An Island of Pink & Green

It is after one p.m. and I find myself here, in a corner of the front porch, behind the moon flower vines and crepe myrtle. It is beautiful weather, just 79 at the moment. My porch faces west so soon I'll have to go in because the sun will shine directly into my corner and warm things up a great deal.

My porch is very inviting in the early mornings. With the cooler temps, it is a nice, quiet place to sit and drink coffee. Most mornings this is where I spend at least an hour. Lately, I've been able to sit out longer but the evenings I'm driven in by hordes of mosquitoes. I've looked for standing water but there isn't any as far as I can find. My neighbors may have some on their property. The house next door is vacant and could have some there. Either way, the pests are really bad after dark. But that's a few hours away.

I saw a humming bird flying around not three feet from me, checking out the princess feather flowers and it appeared to be checking out the vines. The moon flower has still not bloomed and I'm getting concerned. If it gets much cooler, they may die before they bloom.

In the distance I hear two dogs barking. One is a small, annoying yap to the northwest. The other is a deep bark to the northeast. I suspect the annoying yap is causing the other one. Perhaps big bark got tired because he stopped. Eventually, so did little yap. Overhead a small plane heads for the local airport.

It feels like one of those days you remember from your past, where life seemed to drift at a slower pace that the world around you. I can hear traffic in the distance, someone using a circular saw a few houses away, a loud car once in awhile up the street. But for the most part, my world has shrunk to an island of green and blue with pink flowers where all of that seems far away.

I need a screened porch. I've been sitting here for a while thinking it through, trying to figure out how to do it. I think I could. The only thing that would present a problem would be a doorway. It isn't framed for that and I'm not confident enough to try it.

For most of the week I've had to keep checking to see what day it is. Suddenly, time isn't driven by appointments, events, and workload. It appears to move all by itself, without telling me. Friday has arrived and it feels like any other day. I got up this morning, a bit later than usual because I sat up later than usual. I went for my walk, changed clothes, made my 3rd trip to the bank and came home to eat toast and drink herbal iced tea.

It is very odd, really. Around 10 p.m. I get this feeling I should go to bed because I have to get up in the morning. The thought that follows is no I don't. I can get up when I want. The next thing that happens is I feel this sense that I'm doing something wrong. I should be getting up, getting dressed, and doing something constructive. Of course, I go to bed and sleep and get up again.

Truthfully, I've been on the run a bit this week trying to get my finances in order. I had an IRA that was virtually worthless so I rolled it over rather than letting them take $400 of it. I  had to take some of the insurance money that is left and put it where it might actually do some good eventually. I had to get medical insurance set up. I spent a lot of time filling out forms, calling people, and running to the bank three times. I've had to shop for another doctor and I have a couple of names. Now to call and see if they will take me. I also have to update my checkbook and see if I can buy groceries. I still have no idea the exact amount of my pension. So, even though it feels as if I just sat around watching mysteries, reading posts, websites, and novels I did do constructive things.

And now, the day has warmed to 81 and that's just a bit too uncomfortable for me at the moment. I don't know if it is better in the house. I've been shutting off the air most of this week. The temps in the evening, night, and early mornings are very mild and I've put it to good use. I'm going to put up a clothesline, I hope, this weekend. Every penny has to count now and there's no sense heating up my house when it is hot enough outside. I'll save the dryer for the winter.

I leave you with a nice bouquet.