Monday, June 7, 2010

Water Weekend

Water affected our weekend in two ways.  The rain kept us mostly under a roof of one kind or another and Kelly's water broke which meant that her husband Andy was unable to come over and spend the day installing closet doors in our basement. I guess its okay he didn't show up. I guess it is better that he choose to support his wife through labor. I guess we can forgive him. This time.

So, we adapted (probably one of Ben's greater attributes, and one of my weaker ones.)  Shellee, Liam, Henry and myself biked (in the drizzle) down the road to our new local Farmer's Market.  This was our first hub outing to the market on bikes.  Our "hub" consists of the Lee family (John, Mary and kids Henry, Liam and Audrey), and Shellee. We share yards space, resources, stuff, ideas, laughter, prayer, food, freezer space, and much more.  Another name for our hub is the Ponderosa Pod.  That name has really only stuck as the one we use on our common Google calendar to nail down who is hosting Sunday dinner and such.  Anyway, the four of us hub representatives took off for the market early.  We tasted yummy humus, smoked trout, and purchased pastured chickens, lettuce, onions, and spinach.  Upon leaving, we filled out a survey giving our opinions about the market.  One area of improvement I noted is in the area of caffeine. I mean, isn't good coffee in the morning just a given? Where was it?  Did I miss it when I dipped for a second time into the fresh humus?  I voiced my concern aloud as well as on the paper and was told that with Starbuck's a few feet away the situation was complicated.  Now, here's the rub.  Hmmm. Starbuck's - the international coffee powerhouse with thousands of chains OR White Rock Coffee Roasters - the locally owned and family run shop one clock away that brews its own and does its best to welcome and serve with a smile when you walk through the door.  Which one, you tell me fits the Farmer's Market model better? Exactly. So, I let them know my thoughts. I stood up for the little guy. We biked home. We almost lost Shellee to a hedge but that's another story. It's difficult to talk and ride a steady course at the same time.

The rest of the day was full.  We discussed big topics like how to tweak our finances to maximize our "wealth" and plan for the future (our future dreams as well as responsibilities). We discussed smaller topics like how should we plan for our July 4 weekend with the Williams family and where in the heck are those two new white sweaters I purchased so that dressing for church or such an occasion would be a piece of cake for the girls. I mean, they are white. They go with everything. They are meant to be worn once a week. They're supposed to be in their closets hanging neatly. You mean we haven't seen them in a month? Something is wrong here. So after too much energy and emotion spent on that problem, we accomplished other things.

Ben built a new stand for the scooters.  A scooter corral. 
I made a wedding congratulations card. I weeded the garden, much easier with the wet ground. And messier. I researched campgrounds in hopes of finding one with tent sites adjacent to each other.  One location looked promising, but even as I checked out the individual sites the availability was ripped out from under me. I couldn't click the mouse fast enough as I saw the sites becoming unavailable one by one.  I was in competition with other last minute July 4 camper wannabes.  They won.  I will have to adapt, I guess.

I did choose to adapt to the sweater situation.  The girls outfitted themselves in something else that worked fine. 

New Morning Farm, the home of Ben's aunt and uncle, was our destination for the remainder of the day. We drove there to attend what was to be an outdoor wedding.  The gazebo was radiant and the lawn was lined with potted plants to form an aisle.  Unfortunately, the rain relegated us to the garage for the ceremony...falling water can sure dash dreams quickly.  But, as the bride and groom exited the garage arm in arm, the clouds broke and we stayed dry for the remainder of the evening.  It's the second farm I've been to in as many weeks and I just loved it. The scenery, the peace, the land, the charm, the people.

Man, it was fun.  And by evening's end, the only water I saw was the shimmering lake just beyond the farm.  Beautiful.

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