The Fun and Mystique of Wild Berries

Ever discover something new as an “Old Person?”  It’s fun right?   You revert back to a kid and want to tell ALL of you Friends ( if you still have any) about the cool thing you discovered recently.   And if those “Friendly People” are nice, they will smile and nod and offer an invitation ‘to come out and try that sometime.’  And if they are normal, they will tell you that everyone has already tried that…..It’s old news and nothing special…. ( Ba! humbug!)

And so it goes that Cheryl has discovered Mulberries and Black Berries along our walk.   I have known of these things for years.   We grew up eating them until we literally turned BLUE!  ( Mrs. Noorman was not very happy with us touching everyting with blue hands.)  I’m not sure why, but I guess Cheryl thought mulberry trees never actually bear fruit.. AND any fruit you find in the great outdoors is most likely poisonous.   Luckily ( or unfortunately….) My parents we not so overprotective and allowed us to eat wild anything….( even Beefsteak mushrooms,  which ARE toxic by the way.  Thanks Mom!) They would send us out to the railroad tracks alone to pick the berries that grew there because Grandpa did not want us eating his berries in his garden or around his house.  ( Thanks Grandpa!) Yep!  What a Great Family!  Mostly farmers….so losing a kid now and then was not such a big deal because they usually had litters of 8!

 

However, Despite their best efforts, we managed to survive and learn what we could eat in the wild…mostly.  And from that knowledge comes my understanding of the humble Mulberry.  Humble because most people leave them for the birds or cut them down because they grow everywhere…especially in fence rows.    Birds love to send them everywhere…especially on peoples cars…which ALSO makes people not like the  Mulberry tree very much. 

I have NEVER seen them in a store, farmers market, or roadside stand.   I know I used to pick buckets of them and try tot sell them around the neighborhood. ( no one ever bought any….Sniff!) and  one year I picked so many mom baked up several pies!   They were great!    The flavor depends on each berry.   Some are tart while others are less sweet but more “mellow blueberry” flavor.   It’s almost as if they lose their sweetness as they ripen.  But with a large group, the flavors even out and they taste pretty good  ( say…in a pie)

So now Cheryl is addicted!   We ALWAYS have to stop by the trees and bushes and eat a few every day on our walks.  The Black Berry is another find we discovered while walking a certain route.  They are at least familiar enough so you see them in stores.  The small plant is competing with many weeds and yet it manages to bear quite a few berries for such  a little plant.    Cheryl decided they these would be a great snack for evening time and we took a small container out and picked a few.   She has been eating them for a couple of days now.   Looks like we are down to one more day before we will have to replenish the supply.   I can hardly wait!   Because, I actually like picking them and they bring back memories of a happy, carefree, and dangerous childhood.

Happy Fireworks! 4th Of July Backyard View.

We decided to actually try to watch the fireworks this year.  I’m not sure why we always seem to miss them.   Either we are watching a movie or just do not want to go out in our back yard to see them.   But this year.  I took the bench and sat in the middle of our yard to take pictures.  Here are a few of the results!

 

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July yesterday.  My 4ths have always had something else to mess with the day.  I usually had to work.  Or I fought crowds to watch fireworks that were usually blocked by some tree,  Or the Crowd prevented us from moving to a good viewing place. 

So enjoy the pics and here are some more.  I could have shot so many others, but thought I should not go too crazy.  I’m impressed these turned out as well as they did.  Enjoy!

More Origami Koi!

Just a quick post after listing some new koi in the shop.  Thought I would also mention that the flood waters are still pretty high here.   Yesterday we thought we were going to be stranded in Wellman for the 4th!   We could not even get to Kalona!   ( only 7 miles down the road)  Much of the corn and soybean fields look pretty bad around where the water has receded.   Not sure if it will recover or not. 

In addition to the Koi listed, I have been working on a set of 20 for another customer.   We shall see if I can get them done before the end of the weekend.  In the mean time,  Enjoy the 4th! And  I hope everyone can enjoy some fireworks somewhere.  

View Full Album

Iowa Storms, Floods, Skies, Roads, And STUFF!

  It has been rather stormy of late, and yesterday was the peak of the chaos.   It started mid afternoon and began to rain very, VERY hard!  So much so fast that our driveway could not handle the capacity and overflowed; taking most of the landscaping with it.  Cheryl and I still managed to squeeze in a walk between “episodes”.  And then the cycle repeated again.   I’m not sure how much rain we got dumped on us, but my sunflowers took a beating! They are all bent down and struggling to face the sun once more.    That night, the sky turned a eerie shade of orange around 9 PM

That was rather exciting, but today was the real “scary” part.  

First, we waited for STUFF to arrive and take the rest of our items to their store to sell. They were a little late and I thought it might be because of the construction being done on the highway.  Or that they were lost.  

Turns out, they WERE lost and had to call to find our place, but in the end, they packed up all of our stuff and now we await a check when the bookshelves and table sell.   The furniture served it’s purpose for three years and I’m VERY happy with their replacements.  I can finally fold paper without a crease in the middle of my work surface.

After that though, it was lunch time and we decided to head to Iowa city instead of going to Kalona which is much closer.  With the Construction before mentioned, I decided to take the usual back way to avoid the delays and gravel hitting my car.  But, unknown to us,   we were in for a surprise! 

The “flooding” that was mentioned was finally peculating down to the river and causing many low lying areas to fill up with water.   Not a big deal in Wellman, but in the country around us,  serious water problems! At first we just watched as we glided along the road, but then the road ahead had water flowing over the top of it.  It looked shallow enough.  I thought I would give it a go with the all wheel drive SUBIE…..hmm….perhaps not the wises decision. 

Shallow flowing water looks harmless enough, but the water hit the side of my car and splashed over the windshield,  TOTALLY BLINDING ME!   i was pretty sure I would not get washed off the road, but there was the concern that the road might have some hidden hole waiting to swallow me up or wash out totally from underneath me.    Needless to say,  Cheryl and I decided to not try that again and feared we might be stuck in Iowa City until Thursday when the flood watch would be over. 

So,  surviving the flash flooding,  we recovered and decided to stay at home and fold and sew for the next few days while the water recedes.  In the mean time, I have been getting many requests for Koi as of late and folded up a few more.  I still have to take their pictures and list them in the shop.   Hopefully we will be able to work on them a little more now that Iowa City is off the table for the next few days.  We shall see.  

Koi After Koi! More Origami

     Just a quick post on what I was up to today.   Folding!   Well,  Trying out the new table from IKEA and finishing up the fish I started several days ago.  Other than that, I have several more projects lined up along with Cheryl’s requests from time to time.  Hope everyone had a great weekend.   The weather was rather humid today, but we managed to walk the full loop around the country roads.  Enjoy the pics!

Stormy Night In Iowa

Finally some Rain!   It has been forecasted all week, but the rain has finally arrived….along with lots and lots of thunder and lightning!      

 

It’s all good!  I actually like thunder as I sleep and watching the lightning light up the night sky.   Cheryl and I decided to take our walk just as the storm rolled in.   It had been hot and humid most of the day, with the sun beating down on you.  For this reason, we have moved our walk time steadily back so we now head out around 6 pm.

Perhaps we will head out later as the summer heat progresses, but tonight we headed out slightly later than normal.  As a result, we caught just a little or the rain as it began to sprinkle.  At least we did not get blown away or drenched!   

In other news, we attended the Iowa City Farmers Market.  Cheryl noted this it should have been called “Food Festival” instead.  A few vegetables, but mostly it was baked goods and preserves.  Great for foodies….bad for dieters.    I’m not sure I like being surrounded by temptation let along that much of it! 

For now,  I’m going to enjoy the storm and listen to the thunder.    Hope everyone else is having a great weekend.  Enjoy!

Black chinned Hummingbird and Ruby Breasted Grosbeak! In Iowa!

   My first Hummingbird visitor is one I have never seen before!   How exciting!   At first I thought it was the Ruby throated hummingbird like the ones we have in Michigan.  (Actually ALL hummers  east of the Mississippi  are Ruby Throated hummingbirds)   At times, the Ruby Throated hummingbird can make its throat look black if the light hits the color right.  But this was different!

A few drab green and white ones came but today there was no mistaking that black patch under his chin.  I guess they range through Iowa at certain months, but this is not their main range.  EVEN BETTER!   It’s always cool to find a stray hanging out in your yard. 

So, I will now have to keep an eye out for my new visitor and perhaps capture a few pictures of my own.  Luckily, the internet can supply these stock photos to give the name a “face”. 

In other news, I finally have identified the black and white bird that we have spotted from time to time over the years on our walks!  It is a Ruby Throated Grosbeak!  We have seen it in flight many times and it always looked like a magpie.  But today I spotted that red spot on his breaks and there was no mistake.  Plus he was close enough to see with no foliage in the way to obstruct the spotting process. 

So How exciting!   Cheryl even saw a oriole today.   I know that might not be too impressive, but whenever you see birds that are not familiar to your place of origin,  it’s like seeing snow for the first time.   Almost magical!

Other than that, Cheryl and I have been relaxing as we wait for the final pieces of the shop furniture to arrive.  I guess it is to be delivered on Thursday.  Hopefully when the tables are assembled and properly placed, we can make a call to the Stuff People and they can haul the old furniture away.    And then we can get back in the “self-employment saddle” .   We started a few things the last few days, but really we are waiting for the shop to be complete before we start the major production of Items.   We shall see how things go on Thursday. 

The Year of the 17 Year Cicadae, SAT Finish With Beer and Dragons!

Wow!  What a long title!  I guess this is what happens when many things happen within a short amount of time without blogging.  So lets begin with the first item: 

  The 17 Year Cicadae!   I heard these things this last few weeks and could not believe my ears.   Cicadas in Spring?   Then the proof presented itself with a damaged one ( still alive) on the road!   Smaller than the usual cicadae, these guys have those AWESOME orange wings with red eyes!  I know that most people would not get geeked out by seeing a cool insect, but I’m a Biologist at heart ( technically Fisheries Biologist, but you can still find Bugs cool!) If you happen to see one of these guys in your own yard, pause a moment and enjoy the idea that you will not see this insect again for another 17 years!  And try to let that sink in a little.   17 YEARS!    Kids are born and finish High school in 17 years! ( yes, I did it.  Graduated when I was 17.) 17 years these guys hang out in suspended animation in the ground and emerge for only one summer, then disappear for another generation.  Life is truly amazing. 

  Moving on, the next topic,  SAT Bubbling Marathon finish!   It only took us about 5 hours to finish all of the remaining essays.  And like a quick summer rain, we were finished and a pleasant memory.  The SAT table leader position was fun.  I had a pretty good group of people who made my life fairly easy.  No fights broke out, no chairs thrown, and only a few office supplies were missing.  To finally celebrate in the privacy of our own home, Cheryl and I revisited some old favorites in the beer category.  Both Beers are wonderful and without my Honey Brown, I have been forced to enjoy the “good stuff” for the time being.  These beers are the ones you sip, no guzzle.   You enjoy them with various foods to help release the flavors.  ( which are MANY!)   Honey Brown on the other hand, is the beer you enjoy by itself on a hot summer day. Very Drinkable with a clean finish.   Not as complex as the Abby Ale ( my favorite of these types) but satisfying. 

And Last:  Some Origami Dragons.   I finished these guys several weeks ago, but had no energy or time to take their pictures and list them.   However, They are now prominent features in the shop.   I still have much origami to fold up in the coming days.  Hopefully I will be able to get to some of the things on the agenda, as we will soon be tearing the shop apart again to make it more “ User Friendly”. 

View Full Album

As with the Road work here in Iowa,  There may be ties when the shop will be called upon to be used while it is in its partial update.   In any case, I’m hoping it will be updated soon and I will be able to fold like the wind.  We shall see.

So, Enjoy the pics of the dragons and keep an eye out for the these black and red cicadas that show themselves once every generation.  I’m sure you will enjoy them and their song.   Their song, by the way, is much shorter than the normal cicadae.  They sound like a normal cicadae start, but suddenly stop after a warm up.  try and listen for them by some tree on a warm summer day.  If the ratchet sound is held for longer than 5 seconds, it probably is the green one we are all familiar with.  Best of luck to ya and enjoy!