Mom

 Most of the info about Mom's passing got posted on Facebook over the past few days, but in summary, Mom passed away this past Tuesday after a day which saw the visit of her cousins Cloyse and Lyell Drake and their wives.  They offered prayers, and lots of good stories that I hope Mom heard.  Morphine was keeping her comfortable by then.  Later, two of her grandchildren, Maeve, and Wyatt, along with Anne and Rick came to visit, and about an hour or so after they departed, she left us quietly.  Mel, Don, and Cheryl were there.  Her obituary in today's paper, a picture of Mom in the courtyard at Kirkhaven just a few weeks ago, and below - Dad at the elevator from the parking garage at Rochester General Hospital, about two hours before we buried her at Elmwood Cemetery in Perinton, a couple of miles from where she raised her two sons!  I've posted the picture of this elevator before with the reminder to remember which floor you parked on.  I love it when life hands you reminders, suggestions, or just connections between things!

 Many thanks to all the friends and family who have shared their condolences with us, and very special thanks to all the staff at Kirkhaven, and at Independent Living for Seniors, who helped us all through the final days, and through the past few months and years of Mom's dementia. And many thanks to Dad who has taught me many things over the course of my 67 years, mostly by example.  His care and love for Mom has been extraordinary by any standard.  Love, and strength of character are who he is!

And today we are having a 5th birthday party for our granddaughter Maya!  Life is good!

Guest Photographer

 CJ took these pictures

 Great Grandpa Mel above

Grandpa Don below

The photographer at the bottom!

Thanks CJ!

Slow Sex?

My better camera was not with good battery, 

but my phone camera caught this. 

Mating snails.

Detail to the right appears to show one of the connected penises. Each snail is both male and female, and they impregnate each other.

Peeling Paint

 I love these!

Click to embiggen!

An Inspiration To Us All!

This woman was moving right along with her walker. 

 Not sure why she needed it!  

I was thinking the wheels might start smoking!

She is a real inspiration to us all!

It's A Linda!

I'll post a few pictures of our booth at 100 American Craftsmen this weekend later, but first, I want to share these two pictures.  We'll probably be seeing a lot more of these "Farewell Tour" signs over the next few years.  We are all aging, and while we still love making beautiful creative  things, we are finding it harder and harder to haul all this stuff around!  Driving a couple of hundred miles, give or take a few, setting up walls (sometimes a tent too), artfully displaying our work, smiling and talking for 6-10 hours for two or three days, and then packing it all up at the end of the day on Sunday, and usually driving home that night because we really didn't make enough money  to afford another night in a hotel, is getting to be quite hard on us ought to be retired folks!

If you missed getting a wonderful handwoven piece from our friend Linda this weekend, check out her web site --- It's A Linda

And next time you are at a craft show, and see all that grey hair, consider investing in some soon to be unavailable art for your life, or for your friends or family!

T-Ball

Maya takes out the "T" -  leaving the ball totally undisturbed - hanging perfectly in the air right where it was before the swing!

Current show at Genesee Co-op Federal Credit Union - Part 3

 Our show at the Genesee Co-op Federal Credit Union is still up, and  we are gratified at how many of our neighbors have stopped us to say how much they have enjoyed the color and energy of our work!

 They even let us share our politics at the opening, but our famous fund raising handmade campaign buttons are not on display now.  You can contact us directly to get some, and have all the proceeds donated to the campaign!

395 Gregory St, Rochester, NY 14620-1327

Stop by to see the artwork, open an account, and support our neighborhood!  I'm not sure when the show ends, but it is at least a couple of weeks more!

More license plates to ponder

 Assorted license plates spotted over the past few weeks.

 Clicking on the pictures will make them bigger and more readable - most are snapped through the windshield, and aren't in the sharpest focus?

Uncle Chet gives Maya and CJ a ride!

Maya and CJ are big John Deere fans, and after this they are even bigger fans!

Thanks from all to Uncle Chet!

Not sure if Aunt Mary went along to help CJ feel more secure, or if she is just the slightly larger kid in the bunch!  I think it is totally clear that Uncle Chet had more fun that anybody!

Grandma Cheryl's Mother's Day Azalea Bush being delivered!

 Maya and Casey deliver and plant Cheryl's Mother's Day Azalea!

Snapping turtle egg laying season is upon us!

 Above - yesterday's  egg site restored.

 Above and below - another snapping turtle laying her eggs along the bike trail.  Third snapping turtle in two days, and 6th egg site found!  Spring is a busy time!

17 mile ride today, including finding a whole new section of bike trail to use.

More good nature on the bike trail!

 A female snapping turtle digs a hole under the edge of the asphalt bike path to lay her eggs!

 Vacant abandoned hole nearby shown below. 

There were three additional recently dug and re-covered holes within 20 feet of this one.  Gestation is 3-4 months depending on temperatures, etc, so being there when  they hatch will be pretty much impossible, but I'll keep an eye out in September for signs they have emerged!  I suspect that the warmth of the asphalt may hasten their development if it doesn't actually cook  them?

Here is a link to a short video  I took of her digging.. she was in no big rush, and alternated left and right feet.

A day that gives me a good story is a good day!

A great ride on the bike today, and two great stories.  At an intersection in a local park, I noticed a young couple in a bright red pick-up truck.  Look exchanged with the driver as I rode by, and then about a half mile further on, the red pick-up stops as I pass by, and the young man says "Would you take our picture?"  Of course I reply, and they pull up a few yards down the rode, and as they get out, they don leather jackets, and motorcycle helmets!  My response -"Where's the motorcycle?  Are you going to photoshop it in later?"  Their response - "Well, the bike is in the shop.  See that long groove in the grass?  That is where we wiped out on this curve earlier in the week, and we thought it would be nice to have some pictures of us at the site of the accident!"  That is them above - sans helmets - at the far end of  the groove in the grass.  You can see them more clearly if you click on the picture.
Another story on my return home.  The 4 year old neighbor boy comes running over ..... "How far did you go today?"  I tell him 14.8 miles, and he says "WOW!  That almost all the way to St. Louis!"

New designs - Business Card Holders

 We have made business card holders for years, using our signature no glue assembly with spring pins to hold the parts  together.  The decorative elements are of course glued in place.

 These new ones incorporate three of our dance figures as part of the back panel.  The figures are the size of our wooden pins - about 3" tall.

 Below is a detail picture of Don's special spring pin that holds  the card holding section together.

Basic card holders are $20, and pins are also $20, 

We'll try out these new combination pieces at $30

Remember that as always, we can customize these pieces for your organization, business, church, dance school, or whatever!

I'm back on the spring bike rides!

Moments like this make the bike rides special!

Did 12 miles today.... up  to 87 miles so far this spring.

The new metal and plastic hip seems to be working fine!

Current show at Genesee Co-op Federal Credit Union - Part 2

 Some more pictures from our show at the Credit Union.

395 Gregory St. Rochester, NY 14620-1327

Pig Squeak - Bergenia

 This plant grows in my parents front yard.  Some research revealed that the common name is "Pig Squeak".

Naming a plant for the noise it makes seems rather unusual?

I grew up on a farm, so the sound is quite familiar.

Listen to the video/audio below.

Current show at Genesee Co-op Federal Credit Union - Part 1

Sankofa

Nice to have some of our pieces hanging in our neighborhood!

395 Gregory St. Rochester, NY 14620-1327