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  • Food Mill

    We plant tomatoes two ways. Mr. Mims usually plants about twenty or so starters in early spring. When all those tomatoes start ripening at the same time is when I pull out all three of my crock pots. I have become pretty efficient at canning tomato sauce and paste and love to have both all…

  • Coffee Grinder

    The antique coffee grinder pictured above is not mine, although I wouldn’t mind having a non-electric grinder. I found this picture with a Google search.  When we had a power outage a few weeks ago, which lasted several days, I would have been happy to have something other than the ordinary electric coffee grinder that I use every…

  • Slicing Apples

    When we had an abundance of apples, I learned how to can apple sauce and apple butter (pretty simple,) and the apple peeler, corer saved me a lot of time. I still pull it out sometimes to prep an apple pie or two. It works well on most apples. I found one of these in…

  • By Hand or by Gadget?

    But if you do use it, then you do get perfectly cut fries that look beautiful on a plate with a little parsley and garlic salt sticking to them….maybe for a party. In case you’re wondering I fry most everything in peanut oil.

  • Painted Turtle

  • Snapping Turtle

    The combination of ponds, woods and open fields on our property attracts a variety of wildlife year round. We see lots of turtles sunbathing on the shores of the pond when it’s warm. But snapping turtles don’t seem to be avid sunbathers. They don’t appear quite so often, but we see them when they climb out…

  • Note to Past Future

    urban precariat herd refuse gee whizeography

  • The Carport Project

    First, he dug some ditches and laid down a drainage pipe leading off into the woods in the direction of the creek. Then came a crew to pour the concrete. The pipe runs underneath. Afterwards, Mr. Mims went and got tons of rocks, and filled in all around the concrete.

  • Lavender in Winter

    There are many flowers and smells and sights to gush about in the spring and summer, but some plants offer pleasures year-round. Lavender is perennial and evergreen. Lavender leaves smell just as strong as the flowers. If you rub the leaves between your fingers the scent will stick with you for awhile. The leaves are a…

  • Spring in the Woods

    you can see water pooling up in an area where there is no water flowing down from above. It’s a muddy area below the walking path that’s hard to approach without sinking into the ground.

  • Hen Talk

    I couldn’t tell you what it all means, but hens are not short on chicken talk. It seems that they have especially a lot to say when they are getting in, in, or getting out of a nesting box.

  • Hen Talk

    I couldn’t tell you what it all means, but hens are not short on chicken talk. It seems that they have especially a lot to say when they are getting in, in, or getting out of a nesting box.

  • Strawberry Leaves in Winter

    My theory about homegrown organic strawberries is that you can’t have too many. One of the first crops to harvest in early spring, ripe strawberries are harbingers of things to come. But the plant is also an evergreen perennial herb, another cheerful presence in a winter garden.

  • Strawberry Leaves in Winter

    My theory about homegrown organic strawberries is that you can’t have too many. One of the first crops to harvest in early spring, ripe strawberries are harbingers of things to come. But the plant is also an evergreen perennial herb, another cheerful presence in a winter garden.

  • Evergreen Thyme

    Thyme and lemon thyme are growing in serveral areas in my gardens. They are among a group of herbs that I have growing, that are both perennial and evergreen. It’s nice in winter time to see the green leaves of sage and thyme, oregano and parsley and lavender. Thyme is a savory herb that I use…

  • Evergreen Thyme

    Thyme and lemon thyme are growing in serveral areas in my gardens. They are among a group of herbs that I have growing, that are both perennial and evergreen. It’s nice in winter time to see the green leaves of sage and thyme, oregano and parsley and lavender. Thyme is a savory herb that I use…

  • False Start

    Just like people, some flowers never get to live a full life. A little stunted from the last winter storm, these blooming Hyacinths may not survive the expected overnight freeze. The problem with this picture, though, is that you can’t smell it!

  • False Start

    Just like people, some flowers never get to live a full life. A little stunted from the last winter storm, these blooming Hyacinths may not survive the expected overnight freeze. The problem with this picture, though, is that you can’t smell it!

  • Black Gold

    Sometimes you just have to be patient to get what you want. It’s been a whole month since I last wrote about my new garden bed project. The work had come to a halt because of the rain, and because I needed my husband to build the frame. Now you could tell me that I…

  • Black Gold

    Sometimes you just have to be patient to get what you want. It’s been a whole month since I last wrote about my new garden bed project. The work had come to a halt because of the rain, and because I needed my husband to build the frame. Now you could tell me that I…

  • Crepuscule on Paris Mountain

    When the dogs bark and the birds cheep and water sings and the sun sets over the tree tops…

  • Crepuscule on Paris Mountain

    When the dogs bark and the birds cheep and water sings and the sun sets over the tree tops…

  • Parsley Getting Started

    Parsley is a bi-annual plant, which means that it lasts for two growing seasons. I like to have parsley in my kitchen garden in the wintertime. One reason is because it stays green in the winter, another is that it’s almost always nice to add some fresh parsley to a meal, or at least a…

  • Winter Trees and Sky

    I was working in the garden. It was sunny and calm. Suddenly the wind picked up and it started to feel like winter again…

  • Winter Trees and Sky

    I was working in the garden. It was sunny and calm. Suddenly the wind picked up and it started to feel like winter again…

  • Working with Giants

    I know not everyone likes to hear me testify about my husband, but I have to tell you that I love him for both his brains and his brawn. It’s one kind of thing to sit at a desk and solve complicated equations while the world carries on taking care of everything else. It’s another…

  • Running Creek

    The snow that knocked out Paris Mountain power last weekend, and left neighbors stranded on opposite sides of fallen trees, can now only be found running in the creeks to join the Reedy River and the rush of Falls Park. ]

  • Shy Beauties

    This Hooded Merganser couple likes to hug the opposite shore of the pond, where they blend in with the wild foliage and all the fallen leaves. They have been visiting for the past couple of days. Maybe they are working on a nest. The female on the right is as hard to see in this photo…

  • Living with Giants

    We live among giant trees on Paris Mountain. The matrix of overhead cables that provide electricity to residents weaves its way among the great branches of the trees. When there is a perfect storm of wind and ice, giant limbs and entire trees sometimes fall. When a tree falls on a power line or transformer,…

  • Snow and Folk Art

    Yesterday we had a little snow, and they suspended all after-school activities right away. Down here a little snow and ice is scary to most people, but they want me to drive my kids to school in all kinds of rain and wind. This rooster roosts outside the kitchen door in snow, sun, rain and wind…

  • Wind and Water

    Neither wind or water is ever completely at rest. If there is the slightest breeze, one of our many wind sculptures will move, and light will dance on the water.

  • Food and Sunshine

    Sometimes the color of food is as appealing to me as the smell. The bright yellow of crook neck squash is inviting on a cold, grey winter evening. There was a lot of yellow crookneck squash this past summer, which I sliced raw and froze in vacuum sealed bags. Retrieving a bag from the freezer is a…

  • Cats and Love and Hate

    I’m in a love/hate relationship with my cats. I love the way they follow me around outside, and watching them from the kitchen, eat and play around their cat house. I love the way they catch mice and other pests. But I hate the way they dig in my kitchen boxes, like my whole garden is…

  • Water and Crows

    You can always hear crows on Paris Mountain. They are loud, and keep running conversations going all day long, and year round. The pond is clear today after almost a week without precipitation. But there is still a heavy flow of spring water and runoff from all the recent rains, spilling into the lower pond.

  • Wind Chime on a Windy Day

    We love wind chimes around here. We have many of them hanging around the house and on some of the trees.

  • Whirlybird on the Hill

    A whirly bird on a windy day…

  • Whirlybird on the Hill

    A whirly bird on a windy day…

  • Cat Stretch

    We have two cats that patrol our house and grounds. Mr. Mims says that they are my dogs, because whenever I walk outside, they follow me around. When I stop, they stop. When I’m taking pictures, they want to be in the picture. This is Bear, chillin’ on a stone bench by the pond.

  • Sweet Scented Chamomile

    Certain sweet smells stimulate my senses and make me want to sniff their special scent endlessly. If you rub the leaves of chamomile with your fingers, you might appear to be in love with your finger tips when you smell them. I confess that I don’t remember where I read it, but I did read somewhere…

  • French Toast Getting Ready to Happen

    Fresh eggs and leftover Challah bread. There won’t be any leftovers after this…