 What's New... Spring, 2008 Weather and wildlife 
Yes, it is spring…finally! Up north record snows are melting fast, swelling rivers and precipitating flood warnings. Here daffodils are up, but the leaves, even the early shads and popples, are still tightly budded. And here’s a new climatological oddity: mud season didn’t happen this year. Gasp! It’s unheard of. We have had almost no rain this spring at all (until the 4” we got yesterday…) However, no complaints on that score. We like rain, sun and snow in their turn, but mud is a most unwelcome visitor, and normally a rather reliable visitor.
The snowy winter, though beautiful, was very hard on many wildlife species. Deer had trouble moving around and getting to ground level food, leaving the population significantly reduced. Notably, there were an unusual number of barred owls on the island late this winter. They’d migrated south of their usual range looking for unblanketed ground to hunt. I heard that the local warden had reports of at least four owls found starved to death, depleted from the journey and/or not finding enough here to survive. Those species that do make it through the winter can be quite vocal about their spring business: mating. The woodcocks have been out in abundance the last few weeks, performing their strangely orchestrated ritual, which I finally witnessed this year for the first time. (Persistence and wanton trespassing helped.) The peepers are shrieking to deafening decibel levels. And last week I found a tiny pinkish toad in the garden. Peter says it’s the first one he’s seen here in many years. That’s heartening, isn’t it? Wings, Waves and Woods 
That’s the moniker for our annual birding and art weekend coming up May 16-18, here on Deer Isle. There are boat trips to see puffins and sea birds, guided walks and talks, art workshops and exhibits, including a special opening of bird-ish art (habitat qualifies, too) at the Deer Isle Artists Association. Peter will be demonstrating found object bird art here on Sunday afternoon and he’ll have some newly-hatched creations for sale, too. Bob Duschene, a very nice fellow and wildly enthusiastic naturalist will be on hand all weekend. He created the Maine Birding Trail and will give a slide show Saturday night focusing on the Downeast portion of the trail. If you read the NY Times, you may remember an article about lobsterman Dick Bridges and his fish chowder. That, along with other local foods (Hot Tomato Chutney on goat cheese, anyone?) will be featured at a luncheon on Saturday, a fundraiser at the Congo Church to help pay for their new furnace. An original painting—pair of black-throated green warblers--and two signed prints all by Persis Weirs, of “duck stamp” fame, will be raffled off, including a print of Long Tails from that famous duck stamp. I’ve got raffle tickets ($5) and you don’t have to be present to win. I also have brochures/schedules that I can mail to you or check the events calendar on www.deerislemaine.com . Oh, and—here’s the best part---if you show up that weekend at NN wearing binoculars, you get a free coffee and a homemade scone! Last year, somebody standing in our doorway spotted a vireo in the apple tree—no binocs needed—but he was wearing them… and sipping his free cup of Fogcutter.
Maine Maple Syrup 
A crummy year for syrup, complained Jim, our syrup guy in Skowhegan. The steady cold prevented sap from running until late in the season and then, all of a sudden it was warm and the trees “dried up.” He got a good week of flow from his 500 or so trees, which is about half of a typical harvest. The good news is that the quality is not affected at all—just the quantity. Prices are likely to go up and glass containers, too, are also getting very expensive. Our prices will stay the same this year, but I probably will not be reordering those adorable little log cabins again next year. I can’t bear the idea of plastic and the metal containers rust, so we’ll probably stick to plain ol’ jugs. In any case, I now have lots and lots of freshly-tapped syrup.
Julie and Julia This book, subtitled “My Year of Cooking Dangerously”, by Julie Powell is now in production as movie starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams (great casting!). Apparently the production “decorator” had visited NN last summer and thought to contact us when they needed some gourmet food (Hot Tomato Chutney and Wild Maine Blueberry Preserves were requested) for a scene in which Julie gets a gift package from a blog fan. So, of course, I sent some along and the “shoot” (do I have that right?) took place a few weeks ago. Time will tell if that scene made the cut, but if you do see the movie, High Alert for the moment when Julie/Amy gets a gift package. The irony of this is that no one involved knew that Julia herself had been here several times and that Hot Tomato was one of her favorites. Hoping to get a serving suggestion from J Child, Cambridge, MA, I once asked her what she did with the HTC (as we call it). “It’s mawvelous with meatsch,” was her very mawvelous response, though (alas…) not specific enough to warrant a place on the Suggested Uses. Speaking of which, it is time for some new ideas. What do YOU do with our chutneys? Send me jam@nervousnellies.com your serving ideas and maybe yours will appear on that handy-dandy reference of lip-smacking taste tips. Juke Joint Red’s Lounge is Peter’s latest creation, inspired by a seedy-looking establishment known as Red’s on the wrong side of the tracks in Clarksdale, MS. I can’t call it a sculpture—it’s three times as big as my office! But he built it this winter with all of the attention and care he puts into a sculpture, transcending his natural resistance to cutting straight lines or measuring anything. This sturdy little rendition of a Delta blues joint is both tacky and charming. A bit spooky, too. It features a hunky piano player (nice shoulders) named Two Scoops and a guitar picker, with a Mississippi John Hurt CD providing the audio sensation. There are two booths and one is available for you, with a window looking toward the Sunshine Rd—not a regular one, it’s a car door window, the car door being part of the wall itself. You’ll see… And there’s a checkers game set up on the porch—you are welcome to play. And some, or all of this, is likely to show up in Episode Six of The Nervous Nellie Story. Stay tuned… Mother’s Day In case you are in the neighborhood, or need an excuse to wander this way, Sunday, May 11 (aka Mother’s Day) is our official opening for the season. The café will be freshly-stocked with homemade baked goodies, including our melt-in-your-mouth scones. And the shelves in the summer shop will be replete with jam, honey, syrup, pottery, scone mixes, folk ornaments, baskets, aprons, lupine seeds, balsam pillows, Nellie Stories and posters, plus free samples of all fifteen flavors. We’ve just had spanking new spruce boards put down on our deck, so we’re feeling quite spiffy. We’ll be open daily 9-5 from May 11 on. And that day all mothers get a free coffee or tea and a warm scone slathered with plenty of jam. So treat a Mom to treat, here or wherever you are. That's all for now--- Anne |
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598 Sunshine Road, Deer Isle, Maine 04627
1-800-777-6845 or 207-348-6182
Email:jam@nervousnellies.com
