Trick or Treat

On occasion we're fortunate enough to have media attention focused on the Sanctuary. Two local magazines, and a TV station, have run features on Excy and the 'wild ones.' Now a TV station wants to do a follow-up. The last time they were here was two years ago on Halloween. Because this is basically Excy's department, I planned to stay off to the side and watch the show as they taped. Because it was Halloween and my favorite holiday, I was wearing all-black, with a black widow crystal studded t-shirt. Honestly, compared to what I've worn in the past, this was most tame. The TV interviewer started making me nervous, trying to encourage me into the camera's view and to talk on camera as well. I kept edging away and ducking out of sight. When the program aired, to my mortification there I am, on camera, but thankfully only my back is repeatedly seen. Causing Excy and friends to refer to me as 'the mysterious woman in black.' This time, I still don't plan to be seen, but you can bet I won't be in costume.

WOW---The Witches of Wye

This photo was taken in 2000 when I had the Halloween WOW. We are holding up needlepoint pillows I made for each of us.

Friday night I hosted the WOWs (Witches of Wye). I suppose in polite company we could call ourselves the Women of Wye, but we've never bothered -- maybe we've never fretted anybody would get the wrong impression -- maybe we've never been in polite company, ha.

I served a huge pot of ratatouille and penne pasta, and everyone brought a dish and bottles of wine. We had only six this month - a small group. We are all hardworking professionals (though two no longer work full time, our group altogether comprises of a lawyer, social workers, gardening expert and former nursery owner, school administrator, choir director, writer and editor, and computer guru), and by the end of a rough week we were ready to let our hair down and 'howl at the moon,' so six bottles of wine went quickly.

Our 'floor show' that night consisted of watching the small red fox and numerous raccoons I feed on the terrace every night all eat together. After dinner we watched a DVD from 1934 L. brought mainly to show us Sally Rand doing a Fan and Balloon 'dance.' After imbibing all that wine, the 'dance' was hysterical, and some of us attempted to mimic the routine. I'm sure you had to be there. I do envy the ball gowns and frequenting of Art Deco-ish nightclubs from that era, however.

The WOWs came into existance about 11 years ago or more. I didn't know anybody living up here and a mutual friend introduced me to L., who lives down the road on Wye. We bonded quickly. I remember confessing that as much as I loved the mountain, sometimes I felt out of place, and some of the people we'd run into seemed pretty backward. (Actually I said their eyes seemed pretty close together - I call it the Deliverance factor). I said they probably thought I was a witch or something, because of the way they stared at me when they drove by and saw me doing yoga out front or something equally odd to them. L. laughed and said her neighbors had actually called her a witch. They had cut trees down on her property and she had been out sprinkling herbs and praying in the woods, and had spotted them watching her.

We decided that maybe such a 'reputation' wouldn't be a bad thing after all. At least they'd be wary of us, and leave our property alone and not hunt on it. She introduced me to several like-minded friends who also lived on the Mt., and the WOWs were born.

We meet on the second Friday of the month. The evening has evolved through the years, but basically now the hostess makes an entree and everyone else brings appetizers, side dishes, and, of course, wine. Champagne on eventful occasions. We eat and drink very well.

These six- to -ten women have become the sisters and close women friends I've never had before. We support causes and fundraise for nonprofits and organizations. But mostly we support one another. Right now they are running a fundraiser to raise money for my kidney transplant. When another fell ill to breast cancer, we supported her however it was needed as well. We've lost our oldest member, who was in her 80s and ill from emphysema many years before she died, and another has health issues that preclude regular attendance. Time and circumstances affect us all, but our friendships remain.

It's Getting There......

Fall, finally! My favorite time of the year! If only it would quit raining (when did AR get a monsoon season?) so we could enjoy the different slant of the sun, the cooling of the day, the muskiness of the leaves....October is my very favorite month; September is just a prelude to things to come.......for October brings the smell of leaves burning and pumpkins to buy and carve and light, Halloween - my favorite holiday -- and even though we seldom go, the State fair and football games to follow. Not to mention the cooler weather offers an excuse to make the stick-to-your ribs one-pot dishes I love so much: chili, stew, soups, pot pies.....And I can finally get out and muck about in the yard again, something that is too miserable in the heat of an AR summer to enjoy......sigh.......if only fall lasted six months.........