Under a Red Roof

Falling

February 1, 2016 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Snow falling this morning, and yesterday, and into tomorrow, too, inch upon inch, each flake a single lively presence, bouncing and skittering down my sleeve, loud enough to hear. More sounds, cars hissing, the scrape of a shovel, the squeak of boots, a goose honking, then three, the creak of their wings in flight. Full winter and the crow squawking, the kingfisher gunning for privacy but only finding me, again and again. The eagle is the quietest, its mere presence more thunderous than us all.

The hubster and I took our engagement photos in front of the miner, so many years ago. Next week will mark twenty-five years since our first date, him in his rugby shirt and me in the cream-colored rayon with the Indian head buttons, eating pizza at Old Chicago. A long time. The best time. And now, back in Colorado, falling in love all over again, with him, with blue sky, with mountains and plains, and snow.

We found a house that we like, a real fixer, small and brick, wood paneling and a fireplace in the basement, a yard aching for some love and care. Think good thoughts.

Tags: Birds, Gardening + Nature

Moon and Sun

January 26, 2016 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Moon and sun, and planets in the pre-dawn!

Grateful for rising early.

Venus, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, a satellite whizzing.

Get up, get dressed, get out. GO!

The geese are quiet,

Watching the bald eagle in the tree.

A companion calls and they are both off, winged acrobats, climbing and falling, flapping and soaring.

Heart singing and geese now squawking.

Crows cawing.

The frost crunching. Hands cold.

Breath steaming. Heart thumping.

It is wonderful to be alive!

Colleen Sohn

Tags: Gardening + Nature, My Poetry

Visitor

November 25, 2015 in Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

Popped out for a walk the other day and this greeted me on the front steps. I watched for a long time, the slow, deliberate steps, and gave a shout to the hubster to come see. We scooped it up onto a leaf before the mailman had a chance to blindly squish it, and thanked it for coming.

Tags: Gardening + Nature

It is Fall…

October 21, 2015 in Cooking + Baking, Eating, Gardening + Nature by Colleen | Permalink

And the hills are kitted out in their beautiful best. The mood changes with the whim of the wind and scudding clouds, leaving me to shiver or coo, hood up or eyes squinting at the the warmth of the sun. How lucky I am to be wandering this neck of the woods, to traipse loudly through ankle deep leaves, to hear the squawk and chirp and cry of every manner of bird, greeting me from on high, to know a bit more of the world.

And with fall comes the shift from the snap and crunch of giant summer salads to roasted vegetables and hearty soups, the house warmly scented. I am jiving on this combination, as of late: a winter squash and red grapes, dotted with butter and flaked sea salt. On days that I remember, I toss in rosemary from the garden for the last few minutes, and everything is elevated. Mmmm, yes!

How about that smile! Last Sunday’s walking adventure to St. George’s Ukrainian Church in Brighton Heights for their Ethnic Food Festival. We devoured more hearty fall fare, Stroganoff, buttery rolls, borscht (for the hubster, I don’t do beets), mushroom barley soup, pierogies, and sausage with the best cabbage I’ve ever tasted.

The scrape of metal chairs on linoleum and a wall lined with crooked pictures of Jesus and the saints sent me straight back to childhood and the countless hours spent at Our Lady of Grace. The church where my dad was an Altar Boy, and I earned my First Communion. The church where Father Moynihan taught me, with a wink and a smile, how to shake hands properly. The church where I saw my Grandma Frances in her Sunday best, gloved hands, lipstick, and the scent of Aqua Net. Oh, nostalgia, how you blur the tedium and frustration and shine a light on all that is fine.

Tags: Cooking and Baking, Gardening + Nature, Pittsburgh

Oregon Road Trip: Baker City to Steens Mountain

July 21, 2014 in Eating, Exploring, Gardening + Nature, Traveling by Colleen | Permalink

Baker City:

What a gem of a town, with an abundance of fine architecture under baby blue skies. We breakfasted at the Lone Pine. It felt like it was plucked out of Portland, with finely executed, yet simple fare, and impeccable service with a dazzling smile. A hush of Stevie Wonder singing on the hi-fi and lights dimmed to ward off the impending heat made for perfection.

The Strawberry Mountain Range and the hubster yukking it up for my amusement. I could not ask for a finer companion! Which reminds me, TODAY is his birthday. Send him happy thoughts, won’t ya?

Pelican and White Faced Ibis at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. So VERY many birds! ~~I’ll update this later with all that we saw.~~ Updated!

American Coot . American White Pelican . Barn Swallow . Black-Billed Magpie . Bullock’s Oriole . California Quail . Cormorant . Dusky Flycatcher . Eastern Kingbird . Golden Eagle . Great Blue Heron . Great Egret (or maybe Snowy) . Killdeer . Mallard . Mourning Dove . Northern Harrier . Red-Winged Blackbird . Sandhill Crane . Turkey Vulture . Western Grebe . Wilson’s Phalarope . Yellow-Headed Blackbird

Diamond, Oregon, population five. What a truly special place. A friend waxed poetic about the Hotel Diamond probably thirteen years ago, beautiful and remote, with one of the best meals of his life. We did not forget. Run by a father and daughter, with a mere nine rooms, it is quaint and comfortable with beautiful paintings and historical photographs lining the walls, an old timey screen porch to stave off hungry flies and wicked mosquitoes, and fine and hearty fare (this is ranch country, after all), served family style, every evening at 6:30. Book early and come hungry! And forget about television, phone, and internet, this is truly the back of beyond. A good book, the company of a dear friend (or new ones – Hello Diane, Manfred, and Paulina!), and the sublime scenery will be enough and more.

lupine

Our picnic in a grove of aspen trees at Lily Lake. There is something magical about being alone among wildlife. Everything humming and acutely alive, the pulse of the earth seen and felt and heard, I feel how small I am, how fleeting this moment, this breath, this life IS, and inhale ever more deeply to take it all in.

yellow indian paintbrush

desert buckwheat

a tiny alpine penstemon, I think

indian paintbrush

desert buckwheat

wild onion

Steens Mountain and the Alvord Desert down and beyond. It’s a study in contrasts, with lush green, cool, crisp air, and a myriad of wildflowers flanking a desert that receives a scant six inches of moisture a year. The wildflowers were magical, and I was positively giddy at the abundance and variety. Heavenly! If you know them, please help me identify what I do not know and correct me where I am wrong. I’d be most grateful!

We took the Steens Mountain loop road, the highest in the state of Oregon, which is 66 miles of, at the moment, very nicely graded gravel. We heard horrible tales of it in previous incarnations and were most grateful that it was Mini Cooper navigable, though the desert side is N O T for the faint of heart. A single narrow lane, with nary a guard rail and hundred-plus foot drop offs, the hubster and I white-knuckled it much of the way.