Graduation Day

I finally GRADUATED! Today is the first day of school and for the first time in well over fifty years I'm not going back for real...forever.

 

I look forward to my life being centered around the seasons rather than the academic calendar. To enjoy learning, growing and processing on my own time table rather than forcing it into a fourteen week semester. Celebrating freedom, that's what I'm doing today.

Social Skills

We're working on our social skills today...

Hey that's MY box

But I was here first!

Move along, nothing to see here.

Moving On

It is move-in day at Cornell today and suddenly it feels like we've gone from this

to this in a matter of minutes.

Our sweet corner of the world is now swollen with out of state license plates, poorly mannered drivers and all of them needing groceries at once. I would rather eat dirt than venture over to Wegmans today. It'll be "Back of the Cupboard Soup" for us tonight!

Yesterday was the faculty "retreat" for the School of Music and in only a few days classes begin over in the Ivory Tower. I drove past campus today for the first time in ages and sure enough, as if on cue, I began to feel more than a little queasy. I wonder how long it will take for those feelings to wear off. The drama, the tension and frustration. The "I don't want to be here but I have to" nonsense, the "Please go away and come back when you're prepared" speeches and the ever popular lesson disclaimer "I didn't have time to practice because it was pledge week, I had a paper to write, my cousin got married and I have this hideous pain in my shoulders that only seems to crop up in my lessons". Oh academia, how grateful I am that our parting was swift and mostly amicable. It wasn't you, it was me and now it's time to move on. I think I'll go paint something now...

Jesse & James

I've missed Peter and Franklin every second of every day since he left us. They were such a sweet and devoted companions. It's true what they say about orange kitties. They are the sweetest.

We made attempts at getting another kitten pretty early on, but there wasn't any spark or connection and in the end I decided I just wasn't ready. Then the call came in that there were several orange cats at the SPCA so off we went, not really knowing if we'd find the one.

At the SPCA we waited anxiously for the attendant to unlock the door. Inside we could see six orange boys - a pair of handsome teenagers with long hair and extra fluffy tails, an older gentleman with a loving face and then  these two rambunctious brothers who were so feisty they'd been named Duke and Bo after the main characters in the Dukes of Hazzard.

We were smitten immediately.

So home they came the next day, ten weeks old, hungry as all get out and full of curiosity.

 

We sequestered them in Ken's home office where they helped him with major coding projects and kept his computer cords from getting too tangled up.

They are very good "helpers"...

Jesse is a buff colored tabby with white feet and muzzle. He is already a seasoned snuggler. 

 Like Franklin, he likes to lick, 

and make meaningful eye contact.

Already he seems to know his name. 

Just like Peter, James is a deep orange, has a pronounced "M" on his forehead, a crusty snotty nose and trouble written all over his cute little face.

  He plays non-stop,

purrs like he needs a muffler and will snuggle only if you catch him waking up from a nap.  

 

 He's completely at home and has already asked for an increase in his allowance...

 It's love for real.

Night before last it was time for introductions. Lillie was not impressed from the get go, offering only a few good hisses and that great old evil eye look she uses on us when we're late with dinner.

Of course they wanted to suckle and wrestle first thing, but she'd have none of that.

We don't know how they'll make out with Pippa. She is frightened to death of the tiny interlopers, is cussing like a sailor at them and has vowed never to speak to us again. Time. That's what everyone says we need. Time and a little patience.

Welcome Jesse and James. Welcome back Peter and Franklin. We knew you'd be back.

Post-FLEA

It is post FLEA week here and yikes are we ever moving slowly. There are piles of stuff everywhere and on top of that, there are two 11 week old orange kittens sequestered upstairs, who are very anxious to meet their big sisters...but that's for tomorrow's post.

If you've not been to the FOUND FLEA you need to totally get yourself there. Now I know I'm a little biased, I'm one of the owners of FOUND, but really, the FLEA is just so great right now.

Sadly there's not much time for shopping when you're set up to sell, but I did manage to score this great old folky hand lettered sign. Suddenly I want pie...

We had our space stocked with "art",

lots of pretty summery country stuff,

and K set up a big table of cameras and photos.

Our trusty side-kick Lane, presented me with my very own personalized Coke.

  

It was a great day!

Ritual

I was inspired recently by a blog post titled "10 Rituals You Should Steal". I found it on Facebook (of course) from a share of the blog, Daily Good. 

Ritual and structure appeal to me. I am a Virgo after all. I like order and am disciplined in almost everything except my diet (which is why I'm overweight and was able to retire at 55). I follow the rules. This gets me in trouble more times than I care to admit and is the chief cause of every disappointment and unhappiness. 

I am overly earnest and I mean well. I am learning to let go.



Here are the rituals I plan to steal

Take a Quarterly Vacation
Let's be honest here, since I retired money is tight around here. It'll be better once we start drawing on our hard-earned savings, but in the meantime it's pretty lean. We can't afford a traditional vacay every quarter. Instead I'd like to unplug from computers and phones for a day and take a drive. Sounds like a nice compromise to me.

Hold a "Retrospective" After Projects
This Virgo likes a good old fashioned plan. She likes bullets points and check lists. It would be good to sit down in the aftermath of projects for a post-mortem. What went well, what could've been better. I really like this ritual.

Write Every Day
I'm trying for this. Sometimes I write here on this blog, sometimes in another journal I started when I first realized I was burnt out and wanted to quit my job. Writing soothes my soul. It unravels the kinks. The more I do it, the better I feel. 

Nap Every Day
This is a no brainer for me. Being sleep deprived is serious business. It affects my physical and emotional well-being. Napping is not a luxury.

Get Out of the Building...
   
   and into the garden
   out by the lake
   into the woods
   out on the patio
   
   Just get out.



Here's what I'm adding to the list

Start the Day with Gratitude
When K and I aren't in a mad rush to get up and out the door we start the day by saying three things we're grateful for. When we do it, it grounds the day. When we don't, it's not pretty.

Morning Stretch
Right now I can't walk or hike or dance because of some stupid bone spurs BUT I can still stretch. Getting out of bed and on to the mat is a morning ritual worth doing.

Read Every Day
I haven't finished a book in I don't know how long. Some how I just can't rationalize sitting in a chair and reading, especially on a lovely day. I need to get over this and get reading.

Say No to the Drama
Yes, I'd like to make a ritual out of this. 

Late Summer Blues

In the absence of hydrangea, another blue beauty steps up.

 

The oak leaf hydrangea knows fall is coming. It's almost time to plant peonies. 

 

Next year I will garden (wait, didn't I say that this time last year?)

 Thanks again for not holding it against me.

Pippa Approves

For the first time in ages I ventured out early to go to sales today. It was a lovely, peaceful morning and foggy after overnight temps in the 40s. There were a few fun treasures to be had. And thankfully,

Pippa has given them her stamp of approval!

Barrister bookcases, barbecue and bear!

It's Saturday! Time for another rural, onsite, farm auction.  

This weekend's sale had a lot going for it. Dusty, rusty piles of stuff everywhere. Rows and rows and rows of box lots. Piles of pigeon-poop covered barn stuff - ladders, carts, totes, tools. 

And most of it being hauled out of a small, humble old house that had at one time served as an apple cidery and the town school. 

Just when I thought there couldn't possibly be anymore furniture left to sell, someone yelled out "Wait, we just found three more barrister bookcases upstairs!".

The house and barn were filled to the rafters, and set on one of the most idyllic pieces of property I'd seen in a long time. Did I mention it was surrounded by a vineyard?

Add to this, the promise of a chicken barbecue put on by the local fire department and you've got something that closely resembles nirvana as far as I'm concerned. 

Chicken, sweet corn, watermelon, the most delicious sweet and sour cole slaw I've ever tasted and those soft wonderful rolls that they serve at church suppers. It was summer in a white styrofoam to-go box!

We filled the car and the trailer, loaded in the pouring rain without getting grumpy and had just enough room for everything. 

The drive home was punctuated with heavy downpours and little to no visibility. In the midst of chatting about our next buying trip and an enormous black bear lumbered across the highway right in front of us. As in, RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE CAR. Amazing. 

Now to unpack and process...but first a loooooooong nap. The AC's humming and Pippa is waiting for us.