Archive | Life At Fayrehale

The POWER of CANNABIS

By James T. Verrill on September 12, 2019 in Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

Hard to believe it has been 10 months since I last posted here! Life has been busy. A new SENIOR Toy Poodle entered my life last February! When I adopted Princess, I thought it would be for short term palliative care. Princess was Skin & Bones and her digestive track had closed down. Long story short, she has come back to life and is active and alert and a REAL Sweetheart. I dropped a big piece of firewood on my foot last October and as a result had my middle toe amputated in April! Healed well and I would never know if I never looked at my foot.

All that is not the reason for this post!

THIS IS THE REASON FOR THIS POST

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

I would be TOTALLY REMISS if I did not share the results of my routine Dartmouth visit yesterday AND the POWER OF CANNABIS.

My A1C has fallen AGAIN! CURRENTLY at 6.3 (they want me under 7).

Six months ago I was at 7.4 – Three months ago I was at 6.6 – and yesterday I was 6.3.

Last visit (3 months ago) I knew that I wasn’t doing anything that would be expected to lower my A1C and thought “maybe the Cannabis”?? But I said nothing. I wanted to wait for another 90 days. I made NO changes!

Nothing has changed except I now use substantial Cannabis! My diet isn’t horrible but it isn’t whole30 – I enjoy Pecan sandies 4-7 at a time several times a week, chips, ice cream, PB & Marshmallow sandwiches, pizza, donuts, granola, bagels, English Muffins, — way too many carbs – I know as I have been working with/fighting this for decades.I know how food connects to Diabetes!

The only changes are my adding Cannabis AND eating more things I wasn’t and shouldn’t.

You may remember two years ago when I did PURE whole30. I lost 22 pounds in 30 days, felt great and my A1C fell too. Since then I have slowly stopped being PURE whole30 though the “real” food I eat is not processed! (https://www.fayrehalefarm.com/take-control-of-your-food-st…/)

I am very open and honest with my Doctor. He is not allowed to agree or support (NH Hospital) – He is young enough and Cannabis will soon be legal- when it is, he will have a personal case history and he knows this as we talk.

I am stopping one of the two glucose prescription meds – that is the only change for next 90 days – have to keep eating the bad stuff:) so we change only one thing – the prescription meds..

My diet can be cleaned up later if need be.

Heart fine – kidney function good and I have lost 8 pounds in last 90 days.

Blood work in 90 and next appointment in 6 months.

As I said, I have been working with Drs and prescription meds to manage my glucose for 20 years at least. I know my body and I know this journey. There is no question in my mind that this is a “side effect” (LOL!!!) of the Cannabis I am using for RA pain control.

I take my THC in several forms. I vape dry flower and oil and have pills & oil capsules. The vaping is something I do not know how to measure so it just is “extra”. Pills & Capsules have mg values – So, In addition to vaping, I use 90-125mgs of measurable THC each day. I have learned how to spread it over the day – I do NOT get high – (three exceptions over the last year and it was part of my learning how to spread dose size and frequency) Occasionally mild munchies! Thus the Pecan Sandies & Chips:):):)

I have since seen a couple articles that mention Cannabis benefiting Diabetes but have not found real documentation — so I am sharing my personal experience.

That brings me back to CBD – for all who refuse to accept THC. I started with CBD 200mgs a day. As I have stated, It did enough so I knew if I missed a dose. I switched to THC. I have since learned that 600mgs would have been a more appropriate dose and that makes total sense to me based on my 200mg experience. I have a friend who depends on CBD and I asked her what dose she uses. She said she takes 750mg every morning and if having a flair, she takes 750mg again at night. GOOD information to know. I may add CBD back in ALONG WITH the THC I am using.

https://www.facebook.com/SunsoilCBD/

Dealing successfully with RA pain seems to have had positive SIDE EFFECTS :):):):)

As I said when I started, I would be TERRIBLY REMISS if I did not share my experience.

I hope it can help you or someone you know.

Princess (HRH) and I wish you all ONLY the best! Remember to cherish each day and to fill your life with LOVE.

Time For An Update! It Has Been 9 Months! Time Enough To Have A Baby!!!!

By James T. Verrill on July 30, 2018 in Life At Fayrehale

Last October was a life changing Month. I lost Abigail and stopped breeding Heritage Breed Chickens. Life moves on and the last 9 months have been busy and full.

Peaches of Fayrehale

The two biggest events in the last 9 months were a 67 day, 8500 mile trip and the addition of a new Canine Family Member.

I will only touch on a few highlights. 100 friends were able to follow my daily updates on a private/secret Facebook page. They saw the entire journey.

Home was my van! I had a VERY comfortable bed, a book case full of books and plenty of room for clothes in the back!

With the exception or 6 nights in a bed at Friends & Family, 1 night in a Walmart Parking Lot, 2 nights of stealth parking and 6 nights at Boyd’s in Key West, I spent every night at a Cracker Barrel! Cracker Barrels became my home away from home. A safe place to sleep for the night and a great place for a healthy breakfast ($7.99) and suppers in a similar price range.

I never knew where I was headed more than 2-3 days out! Often when I was wondering where to next, a Friend who was following my journey would come up with suggestions based on on where I was and off I would go! I didn’t think about the bumper stickers until well into my trip and after dozens of places visited. Presidential homes and libraries were visited as often as possible. Often I had private tours (good timing).

EVERY day was fun and special. Everyday a new adventure. It is nearly impossible to pick favorites! I do have to have to mention how excited I was to finally, after 7 visits over my lifetime, get to tour the second floor and Dome Room of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello Home! Several days in this area as I revisited Monroe’s and Madison’s homes and visited the Wilson Presidential Library and the Frontier Culture Museum. At the FCM I had a personal tour, by the 30 year employee/expert responsible for the deconstructing, moving and reconstructing many of the buildings, riding in a golf cart! We would stop at each building and go in.

The trip meandered down the East Coast to Key West where I spent six nights at Boyd’s Campground. Lucking out with a water side site and a beautiful wake up view in the morning! Then back up via Tennessee where I went to Graceland and ended up stumbling across Loretta Lynn’s Hurricane Mills Ranch and Dollywood.

Key West Morning View

I had the opportunity to see many family members and friends. Too many to mention and all special. I will mention a first in FIFTY YEARS visit with my favorite cousin & aunt! I ended up visiting twice, once on the way down and again on the way back! We reenacted a story time from 50 years earlier:)

Cousins 50 years later:)

My Favorite Aunt and a VERY SPECIAL GIFT from my Cousin

The large piece of Rose Quartz was one of many that my Grandmother Verrill had. Most were stolen. She gave this one to my cousin who moved it with her from home to home through 30 years in the Coast Guard until it ended up in the garden of her B&B in North Carolina. On my first arrival, as we walked to the house, she diverted to where the Rose Quartz was and told me she was giving it to me now and I was to take it with me when I left. It traveled on a pillow in the passenger seat for the rest of my journey and now resides in our dining room.

And that brings us to the other major event in my life during this 9 months of silence. Many of you know and follow her daily life:) for the rest of you let me introduce MY PEACHES!

Abigail was supposed to travel with me and of course her passing changed that. My Private page went from “Boondocking with Abigail” to “Boondocking with Abigail’s Spirit”. While I was traveling, I came to the realization that at this point in my life, at my age, I shouldn’t be getting a puppy, I should be adopting SENIOR canines and giving them the best possible life for whatever time they have left. I only had two criteria: Female and 20# or less. The weight requirement due to my age and RA.

Peaches was turned in to the Lucy Mackenzie Humane Society in February. I adopted her April 20th. She was the result of my first visit to any place and it was meant to be. Her longevity at Lucy Mac’s was due to her age. Sad, but fortunate for me. She weighed 17.88# when turned in!, 15# when I adopted her and reached her goal weight of 12# four weeks ago when she weighed in at 11.8#. I am monitoring w/ weigh-ins every three weeks as we increase her food for weight maintenance. She loves to ride and I am hoping I can afford to get away again this winter. She has spent one overnight with me in the van and it went very smoothly.

Last week on July 25th, We celebrated Peaches’ 12th Birthday! I don’t know what she wished for. I know my wish was that we get to celebrate 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th Birthdays at least

Remember Life is uncertain and ever changing. Make sure that those you love are kept close and know they are loved.

No Hens Clucking, No Roosters Crowing, No Turkeys Gobbling and No Geese A Laying!

By James T. Verrill on October 29, 2017 in Chantecler Chickens, Icelandic Chickens, Life At Fayrehale

Life evolves and transitions and We, Fayrehale Icelandic Chickens and Fayrehale Chantecler Chickens are partnering with Red Feather Farm and Aragorn Heritage Farm for the continued preservation of these two important heritage breeds.

Various life events and circumstances make it untenable for us to maintain breeding flocks over the winter. We have been working with these two serious breeders for the last three years in preparation for this transition! They are ready and eager to carry on the serious work that we, here at Fayrehale, have been doing with the Icelandic & Chantecler breeds.

What Will We Be Doing?

We will spend 2018 concentrating on hatching and developing a PURE, 100% Sigrid Line flock of Icleandics AND importing some new Chanteclers from Canada. We will no longer be hatching and shipping the high number of chicks that we have in past years! That role/service is being assumed for us by Red Feather Farm and Aragorn Heritage Farm.

What Will They Be Doing?

They will be hatching and providing you with the same high quality chicks that we have been shipping for years!

Red Feather Farm and Ben Rothfeder are located in The Catskills (North Branch, NY ), where Ben has several years experience hatching and mailing chicks from his quality flocks. Red Feather Farm has started receiving and taking orders for 2018. They will be continuing with our Chantecler & Icelandic Breeding Program. Just as with us, 2018 List position is in order of payment received and like us, they are not in a position to offer refunds, They are able to work with you and roll your order over to a more convenient time.

You can contact Ben at Red Feather Farm here and you can place your orders online here! Passing the torch to the younger generation brings with it increased computer/technical skills and that makes your ordering easier!

Aragorn Heritage Farm and the Father/Son team of Mark Dickson & Shea Dickson are located in Concord, NH. Their website link will be added soon as they are doing some update work on it. It was actually Shea that brought them to Fayrehale Farm four years ago! I have been working with them ever since. http://aragornfarm.com/

Aragorn Heritage Farm can be reached at mld@aragornlabs.com . They are not yet ready to ship live chicks BUT they can and will ship fertile eggs and will provide a good local source for the New England area that can drive to their farm and pick up pre-ordered chicks.

We are secure in our knowledge that we have taken three years to prepare to pass the torch! Icelandic & Chantecler Chickens are too important to do otherwise.

Those of you who contact us will be forwarded to Red Feather Farm or Aragorn Heritage Farm depending on your needs and location.

We, here at Fayrehale, are not disappearing, we are just changing the level of our seasonal involvement! Everyone should think about and plan a transition to the younger generations so that their work may be carried on.

Thank you for years of interaction and business and know that we, with Ben, Mark and Shea will continue to see that you have the BEST Icelandic & Chantecler Chickens available

August 22, 2010 – October 9, 2017

By James T. Verrill on October 9, 2017 in Life At Fayrehale

Abigail

August 22, 2010 – October 9, 2017

Abigail passed over the Rainbow Bridge this morning – at home with us.

Do not stand at my grave and weep

I am not there; I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow,

I am the diamond glints on snow,

I am the sun on ripened grain,

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning’s hush,

I am the swift uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry,

I am not there; I did not die.

(mary elizabeth frye – 1932)

TAKE Control Of Your Food — STOP Letting Your Food Control You !!!

By James T. Verrill on August 7, 2017 in Fruit at Fayrehale, Gardening, Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

TAKE Control Of Your Food — STOP Letting Your Food Control You !!!

The Whole30 Program In A Nutshell

I lost 22 lbs in 30 days – I Feel Terrific

Eight different friends and relatives have communicated with me as they watched my 30 day journey. They wanted information and started the Whole30 program themselves. I decided a blog entry would be a better way of sharing the information. If not you? Who?? You may not be interested for yourself but you many know someone (or many) who would be interested. Please, feel free to share!

For over two years I had been eating carefully and working to lose some weight! NOTHING was happening – NOTHING! I am on medications for borderline blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. I know that these and other drugs interfere with weight loss. It was a long time friend who told me about Whole30! She has several years on me and takes many times more medications. Her Doctor told her to do the Whole30 program and that she would lose weight even without increased exercise (bad knees). She did and SHE DID lose 20 pounds in the 30 days!

I decided it was well worth a try after 2 years of no results!! I started June 26th and did not stray for 30 days with the exception of ONE ear of corn on the cob which you will see below and which, as I enjoyed it, I did not know I was straying.

It is simple to start! Initially you just need the The Whole30 Program In A Nutshell , The Shopping List to guide you and the receipt for making your own Mayonnaise. (There will be more on making your own Mayo below!) Once you start making it fresh, you will never want to go back to the additive laced commercial “stuff”!

I had/have no interest in preparing three meals a day! (That as the hardest change for me, I had been eating two, breakfast and supper). I also have no issue with eating cold food! Particularly this time of year. My system was to cook in bulk and have what I needed ready to pull from the refrigerator. Daily cooking was limited to scrambling eggs in the morning, often with sweet peppers, mushrooms and chives.

Steaming is my friend! and a good way to prepare a big batch of assorted healthy vegetables

Here you see a selection of healthy vegetables ready to be steamed. The first picture was taken before I piled the kale on top! Red cabbage, cauliflower, sweet potato, butternut squash, rainbow carrots and Brussels sprouts. I used the local, organic kale under my breakfast eggs and my protein servings.

When it came to protein, I would bake a batch of boneless chicken w/ some Olive Oil & Seasonings

Turkey or ground beef burgers would be cooked on top of the stove in batches using olive oil. Fish would be fresh for the meal! Sardines and canned tuna would either be made into salad w/ homemade mayo or just dumped on the mixed greens as part of the salad. Chicken salad became a favorite of mine – chopped/shredded chicken, celery, onions, red grapes and homemade mayo makes a delicious chicken salad.

Let’s discuss the Mayo here before we talk about the meals which are FULL plates of deliciousness.

For your first time making this Mayo, do a single batch! The MOST IMPORTANT thing is that the oil MUST go in SLOWLY! Otherwise you have a runny mess which you can still use as a salad dressing on your salads. For me, I found the best way is to use a tsp to take the olive oil from the measuring cup and drizzle it in from the measuring spoon! It works for me every time. I double the dry mustard and the lemon juice. Now I make double batches and am adding various seasonings and herbs. WHEN YOU DOUBLE, you still only but 1/4 cup of olive oil in to start – doubling the other ingredients but not the oil! Then you drizzle 2.25 cups of oil. I will never go back to commercial. Potato Salads and Chicken Salads are delicious when made with this.

There you have the basics. Now a few example of the VERY FULL Plates of food that I enjoy. You must not skimp! You are not counting calories here. You are eating protein, fat, vegetables and fruit. Fats are olive oil, nuts, ghee, avocados, olives and nut butters BUT NOT peanut butter! PB is a legume. (check the shopping list)

Pic #1.) Breakfast, usually put mushrooms, sweet peppers, chives or chopped tomatoes in the eggs and serve on a kale leaf. Pic 2.) My one stray during the the initial 30 days! That corn (which I had with ghee & salt) should not be there – Ooops! – Tom was here and we were treating ourselves to fresh scallops. Pic #3.) Chicken and sardines on the salad. Pic #4.) Beef burger and olives, pickled garlic & pickled fiddleheads on the salad. Pic #5.) Fresh Tuna steak and anchovies:):) Pic #6.) Liver! Don’t forget the offal (organ meats) Use a LOCAL source and NOT commercial. I enjoy liver, heart & tongue. Pic #7 & Pic #.) Two breakfasts with sugar free, nitrate free bacon. A treat but not something I now yearn for often. Pic #9.) A quick lunch of Tuna salad on mixed greens and fruit. Pic #10.) Turkey burger and shrimp – I made the cocktail sauce with some organic tomatoes and horseradish.

I am very lucky! I have access to some locally made, sugar free, taste bud stimulators that I use on my salads.

Pickled Garlic, Pickled Fiddleheads, Pickled Dilly Beans and Dill Pickle Chips

The vinegars from these condiments get combined and I add the anchovy oil to make my salad dressing. The olive juices get used in cabbage and greens

Thank you Gizmo’s Pickles Plus

So, where does this leave me now? It has been an interesting and positive journey so far and I find myself (surprisingly) having no interest in bringing much of what I eliminated back in! I had a very interesting experience Saturday. I had pizza (2 slices). Back at the beginning of my Whole30, when I still thought I was changing my eating patterns for 30 days, I bought a $30 coupon at Positive Pie (Barre) for $15. By Saturday, I was no longer longing for pizza! And it was a beautiful pie!

I had said all along that I would have two slices and Tom could have the rest. I ate it with a knife & fork, small bites that I savored. As I looked at the first piece I thought I would have three pieces:) But then said, no I said 2 slices – with the anchovies from the third slice:):) That was ample. Tom had more Saturday and Sunday as I returned to Whole30 eating with absolutely NO yearning for more pizza!

So, with a few minor exceptions, I am content eating this way. I did pick up some crumbly bleu to use on my beet greens as a garnish w/ ghee rather than butter. In two weeks, when Tom is here, we will go to a good locally made ice cream stand and I will have a kiddie scoop of ice cream.

We have another Positive Pie coupon that expires the end of October so there will be two more slices of pizza down the road. I know the friends I will get together with soon for supper and my first red wine. I know the friends I will see later this year and have my first drink – a Manhattan! All occasions that are spaced out and special.

We we take our trip later this fall, I will enjoy eating out and will not be adamantly Whole30. There will be certain things I avoid like white dinner rolls! I will order food in the spirit of the way I am now eating.

Tonight, I am having steamed beet greens w/ beets still attached (a favorite vegetable for me) w/ ghee and the first crumbly bleu as a garnish along with a steak and salad.

As is usually the case with these full supper plates, I eat the protein and most of the vegetables (tonight I will eat all my beets:) and half the salad. The remaining salad and any uneaten vegetables roll over to breakfast when I add eggs and fruit.

This may not be for you!

It has been an amazing journey for me.

The PURGE as I Coddiwomple !

By James T. Verrill on January 19, 2017 in Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

The PURGE as I Coddiwomple !

First a Definition:

I know that many who subscribe to this Blog expect to only see educational, spirit elevating discussions on chickens, gardening and living the content nature connected life! Many of my posts are just that and weekly I receive several inquiries about something I have posted in those areas. Online searches bring people with these interests to this site and many are introduced to us through the hoop houses, breeding pens, gardening, fermented feed, and “how we ship our fertile eggs” posts.

Life is much more than that. We are much more than that!

I maintain my individuality and the freedom to discuss other aspects of my life, other parts of me.

You continue to have the freedom to ignore the posts you do not relate to.

I believe that on occasion, being a totally open book can allow a level of inner honesty to be revealed that can often, WILL often help others. Others struggling with their own internal struggles/issues/demons. They feel alone and singularly isolated. They need not feel that way if others share! They are NOT alone!

No man is an island,
No man stands alone,
Each man’s joy is joy to me,
Each man’s grief is my own.
We need one another,
So I will defend,
Each man as my brother,
Each man as my friend.
I saw the people gather,
I heard the music start,
The song that they were singing,
Is ringing in my heart.
No man is an island,
Way out in the blue,
We all look to the one above,
For our strength to renew.
When I help my brother,
Then I know that I,
Plant the seed of friendship,
That will never die.

A little over 4 years ago I made the worst decision of my life and agreed to allow a registered sexual predator felon being released from 30 years of incarceration on the West Coast to live under our roof while he adjusted to a very changed world! I knew it wouldn’t be easy. I knew his address on the sexual predator data base would be our address. I knew that law enforcement would be making unannounced stops to verify that he was still here where he was supposed to be. I knew life would be very different and that living much of life sans clothes and the pleasures of spontaneous intimacy anywhere would cease. YET, it seemed the thing to do and I honored the request from the one who is most significant in my life to help a college friend.

You do not really need more specific details. I stayed positive and did my best to assist in a societal readjustment I now feel will never be totally successful. IF you are metaphysical and understand energies and the interconnectedness of all because of energy, you know that there is also dark/evil/negative energy. Working in an environment where that is present is exhausting as one works to shield and protect oneself. For eighteen months I held in there with things deteriorating at an increasing speed. The end was not pleasant and this evil, destructive, manipulating being left in a black cloud attempting to do as much damage as possible to me and others close to me.

Prior to his departure I escaped by spending increasing amounts of time over two seasons volunteering and renovating The Star Island Book Store and Gift Shop. The Spring before his disruptive departure, I spent long weekends (3-5 days) on Star Island, Isles of Shoals every weekend during May and the three weeks in June prior to opening. There were other volunteers and together this endeavor allowed me to escape from the hell at home.

Once he left and after he performed his evil destructive behavior I continued to soldier on. I continued to be positive and see the best in everything. I continued to plan and to envision future projects and plans. I did NOT deal with the inner feelings that this experience left. The anger at being used and the feeling that I would never, under any circumstances, be willing to help someone again — at least not at that level! maybe at arms length. The feeling of wasted time in a life that is all too short. The EVIL energy that still lingered!

A friend and confident at the time had promised to come and sage smudge the house and areas of the property. He had been someone I could talk to about the negative situation I was in the middle of. It did not happen, he did not follow through and I experienced another let down from someone I thought I could trust.

Hunker down, pull a protective shield around and march on. The way I had always handled things. This time was different and NOW I know that during and following this experience, I experienced some level of depression. I say some level as I did not know I was depressed and I have never thought of any level of depression being connected to me. Nor have those who know me. I am the positive forward looking person! And I am.

I marched forward and renovated the barn attached to the house as Shops At Fayrehale was created! A transformation I take pride and satisfaction in!

From this (left) to this (right)

With the technical help of my IT Husband I built our website www.fayrehalefarm.com and our online business. AND yet, I ignored and BURIED the Elephant in the room!

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

The couch that he sat on for 18 months (center cushion) was dealt with by piling it high! Obviously not the best way to deal. I knew I had to deal with it as I ignored and continued other projects. I renovated the first floor bathroom which included new fixtures and new flooring along with a paint job. I painted out the dining room and gave it a fresh new look. I continued to build Shops at Fayrehale, the online business and the chicken business. All the time ignoring and walking around the Elephant in the room. I can not begin to tell you how many days I got up fully intending to deal with that ruined couch. Each time the day ended w/out my doing it. Once, I got it half cleared and then piled it back up.

Eventually this made me look inside myself to see just what was going on and to see why I seemed incapable of removing this Elephant. This introspection caused the solution to appear! I needed to PURGE the couch and the evil energy it contained.

THE PURGE

Obviously I did it! Last week I cleared the couch and Tom helped me haul it out of the house. I performed a very liberating purge as I burned all that stored evil energy. I used peroxide to scrub the floor and surrounding area. Put down a rug and moved unaffected furniture into place. The inner peace and tranquility this has created is astounding! It proves that in the future I must honor self more quickly when I experience unfortunate and possibly damaging events.

PEACE

It is impossible to describe how much better I feel. How much more relaxed I am. I have taken several days to let life flow as I read, walk Abigail and do some web work.

I have come to a place where I feel I could offer to help others again. No sure about allowing anyone in to my home? But you never know. I think if that happens there will be a well defined and written agreement!

I hope this allows you to look at yourselves and those around you whom you love and care for. Are you or they dealing with issues that are not readily visible? Is the outer public facade showing the true situation.

I acknowledge that I did/was dealing with some level of depression. Not obvious to me or others for a long time and then obvious to me. My reaction was to work and create and bury myself in projects that allowed me to ignore the real situation! I guess that is good:) Now I need to get the relaxed more at peace me back to working and accomplishing at the rate I was prior to the purge!!!!

So I travel purposely toward an as-yet-unknown destination!

As I have shared in previous posts, it is time to simplify life, unload possessions turn the chicken business over to serious younger breeders and prepare for some good years near the sea and traveling the country. It is important that we all move forward without hiraeth as we face a new era in this Country.

My Celebration of Christmas Has Evolved Through Life!

By James T. Verrill on December 22, 2016 in Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

The biggest difference between my 1st Christmas in 1948 and my approaching 69th Christmas in 2016 is the commercialization and now the politicization of the Holiday Season.

Childhood Christmas memories center around Family and the Christmas Tree. Our trees were natural! If there was a bare spot that could not be hidden with ornaments and tinsel, my father would drill a hole and add a branch! In our family, my Father installed the tree and my Mother decorated it. We would see the bare tree as we headed up to bed at 7:00pm. (our regular bed time until 9th grade!). Mother would wake us later (midnight? 1:00am?) when the tree was finished and the four of us would go down to see it beautifully decorated and lit in an otherwise dark room. The childhood memories of wide-eyed wonder and awe have stayed with me to this day.

Mother was particular and the tree was spectacular. It always went to the ceiling and totally filled a corner, often blocking a doorway. The lights were large round Sylvania bulbs in soft pastel colors from the 1940s and there were enough strings to saturate the tree. Ornaments went from branch tips all the way in to the trunk. The most time consuming part was hanging the tinsel. Mother did each piece individually and every branch was covered as far back as the tinsel could hang freely. This resulted in a sparkling, shimmering tree as lights bounced off the ornaments and the tinsel.

I do not have pictures from this period of my life, only memories. For those who are too young to have experienced Christmas trees from this era, I borrowed this picture from the internet. It will give you an idea. Just visualize FOUR times as much tinsel and an additional branch or two that my Father would have added!

To this day, I only want a natural tree, one that has NOT been pruned and shaped! Mother Nature grows them best! I also want a big tree that fills a corner and goes to the ceiling! And, Yes!, I have been known to drill and add branches if needed:)

As children, we knew the guest room was off limits. That was where yet to be wrapped presents were stored. We never cheated and looked. Even as kids we wanted the surprises on Christmas. Our stockings were laid across the bottom of our beds. We had to ask before we could open them and soon learned that a 3am wake up and inquiry was fruitless! Our parents had it schedules for 6am, figuring that they would have another hours sleep while the stockings kept us busy. At 7am, we all went downstairs. Breakfast first so there were no hungry, irritable kids. Breakfast was always a fresh coffee cake and grapefruit sections w/ cherries – Mother peeled and sectioned the pink grapefruits the day before.

Now understand! The stairs came down into the room where the tree was and where Santa left unwrapped gifts. We came down single file and turned our heads using our hands as blinders as we walked to the kitchen without looking at the tree or the gifts left by Santa. Again we never cheated.

After breakfast, we opened presents. taking turns, one person and one present at a time! The presents were opened carefully as we saved the paper to reuse another year. Each year it would wrap a smaller gift until it got down to stocking gift size and then we could tear the paper off and discard it. Each year, one or two new paper designs were added. The reusing of paper would often evoke memories of past gifts that had been wrapped in it.

When I was in 6th grade, I had a piano teacher who also sold antique jewelry. I noticed a beautiful pair or earrings that I thought Mother would love but they were $25. As oldest, I “convinced” my three brothers that we could do this communally and save the money by skipping school lunch! Lunches were 25 cents so each day the four of us could save $1. We managed to pull it off and it was only after Christmas that Mother learned how we had raised the funds. She cherished those earrings, along with a second pair gifted the next year, her entire life.

IF I were to chose the most special of all Christmases, it would have to be the first Christmas after Sharon and I adopted Ellen (15) and Lynn (12). They came to us with very little so that Christmas was our opportunity to provide not only clothes but personal items. The full range of things that children that age usually have. You can imagine the mountains of package that spread out from the tree and wrapped corners of the room. It took us three days to open everything. THAT IS NOT WHAT MADE IT SPECIAL! Lynn, bless her heart, made this the most special Christmas in my life. Even through she was twelve, she still believed in Santa Claus and heaven help anyone who tried to tell her differently! That allowed me the parental Santa experience. She knew that Santa preferred brownies because everyone else gave him cookies and not just any brownie but the corner pieces, homemade w/ walnuts. Even that is not what made it so special!

We gave the the girls $5 per person to do their own gift shopping with and one parent took them shopping for the other parent. Lynn did her shopping and came home and wrapped her presents. She placed them under the tree. Now understand that this was a big Christmas and gifts were being added daily to the growing mound. Thus the gifts Lynn was giving were covered or moved numerous times. Somehow, she kept track of where they all were.

Christmas morning we started opening gifts, one person, one present at a time and saving the paper! We had not completed the first round when Lynn could no longer contain herself. She was bursting with excitement and it showed! She had to GIVE her presents and she knew exactly where each one was amongst all those packages.

The joy on that child’s face as she presented her gift to each of us stays with me to this day. The fact that with all those packages for her and her sister piled along three walls, she was most excited about GIVING the gifts she had selected for everyone else. A 12 year old child who had known love but had had very few possessions prior to this, instinctively knew that the real joy was in the giving! THIS IS WHAT MADE THIS MY MOST SPECIAL CHRISTMAS and my eyes still fill with tears every time I think of that precious, 12 year old child on that Christmas Day!

Once I married the first time, it was my suggestion that we do something totally different from both family traditions. That something different was REAL Candles on the tree! Candles on the tree have been part of my Christmas ever since. It requires a natural, unpruned, unshaped tree that is very fresh. I personally cut the tree 3 days before Christmas. Over the years I have become adept at candle placement. With a fresh tree, an incorrectly placed candle will cause a needle to pop, not blaze and it can be quickly repositioned. I haven’t popped a needle in years!

There Is Nothing More Beautiful Than A Christmas Tree With Real Candles!

This tree was a few years ago when we had Tom’s Mother, Sister and a neighbor join us for Christmas dinner. This tree actually served us for TWO Christmases. The second Christmas we did NOT light the candles!!! I love putting trees and decorations up. I hate taking them down! Over the years the Christmas tree has come down as late as Easter Sunday, Mother’s Day and the the 4th of July! This tree holds the record as it served us for 13 months while it stayed beautiful and the needles stayed in place:)

This year Tom and I will have a quiet Christmas. We will exchange a few gifts and go out for a nice dinner on the 24th. No big tree this year. Once the transition is made to a simpler, less complicated life we can bring back the tree, the candles and a dinner that includes others followed by an oceanside walk.

To those of you who celebrate Christmas:

AND

To Everyone Who Celebrates One Of The Other 44 Holidays in December!

If I know you and know which Holiday you celebrate I will greet you accordingly.

For now

Happy Holidays to All and May The New Year be Good To Us All

To Every Thing There Is A Season, and A Time To Every Purpose — Now Is Our Time!

By James T. Verrill on November 19, 2016 in Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

“The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul.”

“The sea lives in every one of us.”

I know better than to say “never” and yet I announced when we bought this property that I would leave this home in a box! That I never intended to move again! I hope I didn’t jinx it with the “in a box” statement as I do look forward to the new direction that life is taking!

The world is changing, our Country is on a different path and I have lost half a dozen friends this year. All to cancer, some within weeks of discovery, and several of them were much younger than I. I am halfway to 69 and suddenly aware that my Mother and maternal Grandparents all passed when they were 72! My Paternal side shows 93, 88 and 96. I hope for an average at least that leaves 72 behind – but one never knows.

Suddenly it makes no sense to continue on with the work and projects involved with and planned for this property. It makes great sense to liquidate, unload and just relax and enjoy the years that are left. That process will not happen overnight! We want to have downsized personal property to the basics so we can put the house on the market in 2018. No idea what the economy or the real estate market will be then but we must move on.

Shops At Fayrehale will be open by chance or appointment the rest of this season as we are finding more success in the online portion of the business than the local business once foliage season passes and tourists and summer visitors return home. We will open in June and sell down the shop inventory.

“For whatever we lose (like a you or a me), it’s always ourselves we find in the sea.”

While nothing is cast in stone, I would like to have 5 years by the sea. While my Soul loves the rocky coast of Maine, and it is currently the Maine coast that calls, my body needs the sandy shore so that I can take healthy walks once or twice a day. During these seaside years we would plan to travel 7-10 days a month. There is so much to see in this Country that we have not seen and we know how to travel economically. We can alternate who plans each month’s itinerary and explore warmer areas of the Country as we search for the step after the Maine Coast that will satisfy Tom’s longing for a warm climate. During the seaside years we can escape during the coldest segments and explore those warmer possibilities that are currently unfamiliar to us both.

“The sea is as near as we come to another world.”

Fayrehale Chanteclers and Fayrehale Icelandics will continue as usual through 2017 and possibly 2018. We are currently accepting orders for 2017 chicks and, as in the past, list position is in order of payment received. Once we have relocated, we will continue our online business in a slightly reduced format as we continue to liquidate collections that would flood the market if offered all at once.

“The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace.”

One more winter (2017) of major woodpiles. These past two years, Tom has stacked most of it. We hope to have a fireplace we can read and warm ourselves by in the winter when we are not traveling. That would mean a cord or less to stack.

We will carry the memories of all that wood on the Christmas Tree as we enjoy life.

“There’s nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it’s sent away.”

The Sunrise Never Failed Us Yet !

By James T. Verrill on September 6, 2016 in Life At Fayrehale, Living a Better Life

I will not apologize for being Human:) I will apologize for causing friends to worry when they read my last Blog Entry!

I heard from several of you: “This is an unusual post for the man I know to be a positive force in a lot of people’s lives Sometimes we loose sight of our effect on others. Best to focus on one step at a time and Attend to all the goodness in your life” —- “Things always come out the way they’re supposed to come out not the way I planned but always in a good way.” —- “you’d better post your happy day info on your blog before people start sending the recovery team in your direction…..sheesh!!! —- “Is everything OK? Is Tom alright? We are worried.”

I chose a favorite line of mine from a Celia Thaxter Poem to title this entry. A line I have used for years and truly believe.

The Sunrise Never Failed Us Yet !

UPON the sadness of the sea
The sunset broods regretfully;
From the far lonely spaces, slow
Withdraws the wistful afterglow.

So out of life the splendor dies;
So darken all the happy skies;
So gathers twilight, cold and stern;
But overhead the planets burn;

And up the east another day
Shall chase the bitter dark away;
What though our eyes with tears be wet?
The sunrise never failed us yet.

The blush of dawn may yet restore
Our light and hope and joy once more.
Sad soul, take comfort, nor forget
That sunrise never failed us yet!

Celia Thaxter

I will follow the advice of a good friend and post our happy day info!!

This past Sunday, one week after my being less than my usual cheerful & optimistic self AND three weeks after Abigail not being able to walk due to Lyme Disease, We three (Me, Tom & Abigail) headed for a special day at the ocean. We had a very relaxing and fun day.

Abigail, My navigator looking over my shoulder as we head out on our ocean journey!!!

We started our Ocean Day with breakfast in Sugar Hill, NH at Polly’s Pancake Parlor! http://pollyspancakeparlor.com/ Close enough to home for us to visit easily and now we must!!!! If this breakfast experience was not the BEST ever, it sure ranks among the top few — Right up there w/ Lobster Eggs Benedict at Blue Heaven in Key West!

We each had the Pancake combo / bacon — 2 ea of three pancake combos – Maple syrup AND Maple Cream – I had gingerbread w/ honey roasted almonds, cornmeal w/ coconut and whole wheat w/ walnuts!!! OMG – scrumptious !!! Tom had wild Maine blueberries in all of his:) and chose plain, oatmeal buttermilk and whole wheat.

Our server cooked the order so no mistakes are made in the pass off to a main cook — one of each is served and the 2nd of each timed to arrive when you are ready so they stay fresh and hot! GENIUS! and it worked smoothly. The bottomless cup of coffee (I had 5) fueled me for the drive ahead.

It might help too, that we had one of the BEST servers I have ever experienced – TJ’s exceptional personality & service certainly enhanced the over all experience. A delightful and delicious way to start our ocean day

Abigail visits the Ocean! It had been two years w/o salt air and water! and Abigail had never been to the ocean. SO! we made a day trip to Pine Point, Maine. We had a wonderful afternoon, listening to the waves, breathing the salt air and basking in the sea breeze coming in off the water.

We discovered that canine’s were illegal from 9-5 until after Labor Day – Well, it was to hot to leave Abigail in the car so she stayed close in the shade of my chair or on my lap. Later in the afternoon as the area around us cleared, I took her to walk in the water — she enjoyed it and thought the incoming waves were a new game to play. She was most interested in the seagulls – rearing up to see them in the air and then wanting to chase their shadows.

We mustn’t wait so long again — if we pack food it would just be gas money — It doesn’t need to always be the massive treat we made it be Sunday.

After a wonderful afternoon by the ocean, we had supper at the Portland Lobster Company – http://portlandlobstercompany.com/ We each had Lobster Stew and a Lobster Roll and we shared an order of whole belly friend clams:):)

Interesting experience — BUT it works! We had to place our order first before we say the hostess to be recorded for a table! They said we would have a table when food was ready! Ooooooooooookay!!! We placed our order — received the Lobster buzzer and went to see the hostess. She asked for a name and then we realized the Lobster also contained and shared! our order.

We did have a table before we picked up our food. It was a delicious treat after two lobster-less years!

Then a 2 block walk to 51 Exchange street for ice cream! The two ladies sitting next to us, who had never heard of Mount Desert Island Ice Cream, went up for ice cream and we met them coming back as we walked up.

We ended our Oceanside Beach day with dessert at Mount Desert Island Ice Cream — 51 Exchange Street — Portland, Maine — http://www.mdiic.com/

I had “The Dude” and “Butter Mint” w/ dark chocolate sauce. I forget the three flavors that Tom had. Mount Desert Island Ice Cream deserves its TOP ranking in Maine and Country Best Ice Cream lists!

We took rt 302 home and arrived home at 11pm. It was a much needed day and made us realize we need to schedule more fun days for ourselves. We won’t always treat ourselves to this level of feasting! We can always pack a picnic.

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