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Posts tagged ‘Madison Valley’

Embrace Similes & Metaphors

The wind is like a lion
The wind is a howling hyena
The wind is like a frisky lamb
The wind is a cotton ball

The part of Montana where we live (Madison Valley in Madison County) is a wind tunnel. Right now as I sit here at my computer, I can see it. I can hear it. I can read my barometer telling me that it ranges between 15 and 25 mph this morning. Occasionally gusts of 35 mph rock the flaps on the exhaust pipe above the stove in the kitchen. People who visit us here in Ennis often comment, “How can you stand it?”

We really don’t mind it when we stop and think about what it does. The wind blows the rain clouds in. It blows the storm off to the east and over the mountain range. We can see the clouds moving and we marvel at the way those wind gusts keep us from becoming an overgrown city! Our response to those visitors’ comments is, “Oh it’s terrible! You wouldn’t want to live here!”

The wind blows the storms in
and it blows the clouds out again.

The wind is like a scooper
The wind is a funnel
The wind is like a filter
The wind is a sieve

The wind sifts out
the weak of heart & spirit!

No, we don’t get tornadoes here!
Our winds are not that bad!
But they can be inhospitable.
We’d move if that’s all we had!

Welcome to the Madison River –
Flyfishing capitol of the world!

The wind is like a welcomed monitor
The wind is a necessary friend
The wind is like a vacuum cleaner
The wind is a friendly lion

Simile/ˈsiməlē : a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox ).
Metaphor: compares two things directly without using “like” or “as”; the subject IS the object. Metaphors are more direct than similes, which can make them seem stronger or more surprising. Example: The sunrise this morning was an ocean of honey dusted with powdered sugar.

Nope, you wouldn’t like living in Madison County!
Hah!

Thanks for visiting JanBeek.
I am sending love, joy, peace, faith and
a sense of unity your way this day.

Don’t let them get blown away!

Blogging is like a private jet.
It can take you anywhere!

See ya tomorrow (God willing)

Peace Be With You!

Good morning from Madison Valley, Montana
Peace from Antelope family – Jeffers, Montana
Peace from this Beautiful buck – Jeffers, Montana
Peace from this Moose duo at Madison River for a drink
Peace beside this Fish sculpture – Madison River
Pace in our Home sweet home in early spring
Peace in our Home sweet home in summer
Ed Coyle Photography – Peace at Madison River ‘s sunset

Peace is living here
In the Madison Valley
Fun is sharing it

Safely visiting
When this COVID is over
Can be your next goal

Let our peaceful place
Put calmness and joy in you
Let me spoil you

God has spoiled me
Blessed me to be a blessing
I long to share peace



Peace be with you, my friend.
Thanks for visiting
JanBeek

See ya tomorrow.



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Will You Be My Neighbor?

Two For Sale signs went up in our “hood” this week.

That Mercer sign is for a 7 acre parcel right next door to us.
We could be next-door neighbors!

The ERA sign is at the end of the cul-de-sac – just a stone’s throw away – down where you see the telephone poles in the first photo.

Mercer sign w our house

See, there’s our house up there –  just beyond the sign. Aren’t you looking for wide open spaces and Big Sky, fresh air and a friendly, cheerful, inclusive neighborhood? Here we are!! You can build your dream house right here.

Hocking House - blue sky

This beautiful home with the best neighbors imaginable, Rex and Penny, could be your neighbors … besides us, the Beekmans with the robin babies in our back yard. Hey, look closely! That one on the right has her eyes open!

2 baby robins

This nest is on this porch where I am sitting right now with my laptop, Rita and Robbie are coming and going, feeding their babies, paying no attention to me! I love it!!

The nest is in the shadow just left of the small bedroom window. My chair is in the sun with my tabletop in the shade. I have a bird’s eye view of the robin activity.

3 joggers - cartoon

This morning was a beautiful, sunny. warm, still day – perfect for a walk in Lion’s Club Park by the Madison River that is less than 5 minutes from us. I met a couple of TOPS friends and we walked around by the river, the baseball field, the playground…

Madison thru weeds

From this view of the river, there is a bench, a painted sculpted fish, and a gorgeous view of the Madison Range across the valley.

Come go for a walk with me. There are benches along the way, picnic tables, barbecue pits, a baseball field and a playground. Young children usually flock here. But, I was early. They started to arrive as I was leaving.

On the way to the post office after my walk, I passed another For Sale sign. Our friend, Niel, died recently after a long battle with cancer. His cozy little house in town is for sale. Maybe you’d prefer this. You’d be on a smaller lot in a more modest neighborhood downtown. Look at this lovely place. Interested? Call the ERA number on the sign at the top of this post.

Niel Kent house

Your neighbors across the street have this lovely tree – and these beautiful opium poppies. What a great little town our Ennis, Montana is!!

Driving home from there, I took the golf course route. Here’s the scene just a mile from our home:

They keep it well maintained and lots of our neighbors love getting out on the course on a day like today.

Peaceful, beautiful, clean, clear, friendly …
 … what more could you ask?

Oh, I forgot to add there’s a darling little lake at Lion’s Club Park where the kids can fish and keep the trout they catch. The Madison River has a “catch and release” policy to preserve the natives. And there’s an old tractor at the park where the kids can climb and pretend FARMER. We have a lot of cattle and wheat farming in our Madison Valley.

But it’s best known for the Madison River and the fly fishing.

fish on Madison - painting

Will you come and be my neighbor?
Caroline & Chuck are building right down the hill from us.
They’d be great neighbors for ya, too!!

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Have a Wonderful Wednesday.
See ya tomorrow.
JanBeek

Some of My Favorite Montana Scenes

Some of you are new to JanBeek, and maybe you have not had a chance to peruse my blog enough to see this beautiful area around Montana’s Madison Valley where I live.

Here are some of my favorite shots of the scenery around me:

I found this one on the web and did a screen shot.
In the springtime, Bob & I take our ATV up to this outlook.
The wild flowers are magnificent
and the snow-capped mountains are breath-taking!
(God is quite an artist, isn’t He?)
I think this one was taken by my favorite photographer, Ed Coyle,
but he usually has his name on his.
So, if it’s not… and you know who took it,
please let me know.
I love it!!

Our fall colors are so beautiful and the “Big Sky” filled with wonderful cloud structures never fail to amaze me. We are so blessed to be here.

I love this one with the cattle out in the snow.

That was the scene that greeted us when we returned home late January from a 5 week vacation in California. The winter break was good, but it’s always good to be home!

My friend, Susan Phillips, took this one.

The Madison River runs through our little town of Ennis.
It’s a fly-fishing mecca!!
Can you feel the peace of the river?

My friend, Caroline Feldman, posted this one.
I think she took it on one of her ATV ventures with CG.
Go to Ed Coyle’s website, click “LOVE”…
because I guarantee you WILL love his photos!!
(Don’t use them without giving him credit, please.)
Ed Coyle Photography

You should put Ennis, Montana on your “Bucket List.” If you have never ventured to this part of the USA, make it a “Must Do!” We’ll be happy to welcome you.

Thanks for visiting JanBeek
and enjoying a few of our scenes with me.

See ya tomorrow.

Montana Adventure

Today was a perfect day to take Lucille (Our ATV with a red head who is a Ball), And go up into the mountains – Up on Mt. Baldy, more than 10,000 feet tall!
On our way up to Mt. Baldy (10K ft ahead of us)
Lucille is a trooper with Bob at the wheel. TazE loves riding with us on the mountain trails. Some of the roads are so rough, I cringe, But I am happy to have an “Oh My!” bar instead of wails.
Hang tight to the “Oh My!” bar. Secure TazE with her leash.
TazE crowded me as she leaned out the window of Lucille
Going with friends makes it extra fun; Five guys and three gals in five 4-wheelers. The area in the Tobacco Root Mountains Is full of rough terrain, rocks and squealers.
Me (Jan) with Caroline & Penny
Bob, Rex, Gene, BW and Chuck
The views from up on top of Baldy Are breathtaking to be sure. The sky was a little hazy today, But the air was clean and pure.
Gene, with a recent new knee, made the rigorous climb from our ATVs to the top of the mountain (a steeper climb than it looks here!)
We were above the snow level Where the clouds seem so close We felt like we could touch them. I have more pictures than I can post!
Our lovely, protected setting for lunch on top of Mt. Baldy
The view from my lunch spot
Dilapidated old mining building
Over my right shoulder a dilapidated mine Indicated that people once lived and worked In this place miles from civilization – For gold, lead, silver and copper – no one shirked.
Old mining site on Mt. Baldy
Old mines dotted the trail as we headed down. I wished those old beams and rocks could talk. They would have wonderful stories to tell – Lived through many a death and untold shocks.
Jan in Bob’s fishing cap
On down the mountain on rocky trails, We were careful to not tip over the edge. The paths were narrow with no side rails – I held TazE and tried not to look at the ledge!
Bob driving Lucille – in a rocky spot with a wider ledge than most
Bob, Jan, TazE – top of Mt. Baldy
Old mine on Mt. Baldy
Ennis Lake from the Tobacco Roots to the Madison Range
We tried to stay in view of the Polaris Traveling on the trail in our lead, But we didn’t want to be too close To eat his dust as he picked up speed. That’s our Madison Valley and Ennis Lake In the middle of this view. As we headed back, the sun was warmer And we wished we could share this trip with YOU!

Thank you for visiting JanBeek Come back soon for more adventures and inspiration.

See Ya Tomorrow!
See ya tomorrow!

Montana Photography

Montana Photography

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Those are the Tetons behind the moose.

Enjoy these awesome photos by Scott Wheeler.
He will have a booth at the Madison Valley Arts Festival
in Ennis, Montana on August 10.
His Facebook Page is:
Facebook.com/swheelerphotography
And his website is ScottWheelerGallery.com

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This is the Madison River, just a couple miles south of Ennis, Montana. I have the privilege of living in ths world-class fly-fishing area!

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South-east of us, the Madison River flows out of Hebgen Lake. The Madison’s origin is the Gibbon and the Firehole Rivers in Yellowstone. Yellowstone National Park is just an hour’s drive from us.

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You can see why our Madison Valley is considered part of “Big Sky Country” – the views are magnificent. The sky is uninterrupted.

Thank you, Scott Wheeler, for your fantastic photography.
If you want a copy of his work, my friends,
be sure to come to our Ennis Arts Festival this August 10th.
Look me up! I’ll be there.

IMG_7306.jpg

Learn more about the Art Festival at our website:

Ennis Arts Association

Bob & I don’t see the river from our house, but we look out at Jack Creek Canyon in that magnificent Madison Range. The western sunset reflecting red in the eastern mountains often is part of our night’s “light show.”

These next two photos are mine…
taken a couple weeks ago
when we still had some snow on the ground.

Here is the western view.
Our house is the one tucked in
all those evergreen trees out there…

sunsetwourhouse

… and here is the eastern reflection:

fan-mtn-at-sunset.jpg

Jack Creek Canyon to far left, Fan Mountain straight ahead with God’s spotlight on it!

Yes, we are blessed.

 

You have a blessed day, my friends.

Happy Friday!

pexels-photo-887349
See you tomorrow

 

 

Throwback Thursday

THROWBACK THURSDAY
HAIKU X4

 

It’s Catch and Release
On the Madison River:
It’s Throwback Thursday!

2003 Festival Poster

Each of us changes,
But the Madison River
Keeps on producing.

Fly fisherpersons come;
They come from the whole wide earth
To catch these wild trout.

Keep the river wild.
Don’t overfish or pollute –
And always throw back!

cropped-p8140200.jpg

What’s your favorite sport?

No Joke!

It’s not a Happy April Fool’s Day!
No joke … the joke’s on me!

drape stains

Look carefully and you will see the water stain
on the bottom of the drapes
and the water mark on the carpet.
Look and see the snow drift outside the door.
There is no drain out there,
so where does the water go when it melts?
You guessed it!

We have lived in this Madison Valley, Montana home for 13 years – and this has never happened before! The owners before us lived here for 5 years and they said it never happened to them, either. This has been quite a winter! You’ve heard me complaining, haven’t you? More snow than a friend who’s been here since 1972 has ever seen!!

What does this have to do with a blog whose sub-title is “Love One Another?”

I’ll tell you… it has everything to do with people like Joe Smithson!

Joe Smithson
This delightful man is a God-send!

He came and helped me determine the extent of the damage.
He helped me understand ALL the furniture
in that downstairs bedroom has to come out
so he can come back with his rug cleaning equipment
and suck the water out and dry the carpet
and try to dry the walls where it has seeped up!

So, with my dear hubby off skiing today,
I found two other saints who came to help
move the bed, the dresser, the nightstands,
the desk, the chairs, the whole “kittenkaboodle”
out of there and into the game room
and other downstairs bedroom.
What a job!

guestroom empty

It’s a California King – with two top mattresses, two box springs,
a lower frame, and a headboard! Heavy stuff!
No way I coulda done it alone.

And the triple dresser is solid wood – a heavy sucker!
God bless those two friends who came to do the moving!

triple dresser empty

And before those could be moved, another friend came
and helped me move all the “stuff”
that was on top of all that furniture.
You know, nothing is “clear” like this
under ordinary circumstances, right?

Then, to avoid the continued drain
of the melting snow into the bedroom,
another saint of a friend came
with his shovel first –
and then his snowplow.

Steve's snowblower

The snowplow did
what would have taken all day with a shovel…
and did it so much more thoroughly.

Ah, the blog subject
is “Love One Another”

– right?

There is no greater love than to
lay down your life,
pick up your shovel,
load up your snowplow,
and come to help a friend in need.
That is a friend, indeed!!

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God bless you, Steve!!

Imagine how surprised Bob
is going to be
when he gets home
from a day at Big Sky
enjoying the slopes –
a last day (or so)
with spring skiing –
and sees how much more
is cleaned up
than the beach towel
he set out there
this morning
could have done
to fix the problem!!

Go back up to that first picture. If you look carefully, you will see the green and white polka-dot towel on the other side of the glass door. (Like putting a finger in the dyke to stop it, right?) Kind of gives you a new definition of April Fool!

Ah, God love ’em… we gotta put our priorities in order, don’t we?

Who can pass up a day on the slopes?

Unless it’s a day on the river!

Spring IS coming, you know!!
(Not soon enough here)

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How has your April Fool’s Day been?

Madison Valley Woman’s Club

I am the inspirational leader for the women’s club in my town – the appointed “Chaplain.” The club is part of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC), known as the Madison Valley Woman’s Club (MVWC). This week we kicked off our new year with a meeting of more than 50 ladies (our town has a population of less than 1,000 – so fifty is a sizable number for our little community). For the inspiration this month, we featured M&M’s = Music and Movement.  I explained that the M&M’s on the tables were not just a sweet treat, but a reminder to add Music and Movement to their lives for a fuller, healthier existence. Then, clapping along to the accompaniment of my accordion, the ladies joined our “Sing-Along”  to the tune of “She’ll Be Comin’ Round the Mountains.”

ImageGet up, stomp your feet, clap your hands and sing along with me:

 

We’re the Madison Valley Woman’s Club, you know.
We are women in the flow and on the go.
We work hard at Nearly New –
Donating hours (quite a few),
As we give and sell and buy and work and grow.

We don’t have to work at Nearly New it’s true.
But some do it to be helping me and you
Earn the money for our giving,
Providing others a better living;
We give scholarships – and donations, too – Woo-hoo!

We have interests that are as varied as we are.
Some attend a church or garden or sit at a bar.
We are philanthropic souls, though;
We accomplish many fine goals, oh –
We cook, play bridge, fish, hike, sew, paint, golf near par!

We’re the Madison Valley Woman’s Club, you see.
We live here and love to be in this valley.
We tell others how we groove it,
Finding ways we can improve it.
Join us, friends, and you will smile contagiously!

Our Madison Valley Woman’s Club returned more than $50,000. back into the community in the 2012-13 fiscal year! Those were the profits realized from the sale of “Nearly New” items at our local thrift shop. It is owned and operated by the ladies of the GFWC-MVWC. Amazing, isn’t it? So much good comes from the donation of time and talent and “stuff” that people don’t need or don’t want anymore. If you’re anywhere near Ennis, Montana, come by and see us! You, too, won’t be able to help yourself – – – you’ll find a bargain for a few bucks – – – buy it, knowing it is for a good cause – – – and leave the shop smiling contagiously!

Tune in tomorrow for a list of to whom or what those funds were donated 🙂

 

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