Tag: relaxing on the back porch

Lise Arrives

Neighbor Holly took me to the airport to pick up daughter Lise. The photo I have shows none of the angst of the 24 hours before. Lise’s flight was canceled, and she was told she could make it to Asheville by 8:00 pm instead of 5:00. That wouldn’t work, because Holly doesn’t drive at night. By sheer persistence, Lise was able to get a seat on the original flight from Atlanta. I knew when I got up the next morning, that Lise had already landed in Amsterdam. Whew! When we stopped for a traffic light, I asked the girls to face each other and took a quick photo.

The next day Lise and I ate at a local restaurant that no one else is willing to go to. It’s like a Southern diner, open long hours seven days a week. To me the food is good and the prices reasonable. It was a lovely way to start our first full day together.

A few hours later, we were sitting on the back porch when I got the message from son John $ that he had returned safely from his camping trip. He had been in some big wilderness in either Washington state or Idaho. A hiking rule is that you always let someone know where you are going and when you are due back. I was the appointed person who knew the facts about his car, license tag, and camping plans. Knowing he had seen a grisly bear on his previous trip there, I was happy to know he was safely home from the current hike. Lise and I were chatting on the porch, so I took this photo of her to send her brother.

John sent me a picture of a waterfall and a selfie he had taken by using a timer on his phone. I am a stay-at-home person, but my children get around!

More Time with Kate

Daughter Kate and I enjoyed working the family puzzle together. Her sister Lise magnanimously gave up the first working so that Kate could do it first this year. Surprisingly, I could see the pieces in sunlight well enough to fit in about an eighth of them.

Our last meal out was at Kanini’s where Kate had the BLAT – bacon, lettuce, avocado, and tomato sandwich. I had never had chicken and waffles, a fad dish from a decade or so ago. At this place it was the hot Nashville version, which I enjoyed.

Our last evening together, Kate kicked back and relaxed on the porch. We watched birds feeding on the ground and hummingbirds flitting about their hanging feeders. Seeing a couple of bluebirds was exciting for me, and Kate liked the detail of the towhee, which she had seen from a distance before. We were serenaded by a croaking frog. This year, for the first time, the frog was there almost every evening. I haven’t seen it yet, but it was moving about on the ground, judging by the sound.

Kate used an old windshield wiper to clean off her car windows before leaving at 7:00 a.m. Seeing the mist behind her, I knew the gorge would be foggy and a bit more dangerous than usual. The interstate highway shares a narrow space with a stream between mountains. She drove carefully and was soon in bright sunlight heading north. Watching her progress on my phone, I knew she was near her destination. She called at 8:00 p.m. to make sure I knew she was home safely.