Rain And 71º

7:03

7:54

I am sitting out on our front porch, listening to thunder, lightning, and rain at 7:30. It's been raining since I woke at 7:00, having slept in again. . It looks like today will be a warm one, with highs in the mid-80s. I just looked at the map, and it may keep raining for the next hour or two, so no kayaking. It's 8:06 and still raining, but off to the north the sky is clearing. Sitting on my porch, I look due east, toward Long Point. 

Tuesday was a good day, and as always, if I have a good paddle, it's a good day. I was out for close to an hour, with four other paddlers and no fishing boats. I got a couple of great shots of an eagle enjoying a fish dinner in our maple tree. When I finished, Evie was up and feeling good, which was a relief after a bad day or two. After the blog and breakfast, I decided to skip yoga and go for a walk in Dobbins Woods, about a ten-minute drive. It's been one of our favorite walks, but not yesterday. First, the humidity was at 89%, so I was uncomfortable before I even started. I had forgotten that at least a quarter of the trail is boardwalks, and the rest often involves navigating tree roots, so most of the time I had to keep my head down and watch where I was walking, oblivious to the woods. I was out for just over a half hour and was happy to finish and get home. When I walked in, I did a thorough tick check, then took a shower since I was so sweaty.

A Good Walk Spoiled

Trying To Keep My Balance On Boardwalks

Lots Of Leaves

Navigating Tree Roots

While I was gone, Evie was in the attic, going through all the toys we've accumulated over the years for our grandchildren's visits. Since our great-grandson Rhys will be visiting in late September, she wants to have lots of toys available for him. Right now, I'd say she has enough toys for four or five kids! She took time off to make me a salami and tomato sandwich, and with some chicken noodle soup, I was happy. I'm watching the third season of Goliath and am not taken with it, but I'll stick with it.

Our Neighbor, Joe, Out For A Sail

I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing, reading, napping, and occasionally checking in on the guys doing the sewer hookups in our neighbors' yards. They're good guys and fun to talk with. Evie finished organizing her Toys "R" Us by 3:00 and took a shower at 4:00, since we were meeting two couples for dinner at Steeners at 5:30. We were fortunate to find a place to park, and Tom and Julie were already there, saving a table for the six of us. Jane and Jerry joined soon after; four of us ordered the steak special — a filet or Delmonico with fries — for forty bucks. They were great, and so were the fries. Because both Tom and Jerry have lived and worked in the area, it was like old home week for them, with numerous friends sitting at the bar.

Oldies But Goodies

We were home by 7:15 and sat in the living room, enjoying the early evening, reading or on our devices. After Evie went up to bed, I watched an episode of Reacher, then another episode of Goliath, before heading up myself.

And So Much More!

Humid And Mostly Gray Morning Skies

John And Maryanne On Their Scull

Kurt, Friend From Pine Hill

6:43

For some reason, I slept in until 6:30, came downstairs and relaxed, made my coffee, gathered my kayaking gear, and was out on an amazingly calm lake. I paddled down to the Power Boat Club and back and had luck photographing eagles and herons. It was also amazing because four kayaks and a scull were the only action on the lake for most of my paddle — no fishing boats!

6:43

Cormorant

Heron Fishing

Regal Heron

Bald Eagle In Our Tree

Feasting

Monday was typical: an early rise, then a paddle in drizzle for a good forty-five minutes. I returned around 7:30, wrote the blog, and waited for Evie to get up and pick out the photos. We talked and made a list for a trip to both the can man and Wegmans, giving me something to do since I wasn't ready to go for a bike ride. So I was off about 10:30, dropped my recyclable cans off at the can man, and made five bucks. I then stopped at Ryder's Cup, but the line was too long, so I left and went to Wegmans. Evie was still a bit off, so I picked up some chicken soup for her and Rice Krispies, which sounded good to her. I was home by noon and looked forward to spending a leisurely afternoon with Evie since we had nothing to do. I made a salami sandwich for lunch with the soup.

After lunch, I read for a while and napped as usual, then came downstairs refreshed and ready to do something. So I grabbed a saw and cut down some small trees that were growing among our red twigs and lilac tree, hoping it would help both grow. I had such a mess of branches that I packed them up in my Outback, left the liftgate open, and took them up to the wood pile. When I returned, I was still antsy and decided to ride my bike around the Chautauqua Institution. The gates are now open for the rest of the year, so I rode around the grounds for forty-five minutes. The gardens and front yards are at their peak, so it was fun to ride slowly and take them all in.

Thunder Bridge

The Atheneum Hotel

When I got home, Evie had a Zoom call with her sisters, so I read on the front porch, and she joined me after the call was over. I suggested an easy dinner — tomato and mayo sandwiches and corn — so that was my dinner; Evie enjoyed a bowl of Rice Krispies. We watched a show, but I noticed the lake was amazing, sunlit and calm, and I had to go for a half-hour paddle, stopping to talk with our neighbors Jim and Barb, who were sitting on their dock enjoying the view. 

Barb, Jim, And Ripley

7:20 PM

Setting Sun 

When I returned, Evie went up to bed, and I watched my show and feasted on a couple of nut horns, our neighbor Pat's gift to us since they're leaving in a day or two. I was in bed reading by 10:00.

Wendell Berry, an essayist,  novelist, poet, and conservationist, died yesterday. This is one of my favorite poems, so relevant in today's world.

The Peace of Wild Things

 Wendell Berry, 1934 - 2026

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.