Monthly Archives: May 2009

What's New on the Horizon

Posted on May 31, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
I think that it is true that no matter what state—or for that matter country—you call home, the horizon has been changed to include that of wind turbines. As I recently drove down the highway en route to my grandparents’ home some 100 miles away, I couldn’t help but think of how far I have come in the debate.
In 2005, when I first noticed the turbines going up along this road, I found myself irritated by those “eyesores” disrupting my daydreams, and wondering why they couldn’t find somewhere less visible to place them. I hated having my scenic views disrupted by “progress.” I liked being able to look out the car window and envision the buffalo running wild, mustangs running free and Indians sitting up on the cliff line. I could see them there, in my mind’s eye, and be lost in the stories they told. But it was a little harder with those turbines standing there shouting, “Hey, there is something new on the horizon.”

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Transplants

Posted on May 27, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
In the 25 years that my husband and I have been married, we have moved several times. I, being the more adventurous one, wasn’t as stressed by the changes as he was. I saw each adventure as an opportunity to usher in new things, new people and new experiences…blooming where I was planted. I could always hit the ground running, embracing the new venue in which to learn and laugh and love. My husband, on the other hand, warms up more slowly to change, to new people and new experiences. His family roots are dug in deep and uprooting them in any way always brought a time of adjustment for him. I have stated many times in our life together that he is my roots and I am his wings.

Chores!

Posted on May 26, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
Chores
Why is getting to the post office such a chore? I hate it. I would rather do almost any other chore then go to the post office. I would rather do the dishes, mop the floor, and even scrub the toilets before making my way to that building. The one thing that I miss the most about working in a downtown office is being able to put the envelope in the outgoing mail bin and knowing it would magically leave. Poof, gone. I loved that!
It isn’t that I don’t like the people there—I do. We have the nicest folks that work in our local post office. They are fun, funny, and witty. And I always seem to run into someone from the community that I haven’t seen in awhile and have a lovely conversation that enriches my day. The building itself is quite lovely and historical, too. I rarely have to wait in line for too long. So what is the deal?

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Life Scapes I

Posted on May 25, 2009 by City Farmgirl Rebekah Teal
There are two postings to this. Life Scapes I. And Life Scapes II. I don’t know which one will pop up first, so just to let you know: there are 2. 
I got to church earlier than usual on Sunday. I sat there in peace and quiet contentment.
Soon I heard a family coming down the aisle beside me. They scooted into the pew in front of me.
I looked up from my solitude.
It was a white-haired woman. Her husband, with matching white hair, had taken his seat beside her. They had two grown-up sons with them. One son had on blue jeans. The other had on dress blues.

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Life Scapes II

Posted on May 25, 2009 by City Farmgirl Rebekah Teal

Here’s Life Scapes II. Life Scapes I is in a separate post, either before or after this one.

Life Scapes II is altogether different. Light, breezey, airy. No choking up. Maybe they’ll be a Life Scapes III too. Who knows? 

I’ve decided that life just doesn’t get any better than this.
I touted the grandness of ramps in my last post, right? How I wanted to be the Ramps Queen?
Well, the end to ramp season arrived. (Their season is far too short for me.) As I ate the last of my ramps, I savored every last tasty bitey-bite. It will be next year before ramps come back. But, don’t you worry. I’ll be wearing my crown all year long.
But before I had time to even contemplate the end of ramp season, what did I notice? Before my breath could recover from the “ramp breath” of recent weeks, what did I find? Right in my garlic patch?

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Country Roads

Posted on May 20, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
Traveling down old country roads is magical. It has been a favorite past time of mine for as long as I can recall. I have discovered some of the most beautiful, fun and wacky things down those country roads, most of which I have returned to time and time again.

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When We Know Better

Posted on May 14, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
When we know better, we do better. Or do we? That statement is often true in my life, yet sometimes when I know better, I just know better. My knowing doesn’t always lead to immediate action. Sometimes, everything in me applauds the newly adopted philosophy, but it’s as if tie-downs keep me from jumping into action.

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I Was Country, When Country Wasn't Cool

Posted on May 11, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]

I was country…when country wasn’t cool…

If I had to choose one song that epitomizes me this would have to be it. Barbara Mandrel’s, “I was country”. (That or “Redneck Woman,” but that’s another post.) I wasn’t really one of the cool kids during high school, although since there were a total of 100 kids in K-12, I don’t know that we really had such a distinction. I had then, like I have now, a very eclectic group of friends, as eclectic as you can get in a small Eastern Washington town in the 1970s (late ’70s), when half the town was family.

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Life's Soundtrack

Posted on May 8, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]

Where does the music come from?

As you walk down memory’s trail?

Each word, each phrase, the melody,

Comes clearly without fail.

Place yourself upon the path,

You’ll know right from the start . . .

The music and the memories

Are found within your heart.

~ Sarah Hastings ~

Is it just me, or does everyone hear a soundtrack of their lives in their head? I remember events based on the song that I associate with them. My husband on the other hand, can recall the songs based on the year in which it was a hit. For me, the song doesn’t have to be from the era the event took place, it’s just a song that I heard in my head either at the time of the event or at a later recalling of the event.

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Snipe Hunting ANYONE?

Posted on May 4, 2009 by Rural Farmgirl René Groom
[Previous Rural Farmgirl, April 2009 – May 2010]
My dad’s side of the family has a “take no hostage” kind of humor. It isn’t for wimps. I have developed a cynical kind of humor because of them, the kind of humor that not everyone “gets.” . I don’t say that in a bragging kind of way, I say it in an I-have-laid-on-the-shrink’s- sofa-and-evaluated-myself-and-came to-terms-with-it kind of way.
Case and Point: According to Wikipedia the snipe (a family of shorebirds) is difficult to catch for even the most experienced hunters, so much so that the word “sniper” is derived from it to refer to anyone skilled enough to shoot one.

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