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You are here: Home / Archives for life

Walking Over the Hudson River

August 6, 2015 at 9:06 am by Claudia

Yesterday, we took a walk. But this walk was long overdue. We visited the Walkway Over the Hudson. The original vision behind the Walkway, was to take an abandoned railroad bridge and make it into a park, sort of an extension of a rail trail. Money was raised and the bridge, which spans the Hudson from Highland to Poughkeepsie, opened a few years back, as the Walkway Over the Hudson.

It’s glorious.

8-6 walkway

It’s 212 feet tall and 1.28 miles long. It’s the longest elevated pedestrian bridge in the world.

8-6 sign

8-6 midhudsonbridge

That’s the Mid-Hudson bridge to the south.

8-6 marina

A small marina and train tracks. Trains run on both sides of the river. I think these tracks are for freight trains. On the other side of the river, the Metro-North trains run, as well as Amtrak. We’re facing north here.

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Sunlight on the water.

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8-6 lookingsouth

Looking south. If you follow the river in this direction, you’ll end up in New York City. It’s a gorgeous, majestic waterway.

8-6 poughkeepsie

As we get closer to the end of the walkway, we see Poughkeepsie, with Vassar College off in the distance and the train station to the right.

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We watched this boat come down the Hudson and emerge on the other side of the Walkway.

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And now we’re headed back to our end of the Walkway – right back where we started.

It’s so lovely. There are lots of people using the Walkway at any given time; cyclists, dog walkers, tourists, families, joggers. What a treasure!

We’ll definitely be taking advantage of its beauty again. Don said that being on the walkway was the closest thing he could imagine to the feeling he gets walking on a beach. You know, that feeling of your shoulders dropping as you walk near the water.

That’s high praise from a San Diego boy.

Just had a comment from Debbie saying that she and her sister get bit badly by mosquitoes and that the latest theory she heard was they like the AB blood type, which both she and her sister have.

Oh boy. I am also AB. I’m thinking we’ve found our answer.

Happy Thursday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: hiking, life, On The Road 43 Comments

Moving Day, Minis, and a Big Old Thank You

July 19, 2015 at 8:34 am by Claudia

Yesterday was moving day.

Scout, as you know, has arthritis and her hind legs aren’t nearly as strong as they used to be. Much like Riley, she isn’t always steady on her feet, especially when making turns. We spend a lot of time helping her maneuver and picking her up after she’s stumbled. Lately, we’ve been watching her round the corner where the dollhouse is situated in the living room. She often stops and loses her balance, causing her to bump up against the table.

We’d been talking about switching the dollhouse out with the desk in the den. When Don saw the dollhouse swaying yesterday after one of Scout’s encounters with the table, he remarked that it was time. I agreed, as the vision that came to my mind of the dollhouse crashing to the floor wasn’t a pretty one – for either the dollhouse or Scout.

So now I get to look at it from my blogging chair. Not bad. Not bad at all. (I’ll show you a photo tomorrow – it’s rather dark in here in the morning. The den gets the afternoon sun.)

In the meantime, I did a little mini work yesterday.

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I made a little shelf out of some trim I had in my stash and now the mini Roseville pottery has a home.

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I repurposed a table top that had detached itself from its legs (a gift from my friend, Jill) and now it’s a lazy susan.

And a little package arrived from Chautauqua Miniatures.

7-19 planter on balcony

I had planned on buying another one of these white wrought iron planters on my last visit to the shop but forgot all about it, so I ordered it online. Here it is on the upper balcony.

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Also from Chautauqua Minis: a gazing ball. It’s really tiny, so I stuck it in this planter. And I purchased another hanging plant, but you’ll see that when I get around to hanging it, along with the two I already had on hand.

Look what they included in the box:

7-19 chautauqua minis bag

A mini Chautauqua Miniatures bag. Adorable! Hmmm. Now, I’m thinking Caroline needs a dollhouse, if only to validate the presence of that bag in her bedroom.

If you haven’t figured out yet that Caroline is my alter ego, I would be very surprised indeed.

A quick note of thanks. I wrote in the American Miniatures article about blogging and how my explorations online led to my interest in getting my own dollhouse. But something else occurs to me. As I’ve renovated and decorated the dollhouse over these past six years, I’ve shared with you, my readers and friends, photos of the process. The blog has become a timeline of sorts, chronicling every new addition, every new skill learned.

What would I have done without all of you watching and cheering me on? I don’t have a dollhouse/miniature shop nearby. I don’t belong to a miniatures club. Let’s face it, not everyone is into this sort of thing. But I’ve had something precious and dear – all of you. You’ve kept me honest. You’ve kept me on track. When I didn’t post something about the dollhouse for a month or two, you asked about it and I got moving once again.

Thank you so much! It would have been fun to work on the dollhouse no matter what, but it is so much more enjoyable and rewarding sharing it with you. You make the difference.

By the way, several readers have mentioned Pocket Mags as a site where you can view a copy of this month’s American Miniatures. It can be hard to find copies of it in bookstores as I don’t think they carry it. Here’s the link to their site. You can buy a single issue for $5.99.

The winner of a copy of Bum Rap is Annie G. I’ve sent you an email, Annie. Congratulations!

Happy Sunday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

 

 

Filed Under: dollhouse, Don, life, miniatures, Scout 34 Comments

Headline: Two Itinerant Artistes Settle Down in the Country

July 14, 2015 at 8:32 am by Claudia

7-14 coneflowers

It’s the height of the gardening season here in the Northeast. The coneflowers and brown-eyed Susans are opening their pretty petals, the phlox is beginning to bloom – and oh, that scent! – more day lilies are making their presence known. Bees are everywhere, especially in the catmint – a plant they seem to love. All of the hostas, and we have a lot of them, are blooming as well. All in all, a good time to come back home after three weeks away coaching.

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Gol’ darn it! I love my gardens.

We’ve been here almost 10 years. Who’d have thought it? Two itinerant artistes got together and somehow landed here in this too-small-but-charming cottage situated on almost two acres with woods and grass and space for a garden bed or two or three.

This was a dream of mine for as long as I can remember. I always wanted what I termed “a cottage somewhere in the country.” It took me awhile, but I got it. And I wouldn’t trade those years living in apartments in cities, Detroit, Philadelphia, Boston, Cambridge, San Diego, for anything. They’ve shaped me; they’ve given me a strong taste of city life (which I still love) and countless adventures.

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But at this point in our lives, both Don and I find ourselves preferring this  life – this quieter version of life. Being in the Arts, with jobs and opportunities that have taken us all over the country and abroad, has broadened our horizons. Maybe that’s why we appreciate this little cottage and our life here all the more. It’s rooted in our love for each other and our doggie and our love for the simple beauty of nature. (And for eclectic and whimsical decorating.) It’s the culmination of our lives before we met each other and the twenty-one years we’ve been together.

7-14 pinkish daylily

Yesterday, my friends, was a stressful one for me. I had an appointment to have some dental work done (an extraction) and I, being petrified of the dentist, was rather a nervous wreck. Our health care changes every year and the dentist I trust implicitly (and who is quite near our home) was no longer available under our policy. I dithered about it for a while and finally decided to have the work done and pay for it myself. That isn’t the ideal scenario given our tight budget, but going to someone I already know and trust makes what is a scary ordeal for me much less stressful.

So at 10 am, I was in the dentist chair. Don, thank goodness, went with me for moral support and then got my prescriptions filled (which, thankfully, are covered under our health care) and then went back out in the afternoon to buy some soft foods for me to eat. I was on pain meds yesterday, but today I don’t seem to need any, which is a good thing. I’m also on antibiotics for a few days.

I have another appointment in a month or so to deal with another issue. But for now, I can relax.

And maybe work on the dollhouse roof garden.

Don’t forget to read the book review I posted yesterday. I really loved the book and I’m giving away a copy. (I loved it so much that I passed it on to Don, because I think it’s right up his alley. It’s funny.)

Happy Tuesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Filed Under: cottage, flowers, garden, life, Mockingbird Hill Cottage 37 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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