Enjoying

Simply Shaker

/ Ally Bean / 22 Comments

{A Weekend Getaway – Part 1 of 2.  Part 2 here.}  

[I know, I know.  I said that I’d post once a week during the summer… but this adventure was two parts.  My blog, my rules to break at will.]

This past weekend we got together with some friends and we went to Lexington KY for the weekend.  On Saturday we drove about 25 miles from Lexington to Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill.  Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill is a living history museum with 14 buildings nestled in the hills of Kentucky.  It is the largest restored Shaker community in America.

Above is a stone building with wood floors built by the Shakers.  When built in the [early?] middle 1800s, it was a wonder to behold because at that time many people lived in log cabins with dirt floors.  The fact that this building is still standing today is equally amazing to me.

This is the dormitory where the Shakers lived.  At the height of their popularity the Shakers, who were celibate, numbered around 500 people.  Notice that there are two front doors on this building.  The left door was for the women & the right door was for the men.

I loved this well-maintained, yet slightly off-kilter, shed.  The white fences and the stone fence you see here were everywhere on the Shaker property– as well as all around Lexington KY.

Inside the barn we saw this snoozing lamb whose mother [upper right corner] gave me her version of the evil eye as I snapped this photo.  In all honesty, sheep don’t do evil very well;  they are just way too cute for that sort of thing.

I like goats so when these two guys decided to try to eat a leather tab on my cross-body bag I let them do it… for a short while.  This is the look they gave me when I stepped back from the fence taking my handbag with me.  Not pleased were they.

This guy, one of two oxen, was a goof.  He loved having his photo taken and followed me along his fence pausing so I could get a good shot of him.  Such a cooperative fellow!

Here is a view of the land surrounding Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill.  It was spectacular to see.  We enjoyed craft demonstrations in many of the restored buildings, then stepped outside each building to see a serene view such as this one.

Naturally there was gift shop at this museum.  Many of the items for sale were either made/grown on the property.  Also, it was possible to special order some pieces of furniture.  We didn’t buy a thing, but enjoyed the inside of this shop which was beautifully merchandised.

While on the outside of the shop on a window ledge this little guy– blissfully unaware of anyone or anything except his own comfort– cleaned his toes .  ‘Tis a gift to be simple, ’tis a gift to be free… 

Summertime And The Blogging Is Easy

/ Ally Bean / 14 Comments

I’ve decided that it’s time to shake-up things here on my sweet little bloggy.  I wanna do something light & fun & whatever-ish.  Something more spontaneous than recording the details of my life.

So this summer instead of my usual blah, blah, blah, I’m going to post once a week about something that interests me.   A topic that I’ve always been curious about, perhaps.  Or some photos taken during my week, maybe.  Or a things-that-I’ve-learned sort of post.

I’m sure that given the freedom to do whatever I want, I’ll dream up something each week.  Then I’ll write about it here on The Spectacled Bean every Tuesday or Wednesday.

Sound like a plan?  Sure hope so ’cause that’s what I’m going to do from Memorial Day [May 28] to Labor Day [September 3].

I’ll talk at ‘ya later everyone.  Summer is calling to me.

Tea On Tuesday

/ Ally Bean / 18 Comments

a few thoughts while I drink my tea…

::  I didn’t wake up this morning until 8:30 a.m.  I’m usually up around 6:00 a.m. but somehow I slept in this morning.  We had a very busy weekend so maybe I’m catching up on my sleep.  For the first time in weeks, I feel refreshed + focused.

::  It’s wet & overcast gray here today.  The temps are about what I’d expect for Spring– in the 60s.  Tomorrow’s weather prediction is for sunshine, but today I’m sitting inside the house in semi darkness while enjoying the sound of spring rain tapping on the windows.  Peaceful.

::  Looking outside I’m reminded of how most of my days looked when I was studying at the University of Exeter in Devon, England.  Lush + green + ever so gray.  There was something wonderful & reckless about the flora around that university.  Beautiful, really.

::  I made myself a pot of tea this morning.  I’m usually a coffee in the morning girl.  But once in a while when the weather gets a certain way, I pull my little blue teapot off the shelf and make myself a proper cuppa reminiscent of my adventures in the UK.  With milk + sugar, of course.

::  I have nothing planned for this week.  Not. one. thing.  Even for me, an introvert who likes to spend hours on end by myself, that’s unusual.  If the past is any clue about how this week will go, I’ll be writing & reading & researching my hours away.  There are worse ways to spend your time.

Hope Springeth Eternal In A Garden

/ Ally Bean / 15 Comments

The dianthus & salvia are in full bloom now.  After last autumn’s heavy rains that turned this planting bed into a mud pit, I didn’t know what to expect this spring.  But obviously the combo of rain + mild winter temperatures made for healthy plants with particularly intense colors.

Funny how things can work out for the best in a garden.

~ • ~

We planted this false blue indigo last summer but it didn’t thrive.  In the fall I was ready to pull it out because I thought that it was dead.  That’s how pathetic it looked.  But Zen-Den, who has much more patience with gardening than I do, said “let it be.”  He was right because look how vibrant this plant is now, and it’s not even in full bloom yet.

I just love being wrong about things like this.

~ • ~

I adore zinnias but have never had much success growing them from seed.  In fact a few years ago in a fit of frustration I said that I’d never try to grow them again.  But then I saw these starts at a garden center for a whooping $1.29 each, and I figured at that bargain price I had little to lose by trying once again to grow zinnias.

Wish me luck.  It could happen, right?