Slight Detour: All in a September Day

Just like this basket, yesterday yielded a bounty of lovely memories.

The weather, the people, the happenings---all were positive and refreshing.

What's to complain about when you visit a thriving Farmers' Market where the hometown items available for sale draw droves of customers out for a Saturday morning of shopping and visiting.

It's difficult for a Farmers Market to be an in-and-out event.

One must plan for the moments where picking up a couple of items---a transaction requiring maybe three minutes---turns into more than an hour of navigating crowds, stopping to visit with vendors and, in my case, running into a high school classmate whom I hadn't seen in seven years.

Twas a visiting bonanza, indeed, as Dennis and Kandy and I attempted to rush through the highlights of our respective lives over the past seven years, only to put some discussions on the table until we could get together for an agenda, exclusively devoted to visiting.

Still, we managed some good laughs and some lively exchanges of personal memories.

Overall, Farmers Market turned out to be a fun opening to a busy day.

While I was visiting the Farmers' Market, Bill was doing a Costco run. After arriving home, he waited for Willie to come and meet him for a planned fishing/kayaking trip on the Pend Oreille River.

Well, it seems Willie and the gang at Colburn had a problem which might cause him to be late.

Miss Pepper, the ever-busy black-and-white cat, had gone up a cedar tree about 20 feet from the ground and couldn't figure out how to come down.

So, after coaxing didn't work, a basket elevated to her location eventually helped rescue her from her precarious perch.

Rescue mission complete, Willie was free to go fishing.

While the guys were gone, I puttered at some projects, including picking pumpkins from the manure pile patch where pesky little varments have been leaving tracks on the rind with their teeth.

Basically, I just enjoyed the afternoon, knowing my sisters were fixing hamburgers at their house at 6 and that my slow cooker filled with country-style ribs would be ready to eat by that time.

A little after 4, a car pulled into the driveway. I knew these people may be coming sometime this weekend because they were up from Southern Idaho for a class reunion.

Dogs were loose and surrounding the car as Kenny Watts stepped out.

"I know I haven't seen you in at least 50 years, but let me round up the dogs," I said.

The onslaught of three friendly and exuberant pups seemed to be okay with Kenny and his wife Patsy, whom I was meeting for the first time.

Eventually, canine greetings died down, and we settled into another conversation of the day where decades of happenings needed to be addressed.

We hardly covered it all, but we did okay, and when they left, the agreement that we'd see them again the next time they come to Sandpoint sufficed for what we may have missed in our respective updates.

So, next, it was on to Colburn with those ribs bubbling amidst a blend of sauces I'd thrown into the pot over the afternoon.

When I arrived, so did a text on my phone with a photo from the anglers: Bill had caught a big beautiful bass. So, we knew they had enjoyed a bountiful afternoon on the river.

Twas a truly good day from start to finish as we ended it with good eats and more fun conversation.

And, today it's hard not to be excited with more nice weather, a Seahawks game in early afternoon and then an evening of brand new television programming.

This week I'll be using my remote to record all those enticing looking programs that air after my bedtime.

September transitions are happening, and so far, it has led to fun times and great memories.

Happy Sunday.