Claudia — Page 1488

A Storm Right Out of Shakespeare

July 27, 2012 at 6:57 am by Claudia

“Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! Rage! Blow!”

William Shakespeare, King Lear

That volatile line of thunderstorms that was all over the eastern part of the country hit us yesterday. The air was so humid all day long that I knew something was up. As the day progressed I started to hear warnings from the National Weather Service on the radio. And as we headed toward the dinner hour the sky ominously darkened, so much so that it seemed like the middle of the night. The wind was fierce, branches were flying, the sound of thunder never stopped and lightning lit up the sky. Very Shakespearean in its intensity. I usually love thunderstorms, but this one was scary, especially when I heard there was a tornado warning for our area.

I called Don. He didn’t answer. A few minutes later, he called me back and stayed on the phone with me as the storm got stronger and stronger.

We really don’t have a basement. We have a small basement that you can enter from outside and if it was only me, I’d go down there. But there is no way I could get Riley down there on my own. You have to duck when you walk down the stairs – trying to hold Riley in my arms and make my way down the stairs would be impossible, as would getting him back up the stairs.

An interior room with no windows? Nope. There are windows everywhere here at the cottage.

For an hour or so, it was pretty scary around here. The force of those winds reminded me very much of Hurricane Irene. Thankfully, this storm didn’t last nearly as long as the hurricane. After it had passed, I put on my slicker and went out to survey the damage. Lots of smallish branches down. One of my flower pots had fallen and broken. A few pots on the porch had tipped over. A large chunk of one of the deadish trees in the back forty had fallen – I’ll need Don’s help with that one. I cleaned up as much as I could and the rest I’ll tackle today.

Whew. We’re safe. The house is standing. The damage was minimal – just messy.

And how are you this Friday morning?

Don’t forget to visit my Connecticut Tourism post! You can enter a sweepstakes from BlogHer to win $1000 to help you plan your trip! It’s easy….just stop by and leave a comment.

Rattling Around in My Brain: On Blogging

July 26, 2012 at 9:35 am by Claudia

Some thoughts on blogging that have been rattling around my brain:

1. Sometimes I am asked by companies (like BlogHer, for example) to check a box which indicates what type of blog I write. I’m always at a loss. I know there are many, many bloggers who blog about one thing, whether it’s DIY, design, fashion, books, coupons, whatever. They’ve found their niche and almost exclusively write posts that have to do with that subject. I suppose that makes their blogs more marketable, in terms of ad revenue, etc. If I was to write only about decorating, for example, I would become known for that and eventually, sponsors and big corporations would take notice and all sorts of opportunities would come my way.

But here’s the problem: I have too many interests. I love to decorate. I love to read. I love to garden. I love to DIY. I love to write the occasional thought-provoking post about life. I could never narrow down all my passions to one. If I did that, I wouldn’t be speaking in my voice. I’d be shaping the blog with an end result in mind that simply isn’t me. I’m not at all saying that niche bloggers are doing that. Not at all. They are blogging about a particular passion. I’m just saying that, for me, it wouldn’t ring true.

You know I love my work in the theater. There are other teachers/coaches out there who live for their work. It is all consuming. I’ve never been that way. This may be a failing on my part, but I have too many interests other than theater and I like to make time for all of them. Same thing here on the blog.

I usually just check the box next to “Life” because that seems to make the most sense. I blog about my life. That certainly won’t appeal to everyone and I understand that. But it is me, warts and all.

If you had to, how would you classify your blog?

2. You all know I have advertising on this blog. It brings in some, not a great deal by any means, much needed income. I try to limit the amount of advertising so that the blog doesn’t become all about the ads. Right now, I’m just using BlogHer ads. BlogHer has been very good to me. Their support of all kinds of bloggers – giving their voices a chance to be heard, as well as the opportunity to earn some income – is admirable.

It’s a balancing act. The most important thing for me is to share my thoughts with you each day. The writing is, and always has been, the most important thing for me. Writing is cathartic. The discipline of writing a post each and every day has been enormously important for me. And finding the best way to put those thoughts down on ‘virtual’ paper, finding the right word, the right phrase, is what I love. I’ve become a better writer since I started this blog over 4 years ago.

I share the occasional book review and book giveaway and the rare sponsored review. But almost every post on this old blog is about my life – good, bad or indifferent. I want you to know that I strive for authenticity and this blog will never be solely about advertising or sponsored posts. Far from it.

Advertising on blogs has become accepted. Not long ago, many of us questioned whether there should be ads on blogs, myself included. Over time, I realized that bloggers put a great deal of work and research into their posts and why not be compensated? More power to them.

But it is a balancing act. Too many ads are a turn-off. Too many sponsored posts are a turn-off. Too many “look at what I got from such-and-such a company for free” posts are a turn-off.

I don’t claim to have the answer, but I will always strive for an original content-heavy blog. The words and photographs are the most important thing. Without them, MHC would be just another blog. Who am I kidding? Maybe it is just another blog. But it’s my blog and I’m proud of it.

Any thoughts, my friends?

Coneflower Crazy

July 25, 2012 at 7:30 am by Claudia

I’m wearing a rayon skirt right now because my shorts are in the wash. The darn thing is so slippery that my laptop is sliding toward my stomach! It’s not easy to type on a laptop that is sliding, let me tell you.

I love coneflowers. They are old-fashioned country garden flowers and they’re are all over my garden. By the entrance to the porch:

Extra-tall coneflowers are on the other side of the porch:

There are various other patches of coneflowers that have self-seeded. Don’t you love when that happens?

I was looking at the big garden bed the other day, trying to figure out what to do with the relatively bare patches in the middle of the bed. Ding! Why not some hardy coneflowers? So I trotted off to my favorite local nursery to see if they had any left.

Am I the only person out there who visits a nursery at this time of year and gets sad? Everything is picked over, dying, root-bound and generally neglected looking. I wandered around, talking to the plants. I was the only person there, so there was no one to observe this behavior. What happens to them? Do they get tossed on some pile of trash? I want to find homes for them. I did see a very neglected New Dawn rose that would need severe pruning. I didn’t buy it, but now I’m thinking twice about that decision. Should I go back and get it?

Anyway, I managed to find two “White Swan” coneflowers and two coneflowers that are part of a “Cone-fection” series, called “Milkshake.” They are also a creamy color and very pretty, though they haven’t bloomed yet.

Today, in the sweltering humidity, I planted them.

There’s another milkshake coneflower to the left, on the other side of the stepping stones. While I was there, I fixed some of the stepping stones that had moved out of place – the garden has a sharp slope and they tend to slide downward.

I know it will take a few years, but my hope is that they will fill in those bare spots and add a dash of white to the garden. Just like the David phlox that is blooming right now at the far end of the big garden bed:

Their scent is heavenly.

Should I go back and buy that bedraggled New Dawn rose?

A Storm Right Out of Shakespeare

Rattling Around in My Brain: On Blogging

Coneflower Crazy

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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