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Novembe 13, 2008 - Meditations on a rainy dayNovember 13, 2008 • The Suffolk Times editati*ons MM A OF M�w 06R . Aku b: �F We awoke to a rainy, windy day — one some people would chalk up to be a miserable one. We look forward to these "miserable" days because they force us to stay inside and get through some of the piles of work left undone while we took advan- tage of the wondrous fall weather. Because we haven't put the heat on in the house yet, I was up early to start a fire in our wood stove. I always keep a good supply of kindling wood on the back porch. Add to that some crinkled -up newspa- per, and we have the beginning of a good fire. On the other end of the porch is my split wood that keeps the fire going throughout the day. It wasn't long before the kindling wood took off and I could hear the snap, crackle, pop of cedar burning. It is interest- ing to note that if I had used oak or hickory for kin- dling the fire wouldn't have made a sound. For some reason, the cedar explodes. When I hear the snapping of wood, it tells me my fire has started. Once the kindling wood gets a good fire base, the split logs are added and tape over for the rest of the day. We've had an airtight wood - burning stove since 1977; proof of its age is scratched in the ce- ment base. the stove rests on. It has served us well. If even has an oven on one side that we often use to bake, but I must tell you we have had some disasters. By FOCUS that I mean it's airtight and 0 N therefore you do not smell what goes on inside the oven. NATURE We've pulled out bread as by Paul crisp and black as coal and, Stoutenburgh once, a chicken that was hardly recognizable. Seems we had left it'in to keep warm for one of the kids coming in late. Once forgotten, it spent the night and the next day in the oven; it was cremated! Back to our rainy day. Later I went out on the back porch and couldn't believe what was going on. Leaves were strewn everywhere, stripped from the trees; others were still hanging on as the wind and rain tore at them. Dead branches that had been broken off by the driving rain were all over the lawn. Inside the house, looking out over the pasture, I could see one of our cows munching away as the wind and rain poured down. The other one — we have two — was in the barn. Why one sought shel- ter in the barn while the other faced the elements, I'll never know, but there they were — one inside and one out. By the way, they have already started putting on their heavy winter coats. They usually stay out in the weather no matter what it is. Suffolk Times photos by Barbara Stouteni Rains play a vital part in our daily lives. Without rain our world would be pretty much a desert. Here great - granddaughter comes to say good morning on a rainy day. it is interesting to think about what part rain has played in my life. For instance, I can remember when I was in the service and torrential rains came down. day after day, night after night, as we steamer alone along the war -torn South Pacific. Days like those stay with you throughout your lifetime. Then there was the most important of rainy days: the day when Barbara and I were married. It rained, and finally snow greeted us as we left the church 58 years ago this Thanksgiving. We. hardly noticed anything that was going on outside, -for we had just started the most adventurous time of our lives. As we traveled toward Maine on the days fol- lowing, we didn't realize we were caught up in the downpours of a hurricane. We swayed back and forth on the highways between the downed trees and branches. Evidence of the storm was everywhere. Then there was a time I went duck hunting when torrential rains played their part. Eventually the wind shifted and it rained even harder. The winds blew and the rain came down and the blind I was sitting in filled with water as the tide came in around me. After climbing up and out of the blind, I could hardly make it back to my boat anchored some distance away. When I finally reached the boat I crawled over the side and into the bottom of the boat to catch my breath. It was the most strenu- ous walk I had ever taken. The motor started and I was able to get back home safely. Luck played a big part in that day for me. On a lighter side of the part rain has vlaved in my life, I remember once when we were intro- ducing friends to camping over at Hither Hills State Park in Montauk, heavy rains came down during the night. The next morning, tents were flooded. Our kids were asleep in their sleep- ing bags on their inflated mattresses, floating around inside the tent. The people we had brought along to introduce to the joys of camp- ing left before daybreak. That rain reminds me of another camping trip, when we had our canoe with us at Rocky Mountain National Park. We had portaged two or three times and were on our way back to camp when a freak storm came up. The calm and beautiful lake we were on turned into a cauldron of wind, rain and angry water. It was the kind of day that life jackets were put on and words were few and short. Waves grew in size as we paddled as fast as we could toward the safety of the shore ahead. Soaking wet, with rainwater running down our noses, we made it. We headed for camp for dry clothes and a good, warm meal. I'm sure many of you have had your "rainy day" adventures, some you'll smile about, others you'd just as soon forget. NJ Will i r rr ir4!rµrry//µ "'ll Our two cows have the freedor ' of four acres to graze on. They ' are not pets and � we do not name them. They are 9 i part of our at- "` tempt to become self- sufficient.