Yesterday Was a Good Day

Actually, most of my days are good....pretty much ALL of them.  Butch and I really love our life together at this stage of our lives.  As he likes to say, "I do my thing, Sherri does hers, and then we do something together."

Yesterday was one of those days.  He got started early with the lawn and then moved on to "Butchering" (my word for his pruning technique) the "ficus elastica" -- rubber tree -- that would over grow our whole house if he let it.  Beau loves that tree because it is home to a million little lizards.  Well. maybe not really a million, but too many to count, anyway.  It also provides a shady, sandy area where he can lie down and wait for the squirrels to come out to play.  The leaves are huge on the rubber tree.  It screens the large window in the dining room and affords us a lot of privacy and keeps the afternoon sun off that room.

"Ficus Elastica"

I have digressed.  But, this tree has fascinated me since we moved in here over 19 years ago.  I could not resist talking about it.  Half of the tree is bundled up and sitting at the curb for yard waste pickup tomorrow.  I was really upset the first time he "pruned" that tree.  I thought for sure he had killed it.  But after 19 years, I have come to realize that nothing he does to this thing will kill it.  The weather here in central west Florida is perfect for it.  Within a week, it will be sprouting more branches from where he has just cut it back.  Reminds me of the pyracantha fire thorn we had on the side of the house in Midlothian, Virginia.  Nothing would kill it either.  I liked that plant/tree, too.

Pyracantha Fire Thorn

Oh, my.  I am all over the place with this post! I need to get back on track here.

While he worked in the yard, I did a little housework. Damn little.  And then made a grocery list because we were out of breakfast Cesars for Beau.  We could eat peanut butter sandwiches, but the D-O-G needs to have his preferred breakfast.  Then I thought about my friend, Dolores, and the "Shutterbug" basket she is putting together to raise money at the "Fun & Games Day" the Woman's Club is holding at the Heritage Center later this month.  I had promised her a card and bookmark.  I also had a very pretty faux stained glass wine glass and a picture frame decorated in shells. So I wrapped them carefully and grabbed the card and bookmark I had decided upon -- my favorite of those I painted the other day.

There is just something about this particular set that I really liked.  I am hoping whoever wins the basket will really like them, too.

I kissed Butch's sweaty face (only a woman still truly in love would do that) and headed for Dolores and Bob's place, conveniently located just off Meres on my route to Sweet Bay and the dog food.  Dolores was having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as Bob let me and my treasures into the house.  She stopped and insisted I sit awhile so we could catch up.  I hadn't seen her since the tea.  I have no idea how long I was there, but it was quite awhile.  She probably had to make herself a fresh sandwich after I left. Ha. Ha.

Grocery shopping done, I pulled into the garage around 2:30 with a car loaded with food for us as well as for Beau.  After repackaging the meat and putting everything away, I changed clothes and started to paint again.  I finished four more sets of cards and bookmarks including an extra bookmark of each designwhich will be sold or given away separately.

After dinner, I punched the holes in the bookmarks and added tassels and packaged them in cellophane bags.  I showed them to Butch.  He said he liked them all but the last two were his favorites. "Where did you get the idea?"  "I don't know.  I probably saw some loose flowers piled somewhere."  He smiled and hugged me.  The smile said it all.

As I said, yesterday was a good day.  Today will be even better.  We do our thing together all day today.  If I do any painting it will be in the art nook just off the great room where I can watch the race with him.  He'll have the Sunday paper in his lap and continue to read interesting articles out loud as he comes across them.

And, Beau?  He thanked me for getting a new supply of his breakfast Cesar meals.  Cesar, the breakfast of little champions. ;-)