Memorial Day weekend

Here in the U.S., we had a holiday weekend. For Rick and me, it was a lovely opportunity to spend extra time together and get things done that needed to be, especially in the garden. We finally got the back patio organized after the fast and furious sudden emptying of the garage in February to make way for the pool. What a relief to be able to look out the sliding glass doors and see order for a change! 

Tomorrow, Peter comes to install our EcoSmarte system that will allow us to keep the pool clean without using chlorine or other chemicals. I am really looking forward to that because even though the pool uses very little chlorine and only contains about the amount of it found in municipal tap water, that’s still too much for me! 

This Friday morning, I’m heading to North Carolina for a week of visiting. I was fortunate to get a non-stop flight, and though it cost more, it will be worth not having to deal with the plane change for all kinds of reasons. I will still avail myself of wheelchair service as my knees are just not ready for that much walking on concrete. What a blessing to be able to have that assistance. I do believe my swimming pool time has made a big difference in my knees, but I’m not going to push it more than necessary. 

I’ll be staying with my sister in Raleigh for the first few days, where I’ll be having dinner with a dear friend Saturday night, then moving to my dad’s in Thomasville for the rest of the time. I’ll use his place as my home base and will be visiting from there. I’ll spend time with my other sister and with a couple of girlfriends before heading back to Raleigh to rendezvous with another friend for lunch and then fly back here.  There is a lot to do between now and Friday, but I’ve decided to take it easy and allow it to be an Easy World adventure. I always feel resistance to leaving home, especially when the garden is going to be peaking while I’m gone, but I’m excited to be seeing my loved ones, and there will be a whole summer ahead when I get back June 8. 

Rick and I will be celebrating our 8^th anniversary on Thursday. We got married on Memorial Day of 1999. I nearly committed a treasonous act when I was planning my NC trip—I wasn’t thinking about the dates and our upcoming anniversary and almost booked the trip to span the anniversary date, but Rick reminded me in time. I’m already going to be ribbed about it for the rest of my life, but at least I didn’t actually buy the ticket! We’re going to celebrate upon my return. 

Here is another shot from the garden, taken Saturday. This one is the Luna Memorial Garden, created in memory of my dear dachshund sidekick, Luna (1988-2002), and fertilized with her ashes: