An Unusual Week

This week, we enjoyed a beautiful, warm, sunny Saturday at the local Scottish festival. There were highland games, a parade of the clans complete with banners and kilts, and a lovely, moo-ey, hairy coo (above).

Then, Sunday, it all changed. We were under a thunderstorm warning and a tornado watch. Our wind chimes were extremely vocal as the wind came through and then the temperatures dropped. The storm alerts didn’t cease until after 1 am.

Monday, we woke up groggily to chilly and cloudy weather, but then a brief blizzard happened (see photo below, credit to my quick-thinking husband).

So near term I plan to wear long sleeve shirts but keep a fleece and rain jacket handy just in case. Yikes.

Otherwise, there was a fun concert at the local listening room, lots of college basketball to watch (go Coogs!), and for St. Patrick’s Day I made Irish soda bread (see below) and stew.

At some point, spring will arrive in full force, and the garden planting will begin. But I am going to do my best to live in the moment and enjoy whatever weather shows up.

“Experts” say that older folks should keep their minds occupied, should stay active, and should maintain social interaction to keep them in good health. When I retired, I had a bucket list of projects that I wanted to accomplish, among them completing the Master Gardener and later the Master Naturalist courses. Both of these activities helped me to both keep my brain engaged and meet people in my new home of northern Alabama. Volunteer assignments keep me busy, and I regularly exercise at least four days a week.

But this week I noticed something surprising. I had three whole days in which I had made no previous commitments. Days in which I could sleep late and do as much or as little as I wished. I must admit, it has been a real treat. So, my plan now is to “book” one whole day each week with no appointments or service hours. I think after six years of busy retirement (yes, the anniversary is coming up soon!), I deserve it.