Maine wildlife


I live on a hill overlooking a beaver marsh in southern Maine. This is the view from the front of the house. Two acres of field and blueberry barrens sloping down to wetlands. If I were a landscape painter I couldn’t have imagined a better composition. Those 4 large oaks […]

Observer or the Observed?


Remember the Common Mullein? (Here’s my first blog about it.) The “weed” by my front deck? It’s been fun to watch it grow, like a, well, like a weed! From this:   To this!   It’s been a popular landing zone for dragonflies. Honeybees and native bees (there are some […]

Common Mullein and Birds


Without my barn time I am unmoored. There is no substitute to being with my horse. Add to that the sad world news, and I could easily sink into a morass of inertia. Believe me, I’ve had my moments. But, honestly, depression is boring! I don’t want to stay in […]

Keeping Moving to Keep Going



Like much of the rest of the world, the last couple of weeks we’ve been recluses. This has made it blatantly clear how off-the-beaten path our house is. To get here one drives a mile down an unpaved road and then turns onto our private dirt road. The only cars […]

Trail Cam. Bobcats!


It’s been two weeks since my boarding barn closed to all but essential workers. It seems like longer. I know I’m in a fortunate position. Financially I’ll be able to weather this downtime. I can afford my horse. I can afford to pay Steph (my jump trainer and one of […]

Riding Trails Found


I’ve always been one to wash my hands. I’ve cooked professionally in kitchens. I’ve taken food safety courses.  I know how important it is. But I have to say that washing one’s hands for 20 seconds can seem like an interminable amount of time! Have you set a watch to […]

20-Second Videos From Maine



It’s been just over a week since the governor of Maine shut down businesses to try to shut out the corona virus. Only people in essential positions are allowed to travel for work. Farmers are in that category. I’d like to think that I’m essential to my horse’s well-being and […]

The Current Situation


Last night, after two days without barn and horse time, I was feeling adrift and knew that it would only get worse if I didn’t figure out how to maximize the other good things in my life while that one BIG THING is on sabbatical. To that end, when I […]

Marsh Time


Today’s blog is a break from the horse talk. Sort of. Steve and I hired a Registered Maine Guide to walk us through our backyard. We’ve owned our 11-acres in southern Maine for a year now. We look at, walk through it, and appreciate it, every day. But that doesn’t […]

Seeing and Understanding