Mowing

No more putting it off, today I mow my share of the grass.  We have a division of labor in this household and my section of grass is the area in the front of the house that borders the gully.  It's not really that bad, but there is a slight incline which makes for a good cardio workout before I finish.

My husband's part is worse and includes a very steep slope that gets slippery when it has rained, and another slope on the far side of the house which also gets slippery.  So all in all, I'll be happy to do my part and be done with it.

My friend down the street, and this is what is neat about small towns, has a pocket farm.  They have about a half acre of land and absolutely make the most of it, with two garden areas, lovely flowers and bushes, roses, bird feeders and trees.  She gave me some delicious black raspberries the other day and I have no idea where they found the space for them.  It's an amazing little garden.

She also has moon flowers.  Have you ever seen them?  They bloom at night and are bright and almost pure white.  In the early morning, they are still open and make a beautiful contrast with the green grass and the shrubbery nearby.  Her husband dug up a root for me and we planted it, but you know the winter we had?  Well, I'd guess that the root froze, just like a lot of other plants that we lost.

My friend and I go walking on Wednesday morning.  We have a regular route that we take, one that is designed to avoid any homes with scary dogs that might not be secured.  We are both afraid of dogs, I'm sorry to say.  She had one drag her off of a bike when she was little, and I had one jump on me when I was little and another that bit me.  Being fairly quick learners, we have spent the rest of our lives staying clear of dogs.  While she grew up on a farm and they had dogs, I've never owned a dog.

There is a pure white cat on our route that matches the moon flowers.  The first time we saw the cat, it was friendly and let me pet it.  The second time it was very skiddish and took off.   The worst part of the walk is when we have to navigate down Akron Avenue (Route 236) while cars and trucks whiz by.   And then the next worst part is the hill that takes us to my friend's house.  It's another cardio workout.

This has been a good summer for walking and it's been a great summer for my porch.  It hadn't been used all that much and I felt guilty and wasteful every time I looked at it.  But this summer, I've spent a lot of time out there doing watercolors and also my granddaughter has been playing out there.  Now I'm so glad that we have it.  It is like a little sanctuary where the outside has come inside but there aren't any annoying bugs.

Well, hope that you are getting outside too, and taking in the beautiful weather. 

Today I pray that all of you are well and joyful!!  Take care.