And the Beat Goes On...

John arrived back home on Thursday evening. The week went by smoothly enough until then as I was pretty busy at work and some of it spilled over into the evenings. His week went by pretty smoothly as well as he had time to spend with daughter Karen and then plenty to keep him busy at the business for the remainder. But Friday night we had dinner at our "local" and eased back into a more normal routine for the weekend. Yesterday brought sunshine and temps in the high 60s. Not chilly enough yet to have that smell of Autumn.  We took advantage of the nice weather though to get some needed yard work done. Next weekend Jake will visit so what is going to get done needs to get done this weekend.

The garden is transitioning. Some things have finished and their remains are stoking the compost, while others are just getting a stronghold for fall menus. With a little warm weather, we might see a tomato yet this year, It's a goal. The landscapers have not come out yet to do the grading and the wall repair, but we did have some major digging going on Friday. John (alerted by Zoe's persistent barking) looked out to see a large backhoe working on the other side of the hedgerow next to the road near the mailbox. It seems that there was a covered drain/culvert up there and the county had decided to uncover it. (Seems like they could have let us know they'd be doing that.) Anyway, they dug quite a ways back to clear the area and it looks like it's a good time to plant some rhodies there while the soil is workable. From the house. it doesn't look any different, but from the road, you might think it was a driveway! I expect that we will get more water going down to the stream this winter.  That culvert drains into a ditch which goes under the driveway and down to the aptly named wetlands.We usually hear water there in the winter. Now I have visions of tiny kayaks traveling through :-)

I spent some time yesterday booking our travel to Italy next year. The Farmhouse is confirmed, the B&B in Venice booked, and flights to and fro, here and there, are done. We had a Skype with some of the other participants in this adventure yesterday to coordinate and confirm our plans.

Today we will do some usual "stuff-that-waits-till- the -weekend-to-get-done" but plan to visit the county Fair this afternoon. La de da di do.....

Balance...

Well, John is down in California until next Thursday and I am on my own on a weekend which hasn't happened in a very long time. John is being useful, spending time with daughter Karen, and then he will put in his usual week in Redwood City before finding his way back home. I have caught up with people-I-care-about by telephone, making plans to get them up here for a visit soon. Having time to just "do" is so often missed.

The landscape contractor came out and gave us the estimate for the grading work and the stone wall repair. We'll get that done this month. Looks like next year we will be having the wall completely torn down and rebuilt as it apparently leans the wrong way :-( That's not a particularly good thing when what's behind it is a big lot of dirt pushing on it. So, we'll get that in the budget for next year.

We had hot weather a week ago (80s equals hot up here) and have returned to cooler 60s this weekend. Today is sunny and mild. Maybe some rain tomorrow.

We have several upcoming events on our calendar. Very soon, son Jake will be visiting for the first time since our move. And following that we are off on vacation! Hawaii here we come! This time we will go to Kauai. Then we are very excited to have a visit from my sisters and at least one of the bro-in-laws. That will occur before Thanksgiving and it looks like the headcount is up from last year for that holiday here. All good fun. Into next year, we have confirmed/reserved the location for a trip to Italy with 3 other couples; we'll all be together in a farmhouse in Tuscany and if we never left the property, I know I'd still be happy.

But for today, I have quiet time and I'm off to do some watercolor. Deep breath, ahhh....

Doing the Living of Life

As anyone could tell you, living a life is not about the busyness, keeping a house, or going to work and home again. Sure, those are the mechanics, but the real living happens inside, or maybe outside, all that. So while I usually write about the mechanics of our life in this new place, it’s really much more than that. It’s about the tapestry of which we are a part regardless of the space we occupy.

We were reminded of that with the passing of someone close this week. The fibers in the tapestry, though pulled, are holding strong and the living that goes on there continues. And thank goodness for it.  Despite moving up the coast a bit, we are still doing the important living of life. In the last few weeks, I have watched and supported John as he supported his children while they did the noble work of caring for their mother through a truly heart-wrenching period of illness and, finally, loss. It was thrust upon them suddenly and went by too quickly. There was no time to adjust (if one could), no time to hold on to the mechanics. They could only respond and engage the moment and there was such goodness in each of them as they did just that. Doing the living is important and sometimes hard. Let's honor that.  Mechanics can wait for another day….

Summer? What summer?

While the rest of the country is sweltering, we are enjoying a light rain and some mighty fine temperatures. Last week it managed to get to the low 80s a couple of days. We have harvested the peas. Lots of them. I have frozen some, cooked some, and given some away. Definitely a winner. The kale and lettuce are producing ready-to-eat bounties as well. We will wait for the rest: beets, fennel, leeks, rutabagas, beans, squash, potatoes, tomatoes, broccoli, and brussel sprouts. I don't know if the cucumbers, peppers, or carrots will actually make anything of themselves this year. Next year we'll get an earlier start and hopefully see more yield. It was a learning year this time.

Yesterday we took the list of shed materials to the local lumber yard and had them price it out. John needs to clear the spot where it will go, and then the shed-raising can begin. Just in time too as fall approaches quickly and I want to park my car in the garage again when the serious rain hits. On the home maintenance front, we had a plumber come out yesterday and tackle a leaking shower. The "innards" were confined to a tight space and, had we done it, there might have been lots of swearing and even some tile cutting (the latter to be avoided at all costs). He arrived and fixed the leak in no time without swearing and without collateral damage. Next up will be a landscape contractor who will offer up ideas for improving the drainage on one side of the house. He will also take a look at the stone retaining wall that suffered a minor collapse during some gardening exercise. At any rate, when they come apart, it's not real clear how they go back together. At least not for these owners. We'll get professional help.

The birds in the garden have gone. We had quite a flock of goldfinches for many weeks and according to some timetable only they know, they packed up and moved on. All of them. All at once. The robins have gone in search of easier pickings as well. With the warmer weather, the yard/meadow/jungle clearing has become drier and worms are not as easy to find.  That the theory at least. And our nest of house martins flew off as soon as they got the young ones to fly. They were nesting under the chimney eve right by one of our bedroom windows and it was so nice to hear them. So now we see only an occasional chickadee on the
feeder. To everything a season...

I had a nice visit last weekend with my own fledglings. They are flying quite nicely on their own now. Katie's birthday was Saturday. I flew in just before noon, she and soon-to-be son-in-law Morey picked me up and off we went to have a birthday lunch at Santana Row in San Jose. Ate outside at one of the many interesting eateries (I had ceviche), walked, shopped, talked wedding plans, and then returned to the condo for a couple of hours before going to the Earthquakes/Sounders soccer game. What a wolf in sheep's clothing I was, sitting amidst all the E'quake fans, secretly texting/cheering for the Sounders with John who was watching on TV back at home. On Sunday, we drove up to Oakland to visit with Jake. He just moved into a new apartment near Lake Merritt and my mother's contract says I need to certify my fledglings' nests. It got rave reviews from all of us. Old building with character, safe, closer to work in SF, and with a view of the lake. In fact, he can just cross the street and he's at the lake. Inspection satisfied, we walked to a local cafe for a very good breakfast. My visit concluded with a visit to the Fremont Art and Wine Festival. Then it was back to the airport and home just in time for dinner with a very sweet man.

Yesterday I got my hair cut as short as I've had it in years. And I got a pedicure with some striking blue polish applied. Apparently a change was needed. I have finished the second of the Stieg Larson books. And John has completed the first one. I have not seen him become so engrossed in a book as long as I have known him. I think he was surprised by that as well. I'll move on to the third one this week and he'll take the second down to Cali with him. They are well written with complex story lines and characters. Very good reads. And we completed yet another course of "beginner" dance lessons Friday night. It was not an easy class as we moved on to some more advanced-beginner moves. We'll continue when they start up again in September. If nothing else, we have a wedding to dance at next year...