I can hear a dove cooing outside the window. Apparently, the family has decided to settle here for the year. They've been here for almost three weeks. Every day we see them swooping in from Meserve's trees or from the power lines.
Doves seem to like power lines. And, I believe they settle into their own individual domains while not holding their gatherings at the bird-seed trough.
They're beautiful birds, and I love their morning/mourning songs.
We were supposed to have rain or snow over night. Didn't happen. I'm not complaining.
That does mean I've had to use the hose to wet down the patches of lawn where I spread Weed and Feed yesterday. I kinda figured that if I applied it, the weather would change.
Sorta like getting the snowblower all ready for the blizzard that doesn't come. Sometimes just the presence of a snowblower can fend off the meanest blizzard around.
Following that logic, I think I'll go to town today and buy some more weed and feed and distribute it on a patch of lawn at a time. That way maybe we'll have several days of dry weather, and I won't mind getting the hose out to wet down the fertilizer.
Yesterday I took time out from yard work to have lunch downtown with a couple. We don't even know each other that well. Still, they invited me to lunch.
I knew of them when they attended the high school in the late '70s and see them about every five years or so. It's usually a quick hello, and then we go on about our business for another extended period.
I saw Kelly most recently at the grocery store a few weeks ago. In that meeting, we commented on how it had certainly been a while. We did a little catching up, and I told him about the upcoming trip to Ireland.
We also agreed to be Facebook friends. After that, Kelly sent me a note, asking if I'd pick up a small rock and some coins while on my trip. His ancestors came from Ireland.
I took on the request with pleasure, picking out several rocks and shells on an Atlantic Coast beach on the Dingle Peninsula and a beach on the Irish Sea at Glen Arm in Northern Ireland. I also gathered a few more little items to hand over to them.
When I came back and heard from them, I asked where they lived so I could drop off the goodies. They wrote back and said they'd like to take me to lunch.
So, we met at the Hydra yesterday and talked over some Guinness and wonderful lunch dishes. The Hydra puts out a GOOD burger.
It was a pleasure visiting with Marcia and Kelly and fascinating as Kelly told of his Irish roots, his native American roots and some family stories of when his ancestors came west to Oregon along the Oregon Trail.
Kelly has a lot of ranching stories in his background, including a tale of how one ancestor's horses all got overnight chops on their manes. That was in the era of horsehair couches, so it's possible all that hair eventually went into someone's living room.
I loaned them Annie's DVD of her 2009 trip to Ireland, all set to music. They couldn't wait to get home and slip it into their player.
Moments and events associated with passing acquaintances like Kelly and Marcia often turn into wonderful gems to tuck away in our memories.
And, in this case, picking up a few rocks on beaches thousands of miles away has endeared them to me for a lifetime. After yesterday's wonderful lunch get-together, I hope to see them a little more often than every five years or so.
And, I do hope that some day they can make it to Ireland and enjoy the experience as much as I did.
The rest of the day, except for a few moments watching the young Irishman take off with a more substantial lead in the Master's Golf Tournament, was spent outside. Lots of raking. More painting. Did I mention fertilizer spreading? Running with dogs in the hayfield AND taking my daily drive to pick up a contrite but not so repentant Border Collie from Wes and Alicia's.
Good day for getting things done. We topped it off watching the Mariners lose and hoping to spot a camera shot of Willie, Debbie and Annie who double-headered it with Sounders in the afternoon and Mariners at night.
Debbie and Annie did not come away from Safeco Field empty-handed. They each got their Felix bobbleheads.
Now, it's off to see if the paper came this morning and spend as much time as possible outside before the rain returns.
No comments:
Post a Comment