South Florida, to boot!!! It’s just the way it was and no one knew any different.

Anyway, yesterday was my birthday and I took the day off from working. But today, in between working on my websites, I decided to work on my TAN. I figure 15 minutes per day, front and back, and by the end of summer I’ll be looking great!! (LOL)

I had been at a get-together with some friends. Standing in the parking lot of the restaurant we had just left, we all commented on the gray clouds and the gentle breeze. It was lovely outside with a hint of rain in the air. We all wondered if we would get rain at our own respected houses.

I went to a friend’s home nearby for about an hour and on my way back (a 45-minute drive) it started raining. It rained all the way home; not a gusher, but it kept the windshield wipers going the whole way.

This morning everything looked a little greener. I noticed my gardenia bushes are blooming.

Hopefully, we’ll get some more rain. Georgia is a dry place and fires have been on the rampant path. Smoke has been in the air in many places for the last month.

It’s also very quiet, with no phones ringing for business. I guess everyone’s working in their yards or fixing a barbecue or swimming at the pool?

As for me, I’m going to a friend’s house in a couple of hours. We’ll visit for awhile, then go out to eat and then go to a club for some dancing.

I love to dance! I learned to ballroom dance when I was 13 years old. I lived in a very small community in South Florida where my teacher at that time was dating a man from Arthur Murray dance studio. The two of them rented the American Legion Hall on Friday nights and taught the class to dance (not much else to do on a Friday night)!

My favorite styles are swing, cha-cha, and waltz. The boys didn’t like dancing so much – they were more into sports or just shy with the girls so most of my high school years were not doing ballroom dances, but just jitterbug or shag to rock and roll.

Neither of my husband’s danced. So, now that I’m widowed, I’m making up for lost time. It’s the SWING. I love the swing dance.  But if you want a backyard swing, you can get it here.

Internet research tells me it can get VERY costly to correct my problem. Not only do I hear chattering baby squirrels in my bathroom ceiling, but I also hear thumping, rustling noises in my kitchen ceiling!