A Different Life II

[Gearheart]

You have a charcoal fired panini iron? Where did you buy that?

[Lily&Me]

I have one with long handles, to put in a fire.

Bought it years ago at a Cabelas or some such place.

I have a waffle iron, too, and they work beautifully in fires because the cast iron withstands the heat so nicely.

Not wanting to always build a fire, and only rarely carrying a grill, the panini press worked great for something yummy for two.

I haven't done this yet, since Doug's been gone, but I'm ready to.

I'll post a picture.

In the meantime....these are on the wooded, shaded ground here.

Not sure what they are, but they are pretty.

The folks in our site-to-be are packing up, so we should be in soon.


Maggie

[DIR1]

Yeah!! for the new better site!!!!

[Lily&Me]

The new and better site.

And, right up the hill, out the side door....the bathhouse.

[Hittenstiehl]

That looks lovely and shaded. Enjoy.

[Lily&Me]

It's a very nice site, as COE's always are, in my experience.

Level, and neat as a pin. And...shaded.

It is rather long and narrow, with a sharp turn to get in...however, get in, I did, tho it took a bit of maneuvering.

I didn't drive off the side, that was the most important thing.


Maggie

[DIR1]

Lovely!!! More Yeahs!!!!

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

Hi FaN!

Shirley Valentine gathering in Astoria, OR, September 8-11th, or 12th...try to make a drive down.


Maggie

Astoria is a nifty place, but be prepared for cool, and maybe wet, weather. Also, be sure to head down the coast at least as far as Cannon Beach to visit the haystacks.

Hey, maybe you can also squeeze in a drive by the "Goonies" house while you're in Astoria.

[Lily&Me]

It is easily 10 degrees cooler at this site than anywhere in the sun..tho Lily and I have just come inside to have some lunch and enjoy a bit of AC, I had the Interstate open with the vent fan on since we got up this morning.

Lovely.

One of the best things about getting away, and out amongst nature, is the shifting of gears and change in routine.

Good for one's soul, and inner peace, to be away from television and the other mind cluttering noises of a city.

Time to think, sort out, review and renew strength and self affirming mental missives.

An especially good thing, when one has reluctantly become their own primary caregiver.

I do miss NBC news, but I can keep up on what is happening in the world with my little IPad.

Lily is enjoying her longest walk of the day early in the morning...neither she nor I are too interested in doing much in the most intense heat of the day.

After we walk, we settle outside to read and crochet, she finding a shady spot near me to lay.

Til it gets too hot.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Astoria is a nifty place, but be prepared for cool, and maybe wet, weather. Also, be sure to head down the coast at least as far as Cannon Beach to visit the haystacks.

Hey, maybe you can also squeeze in a drive by the "Goonies" house while you're in Astoria.

Been to Oregon before, thanks, tho not to Fort Stevens SP in Astoria.

Cool weather sounds good, and I can handle wet.

Am really looking forward to being there and spending time with this group of (mostly) women.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

“Now is no time to think of what you do not have. Think of what you can do with what there is.”


"The first and final thing you have to do in this world is to last it and not be smashed by it.”


"We are all broken—that’s how the light gets in.”


― Ernest Hemingway


Maggie

[ColoradoLady]

I'm ready to hit the road for the NW trip! Getting antsy!

[Lily&Me]

Patience, Evelyn.

You must find some other travels to quell your wanderlust, as it's not time yet.


Maggie

[ColoradoLady]

Gosh darn, Maggie! ??not time yet??? OK, guess I'll have to find a local trip! Oh yeah! Got one to Chatfield SP 7/11-15 with the granddaughter. Then, I have a repeat "procedure", 6 month checkup, you know, the one where I get to drink a pungent liquid (prep)! That'll keep me occupied! LOL?

[Lily&Me]

Just under 2 months, Evelyn.

Woke up to about 65 degrees this morning, turned the AC off, and it has seemed like early fall all day.

Not as cool as that, really, but a lovely break from the recent heat and humidity.

I am still outside, having a glass of wine, Lily has had two long walks, and I am finishing ebook #4.

So very nice to have shade.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Another cool and beautiful morning.

So nice that I felt like opening things up and doing a bit of cleaning.

Rugs up and shaken out , floor cleaned and scrubbed...a good thing.

Going to do laundry up in the am, and move on to the full service campground in town for two nights, before I can get into my next COE site on Sunday.

I am sleeping well, and feeling especially relaxed since I have been in shade.

The full sun site, coupled with high heat and humidity, was a bit brutal.

I've realized this is one of only two trips since Doug died where I don't have a destination, friends or a group I am heading for at the end of the road...it feels a bit different, and a bit more sad at times.

Widowhood is about being alone so much of the time, when you used to be part of "a matched pair", as Doug liked to say...whether you are away or at home, the level of aloneness is profound after you lose your other half.

I guess a case could be made for developing lots of interests and activities separate from your partner, but that just wasn't the way we were.

From the time he moved into an apartment "up the street" in 1987, we were two rather than one, almost all of the time, and we liked it that way.

Sigh. Life.

I have to be glad I have the ability and the means to go and do, right?

Many don't, I do know that, I just don't always feel it, first and foremost.

Have to talk myself back that direction, and I do.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

Look at this clever and pretty idea another poster had here, for a small window in her trailer.

I might try something similar with the window in my cargo door.


Per 2fromtexas...

"Wanted privacy on the bottom window in the bathroom of our 2016 FC. Made a mixture of 1/4 cup cornstarch and 1/2 cup water. Then added this mixture to 2 cups of water. Cooked until syrup consistency. Made a pattern of the window and cut a piece of lace to size of pattern. Spread cooled mixture with a paint brush on the window, put lace in prepared window (can slide the lace easily for placement), then brushed more mixture on top of the lace. This will harden, but is not permanent. Can be removed if you decide to not want this anymore. No one can see in during the daytime. Still pull shade at night."

[DIR1]

or you could buy that stick-on window covering stuff???

[Lily&Me]

I thought about that...

The idea of covering that window really appeals to me, and I love this lacy look , but it really wouldn't go with the Interstate's interior colors.....Doug would say it looked "cobbled together", and he would be right.

I'll think on it, and look around.


Maggie

[Lily&Me]

There's a reason I have hardly listened to music since Doug died....because it dredges up feelings, emotion, sadness and loss.

I know it, and I avoid it, because meting out the pain incrementally by avoiding certain things is a survival mechanism, and surviving is what I do.

Late this morning, after putting away and putting up to pull out, doing up all the laundry and bedding, dumping the tanks, and refilling the fresh water, I stopped at the grocer in town to pick up a few things....as soon as I stepped inside, on the piped in music was a song we danced to many times, bringing tears to my eyes.

Our marriage and relationship weren't perfect, as certainly neither he nor I was perfect...but it was pretty darned good, and the profound sense of loss of him and us lingers close, still, with emotion and tears just below the surface, always.

Some days a bit closer than others, and today is one of those days. Life. Sigh.


Miss Lily woke me up this morning, sitting very close to me, leaning in and giving a low "woof".

One of those "I want something" woofs, ears perked and tail twitching.

I asked her if she needed to go outside...her tail wagged furiously, so up I got, turning the flame on under the coffee pot as I headed to the door.

I'm thinking she needs to go potty , but she stepped outside and right back in, then sits with her tail wagging expectantly.

She wanted her tiny treat and chew bone, which she associates with her first trip outside in the morning...not with going potty, which is how that started.

It was starting to get light out, so it was time.. I wasn't awake yet, so she decided to get me up.

Booger dog.


We are settled into the campground in town for the next two nights. Nothing exciting, but beggars can't be choosers, and it has all the basics, plus a few TV channels, which I have to say I have missed.

I especially like starting and ending my day with the news, and NBC comes in clear as a bell here. I will like that.

Clothes to put away, pillows and comforter to dress...Lily is crashed on the couch, after spending her morning monitoring my ready-to-go activities and any dog who walked near.

Going to have an early glass of wine today...because, I deserve it.


Maggie