Wow....tomorrow we are forecast for a daytime high of +29C, after a couple of pleasantly cooler days, but then that is it for summer temperatures...the end, kaput, finis, done, over, movin' on to autumn! UNBELIEVABLE! Sigh.....We had a late spring; a chilly spring that brought late blooms to plants and trees and gardens. Summer was ushered in equally late this year and it must be the shortest summer on record around here. We barely had a full 8 weeks of it and now it is ending already. HOW DEPRESSING!
The trees that annually are the first to turn their leaves gold and crispy brown have managed to pull that feat off in record time this year. Most of them are dropping their leaves already. The trees that are still fully leafed though are showing signs of that flat, dull green that heralds the onset of summer's end and the beginning of the next pre-winter season. By next week the daytime highs will be consistently 12 to 15 degrees cooler every day than what we have experienced over the past thrree weeks. Overnight lows are dropping as low as +4C. HOW DEPRESSING!
The Farmers Almanac is predicting a pretty lousy winter here: consistently cold temperatures and more ice and snow than we have had to put up with in several years. HOW DEPRESSING!!
The atmosphere outside has taken on that lacklustre fall aura. The brightness of the sun no longer pierces it, no longer dispels that ever so slightly visible amber tinge to the air. The autumn is upon us and well before Labour Day this year. HOW DEPRESSING!!
Oh please Lord, may we have a beautiful and LONG Indian summer through September and October...pretty please??
ON A HAPPY NOTE!
My mom called last night kind of distressed that she is running out of disposable masks. Her residence still requires her to wear them when she leaves the building for appointments and demands they be handed over when she returns so they can be thrown away immediately, but they have stopped providing them to the residents. They are not keen on the cloth masks because they cannot control how well the residents wash them between uses and I do understand that, but it leaves Mom with a plethora of unusable cloth masks and only a few disposables left to barely get her through all her medical appointments this month. She doesn' know who has disposables in stock in her area so I told her I would find some here and mail them to her. That turned out to be easier said than done.
This morning I dropped my husband off at the clinic for his lipids testing while I tried to find disposable masks at Shoppers and my neighbourhood grocery store, both of which had stacks of them 3 days ago when I was last in both stores. Today, NADA! Nary a mask graced their aisles. I was rather discouraged and didn't know where else to try. My husband asked me to try Canadian Tire, so I drove over there and lo and behold, there were many, many boxes of disposable masks: boxes of 50 for $34.99! I grabbed a box for Mom and one for us. Right now my husband and I are happy to wear our cloth masks, but they may not last through too many more months of washing and it is always nice to have disposables on hand if this pandemic continues on for another 6 months to a year or more. I mailed off the box of 50 to Mom, then called and told her they are on the way. She is thrilled! Once again I am ecstatic to still be physically mobile and to live close to so many shopping areas where I can usually find what I need. As much as I want to move out of this particular housing development next spring, I MAY have to reconsider since our location is perfect for us. Hmmmmmm.....well, the Lord will tell us what is going on as far as moving at just the time we need to know. He always has before.
My husband decided today would be a good day to take me out for Indian food again, as per our agreement to do so at least one more time before he is done with his holidays next week. I wasn't going to say "NO!" hahaha Off to DarBar where we had enough food left from our platters to bring home for a full dinner each this evening. Now, I just have to wangle an evening extravaganza sized order from Caraway Grill before next Tuesday as well so I can indulge my passion for Indian food for as long as possible! hohoho!! Travel Schmavel! THIS is my idea of good holidays!!!
Our son texted us as we were eating lunch. He completed his move from his boarding house bachelor suite to the sweet and temporarily rent free apt. on the upper west side of Manhattan. He has so many friends and a couple of "medically safe" fellows helped him make the transition of his assorted "stuff": personal effects to the suite and paintings and art supplies to the studio he rented in Queens. He has helped many of them move as well over the past few years, so he had a few favours to call in. I am thrilled for him and I am delighted for this major short term financial break. Hopefully 6 to 8 months from now when living in this dream residence comes to an end, the way will be open for more consistent employment once again so that he can find a decent place in his price range. The place he had in Bushwick was a great one for him, but his part of the neighbourhood has become more dangerous of late. So...we shall see what God has in store for him next!
After lunch I sent my husband to the canoe repair site with the vehicle while I had a beautiful walk home from the restaurant. It is only just over a half hour as a rule, but I took my sweet time, enjoying the light breeze and the slightly cooler day. Along the route I chose I came across the funeral home I have been wanting to contact about prepaid funerals. So, I stopped in and collected a packet of information to peruse with my husband so we can decide what kind of plan would work best, not only for us right now financially, but for our son when the time comes that he has to take care of the legal and financial details after we die. It is the least we can do for him since his inheritance will be pretty close to nil. Sigh...the "kid" never gets a financial break from us, that is for sure.
I also came across a wonderfully full neighbourhood library box I haven't seen before. There were many "treasures" inside that found their way into my purse for the remainder of the walk home. Yay big purse!! I will have to replace all those books with some of the ones I am reading now. I hate taking books without replacing them right away, but I had no idea the box was there. Since I have 2 books on the go right now and another one that I just completed reading, I will soon have a few for replacements.
It has been a good day of errands and walking and fab food. To be honest I have felt like I am on holidays since the COVID19 lockdowns began back in March! I feel less stress for myself than I did previous to the lockdown. As things got settled for our son over the past few months with his painting sales and now this fabulous answer to prayer about a place to live and the death of my Father removing some of the stresses for Mom as we ploughed through the ensuing legalities and got her moved, I have relaxed a lot! The month to 6 weeks of stress and shingles in the middle of it all was kind of difficult, but apart from that it has been a pretty amazing 6 months when all is said and done.
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