The Brandon Family Blog

Good-Bye Jerry Reed

2008-09-03T06:10:00.000-07:00

Yeah here comes Amos
Now Amos Moses was a Cajun
He lived by himself in the swamp
He hunted alligator for a living
He'd just knock them in the head with a stump
The Louisiana law gonna get you Amos
It ain't legal hunting alligator down in the swamp boy

Now everyone blamed his old man
For making him mean as a snake
When Amos Moses was a boy
His daddy would use him for alligator bait
Tie a rope around his neck and throw him in the swamp
Alligator man in the Louisiana bayou
About forty-five minutes south of Tippitoe Louisiana
Lived a man called Dr. Mills South and his pretty wife Hannah
They raised up a son who could eat his weight in groceries
Named him after a man of the cloth
Called him Amos Moses

Now the folks around south Louisiana
Said Amos was a hell of a man
He could trap the biggest meanest alligator
And he'd just use one hand
That's all he got left cause an alligator bit it
Left arm gone clear up to the elbow

Well the sheriff caught wind that Amos was up in the swamp
Trading alligator skins
So he snuck in the swamp gonna get the boy
But he never came out
Well I wonder where the Louisiana sheriff went to
Well you can sure get lost in the Louisiana bayou
About forty-five minutes south of Tippitoe Louisiana
Lived a cat named Dr. Mills South and his pretty wife Hannah
They raised up a son who could eat his weight in groceries
Named him after a man of the cloth
Called him Amos Moses

I know son
Make it count son
About forty-five minutes south of Tippitoe Louisiana...

What's Up

2008-08-26T06:47:00.000-07:00

Time has flown! Cole and I celebrated our 10th anniversary, Gillian has lost 2 teeth, I've got my milking doe and our herd of dairy goats is almost complete, and the new set of school books is somewhere on the way between Oregon and our home.

The air is getting quite crisp in the mornings, instead of milking Magil in shorts and a tee shirt I had to wear a sweatshirt and jeans this morning. We could see our breath!

Charles and Gillian (and I) were excited to learn that there is another family of homeschoolers quite nearby! When gas went over 3 dollars a gallon we started getting nervous about the long trips to park day. Hopefully we'll be able to make some nice friends closer to home.

Cinquain

2008-04-24T11:15:00.000-07:00

This is the cinquain poem Charles wrote this morning. A cinquain has 5 lines each with a set number of syllables: 2,4,6,8,2.

Bella
Curious goat
Chair jumping little girl
Playful hopping friend to Clara
Short ears.

Kids

2008-04-21T10:55:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd take a moment at lunch to post what the kids are doing... Human & caprine.

Charles is reading under the walnut tree while Bella & Clara graze nearby.

Gillian is in the goat house talking to Gypsy and Traveller.

What a beautiful Monday! Here's a poem...

Little Girl, Be Careful What You Say
by Carl Sandburg

Little girl, be careful what you say
when you make talk with words, words--
for words are made of syllables
and syllables, child, are made of air--
and air is so thin-- air is the breath of God--
air is finer than fire or mist,
finer than moonlight,
finer than spider-webs in the moon,
finer than water-flowers in the morning:
and words are strong, too,
stronger than rocks or steel
stronger than potatoes, corn, fish, cattle,
and soft, too, soft as little pigeon-eggs,
soft as the music of hummingbird wings.
So, little girl, when you speak greetings,
when you tell jokes, make wishes or prayers,
be careful, be careless, be careful,
be what you wish to be.

2008-04-13T08:02:00.000-07:00

A haiku by Charles-

Ankylosaurus
Spiky, armored dinosaur
grazed on grassy plains.

Poetry month is turning out to be pretty fun for the kids. Gillian especially likes clapping out syllables. The kids and I enjoyed talking about the following poem - as summer approaches I vividly remember enduring the same frustration.

Bed in Summer
by Robert Lewis Stevenson

In winter I get up at night And dress by yellow candle-light. In summer, quite the other way, I have to go to bed by day. I have to go to bed and see The birds still hopping on the tree, Or hear the grown-up people’s feet Still going past me in the street. And does it not seem hard to you, When all the sky is clear and blue, And I should like so much to play, To have to go to bed by day?

April Continues...

2008-04-11T09:16:00.000-07:00

THE WORLD IS TOO MUCH WITH US

by: William Wordsworth (1770-1850)

HE world is too much with us: late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not. -- Great God! I'd rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.

9 Years Old!

2008-04-10T10:10:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to Charles!
He turned nine on Monday. The Transformers cake was devoured, the Neoshifters were built in record time and the summer clothes are impatiently awaiting pleasant weather!

National Poetry Month

2008-04-10T09:59:00.000-07:00

We're learning about poetry. Writing it, reading it, trying to understand the rhythms and meanings.

SPRING

by: Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892-1950)

O what purpose, April, do you return again?
Beauty is not enough.
You can no longer quiet me with the redness
Of little leaves opening stickily.
I know what I know.
The sun is hot on my neck as I observe
The spikes of the crocus.
The smell of the earth is good.
It is apparent that there is no death.
But what does that signify?
Not only under ground are the brains of men
Eaten by maggots.
Life in itself
Is nothing,
An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs.
It is not enough that yearly, down this hill,
April
Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers.

Yes yes yes...

2008-03-16T08:20:00.000-07:00

This morning Cole took Sawyer for a ride & he planned to go to the little gas station in Alexis. He asked me the name of the station because he would be writing a check & I told him it's CCC.

Later Charles asked me where Daddy had gone and Gillian piped up "He went to Yes Yes Yes. That's the name of the store isn't it Mommy?"

Can you tell we've been working on our Spanish?

Happy Birthdays!!

2008-03-06T06:04:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to Cole, who turned 32 yesterday, and to Gillian who is 5 years old today!! Here's a picture of the birthday girl...I can not believe she is 5 already!

Sunday was a beautiful day here, lots of sun & the temperature rose to about 70. The snow geese were flying over our yard all day, so you can guess what Cole was doing...
Teaching the next generation.

LOST & The Age of Unreason

2008-02-29T04:43:00.000-08:00

Last night's LOST was very interesting. The kids enjoyed the conversation we had about the bizarre paradoxes that would crop up if one could travel back into time. Charles said it made his brain hurt a little. This Wikipedia article discusses a great deal more than we covered last night, I think it'll be fun for us to delve into over the coming days.

I keep thinking about Cole turning on the television every morning to watch the weather on the local news. He gets so irritated with the other stories we have to endure in the meantime. For example: the Governor wanting to spend millions of dollars to tear down Cole Hall on the NIU campus and put up a new building to replace it, Iowa saying they will continue to allow folks who smoke to light up while they are out on their tractors, the fairly recent mutterings of passing a law against spanking.

I usually leave the news on, a sort of background noise to our morning routine. But more and more often I find the stories so ridiculous or inappropriate for the kids to hear, that I switch it off. Seriously, is the morning news the best place to discuss why Victoria's Secret's ads are too sexy? Or the possible "positive side" of affairs? Or "Is my girlfriend gay?" Or "look what Brit did today & isn't it terrible that the paparazzi won't leave her alone? Here we'll show you the footage!"

This is simply trash. It's verbal and visual spackle, used to fill the cracks between the perpetual replay of video from the latest bombing, shooting or 20 car pile-up. It's broadcast Vicodin, leaving viewers numb and bleary. It doesn't teach anything. It's only worth is in the immense appreciation I've gained for PBS, the History Channel & the Discovery Channel.

awww crap. i think i just broke my soapbox.

In other news (and I promise by news I am not referring to the latest edible facial scrub), I came across the blog for Bill Moyers Journal. A brief selection from his interview with Susan Jacoby caught my attention & I found the other reader's comments very interesting.

I've gotten a bit into the complete transcript, but the children are almost done with breakfast so the rest will have to wait. I think I'll be reading her book, The Age of American Unreason, when I get the chance.

2008-02-18T10:12:00.000-08:00

Rainy Sunday

We've been reading The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare. Now that we are just 3 chapters from the end we've started some projects to make a lapbook covering some of the things we've learned. I'll be posting photos of our lapbook as it progresses.

In chapter 19 we read about a game of bone dice and sticks played by the boys in Attean's village. I'd been reading up on the native people in the area of Maine described in the book and discovered a similar game played by the Penobscot, Micmac, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet. The version of Waltes we've made is played by rules modified for young children.

To brighten an otherwise dreary & miserable day, yesterday Charles and Gillian molded & decorated the clay dice and counting sticks. We've enjoyed playing - they both get an especially big kick out of it when I drop a die and lose my turn.

Below you'll find photos of the kids making the game. To learn how to make your own game of Waltes, visit the Hudson Museum website!

I also wanted to mention that Dad is home and feeling better. He is on increased blood thinner and visiting the hospital every week to have blood work done.

...

2008-02-06T14:58:00.000-08:00

I just received a call from my brother, he had taken my dad to the VA in Iowa City yesterday because he had been having trouble breathing at night (this is not a new complaint - previously they had put him on "water pills" and more recently increased the dose).

They said his heart was a bit enlarged, but sent him home. Apparently they did take some x-rays but didn't review them before sending him home. Today he was called back to the hospital in the snow storm. They gave him a MRI and verified he has a blood clot in his lung.

They have not decided on how to proceed. He is on blood thinners and a number of other meds, which complicate any immediate invasive action.

I just wanted to let you all know & ask you to keep him in your thoughts.

Joyceb

Baby Photos

2008-02-06T07:18:00.000-08:00

This morning we treated Promise to a slice of apple and brought out her babies for pets and pics.
They are so teeny and sweet! 2 Black 1 Sable (maybe seal). The Sable is much more talkative than the other two - lots of little squeaks and grunts when I pick him/her up. At this point Gillian is very eager to name them, but it'll be weeks before we can tell boys from girls. I hate calling them "it."

Happy Birthday!

2008-02-05T12:08:00.000-08:00

Promise, our little tort Jersey Wooly doe, gave birth to a nice little litter of 3 kits this morning. Mother and babies are all looking great. I had been a little worried because her first litter was so difficult, but she came through this delivery like a pro.

Charles & Gillian (and I) are very excited and ready to hold the babies. I think that we'll let Promise settle into motherhood undisturbed for this first day. She deserves the rest.

Little Fisherman

2008-01-29T10:47:00.000-08:00

Charles and Cole took an ice fishing trip on Saturday.
They had a terrific time. Charles caught 3 bass and many bluegill. Cole was so proud of how focused Charles was on the fishing.

Sunday they both spent the day on a goose hunt, but were not as successful. Now there's a little break before the spring turkey season. Cole is looking forward to taking Charles along for that, too!

A Brief Flashback

2008-01-22T15:59:00.000-08:00

New Years 2008!

Here's Cole out in our road on that terribly old & windy Tuesday morning. Without seeing it even I wouldn't have believed it.

Pheasant

2008-01-20T09:45:00.001-08:00

You can see why Cole & I were so excited about this bird! Cole went out last night to pick him up from the taxidermist. We had a hard time finding just the right spot for him because he's so big. He's hanging between the Southern windows in our dining room. It makes me feel like I'm walking into a museum when I see him up on the wall.

Photographs really do no justice to the amazing colors and iridescence of the feathers. Beautiful bird.

Sorry

2008-01-18T10:50:00.000-08:00

This poor blog is as neglected as our garden come September! I really have let it go. But I promise to try harder to post here more often.

I've been kinda avoiding blogger since I put aside painting during our increasingly busy "school" days. It takes me a long time to "do" a painting - from the sketching to the application of color to the varnishing - weeks. Plus it's a rather solitary activity & I haven't had the opportunity to spend even relatively small chunks of time alone with my thoughts. So I've felt like a little less than myself - being not able to create much for myself.

But recently I came across some information about antique and vintage cloth dolls. SO Gillian and I rummaged around in my cloth stash and she selected the fabric she wanted for the doll and the embroidery floss colors for the hair and eyes. It took a couple of afternoons and I had the doll all together. The hair is not the best, but it was my first try, and her first outfit is still in the making. But Gillian is pleased and has dubbed her doll "Jupiter."

Last Saturday we bundled Charles up and Cole donned his hunting gear and they headed out just after 4Am for Charles' first goose hunt. Since he's only 8, he has not yet had his required hunter's ed course. So he didn't have a gun, but he still had a great time. Cole said he was very excited at all the flocks of geese & surprised at how loud they were.

Charles said his favorite part was the "doofus goose." Apparently there was a solo bird flying back and forth between their blind and another fellow's about a quarter mile over. The bird seemed to be looking down at them & flying rather slowly, but none of the shots from either blind hit him, and he repeatedly passed from one to the other. He was high enough to be out of range, perhaps he knew it.... But Charles is pretty sure he had a smaller than average "Bird Brain." The Doofus Goose eventually flew slowly off, leaving the boys both frustrated and amused. Charles is very eager to get out and hunt with his daddy again as soon as possible.

Tuesday the kids and I accompanied a group of local homeschoolers on a visit to the Putnam Museum for a Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit. A number of the displayed inventions were made especially for the children to handle. We later joined a few families who stayed to wander through the rest of the museum and see the permanent exhibits. It was a wonderful day.

Cole is spending the weekend taking advantage of the final deer season. We really want to get one more to restock the freezer. It's hard to describe exactly how much his overall health has improved since we've started eating primarily game. He had been having a lot of pain in the joints of his feet and his stomach was always painful. Now he rarely complains of either!

He's repeatedly said he doesn't want to go back to the pork and beef from the store. He thinks it is the lower fat content of the venison, goose, pheasant, rabbit, fresh eggs, etc... I think it's that and a bit more... I can't help wondering about all the medications that are given to livestock to keep them healthy - not so with wild game, nor our rabbits & chickens. But that's my little paranoid thing.

So. I think that's good enough for today.

Homeschool field trip!

2007-10-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

Last week we took a trip to the Buffalo Pumpkin Patch in Iowa - but I forgot to bring my Camera! This week we went to the Niabi Zoo and I made sure to bring it. There were 8 families and over 20 children - we had a ball...

wild

2007-09-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

(a little back story- As a senior in high school I remember reading a magazine article about a young man who walked off into the Alaskan wilderness with little more than a rifle and a bag of rice. I'd occasionally thought about the guy, wondered if he were crazy, wondered what it must have been like, wondered how he came to that place where his life ended.

Then this week on Charlie Rose there was an interview of Sean Penn & Eddie Vedder - I was only half listening while getting Charles settled with his reading assignment for the day when I heard mention of the name "Alexander Supertramp" and I was startled to recognize the name. I listened to the interview and that night hunted around for more information on the boy and his journey. I ended up picking up the account of his life and reading it in just a few hours....)

I finished "Into the Wild" yesterday. It's one of those stories that needs time to digest. I've read a number of reviews of the movie - but most are really opinions on the character of a dead boy. I suppose I will be no different.

I think that the author of the book was very tangled up with his personal sense of empathy for Chris. I also think that there isn't any way to hear the stories of the people who "knew Alex" and to have the slightest familiarity with that desire to just get the hell out - and not feel some connection. It was a quietly forceful tale. I don't think I can say it was enjoyable - no account of death is. But, since briefly reading the article almost 15 years ago stayed with me, I am certain this will be one of those things that I mull over in the small hours of the morning for many, many years to come.

During the Penn/Vedder interview one of them said the audience is basically either going to love or hate Chris. The author said he received so many letters after the Outdoor article back in 93 that just bashed the kid for his stupidity and selfishness. I have to wonder exactly how far these people have removed themselves from their youthful ideals (or if they had any) and brash decisions made without any experience to back them. I can't believe that desire to walk off into the world and recreate oneself is a rarity among the 16-25 year old kids. It certainly held an attraction for me. It's just the acting on that idea that is uncommon.

Chris decided how he wanted to live and took a leap that, in the end, killed him. But look at the world he experienced that hardly a fraction of the rest of us ever will.

We all make choices (and mistakes) that could kill us: smoking, drinking, speeding, the jobs we do, the hours we work, the people we associate with, the food we eat, running a red light, and so on ad infinitum. So it could take a little longer to kill us, or it could be instantaneous. What joy do they add to our lives? Do these choices nourish our souls? Are we condemned as selfish fools?

He crammed a lot of life into what he had. He accomplished feats of the will & flesh that few others could claim. If instead he had shoved the desire to see & do down into his guts and just existed the remaining years of his life in the way society approves of - would that have been better? And for whom?

His youthful freedom from responsibility gave him that brief opportunity to follow his heart. He took it.

Into The Wild

2007-09-26T15:27:00.000-07:00

I picked this book up today after the homeschooler's park date. I'm being blackmailed to leave the pc by Cole who is threatening to make the kids pick up if I don't go outside this instant and shoot the bow.

I'll tell you more about the story behind the book & my interest in it. Later.

Into The Wild

My Five

2007-09-19T16:13:00.000-07:00

Five shots. Twenty Yards. One dead deer.

It looks like only 4 arrows, but it's five.

This is a photo from where I stood with the bow.
Charles told me... "Just think - this could be a real deer soon!"

When I said I might be too nervous when faced with the real thing he told me to just pretend it's the target. Then I won't have to be nervous. I hope it's that easy. But I doubt it!

A Funny

2007-09-17T16:28:00.000-07:00

My mother, father, brother & I tend to enjoy exchanging smart a$$ comments when we get together. Sometimes it's like a game to see which of us can get the others to laugh, sometimes it's more like trying to see how long we can keep the ball rolling.

Well - it seems that Charles has inherited this "talent" - he had me laughing till I almost cried last night!

Cole and I had watched a movie and afterward we got into a discussion of time travel and it's confounding contradictions. As my brain slowly twisted into a pretzel Cole quipped "All roads lead to Rome!" So I responded "But, you can't get there from here!"

Later, as I tucked the kids in, I asked Charles:

"Is there anywhere in the world you can't get to from here?"
Charles thought for a bit.... "Antarctica?"
"But people have been to Antarctica."
"Not from here!"
"Alright, Charles. Can you think of anywhere, anywhere, that you can't get to from here?"
Again he thought silently for a moment. Then he grinned and replied...

"Uranus?"

I Cracked completely up!

Still Here!

2007-08-26T08:17:00.000-07:00

The past few weeks have flown by! Hot hot days filled with preparing for the switch to third grade level work for Charles, our 9th wedding anniversary, my 32nd birthday, park days, slumber parties, and all the regular chores. WHEW!

I received an email from an old friend today and it contained a story she wanted to pass on to me. It brought me to tears & couldn't have come at a better time.

...I think I should add that I believe the story applies to Fathers who go out and break their backs at thankless jobs to create a better future for their families as well...

******************

I'm invisible.

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.

She's going she's going . she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was
hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when
Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this."

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it."

And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become." At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That
would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, MOM

******************

Ohhh... Look what I found!

2007-08-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

Were we really that young!? I just love these pictures - they give me the giggles...

Recall

2007-08-07T05:33:00.000-07:00

I had a freak out moment this morning - ABC news had a segment about Mattel toy recalls (lead paint) & they flashed a few images of Dora the Explorer figures. Gillian has a nice collection of Dora toys, including the talking doll house.

I visited the Mattel site for more information and discovered that we'd purchased the toys before the recall. If your child, or a child you know, plays with Dora the Explorer, Sesame Street or Go Diego toys - please take a moment to check this list of recalled toys.

2 Things

2007-08-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

1... I started looking for a good, simple tomato sauce recipe & came across this blog:

Hedonia

And instead of looking up their sauce recipe I became enthralled with the "eatsdropper" posts. These are overheard conversations/comments that are bizarre or just jaw-dropping ignorant. I loved it! I was giggling until I came across the eatsdroppings (eeww - that sounds nasty) from 7/10. I laughed out loud at the final overheard comment (and the comments from visitors who have also read that post).

Of course I had to try it... But mine smell like dirty grass. HA HA!! Now you are going to have to click the link to find out what the hell I'm talking about.

2. Yesterday evening Cliff called to see what was up & ask if we were being swarmed by dragonflies. At the time Cole was just finishing up with mowing and the air was filled only with the relentless chirping of a variety of birds. But within half an hour of shutting off the mower the dragonflies appeared.

There were hundreds of huge dragonflies - swooping high and low over the yard. They were eating the little bugs rising out of the bean fields & fresh cut grass. The kids and I walked out into the swarm & we could hear the dry rattle of the mid air collisions of dragonflies. It was amazing! I took a few pictures and in the first one I highlighted the visible bugs in the air (the ones low enough to be on a backdrop of grass weren't visible in the photos) they only give a vague idea of how many insects were filling our yard.

1 in 5 Appear to be Favorites...

2007-07-19T18:40:00.000-07:00

Seems like I often hear a song and feel inclined to say "Oh, that's my favorite!"

I'm not really exaggerating... I love lots of songs! Here's one I heard recently (and again on a very cool Jeep commercial tonight) that I've always loved :)

Sunshine

Jonathan Edwards

Sunshine go away today, I don't feel much like dancin'

Some man's gone, he's tried to run my life

Don't know what he's askin'

He tells me I'd better get in line

Can't hear what he's sayin'

When I grow up, I'm gonna make it mine

These ain't dues I been payin'

How much does it cost?

I'll buy it.

The time is all we've lost.

I'll try it.

He can't even run his own life,

I'll be damned if he'll run mine

*Sunshine*

Sunshine go away today,

I don't feel much like dancin'

Some man's gone, he's tried to run my life

Don't know what he's askin'

Working starts to make me wonder where

fruits of what I do are going

He says in love and war all is fair

He's got cards he ain't showin'

How much does it cost?

I'll buy it.

The time is all we've lost.

I'll try it.

He can't even run his own life,

I'll be damned if he'll run mine

*Sunshine*

Sunshine come on back another day

I promise you I'll be singin'

This old world she's gonna turn around

brand new bells'll be ringin'

Odd Egg

2007-07-14T09:20:00.000-07:00

One of our hens must have held on to this one a little too long... It's the lumpiest, wrinkliest egg I've ever seen - and I've seen some strange eggs!

2007-07-07T17:24:00.000-07:00

... --- ...

The 777 concerts are on. Click the link above to learn more.

2007-07-06T17:20:00.001-07:00

Give it a minute... Maybe it'll work...

2007-07-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

Look what Cole found for the kids...

It's a pretty little bright green, baby praying mantis. The kids are so excited... they've got a nice big jar all decked out for him (her?) and have already captured a fly for it's dinner.

Hopefully it will settle into it's temporary home and the kids will get to enjoy watching as it grows for awhile. Good thing Daddy's got the hawk-eye!

Basher is Done!

2007-07-03T16:36:00.000-07:00

How many times did the Batmobile catch a flat?

2007-06-05T04:19:00.000-07:00

What a day I had yesterday! Went to Galesburg to deliver a couple of bunnies - took a bunch of back roads because the road I usually take was closed (no signs till I was already reaching the dead center of just about nowhere) and it poured down rain till I could hardly see out the windshield. As soon as I hit the city limits the rain stopped instantly and the sun blazed.

On the way back I decided to avoid trying to remember my way back through the maze of dark & twisty gravel roads I'd taken and instead started along on the highway to Monmouth. I was boppin' along at 65 and a few folks passed me up and along came a little black ranger on my left and they honk... I look over and a very worried red-headed fellow points at my left front tire and yells "You've got a FLAT!!"

I pulled over and they pulled in ahead of me. They couldn't believe I hadn't heard/felt something wrong... But there was no funny sound or sudden change in stearing, nothing - I even had my window about halfway down.

All I could think was that when I'd come up the on-ramp and merged I'd hit a pothole - but I couldn't believe that the car had driven along just like normal. That tire was flat as a pancake!

Anyhow... There were two men in the truck, they had just gotten off work, and they stayed to change my tire & put the little "spare" on and even drove behind me to Monmouth to make sure I made it all right. I was sorry that they didn't follow all the way to Farm King... I wanted to buy those guys a case of beer! They didn't have to do more than tell me I had a flat & go on their way. Instead they took the time to help a stranger out on the side of a busy highway.

Most days I wonder sadly at the human capacity for cruelty and indifference. Then someone surprises me with the fact that I too easliy forget - that each kindness brings it's own brilliant spark of hope.

Prehistoric

2007-05-23T20:24:00.000-07:00

Why do I love them? Here's a thousand words... and then some.

The Story

2007-05-23T16:28:00.000-07:00

Ok. I am addicted to this CD. I generally burn my own because I find that half of the songs on the average albums are not to my liking & I end up constantly skipping through the tracks to find my favorites. But I downloaded this Brandi Carlile CD in it's entirety from Napster (only a few hours on our speeeeedy dial-up) and I haven't listened to anything else since.

I love "The Story" & "Turpentine" & "Wasted" & "Have You Ever" (which makes me think of Cole out wandering the hills) & "Until I Die" and "Downpour"... OK I love all the songs. Unheard of! And to top it off Cole listened to part of it last night and didn't roll his eyes or talk over it. Really.

So here are the lyrics to one of my top favorites from the album, its a waltz - so read the lyrics with a sing-song rhythm. When I hear this track I picture drifting gently down the river. So melancholic. The lyrics are great - but to hear the song brings chills.

"Cannonball"

I was born when I met you

Now I'm dying to forget you

And that is what I know

Though I dreamed I would fall

Like a wounded cannonball

Sinking down with my heart in tow

Bright lights like white lightning

Who shot me down

Who'll cut me down

I'm frozen in my bed till the day comes around

How I'm lost

How I'm found

There's a man all alone

Telling me his friends are gone

That they've died and flown away

So I told him he was wrong

That your friends are never gone

If you look to the sky and pray

Bright lights like white lightning

Who shot me down

Who'll cut me down

I'm frozen in my bed till the day comes around

How I'm lost

How I'm found

Someone told me a lie

Someone looked me in the eye

And said time will ease your pain

But behold, when you fall

It's that same old cannonball

Coming back for your heart again

Bright lights like white lightning

Who shot me down

Who'll cut me down

I'm frozen in my bed till the day comes around

And it may come around

Until the day comes around

How I'm lost

How I'm found

I was born when I met you

Now I'm dying to forget you

And that is what I know

---

Hunting for a Fresh Meal

2007-05-23T07:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, while on the phone with Dale, I glanced out the kitchen window and saw this fellow...

A Big Bull Snake

I bet if I'd grabbed him by the tail he would be as long as Gillian is tall. Don't get me wrong - I like snakes, had a ball python as a pet in college - but somehow this guy gave me the impression he wasn't interested in physical contact. He occasionally rattled his tail in the dry grass in an effort to scare us off and I'm getting a distinctly dirty look from him in that last photo.

Anyhow - Charles & Gillian were very excited to see such a big snake slithering through the yard. I was very happy to know our little week old kits were safe upstairs and not filling this guy's belly!

5th Season Tom

2007-05-10T13:12:00.000-07:00

He's a beauty! 24 pounds & an 11 inch beard - all plucked and soaking for tomorrow's supper. Here are some photos of the hunter with his prize...

What a Reader!

2007-05-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

A man doesn't learn to understand anything unless he loves it. - von Goethe

I am so pleased - Charles had discovered the true love of reading!

I'd brought home the first 3 books in a series by Tony Abbott, called "the Secrets of Droon" Previously I'd been having him focus on reading the Magic Treehouse series as part of our history studies... 2 chapters a day, discussion after, and he didn't really want to.

Well, I'd started out last week with the 2 chapters a day schedule on the first book of this new series "The Hidden Stairs & the Magic Carpet." After the first couple of days he seemed less reluctant to start his daily reading. Then this Monday I had him start the morning with the first two chapters of the second book "Journey to the Volcano Palace."

Yesterday he read chapters 3&4 aloud to Gillian in the morning and announced during our little picnic lunch that he wanted to read more in the book and get ahead on Wednesday's reading. Instead of reading just a bit he kept right on going! He finished the whole book - 10 chapters in just over a day!

To top it off he wanted to start the third book last night just before bed. So he read a couple of chapters in "The Mysterious Island." This morning he dove right back in - before even having breakfast. He just came in as I started this post to let me know he'd finished the book. Looks like I'll need to stock up on more next time. Luckily there are 30 books in the series & 4 special editions.

I am so excited! Here's what Charles will be reading next...

Beautiful Spring Days

2007-05-08T05:41:00.000-07:00

Woke early this morning to a beautiful mist hanging over the fields and bottom land. The fog made for an amazing sunrise & Cole really (really) did not want to head off for work. He's taking Thursday & Friday for the last days of turkey hunting.

We've enjoyed the warm spring weather over the last few days. The garden is completely in the ground now - the potatoes & yellow onions are off to a great start.

Our little "meat bunnies" are getting fat fast. Gillian loves holding the little girl, but says the boy is too "kicky." Charles is taking on more chores, helping to feed and water the doves, feeding the chickens and making sure there is always water in the rabbits' crocks.

Yet another of the joys of living in the country... offering our children the opportunity to learn compassion & empathy by caring for other living creatures. I think Charles and Gillian are developing an understanding that though some of our animals will become our food they are no less worthy of kindness and proper care.

Speaking of kids & animals... Cole called the kids outside late Sunday night to see the first tree frog of the spring, I was busy with work in the kitchen and missed it. But - yesterday he reappeared and even posed for a picture!

Lewis & Clark

2007-04-30T16:06:00.000-07:00

Guess which little kids are excited about a little fishing in the creek? Charles & Gillian are looking forward to playing down at Bill's "recreation area" this weekend. They had to make sure the canoe was seaworthy!

Quite a Tom

2007-04-29T07:01:00.000-07:00

Cliff took his first tom this morning. Cole photographed it and later Cliff & Jen stopped by so I was able to see it in person. What an amazing bird. Photos are great, but they really do not do justice to the size of these wild turkeys & the beautiful colors in their plumage.

"Shotguns? Shotguns?! He doan need no stinkin' Shotgun."

2007-04-23T16:41:00.000-07:00

Cole's been out practicing with his bow most of the evening. He says it's time to take it up a notch. He's seriously considering using his bow for his turkey hunt in the 5th season. He'd been practicing with a paper target taped to the bales & today decided to use a more expendable turkey decoy to practice with. Here's his pattern from 20 yards.

In other news... We took photos of all the baby bunnies this afternoon and updated the rabbitry blog. Charles finished another magic treehouse book today (Tonight on the Titanic) and is plugging along on his mathematics. Gillian tried to turn into the world's most wrinkly prune of a child in the bath & Joe is blowing HUGE wads of fur every where he lays. That's our day!

New Blog, 80th Birthday, Yesterday's Turkeys & A Big Red Ribbon

2007-04-22T05:49:00.000-07:00

I finally realized that my personal art blog is being over-run by more family related posts... Enter "The Brandon Family Blog" Please feel free to visit often, we always have something going on.

This weekend has been especially busy for us. On Friday my father celebrated his 80th birthday with a nice party - the house was full of family and laughter. We had a great time!

The Beautiful Cake (Thank you Aunt Carol!)

Aunt Violet, Aunt Carol, Charles, Dad & Gillian

(l -r) Cole, Charles, Aunt Violet, Suzie, Dad, Gillian, Aunt Carol, Tim, Patty, Carrie, Patty's husband, Zane, Annah, Sally, Jessie, Alyssa, Paul, & Danny

Saturday morning Cole, Gillian & I (Charles spent the night at Dad's house) woke at 3:45 am to get ready for a big day. Cole was headed out to hunt & Gillian & I were off to a rabbit show in Amana.

By Saturday afternoon we all arrived home successful. Cole had taken a nice turkey, cleaned it & even managed to mow the yard by the time I arrived with the kids, a red second place ribbon & two new little bunnies. Plus our neighbor, Bill, came by with his prize bird - Cole said he felt a little green - it was a huge tom.

Cole's TurkeyBill & His Turkey

Whew! What a weekend - and only half over... I'll be cooking a big bird tonight! - JoyceB