hobbies – Thoughts From The Passenger Seat

2025, Healthy Living

Beautiful Connecticut Ride

Posted on November 13, 2025November 11, 2025 by nancyb422

Last Thursday, our crew headed up to the Northwest corner of Connecticut for a bike ride. We started out in Colebrook which is just over an hour from our home. The ringleaders of our group, Mark and Marilyn had completed the ride over the weekend and instantly knew we all would love it.

There was a brief shower on our way up and the car said it was 42 degrees outside by the time we got there. I definitely wasn’t prepared for cold – even though I was told it would be! That is typical me, I just can’t understand a temperature change until I’m in the middle of it totally unprepared. Thankfully, Marilyn lent me a pair of gloves with battery pack heaters, and some toe warmers. My husband lent me an extra buff he had in his bag. At least I was wearing long cycling tights so I pulled my wool socks over the ends of them, but really wished they were my fleece lined pair! Dressed and off we went!

The ride was a mix of country roads and packed dirt roads. I was happy to not be riding on dirt roads with ruts and rocks like our central Connecticut rides! There were a couple of intense hills that for the first time on this bike I kicked it into Turbo. If we didn’t have e-bikes, we’d be sitting home on the couch instead of riding.

We don’t stop very often. Always for lunch, meaning whatever we can fit in our small bike bags, and occasional water breaks.

This time we happened upon a small cemetery – the Munson Cemetery. I only took a picture of one nearby stone, but google led me to the Find a Grave website. The Judd and Munson families are interred there. The oldest grave is for Sarah Booth Munson and she appears to have ties to Hamden and New Haven. I’m not going down that rabbit hole though!

Our ride also took us through the Great Mountain Forest which is a 6,042 acre forest that within Norfolk and Falls Village. It has 13 miles of road to ride on. We went in one entrance and came out another. And we saw a porcupine! It looked so cute waddling away.

The last 2 miles felt like 10 miles and it felt like it was all uphill back to our cars. 28.9 miles (I need to start riding around the parking lot to get that whole mile!).

*Just kissed the border of Massachusetts*

We definitely warmed up during the ride, and on the way home we celebrated ourselves with a cup of Dunkin’ pumpkin spiced coffee and an a glazed donut stick. I think we earned it!

2025, Healthy Living

It’s Special(ized)

Posted on November 9, 2025November 9, 2025 by nancyb422

Name the most expensive personal item you’ve ever purchased (not your home or car).

It’s a good thing I love to ride a bike because my most expensive personal item recently purchased is a new gravel e-bike I brought home in September. It replaced the first e-bike, a Salsa Confluence, I bought in February. It quickly became evident the Salsa was not up to speed (pun intended), for the rides our group takes. The Salsa was half the price as the Creo, had a smaller motor, thinner tires designed more for bike paths than dirt roads, and unfortunately for me on dirt roads with rocks, no shocks in the handle bars.

My new, best bike is a Creo Turbo 2 Comp with a 1.2 SL lightweight motor, and SRAM hydraulic disc breaks. A really crazy feature is the “etap levers” for changing gears. If you’ve ever shifted gears on a bike, you can hear it going on down at your feet as the chain moves higher or lower. Not this bike because it’s electric! There’s only a delightful little “click” as I press the right or left lever, and the chain makes its move on the cog.

It is worth every penny because my hands no longer ache after a 30 mile ride, I’m more comfortable and confident barreling down a hill, and I have more electric power for that hill at mile 27!

2025, hobbies

My Sweater

Posted on October 26, 2025October 25, 2025 by nancyb422

I’ve been knitting on and off for about 25 years. I’m a little messy at it and have been known to make a sweater and immediately unravel it, wash the yarn to unkink it, and put it away.

I finally found a sweater with directions I thought I could handle. It is knit from the top down, which is my favorite because I don’t have sew anything together! That’s where I’m really messy!

It starts at the neck, you put in markers to indicate sleeve and front/back and then as you knit you make increases. Sometimes for front and back of each marker and sometimes one or the other, and at the same time are adding stitches for something else. All before it’s joined in the round! I had to write out each round on a piece of paper to make sure I got it straight.

What I also love about knitting from the top down is I can accurately determine how long it is in body and arm length. I have the shortest torso and arms around.

It’s funny though, the closer I get to finishing a project the slower I go because I’m afraid it’s going to be crap!

I was really happy when I tried this on after binding off the sleeves and knitting the collar trim. The yarn was a little thick and scratchy but once I washed it (in the machine on hand wash), it really softened up and it stretched a little but measured up pretty good when I set it down to dry.

I’ve started another in a nice dark blue DK yarn that I have a bounty of. I had a sweater in the same yarn but it got a hole and I didn’t know how to mend it so, I threw it out!

I like knitting because it keeps me busy while watching tv.

2025, Gardening, hobbies, life

Yard Work

Posted on August 31, 2025 by nancyb422

I’ve talked about my yard before and the history of my home.

Over the last six months, my husband has been adding landscaping to all sides of the house. My father, not having grown up in a family without a home of their own said, “why do I want to plant something when I’ll have to take care of it”. Anything that grew wild, stayed wild and any spot with nothing, stayed that way.

We had discussed landscaping in the front of the house but I grew up with a father who didn’t plant anything remember? It all feels so permanent and “what if it looks bad, doesn’t grow, etc.”, is my school of thought.

Thankfully, my husband ignored me! We now have a variety of plants along the house including, azaleas, Joe-Pye Weed (fun name!) and Little Pye, Goldenrod, and Panicle Hydrangea. Most were purchased at our local nurseries and a few at Lowe’s.

My project this Labor Day weekend is to take pictures of, and lay out on paper, the plants and their locations. I (don’t think my husband cares) want to know what they are and what the colors are going to be. Some that have already bloomed, I forgot what they looked like!

The landscaping around the house and seating area

This was a fun one when it bloomed! Poco Sunset

I’m not going to go for perfection, just a sense of what we have!

All the colors have such nice green foliage too

I’m hoping that cooler and moister weather will green things up again!

2024, hobbies, Holidays, Home, leisure time, life, Religion

My Latest Treasure

Posted on December 28, 2024 by nancyb422

My husband and I had nothing to do the day after Christmas. What a treat after hosting our family party of 26 people on Saturday which was fabulous and I loved every minute, but we were enjoying our down time!

I had to go to Hamden a couple of towns away to drop something off. Since we were taking “the back way” home, via Whitney Avenue, I suggested a stop at Wentworth’s Ice Cream, not really thinking they’d be open, but I enjoy that route.

As I suspected, they were closed. However, right next door is an antiques store, actually a house, that I’d never been to, but “always meant to get to”. I’ve seen it advertised in the local weekly newspaper, and in the little booklets we get in the mail as he is always looking for antiques and coins. As a matter of fact, I actually knew him as the former brother in law of a friend from the crowd I hung around with in my mid-20s.

We drove through the ice cream shop parking lot and went back, parked in front of the house and were instantly taken in by the stone bird baths, railings, and objects in the front yard.

We stepped in to the house (after he unlocked the door!) and were mesmerized by the amount of antiques throughout the space. And this was just the first floor!

Clocks, pictures in big gold ornate frames, sculptures, Tiffany lamps – Oh My!

We talked with Don, the owner, for quite a while. He was telling us the history of his love for antiques and where he gets them and we shared what we enjoy and what we look for for our home and yard.

My eye caught a piece on the wall. It wasn’t large, but I felt a connection to it from the religious items I love to see in museums.

He explained to us it was Pietre Dure – hard stones. I looked it up when I got home and it is known as Intarsia Lapidary. Unlike mosaic pieces which are generally of similar pieces and grouted in place, Pietre Dura are mostly larger and cut to a shape suiting their place in the image and glued in place. They first appeared in Rome in the 16th century. The technique is used on table tops, altars and portraits.

I didn’t know what it was when I saw it, and I was attracted to the frame more than the picture, is that a horn coming out of her head?, but the more I look at it, the more I love all of it.

*Current location of my Pietre Dure piece*

We have it hung on the wall, but I feel like it needs a larger expanse of wall around it to really make it pop.

If you’re local to the Wallingford area, the location is 3651 Whitney Avenue in Hamden – Don Barese Fine Art & Antiques. His hours are by appointment, but the OPEN flag was out when we drove by. He buys and sells internationally. We’re already planning our next trip back!

2024, hobbies, Home, jig-saw puzzles, life, puzzles, relaxing, toy stores, toys

Puzzle Time

Posted on December 8, 2024 by nancyb422

I finished another puzzle!

I started puzzles earlier this year and really enjoy it.

I found this national parks puzzle at Amato’s Toy Store in Middletown and it was more difficult than I thought it would be!

There were very similar colors in a lot of the squares and letters were very tiny. Each square had a white frame around it.

I don’t work on a puzzle every day so it takes a month or two to put one together. My husband is very patient with me and doesn’t complain about it being there. The yellow mat it sits on is part of a roll up system if I needed to move it.

This 1,000 puzzle is by MasterPieces and I enjoyed it but I like the puzzles by White Mountain because the pieces are larger, but the puzzle isn’t easier!

2024, family, hikes, hobbies, Holidays, leisure time, life, photography, Travel

12/4/2024 Hump Day Photo

Posted on December 4, 2024 by nancyb422

January 1, 2020 was brisk and bright when I set out for the guided first walk of the year with my sister and niece.

Machimoodus State Park was the location and it took us through the woods and towards a view of the Salmon River before it meets up with the Connecticut River in Haddam, Connecticut.

“Machimoodus” is an indigenous term for “place of bad noises” because of noisy rumblings and echos heard by the Pequot, Narragansett, and Mohegan tribes. The sounds were real and in 1981 geologists determined “micro earthquakes” were the cause amplified by a nearby cave!

We didn’t hear any rumblings, but we saw some beautiful scenery and had a brisk hike to start out the new year!

2024, friends, leisure time, life, relaxing, Sports, Travel

Vacation Mid-Week

Posted on August 14, 2024 by nancyb422

It’s beautiful here on Lake Winnipesaukee and we are loving every minute. Isn’t that what vacation is all about?

*Looking out from our property on Alton Bay*

We spent some time on our boat Sunday anchored up and Monday we boated down to the town dock to go to breakfast 🤗. We also boated up to Wolfeboro and docked to do some shopping. My husband gets nervous docking if it’s a right spot but he did great! I took the pressure off by dropping the push off/hook on pole in the water! 🤣 Luckily it floated towards the boat launch area and some nice young people got their hook and dragged it in.

Yesterday we drove up to Lincoln to go hiking with one of our employees and his wife. We held our own but omg I could barely walk by the time we were done. I have a couple of toes that give me trouble when they’re in shoes for too long (one connected with our rowing machine when I kicked back doing yoga 😫).

We hiked in Franconia Notch, first to the top of Mt Pemigewasset, 3.3 mile round trip.

Came back down, ate our packed lunch, and then heading to the Flume Gorge which is a 2.2 round trip. You need tickets to see it and it was worth every single penny. We had no idea that existed!

We had dinner at the Woodstock Inn and brewery then headed back to our little cottage.

Today it’s more boating with our hiking friends who are heading back home.

I’m so grateful to be able to take this time and relax!

2024, hobbies, leisure time, life, relaxing

Experimental Collage

Posted on July 21, 2024 by nancyb422

On Saturday, I took a class at the Guilford Art Center called “Experimental Collage Workshop”.

I was more than a little nervous as I was driving to the center. I’ve never taken an art class before and it takes me a while to get my “creative juices” going!

It involved using a variety of medium to create a collage. The teacher brought so much material and it was fun to sort through everything there.

As I went through the packets of magazine pages, cutouts, words, and paper stock, I pulled out items that interested me. I realized I knew what I wanted to do.

As I was making it, I had to let go of my need to make things symmetrical or cut strips straight and of equal dimensions! The sun came about on my third try of a sun. As soon as I saw the green leaf paper, I knew I wanted it to be the roof and the teacher was impressed it was 3-D! I had to have Wally there and the cardinal was a fluke as I didn’t see it in the packet the first time I looked through it. I think it came out pretty good!

I’ve always had a thing for standard collage. My earliest memory was in third grade we had a collage project, maybe for our first communion, of a chalice and the communion wafer. I only remember it because it was in a yarn bound “book” of art work that hung around in the basement for years.

I love seeing the tile work in the subway stations. The two tours at Hearst Castle both ended up at the pool and it is breathtaking! The colors and the way they reflect off the water – I have so many pictures!

I really enjoyed this class. Once I had an idea of what I wanted to do, it became soothing to sort my material and cut out the items. I think it’s something I might explore at home!

2024, hobbies, leisure time, life, relaxing, Writing

Puzzle #2 – The Cantina

Posted on April 28, 2024April 28, 2024 by nancyb422

In January, I wrote about completing my first puzzle. I “got it for Christmas” in 2022 but it and the roll up pad sat for a year before our Aunt Mindy’s dedication to hers inspired me to start on mine!

After I took that puzzle apart, I looked for another by the same maker, Eeboo, but quickly realized my coffee table was not large enough! Evidently the “A Day In Paris” was the only one and that one just squeaked in.

We went to Amatos Toy and Hobby in Middletown to find a new puzzle (I was armed with the table measurement!), and I bought one by White Mountain called New York New York and is made up of New York State landmarks. There’s a bit of a theme there – puzzles based on places I’ve been. Anyway, the puzzle was a few inches too big but my husband told me he’d get a piece of plywood to cover for the few extra inches needed. Didn’t happen! 😂 I started looking for a coffee table that was wider. Can’t decide on one! 😂

I ended up perusing the puzzle aisle of Walmart with my measurements and found this Buffalo Games and Puzzles Charles Wysocki puzzle called “Sunday Morning Stroll”.

I’ve been at it for about a month now and boy, it’s a tough one! Usually I finish the perimeter first but for this one, I removed and switched pieces constantly because pieces that didn’t go together, seemed to fit! The pieces are smaller than the last and there are so many similar colors!

Every night as we watch our scheduled show, I listen more than watch it as I pick away at the trees and sky.

Now I need to find that new coffee table!