by Faye Ashton Today, November first, has come and gone for another year, and we dropped back to standard time, giving us more morning light. Time seems to fly. We can’t complain about the perfect weather for the farmers to get the corn crop off and just for you and me to finish the outdoor cleanup." The Epsom Girls enjoyed time together this past Friday at the Mandarin, catching up on the joys of our family life and, I guess, those aches and pains that come with age. I’m rem

by Faye Ashton October is here, and to prove that, two evenings are expected to be close to 1 degree. That means we might have to say goodbye to our tender plants. However, we have enjoyed one of the best growing seasons, as the crops tell the story. The upward price of diesel will definitely take care of any extra profit, though. I’m not aware of any community news this week, but I do want to wish everyone a bountiful Thanksgiving with enough to share with those around us th

by Faye Ashton Beautiful weather ushered in Autumn this past Monday and brought a heavenly week of sunshine and autumn warmth. So perfect for working in the garden or just relaxing in the sun. The near-zero temperatures on several mornings were cause for concern for the tender plants. For once, those attending the International Plowing match held in the Walkerton area didn’t have to trudge through a sea of mud. The brilliance of the September full moon (corn moon) early Satur

by Faye Ashton Here comes Autumn with all its glorious colours, changing weather temperatures and the harvesting of all those fields of corn and soybeans we’ve kept an eye on all summer. The cooler mornings spur us on to keep walking and enjoy this time of year more. The Bethesda Reach Women's Institute are once again planning a delectable dessert and fashion show on Thursday, September 24th at 7 p.m., at the Senior Centre on Marietta Street, in Uxbridge. Fashions are provide

by Faye Ashton Have you been listening to the cicadas sing these last few weeks? They certainly fill the night air with such a warm feeling. I was so concerned in the Spring because I didn’t see the honey bees working on the snowdrops and other spring blossoms, and the pear tree was just loaded in bloom. Well, something worked 9-5 because the pear tree was loaded in fruit, but of course a lot of the pears are quite small, which took a lot of picking up when they fell, amid th

by Faye Ashton The rain this weekend was welcome for the dry earth and the rain barrels that needed filling back up. Hope you have enjoyed the cooler mornings for a walk. Congratulations to all members of the Durham West 4-H Go for the gold! Earlier this week, five members from Durham West travelled to Peterborough County for an evening of challenging questions and fun. After a hard-fought game against the Kawartha Lakes Halliburton team, Durham West came out on top and will

by Faye Ashton We know many farmers are out surveying their crops after the late afternoon storm on Saturday, including heavy hail for the Utica and Manchester area. This is one of several times a devastating storm has hit this area at this time of year. Please know the community has you in their prayers. We’ve watched the crops grow and grow with all the rains we’ve been blessed with, but in a flash all can change. Which makes us realize we don’t control much. Friday night w

by Faye Ashton The month of August has crept up on us as we were looking backward. We have experienced some very warm July days, but with the beauty of the rain which fell, our lawns and garden have survived very well. Don’t talk to me about the Japanese beetles, which are here by the thousands, and I pick twice a day. I sure hope you’re not plagued with them. I am wishing Birthday, Anniversary and any celebration you’re having this month the best of times shared with the one

BRANDON CLARK The Standard SCUGOG: Due to current weather conditions and an increased risk of fire, the Township of Scugog has implemented a municipal-wide burn ban, effective immediately. The burn ban will remain in effect until conditions improve. Residents will be notified when the ban is lifted. There is zero tolerance for open-air burning, during a burn ban. Under Part 4 – Enforcement and Penalties of the Township's Open-Air Burning By-law 32-18, anyone found burning, d

by Faye Ashton Summer has lived up to its name, hot and even hotter this week, as predicted. We will take it in stride because before long, the cold and snow will change our complaints. Our family had a lovely visit with our brother Jerry’s daughter, Jill Asling and Danny Monk from Lethbridge on Thursday. Although they have many relatives in this area, Danny has a good job to go back to there. Our community is excited to wish a very special Mother, Grandmother, Great Grandmot

by Faye Ashton June left us very hot! Our July first celebrations were disrupted in the late afternoon by very strong winds and a downpour. Our hydro stayed on, but many surrounding areas were left without hydro for some time until trees and large branches were removed. Well, this heat really did make things grow, and the weeds in my garden took advantage of the ideal weather too. Again, Gremlins got the dates wrong in last week's news. It should have been Tuesday the 30th an

by Faye Ashton The June full moon (flower) on Tuesday the 29th will light up the evening sky, adding greater brightness to our Canada Day fireworks celebration on July 1st. This week is predicted to be quite warm, giving the corn an extra jump to be all knee-high by the first of July. As I think of Epsom Church celebrating 155 years, we know the public school also has 1876 as its birth year. So many young lives have been challenged to go out into the world, become excellent w

by Faye Ashton It’s Sunday, June 21st, the longest day of the year. It was beautiful, minus the strong winds we have experienced lately, sunshine and no prediction of rain even. The farmers went full tilt with three clear days without rain. Hope it holds a bit longer. There are many graduation ceremonies as students of all ages move on to the next class or higher education. Nothing can top little 4-year-olds moving from pre-school to junior kindergarten, so small, so excited

by Faye Ashton I hope your gardens received some much-needed rain, which fell first on Thursday and again on Sunday. This farm was working into the night on Saturday to get the cut hay baled and wrapped, and the haylage into the silo before the predicted rain on Sunday. So is the life of all farm families because the weather plays such an important role in our livelihood. As we look back 50 years on June 13th, we think of the tremendous help we received when lightning hit our

by Faye Ashton What a beautiful first week of June with a bit of rain on Friday evening to help the plants from gaging. It was hard to believe our lawn started to look dry even after all the Spring rains. I must apologize, the next blue moon is not December 2026 but December 31st, 2028. A very beautiful and delicious bridal luncheon in honour of Brooklyn Kerry’s September marriage was held at Aunt Donna Kerry Ireland’s home, on Washburn Island, with Brooklyn’s sister Hayden h

by Faye Ashton I hope you didn’t miss the second full moon this month, called the “blue moon” Saturday/Sunday night. We will not experience this phenomenal event again until December 2026. So many songs were created because of a blue moon. Remember the decoration service at the Breadalbane Presbyterian Church, in Utica, on Sunday, June 7th, at 2:30 p.m., with Rev. Rob Kennedy, minister and Beth Willis as pianist. The decoration service for the Kendall and Hillman Cemeteries a

by Faye Ashton Last week it was the extreme heat. This weekend, we tried to survive the gale-force winds and rain, which brought down many new leaves, branches, and even whole trees, before it slowly crept away, leaving a soggy Sunday with highs of only 14-15 degrees. The Bethesda-Reach Women’s Institute are inviting you to an evening with author Barbara Dickson with her book entitled Bomb Girls: Trading Aprons for Ammo, which explores women’s roles in World War 2. It takes p

By Faye Ashton My wish is that all Mothers had an extra special Mother's Day this past weekend. Time brings our families to all places around the world, and what a treasure to talk to children, grandchildren and nieces who don’t just live next door but bring them to us by email, messenger and phone. So special. Our thoughts are with a former neighbour, Marie Wilson, who fell recently and broke her hip and is now in Uxbridge Cottage Hospital for rehab and to Dorothy Munro, who

by Faye Ashton I hope you didn’t miss the full moon (flower) these last few evenings, but if you did, May 31st, a blue moon will be back to shine even brighter. With this full moon, we had to endure minus temperatures and even snowflakes so large on Saturday morning it took us back a few months. There's always a blessing with these cooler temperatures as we watch the spring flowers last so much longer. The daffodils with their bright yellow colours are an array of lasting bea

by Faye Ashton April fools day has come and gone before I realized it was the April full moon (pink) on that very day. Most days have been cloudy, windy, and wet, except for the most beautiful and warm Good Friday. As most friends who attended the Good Friday Breakfast know, it was warmer on the steps than in the church. Thank you to everyone who didn’t complain about the situation we found ourselves in and came to support the Canadian Foodgrains Bank Breakfast and fellowship