The Pump Station Trail
This weekend Levi and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and took a hike and picnic on the Eno river. Our destination was the old pump station, which supplied water for the town of Durham from 1884 to 1926. We stumbled across the old ruins as if we were in some enchanted forest. We spent […]
Spider Lilies
I recently read the excellent book 1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus by Charles Mann. An overriding theme of this book is that pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas shaped their environment to fit their needs, time and time again. Some of these environments were barren intially but the land inhabitants were able to cultivate them with […]
1979
Last Saturday I took Levi up to Gramma and Grampa’s place in Watauga County, NC, otherwise known as “Mielke Mountain.” At 4,000 feet, the temperatures are usually 12-15 degrees cooler than Durham. It was wonderful to escape the oppressive heat for a little while. This time we didn’t bring our tent, due to the presence […]
The Fledglings
Our 3 bluebird babies. born on Easter Sunday, left the nest on day 17. It was a remarkable experience to see these little things on the day they were born–tiny and hairless, like little pink shrimp. We were all amazed at how quickly they developed. By day 4, we could make out their eyes–still fused […]
Baby Bluebirds!
hree little bluebird nestlings arrived on Easter Sunday. They looked pink and mostly hairless, with a little bit of wet-gray down. We caught a glimpse of mother bird before the weekend and thought she might be up to something…
To Plant a Rainbow
One of Levi’s favorite books is Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert. In this beautifully-illustrated board book, a mother and daughter plant a rainbow of flowers in their garden. One night after I finished reading the book to him, Levi told me that he wanted to plant a rainbow garden too. That week he’d been learning about […]
Bluebirds and the Blueberry Bush
This weekend Levi and I worked and played in the yard together. It’s an exciting time now, as he’s able and interested in helping out on the “Family Farm” on Farthing Street. A few weeks ago we put together a bluebird house and stand. I didn’t let him use the drill of course, but his […]
Fig Eaters on Farthing Street
Trying to grow our own food has been a challenge, but in recent years we’ve had decent luck with our fruit-bearing plants like strawberries and blueberries, and our enormous fig tree. Every August we eagerly anticipate the fig harvest, and 2017 did not disappoint! This year little Levi had fun picking figs for the first […]
The Healing Salve
A few years ago I wrote about my obsession with the miracle plant, Comfrey. I wrote how the plant has been used for a variety of purposes over the years, from healing fractures, helping with skin irritations, insect bites and inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis. It’s a nitrogen fixer too, which means it’s a great fertilizer. […]
Lessons from the Incas
This week the Nature Boy is thankful for the ancient Peruvians. Everythingthat’s been going on in the backyard lately, they did it first, and better, too. More specifically, I’m referring to my attempts at: 1. Growing (massive amounts of) sweet potatoes 2. Storing, capturing, and distributing water for growing food This moment of recognition-gratitude came […]