Overdue...

...for a post, that is.

It's that time of year when Feast-fever really kicks in. And it's kickin' over here. July and August seemed to be relatively slow months. There was plenty of time for leisurely reading, preparing for a visit from relatives, movie nights, bike rides, bird-watching, piano playing, sewing, and anything else one might think to do with time on their hands--on top of all the regular house chores. But all of a sudden, someone mentions, "it's only 4 weeks till the Feast" and suddenly, I'm busy! And not just with a mental to-do-anytime-list, but all these things suddenly come up:

I need a new suitcase for traveling, the fan upstairs needs a replacement, the car needs a new part, there's a work conference to attend, the lawn is growing overnight, the laundry pile looks larger than normal, weeds are taking over in the rock beds, the neighbor will be out of town for a few nights and needs things taken care of, a spokesman's club ladies event is scheduled (considering travel, it's usually a weekend ordeal for us), a new Royal Vision arrives, the Trumpet goes to social media where I must participate, my shoes suddenly fall apart, the garbage is overflowing, and my sleep duration goes from 8 to 7 to 6 hours.

However, I can be pretty extreme about a lot of other things, so I do fairly well managing these extreme bursts of business.

This morning was an unexpected surprise. I must have made Sam's breakfast in my sleep, because there's not a whole lot about 4:30 a.m. that I remember. When I eventually made it to the kitchen, Sam was gone, coffee was gone, and breakfast dishes were at the sink. There wasn't a text from him saying anything taste out of the ordinary, so I guess four years of making the same breakfast pays off--I can do it in my sleep. Usually, I get up at 5 and go through my
waking up process: make the bed, make Sam's breakfast, make Sam's lunch-to-go with snacks, and run on the treadmill. After I see Sam out the door, I have some personal time and then breakfast. Usually, by 9 or 10 in the morning, I'm ready to hit the gym. However, this morning, I peeled my eyes open to see a blurry 7:30. I forced myself to my feet. I felt heavy like a bag of rocks. I managed to make it to the living room, where my face met the couch. I crashed. Suddenly, my eyes shot open--It was 8:00 already! I jumped up and immediately started a load of laundry. By the time the washer stopped, I was awake enough to realize I'd forgotten to actually put the clothes in the washer.

But those who are early risers, I'm sure you can relate here: getting up later than normal (if not 3 hours, even 30 minutes) seems to make the whole day feel off balance; feeling rushed for time at every corner. Breakfast was at 10:00 today. Lunch at 2:00. Blah. The odd times even made my meals taste different.

Even though things got done, the entire day was pretty much a slummin' dummin' day--my term for not very enthusiastic. And being only 4 weeks before the Feast, I don't need to have anymore of those unexpected surprises.

Anyway, here's just a very brief pictorial summation of things that have happened over the past two weeks:

We watched a lightning storm from our front porch one night.

 



The Crepe Myrtles bloomed.

The flowers at the end of the drive really took off! And the clematis--a Spring flower--suddenly bloomed again. Nice (but definitely strange) surprise.

  



Sam trimmed the bushes.

God provided a suitcase (looks brand new!) at Goodwill for us. Since we'll be flying to our destination this year, and getting sucked into the baggage fees last year, we decided not to take any more than one case each (plus a carry on if needed). Sam has had a huge suitcase for years now that is a perfect size for longer trips like this. I, on the other hand, don't. Granted, I usually dont' pack much. But Sam couldn't imagine being able to fit two weeks worth of items in just one little bag, so he issued a mission: find a large suitcase that matches his (in size). New luggage of a large size costs more than either of us wanted to spend (over $150!). Still, the standard size suitcase is 28" (maybe 30"). Since we weren't necessarily looking for "new," we searched craigslist, ebay, amazon--you name it!  Soon, I was hitting the thrift stores in town. I found this one at Goodwill--by itself, it was hard to tell what size it was. Only $10 though, so I bought it.

The new one makes ours look like a little carry-on! It's HUGE.

And finally, you know how some people take their golfing super seriously?

 

Not my Sammy! In fact, were it up to him, he'd probably never swing a golf club (....well....). Yet, because his company calls for it on occasion, he makes himself present. But on this one golfing occasion (his second time round), he surprised himself and did very well on the course, and actually had fun! He had taken a golf lesson a few months before, so he was excited to see that what he learned (and applied) paid off.



 

And now that I've realized it's only 3 weeks till the Feast instead of 4, I've suddenly gotten busier--is that possible? Depending on how busy things get, you may not hear from me till after the Feast.

 

Until then, as always, happy trails!