Monday Musings

My weekend started with more mow-raking on Saturday. Mow-raking means that instead of raking all those leaves I mow them. And it means that I don't have leaves to bag or piles of leaves to blow around when I'm done. It also means that I'm leaving precious nutrients in the soil instead of sending them off to a landfill that won't appreciate them. I wrote a little bit about it yesterday and a little bit about it approximately a year ago right here. Although I enjoy mow-raking, I'm pretty stoked that I should only have to do it one more time this year. The backyard trees are actually getting pretty bare.

But the real weekend started (and ended) yesterday. Now that I don't have a job to go to anymore, the days when Mr. Right are home are the weekends that I look forward to. It's not just that I don't have a lunch to make or that I don't have to get up in the morning to see him off. It's that I like having him home. I like the change in the routine. We're all relaxed and doing our own thing but as we weave in and out of each other's day, I enjoy the meeting points. The moments when we're each on our computer or when we sit down to watch a TV show together or especially those moments when we go out. We usually try to go out at least once when he's off and yesterday was no exception.

So although it was a one-day weekend, it was a good weekend. Mr. Right worked a double on Saturday and he's working a double again today so that one day had a big order to fill.

We started by sleeping in. I got up just in time to shred so that he could watch the Bears on the living room TV. As he watched, I puttered around, watched a little of the game, wrote a little post and essentially did whatever I felt like. Later on we went out for awhile and really enjoyed ourselves.

Is that what made it such a special day or was it the knowledge that our firstborn Army son was on his way home? He's been 'over there' for almost eight months but it seems so much longer since I wrote this post. Now finally he'll be home for a little R & R. Where our boys are concerned, nothing compares with the times when they're home with their families. Last night we got to talk to him without long lag times in our conversation and our daughter-in-law sent a set of pictures like these.

Who would not love happiness like this, in a daughter-in-laws face, when she's welcoming their son home. And nothing makes a happier weekend than knowing at least for a few days, your son is home and happy and relaxed and safe.

So the weekend is over but the good feeling remains. We have a lot going on this week with our family-plus-one team for the Sisterhood's newest challenge and a holiday coming up that we need to start getting ready for.

The good feeling overrides everything though because we're all happier and all tasks are easier in the glow of knowing that, at least for awhile, everybody is exactly where they should be.

It's All In The Follow Through

Yesterday I ran some errands. As I pulled into a parking lot, a car approached from the left so of course I stopped. To my surprise he stopped too so I gestured for him to go ahead. He smiled and nodded a thank you and then proceeded on his way.

This was no grandiose courtesy on my part because clearly he had the right-of-way but what made it special was his acknowledgment, his thank you. I felt so good after that little interchange. Somewhere inside I felt like if everyone could have an exchange like I'd just been involved in, the world would be a better place. Not because of my gesture - but because somebody appreciated my gesture.

Last week, we had house guests and that's always good but the special thing was that we had little house guests. Jack, who will be two years old in January; and Zac who turned two the end of June. I went back to the playroom with my camera and caught this shot that I LOVED!

Here was a little guy like Jack offering Zac his choice of crayons. That was awesome. But what made the moment really special for me, was Zac accepting the courtesy. I really felt like Zac's follow through made the shot.

Then Friday afternoon I mow-raked the entire yard - front, back, sides, and part of the vacant lot next door. What a job and I felt great about it. When Mr. Right got home, he grabbed the trimmer and trimmed around all the objects in the front yard and later on he commented on how nice everything looked. But he didn't stop there. During the evening, after he'd been outside, he commented that the lawn reminded him of how it looks in the summer when it's freshly mowed. For me, that was the follow through - the slam dunk. The first compliment was almost obligatory. The second left the warm, fuzzy feeling inside that we all love.

Those three follow throughs warmed me through and through; and when I think of them, I still get a gooey feeling inside because my heart melts a little with the warmth and loveliness of it all.

Maybe it's the follow through that we need to concentrate on to help make the world a warmer place.

Is Our Backyard Stubborn?

I like to mow-rake. Its much more fun than raking and I think it's good for the lawn because the nutrients stay right here rather than getting shipped off to a landfill. And mow-raking works well as long as you don't get too far behind because of unseasonably cold, wet weather like happened to us a couple of weeks ago in the front yard.

We didn't have that problem in our tree-filled back yard because for some reason the trees in the back yard can't let go of their leaves in a timely manner.

About a week ago we mow-raked the back yard and it wasn't that bad because so many leaves remained in the trees. Then our mower went on the fritz and we had to impose on my brother to fix it for us. Yesterday we got it back and I mow-raked almost the entire back yard. There was just a 15 foot strip across the back that I couldn't get to before dark and exhaustion set in.

So this morning I went out to finish and it was raining - not water - but leaves. I had to keep going because if they get too deep, mow-raking can't be done and I didn't want to real rake.

Then I looked around. Look at our neighbors' trees.

The only tree he has left with leaves on it...is the one hanging over our back yard.

Now look at ours.
And watch while I mow-rake what I just mow-raked last night.

And look where I just mow-raked a few minutes ago.


Now what does this have to do with 'Musing of the Sixties'?

I'll tell you. This morning I got to take my grandchildren to school while their mom went to the doctor for a very important appointment.

Then I came home and played on my computer for awhile.

Then I mow-raked and, while I was at it, fooled around taking pictures and writing a post for my blog.

I could do all this because I'm in my sixties and most importantly, retired. I really don't care when our leaves fall. I just thought it was interesting and I wanted to talk about it.

So I did. Because I can. Whenever I want. This is the life.