Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Cletus and Earl


 Cletus in a serious pose..he's a silly boy:)

Mostly pics of Cletus, Earl is always too busy to stop long enough to snap a good picture of him
They are litter mates..Cletus has the harness, Earl chews his off every time I leave it on-

 double trouble in my garden of weeds and morning glories

disclaimer:  This blog contains no substance or anything even remotely interesting or educational

Monday, August 30, 2010

Chestnuts!

The Chestnut trees in the Ceredo Park are loaded with chestnut burrs!
  So many, the branches are nearly on the ground.  
All I can say is the squirrels better be watching these ripen as closely as I will watch them.
Not sure if this is an American or Chinese Chestnut...either way, Yum!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

I won!

I randomly enter giveaways on blogs I read, never ever thinking I will win- but I did!
Jackie from Canton Village Quilt Works was having a fantastic Accuquilt GO! giveaway, and I was the lucky winner!!
If you are a quilter, this is a very  precise way to cut your block shapes from your fabric.  There are so many dies (cutters) that one can add to the system - the possibilities are endless! 
I can't believe I won...Thanks Jackie! and Thanks Accuquilt!

Saturday, August 28, 2010

The Old Bank Building

This sad building was once the proud home of the First Bank of  Ceredo,
Pictures of it one hundred years ago show the large windows and brick and stone work that is now either boarded up or is in disrepair.
A couple of interesting facts- It is reported that the bank was robbed by Jesse James, which is possible, since it is situated near the Midland Trail, a heavily traveled thru-way during that time.
It has been converted into apartments for many years, and the vault serves as a bedroom!  The door was removed and the walls covered in plaster.

I can see a portion of the back of the building from my porch...and am always wondering why such a large building was constructed just for a bank!  It had to have been grand and held in high esteem by the citizens of our fair town.
Corner of Main Street and B street
Ceredo, WV

Friday, August 27, 2010

MY Sky Friday

Blogger is wonky this evening...so instead of the post I had planned, this picture I snapped out the van window  is my blog for the day:) 

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

The Cicada are Calling

 From my front porch:
 The molted exoskeleton of an immature Cicada
It is fascinating, or at least it is for me, to watch these big ugly bugs hatch. The grubs live in the soil for several years until they emerge looking like this!
Taking several hours during the night, the Cicada emerges from this nymph as a beautiful soft shimmering insect.  The outer shell hardens over the next few hours, the wings open and become larger and larger, their huge eyes develop, and the Cicada turn into a giant flying noisy aggravating BUG!

According to Wikipedia "Cicadas like heat and do their most spirited singing during the hotter hours of a summer day. Although only males produce the cicadas' distinctive sound, both sexes have tympana, which are membranous structures used to detect sounds and thus the cicadas' equivalent of ears. Males can disable their own tympana while calling".
Which is probably a good thing for him or he would go deaf while creating his loud song.
The Cicada are so loud in the evenings we can't hold a normal conversation while sitting on the porch!
When I was younger, we called these Jar Flies, I guess because of the 'jarring' sounds they make?!?
The line of nymphs reminds me of a herd of elephants trying to climb a mountain!  
My yard is littered with the empty exoskeletons, but the ones on this tree limb are the most noticeable...Cicada are also called the 17 year Locust.
  Last year was an 'official' year, but I guess these didn't get the memo:)

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Vintage Tuesday

This beautiful car was driven to work today!
The owner, Mr. Gene Adkins, is a dispatcher for the Ceredo Police Department.  He drove his pristine all-original 1930 Model A Ford and parked it along the curb with the regular mundane cars, police cruisers and city vehicles.
 Can you imagine riding in the rumble seat, with your hair blowing in the wind?  
  This car had to have been just as big a head-turner in the 30's as it is today!
Loving the window shade in the back window:)

Monday, August 23, 2010

River Monday

Tug pushing empty barges turning off the Ohio River and starting up the Big Sandy River
It was a very hot and hazy day
One can see two states here, although there are three at this point, only separated by water.
I'm in West Virginia,  the hazy shore across the river belongs to Ohio, and to the left (behind the tree) across the Big Sandy is Kentucky.
So...the clever name of this town is Kenova.  Ken-O-va..get it? :))

Saturday, August 21, 2010

At the Fair

Beautiful Horses

Photos by Brandon Kitts
Boyd County Fair
Coalton, Kentucky

My panic and anxiety attacks are haunting me- many thanks, Brandon,  for the use of your photos

Friday, August 20, 2010

A bird in the bush


This gorgeous male Baltimore or Golden Oriole (Icterus galbula) After looking at these two birds on Wikipedia, I know Noe Noe is right, this is a Golden Finch, and he is still a bright splash of color as he lands on the Rudbeckia sp. to feed on the seeds. 
I've tried to get a picture of this fella so many times, and he finally landed here long enough for me to take his picture!
He eats small seeds so maybe a feeder full of thistle seed will keep him around this winter.
Sorry about bird pictures 2 days in a row...I do enjoy watching the birds!
Never know, it might be a 'possum pic tomorrow:)
Thanks, NoeNoe!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Broken Wing

The poor pigeon has a broken wing. 
He has been walking around for a few days, and has now taken refuge on the landing of our next door neighbor's staircase. 
He hops from step to step with ease.
  I feel sorry for him and have been putting a little corn on the ground for him/her? to eat.
Please don't tell the neighbors!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Monday, August 16, 2010

Vintage Tuesday

Original hinge and door circa 1886
First Congregational Church of Ceredo
First Street West & Route 60

Water Fun with Firetrucks!

A local church has a youth event "Nic at Night" every Sunday evening on a nearby football field.  
(The football field is/was part of  C-K High School, which was closed due to consolidation...a.sad but true story I'll save for another time.)  
With the heat index and impending start of school, the youth group leaders planned a fun evening with water!  
A huge tarp was spread, colorful flags and buckets were placed, teams were formed, and it was time for fun, fun, fun!  
Not content with regular water hoses, the volunteer Fire Departments were asked to help.

Ceredo brought the tanker truck

Kenova brought their huge ladder truck...to lift that water up into the air as far as possible

There were well over 100 teens and children in attendance-
The leader said "Let the Games Begin!"    
The water began to flow....
The above picture is deceiving,  the spray covers a BIG area! 
Every person was soaked and had so much fun!  
The next pic shows how far the spray reaches..it really helped made a great event. 
We thoroughly enjoyed watching and listening to the kids have a good CLEAN time!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

The Train Station

My son and I went on a little adventure yesterday, driving out through the countryside, over winding narrow roads that made their way up and down the hills. It was a wonderful drive,  the heat made the hills look hazy and soft, we saw wildlife, many old farms, cows, and lots of rolls of hay.  So many lovely photo opportunities, but such a horribly hot day, and not many places to pull off the narrow roads.
  Did I take pictures? Yes, but not until we were back in the neighboring town, Catlettsburg Kentucky, just across the river!  
This train station was renovated and converted into a museum several years ago,  but the caboose and signal lights are recent additions.  One man took the job of re-doing the caboose, and has done wonders, even adding air conditioning.
The freshly painted caboose is in delightful contrast with the rusty undercarriage. 
It was fun to see this area being  refreshed with old things-I see so much value in saving these irreplaceable pieces of history.





Friday, August 13, 2010

Hearts and Roses

Heart-shaped leaves and roses!
The morning glories are outdoing themselves this year.
I know most think of them as weeds, but I like them and they do a great job covering my fence,
The roses are newly planted in my neighbor's yard - nice first blooms!

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Random Thursday

Very hot today with humidity so high that it turned to heavy rain this afternoon...at least that is what I think brought the rain!

Some random photos from Dreamland Pool...it cools me just to see the water.  My hubs has serious back problems, so he went swimming.  He said it was just like floating around in a big bath tub.  His back pain was much less last night.  Maybe we need to move to a house with a pool-or even better- near the ocean.  I'd like an Ocean Front Condo, please:)

The first pic is of the picnic shelter
The second are the steps that used to lead up into the grand building that was once there.
The third is of a lifeguard chair.