Our One Maple

It was last year, that we tapped our Maple for the first time and it turned out to be one of my favorite days of 2009. This year, I was agonizing over tapping the tree at all because there would be a few days this month that we wouldn't be able to bring the sap up to Coolidge's Sugar Shack.

I had been in a bit of a "funk" the last month and then got sick, but when I pulled into the driveway after work a couple weeks ago and found three sap buckets on our porch along with a drill, a big smile appeared on my face. I was so happy that the Coolidge's remembered our one Maple tree that could be a part of their sugaring.

I immediately went over to the tree, drilled my three holes and then hung the buckets. Of course, the last hook wouldn't budge and so I sat on our ski lift chair waiting impatiently for Drew to get home to place the last bucket.

The darkness forced me inside and when I heard his car pull in the driveway, I rushed him over to catch the droplets of sap before too many had hit the ground.

The weather was perfect with warm days and cold nights. I kept checking the buckets and the sap level never seemed to change even after a few good days of steady dripping. I started thinking I was a little too crazy and stopped checking the buckets every two minutes.

Finally, I peeked in the buckets on Friday and there was nothing there! At this point I wondered if Cal was discreetly taking the sap for us when we weren't home. I stormed into his wife's place of work and asked if he was taking the sap. With her answer, yes, another mystery was solved and was glad we did not have a sap stealer on our hands. I was able to breathe a sigh of relief and reflect on how lucky we are to have people remember us and our one Maple.

Irish Gargoyle

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Jewelry at the Deli

Today I discovered the best deal in all of Jay. Jewelry. I found it at Devin's Deli of all places and is made by Tara, my favorite sandwich maker's wife! This month they are running a special, buy three pairs of earrings for only $8 or one for $3. You can see this unique, handmade jewelry right above the frozen novelties.

So Ladies, before you reach for that pint of Ben & Jerry's to lift your spirits after a bad day, you might want to consider buying a pair of earrings to make you look good while you eat that ice cream on the couch.

I know that many of my readers don't have the luxury of popping into Devin's Deli and Garage to check out the jewelry deal, so I will send a pair of earrings to my first comment below. Go!

Sweet Little Ball of Raccoons, I Think Not

When I first saw the Raccoon ball in the tree on the corner of Glen Road and 9N tonight, I thought it was one big fat raccoon. Then, I realized there was another one underneath.

After walking to the other side of the tree I could tell there were a few more sleeping up there.

As cute as they looked all snuggled up together, I couldn't help but think about how annoying they've been since we moved to Jay.

Here is a short list of how they have wreaked havoc on our property thus far:

1) In an attempt to get some birdfood, they broke our "old lady" clothesline.

2) They knocked over our pumpkins, had a feast and left the mess for us to clean up.

3) The Raccoons have been blamed for the disappearance of the blue jay's nest and their recently hatched babies.

4) After an overnight hiking trip, our packs were in the mud room drying out. The door was left ajar hoping that our cat would return home. Instead of seeing Mango in the morning, we discovered that my backpack was a mess, having been picked over of its food and Benadryl had been consumed. Shortly after, in broad daylight we saw a raccoon strutting across our lawn all pumped up on medication. That was the last night we left the door open for Mango and gave up hope for his return.

I'm pretty sure the raccoons will return to torment me some more. So, as sweet as they all looked in their little sleeping ball, I have no problem saying that I don't really like them.