I was forced by circumstances to retire early, which I resented at the time, but there are definite perks, if you’re resourceful with the little you’ve got, and determined to keep living and learning.

It doesn’t take much to get me excited and feel accomplished.  You may laugh at my simpleness, but I finally grew cucumbers!!  Look at these fat beauties.  I almost wish Y were here to admire them.  (They can’t have their phones at camp, for good reasons.)

Next case in point: the prickly pears are starting to bloom!  Most of the family wouldn’t miss them if they were gone, but I’ve worked at cleaning their bed up so they could thrive.  I haven’t attempted eating them yet (ouch), just love their flowers and desert appearance.

Look at all the snap peas from just one harvesting!  I have plans for them, too.  With most of the kids away, I don’t have to worry about who will dislike what, and can start preparing foods Avdi likes and doesn’t have time to fix or eat.

Just a quickie, because I had to take time out to catch up on business at home.

Yesterday was another perfect spring day for gardening, so I started extreme weeding and cultivating in the veg garden (peppers), weeded and reseeded the under-germinated melons in their raised bed, cleaned up E’s “secret” outer area a little, finished mulching the lilacs, and prepped for K mowing.  (BTW, when I say “mulching”, I mean with our own composted soil/organic material from the big mountain I cleaned up.)  I’m earthy as well as watery air.  Occasionally I dunk my head in the pool to keep cool!

Speaking of K, he baked croissants, and a beautiful key lime pie from scratch, which was excellent.  And mowed.  With everyone else not monopolizing the kitchen and whole house, K has been venturing out of the cave into the kitchen and trying new skills.  He’s really good at it.  He even gets some quality time with Dad.

How irregular, a dry, sunny, perfect garden day, so that’s what I did.  I planted some rooted cuttings, reseeded some okra, transplanted Y’s potted veggies to the outside of the veg garden, and weeded all around it.  Meanwhile, the poppies are popping, trumpet flowers are trumpeting, cucumbers look like big fat pickles, and everything is fat and happy.

Later, I vacuumed the pool, and then Avdi and I jumped in.  It was perfect temps out and in.  I always feel much better after the garden and I are watered and aired out.  Must be an Aquarian thing.

Once again dodging t-storm warnings, I made it over to A’s and did some straightening up, laundry, etc.  The garden is perpetually wet.  Another poppy bloomed!  A chipmunk kept popping in and out of its vast tunnel system through the raised beds.

Later, Joyce came over with outstanding homemade lasagna and joined the last few of us for dinner.  I made crafty margs, and provided garden salad.  Poor K, also not feeling well, may have gotten out-talked by us!

I’ve been feeling so out of it lately, physically and mentally.  Even my dreams are ever darkening fiction narratives of being forced out of the workplace due to age and incompetency.  I have to fight to stay on top of this state of mind.  In real life it was due to my aging demented parents needing my full time caregiving, until I couldn’t have returned to that work anyway.  I refuse to ever put my son in a similar position.  He already has too much of it as it is.

The “squirrels” were safely deposited at camp, and the house is almost empty.  I spent the day at my apartment.  Rain continued to water the garden for me.

In the evening, Avdi and I and Jess ended up at the Crack Fox (dance club and dive bar), where they danced and I held down the table of drinks.  A introduced me to some of his DJ and other friends, who were very pleasant.  I wasn’t feeling at my best, but I enjoyed watching A get his needed dance fix.  He’s going through a lot of life changes, or passages.

It continued to pour, and fog shrouded the tops of tall buildings downtown.  It’s always very atmospheric here.

This was the final erev before the “squirrels” leave for camp for two weeks.  Duffels and suitcases were everywhere.

I baked challah, harvested another large salad, including celery, made spaghetti and sauce, and heated some great rice and veg leftovers by E.  It was just A, K, Y, and me for dinner.

This morning A drove E and Y to camp.  Of course it continues to rain and flood.  I haven’t had to water in days.  The first calendulas and poppy bloomed!  Also orange daylilies.  Hummers are buzzing around in a feeding frenzy.

I think I’m about to be on mini-staycation between my two homes.

As always, a night out with Avdi is always a memorable occasion.  It was pouring after the tornado warning, but that didn’t deter us.

First we ate at O&O (Olive and Oak) Pizza in Webster Groves, which sounds like an ordinary pizza dive, but is upscale, lovely, with exquisite Italian food and wonderful craft cocktails served by professionals.  The food was extraordinary.  Homemade gnocchi, morels with herbed polenta, and the absolute best veg lasagna either of us had ever had, don’t even begin to describe how perfect it was.  The drinks were very unique, as well.  I think we both died and went to Italian heaven.

Then for a switch, we checked out the Berlin-styled tschüss bar and club in the Cherokee Street District of StL.  I think they were having an off night with understaffing, so I won’t judge it by the drinks.  The atmosphere was pleasant.  Downstairs was a very divey dance club, no frills, but good DJs (one of which was a friend of Avdi’s) and house music.  I couldn’t stop photographing this one person who threw themself into dancing.

I didn’t even get schnockered this time, because the first drink was for savoring, with water, and the second was undrinkable, so I shared Avdi’s!  The rain let up, providing just the right atmosphere for holing up in nice bars.

Yesterday I got to spend most of the day at home: then I covered for Avdi overnight.  E had prepared a great-looking dinner, but I wasn’t up to eating.  Mostly I just went to bed upstairs and actually slept.

E stayed up baking up a storm (i.e. working through some private stuff).  I think everyone was up half the night but me.  Then they slept in and I got up.  It was very quiet this morning!  It had rained a lot overnight, and was continuing on and off through the day, so I didn’t have to water.  All the plants were twice as big as yesterday!

The bird pair have a nest full of babies right over the back porch.  They’re getting used to me and let me take their picture.

Finding I didn’t have a whole lot to accomplish there, I walked home during a brief rain break.  Later, Avdi and I are going out on our monthly date.  I wonder what new discoveries we’ll make.  Stay tuned.

I just have a brief rant digression.  St. Louis is still reeling from the tornado devastation, yet up until now, only local grassroots orgs and volunteers have shown up to do the heavy lifting; the gov, local, state, and fed, have been nowhere to be found.  It’s obvious why: racism.  I keep thinking, if this had been WG and other well-off suburbs, the city, county, and state would have been out there doing the work from day one.

These local groups are not even set up to do this job, but they took the initiative right away, because who else would?  It really reveals the hypocrisy and indifference of people (repugs) in power.  It gives them an excuse to clear away the rubble of unwanted people’s lives, leaving even more  homeless.

And ironically, the sirens just came on again.  It’s too much.

It was hot and muggy yesterday, i.e. more normal STL weather.  The kind that sucks what energy you have to garden right out of you.

I did a few things outside, and tried to be useful in the house, but somehow just three kids managed to be busy and surly in every room at once, and I was running out of rooms to go be out of their way in!  My downstairs retreat is no more, since the kids will soon be playing musical chairs, only with rooms.

I hate being useless, or more accurately, role-less.  Maybe most of it went to Michigan with S.  So I went and chilled in the pool.  I had my drink alone on the patio.  Neither of which is fun by yourself.  Then I got a ride home on their way to Costco.

I know it’s just temporary, and this too shall pass, as the squirrels are headed for camp this weekend.  That will really change the dynamic.

Today I had part 2 of my root canal done.  One more goal on the dental checklist completed.  Maybe by the time I croak, I’ll have all my teeth fixed or replaced.  I won’t be a toothless corpse!

Today was my last kitty car patrol.  Odin was all ready to show off and play, but Pixie was back up on her bed throne, bored of me already.  I ran an errand and drove to Avdi’s.

It was extremely quiet.  Avdi had taken Y and friend to the mall (sounds dreadful), E went out for hours, and K was doing his usual thing downstairs.  I halfheartedly did some cleanup, then finished the USA puzzle.

Avdi came home, drained mostly from the whole exhausting week.  I set up the charcuterie, but we did a very abridged version.  Then I walked home.  That was my day.  I think everyone is readjusting to the absence of S in their own way.

Look, I grew cucumbers!  Finally!