22 | October | 2011 | A Winsome Journey ~ imagine, dream, create

It started like any other Friday; feed the dogs, feed the cat, feed the chickens, grain the ducks, muck the barns, hay…grain…and water for the llamas…all done with my coffee mug, Lexi (the lab) and Finnegan(the bernadoodle) in tow. One thing was different however; my husband had the day off. He had a lot more interesting things on his to-do list than I did mine; and his included a long drive up Route 22…to Hartford,NY.
“So, what’s happening in Hartford”?
“We are going to look at a truck for sale”.
“In Hartford?” “Where is Hartford”?
“I don’t know yet”….(Shudder)
The ride was nice enough, kinda overcast, and Harry Connick,Jr was crooning in my ear ~ well for awhile…you see my husband’s hearing is not what it used to be… and to add to that my voice can be rather soft. He leans over, and looks a me while I speak…I look across at him – briefly – and say I don’t know whether he should be looking` at me or not. It isn’t a good idea to take your eyes off the road too often.
With that – someone – has decided, after much braking and accelerating – (that Hubby has not seemed to notice)- perhaps turning to the right is what they want after all, but it doesn’t occur to them to put on their blinker until after they’ve slowed almost to a standstill. I quickly notice a mother deer and 2 nearly grown fawns) I am not sure what happened to my quiet ride in the country – Route 22 had become a Disney theme park – and we’re all just extras from a Bambi remake. As this all transpires in ostensible slow motion…Hubby doesn’t seem to have noticed the emergency stop – he’s looking at me, laughing softly; “So – anyway- this other guy – who is he exactly?….” I tell him B R A K E (loudly)… He slams on the brakes.. He whistles, laughs some more, then he looks serious and says some of his teenage driving skills come in handy…Then luckily we turn left and head up Route 149…, so, I forget all about it, you see the road we just turned onto ..leads up away from the valley and into some beautiful hilly farmland…the sun has just burst through the cloud cover. The result is nothing less than amazing light. The distant Vermont mountains looming grey in the background, the sky moody and threatening, yet, there are streams of bright sunlight illuminating the hills and fields.

Here are some of the resulting pictures…all unedited; I wanted you all to see (as exacting as I could) what I saw… hope you enjoy them too.

I drove home!