About two months ago I posted pictures of the barn foundation that was left after our fire.  That Ian was having us clean up anything that we wanted from there because the bulldozer was coming in to clean up the rest of the mess.  It took longer for the men to come than Ian expected but they have been here and the job is done.  The only way that you can tell that there was ever a bunch of barns behind our house is by the grain tower that still stands there and the last bit of rubble that is over the hill in the valley.  The grain tower has been sold and will be taken down and delivered at some time in the near future and the last pile of rubble will be covered when Ian gets some more money to hire the bulldozer one more time.

He started out by the house digging up the cement and pushing it up into piles, little by little pushing them over the bank into the valley below.

Some of those pieces of cement were quite large but the dozer had no trouble.  Each scrape of the tractor was a means of cutting away the old and the remaining memories of that tragic day and leaving in its place a fresh start.

The pieces of cement that were the footer for the milkhouse were the biggest.  When they went over the bank the ground above shook. 

Finally he graded it so that when it rains the water will run away from the buildings and driveways and into the valley.  There is now an open area where the barns once stood.  Ian has since sowed wheat and grass seed there and this morning I notice that the wheat is up.  We have built a fireplace from some of the cement blocks that we salvaged from the barn foundation and there is where we will sit of a cool evening enjoying the warmth of the fire, the company of family and friends, and the view across the valley into the field beyond.

Outside my window......it's dark I can't possibly tell what it is out there.  Beside that I haven't even been outside yet and I don't plan on going out very soon.  But, yesterday it rained enough to make me wish we had plans to build an ark to it is probably wet out which makes me not at all inclined to be out there. 

I am thinking..........too much my friends, too much and to spare my children from the disrespectful quote, "a dangerous pastime, I know"

I am thankful for.........down comforters and warm rice bags in the fall

I am wearing...........jammies, folks, jammies.  I am in my boudoir and therefore that is as much of a glimpse as you are going to get.

I am remembering......not much, at my age you don't remember much and when you do it is a dangerous thing.

I am going.........nowhere and let us keep it that way

I am reading..........Evangelical is not Enough by Thomas Howard.  If you get a chance to read it do.  It is poetry, pure poetry.  It makes your heart and mind soar to heights only imagined.

I am hoping..........in the hope that surpasses all.

From the schoolroom..........silence for now but later there will be great industry and much learning going on.  Matthew has a biology test today so spare him a prayer.

From the kitchen..........hot turkey gravy over rice, maybe a salad, and I think I shall make the first apple pie of the season.  This will of course require a walk down to the neighbor's house to "steal" apples off of their tree.

Around the house...........not a lot to do since we didn't really make much of a mess over the weekend.  I do have to finish the ironing...........or maybe not.

One of my favorite things...........the murmur of voices as the house slowly wakes up for the day.

Here is a picture thought that I am sharing with you...........

Doug helping MK with her chemistry homework before we took her back to school last night.  Two beloved heads bowed together in scholastic endeavor.  It warms even my almost nonexistent heart.

but oh so worth it.  Matthew needed some things for his karate class and I was out of chili powder for the chili.  This means a trip to the store.  But while there I took hubby up on the pedicure offer.  These are some happy feet. 

That was some good bump in my day.  Now on to the chili making and the sewing.

I like Wednesday!  No laundry, no errands, no classes to teach.  Just Matthew and me here at home together getting things done.  The only thing going today is my prayer group at three this afternoon and Mass tonight at seven.  I don't even have to shower this morning if I don't want to. 

To coin an Irish phrase, it's a fine soft day out there, so I guess we will be staying inside today.  I think I will make some bread and a pot of chili.  Then I will sit down to my sewing machines and work on a few unfinished projects.  My wonderful husband kindly adjusted the lighting in my sewing room so now it is as bright as day in there even on a gloomy on such as today. 

Since my spirits are much calmer today than they were yesterday it calls for some restful type music.  How about Andrea Bocelli?  Maybe some Kathleen Battle.  Definitely a little Bryn Terfel thrown in for good measure.

Now a prayer that the Lord goes along with my plans and allows this day to be as restful and as productive as I'd like it to be, then we shall see.

like in really irritable today.  As in PMS irritable even though I do not suffer from PMS.  I am "I need a pep talk" irritable today.  Today is the first day of second grade religion for the year.  I have a class of eager? little ones to teach this afternoon.  It's not the kids that irritate me, it's the parents. 

If you are a Catholic as I am and your really believe in the Real Presence, I mean REALLY believe in the Real Presence, then you don't treat the Eucharist as if it is a right but as if it is a privilege.  A privilege that any human is barely, if at all, worthy to receive.  So it irritates me when the parents of these kids act as if First Holy Communion is the next logical step in their kids lives rather than something momentous that should be prepared for with great care.  Something that should be approached with awe and wonder taking great care that the child understands what they are doing, to the best of their ability, before they undertake to receive Our Lord. 

Instead they behave as if it is all about the pictures, the dress, the cake and the party after it is all over.  Last year one of my student's parent had to be chased down until the child finally made her first Penance the night before First Holy Communion. 

Before I am asked why I do this, it's because I love kids and I love teaching.  If I can touch one of them than I have done my job and done it well.  This is just my usual beginning of the year angst.  Believe me I am no candidate for parent of the year but I come into contact with so many mediocre to down right crummy parents that it sometimes gets my Irish up and I tend to anticipate trouble before it actually happens. 

Prayers for my kids that the Holy Spirit touches their hearts and fills their innocent minds and for their parents that their be enlightened to the awsome responsibility that they have undertaken.  Prayers also that I am patient with both the children and, most importantly, with the adults. 

Suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of God.

Outside my window........the sun is shining and it is a beautiful fall day in upstate New York.  The trees are just beginning to don their fall finery.  There is a nip in the air and the breeze is tinged with the smells of wood smoke, over ripe sunflowers, and chopped corn.    There is even the hint of freshly turned soil as farmers plow fields for winter crops.

I am thinking........I should be writing Matthew's plans for the week instead of spending time on the computer.  Then there is the washer that has finished spinning and is calling to me to empty is and fill it again.

I am thankful for.........this very crisp time of year.  That is the word that I use to describe fall.  The apples are crisp when you bite into them and their taste has a tartness that bites you back.  The air is crisp and it nips at your nose and cheeks whenever you venture outdoors.  The colors are crisp with brights reds, oranges, and yellows.  Nothing pastel about fall here. 

From the schoolroom........there will be much studying and thinking and otherwise learning going on, as soon as I get my rear in gear and get plans written.

From the kitchen.........leftovers and that's the way I planned it.  I need to get caught up on laundry and cleaning after taking a couple of days off last week.

I am wearing.........denim capris, green tee shirt, grey hoodie, and bare feet.  My feet are not looking forward to being confined.

I am creating........order from chaos.

I am going.............nowhere!!!!!!!!!!!

I am reading...........still working on Love and Responsibility.  Told you I was pretending I am smart.  It is a bit more acting than I can muster sometimes.

I am hoping.........to get through all the laundry today so that tomorrow is free.  I start teaching religion classes this week and I need time to plan.

I am hearing........Matthew in the shower, the washer in the washroom spinning out the barn laundry, the clicking and ticking of the coffee maker keeping my brew warm.

Around the house........it is far too quiet after the wonderful noisy people-filled, busy weekend that we just enjoyed.  Life is made for family and people and noise and business and talking and just being together.  None of this quiet and solitude.  I get far too much of that for my liking.

One of my favorite things..........enjoying my family and the chill of the evening around a blazing fire, which is just what we did last evening.  Why can't it last forever?

A few plans for the rest of the week.........the usual plus my second grade class starts tomorrow and my fifth grade class starts thursday.  Have to get Matthew signed up for karate classes too.  Is that enough for one week?  if not I'm sure the Lord will add more as he sees fit.

Here is a picture thought that I am sharing with you..........

The last rose of the season.  I thought that I would take a picture and post it to cheer everyones hearts.

This man is the one against whom all others were measured.  He is the one who taught me what a man should be.  His hard and caloused hands were clothed in velvet.  I have seen this man work until the sweat poured off his head and then turn around and pick up one of us when we were hurt and cradle us as tenderly as any mother would.  I have been not only the object of his love but of his disapproval.  I have known his pride in me and been the cause of his disappointment.  I have pleased him and frustrated him.  I have never lost his love.  His humor is unfailing as is his tenderness and love.  This is my father.

Please pray, anyone of you who prays.  My dad was recently diagnosed with cancer.  I don't pray for healing or a miracle but only that all of us have the strength to discern God's will and to follow it.  In everything else I know that God's will be done.

and neither will I.  But isn't that what adventures are all about. I am country born and bred but that doesn't mean that I can't visit the city and enjoy that too once in awhile.

St. Patrick's Cathedral was breathtaking both for the architecture of the structure and the appointments inside, but also for the silence and peace that I found inside.  The time that I spent on my knees in front of Our Lord in the Lady's Chapel will stay with me for the rest of my life.

Mary and I have similar tastes both in music and art so no trip to the city would be complete without a trip to the Metropolitan Museum.  The special exhibit of Vermeer's art was well worth the trip and the time spent in the city.  Being in the presence of such great works and surrounded by the artifacts of history helps to put my life into perspective and inspires an appreciation of what God has placed in all of us, both talented and not so talented.

Tuesday evening we feasted at the Trattoria Dellarte.  Not only terrific food but great atmosphere and a very unusual feature that was quite the conversation piece.  There were plaster sculptures of body parts displayed throughout the restaurant.  If you get a chance to visit the city go there and see the art.

Carnegie Hall was right across the street from our hotel.  This is an imposing structure and yet it gives off an aura of culture and charm that is almost palpable.

Saks Fifth Avenue.  I don't think that I shall ever be welcome back there.  Not only did I not buy anything there but I flatly, but politely refused the assistance of all of the sales associates who assaulted me when I walked through the door.  Then I was gauche enough to admit that I wasn't there to shop but only to look around so that I could tell folks back home that I had been in Saks.

Our hotel, The Park Central.  Very luxurious!!!! 

I thank my friend Mary and her husband Dan for this wonderful gift.  I truly enjoyed myself.  Not only being in the city but the time spent with Mary to chat and enjoy "grown-up" things without having to cater to our young daughters and make sure of their happiness.  It is the first time in all of our years of being friends that we have ever done anything like this without either Dan and Doug or MK and Therese.

My friend Mary goes to New York City a lot.  She has several doctors that practice there and so has to travel to the city periodically to visit them.  Last weekend on facebook she plaintively posted "Won't anyone meet me in NYC?"  I, being the joker that I am, said that I would meet her there but I wasn't going to be there so I couldn't possibly meet her there.  Well, that little comment got her thinking and here we are in New York City together. 

Yesterday morning bright and early we set off and drove to Albany to catch the train.  From there it is a pleasant train ride along the Hudson river into the city.  We took a taxi to our hotel, left our bags and Mary went to her appointment and I set off to conquer the city.

The taxi dropped me near Rockafeller Center and I was good to go.  Armed with my map of the city and my excellent sense of direction, (okay Doug, you can stop laughing now) I stepped out to explore.  Manhattan will never be the same again.  Every doorman and elevator operator that I encountered is swooning with unrequited love for me.  I have left the city stroon with a string of broken hearts.  Bricker, you ain't the only one to cut a swath!

First, to the top of Rockafeller Center to check out the skyline.  What a view!  I may be a country girl at heart but I can surely appreciate the singular beauty of the cityscape.  Then down to the concourse level to check out the shops.  I am not a shopper but I do enjoy my version of window shopping.  I quickly found a Starbucks and was in coffee heaven.  Next I hit the streets again and found myself outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art store.  I actually did a little shopping in there.  Sorry family those purchases are a surprise.  St. Patrick's Cathedral was just around the corner and I ducked in there to spend a quiet few minutes of peace with the Blessed Sacrament in Our Lady's Chapel.

All along the streets there are restaurants and eateries of every kind and outside of these establishments, as the afternoon wears on, you will find gentlemen dressed in livery waiting to welcome the guests.  There are also liveried doormen outside the many hotels along the streets.  Each one greets you with a smile and a cheery "How's your day?"  For a city that seems so impersonal, the heart of it is very friendly.

Today I am off to Mass at the Cathedral while Mary goes to the dentist then we will spend some quality time with the Metropolitan Museum.