photofarmer's photostream  

A winter trip to the Tower Hill Botanic Gardens. This is the view from the Twigs Cafe. Wachusett Reservoir in the background. In warmer weather they have tables outdoors on the patio.

In the 1800's, shoemaking was a cottage industry around here. Everyone had a last supplied by the shoe company and a stack of the right size leather. They would sew the shoes together in their free time.

I found an old metal last and a wooden form and a few pieces of sole. One of the soles is on the stairs above. I don't know if that was typical of people's foot size back then, but it's different today. My boot is on the other step.

The treads range from 6-1/2" to 8" and the risers are about 9". The stairs in my home have treads about 10-1/2" and risers about 8". The risers in the barn are a bit higher because they had a limited space in which to put the stairs. As you can see, it's kind of a pain to use them since there's no support for my heel. Really annoying when I have to carry something up.

And there's even something under it to hold it up.

Seeds for the 2012 season. 8 more orders to go (plus back orders).

Three coyotes spotted in the yard yesterday. Gillie's going to be an indoor cat again for a bit.