Edges

instapartments.com

2012-01-31T22:39:00.001-08:00

Not my usual blog post, but today I'd like to talk about instapartments. Cool name, innit?

Remember the old days when you had an apartment for rent? You phoned the local newspaper, placed an article, waited for the paper to be published, waited for your tiny ad to appear and get lost between a million other ads, and then you waited for the calls, if any.

Then came Craigslist, you placed your ad and got bombed with hundreds of spam and scam mails. Luckily, life has gotten so much easier, thanks to new inventions and bright ideas.

The technology used for today's cell phone was invented by Martin Cooper, the kindle was invented by Jeff Bezos, Edward Asselbergs came up with instant mashed potatoes, and then there was instapartments, made by an awesome programmer, just for your comfort.

http://instapartments.com has everything an apartment building owner needs. No waiting, no spam, no knowledge of intricate code necessary, no hassle.

At instapartments, you can create your own site in a heartbeat. It has everything you'll ever need to offer your apartments to a continuously growing internet audience.

instapartments is a must for small apartment businesses.

You can check out a sample site here: http://www.instapartments-sample.com/

Stop by at http://instapartments.com some time and check it out, it's great stuff! The sites are built on a solid foundation and easy to use.

The queen in action

2011-07-15T13:32:00.000-07:00

Older than dirt, and still kicking

New friends

2010-11-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I posted something. Life's been busy, what can I say.
I moved to an old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere on August 1st. One of the first things I noticed after moving was the presence of many more wild animals, compared to my previous place. The coyotes howl at night, deer are all over the place, woodchucks run across the path to the woods. Second thing I noticed was the absolute silence at night. Third thing I noticed was a bad rash on my arms. I thought it was poison ivy, but it just got worse from there. Today my arms look as if I have the measles.

The above picture was taken in my back yard. There are hundreds of apple trees on this huge property, the deer love them and so do I. Shortly after moving I started fencing in a large area, getting ready to plant vegetables next spring.
The cat made the move all right, she is still up to her old tricks such as jumping on the desk when she's not supposed to, and ruling the house.

Do I feel at home here? I am not sure, but I certainly love the lone feeling, and I love looking up at the sky on a clear night.

My Cat Mousti

2010-02-06T22:19:00.000-08:00

A young kitten sat crying on my porch when I came home from work at two in the morning. It was 20 below zero and the wind was blowing like crazy. There was no way she would have survived the night. I let her in the house, "just for this one night" I thought. One night became two, two became a week, a month.. this is my queen Mousti, 14 years later.

Dear Beloved

2010-01-24T22:10:00.000-08:00

From my spam folder:

My beloved in Christ,

I am ,Rita ****, a Christian.I have picked your email address randomly for an inheritance of $18.5M which is lodge in a Security Company.They wrote me to come and claim the fund and i am Hospitalize now and cant do anything.

I Will give you more details as soon as i hear from you,

**********************************************

Even the scammers get lazy, they used to send an elaborate mail with a sob story that had the potential of turning every stone into a heart. Seriously, all they have to do is keep their heart wrenching sob story on a notepad and paste it in the body of a mail. Or maybe this is a new strategy and they try to get people curious enough to reply? Some halfway decent punctuation wouldn't hurt either.

Lucky died today

2009-08-31T22:23:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you about Lucky, she was a sweetheart.
One night her coop got attacked by a wild animal and most chickens got killed. Two of her sisters survived and were brought to my coop the next day, because their owner wanted a safer home for them. The dog came out of the woods two days later with Lucky in his mouth. She was seriously damaged but was alive. She was also brought to my coop and reunited with her sisters. Lucky did great. Last year she and her sister Chimney decided to brood together. They hatched 6 beautiful babies. This year, Lucky wasn't much into the brooding game, but Chimney had two successful hatches.

Lucky never pecked on the other hens and in turn, they left her alone. She loved her greens in the afternoon. Last night I could tell that she was not feeling well. She sat huddled in the corner and didn't want any treats. She died today, probably of old age. I buried her alongside the path that goes from the back yard into the woods. Poor Lucky!

Op de boerderij (2)

2008-06-05T13:15:00.001-07:00

Op de boerderij

2008-06-05T13:08:00.001-07:00

May 26 2008

2008-05-26T14:11:00.000-07:00

For a Dutch version, scroll down a bit.
De Nederlandse versie is onderaan de Engelse.

Is it really Memorial day? Where did April and the first part of May go?
Planting season is in full swing and I'd like to say that I'm catching up but I'm not. The blackflies are slowing me down enormously. Those little bastards act as if my blood is the only gourmet dinner miles around. Why not just bite the chickens? They have blood too, you know. They got me in both my eyes, nose, ears, on my hands and all around my neck. Two swollen eyes and a swollen nose, the ultimate blackfly defeat. Staple laundry softening sheets on your clothes I was told, it keeps the bugs away. I'm slaving away on the land, looking like a piece of laundry coming right out of the dryer with sheets stapled all over me and sometimes I feel as if this actually attracts the bastards. Please don't tell me we need insects as food for the birds because the birds can eat grass and seeds.
They are dense this year, and aggressive as ever. On the positive side, the June sun will kill them in a hurry. A couple more weeks and they'll be gone to make room for the house flies. Those don't bother me. The average life span of a house fly is one week and all they do during that week is have sex and leave tiny black spots on my white walls. No big deal.

I picked a huge bouquet of lilacs earlier today and put it in the living room. The whole house smells like heaven although I'm not quite sure what heaven smells like.

****

Is her echt herdenkings dag? Waar zijn april en mei heengegaan?
Zaai seizoen is volop aan de gang en ik zou willen zeggen dat ik niet achterop ben met mijn groenten te planten, maar ik ben tamelijk ver achterop. De zwarte vliegen maken het me onmogelijk om vlug te werken.
Die onnozelaars denken dat mijn bloed de enige gourmet maaltijd is, uren in het rond. Waarom kunnen ze de kippen niet bijten en mij met rust laten? De kippen hebben ook wel bloed.
De zwarte vliegen hebben mij in allebei mijn ogen gebeten, mijn neus, oren en nek. Twee gezwollen ogen en een gezwollen neus zijn het bewijs dat ze gewonnen hebben!
Er wordt gezegd dat je die zwarte vliegen van je af kunt houden met die doekjes tie je in de droogkast stopt als wasverzachter. Ik ben op het land aan het werken met die doekjes vastgeniet aan mijn kleren, ik zie eruit alsof ik juist uit de droogkast gekropen ben maar soms denk ik dat die doekjes de zwarte vliegen aantrekken!
Waarom hebben we eigenlijk insecten nodig? Het is niet om de vogels van voedsel te voorzien want de vogels kunnen gras en zaadjes eten!
Nog maar een paar weken en de juni zon zal die onnozelaars doden. Opgeruimd staat netjes. Dan krijgen we de huisvliegen, maar die doen geen kwaad. De gemiddelde levensduur van een huis vlieg is een week. Gedurende die week, het enige wat ze doen is sex hebben en zwarte puntjes op mijn witte muren achterlaten.

Ik heb een grote bouquet paarse seringen geplukt van de struik die in mijn voortuin statt. De seringen zijn in a vaas in mijn woonkamer en gans het huis ruikt naar seringen.

Ingesneeuwd

2008-05-24T22:28:00.000-07:00

Dit is hoe het eruit ziet wanneer ik ingesneeuwd ben.

This is what it looks like when I'm snowed in.

Sneeuw, alweer.

2008-05-24T22:26:00.000-07:00

Trachten om de deur vrij van sneeuw te houden.

Trying to keep the doorway snow free.

cuppa tea

2008-05-24T22:24:00.000-07:00

Water opwarmen voor een kopje thee op een koude dag.

Boiling some water for tea on a cold day.

buitenshuis wonen

2008-05-24T22:15:00.000-07:00

Hier zie je een van mijn drie kampvuur ketels. Ik kook gewoonlijk mijn avondmaal boven het kampvuur, zomer en winter.

One of my three firepits. I usually cook my dinner above one of the firepits. They are also being used in wintertime.

Gewonde kip

2008-05-24T22:13:00.000-07:00

Gewonde kip, afgezonderd van de andere kippen todat ze weer beter is.

Injured hen, separated from the other hens until she has recovered.

Trying to shovel a path to chicken coop

2008-05-24T22:10:00.000-07:00

Mezelf een weg naar het kippenhok banen iedere dag is nogal wat werk. Deze foto was genomen in maart 2008 na een sneeuwstorm.

Making a path to the chicken coop every day is quite a job. Picture taken March 2008 after a snow storm.

Leaving the driveway.

2008-05-24T22:05:00.000-07:00

Friends leaving my driveway on their sleds.

Vrienden, vertrekkend van mijn uprit met hun sleden.

The valley

2008-05-24T22:02:00.000-07:00

View to the north-east of my home.

Uitzicht op de noord oosten kant van mijn huis.

Sneeuwdriften in mijn straat

2008-05-24T21:59:00.000-07:00

Sneeuwdriften in mijn straat. Foto genomen aan de noord kant van mijn huis.

Snowdrifts on my road. Picture taken from the north side of my house.

Path to chicken coop

2008-05-24T21:56:00.000-07:00

Mezelf een weg banen naar het kippenhok. Dat is een dagelijkse bezigheid in de wintermaanden.

Making a path to the chicken coop is a daily job in wintertime.

Mijn achtertuin in de sneeuw

2008-05-24T21:53:00.000-07:00

Snow plowing in my back yard.

Sneeuw ruimen in mijn achtertuin.

Mijn winterverblijf

2008-05-24T21:50:00.000-07:00

Inside view of my igloo, February 2007

Mijn winterverblijf, februari 2007

eekhoorntje

2008-05-24T14:33:00.000-07:00

One of my chipmunks: Chippy

Een van mijn aardeekhoorntjes: Chippy

Lente 2008

2008-05-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

View from my kitchen window. Spring 2008

Zicht vanuit mijn keukenraam, lente 2008

In de achtertuin

2008-05-24T14:08:00.000-07:00

Getting the firepit ready to make dinner. Spring 2007

Een vuurtje aan het opstoken om het avondmaal te koken. Lente 2007

Back yard

2008-05-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

Walking in the back yard, spring 2007

Wandelen in mijn achtertuin, lente 2007

On the property

2008-05-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

This is a satellite picture of my home. The house is in the far left corner. The other buildings are barns. The woods are my back yard.

Dit is een luchtfoto van mijn huis. Mijn huis is in de linkerhoek bovenaan. De andere gebouwen zijn schuren. De bossen zijn mijn achtertuin.

Mijn wereld

2008-05-24T13:59:00.000-07:00

Snowbanks in the road across from the house.

Sneeuwbanken op straat tegenover mijn huis.

Home

2008-05-24T13:56:00.000-07:00

Getting ready to go out for breakfast.

Op weg om uit te gaan voor ontbijt.

An ordinary day around the house

2008-05-24T13:32:00.000-07:00

Winter in the Adirondacks.

Home sweet home

2008-05-24T13:30:00.000-07:00

Winter, 2007

A picture of my home.

Een foto van mijn huis.

Me and Kevin, 1999

2008-05-24T13:17:00.001-07:00

Kevin en ik, 1999

Kevin werd geboren op 1 juni 1955 and stierf op 12 maart 2006. Een groot verlies voor moeder aarde en voor iedereen die van hem hield. Het leven zal nooit meer zijn wat het voorheen was. Een boom is ook niet zoals voorheen nadat die een tak verliest.

Kevin was born on June 1st 1955 and died on March 12th 2006. The earth lost a friend and so did everyone who loved him. Life will never be the same again just like a tree isn't the same when it loses a branch.

Ballad for Kevin

A citadel was painted on
the canvas of your days-
I'm humbled by its magnitude,
the beauty of your ways.

Life's walls were draped with evergreen
and morning glory vines;
each fluent shape of stone would tell
how love prevents decline.

The threshold, worn by weight of steps,
held footprints large and small-
as every friend in town would know,
you saved a smile for all.

The garden was your living room,
the essence of your pride-
your Harley and your fire pit
were standing side by side.

The canvas folded much too soon-
dear friend, the paint still flows,
depicting paths now leading to
where sun and moon repose.

Our Shepherd offers providence,
I'll see each morning climb,
revealing gifts you've strewn about
in every niche of time.

Some day, the touch of sun on bark,
the peace of rippled skies,
will feel like nature's arnica
on gently said goodbyes.

In loving memory of Kevin McDermott

By Chris W, March 12th, 2006

Eternity's Refrain

How short were journey's limericks
when versified in time-
demise became a touch of ink,
a never finished rhyme.

I reminisce about a year
as silence lies entwined
with errant tears that slip between
your lyrics in my mind.

Although we can't claim copyrights
on excerpts of our stride,
life's pathways are perennial-
I've seen your prints and cried.

Acceptance is a twilit poem
for bliss of evening spills
on stanzas charged with undertones
that say I miss you still.

When writings feel like chalk on stone,
too weak to fight the rain,
I pause and read your friendship in
eternity's refrain.

By Chris W March 12th 2007

Cutting of the Tree (Ballad)

2008-05-21T20:55:00.000-07:00

While squirrels buried forest gems
within my wooden chest,
I sipped the songs of nightingales
that wandered from the nest.

My feet would snuggle in the ground,
entwined with rabbit holes;
I welcomed nibbles on my toes
of woodchucks, mice and moles.

When autumn snatched the maple leaves
off every verdant crown,
I gave old needles back to earth
but kept my summer gown.

In frozen fields of wintertime
as skies were arching low,
I swayed amidst my family-
green sculptures in the snow.

But once upon a Christmas day
a brush caressed my knees,
two crossing lines of paint on bark-
a sign, condemning trees.

A chainsaw mulched my waist to dust,
exhaling dirty smoke;
its metal teeth bit nerves and veins
until my body broke.

By Chris W Copyright © 2005-2008

Edges (Terza Rima)

2008-05-21T20:25:00.000-07:00

Soft echoes tremble, touching walls of night,
the single prints will tell she's come alone;
her gown- a kiss of green on season's white.

In moonbeam- tinctured snow she lifts a stone
to smell the comfort forest soil supplies,
she's silent- life drew edges words can't hone.

While molding stars to fit the tapered skies
she buries dying scents of past and yearns
for laughter's fragrance, rich as edelweiss.

When solitude enshrouds the trees, she learns
that even clustered paths are bound to split
and sudden folds in fate delay returns.

The pearls of malachite once strung in crowns
still match a smile each time the princess frowns.

by Chris W. Copyright © 2005-2008