Warm Spring Rains are Okay, Old Memories and Old Photos

The Ridge

It was too early when I first woke up on Friday, May 15^th. The clock showed 6 in brilliant blue letters across the room. I’m not much of an early riser anymore. So, it was around 7 when we got up together. I’m still very surprised that I am not feeling any grief from my garden work the other day. Thank you, Donna for the yoga tips.

We were looking at a dull morning
even after the fog cleared at 8

I still have normal 'age' muscle aches but I remember last spring when I overdid it. Before settling down to watch television last night, I laid out on the bedroom floor and did the stretches again. This morning we had our coffee and tea together and Bill had some toast around 8:30. My cousin, Harvey, is starting to get into RC flying and has a plane he is trying to get aloft. He texted Bill the other day and asked for a bit of help so Bill left after 9:30 to go to Hanover.

Bill picked up a few things from the Hangar to take
to Harvey's and was on his way

I wanted to get my hands up into the over-the-sofa cupboards. That is where the physical ‘memories’, that we’ve kept, are stored. We do have some regrets that we got rid of ‘some’ things but I’m grateful we kept a plenty of pictures. Too late to worry about spilled milk, as the saying goes. I brought the box down and found a couple of pictures I was searching for.

The 'memory' cupboard
Clemson's special things, my dolls, wedding bouquet,
albums with pictures etc.

 My sister, Gayle, and I got into a healthy discussion yesterday about our former childhood schools, where we lived and for how long. I enjoy reliving those memories and where one of us may not remember everything, tidbits from a sibling’s memory bank can bring them all back in a rush. Gayle, Donna and my 2 oldest sisters have different recollections than I do. We range from 4 to 8 years apart which creates the variance.

Obviously, I'm going to start looking for a replacement box for other
things like loose pictures, letters, certificates and notes Bill and I wrote to each other
This box is old and is falling apart

Sadly, my brother, Bruce, who was a year and 4 months older than me, is not here to help us sort it all out. I do remember a couple of years before his passing when he told me that his memory was ‘terrible’ so perhaps he wouldn’t be much help. 😊 Also, we can’t ask Mom, who had an excellent memory for those things, for obvious reasons. It is up to us to figure it out.

This was the earliest picture that I could find from school
It was outside Elmwood, Ontario before we moved into town
My favourite classroom photo Gr. 1 - 8 in one room
Me, back row 3rd from left I was in Gr. 3
Donna, middle row 6th from left
Bruce, middle row 2nd from right

We moved a lot; I think I’ve mentioned that before. I went to a lot of schools, lived in a lot of different Ontario towns so remembering the exact months and years of our schooling and when we moved puts a crimp in my brain. I’m pleased to see that my sisters are struggling with it a bit too. Again, we remember differently because of what was important to us during those years. Figuring it out, is fun. The pictures and letters I’ve got my hands on are bringing smiles of joy. It’s wonderful to ignite our memories, isn’t it?

Not sure why this is in black and white ?
The only other school class photo
This is Gr. 5 & 6 in Biddulph P/S, Lucan, Ontario
Me, middle row, 5th from the left
The pictures helped clarified some things for me

While Bill was gone, I made myself a bowl of apple cinnamon oatmeal and a coffee around 11:00. He texted soon after that he was on his way home. When he saw me with the pictures all across my lap, he joined me in looking through them. Funny that when he sees pictures of me from childhood and teen years, he says that I don’t look like ‘me’. I’m sure it is the blonde hair that changes my appearance – oh, plus a few age spots and wrinkles!

Outside the window, the orioles drank

When I walked down the lane I noticed my tiger lilies look like they
got frost bitten
I'm pretty sure they'll come back (fingers crossed as I have a lot of them)

Bill wondered if I was hungry since it was 12:30 but since I wasn’t, he made a sandwich and we agreed for bacon and eggs for our meal tonight. I had some cheddar cheese, just to fill the little hole. Bill went upstairs for a snooze and to watch some tv. 

I think the hostas now know it is safe to rise
They are slow this year for obvious reasons

By 1:30, the rain seems to have stopped and the day appeared brighter. I decided to take a chance and walk down the lane. I was bummed to see that the mail I’d put in the mailbox at 10 was still there. What happened to the pickup?

I'm sure that she didn't even come down our road today

When I got back, Bill reminded me that it was the second time in the month that she didn’t take a piece of mail that we put out so it would arrive on time. So, I called the post office in Priceville to ask if we were getting pickup today. That was no help as she just made excuses for the mail lady and said ‘if you want to bring it in, we’ll make sure it goes out today’. Uh, no that doesn’t work for me. If we’d known, Bill could have dropped it off as he went through town earlier. Unfortunately, Monday is a holiday so it won’t go until Tuesday.

It was nice to see the sun break through for the afternoon

There had to be about 30 turtles out in the sun
Look at the clump furthest back, you can see two brown bellies

I love this picture of this little loner in the opposite pond

Back inside, we watched some tv and I tried to work on the crossword from the paper. That was useless, how do they expect us to know this stuff? The weather outside changed and once more rain graced us with its presence. It wasn’t heavy but it was heavier than it had been all day. By 5:00 we were starting to see peaks of blue sky and some brightness from the sun coming through. This is turning into a lovely evening.

In case you've never seen how much orioles love oranges
Here is what I removed from the tree

I thought this would be my last outside picture
but our evening changed

I went for a walk just before 6, before starting supper. There were no sightings of the geese families but instead I saw a lot of turtles out bathing in the sunshine. No, I haven’t forgotten these little guys! Back up on the Ridge, I filled 2 bird feeders and a container to take down to the Hangar for the one there. Inside, I got supper started. Bacon, eggs and a tortilla for my quesadilla. It tasted great!

We took care of dishes and we just couldn’t stay inside. Bill went down to the Hangar and I finished writing my post before I went out with my book for a while. The winds had died and I wanted to enjoy the 16C/60F before it cooled off. Our overnight low is only going down to 9C/49F so that will be a nice night for sleeping. 

One of my favourite pictures today

On the drive over, this beautiful sight greeted us

The sun was setting just as we arrived at the Acreage

 Around 8, just as I came inside, Bill came in and asked if I wanted to go and see if Donna and Gerry were having a fire tonight. Of course! So, we packed a cooler with drinks and drove over. I don't think they were going to but when we arrived, we agreed it was a great night for it. It was a fun night with a great fire and we didn't get home until after seeing the ISS (international space station) go over at 10:26-10:32 pm. 😀

This has been a good day. We see the benefits of the warm rains and the grass is greening up and growing day by day. Tomorrow is going to be the best day of the long weekend. Did you remember that it is a holiday? Sure doesn’t feel like it. I hope you’ve had a good one where you are.

Good night
Sorry for the late post! I was busy with life! :)

Thank you for stopping around. Your comments are always welcome.