WEEK IN REVIEW

This has been a week of "getting things done," or at least having men in to get things done. Plumbers, to fix the leaky outdoor faucets, a handyman to replace the foggy windows and haul away the junk from the garage, the farriers to trim feet and put Abby's "snow tires" on. Cleaning out the garage? That was all me. How did I manage such a productive week? Our girl is home for the holidays, so I've had very little barn work to do.
We've also made time to work with the horses, play with the dogs, make cookies, and take lots of pictures. And, I am running. It has always been my policy not to run unless something was chasing me, but that girl of ours convinced me to download a running app, "Ease into 5K." Don't laugh.
On Saturday, we planned to go to Holiday Heap in Baltimore, my favorite Christmas craft sale, but at the last minute, and owing to the beautiful weather and our girl's new camera, we opted to load up the dogs and head to the beach. You can still do your Christmas shopping with the many talented vendors of the Charm City Craft Mafia. Visit their website here. It was unseasonably warm for the first day of December. A perfect day for beach combing and introducing  Scout to the ocean. First stop, Assateague Island State Park, then Assateague Island National Seashore, and a quick trip to the boardwalk in Ocean City, which was surprisingly busy.

My mister and Scout.

Interesting beach combing courtesy of Hurricane Sandy. Found several large, wooden pegged ship's timbers.

Nigel

Scoutie's first horseshoe crab.

Nigel's find.

This section of the dunes washed away in the hurricane. We could see where the ocean and bay met during the storm.

Wild ponies.

Old pair dozing in the sun.

The dogs had a great time and were asleep before we left the parking lot.

Today was a pleasant mix of puttering and chores. Tried to take outdoor photos of Christmas ornaments, but clouds moved in and we lost the good light. Also, had way too much help from the cats who seemed to think we were hanging cat toys in the trees.

Hope your week was productive. Now, I'm panicking because I haven't done my Christmas shopping and December has sneaked up on me. Still waiting for those Wish Lists, offspring of mine!!

STORM DAMAGE

Well now, a few weeks ago, I shared a photo of the T. L. Morris Seafood Company. Located at the Gateway Marina in Trappe, its' cheery red exterior is a beacon to those crossing the Choptank river in a westerly direction. I took the picture on the night of the harvest moon, and it inspired a painting by my artist friend, Chris Murray.
I am very sad to report that it was seriously damaged by Hurricane Sandy. On Sunday evening, before the storm, Mr. C. and I took one last trip across the river for supplies, and we could see that, at high tide, it was already surrounded by water. The portions of the building that faced the river were ripped away by wind and tide. We found large chunks of the building washed ashore at Bill Burton State Park. We spied one of the freezers tossed up on the rocks between the old and new bridges. Sad.

It occurred to me today, as I took these pics, that the little T. L. Morris crab was shaking his claws at the sky and vowing to rise again (like a phoenix from the ashes, but Eastern Shore style). I so hope that's true!
Hope you have power, and fuel, and toilet paper, and every other essential thing at your house.
This was the scene from our patio this evening. I believe Mother Nature is "sucking up" in an attempt to atone for her behavior earlier this week. XO.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Happy to report we did not blow away in Hurricane Sandy. Feeling very lucky to have escaped with relatively minor troubles . Mr. C.'s car had a couple of inches of water in the floor. We have no idea how that happened. We lost power last night just as we were going to bed. Unfortunately, one of us had left the door of the fridge slightly ajar, and as the power was out, it couldn't chirp and remind us. So we lost the contents. I actually think that was Mother Nature's way of saying, "Girl, you need to clean out this refrigerator!" She was right, and now it's done. 
Our power is back on. Scout and the horses are delighted to have so much mud to roll around in, and I am trying not to complain too much about the muddy paw prints, as we are feeling fortunate indeed, that we suffered no major damage in the storm. Sending thoughts and prayers to those folks who weren't so lucky and are still struggling with the aftermath.
I have some storm damage pictures, but those are for another day. Today is for wishing you a very HAPPY HALLOWEEN, and showing you some hastily snapped photos of  Barn Bug critters from this afternoon.

Nigel, the Man!!

Mud Witch. I know, but we did just have a HURRICANE!

Scoutie isn't into masks yet. Hopefully, by next year she'll be as cooperative as The Nige. Ha!

Wood nymph?

BOO!