After a Long Weekend

Vacation: a break from work, at the end of which you're ready to get back to the job.
That's the way it's supposed to be, right, but as I crawled out of bed and drove to the office this morning, after a long weekend away, I wasn't quite ready to pick back up the routine.
But it wasn't long before I was feeling productive and satisfied again as I looked at the proof for the November issue (it looks good), handled correspondence, and made a decision about how to promote our app at the International Conference on Missions this November.
The highlight of the day, in many ways, was our birthday celebration with Lookout editor Kelly Carr. According to our tradition, she chose the place for lunch, and all of us enjoyed her choice, Mimi's.

We're having beautiful weather. Evelyn cut the back and side yards this afternoon, and I mowed the front, trimmed, and watered plants after work before supper.
I'm ready (I think!) to tackle a long list of tasks that need to be accomplished this week. After a good day of getting back into the routine, I need to be more productive tomorrow than I was today.

A Beautiful Sunday

I heard the sermon twice today, and I was blessed both times. Trevor DeVage preached at 9:00, and Brad Wilson preached in the Classic service at 10:30. We attended the 9:00 audtorium service, and then I led the singing in the Classic service for Dave Lautzenheiser who's on vacation. Actually, I was a sub for the sub! Jason Newlon was supposed to lead, but he returned Saturday from a business trip to India, exhausted from an inability to sleep while he was gone.
The memorable point from the sermon, which retold the story of the remarkable defeat of the Assyrian army against King Hezekiah because of God's intervention to bless the godly king: reliance leads to redemption. I think we all need to learn to rely on God more completely.
For lunch we tried a new fast-food Italian restaurant on Mason-Montgomery Road, Piada. We both liked it well enough to go back, although Evelyn wasn't as thrilled with hers as I was with mine.
Then we went to Natorp's and spent my birthday gift certificate (almost) on a hanging basket and a plant to put in it, plus succulents to plant in the wall planter Jennifer gave me last year, plus my free perennial with coupon and any purchase.
We came home and Evelyn mowed a little more than half the yard while I went on a wild goose chase for coco liners for several of our planters. I was gone longer than I planned, and didn't get everything I wanted, even at that.

I finished the mowing, edged the lawn, and blew away all the clippings. Then I filled the planters on our deck. My idea this year is to have an all-foliage pot garden. It's off to a good start, I think. We'll see how it looks when the plants have grown more, in a month. (The beautiful hosta and the purple heart plant were saved from last year. I saved purple shamrocks all winter, too, which will go in the rectangle planter in the back. And the sedum came from the yard.)
Evelyn made flautas for supper, and we watched one segment of 60 Minutes as well as a few minutes of America's Funniest Videos while we ate them.

LAST Weekend

October was a busy month. And November has turned out that way, too. We were busy all day Saturday or the whole weekend every weekend, and I've been leading two small groups and attending a Tuesday morning (6:15 a.m.) "No Man Left Behind" group at church. I've posted a some pictures on Facebook without making comments or adding descriptions here. I have a "month at a glance" post in my head, but this will be "weekend at a glance" for LAST weekend! Yep, I started this blog post last Sunday and gave up, tired, before it was finished. Now, a week later, I'll finish it.
Last Friday evening we ate Mexican at El Rancho Grande and came home to watch a show or two we had been saving on the DVR. Saturday was a blessed day at home all day long--at least for me. I was up early to run to Kroger's to get the stuff Evelyn needed for supper. She put her casserole together (an old stand-by, Party Chicken), with instructions about temperature and time for be to get it started.
She and Tammy Weatherly drove to Louisville to attend the funeral service for the mother of a friend and former colleague, Carrie Birmingham. Evelyn taught with her years ago, before Carrie moved to California to teach at Pepperdine, and Tammy and Jon were friends and classmates.
Before she left I peeled and cut up a Crock Pot full of apples with a little brown sugar and cinnamon to make applesauce. It was finished about 3:00 in the afternoon.
While Evelyn was gone, I pulled up my zinnia bed and the tomato plants, dumped out most of the hanging baskets and patio pots, ran the lawn mower over the leafiest areas in the backyard to mulch the leaves, and planted a pot of bulbs that I hope will be glorious next spring. I put away the tomato stakes and all the empty pots, arranging it all in the garage.
I got the idea on the Internet for my bulb garden in a pot:
Fill a large pot with soil within about 11 inches from the top and plant a layer of late-blooming tulips.
Cover with dirt within about 6 inches from the top, plant a layer of daffodils.
Cover with dirt within about 3 inches from the top, and plant a layer of crocus. Finish covering the bulbs with dirt.
The idea is that the crocus will bloom first, and then the daffodils, and then the tulips, making a grand display of springtime color on the patio for several weeks. I hope it works.
I swept the deck, brought some of the deck furniture into the house, and arranged a few cool-hardy plants on the deck for a few more weeks of display before we have winter.

I had bought more bulbs than I could use, so I planted a tulip patch close to the driveway where we'll see them every day as we come and go.
 The air was cool, the sun was warm, and it was a wonderful day to get so much done.
I came inside, took a shower, and read a bit while waiting for Tammy and Evelyn to get back. They arrived here a bit later than they planned, but I had turned down the oven to delay the "done" time of the main dish. Evelyn threw some peas in a pot to cook and got the meal on the table quickly. We enjoyed visiting with Tammy for a couple of hours before Evelyn left to ride back home with her, where she'd left our car earlier in the day.
Sunday we were at the first service and then off to brunch and back home early. On the way home, we stopped at Home Depot and bought one more box of gutter guards, which I installed on the last quarter of the house in good time. Evelyn mowed while I worked, and then I finished mowing, edged, and blew off the driveway and sidewalks. I planted my leftover daffodils at the front of the house, looked at my watch, and saw 3:30. "Good, I thought, I still have some time left in the afternoon." When I came inside I realized I hadn't set back my watch (it was Time Change Sunday), and the time was only 2:30! Lots of time left.
So I cleaned up and then tackled a pile of filing that had accumulated over the last couple of months or longer. Not a favorite task, but it was very nice to have the time to tackle it.
Before it got dark, I took some pictures in the backyard. Our beautiful maple tree hadn't lost most of its leaves yet (this week it has), and the Knockout roses were still blooming profusely. It was a good weekend to be home, to be outside, and to be able to get so many jobs done.

Sunday Guests

 Ajai Lall spoke at our church this morning--he brought a passionate challenge to act on our concerns for the poor and powerless and the lost. Evelyn and I had welcome center duty, and I hosted at the 8:30 service. At that service, we sang a worship song that was popular some time ago.

No other name but the name of Jesus
No other name but the name of the Lord
No other name but the name of Jesus
Is worthy of glory, and worthy of honor
And worthy of power and all praise.

For some reason, the words struck me as particularly meaningful today. I've been thinking too much lately about my own glory and honor, perhaps.

Later in the morning we had a nice visit with Ajai's lovely wife, Indu, and I was able to snap a wonderful picture of her with Evelyn.

We ate lunch at Olive Garden with a gift card Evelyn had received at school for leading her "D" group. We cut grass and I did some other yard work as soon as we got home. And after a shower, I went to Lowe's to pick up what I hope is our last batch of mulch for this year before heading to the grocery store. We had a nice visit with Jennifer on the phone, and then Evelyn fixed grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches on rye bread; I talked her into strawberries with ice cream to finish it off. We watched "60 Minutes" and then later both struggled to stay awake during a PBS "Masterpiece Mystery."

On the Lookout

You know how it is the day before vacation? You get a week's worth of work done because you concentrate, you focus, and you MUST finish it all.
Well, I feel like I've been in that mode for the last week or more. Between yard work and some church work and work work and preparations for our tour/cruise, I've been going, going, going. I've taken and stored some pictures I've been wanting to post. I think some of that will have to wait. Friday we leave for a two-week tour/cruise, "Paul's Fourth Missionary Journey," i.e., a Mediterranean cruise. :-)
There's be no Internet (well, you CAN pay $50 for 90 minutes of access, but I've decided not to do that.) So, maybe I'll squeeze out a minute to post tomorrow. (Tomorrow night's assignment: mow lawn and PACK.) But maybe I won't. If not, I'm afraid this diary is going on a 2-week hiatus. But I WILL be taking pictures along the way.

So here's what I can offer today. One of the tasks on my list was to gather some pictures for a little slide show CCU is preparing for a program at the NACC. I decided to take some pictures from the issue of The Lookout in 1976 that introduced me as editor. I was 26 years old! At that tender age I had the misfortune of getting the job of my dreams. And although it hasn't been all dreams since then, I've never left Standard in all these almost 37 years since then.
Anyway, here's how I looked as a very young, inexperienced guy. I could wish the price of knowing what I know now were not looking like I look now

This List Makes Me Tired!

As I took a quick shower this evening, I found myself wondering how I could have been so productive and busy this weekend while still ending Sunday feeling unsatisfied with what I'd accomplished.
I guess it comes down to making a list too long to finish.
What I accomplished:
Talked with Wendy on Skype Saturday and with each of our children this afternoon: a combination of between 3 and 4 hours catching up with some of the people we love most in the world.
Officially celebrated my birthday with dinner out at Trio's Bistro Friday night, using a Groupon I'd saved for the occasion. Ran by Stein Mart and bought a couple of things, one of them at a great savings with a coupon we'd received in the mail.
Welcomed and watched Jim Tompkins who brought a 2,000-pound stump grinder to our front yard Saturday morning and literally obliterated the stump to the Bradford pear that blew down last summer, almost a year ago. Dug up a clump of mums growing in front of the stump just before he arrived Saturday morning and transplanted them by the driveway by the garage door after he left.
Raked the wood-chip-dirt mixture out of the lawn and into a mound at the corner of the flower bed.
Sprayed Round-up on tree shoots had come up from the roots and got rid of quite a few of the weeds that had grown up around it.
Shopped at six different garden stores or departments for something to plant in its place. Finally settled on a four-foot dwarf Alberta spruce. Lugged it home in the front of the car along with some top soil and "Moo-nure" to amend the soil. Dug a hole in the mound and planted the tree.
Went out for Indian for supper at about 7:00 and then went with Evelyn to the grocery to divvy up the week's shopping. We weren't home till after 9:00.

Planned the Communion meditation for this morning's classic service at 8:30, where I hosted this morning.
(Mark Sullivan had an excellent sermon on Philippians 1. It was the first in a series from Philippians,
creatively titled "Paradox." Mark's sermon: "Chained but Free." He preached the sermon while presenting us with the visual aid of himself chained to his golf cart.)
Stopped at a nursery after church and bought a yellow Knockout rose bush to fill a hole behind the deck.
Planned the worship service for next Sunday morning; I'm leading the classic praise service for Dave Lautzenheiser, who will be on vacation next Sunday.
Paid bills and wrote our monthly donation checks.
Folded and put away some of my winter clothes and brought upstairs all my stored-away summer clothes. But they're not arranged in the closet well enough yet.
Mowed and raked grass in a little more than half the yard this afternoon, after talking with both of the kids on the phone. Trimmed down the winter-dead liriope beside the driveway. Raked up the mess I made. (Evelyn finished the mowing by cutting grass in the front yard.)
Packed my lunch for tomorrow.
Enjoyed "60 Minutes" and grilled cheese and bacon on rye sandwiches with Evelyn for supper.
It's helpful to see it all in print. I guess I don't need to feel guilty for not having accomplished anything this weekend! But, both at work and here at home, I have quite a long list of tasks that must be accomplished this week, and in the 2-1/2 weeks before we go on our 2-week vacation, departing May 31.

The Good News Outweighs the Bad

So here's the good news: The doctor's office gave me an appointment at 4:50, at the end of the work day.
Here's the bad news: When I got to the office, somehow my appointment had been cancelled.
Good news: They had another cancellation (I hope that guys knows it) on Friday and can get me in at 1:20. And they have a plan for recording the info on my new health insurance card.
Bad news: I have to fill out three pages before they can make the change.
Good news: They gave me the pages to complete before I show up Friday.
Bad news: Evelyn got only part of the lawn mowed after work before she heard thunder, saw lightning, and decided she needed to come inside.
Good news: Since my appointment was cancelled, I had time to cut the grass before dinner when I got home. (It had stopped raining.)
Bad news: After dinner a shower blew through, pouring rain and blowing the trees. It lasted till dusk, so I couldn't do any other yard work tonight.
Good news: I studied Revelation in anticipation of my group tomorrow, paid bills, and made a list of the songs I'm leading at our group times on the cruise so Dave Lautzenheiser can make me a booklet of the music to take on the trip.
All in all the good news outweighs the bad.
But that doctor better be there at 1:20 on Friday.
Yesterday I took some pictures of the flowers in the planters around our office building. They're good news too. See below.

A New Look, Looking Toward a New Day

The older I get, the longer my list of what there will NOT be in Heaven.
Last night I was thinking that the grass in Heaven will be lush and green and weed free--and it will NOT grow. No mowing in Heaven, nosiree. Or maybe it will grow and Satan's minions will come mow it every day, maybe twice every day, while we sip iced tea and watch them. It's a thought, don't you think?
Evelyn and I mowed last night (Tuesday). We had just mowed Saturday, but it was so long we had to catch it or rake it to avoid clumps or rows of dead grass. But I'm not complaining. Come July or August I'll be posting pictures of a yellow, dried-out lawn and frustrated by the drought.
Now, for today's pictures. I got new glasses last week. My new prescription is not that much different from the old, but I had Flex money that was going to go away May 1 if I didn't spend it. So I went to Costco and got two pair, and had to pay very little for them out of my own pocket. So now I have three "looks," although two are very similar.
Which do you like best?

The above are two views of the same pair of glasses (as well as my five o'clock shadow!).

This pair is a lot like my old glasses, but with a thin rim at the top.

These are my old glasses, rimless, lightweight.
Actually, I really like 'em and will probably still wear 'em quite a bit.

A Wonderful Weekend

Friday was my birthday, but we decided to cut grass instead of going out for a big dinner! Afterwards we went to the Raja India restaurant in West Chester and had a wonderful meal.
Saturday morning I was up early to get the oil changed. Then I met Dave Lautzenheiser for breakfast (he treated--at First Watch) before driving to the new Natorp's Garden Center on Snider Road. They have 3-1/2 acres under roof, resplendent with perennials, rose bushes, blooming annuals, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, and herbs and more, much more. We spent at least 90 minutes there oooing and ahhhing over the beautiful, bountiful displays. Checked out some bushes and trees outside too. I didn't buy anything Saturday, but I will be back!
Evelyn and I rode to Indianapolis about 2:30  to join a family-and-friends celebration of Peggy Sweeney's 60th birthday. Peggy is our daughter-in-law's mom; she and her husband, Ed, have been friends almost since the time Geoff and Lisa started dating. We've been with them on family vacations at least twice, and they hosted us at their time share in Hawaii once; and we've been with them unnumbered other times for family gatherings: recitals, weddings, and other times.

Shannon and Lisa ALMOST got
through their sweet tribute to their
mom without crying!

Lisa and her sister, Shannon, and Ed planned a surprise birthday party for Peggy and invited us and the Webers, who have become mutual friends, and Shannon's in-laws, and two dear friends of the Sweeneys from Taylor University.
We were waiting for them at a private room at the Meridian Restaurant in Indy when Geoff and Lisa ushered Ed and Peggy upstairs. I think Peggy really was surprised, which was the first delight of a wonderful evening.
 The food was remarkable. The laughter and fellowship was special. The testimonies offered by Lisa and Shannon and Ed were tender as well as funny. And all of us around the table offered tributes to Peggy. (I even wrote new words to an old tune: "P is for how pleased we are to know you; E is for your energy--you glow! G is for the giggles we've shared with you. Gee, we've had such fun together on the road. Y is for the youthful way you've lived dear: hiking, biking, boating--you have done it all. Put them all together, they spell Peg-gy. Happy birthday, we think you're a doll!")

After dinner we adjourned to Shannon and Craig's house for more visiting, coffee, and a mini birthday cake for me! (Yesterday was the third anniversary of MY 60th birthday!)

Shannon and Craig Lewis's house was the perfect place for picture-taking!

Evelyn, Peggy, and Verna catch up

Lisa, Geoff, and Bill stopped to pose in the middle of a serious conversation.

Larry and Betsy Lewis, Shannon and Craig Lewis . . . and Binkley!

The Sweeney girls, with their handsome husbands and wonderful parents.

We stayed overnight with Bill and Verna, and then the Webers and we and almost the whole party from the night before met at the church where Shannon is events coordinator: College Park Church on the north side of Indy. It was an inspiring worship service, wonderful in every way.

Shannon gave us a tour of the large building, and then the Sweeneys, Shannon and Craig, Geoff and Lisa, and we drove to Taylor Creamery for a superb brunch. The restaurant is tucked into one corner of a huge, working farm. The food is organic and fresh. The time together was as special as the whole weekend had been. Lisa showed me some tricks for using my new camera. 

Two fine and fine-looking people!

We stopped by the little dairy store that's a part of the complex, and then stood in the parking lot and visited for another 30 minutes probably. We were on our way home by 2:00 and arrived here by about 4:00. Just the right amount of time to rest a bit, gear up for the week ahead, and have a nice, long phone visit with Jennifer. We ate popcorn and split my mini birthday cake while we watched an On Demand episode of "Elementary."

The Blossoms in Our Backyard

The crabtree behind our house is blooming beautifully, but very few are seeing it. I decided to snap some pictures of it, as well as the lilac blossoms that are getting ready to pop.

Evelyn mowed the front yard to make it match the height of the backyard. I've already lost track of how many times we've mowed this year, and it's not May yet. We're enjoying the green, though. I'll be bemoaning the dry weather sometime in July or August, so it shows no wisdom to complain now. 

A Verse for the Worst of Spring

When grass is green it's really keen, 

But when it's long it makes me mean.

We cut it daily; it keeps growing.

Now and then and then again, we're mowing,mowing, mowing.

Weekend Update

"April prepares her green traffic light, and the world thinks Go." I heard that quote from Christopher Morley Sunday, and I knew it couldn't have been more perfect for the beautiful, sunny day we were having. This is the time of the year when every lawn is green, and the flowering trees surrounded by daffodils and forsythia make every turn, every suburban neighborhood, another garden show.
To recap the weekend:
Saturday we Skyped with Wendy, and I paid bills. We decided to mow the lawn (for the record: mowing number 3), and Evelyn and I finished it just in time to get our showers and meet Bill and Verna Weber

Sev had a greeting for us
as we arrived Saturday.

to drive over to Paul and Sev Friskney's for a late afternoon meal. I think we're getting together now that the Webers are out of town more than we ever did when they were here! But it's good for all of us, and Bill and Verna come regularly to see Verna's mother at Mason Christian Village. And Verna was teaching a parenting class at White Oak Christian Church Sunday, so it worked out well for them to be here.
Sunday I hosted at the 9:00 service and was blessed by the worship and the sermon. We spent a lot of time after church talking with friends in the hallway. John and Mary Jane Burgess were visiting, and so were Bill and Joni Baker. John and Heather Turner have decided to remake Christ's Church their church home, and we got to see them for a few minutes Sunday too.
We grabbed breakfast at Bob Evans and were home and at work by 12:30.
Evelyn graded papers; I read through/edited the 40 profiles for our July "40 Leaders Under 40" issue and took some stabs at improving an editorial/column draft that I had started Friday. All of it together took me more than 3 hours.
We took our walk, had a nice long phone visit with Jennifer, and ate leftover ham and bean soup while we watched TV. 
Today I was busy finishing up the copy for that "40 Under 40" section to hand off to a designer, dealing with some web issues/problems, approving/tweaking an e-mail that's going out to 344 churches tomorrow, writing an e-mail number 2 that's going to about 150 churches to invite them to a special web seminar this week, writing a letter to those I've recruited to join our group for our cruise/tour this summer, and a couple of other things.

I decided at lunchtime to try to snap a picture of the beautiful blooming trees in the courtyard formed by my office building and the one next to it.

Little Blessings for a Good Day

I diligently packed my lunch last night and then ran off without it this morning. But it was a good day to run out for lunch: sunny and warm. When I walked to my car, I noticed a food truck parked at a sidewalk path nearby. Bones' Burgers. I decided to investigate and discovered the guy was selling more than hamburgers. He offered a salmon burger and a choose-your-own-fillings gourmet grilled cheese option. I chose the special of the day: smoked bacon, munster cheese, and thin-sliced Granny Smith apples--all on fresh made, thick-sliced rosemary bread. Very tasty! I decided to try the sweet potato fries to go with it. I ate 'em all, but it was a big helping. Not only were they seasoned with sea salt but also with pepper or some other spice. They had a kick to 'em. But I ate 'em! It was wonderful standing in the sun waiting for the sandwich, and I ran back down after I ate to snap a picture of the food truck.

Soon afterwards, Scott Ryan came over to help us with design and art in our June issue. He was very pleased with the cover that had been designed by Plain Joe Studios (we are too!), and he gave us some tips for several ways we can make the issue work. He noticed my new camera on the desk and wanted to see it and learn all about it. I showed him the 180-degree flip-up LCD screen that lets you take your own picture, and we decided to give it a try.

This evening Evelyn and I mowed grass: she did half before supper and I finished afterwards. That's the 2nd mowing of the season so far. My car thermometer said 82 degrees on the way home. The grass is green and beautiful in response.

Keester's Coming!

On this day before Easter, I should write something inspirational in keeping with so many posts sprinkled across Facebook today.
Actually, it HAS been inspirational to see the Scripture quotes, graphic designs of Easter messages, and invitations to Easter services tomorrow across the land. It's a warm thought to realize so many of my Facebook friends are working to glorify the risen Christ tomorrow. And several started with Easter services this afternoon. "He is risen" will be repeated a million times tomorrow--it's wonderful!
But so is this picture, don't you agree? Laughter is good, and this one made me laugh out loud when I found it posted on a friend's Facebook page this evening.
Today has been one of those rare and delightful days when I haven't left the house (except to go out in the yard), didn't even start the car--a day all day at home.
Evelyn and I read the paper and ate breakfast this morning. I paid bills, wrote checks for all our monthly donations, and we Skyped with Wendy for about an hour. (They'll be saying "He is risen" in Tanzania tomorrow, too, but Wendy is a bit homesick for all the trappings of our American holiday.)
Evelyn and I worked in the yard this afternoon. She cut the grass. (Here we go: grass cutting number 1 for this season.) And I dug up three rose bushes that need to go and chopped around on three more. I filled both garbage cans with the thorn-laden branches and left one of the dug-up bushes by the side of the house to put out for the garbage Monday night. (I hope those guys wear gloves.)
We were both tired after our first real Saturday yard-work workout. I took a shower and thought about taking a rest, but instead I wrote a draft of the editorial for the issue we send to the printer Wednesday. Susan Aulen called, and we both got to talk with her. And then we ate wonderful leftovers from last night's dinner for dinner tonight.
I think we'll watch a movie on Netflix via our Roku box to relax before bedtime.

Making a Difference

Our church's men's ministry asked me to emcee this morning's Dads Make a Difference seminar that met this morning 7:30-noon. About a hundred guys came for breakfast, followed by two challenges each from Jeff Stone and David Vaughn. I wouldn't have attended if I had been asked to emcee, but I'm not sorry I was there. It was good to get better acquainted with a couple of the guys there, reconnect with Jeff, and hear Dave's heart as he spoke so openly about his own vulnerability and brokenness.

We picked up Wendy from the airport last night about 7:30 and brought her straight home. She took a shower, visited with us a few minutes and went to bed, exhausted. She relaxed through the day at our place. We went to Stein Mart to look for bargains during their big sale; we didn't find any, but Wendy bought a sweater to wear with the dress she plans to wear to the wedding. We ate supper at LaRosa's, came home, and Wendy went straight to bed.

I cut grass in the front yard; Evelyn had cut the back and sides this morning while I was gone.

Happy to Have Company

We enjoyed an 18-hour visit by Jim and Norma Pierson starting yesterday afternoon about 2:00 through breakfast time this morning. When we visited with them last month, we persuaded them to stop by here on their way home from a trip to Wisconsin where Jim was speaking and Chicago where one of his daughters lives with her husband. As we expected, we had a wonderful time!

We decided on the spur of the moment to go downtown to the Cincinnati Museum Center to see the special Pompeii exhibit on display there till August. We learned a lot; it was very well done. We enjoyed it!

Then we came home to enjoy Honey Baked Ham ribs warmed on the grill, Evelyn's potato salad that always bring raves, and Bush's baked beans. (Jim told us there's a Bush's baked beans museum and restaurant not far from where they live! It's on our list to visit sometime when we get south again.)

It was an afternoon and evening full of laughter and great visiting, punctuated by a fun experience and good food.

The good food continued this morning as Evelyn made us Dutch Babies  for breakfast, accompanied by a bowl of the first peaches of the season. They weren't freestone, but they were very tasty!

The Piersons were on the road before 8:30, and I headed off to work. We had been working ahead since Jim Nieman is on vacation for two weeks, so today was a good day to do some planning and tend to some tasks that kept falling to the bottom of my to-do list.

It rained overnight and into the afternoon, but surprisingly, the grass wasn't wet and the ground wasn't soggy after supper, so (for the record) we mowed. (That fertilizer I put down on Memorial Day is really working!)

Mow, Mow, Mow the Yard

I began last spring recording on Facebook every time we cut the grass. I just wanted to know how many times in one season we cut it. But I soon lost track after forgetting to record it a time or two, and I figured it was a little boring anyway--right up there with people telling about their digestive problems or how many brats they ate at the picnic.

I thought about keeping a running total of grass cuttings as a footnote to my daily diary entries, but other activities seemed more pertinent (maybe not always more interesting) to post. So no totals here, but I can guarantee you that we've cut the grass A LOT already this spring, and even though it's been dry the last several days, the lawn was really shaggy tonight, just 4 days after we last cut it (Sunday afternoon). So Evelyn and I went at it after supper.

She had a student once who told her grass mowing was man's work and she shouldn't be doing it. But many days it's either mow the grass for 30 minutes or walk for 30 minutes. So I gladly let her take a half hour behind the mower and I usually use the time for other piddling around the lawn.

Tonight I pinched the blooms off the impatiens plants I've bought for the centerpieces for the wedding. I've been feeding them every day, and I'm going to keep that up for the next 3-1/2 weeks. So I sure HOPE they're blooming again by then. The plan is for them to be bushy and beautiful instead of leggy and lame. We'll see!

A Fine Weekend

The pictures can tell the story of our fine weekend. Friday night we ate dinner with Bill and Verna at their place. Verna fixed a wonderful dinner of pork chops and carrots and asparagus, with salad and rolls. Evelyn brought leftover cookies from Graeters and Costco, and I picked up some ice cream to finish out dessert. Bill begins his work with the Center for Global Impact tomorrow; he said it fits his perfect description of the job he was seeking. We're very happy for both of them.

Saturday morning we Skyped with Wendy Wagoner. "I think I'm just now realizing how sick I really was," she said, reflecting on her bout with malaria. It seems to be gone now, after three rounds of medicine. It was good to laugh with her. She has only a month more of language school and then back to her home base in Arusha, Tanzania.

I finished getting my taxes together and took them to be figured. We get back more from the state than we owe in federal, so all in all, that makes us feel pretty good.

Saturday afternoon I cut the grass. (I want to keep count this year. I believe that's grass cutting number 3 already, all before April 1.) 

Picked flowers for our bouquet for dinner with fun friends (see yesterday's post) and did a little to help Evelyn get ready for company.

This morning I played hymns in the Classic Praise service. The choir sang an anthem with the bell choir--nice.

This afternoon I whacked back our roses (one garbage can and one and 1/2 garbage bags full of thorny branches), edited one issue of Christian Standard, and then Evelyn and I talked with Jen on the phone. 

Ate leftovers for supper and watched "60 Minutes," our Sunday-evening routine.

Routine. It's nice to have a somewhat routine weekend. 

Now on to a four-day work week that promises to offer its own set of challenges.