The Blog: Spellbound by our own imperfect lives...

I didn't do much this week except hang at the lake. Ella went out every day with me...and whoever else was available. We had a wonderful time. The second picture is Ella's re-enactment of my tumble off the back end of the paddle board. Ha! Yesterday, I had coffee with Jill two times! We met at River Rock in the morning and she stopped by in the afternoon to see my garden. It was such a pleasant day we just sat and gabbed and gabbed. For two retired folks, we sure have a hard time getting together. Today I'm working at lunch and then going to the Treaty Site for a couple hours. Alex and Elliot are coming for dinner and Elliot will spend the night. I realized how little we see the kids once school starts and everyone gets busy so I want to schedule things to do with them in August even if it's just cook-outs and porch camping. Better get moving. I often wonder how I used to get out of the house by 7 am. Now I'm lucky to be dressed by noon some days.

We had our wonderful family Christmas in July party on Sunday. The setting was beautiful...a huge grassy lawn and a sandy beach in a sheltered bay. We had the use of a big pontoon but we didn't use it much because the beach and swimming was so much fun. They had two paddle boards and Ella and I watched Youtube videos to learn how to do it. We were convinced we could do it. But after watching several in our party take the plunge, we played it safe and sat while we paddled. We figured it was a lot harder than it looked. Yesterday we went out again to make another attempt. At least we wouldn't be on film if we muffed it. Ella got up first and I followed soon after. Ta da! We were able to paddle around, get up and sit down pretty well. I got sassy and tried to go around the raft once, made the turn too sharp and went off the back. I only lost my toe ring...not hat, glasses, or earrings. I had to swim like crazy to catch the board and then had to hoist myself up on it...

I meant to write more in July. Sigh. I don't know where the time goes. I was better in June when I wrote 8 times. But July...boo hiss. This is only my third post. I haven't had much gumption this summer. Since I had shingles, it seems to me. Judy, my oncology nurse, says maybe my immune system is a little wonky. I love those medical terms. By all measures that they currently have, all is well but she says there is much we don't know. So, be lazy, she says. Sit on the patio and read, she says. I can do that, I say. I did have a spurt of energy this morning. I tidied the house, did the dishes, took some stuff to the basement, and made a nice breakfast. We had a weird minor disaster yesterday. I came home from work to find half and half spilled all over the counter. It had been there long enough that things were stuck in it. I cleaned that all up and inquired of Regis when he came home if he knew how it happened. Nope, he said. This morning, I opened the cupboa...

Several years ago, I wrote a post about the things that irritated me at the time. Somehow, writing about them took away some of their power to make my skin crawl. Maybe it will work this time, too. 1. A busy schedule. Regis says this is part of life and I used to do it all the time. Now, if I have to do more than two things in a day, I am annoyed and feel my stress rise. Yesterday, I had nothing to do so I spent the day in a complete state of torpitude. (Torpitude (adj): sluggish; inactive; dull; apathetic) I read, I played Scrabble, I looked at Facebook, mostly in a prone position in a dark room with a white noise machine. Today, I have had to be 5 places and it isn't even one o'clock. 2. People who drive fast. If the speed limit is 65 mph, why am I constantly being passed as if I am standing still? Frankly, if they lowered the speed limit to 45 mph, I would be quite content. 3. People who want to pick fights with me over political opinions. I have started issuing a disc...

We had such a nice weekend. Saturday morning, I woke up early and went with Ella to drive a golf cart in the July 4th parade. Our parade in St. Peter draws a crowd of 10,000 people. It is the biggest parade around and I love it because everyone gets in the spirit with red, white, and blue costumes, hats, sunglasses...even the babies and dogs are costumed! It's followed by a big party in the park with grilled chicken and hot dogs and beer, live music, our friend, Michael Callahan, as the master of ceremonies, and much entertainment. I didn't partake of that this year, having been over-stimulated by the parade. Regis and I went to Betty and Tom's where we enjoyed an afternoon and evening of sipping cold beers and partaking of fine food and the telling of many stories. Much laughter ensued. Elliot joined us on the patio for the evening and we stayed up long enough to watch the fireworks. You have to see fireworks with small children. They are awed by the spectacle and i...

This is what the sun looked like this morning about 7:30. We've had some very hazy sunshine the past week and I hear it's because of the fires in Canada. Regis takes at least two walks a day but often doesn't take the camera because he is occupied with Gus. So, if I don't go along, I miss out on some great shots. Yesterday, the mist and fog bubbled over the valley. It's the thick white layer between the tops of the trees and the ridge in the distance. This is the sunset from last night. Photo taken with the phone but still beautiful. We had an interesting experience last night. Regis met an old fellow on the bus a few days ago. His name is David and he turned 89 today. Three weeks ago, he had a car accident (when he entered a round-about for the first time) and fractured his arm and totaled his car. He couldn't find a way to get his belongings out of the wrecked car at the body shop so Regis volunteered. When he found out it was David'...