The Long Day

It's amazing how long a day can be if you start early and then do very little. I was in gear quite early this morning, thinking I was going to David's for coffee, but it turned out that he came over here because of a glitch in the way I sent the minutes of the gallery meeting to him. In order to open them on his computer, they had to be in a different format. I am ignorant of such things, so he had to come here to accomplish the task. Afterwards we did have our coffee and muffins, ordered a hose for my dishwasher, and I started a wash at his house. Looking forward to a day of accomplishment around the house, I replaced the holder for my flag, which the wind had ripped from the front of the house, taking the flag with it. I was guilty of leaving the stars and stripes in a heap on the front lawn for two days, so I was anxious to get it in place again. In a town like Eastport, one needs to be wary of veterans groups and Bush clones lurking under the surface of polite society, ready to take the law into their own hands concerning such traitorous acts.

While I was outside, it being the most perfect of Fall days, I decided to plant the iris Sydney had left for me. Once I started to dig, it was hard to stop tidying the front yard. I hand-pulled the grass and weeds around what appears to be a tree stump in my garden spot. I discovered a wooden border to the patch of Day lilies along the front of the house, and a purposeful pile of rocks near the front door. I cleaned out the bucket next to the door so that it will be ready in the spring for some plantings. I found a rake under the over-grown rhododendron bush and cleaned up the mess I had made. Surveying my work, I realized I had made no discernible difference in the appearance of things, but I had begun to see the potential for a nice garden there. I was hot and dirty and sweaty. I came inside thinking it must be mid-afternoon or later, and saw it was barely one-thirty.

The next hour I spent making a vegetarian pie for David's and my supper. When it was in the oven, I still had hours of the afternoon left. I chose to spend the time reading my email and investigating things on the computer that I usually don't take the time to do. This all resulted in no new information or revelations, but the next thing I knew it was time to feed the dogs. That was four o'clock, and now it is five-thirty--time to get myself and my dinner over to David's.

I feel as if I have had a week's vacation.