I was missing the Riverwalk in Murphy so took off Saturday early after I started the laundry. It was cloudy but very nice to be back there. I did not go down stream (my favorite part) because two dog training people were there giving commands. And that sort of spoils the mood. So off up stream I went and only saw a fisherman. He was hanging onto his bright orange rod, so I asked if he caught anything. He said he was “just fooling around”. I took that as a “no”. So here are the images from upstream.
The river was really high.
And at the far end near a street lamp were these remains of a cecropia moth. The bats swoop in and only take the body while the wings fly off to the ground. Such beautiful things, those moths. I resisted going closer to under the lamp and see other wings left behind.
And then on the way back…
I don’t know how these trees do not just give up when the river has soaked their roots so deeply with rushing water. This one barely clings to the shore as it lays out into the river.
And at the end of the bridge near the car park is this drama of green on black.
From there I went to my favorite coffee shop only to see it was closed for the day due to their daughter’s graduation. So I went to the new iteration of Lee and my favorite Sunday morning breakfast place that gave rise to all those napkin wrapper character books. The food was not as good but it was nice just pulling into the parking lot.
Next I spent the weekend working on my Meadow Book. Buttercups and daisies.
Field asters and a starling. Not an easy bird to draw!
Bluebird and dogwood.
The meadow is filled with cobwebs.
Heal all and blue eyed grass.
Today I baked those way too delicious Ree Drummond Brown sugar oatmeal cookies. I have plenty for the freezer, a bag to share Thursday when most of the men come in for coffee, another bag for one of my favorite old fellows and another bag for a friend who is taking me shopping at that town we went to for Mother’s Day. We are headed there tomorrow.
In other news, my social skills are returning. Yesterday was at a special luncheon for an old friend who lives here now. She was turning ninety and her daughter put on a lovely affair at a local restaurant. I only knew two people there and when I realized we were to stay for lunch and tables were filling up with people who knew each other, I asked a man I had just been introduced to if he would join me at a table for two. He said he’d be happy to. It resulted in an hour and a half of wonderful conversation. He was a host on the old Eastern Airlines for fifteen years and then went on to the next twenty-five years of driving cross country fourteen wheelers….very large semi trucks. We talked about world travel, art, his home state of Florida and its pathetic politics in power.
I want to add here that I did not ask a woman to join me because women tend to stay in groups and I knew from experience that if I asked one she would have gone to great lengths to inform me that she needed to stay with her group. I find men more willing to step away from the “expected”.
I went to shake his hand in good bye but he said a hug would be better. We both hoped to have more conversations when he returns to visit the birthday girl with his partner.
Then my neighbor, who wants to teach tai chi, and I recommended she try the senior center in town, will be starting her classes in late June or July. I agreed to join her class with some of the other women from the neighborhood. I quit doing my own tai chi several years ago and because she is so nice, and so are the women going to her class, I said I would also go.
And finally, Thursday lunch is with a group of women artists…only one is known to me and arranged this get together to meet other artists. And that evening is a party here in the neighborhood for a woman turning eighty. I will be taking champagne and a nifty appetizer that looks fun to make.
So social skills are coming back.
That is all for now now.
More later….