Finally. We've Found A Place to Settle

Let's name it something really weird, okay?
I know it's not just Georgia but I've always wondered why, when you can call your town anything, that people come up with names like...

Box Springs                   Abba
Attapulgus                     Egypt
Between                        Euharlee
Mosquito Crossing         Hortense
Goolsby                         Lax
Goggins                         Mauk
Goochville                     Meansville
Tugaloo                         Mayday
Needmore                     Cusseta                        
Due West                      Rex
Mean Crossroads          Roosterville
Mudlick                         Tallapoosa
Enigma                          Winder (say Wine-der)
Ty Ty                            Boggy            
Centralhatchee              Climax
Cumming

On the other hand...

Dewy Rose           Tiger
Split Silk                Newborn
Flowery Branch     Brooklet
Big Canoe             Daisy
Doerun                  Glory
Ideal                      Kinderlou
Mystic                   Retreat
Rising Fawn           Sunny Side
Sunsweet               Wrens

I couldn't decide which list to put Grooverville or Santa Claus on.
When we first moved to Georgia we lived in Bogart. For awhile I cringed whenever I had to say it.
I'm sure every place name has a story, but I'd rather wonder.

Halt. Who goes there?

Due to pollen levels and tree seed pods, tassels, etc., the cover is still on the pool. Some mornings we can plainly see who has been visiting in the night.

A pair of tiny toads

A frog and a wandering bug

A raccoon crossing the frog's trail

And, of course, a cat

Yesterday I happened upon this little garter snake in the rosemary bush digesting her lunch. She's only about 7 or 8 inches long. If you look closely, you can see the aforementioned lunch.

Oh. Snow.

We had some. We said "pretty!" We got more. We lost power. We lost tree limbs. We lost patience. We took pictures.

It started out all fun and games!


The river was chocolately from the previous two days of rain. The snow gave it a lovely sugar coating.


Snow began to accumulate on the pool cover. Rick squeegeed but lost the battle.


We removed the pool cover with its pounds and pounds and pounds of snow (sweating, cursing).


The next two pics are lovely but you're not hearing the snapping of huge limbs all over the neighborhood and the sound of trees hitting the river. It was painful.


The clouds disappeared overnight and in the morning Rick destroyed the skating rink to keep the squirrels and deer from trying it out. (Imagine trying to herd a terrified, half-frozen deer out of the deep end. wah.)


Our neighbors say it has never snowed like this before. We all really hope it doesn't come around again anytime soon!

Introducing the Newest Representative from Crazy and Off-base: Paul Broun

My thanks to Keith Olbermann.



What a pinhead. Of course, he's sorry. But he's likely always been a sorry pinhead.
Wait! He's sorry, but it isn't an actual apology.
And there's more! The other Georgia Republicans say what??

I hear that Rachel Maddox had a few words to say about the paranoid and sour-grapey Mr. Broun, too. Sorry to have missed that.

We go (went) adventuring, part 2

As it turns out, Georgia has its own mini Grand Canyon. Of course, it has a much grander Georgiafied name: Tallulah Gorge. In addition to being quite lovely, it was made briefly famous in 1970 when Karl Wallenda walked across the gorge on a tightrope. *shudder*
Our visit was spur of the moment and it was well worth the short drive from Anna Ruby Falls.
These photos start at the rim and descend to the suspension bridge across the gorge. I didn't think I would be able to go onto the bridge, but I did it! My only shaky moment was when I reached out and grabbed one of the cables. *another shudder*
Of course, the view was spectacular in every direction and was enhanced by the fall color everywhere. I'd love to go back, but I'm not looking forward to coming back up those stairs again!

We go adventuring, part 1

When we went to Anna Ruby Falls and Lake Unicoi with Sarah, there was a whisper of Fall in the foliage, so we revisited last Sunday hoping for some more color. The trees around the lake evidently turn more quickly than those at the falls. We were probably a week too early for the maples, but it was all lovely just the same.
I'm glad we had already seen Helen because it was very, very crowded on Sunday. We made a quick stop at Betty's Country Store for picnic supplies and headed to the quiet lake for lunch. There was quite a crowd at the falls, too, but there were a lot of kids, so it was fun.




































Next year, we'll go back for the maples!

Suggestions of slackery!?

The suggester shall remain nameless, but I can tell you that s/he is very "busy" watching Indiana beat Green Bay (so far), and that s/he has no blog. hmph! Not to mention that I BWO!!

When last I blogged, we were looking forward to Sarah's visit. She arrived on September 29 and was my birthday present this year! We had many adventures during her stay. Herewith is our digital diary:

We hiked up the Middle Oconee River in Ben Burton Park about a mile from our house. (The Middle Oconee runs through our backyard, too.)

Sarah and Rick discovered a smallish water snake trying to make a meal of a catfish half its size. We watched for about half an hour then decided to leave it to its lunch and we continued upriver.
About 15 minutes later, I saw a much larger snake with a smaller fish. We stopped to take pictures, but it soon found a place to hide from us and have its lunch in peace.
Rick spotted several shed skins among the river rocks we were walking on.

By now, we were sort of nervous about the snake population and left the river for dry trails--but we couldn't resist going back to check on the progress made by the smaller snake. It hadn't moved, but the fish was definitely lunch!

We checked the Internet when we got home and found that the snakes were harmless (to humans) brown water snakes.

Rick and I “found” the Elder Mill covered bridge while we were house-hunting and we always take visitors to see it. The Georgia historical society plaque tells the story. In addition to the general splendor, we saw crawdads and a few nice-size fish in the clear, cold pools.

Of course, we showed off as much of Athens as we could.

Best of all (I think) was our trip to Helen. It’s a tiny Alpine-flavored town in the Blue Ridge surrounded by some stunning scenery.

Before settling into serious tourist activity in town, we drove a few more miles to Ana Ruby Falls. The walk to the falls is lovely (and easy!) Two large creeks come together right before they spill over the rock face. It must be thunderous in the spring. We had hoped to see some fall color, but the locals said we were a couple of weeks early. We certainly weren’t disappointed by what we saw, though!

On our way back to Helen, we stopped at Lake Unicoi—also very pretty.









Alas, Sarah has returned to San Diego, but there are secrets in the works that may bring her back!