I Think It's Monday

6:11

8:28

A gray, slate-like lake greets me as I start this blog at 8:20.  I did get in a forty-five-minute paddle, starting out in a drizzle that eventually stopped, and this gray overcast morning of 41º.  I was accompanied much of my paddle by barn swallows, swooping around my boat and turkey vultures perched in trees.  I scared off an osprey and a heron when I walked out on the porch this morning at 6:15.

Kayak Morning

In The Rain

Looking North

The Sun, The Sun

We had a good Mother's Day Sunday although we did nothing special.  What could we do other than talk to our kids and have a steak dinner,  Evie's favorite.  I paddled early, out on the lake by 7:00 and felt at sixes and sevens when I returned at 8:00, with an entire morning ahead of me with nothing I wanted to do.  Fortunately, Evie wanted to go for a walk at the Chautauqua Institution which forced me to get out and do something.  We walked at the north end, passed a couple of families out walking like us and stayed a good distance from them, observing the rules.  I have to admit it felt good to be out walking and the sun even came out some.  And, of course, I was looking forward to getting home having a big breakfast.

A Neat Japanese Garden At The CI

Evie was hungry, too, so she grilled some of the leftover ham, fried up some eggs, made toast and we enjoyed breakfast while watching, what else, CBS Sunday morning which had an interesting segment on the amazing actress and producer, Reese Witherspoon.  After breakfast, I read and took another great nap and Evie started on our side yard, weeding and digging out some of the ground cover that has taken over the beds.  Around 3:30, it clouded up and started to rain so we both came inside and decided to be decadent and watch a film Evie had been wanting to see, Little Women.  Ironically, just after the film began, the sky opened up, the sun came out and it ended up being a beautiful late afternoon as we sat in the darkened TV room watching Little Women.  Neither of us loved the film but it was worth watching for the photography alone and of course, Saoirse Ronan, who plays Jo.

After the film, Evie got busy with dinner, making a potato chip casserole or more gourmet, pommes anna (thinly sliced and layered potatoes fried in butter) and a salad before grilling our steak. I have to admit both the potatoes and salad, with blue cheese and sunflowers seeds, were my favorite.  I prefer burgers to steaks.  Evie was happy, however,  so I was happy.  We started Season Two of My Brilliant Friend on HBO.  We loved the first season but are not so taken with the second so far, too many long shots of each unhappy young woman.  We then watched two more episodes of The Last Dance and we are really enjoying the documentary.  We ended the night with Cheers,  laughs to end the evening.