Sun Spots No. 1

The top half of this tree was recently shorn off. I don't think I noticed it until a spot of sun brought it to my attention.

For Adults Only

When they first appeared a couple of years ago, at the Katonah pool, the inner tubes, targeted to the adults’ inner child, were eyed warily. They were for adults only. Who among us gray-haired and no longer lithe, would be the first to indulge in the childhood memory / dream / ambition of floating along the water in an inner tube? First one of us, then the other, recaptured the childhood delight of playtime in the pool. At first we felt foolish. Then, we felt fun.

Sunday, from 10 to noon, adult swim is our time to be children or be without them. No kids allowed, just adults hangin' at the pool. This year there’s been a sea-change. The inner tubes lie stacked against the equipment shed. Today, only a few dared to languish in the sun, even though it was an opportunity to soak up vitamin D and strengthen bones. For the rest, it was into the lap lanes.

You’d have found me in an inner tube. Strengthening my bones, of course.

Red Sky at Night

This was the sky looking west from my front porch last night. My husband spotted the shot. For better or worse, I took it. I’m sure many of you have heard the phrase “red sky at night sailors’ delight.” Here, according to the website: Everyday Mysteries: Fun Science Facts from the Library of Congress is why.

In order to understand why “Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky in morning, sailor’s warning” can predict the weather, we must understand more about weather and the colors in the sky.

Usually, weather moves from west to east, blown by the westerly trade winds. This means storm systems generally move in from the West.

The colors we see in the sky are due to the rays of sunlight being split into colors of the spectrum as they pass through the atmosphere and ricochet off the water vapor and particles in the atmosphere. The amounts of water vapor and dust particles in the atmosphere are good indicators of weather conditions. They also determine which colors we will see in the sky.

During sunrise and sunset the sun is low in the sky, and it transmits light through the thickest part of the atmosphere. A red sky suggests an atmosphere loaded with dust and moisture particles. We see the red, because red wavelengths (the longest in the color spectrum) are breaking through the atmosphere. The shorter wavelengths, such as blue, are scattered and broken up.

Red sky at night, sailors delight.
When we see a red sky at night, this means that the setting sun is sending its light through a high concentration of dust particles. This usually indicates high pressure and stable air coming in from the west. Basically good weather will follow.

Red sky in morning, sailor’s warning.
A red sunrise reflects the dust particles of a system that has just passed from the west. This indicates that a storm system may be moving to the east. If the morning sky is a deep fiery red, it means a high water content in the atmosphere. So, rain is on its way.

About that weather report. It’s sunny now with chance of storm predicted for later in the day. It’s been a recent pattern. Hot, sultry days, then big storm, which sends the dog crouching into my lap at night.

Garden Tools

One is never too young to learn the fine art of gardening. Year after year, my father has turned the same 10 x 15 foot plot into bushels of vegetables. This year, my parents' aide, Letty, has assumed the task, and when the last tomato has been picked, she may have given dad a run for his money!

Katonah Fireman’s Parade #3: Painted Lady

One of the things that attracted us to Katonah is the fact that it has a “center of town,” probably not more than a mile long, which has a variety of stores and a handful of small restaurants. Katonah Avenue is our “Main Street.” Bedford Road runs parallel behind Katonah Avenue and is the center of the “downtown” residential district, comprised mostly of Victorian-era homes. This is an historical district; almost all of the homes are lovingly cared for and painted in colors appropriate to their architecture. This home, along the parade route, and appropriately “decked out,” is on the Parkway which connects Bedford Road and Katonah Avenue. Many of the homes in this area were literally moved to their current location moved when the reservoir system was built in the 1800’s. We will visit that story and some of those homes in later posts.

Katonah Fireman’s Parade #2: Junior Fireman

This young man was unmissable with his fireman’s slicker and hat. Note his transmogrified boots, and the eleven cents in his pocket. When I asked to photograph him, his mother told him to say “cheese.” He promptly scowled, said “popcorn,” and then broke into a smile. Not only a show of spirit, Fireman’s Parades in the US, at least, are actually competitions. More on that later when we meet one of the judges.

Floral Friday #4

Pink Iris found in a garden in Katonah while scouting for Fireman's Parade photos. Parade photos begin tomorrow.

Katonah Fireman's Parade and Carnival

The back-end statistics at Stat Counter tell me that people searching for information on the Katonah Fireman's parade end up on my site, since it was mentioned in an earlier blog. So, as a public service to those wishing to visit our hamlet for the Parade and /or Carnival which follows on Thursday, the Parade is tomorrow, Wednesday evening, at 7:00 p.m. thanks to Joe, who will be marching from Millwood. I I took this picture at the Memorial Day Parade. You never know when a rogue shot will come in handy. And, it is supposed to rain!

Theme Day: Favorite Local Shops: Katonah Yarn Company

When I was a kid, I tried and tried to knit, but just couldn’t turn out a proper garment. Too big. Too Small. A dropped stitch here … or there. But today, because of the Katonah Yarn Company, I knit (and purl) again.

Stop in any time of day, and the shop is swarming with “Knitting Doulas,” giving a class, fixing an oops. Helping a knitter find her gauge. Tuesday evenings is open knitting, the chance to sit, knit, and just hang out; but in reality, as long as the doors are open, you can almost always find at least one person sitting around the table or in one of the upholstered chairs, open knitting. One day I heard Jane say … “The good thing about our location (which, as a stand-alone store, makes its own corner in the A&P shopping lot) is that if you stay too long, you can run next door to the A&P and grab supper.”

There are lots of fun, quirky shops in Katonah and the surrounding villages. The Katonah Knitting Company Inc. bills itself as Westchester County’s most comfortable knitting shop, and though the shop owners, Jane Lee and Jenn and their staff often help us laugh at ourselves, being friendly and helpful is one thing they take very seriously. It’s a place, where whatever your knitting level, you just feel good!

There are currently 174 shopping opportunities today. Click here for the thumbnails, and please visit.