Animal Friends at Whispering Pines Farm

                                  
Today I saw a lovebug on the car windshield. Now I'm bracing for an invasion sometime in Sept. In May and Sept. we had so many sticking to our white doors at the farm that we would have to brush them away to get inside. But that's not all we had at the farm. To begin with, when we first moved there in 1996, we lived in a mobile home while we remodeled our house beside the lake. That summer we encountered an invasion of fire ants inside our house. To escape them, our cat slept on top of the house at night!

Thick pine trees surrounded us and deer would come out of the woods to the edge of the water to drink. You could wake up in the morning and see them come out of the woods to drink the cool water, often bringing their babies along. One day I saw some big black squirrels with big, long bushy tails come out of the woods to get some water. I had never seen squirrels like these and learned that they were called fox squirrels. They stayed in the tall pine trees. A little red fox had a den in the woods and would walk along the fence to hunt for food. He would cross the yard several feet from our house and stop and look our way and then go on.


In the spring we had the biggest turtles you can imagine sunning on old logs in the water. Once a beaver tried to establish a home and we frightened him away just by shooting into the air and he became frightened and fled. We put some carp in the lake to eat the algae and we loved throwing food to them when company was around, and they would jump up for the food and roll around in the water like dolphins. Wild turkeys liked to strut about in an open area at the edge of the thick pine forest. A big blue herron claimed a stake at one end of the lake and the red-wing blackbirds and kingfishers would fuss at him. And then there were those pests of the lawn and garden - the armadillos. We used a wooden trap to try to catch them. At night you could hear owls in the trees. We had so many birds I lost count. I loved hearing formations of geese flying overhead in October, with some stopping to stay a few days on their way south.

We had a wooden deck and screened porch on the back of the house and little green and brown anoles (lizards) sunned there almost year round. It was fun to watch those little guys "show their money" by puffing up their red throats. Once a friend was visiting and we were watching the little green lizards on the screen of the porch. He laughed and asked if we ever thought we'd be sitting and watching lizards play when we retired!

Our only pet was P.J., a large gray-striped cat. He kept stray dogs abay and warned us if a snake was around. He loved hunting in the woods and kept down the rat population in the area.
Mostly he loved to sleep on a shelf by the kitchen window during the day since he prowled at night.


We sold the farm and moved to Elba in November 2003. We had to work so hard to maintain it that we didn't have time to do anything else, and we were getting older. It was fun creating a beautiful place.

Old Salem Museum and other museums and Gardens

One of my favorite places - Old Salem, located in Winston-Salem, NC. This historic district depicts the history of the Moravians who lived in Salem.
I served as a Docent there in the 1980s when we lived near there. In the photo above, you can see a pile of wood. This is where you can see blocks of wood being made into shingles. No, I didn't make wooden shingles! I helped start the first group of docents to assist with the daily operations of the museum and gardens. We were not the "costumed" voluteers, but worked behind the scenes most of the time. I loved holiday times at Old Salem. Christmas meant busloads of tourists coming to experience the Moravian Christmas customs. They would start at the visitor center to learn about the Moravian people. Then tour guides would lead them through the historic village. At Winkler bakery they could observe costumed volunteers baking sugar cakes and other pastries (and have samples). I loved the parties our docent group had occasionally. We would get to sample all the Moravian dishes and at Christmas enjoy wassail and other delicious dishes. Check out their website: http://www.oldsalem.org/ At Christmas, I still hang our big Moravian star on our front porch and usually some of our family in NC will send us a sugarcake or the delicious thin, spicy Moravian cookies. I also have some tin wall sconces on our wall from Old Salem.


This photo is a street in Old Salem, looking north towards downtown Winston-Salem, separated by I-40. Many of the restored homes are privately owned and people live in them. Salem College is at the edge of the historic district and a Moravian church is located here also. We used to go there for the Moravian Lovefeasts on special occasions. They served large Moravian buns and hot coffee (which was more milk than coffee and flavored and sweet). Once we attended Easter sunrise service in the park in front of the church. I remember how cold it was.

Behind the Moravian church, is God's Acre, a cemetery where the Salem Moravians are buried. The Easter sunrise service is concluded here in the cemetery.

The Moravians were living here in the early 1700s and helped both sides of the Amer. Revolution by furnishing troops with food as they passed by. They did not believe in fighting so they did not participate in the war.

I also was a docent at some other museums in Winston-Salem, including Reynolda House Museum of American Art. This was the home of R.J. Reynolds, located near Wake Forest. I attended art education classes at Wake Forest in order to be a docent here. I learned so much and enjoyed giving tours of the home. It was exciting to meet some of the contemporary artists occasionally. And we had special luncheons in the dining room of the stately old Reynolds home.  This is a lovely place with beautiful gardens. I will always remember the pretty rose garden.  You can check this place out at http://www.reynoldahouse.org/

I enjoyed volunteering at a completely different kind of art museum, SECCA or Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art. This was also located near Wake Forest. While working here as a docent, I got to meet Maya Angelou (who was living in W/S at the time) and Martha Stewart came to a luncheon one day and was promoting her first book "Entertaining With Martha Stewart". I was not too impressed with her. She was so plain and wore denim to our "fancy" luncheon. But her career took off after that and now look at her: still plain looking and doesn't dress up. Maybe that's how she got to where she is. I minored in art in college and contemporary art was always my favorite. I especially liked doing batiks. Check out SCCEA at http://www.secca.org/

We lived in Winston-Salem for about 7 years and saw a lot of changes take place during this time. Jim worked for Bali, owned by Hanes, and both became a part of Sara Lee Corp. while we were there. We laughed and said Sara Lee sells bras, mens underwear, and croissants at the Hanes company store!

We moved to Haleyville in N. Ala. in the winter of 1985 and I worked with a group to plan something for Winston Co. Bicentennial, and helped research and write a play which is now an outdoor drama, "Free State pf Winston". Someday I plan to start writing about the places we have lived and post photos. We had different experiences in all of them, and such good memories.

School's Over! They've Graduated

James gradutated from Cavanaugh High School in Crystal, MN in 1979, receiving a diploma (Special Education). Schools for mentally challenged persons in that state were so far advanced at that time. He loved going to school, and had many friends there. He rode a bus and never missed a day due to snow. The roads were cleared before time for the bus to come. They had a graduation dinner I'll never forget, prepared by the Food Service Class at the Technical school. I remember the big ice carving on the table. Graduation day was special too as they marched into the auditorium and crossed the stage to receive their diploma. James has very limited academic skills but has lots of social skills, thanks to good schools in GA, TX and MN. He was in the very first special class in Decatur, GA in the early 1960's.

        
Bill, our youngest son, graduated from Paris High School, and East Texas State University, Commerce, TX in 1980 with a BA in Fine Arts.

We moved to Minneapolis when Bill was a college freshman, leaving him in Texas. Jim traveled to Texas on business often and would visit him. It was hard leaving him behind when we moved.

Bill began his career working on a TV show called "PM Magazine" at a TV Station in Sherman, TX. He continued working for TV programs at Miami, FL; Columbus, OH; St. Paul, MN; and, Pittsburgh, PA. He left Pittsburg and moved to Florence, SC in 1992 where he still lives with his 3 daughters. He met his wife, Barbara, at ETSU when she was a Rotary Exchange student from London. Several years later, in 1987, they got married in Pittsburgh, PA and she came to the US to live. She died in 1996 and he has raised their 3 little girls, now 12, 16, 18. The oldest is in college at Clemson University, SC.

Ronnie graduated from Paris High School, Paris, TX and Stephen F. Austin University in l981 with a BS degree in Math and Computer Science. He began his college career in the band at Kilgore Jr College in Tyler, TX. He had a hard time deciding what he wanted to major in and spent some semesters working as a boat captain taking workers to oil rigs out in the Gulf. He met his wife Cindy and decided to go back to college and we credit her for helping him make that decision. He graduated with honors and for the past several years has worked for LIM, a computer software company in Austin, TX and is now CIO. He and Cindy have 2 daughters, both in college now. Ronnie is an outdoors guy and loves going to his hunting lease in West Texas.

Family Camping Trips

When our boys were growing up, we spent a lot of time camping in the N. GA and NC mountains. I think this photo was taken at a new state park in N. GA around 1963. You can tell we had just arrived because the boys are still clean! I don't remember the hat Jim is wearing in this photo!This was our first camping trip and we were a little nervous about sleeping in the woods. We put up a clothesline between 2 large trees, placed a tarpalium over the line and anchored each corned to stakes on the ground. We put our sleeping bags on the ground under the "tent". I was really nervous that there might be bears in the newly cleared area.

The boys woke up early the next morning and headed downhill to the outdoor toilets. Shortly I heard Bill calling, "Mom, come here" and I just knew something had happeded to James. When I got there he said he wanted me to see the "automatic" toilet; that you didn't have to flush it! You could hear snickers coming from all over the campground. They were definitely city boys from Atlanta, GA. We soon caught the camping bug and bought a large tent, a trailer to haul it and other supplies, including a food locker, lanterns, air mattresses for our sleeping bags, and much more over the years. Ultimately we bought a pop-up tent camper but this was after the boys were grown. We didn't use it too many times; too much work. Our idea now of camping is "Holiday Inn".

When we lived in Paris, TX, we would spend 2 weeks each summer camping in the west. We loved camping in the cool mountains in Colorado and the cold nights by the campfires. Once we saw bears eating blueberries at Glacier Park and I hid all the food in the car that night so bears wouldn't come looking for food. We did hear one sniffing around in the park that night. We camped all over Texas and loved Possum Kingdom. The water was so clear and blue.

One summer we decided to visit my sister and go to Assateague Island, MD on the Atlantic Ocean. That trip was marred by druggies camping next to us. They only stayed one night. When our boys were in high school and working at the Boy Scout Camp in OK, we didn't go camping as much anymore. Meal times were very creative but enjoyable.

Once at Nag's Head, NC, camping on the beach, we couldn't get the stove to work (too much wind) and the tent almost blew away the first night we were there and there were "droves" of mosquitos due to the wind blowing the wrong way. We woke up the next morning to hear a noise and Jim was outside packing to go home. We had already spent a week along the Blue Ridge Parkway and that part was enjoyable. We went back to Atlanta, spent the night and the next day went camping at Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola. That was a much better location for tent camping.

Too bad neither Ron or Bill have boys to take camping. The girls are not that excited about "roughin' it". No place to go to put on their make up, one of them complained.

Ron and Bill both became Eagle Scouts and we are so proud of them.

Flannel Nightdresses for my granddaughters

One Christmas I made flannel nightgowns (they call them nightdresses) for the granddaughters.

I wonder if the last granddaughter who was born (Caroline)  later got these as hand-me-downs? She must have gotten tired of seeing these before she outgrew them! Now they like to sleep in big cotton T-shirts or silk pajamas. And I don't make those!

Instead,  I make cushions, curtains, and other accessories instead of clothes. When Nerissa was visiting us in July, I helped her make this pillow for her apartment at Clemson Univ. She designed the pillow and my friend did the embroiderred monogram for her. It matches her hot pink comforter on her bed. (Her initials and mine are the same:  Mary Nerissa Gilmer for her and my name is Mary Nell Gilmer.)

I like to make things for the girls and they always seem to appreciate them so much.

Raggedy Ann and Andy for the granddaughters

One Christmas I decided to make a set of Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls for each of our 4 grand-

daughters (#5 grand-daughter wasn't born yet). The two older girls received large dolls and the two younger girls got smaller versions. I had so much fun making these dolls and sewing their hair on their heads. They became "alive" when I added the facial features. I placed them on the sofa in the living room and several times a day I would go to the living room to check on my doll family.

They were like real people and it was difficult to put them in a box and wrap them to put them under the tree! I am happy to say that these dolls are still "alive" and most are packed away with things they want to save. They adorned their bedrooms throughout their childhood. Now 3 of the girls are in college and 1 is a Jr. in high school. I had to make a 5th set of dolls later on for the youngest who is in the 6th grade.

Prior to making the dolls, every Christmas I made the girls flannel nightgowns and they loved them. They started passing them down to the younger girls. Those gowns stayed around a long time.

I've made many costumes for them over the years. Once Elizabeth, the oldest granddaughter, called from Austin, TX and asked if I could make her a Queen Elizabeth costume, "Quick" she said. She needed it to wear when she gave a book report. She said to please use royal purple for the dress since that was her favorite color and to make a "ruff" to wear around her neck. I asked why she wanted a queen dress and she said she was planning to win first place and be crowned "queen" - and she did and she got her outfit just in time to wear it.

I've made many Halloween costumes for them. Just wish they lived closer by to try them on when I'm sewing for them. For that reason I don't try to make clothes for them.

I love making memories .........

Bound for East Germany

On Aug. 12th I wrote about my trip to Europe in 1981, and promised to write about my train trip from England to Piene, Germany - near Hamburg, in northern Germany (photo of train station in Hamburg)

With a change in plans due to an airlines strike, I had to revise my travel plans to return from a weekend in London, to Peine, where I was staying with a Germany family during a Friendship Force Exchange visit for 2 weeks. It was like the "slow train to China" with our old East German train cars often being bumped and left sitting on a side track until another train would come along and take us along for awhile and "dump" us again. I really don't know how long I was on that train travelling from Belgium to the East Germany border.

I shared a compartment with 2 punks from Berlin. One had lime green hair and the other hot pink hair. They had their radios/cassette players and loved heavy metal music. I knew enough German to have a brief dialogue with them. They were from Berlin and had been to London on a holiday. They started drinking beer soon after the train pulled out from Belgium and before long both were sleeping. I was afraid to go to sleep! All of the signs, etc. on the train were written in Russian language. I couldn't read a word. I was supposed to get off at the last stop (Hamburg) before the train crossed the East German border. With some side stops along the way, the train was several hours late. I was glad that I called my host family and told them I would take a taxi from Hamburg to Peine.

I arrived at the train station at 2 A.M. Just as the train was pulling into the station, the conductor came through calling the name of the stop and when he said Hamburg, I jumped up and gathered my bag (only had 1 carry-on) and when the trained stopped, I turned the handle on the door to get off and it wouldn't open!! I didn't know what to do, so I ran down to another compartment, and was prepared to start kicking if I couldn't get that door open. I turned the handle and it opened wide and I fell out on the sidewalk with my little bag! Nobody was in sight at 2 a.m. and as soon as I got up and looked around, the train was leaving. I got off just in time.I walked thru the long tunnel to get upstairs and the big waiting room was almost empty.


I walked outside to get a taxi. Several were parked there and I went up to one and was trying to tell him in German where I wanted to go. He answered me and said he spoke English. I was so happy. I hopped in the car and away we went out into the countryside, thru asparagus fields, to the little village of Peine. He got out of the cab and escorted me to the door and knocked and waited for my host family to open the door. They spoke in German briefly, I paid him, and off he went. She said he told her that I was a nice American and very brave!

I spent a few more days with my host family and then it was time to go to the marketplatz in Peine and board the bus, along with other Americans on the trip, to travel through East Germany to Berlin. This was a very depressing ride and I was a little uneasy when we had to cross the border. We stopped at the entrance to East Germany and the bus driver told us to sit still and not talk to the guards. They got on the bus and asked us to show them our passports. When they saw mine they took it and left the bus and went inside the guard house. We waited and waited and they came back and handed it to the driver and spoke a few words to him, and then motioned us to move along. The driver said they had not seen the new computer coded passports and thought mine was illegal. I was glad they didn't make me get off the bus. We were very happy to see the Brandenburg gate in Berlin once again after a long trip through Est Germany, and we boarded the plane to come back to Winston Salem, NC.

Other than these experiences, the trip was a great experience and the good out-weighed the bad many times. We were treated royally and dined and fested all week in and around the big city of Hamburg. Spaceship Columbia landed one week-end while I was there (in April) and all the Germans gathered around their TV sets to watch this big event and cheered loudly when Columbia landed safely.

Germany was much different from the post-war days we spent there in 1954-55. I'm glad I had an opportunity to go back almost 30 years later.