Thanks for Everything...

Hi faithful readers...

Well, I never thought this day would come...but...I am writing to you to tell you that this is my last post.

Hopefully, over the past couple of years, you've gotten to know me better. Thanks for being along with me while I moved through this massive transition from single to married, urban to rural and North to South. It helped to have you along with me. Thanks for your emails, comments -- and support.

It kind of happened at a Fourth of July pig roast (!), when a friend's daughter asked me if I missed New York. That's when I realized: I don't. For the first time, I don't miss New York. My life is here. My center is here in South Carolina. I am a Bubba-ette.

My desire is to put all of this writing energy into helping people to navigate the rapidly-changing world of work. You can follow me at http://www.LeslieEvansThorne.com

And, someday, I will turn this blog into a book. There are many pictures, essays and observations that never made this blog. So, something to look forward to...

And, please stay in touch with me. Thanks for everything. :o)

The Roundhouse

Look...it's the Roundhouse! Site for the movie "Sun Valley Serenade."

And, site for our lunch yesterday. We skied down the mountain, over the valley and through the woods to get to the Roundhouse, about half-way up the mountain (at the top of the gondola).

We had to climb about 50 steps to get to the restaurant, which is not an easy feat after you've skied for 3 hours.

Then, to our meal -- I got to eat Wiener Schnitzel, Rotkohl and Spaetzle...and listen to a man play polkas on the accordion...while we looked out over Seattle Ridge and watched skiers coming down the mountain.

It just doesn't get better than that!!

Today We Skied The Bowls!

Yep, that's me...on top of the mountain, at 9,200 feet, right off the chairlift, getting ready to ski the "bowls."

Thought I'd share the beauty of the backdrop with you. It was awesome.

PS. On the way to the bowls, I looked to my left and saw a virgin patch of snow. So, off went my skis so that I could scamper up to make a snow angel. Now, that was fun!

Leslie's New Helmet

Hey, how do you like my new baby-blue helmet...the one that Phebe and I bought to bring out the color of my eyes?!

Here I am sitting in front of the fireplace in the Main Lodge, after a splendid day skiing.

:o)

Sun Valley, Idaho

My husband and I are out in Sun Valley, visiting his cousin, and doing some skiing. Here's a picture taken from the top of the mountain. It was an awesome day!!!!

PS. I ran into a guy who I knew at college -- I used to help him with his papers...he was a geology major and wrote lots of papers about being on the ski patrol and bombing canyons to help avert avalanches!

Top 'O Beech

Here's a picture taken at the top of Beech Mountain, North Carolina.

Sunday was a beautiful day for skiing -- we took close to 10 runs before we called it a day.

Monday? Not so good. It poured rain last night. Good day to be working, which we are...

High hopes for tomorrow. :o)

World's Biggest Brothers (WBB)

Yesterday I was on a flight from Chicago to Charlotte, NC.

I was sitting comfortably in my assigned seat, when I looked up and then I saw them...my seatmates. Two guys in their twenties. One of them looked at me and said: "Congratulations. Today is your lucky day. You have the chance to sit next to The World's Biggest Brothers."

Normally, I might be pretty bummed to be sitting next to two guys who were larger than the regular fellow, you know, sides slipping over into my seat, elbows out over the armrests. Fortunately, that didn't happen here. These guys were hilarious!

At one point, a woman came over to our row and started to take one of their bags out of the overhead compartment. "I'll just move your bag over here so that I can fit my bag on the plane," she said to them.

The Brothers: "Well, it's kind of heavy."
The Woman: "No, it's really not."
Big Brother #1 turns to me: "She just moved my dad."
Me: "WHAT?!?!"
Apparently, they were escorting an urn with their dad's ashes back to the East Coast.

We spent the rest of our time on the plane together going through the Sky Mall catalog, you know, with products like the Cat Potty Training program, or the Fake Security Camera that you can mount in your garage to fool criminals into thinking you have a real surveillance system, and the sunglasses with a video camera inside.

These guys are hilarious. I've encouraged them to start their own YouTube channel -- with snippets of their life. Tune into The World's Biggest Brothers. Remember, you saw it here first...:o)

Southern Tastes

Last night I asked my husband what he had for lunch.

"Beaver," he said.

"What did you say? I think we have a bad connection," I responded.

"Barbequed beaver," he said.

And, that's when I knew...I really do live in the South. :o)
BTW, I was told that the beaver weighed 65 lbs.

Flying High...

Yesterday I went flying in our Bird Dog. For those of you who don't know, the Bird Dog is a military observatory plane. So much fun!

We flew over Brays Island...I could see our house, the main Inn, the Equestrian Center, the docks into the Pocotaligo River, even the water standing in the dove field. Everything looked soggy. We've had a lot of rain down here...

Before we left the airport, I took a video of a take-off: Have a look...there he goes...

Nana's chair

WOW. Look at how beautiful this chair looks...

This chair used to be next to the bed in my Nana's room. The last time I saw her, when I was 3 years old, I was sitting in this chair. It used to be covered in a torn pink damask.

Look at it now. I love it. Thank you to the guys at East Coast Upholstery in Beaufort. They are amazing!

2010

It's New Year's Eve, 2010. The start of another decade.

Yesterday I was driving to the fitness center to go to a class when I tuned into NPR. One of the byproducts of living in the Lowcountry is that you have to drive a lot. I'm not used to that. And, when I'm driving, I find I listen to the radio.

The participants on the radio show were doing a "Decade Retrospective." Gee, I was just looking back over the events that had taken place over the past year...when I am challenged to think about everything that's happened, that's touched me, in the last decade? It seemed overwhelming.

The theme of the program was "Politics: 1999-2000 and covered the following: the impeachment attempt of Bill Clinton; the 2000 election with the Florida recount; the attack on the World Trade Center; the counterattack in Afghanistan and invasion of Iraq; Huricane Katrina and finally, the election of 2004. All of these events touched me in one way or another personally, some directly, some indirectly. What a decade. Wonder what the next one will hold...

'Tis The Day After Christmas

It's the day after Christmas, and all through the house,
All the creatures are stirring, even the stuffed grouse.
The dishes were washed in the kitchen with care,
In hopes that Miss Flo soon would be there.

My husband is snuggled all warm in our bed,
While visions of rice planting dance in his head.
And, Xena with her ball, and Blaze with his bone,
Have eaten their breakfast and now can just zone.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my chaise to see what was the matter,
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
To open the french doors and threw up the sash.

The newly-risen sun on the dewy marsh grass,
Gave off kaleidoscopic colors of freshly-made stained glass,
When, what to my wondering eye should appear,
But, Sara and her dogs; -- oh, what a dear!

With her high snake boots, and dog whistle in her hand,
I knew that it must be time for her little band,
To rush through the old oak grove and dove field across the way,
They had time to get there, with nary a neigh,

For the owners with their horses were not quite up yet,
They were still washing and grooming and leading with reins, I'll bet,
So the dogs tore off, tails all a-wiggling,
To look for other creatures, to play, romp, do some diggling.

There were fire ants, chiggers, and plenty of snakes,
Mole crickets, toads, possums, even armadillos for heaven sakes!
So they rolled and they romped and they jumped and they jived,
Until Sara felt that she barely survived,

All the fun and the excitement of the field that they had,
She wanted them home before they had a chance to be bad.
So, whistled she did and they came running around,
Obedient hunting dogs they, not some dumb kind of hound.

I looked again out my window, and what should I see,
But a gander of goose, and egrets flying --with glee.
When I looked in the sky, I could hardly believe,
So many different birds, that I went to retrieve...

My camera, my binocs, my phone and my bird book,
So that I could see and record and have a good look,
Because the beauty of these birds had to be captured,
I was totally and completely and fully enraptured.

Kites, and terns, and long-billed white ibis,
Squawked and warbled like a low-country Imis,
Great blue herons, plovers, woodstorks and ducks,
Turkey vultures, falcons, and eagles, what luck!

Songbirds, and spoonbills, and sparrows and all,
Flying up, up, up, with nary a fall,
'Til they flew out out sight, beyond my vision,
Of that I am sure, there can be no derision.

So I looked into the water, and what should I see?
But, a dolphin and her babies, feeding at sea.
She breached and she splashed and she made the fish jump,
So her babies could feed and eat a fish-lump.

They splashed and they squeaked and they swam and they fed,
Until at last they had eaten enough of their bread,
So off they swam...
Down the creek, through the bay, to the sea..on the lam.

I watched until I could see them no more,
And, turned back and I then looked to the shore,
Where I saw tracks, new and deep, in the sand,
What was it, who left those tracks on the land?'

'Twas the 12 point buck, the one that men wanted,
The one hunters stalked and chased, but were still haunted,
By the elusiveness and stealth of the hearty strong buck,
Who left them feeling all bereft of good luck.

For they waited and sat in their stands way up high,
To see that strong buck when he chanced to come nigh,
But they waited in vain for that buck in the field,
For he never allowed them their hopes for a yield.

And, so, from the Lowcountry, all verdant outside,
Where folks tend the land with a great deal of pride,
We wish y'all a Merry Christmas-time,
And, we hope you enjoyed this new festive rhyme.

Seriously, hope y'all had a very Merry Christmas! With love from the Bubba-ette...

Driving Horses

This morning I went for a horsecart ride.

At 9:30, I went to Brenda's house to take a ride on her 1890 horsecart with her two horses. She calls it "driving horses." Aren't they beautiful?


We -- well, actually, she -- brushed and groomed her horses, harnessed them up to the cart and off we went. Down to the docks, over to Scott's Neck and into the hunt fields. It was a beautiful day. We walked, trotted and made our way through the roads, trails, fields.


There is something about experiencing nature from a horsecart. You just see things differently than if you were in a car. Or even a bike. For me, it's even a different sense from running or walking through these fields. Maybe it's because the horses are doing the work, and their effort leaves me free to be completely open to the sensory experience -- the way the air smells, the warmth of the sun on my skin, the clumps of holly in the woods. What a magnificient day!

Thank you Brenda!!

Alligators in our Pond

We've got a gator in our pond -- can you find him in this picture?

He's eating our fish -- we've got carp, bream, catfish, minnows and more. Hope he'll leave some for us...

Settlin' In

Today is a magnificent day. Sunny, bright, cold. It was 34 degrees when I got into the car this morning.

This is one of those days where everything is unfolding...

I got up this morning and went swimming in the pool before any one else showed up. It was hot and very relaxing, especially to those tense muscles that haven't been worked for awhile. Right as I got out of the pool, the attendants brought big, white, fluffy towels that had come right out of the dryer. Ahhhhhh...

As I drove out of the fitness center, I hopped out of the car, hood over my wet head, to see if there were any pecans (remember, it's pronounced PEEcans) on the ground. While the leaves have started coming down, the big brown hand-like spreads covering much of the uncut grass, I could see a couple of nuts peeking through. It became a treasure hunt. I had to find the season's last pecans. So, I developed a technique. I shuffled my aqua-blue Keen Mary Janes through the lightly frosted grass and leaves until I felt something hard under my foot. A pecan!

So, I ran back to the car, emptied my bathing suit and cap out of the plastic bag I use to carry them, and took the bag across the street to pick. And, I picked and I picked and I picked. Half a bag. I'll shell a couple for breakfast -- and bring the rest to my parents and sister, who have never eaten pecans taken right off the tree.

Drove to the mailroom, picked up the mail, drove over the dike where I saw some egrets and blue herons and on home. On the way home, I tuned into NPR, where I heard an interview with Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks. When you live in the South, car radio becomes much more important as driving becomes a huge part of your life. Did you know that I have to drive 35 minutes to find a pharmacy, extensive grocery store, and a liquor store? That's a lot of driving time for this city girl. So, I pass the driving time listening to music CDs, audio tapes, talking books, radio, and talking to my clients and friends on my hands-free cell phone. It's a strange adjustment from using public transportation for 23 years, that's for sure.

Home to feed the dogs...it's so cold, they were sleeping under the heater in the garage. Now the dogs are inside with me, one at my feet, Blaze of course, and Xena across the room. I feel warm and happy and content.

Tonight there will be an oyster roast...stay tuned for more stories in tomorrow's edition...!

A Note to Eve

Dear Evie:

Thanks for wishing me a Happy Thanks-giving. As for your question, did you kill your own turkey? The answer is: no, turkey season is in the spring. :o)

But, if we had been stalking an unlucky turkey, this is what his "track" would have looked like. I took this picture on our "farm" on October 25th.

Much love, Leslie

BANG BANG...An Untraditional Thanksgiving

In my old life, a traditional Thanksgiving meant going to church, hearing the people in the congregation give thanks for blessings received during the year, followed by a yummy turkey and friends and family at my parents' house.

In my new life, everything is different. Thanksgiving means...shooting? That's right.

Today, instead of going to church, I called in to a church service broadcast by one of my former churches in Connecticut. It was fun to listen in...I could recognize many voices.

As is true with my new life, it was a day packed with adventure. My husband and I took a glorious bike ride around the plantation. On the way, we stopped at a car that was parked in the middle of the road. What were they doing? Give up? Why...seeding oyster beds, that's what. Of course. :o)

Then we came back to start the next adventure of the day. A little background...Jeff, my husband's best friend, passed on right before our wedding, and we have stayed close to his family ever since. His wife still lives next door for part of the year. So, today, we spent our Thanksgiving with her, and her daughter and son-in-law and two grandsons.

We took all of them -- minus Sara who was cooking -- to our "farm". Jesseca and I picked while the guys did "boy things." Here's a picture of me pickin'.


And, here's a picture of what we picked!


Then, she and I walked part of the grounds, ending up at the pond where the guys were fishing. Lots of fun, not a lot of fish.

Later on, we went shooting...that's what you can do when you live on a sporting plantation. Even the ladies shoot, usually not to kill, just to hit the sporting clays. I'm not there yet, but will let you know when I take my first shot.

A different Thanksgiving, for sure, but it was a great day.

Check out this sunset!

Check out this sunset -- I took this picture from our backyard. Gorgeous!

New Day Tomorrow!

After days of rain, I see a clearing. Here is the view off of our backyard.

Tomorrow will be a new day!

Halloween

Yep, that's me.

Can you guess who I am? Yes, Glinda.