Memorial Day

Today we honor those who have fallen while giving service to their country, in order that we may be free.

My thoughts go to those family members who fought in my grandmother's homeland. While visiting Lithuania last fall, my husband and I visited this memorial which stands in remembrance of those who gave their lives during their struggle during the resistance against the Soviets. My grandparents fled to the United States in search of freedom and a better way of life.

We are so blessed in this country, and I hope we never take our freedom for granted. Not just on this day, we owe our soldiers a debt of gratitude, those who have served and continue to do so, those who risk their lives so that we may be free, we honor them for their ultimate sacrifice.

Just a Window?

When we purchased our current home over 14 year ago, we did some face lifting: new carpeting, paint, updated lighting and tile in the kitchen, and we added another range top in the center island opposite one which still remains. Our question was always, "Why would we want to face the cold hard tiled outside wall while cooking... why would the Jenn-aire not be positioned in such a way as to enjoy our guests who always belly up to that island or to be able to view that beautiful westerly coastal range?"

For years we have bantered about putting another window in the kitchen in order to take advantage of the city and the easterly view. So, we finally did.

We had guests the other evening, and since they did not mention the new window they faced, we asked how they liked it. There was an unusual response of silence, until finally, "Wow, I can't imagine it not being there." And neither can we.

There is however one problem: I think we now must move the sink to be under the new kitchen window and put the older range top down where the sink is now.

Visitor Takes Up Residence

We would like to introduce you to a visitor who appears to have taken up permanent residence at our home. Actually he has been loafing around for the past several years as we would see him on occasion, but only now is he particularly predominant.

Until recently our pond held anywhere from 30-50 goldfish and 13 beautiful Koi. We loved our evening summer ritual of feeding the fish and enjoying one another’s company while sitting and watching their movement in the water and looking at the the color of the water lilies. How amazing it is to do the same thing night after night and never tire of it.

However the pond also contributed to some frustration: the water clarity never seemed to be up to par despite every attempt to do the right thing. Perhaps the greatest annoyance was the Great Blue Heron, a beautiful bird that we love to observe, but not particularly when it does its shopping at our front door when a lake is only a few miles away. In order to keep him from eating the fish we would have to place a net over the entire structure for many months. Now how attractive is that? Having read that they are territorial, we even placed a statue of a heron near the water in order to keep him away. Forget it! The final straw occurred several months ago. Momma, our prize large Koi, about 2 feet long, was gone, missing, no trace of her anywhere. So after 14 years we finally gave up. It broke my heart.

On the bright side, the Koi and Goldfish now have a wonderful home, a huge reservoir with other “brothers and sisters” where they will be safe from predators. We gave them to friends who are relatively close by, and from time to time we can visit and see them.

It appears we may have an Oregon Spotted Frog (Rana pretisoa) who has claimed ownership of our clear water pond. I say appears for there are two different frogs which resemble one another so closely it is difficult to differentiate.

Nonetheless, the pond has several bridges of large stacked rocks which we originally placed in order to offer shelter for the fish, and as those remain, ole Spotty or Big Eyes just hangs out close to the edge of the flat rock basking in the sun and warmth of the day, that is until I approach, whereby he simply slips down into the water and hides beneath. Do you have any idea how long a frog can hold his breathe?