Whiteley Creek Homestead

I had planned to share a photo of five trellises that Dick and I constructed and set up in our gardens today despite the drizzly chilly day, however my fingers got too cold to tie the strings onto each framework to complete the project. Instead, I moved on to the next project which was removing last year’s nests from my four pairs of bluebird houses. When I went inside to prepare a bucket of warm water with a biodegradable disinfectant cleaner to scrub them squeaky clean for the spring’s arrivals, my eyes settled upon this plaque that I purchased from my high school/community college friend, Gladys, which she sold along with other items at a community art sale. Now you must know that I dislike two colors… black and purple. My guess is that Gladys must have chosen this particular base color because of the book titled When I Grow Old I Shall Wear Purple. I overlooked the color because I liked the message so much. "Leaner, meaner, and sharp-edged", you wonder? Why would anyone strive to attain such traits? To me it means arriving at a place where one feels more confident and comfortable with who one has become. It is being content in our particular life’s season and not worrying so much about other’s judgement of us… not leaner, meaner, and sharp-edged in a negative way. To shoot the photo, I set the plaque on the weathered gray floor boards of Whiteley Creek Bed and Breakfast Inn’s back porch. I think it makes a pretty color combo… yes, even though it’s purple.

This the back side of the plaque. It appears to be a tree section that Gladys varnished to preserve its beauty. I should have asked her. I will ask her. My friend Pat said, "It looks like she used a type of tree fungus called a conk or shelf fungus.  Here are a few sites you might be interested in." (You really should check out the sites Pat supplied. They are so informative! The first site tells how shelf fungus can prolong an old tree’s life, the second site has many photos to view, and the third site describes how to dry it and seal it.)

http://amos.indiana.edu/library/scripts/friendlyfungus.html

http://search.pbase.com/search?q=shelf+fungus&b=Search+Photos&c=sp

http://boards.diynetwork.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/2021916776/m/8011050023