Ellendale Journal

For Thomas Paine

2010-11-02T08:29:00.001-05:00

Sung and unsung heroes of ancient time

Come back to haunt us in this hour

As if we brought them here today to weigh

The worth of what we now desire.

Monument climb from your pedestal

And live with us but for a while

So you can know that what we have today

Is not the same world you restyled.

Some would say that we must follow now

The letter of the lesson sown,

Or all the things our fathers won for us

Would to chaotic winds be blown.

Ancient ones as you cannot return

To life from stone and breathe again,

Then we must for our sons and daughters live

As never ruled by ancient men.

Late Summer

2010-09-28T18:06:00.001-05:00

And now the time

Of grass turned brown

And of leggy impatiens

Sprawling, crab-like on the thinning mulch,

And of nature's design

To mold and spoil the ground,

Hiding the fragrance

Of the blooms we only yesterday touched.

Unknowing

2009-07-02T08:28:00.001-05:00

What is a thing?
He didn't know.

What is a person?
He didn't know.

What is emotion?
He didn't know.

What are sensations?
He didn't know.

What is occurrence?
He didn't know.

What is this existence?
He didn't know.

What is a question?
His life was the reply.

Bob Salley

Gig Pics

2009-06-16T19:18:00.002-05:00

Had a big time at Kudzu's and Larry's last week . . . More here

2009-06-16T19:13:00.003-05:00

We don't get to may blooms on these lilies because they're in too much shade. More of this weeks garden pics here.

Weekend gig pics . . .

2009-05-24T19:15:00.002-05:00

. . . more here . . .

Strange Neighborhood Cat . . .

2009-05-24T19:10:00.003-05:00

Don't know where this big fellow comes from but there he is right outside the window - btw, Lily doesn't particularly care for him. Pfft, pfft, reow, hiss, more here . . .

Robins On Our Drainpipe Make Me Happy . . .

2009-05-21T07:08:00.004-05:00

Mid-day in the Garden of Good and Evil . . .

2009-05-20T06:37:00.004-05:00

Couple of new groups of garden pics and also some pics we took at the Loretta Lynn show last weekend here . . .

Mmmmmmm . . . fresh greens

2009-05-07T08:08:00.003-05:00

Lily sure digs eating the grass. Of course in a couple minutes she'll be gacking and bubbling at the mouth. More new garden pics here . . .

2009-04-27T09:39:00.003-05:00

Lots of blooming action going on in the garden. It's a little hard to keep up during this time of year with everything coming out so quickly. This is our first Peony bloom. More pics here.

April Garden Pics

2009-04-20T18:03:00.002-05:00

More pics here . . .

Pics from April 1 . . .

2009-04-15T16:22:00.002-05:00

Solomon seal, little irises and our favorite Lily . . .

Pics From March 20 . . .

2009-04-07T07:41:00.002-05:00

Finally uploading these from a couple weeks ago . . .

Mid-March Monster Fog . . .

2009-04-07T07:31:00.004-05:00

. . . and this was late in the morning, too . . .

Spirea . . .

2009-03-11T20:36:00.003-05:00

These Spirea are actually across the front of Artie's property but we get to enjoy them this time of year. Kind of looks like pop corn, aka Bridal Wreath.

Solomon's Seal . . .

2009-03-11T20:30:00.002-05:00

Just peaking out of the ground, some early shoots in the bed around one of the pecan trees. They grow steady and bloom earlier than the hostas.

Redbud . . . mmmmmmmm

2009-03-11T20:24:00.002-05:00

The redbud trees are just now starting to show some blooms, they ought to be in full bloom in another week (barring any bad storm damage over the next few days)

Hydrangea buds . . .

2009-03-11T20:14:00.003-05:00

Lots of green in the lower parts but the tops are getting real fat, too. Might have to cover them for a couple days if the freeze is coming.

Forsythia . . .

2009-03-11T11:02:00.003-05:00

The forsythia blooms are getting crowded out by the greenery a little but it's still quite a sight.

Daffodils . . .

2009-03-11T10:57:00.003-05:00

Had a few daffodils left that the snow last week didn't smush. A couple of them ended up in a vase in the kitchen. This one is out by the wood pile.

Snowy Birthday . . .

2009-03-02T09:43:00.003-06:00

OK everybody was asking about the happy birthday in the snow but this is all that was left when we got home late last night. Snapped these early this morning before further melting. Thanks for some great partying this weekend . . .

Late February Garden Pics . . .

2009-02-25T18:55:00.002-06:00

Everything's coming up so nice, I had to snap a few pics . . .
1. Forsythia bush
2. Forsythia closeup
3. Nandina berries
4. Volunteer miniature pansy
5. Sedum
6. The sedum bed

Winter garden . . .

2009-02-01T08:42:00.004-06:00

Woke up last week and went to make coffee and this was the first thing I saw out the kitchen window, so I took a few pics . . .

My Father's Son

2009-01-28T08:09:00.002-06:00

I see him now as if he's still at work
And smell his hair and feel his khaki shirt.
Though years ago, I'm in a reverie
As in the mirror he is all I see.

I see my life that often copies his,
A song so clear you hear where silence is.
A brand new finish on a worn out chair
In which I sit to feel the comfort there.

I am my father's son, I see his face
Each time I see myself. Time can't erase
In me his thoughts, I have his history
and hear the echo sound so distantly.

Bob Salley

O Little Town Of Bethlehem

2008-12-18T09:09:00.000-06:00

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Away In A Manger

2008-12-16T19:24:00.000-06:00

Away In A Manger

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White Christmas

2008-12-15T18:19:00.010-06:00

White Christmas

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Harvest

2008-12-09T20:03:00.004-06:00

OK, first time since we've been here that we've tried harvesting the pecans - woohoo! Paper thin shells and mighty tasty. We got the ones off the nearest branches to the house, the squirrels got the rest - eight trees. The squirrels also eat the acorns off five oak trees and the pine cones off about twenty pine trees and therefore don't try to get into the attic. Our old friend and dentist Lester (Pud) Graves was talking about some fresh Brunswick Stew he had simmering there at the office, which gave me some real nitrous ideas for a while. Of course later I was thinking it occurred to me that we've got more pecans than we can eat, the critters have theirs, we have a squirrel-free attic and all is right with the world. Anybody have a recipe for pecan pie?

Warning

2008-11-25T08:10:00.000-06:00

To prey upon misfortune
May seem an opportunity
But in the final judgment
Do not expect impunity.

Bob Salley

Three Bluebirds

2008-11-25T08:05:00.000-06:00

Three bluebirds came to eat last week
Among the wrens and chickadees
And stayed one day but then moved on
Before the advancing cold front freeze.

I thought with jealousy that they
Had moved ahead to warmer clime
And left me here with chickadee
And wren to live in winter-time.

Goodbye fair-weather visitors
We who are left behind will feed
Thanksgiving Day upon a feast
Of warm friendship and sunflower seed.

Bob Salley

Parker Party

2008-11-21T09:56:00.004-06:00

Had a great time at the gig last Wednesday at Fat Larry's - Parker's birthday. Hey we don't normally need an excuse to party but this one was extra special. Picture by Terry Turkal.

Sky-blue Dodge Dart

2008-11-18T19:27:00.000-06:00

Sky-blue Dodge Dart, from '64,
A fade spot on the driver's door,
Three on the stick, like new inside
With under-dash F.M. supplied
And vinyl mats upon the floor.

Four hundred dollars I paid for
That car, my first, and I'd adore
My sleek and long but not too wide
Sky-blue Dodge Dart.

If I could find from days of yore
To cherish, care for and restore
Original unmodified
Just such a car in which to ride
I think I'd like to own one more
Sky-blue Dodge Dart.

Bob Salley

Compulsion

2008-11-18T19:25:00.001-06:00

For absolutely no reason at all
I'll give myself something to rant about
And then to give myself another thrill
I give myself a nasty little chat
Out-loud until I hyperventilate.
Then rising from my silent state of wrath
I rage again when I have caught my breath.

Bob Salley

Incredibility

2008-11-11T20:09:00.000-06:00

It's hard to believe some braggart's humility,
Or a shrewd sophisticate's feign gullibility.
The rugged outdoorsman's social fragility,
Makes as much sense as a bull's gentility.

That back stabber there with his false affability
Is as strange as the insecure's mask of virility.
And the social climber's fallacious nobility
Is harder to take than a toady's servility.

With poseurs and vaunters there's little ability
To care about truth or maintaining civility.
So don't cave in and resort to hostility,
Just chalk it all up to incredibility.

Bob Salley

Campaign Signs On Broadway Road

2008-11-11T20:07:00.001-06:00

I see the signs, I see the vain intent
Measured repeating words empty of truth
In all deceitful vagueness, there to hide
Authority's desire in sympathy.

Till two by two the standing are to beg
Against the other argument and we
Will choose between the sides that are one side
And none of them but only we will lose.

It's clearly written in the book of games
Though who has read the book but only those
Who choose to play the man against the man
Like pawns deriding game and man alike

So that we choose our sides and keep the score
And not aspire to comprehend the game.

Bob Salley

Floating Over Flooded Fields

2008-11-04T20:48:00.000-06:00

Floating over flooded fields
hell, there wasn't no levee.

It's a short cut up river now,
boating across the farm,
branches and garbage
all over the place.
And the water -

The water. We tied down
and put up
everything we could.
Kinda ruined some stuff
and, Lord, the first floor,
you shoulda seen
the first floor.

We took the truck up
to the ridge.
Camped out, ate
dinner under the moon.

That big moon,
you shoulda seen it
with its big
ripply moon reflection
floating over
flooded fields.

Bob Salley

Numbers

2008-11-04T20:16:00.001-06:00

All for one and one for all,
No one can serve two masters.

It's all just a three-ring circus,
Four corners of a world's disasters

Know how many beans make five?
Not six of one or a half dozen of the other,

But here I am in seventh heaven
Right behind the eight ball, brother.

A stitch in time saves the whole nine yards,
If you have a ten foot pole.

But time is tight in the eleventh hour,
And twelve steps won't save your soul.

Bob Salley

Chance

2008-10-28T09:54:00.000-05:00

It's all just luck, the odds are all the same.
Spinning the wheel, or picking a lucky number,
Falling in love, or hitting on the horses,
Cutting a deal, realizing a dream.
The moon is new, I throw a pinch of salt
And cross my fingers, find a lucky penny.
Three keys, an upturned horseshoe, four-leaf clover,
A plastic solar powered beckoning cat.
It is all luck; the odds are still the same.
It's all about the outcome and a way
To think about how everything will end,
Relying on a method to explain
That circumstance in all finality
Is luck because the odds are all the same.

Bob Salley

Merry Go Round

2008-10-23T08:21:00.001-05:00

She talks to the boy,
whose birthday it is,
on his father's shoulders.

The connection, eye
to eye, mouth to mouth,
in vivid communication,

he tells her that day
he rode on a horse -
the color blue and red.

Bob Salley

And With May A Decade In Ellendale

2008-10-22T12:31:00.002-05:00

for Joanne Kyger

Removing rat-packed belongs and trash, scrubbing
painting, glazing, plumbing, urethane, nearing exhaustion
the physical body is spent, the sinuses fumigated.
Clearing acreage of wild privet, roses, poison ivy,
possums, raccoons, and scraping, sowing, planting,
pruning, mowing, the symbiosis of all nature becomes
evident. Hard lessons bestow great reward.

The abundant diversity of west Tennessee nature at hand.

The cat bathes on the driveway
and we watch the sun filter through
fifty year old pecan and pine trees.
Birds and squirrels chatter and scold
and sing and rejoice in the wind of time
and earth and sky and life.

Bob Salley

Cool Weather

2008-10-21T17:18:00.003-05:00

In Ellendale the morning's dry and chilled.
Pecans are ripening - the hulls have split
And oak leaves like a ragged blanket sprawled
On fescue newly sprouted green and lit
By moving sunbeams that the trees have split.
And yet my thoughts so easily pull away
To petty chores and labor of the day

So each and every drudge and effort done,
And mind and body commendably spent,
I set the sprinkler in the setting sun
And pour a glass of wine and sit - content
To breathe the crisper air of autumn's scent.
And now my thoughts so easily pull away
To think about the beauty of the day.

Bob Salley

Good Morning, Glory

2008-10-18T09:45:00.003-05:00

Here's the view of the Bird Girl through the morning glory trellis. This is the most flowers they had all summer - even though it's the sunniest part of the yard it still might not be enough sun to really put out. At this date, the flowers are gone and they're full of seeds but it made me think of this picture I took a month ago.

My Old Flip Flops

2008-10-16T16:10:00.003-05:00

My old flip flops are broken in -
The straps are soft, the souls are thin.
Nine months I wear them every day,
But when it's cold, I have to trade
My favorite kicks for moccasins.

But when in spring it's warm again
I tear one up while gardening.
I guess I'll have to throw away
My old flip flops.

I get a new pair from the bin
At Walgreens, they're a dreadful sin.
I wear them, persevere and pray
That maybe by Memorial Day
I'll be as comfortable as in
My old flip flops.

Bob Salley

Eternity . . .

2008-10-06T08:48:00.003-05:00

Here's some video I shot while Susie was recording some tracks for her song Eternity . . .

Yum, yum . . .

2008-10-04T08:32:00.002-05:00

The taste of plain old tap water just can't compare to the full bodied taste of birdbath water. Stalking birds and oh yes, one chipmunk that didn't make it yesterday, is might thirsty work.

New old music . . .

2008-10-04T08:21:00.002-05:00

Some thing old from the back of my mind . . . enjoy.

Monkey sea, monkey bloom . . .

2008-09-30T08:20:00.004-05:00

Late summer, early autumn - this monkey grass or Liriope muscari 'variegata' really puts out some great blooms. They love it under the pecan trees in the back (along with some not-variegated types).

One Man's Weeds . . .

2008-09-26T07:30:00.004-05:00

The beautiful Asiatic dayflower or Commelina communis is blooming in little clumps near our privet hedge on the south of the back yard. This being heavy mowing season for us, we usually don't get to enjoy wild flowers blooming but these little suckers grow under the radar - or at least under the mower blade height. Most internet info on them is in regards to ridding your soybean field of them (somewhat impossible), but a favorable review with much better pictures than mine can be found here.

It's been very long

2008-09-25T07:31:00.003-05:00

Welly, welly well, it's been very long and I've been very naughty neglecting this blog but we've not been neglecting the garden. These sedum did alright in the back yard where they used to be but are really taking off since Susie transplanted them out front. Slightly less light (late afternoon in complete shade) and generally similar soil but more compact. It's really a never ending trial and error experiment around here - of course this time it was trial and success.

Late Summer

2008-08-18T07:57:00.007-05:00

And now the time
Of grass turned brown
And of leggy impatiens
Sprawling, crab-like on the thinning mulch,

And of nature's design
To mold and spoil the ground,
Hiding the fragrance
Of the blooms we only yesterday touched.

Bob Salley

Dark Hydrangea

2008-07-01T08:05:00.003-05:00

Not sure what variety this is but the foliage is much smaller and darker and the blooms keep their deep color much longer. This is a small plant we had for a few years in a location it obviously didn't like. We move it year before last and it's doing great. Almost doesn't look real . . .

2008-06-27T08:01:00.003-05:00

Well, the late afternoon shot didn't work at all so even though this is a little washed out, you can still see the left to right blue to pink phenomenon. Notice some of the foliage is really growing this year We think it's because we trimmed the frostbitten bits last year and that those parts will start blooming next year hopefully.

Don't be blue . . .

2008-06-21T09:18:00.005-05:00

Well the hydrangeas are blooming quite vividly this year as opposed to no blooms last year. The bloom pictured here is in a bed that, like a rainbow, changes color from blue to a bright pink. I took this in the early A.M. but the picture of the whole bed was washed out by the early morning sun. Will try an evening shot to show the real color range.

The Stalker

2008-06-04T07:28:00.007-05:00

I am Animal. I stalk the native squirrel,
The impudent mole, my fore-claws curl
Around the throat of sparrow and finch.
And now I am Death. I only move an inch
As my Prey drops its head to feed,
One paw forward as it looks for seed.
Now I am Stalker - as my quarry drops
One eye below the grass I will perhaps
Take a stance and set my limbs and hunch
In anticipating stillness - waiting to lunge.
One more earthward peck, almost savoring,
Linger, then bound, claws, teeth, ravening,
Creature over creature, life over Death,
I am Stalker, Animal, you give me breath.

Bob Salley

Upon My Fence

2008-05-30T08:06:00.007-05:00

Upon my fence I contemplate
The grass and trees and garden gate
Knowing that I can easily
Begin the work that's yet to be
Complete, but I procrastinate.

I sit and watch the grass grow straight
Up to my perch, and calculate
A distant cloud's velocity
Upon my fence

But now the time is getting late,
The yard is in a sorry state
Of uncut grass. But then I see
A chipmunk has run up to me
As if we have a dinner date
Upon my fence.

Bob Salley

Our Office

2008-05-24T19:15:00.003-05:00

This is our office in Ellendale, TN. Around 8 - 10 months out of the year, Susie and I sit out here and check out the birds and squirrels while we take calls or plan big projects or have a coffee break (typically). Of course we're also the grounds keeping staff so it's a place to drop from exhaustion every once in a while. Our cat, Lily, usually sleeps on one of the four chair cushions or can occasionally be seen stalking the squirrels that eat under the bird feeder.