Welcome to Sunnyhill

The leaves are losing their connections to the trees they have nourished all spring and summer.  With the cold and short days some chemical magic happens and the leaves let go.  The connection between the trees and leaves, as mysterious as it is, can be measured and understood.  But the connections between people are far…
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August is a yellow month.  Goldenrod shows up along the roadside, mixing in with the white queen Anne’s lace and the blue chicory.  The schoolgirl in me remembers this.  Goldenrod means summer is sliding down to fall.  It’s time to squeeze the fun and freedom out of every precious day left. The early turning sumac…
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On Thursday July 2nd I went to bed, feeling really low.  By Monday, still barely able to get out of bed, I figured something was really wrong and went to the clinic.  A blood test confirmed anaplasmosis, one of the tick borne diseases less well known than Lyme but equally nasty.  They put me right…
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We have driven back and forth to the Albany area, to Slingerlands, Latham and Troy, dozens of times in the last few months to see cornea and retina specialists.  Jay and I both had cataract surgery on both eyes, so with six trips per eye, that’s 24 drives, plus another 6 so far for Jay’s…
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It’s already impossible for me to remember what the hills looked like when the trees were bare and the only ground cover was dead leaves.  The woods to the east of the house are tucked behind a dense green curtain now.  I looked into those woods all winter, and I could see the contours of…
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Green fields covered in bright yellow dandelions, a pointillist’s delight.  Spring comes so slowly, and then all at once.  I missed writing about the time of green mist, when the trees on the hillsides were covered with the tenderest new leaves.  I missed writing about the first daffodils on that south facing slope at the…
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Tom has sold the Fly Creek General Store.  We first met Tom in 2019 when Mike Heustis, who was working for us, suggested we try the deli there for sandwiches. From our house on Gulf Road the General Store was just under 10 miles away, a beautiful drive through mostly open country.  We were still…
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When we walked into the kennel room at the SPCA on Friday, March 27, most of the dogs got very excited – jumping up their windows and barking for attention.  But Fanny sat quietly, wagging her tail and gazing at us.  We weren’t planning on a  puppy and Fanny is only 7 months old, but…
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We ended the life of our sweet little dog Charlie today.  It’s a hard loss, but it was time.  We have a lovely friend who is a vet and does euthanasia at home, which is really a gift.  We called her out late in February after Charlie had refused food for two days – he…
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