On The Road Again

Our Grandson Nick, With Great Grandson Tommy

Kayak Morning

Northern Sky

Mergansers

Mallards And A Merganser

It's almost 8:00, and I've been up since 6:30 on a wet, windy morning. The rain has just stopped, and the wind has briefly abated, which has me thinking about a paddle. We begin our road trip at noon today, staying just outside of Cincinnati tonight at a Hampton Inn — free breakfast included, of course. Well, the lake calmed down enough, so I went for a short paddle.

6:55

7:48

Yesterday was another busy, difficult day, largely consumed by decisions about what to bring and what to leave behind. It started as usual: up early, a coffee, the blog, then a drive to the Ashville General Store at 8:00, with a stop at Hogan's along the way to inflate a low tire. Only two of us made it to breakfast, though that's never a hardship — we always enjoy going to "The Ash" for its great breakfast choices and varied coffee brews.

I was home to an empty house by 9:15, as Evie had driven to Westfield for a test. I'd barely settled in with another cup of coffee when she arrived back. Around 12:30, I had lunch — the last of a sub from the Lighthouse — and watched my show, The Capture, on Prime. After lunch, I took a brief nap, but by 2:00, I was on my way to Jamestown to pick up my taxes. Each year, I seem to owe a little more to both the federal and state governments. C'est la vie. From there, I stopped at Wegmans for some prescriptions and a few goodies for the trip, then swung by Michaels, which handles Amazon returns. Finally, I spent forty-five minutes waiting for that tire to be repaired, listening for much of it to Ray hold forth on his various girlfriends and his divorce. He and his dad are both good guys — but talkers.

I was home around 3:45. I charged the Kia, tidied up a few things in the yard, and put the winter shovels away in the garage attic. By 5:00, most of our packing was done, and I opened a bottle of wine to celebrate. Around 6:30, Evie fried up some bacon and made a ham and cheese omelet along with roasted cauliflower— a simple but very satisfying dinner. We watched Colbert, which featured a wonderful interview with Meryl Streep, then struggled to find anything else worth watching and eventually settled on the news. After Evie went to bed, I did what I usually do: caught some basketball, then another episode of The Capture — which I highly recommend — on Prime.

Turkish Proverb: "When a clown moves into the palace, he doesn't become a king; the palace becomes a circus."