We had an unprecedented 12+ days of warm, dry, sunny, blue sky/blue water days and we all knew that it was a helluva rarity. That just doesn’t happen in April! Oh, but as what I suspect heroin is like, we succumbed to addiction. When you wake up to day after day of awesome beauty, how can you not? It’s done now. I can’t believe how much my heart has sunk looking out at the gray and the wet. Dealing with a fair bit of withdrawal.
It’s dogwood season, and OMG I love dogwood. To me, it’s art, the white-ish blossoms against the green foliage. The blossoms are stout, generally plentiful. I know that some people feel that white flowers are boring, and I get that. But there is something special about dogwood. At least, it sure does physically affect me! When I see them, growing and blooming wild along every twist and turn along the Harstine Island roads, and along the highway between Shelton and Belfair, I know that it is the BEST of times.
We have one in the wooded area behind our house, but it has struggled since we’ve owned our property (since 2003). It’s surrounded by tall fir trees and we suspect it just doesn’t get enough sunlight. But this year, for the first time, it seems to be relatively happy!
It’s wild. It wasn’t “planted” here. I peer at it every morning through the pantry window while I’m pouring my coffee. When Helen and I returned from our plant shopping and were heading down the driveway, I noticed how dramatic it was! I’d never noticed it from that view before! It sure did make me smile.
My previous post landed on the awfulness of what John’s mom is going through, but things have changed very much for the better since then. (I don’t know; maybe they’re giving her happy pills or something? Because her attitude has done a giant 180°). Her bed is wonderful, she’s sleeping the best she ever has, the food is great, she’s diggin’ her physical therapy, she’s able to walk around, and she’s doing just fine, thank-you-very-much. We can’t visit her to ensure that’s the case, but the phone calls have certainly been positive. Alrighty, then. The goal now is for her to be capable enough to handle assisted living. I believe on Monday John will be on a quest to check local places and how they define “assisted living.”
I’m trying to get into my book club book (“Hamnet”) and I finally am, and am (finally) enjoying it. We’re still trying to figure out a time for the three of us to meet to discuss it (the other two women are very busy with travels!) But I’m fine to wait because they both read the book eons ago and I’m just now about half-way through. I had other books I WANTED to read (and so, did) and I kept putting this one off. I’ll likely be the only one with it fresh in my head when we finally do meet. I think we’ll meet for the last time via Facetime, and then we’ll continue as we did before the pandemic (taking turns at each other’s houses). We’re all fully vaccinated now, and this is how things will start to be! Have already! Getting together with Helen (and the kids when we do) just doesn’t require any thought anymore! Why can’t the covidiots understand that? Isn’t that what everybody’s goal is?
In some ways, I think I will miss some of the Zoom/FaceTime get-togethers. I mean, it doesn’t require cleaning house and preparing food! (I know. I shouldn’t consider those things as “downsides.” But, they really are a lot of work! Work with benefits, but still work.) Then again, I do need reason/motivation to clean and do civil things. I could too easily be a hermit.
Happy about the outcome of the George Floyd murder trial. (Finally, some justice). Happy about how Pres. Joe is handling everything so far. His 100th day will be this coming week, and his approval ratings are sky-high. Aside from the right wing extremists, of course. My god, are they insane or what.
