He Knew He Was Right

Where to Hit the Slopes in 2011-12 | Farmers' Almanac This past Friday I was at good ole Adams Fairacre Farms and picked up and flipped through a copy of this quaint almanac, something I remember showing up in our home every year when we were young. I was doing some serious shopping though--I was there for a roof rake and a stink bug trap, neither of which I even knew existed until these past couple of years, let alone ever read about in the Farmers' Almanac or any other resource. It hit me while shopping that I hadn't put down fertilizer since the spring, and I do know the importance of that fall fertilizing, so I set myself up with that. Then I walked by the bulb rack. I didn't bother doing my usual checking labels for that little portrait of the deer with a circle and slash, and went straight for daffodils, which I know they don't like. I used my neighbor's roof rake last winter, and knew it was something I should have. Apparently, the Farmer's Alman...

A few months ago, I wrote about the appeal of living in a four-season spot such as the Hudson Valley. I explained that things like the imminent baseball season and the awakening yard were pleasant evidence of the transition from winter to spring, and suggested that each season brings its own welcome change. Then came this sweltering summer, with the second hottest July ever flipping over to an August that is already continuing that trend. It would seem more effort is needed to find the appeal of this season. Or maybe not: As I was looking at an August schedule, the iPod shuffled to Tom Waits’ “Broken Bicycles”, and the line “September's reminding July/It's time to be saying goodbye” caught me, launching me into this post. We’re in the dog days of summer for sure, but then again NFL training camps are open! Helmets are on, and two-a-days are taking place up in Albany (Go Big Blue!) and elsewhere. Plus, August means something else in the Hudson Valley. The month is bookended by t...

If I align everything just right, I can fit my lawn tractor and car into my one-car garage. I only bother in the winter, removing the mowing deck from the tractor and squeezing it facing outward in the back left corner. Backing my Forester into the garage, I end up with about six inches of clearance between its back tire and the front one of my John Deere. In what has become something of a ritual every spring and fall, I swap the placement of my tractor and snow thrower, which spends its summers in that back corner. I can’t say it’s a happy routine, as there is a bit of dread that comes with the necessity of having these machines at the ready. Still, though, there are four seasons here in the Hudson Valley. Things may go quickly from hot to cold in the autumn, and then heat up just as quickly in the spring, but I count four distinct seasons. Spring is here in these parts, and really everywhere, just check a sports calendar: In April, “March Madness” wraps up, the Masters Tournament in...