Friday

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It's 69 degrees; gray, but not raining.

WKTV predicts that: "Friday will be close to a repeat of today. We expect some sunshine to start. But, showers and thunderstorms will begin popping up from mid-morning onward. The heaviest of the storms will be off to our east and the day will not be a total washout. But like Thursday, clouds will begin taking over as the day wears on. And any storms Friday also could produce small hail.
We'll clear things out a bit Friday night, and the one big change in our forecast today is for the weekend. At this point, Saturday looks a bit nicer. We should have a mix of sun and clouds as we get stuck between weather systems. A chance of a shower can't be ruled out, especially in the Adirondacks. But for the most part, Saturday looks dry. For Sunday, as a disturbance pivots in from the north and west and reinforces the cold air over us, we should see a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Temperatures will be in the mid 70s Saturday and near 70 on Sunday."

Rainy weather always produces lots of mushrooms - or fungii. This Toothed Fungus is an annual visitor to the old maple tree in front of the Swanberg Home. No, Lou: it's not edible!

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Having praised the Garden Club for its bright "tubs" of flowers along Main Street and the flooded watering trough, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out the baskets that hang on all of the telephone poles along Main Street, too!
This one is across from the Fire House ...........

........ and this at the corner of Sanger Avenue and Park Place.
I don't know how many there are (perhaps someone from Municipal Hall will let me know?) but every day a DPW truck moves along Main Street and Sanger Avenue and one of the "Summer Crew" waters the planters AND straightens any of the flags that may have been wrapped around their poles or caught on plants.

The effort does not go unappreciated!

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A popular spot for a lunch break, any time!

I found Bill Vetter and his house-painting crew cleaning up after several days' work at Mrs. Woodhouse's residence at the curve of Sanger Avenue. "It's a very large house!" - an understatement, for sure. I wish that I could remember it's history, but I believe that it was built by one of the Tower family in the late 19th century, for a single lady who was an invalid. (Either Mrs. Henrietta Tower Page or Miss Henrietta Page.) The interior design includes a broad landing on the staircase with a large window, especially planned so that she could sit there and watch activities on Main Street.

More fixing up was in progress at the Whites' residence on White Street.......

.......... and, right next door, the Petries have a new raised bed on the side lawn and .......

"stone wall" borders next to both front and side porches.

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It's well-worth a small detour to the rear of the Masonic Temple to see Judy Christman's garden at the St. John apartment house.


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Also, drive behind the garage at St. Bernard's Catholic Church: Nancy Eastman planted a huge bed of Sunflowers there!

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Perhaps a longer Ride in the Country is indicated!

Only in Hanover - here, along Fuess-Cleary Road - will you see carefully-mown lawns between pavement and corn fields!


On Bogan Road, Hollyhocks grow next to a picturesque old barn.

(It looks prettier without the basketball net, so I took that down with Photoshop!)

There are oceans of beans - perhaps soy? - and more new houses to be seen.


Speaking of beans: Mary Beth and Doug Plourde accepted Jack Brouillette's invitation to pick Snap Beans behind his home in Hanover and served them to the Rotarians at dinner, last night!

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Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Games 2008 begin

at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Time, today.

Official Olympic Website.

or go to Google and click on
the Google logo!

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Have a great weekend, Everyone!

Thursday

It's Garbage Day!

59.4 degrees no precipitation.

From WKTV: "A weak upper level disturbance will be travelling across the area in the morning. This system may be enough to fire up a few showers and thunderstorms through the day. Temperatures in the upper atmosphere will be slowly dropping all day, and as a result, any thunderstorm tomorrow could have some small hail. On Thursday night, the "motherload" of the cold air expected to move into the Northeast will begin to drop in. As this does so, it will be accompanied by another upper level disturbance. Believe it or not, the combination of these, along with northwest winds should be enough to generate lake effect rain showers late Thursday night and Friday morning! Most of that rain will be in or west of the Syracuse area, but some showers may affect western parts of our viewing area."

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Yesterday started out looking as if the skies would open, but - by noontime - the sun was shining and the Farmer's Market in the Park was in full swing. There, as is the case throughout the village, more and more bicycles appear.


Perhaps there should be more bike racks like this one, at the Library.


Whatever one's mode of transportation, you can't miss seeing all of the Garden Club's "tubs," overflowing with flowers! This one is next to the Fire House and there are about a dozen-and-a-half more along Main Street.


Garden Cllub member Shirley Kellogg always plants the 1906 Watering Trough in the Park. It's definitely flooded, now, with petunias and "Fountain grass."

Three of the vines in the new hop yard between the Historical Society and the Library are off to a good start.

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I had E-mail from Mr. John Brouillette (a.k.a. "Jack") yesterday morning alerting me to Snap Bean Picking on Brouillette Road. He told me to look for two yellow PIXALL bean harvesters "creeping along in the field."

There's one!

Yes - there are two.

I went online to see if I could learn just how these harvesters work: they strip the beans from the vine and then a fan blows away leaves and other field debris. I'm sure it's more complicated than that, but Jack was right: whatever they do, they do it very s-l-o-w-l-y!

Parked at the side of Brouillette road was a large truck, already loaded with mountains of beans. Jack had written, " The beans are transferred to a truck and rushed to Seneca Foods in Geneva, NY. To maintain their freshness, there are only a few hours between harvesting and processing."

Also on the road --- an opportunity!

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In Sangerfield, a "lattice" of red-blossomed ornamental Beans at Gorton's.

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Rotarians will have their eyes on the Blue - berries, that is -
as part of their annual preparations for operating the Food Tent at
the
MADISON-BOUCKVILLE ANTIQUE SHOW
on
AUGUST 15 - 16.

(Blueberry Pancakes - a specialty!)

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WEEKEND EVENTS

The Class of 1958 held their Senior Banquet at Dibbles Inn in Vernon, and that's where they'll be again, on Saturday night, at their Fiftieth Reunion! (Photos to follow, I hope!)

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Coming to Town:
Noted actor and star of such memorable stage productions as "The Music Man" and "Dirty Works at the Crossroads," David O'Dowd!

*****

Tomorrow morning /
Saturday evening Beijing time:

The 2008 OLYMPICS

NBC TV Coverage and Information.

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On Saturday Evening:

SouthGate Ministries will present
the
Mark Bolos Band
in a concert of Christian Rock music
in the Park on Saturday at 6:30.

The event is open to the public free of charge.

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At Glimmerglass Opera
Saturday: Handel's Giulio Cesare in Egitto at 8:00 (limited avail.)
Sunday: SOLD OUT! Wagner's Das Liebesverbot (The Ban on Love)

***

At Beck's Grove Dinner Theater
"The Last of the Red Hot Lovers"

****

For the record: down two more.

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Have a Great Day, Everyone!

Wednesday

It's Recyclables Day!
64.8 degrees; misty moist.

WKTV predicts that: "Rain should end sometime around mid-morning Wednesday. There could be some clearing from Midday onward. But, then we run the risk of a few new storms to develop. Storms should be isolated in nature and not widespread like the overnight and early morning activity.
Beyond tomorrow night, things change big time. A pesky upper level storm system will pivot its way into the Northeast, combine with lower level moisture and produce widespread daytime showers and storms for Friday and Saturday."

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FARMER'S MARKET

in the Park

11:00 - 6:00

*****

BAND CONCERT

in the Park

6:30 - 8:30

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Sanger Hill Road mystery solved!

I received a very nice E-letter, yesterday, from Katie Cavanaugh, who wrote:

"My family and I are the ones building a new home next to Richard Hughes on Sanger Hill Road. My husband Michael is a 1991 graduate of Waterville High School and had been looking forward to moving back to the area for years. We decided to make the move Thanksgiving weekend of 2007 and now are living at the Brunswick until the house is built.

We moved here from Warrensburg, New York, a little town just north of Lake George. We had a house in a cozy little neighborhood, but as the years went on all of our friends either moved away or had gone on to bigger and better things. We were at least an hour away from family. Nothing was holding us there, so we decided to pack up and leave.

This has been a really good move for us. My family and I have been making new friends and acquaintances since we got here and Micheal's family is in very close proximity to us.

So, I just wanted to introduce myself and my family to you and now it's not a big secret who will be living in the new home on Sanger Hill Road."

Thanks, Katie! And Welcome to Waterville!

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Now and then, blog-readers who live in other parts of the world ask for a few "just plain
pictures of Main Street."

O.K.

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"But it's right twice a day!"

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I drove out to Hanover to see if I could find anyone picking beans - either manually or mechanically - but without luck.

What I did find, however, was this combine and Mr. Fredolyn Zweifel harvesting oats.


The combine cuts the stalks and separates the grain which is then loaded into a truck and taken to a feed mill.

What's returned to the field - the stalks - is "straw," and is baled and used as bedding in cattle barns. (A very small quantity of straw may be chopped very finely and added to a cow's regular diet to help prevent "milk fever." But that's another lesson.)

As of the fifteenth of the month, I'll have lived in Waterville for forty years: high time that I learned which crop is which and what a combine is for!

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Have a Great Day, Everyone!

Tuesday with Add-on

9:30 a.m.
I've just received the following E-mail from Mr. John Brouillette who would like me to share it with all of you!

"We are harvesting snap beans on Hanover, and there are a couple of areas that we could not harvest with the machine. Hence if any "blog readers" are interested in picking some nice Sparticus Green Snap Beans, they are welcome. There is a patch behind my house, a little walk is involved, but the picking should be good. They are great tasting beans.......of course I am biased too."


This photograph is from the Historical Society Archives. Can anyone date it? and/or is there any chance that the picker will be recognized?

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It's Big Trash Day!

69.8 degrees and sunny.

WKTV's forecast: "We expect sunshine through the day, with increasing amounts of it through the afternoon. Temperatures, provding we get enough of that sun, should hit the mid 80s. We do run the risk of at least a few showers or storms in the late afternoon.
On Tuesday night, a new area of thunderstorms is expected to develop in Michigan and Ontario and drop south and east into New York and New England. This complex of storms could become strong to severe overnight tomorrow night, bringing us some potential gusty winds and a period of very heavy rain."

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It was hazy yesterday afternoon, but the view of East Hill from the top of West Hill was still grand!


Thanks to "Rusty" for these two photographs ......


.............. of his and Joan's gardens!


"Thank You," as well, to Sally Zweifel ..........

............. and her neighbors, the Moshers, for the flowerbeds at the Shanley-Hanover Road crossing.

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Sandy Martin has sent the following "Crimson Bonnet" news:
"The Waterville Crimson Bonnets July get-together took place Thursday the 31st at 'Cavallo's' in New Hartford. Approximately 25 members were present. The food was delicious and so plentiful that many ladies took home doggy bags. Door prizes were awarded including two bottles of wine. After lunch some of the members visited Joett's Gift shop next door. We want to thank Joan Howard and Bev Prye for a wonderful time.

The August meeting will take place on Thursday the 28th at 'Michael's' in Waterville. (We hear that there will be dessert!) This meeting will be hosted by Lovina Staring and Pat Smith."

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SouthGate Ministries will present
the Mark Bolos Band
in a concert of Christian Rock
in the Park on Saturday at 6:30.
The event is open to the public free of charge.

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The "blog" works! - Karen Schwartz Gentile was found in no time at all, thanks to Edie Eastman, and connections to old friends have been made!

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Have a good day, everyone!

and don't forget:

FARMER'S MARKET in the PARK, TOMORROW!