Not Too Exciting

My little native azalea may not look that impressive to you but it looks gorgeous to me. It seems that the flowering plants this year are giving it their all. That azalea has been such a slow-grower but finally, you can really see it. Most of the plants around it there are phlox which will begin blooming soon. There are also a few fire spike. The rooster planter (which I have nothing planted in), the little blue tile with St. Francis (which I found outside here and which is slightly broken) and the Buddha are all there to mark the resting place of the best rooster ever in the world- Elvis. I buried him in the front yard so that he could keep watch over all of us the way he always kept watch over his hens so diligently. 

I know I have posted this picture of Elvis and Owen at least a dozen times but I never tire of it. My beautiful rooster, my beautiful boy. I believe that Elvis thought that Owen was one of his flock and needed protecting too. I did not mind that in the least. One can never have too much fierce protection in this world. 

I have felt better today and have felt more normal as the day has progressed. I even joined Mr. Moon outside to kick bamboo. He did not kick the bamboo today though. He got out a golf club (why he has golf clubs is beyond me) and started using that and I have to tell you- it worked very well. I just used my plain old foot as usual. Here are a few pictures of what we were up against.

Successful camouflage. 

This one hid underneath the leaves of a culm that got pulled over somehow. One of our storms? And I tell you- these dang sprouts are as big around as my wrist. 

I also watered my porch plants and I found something so heartening. 

The banyan tree lives! Look at that precious little sprout. I am so very pleased. And right next to it I found this.

This is the plant that Kathleen called a tropical gardenia but I don't think that is really its name. I forget what the real name is, though and the bloom on it does look somewhat like a gardenia. Kathleen gave me both of those plants which was yet another reason I did not want to lose them. For those of you who have not been here forever, Kathleen was a very dear friend of mine and absolutely one of the  most unique and wonderful people I've ever met. 
Also possibly in possession of magic powers but of course I don't believe in that sort of thing. I am far too pragmatic for that nonsense. 
However...

I miss her and I would hate to have lost two of the plants she gave me to tend and nurture. 

Here's something else I found while I was watering.

Such tiny little creatures. This one was barely as big as a fifty-cent piece. And speaking of camouflage- these guys know that if they remain perfectly still, the odds are good they will go unnoticed. In fact, I saw the shadow of it from the underside of the leaf before I saw its whole self. That's a bird's nest fern it's on which is a wonderful living and hiding place for a tiny tree frog. They hold water for a long time and provide shelter in the deep center part where the fronds emerge. I can think of worse places to live than in a cool, green fern on a porch with plenty of tasty bugs. 

And so another Sunday. Not so bad, not really. I found signs of life where I feared there were none, I watched my husband slay bamboo with a golf club, and we are going to eat red beans and rice again tonight because they were so good and since most dishes like that always taste even better on the second or third day, I am expecting...magic? 
Pragmatic culinary magic. 

It's supposed to storm tonight or tomorrow. Who knows? Not me. But we are going to get what is considered a cold front at this time of year and I will be more than grateful to have one more chance to be able to go outside without having heat stroke. 
While we were attacking the bamboo today, Mr. Moon asked me, "What are we going to do when it gets hot?" We were both sweating at the time.
"I don't know," I said. "Move to Michigan?"
But of course we can't. Our roots are now deeper and more persistent than those of the bamboo. Our babies are here, our lives are here. And the green beans are coming along so nicely, the potatoes and tomatoes are looking so good. We can't leave now and I'm pretty sure we never will. 

Love...Ms. Moon

Checking In

I have taken no photos today whatsoever but that rose picture was taken within the last week and I do not think I have posted it, although I may have. That rose bush grows in the little area by the kitchen where the bananas grow along with a sad gardenia, the leopard plant, some oregano, pine cone lilies, and at least five kinds of invasive plants that I can't begin to keep on top of. That rose has more blooms on it this year than I've ever seen on it before. 

Okay, okay. I took a picture. 

The roses are mostly blown now but they were glorious for a red hot second. That's another one of those places in my yard that I should hire a backhoe guy to come and scrape down to the bone. 

This will never happen. I will just look at it and chastise myself for not tending to it every time I walk by it or look at it through the screen door in the kitchen which means about fifty times a day. 
I did just realize that I have an amaryllis about to bloom. 

It's been so long since I've seen an amaryllis bloom in that spot, I'd forgotten it was there. I may or may not have brought those bulbs with me from the last house we lived in. I tend to think I did but as always, I could be wrong.

So here's what I have discovered about the shingles vaccination: it is rough. 
I swear, I've felt worse today than I did when I had covid. That is no lie. I slept until ten this morning and spent the day aching and hurting and doing nothing but looking at stuff online. I kept thinking about watching TV and doing some sort of needlework but that seemed way too involved and possibly strenuous. I finally went back to bed and slept for another hour and when I got up, I remembered the wonder drug, ibuprofen, and took two of them. 
Now I feel almost human again. 
On the other hand, Mr. Moon has spent most of the day outside, doing things with a ladder and getting a truck ready to show to a possible buyer and showing the truck to the possible buyer and I have no idea what all. 
The entire reaction that his body has manifested from the vaccine is a slightly sore arm. 
I am at once very glad for him and also infuriated. I feel as if he must think I am making this up and being a baby when I most definitely am not. He doesn't give me any reason to think he feels that way, it's just my own psyche telling me that I am indeed just making this up and he's too kind to call me on it. Mr. Moon simply does not give in to illness or discomfort which can drive me crazy. Now in this case, I don't think he is having much of a reaction. But when he IS sick, which is rare, he refuses to acknowledge pain or fatigue or the need to rest which makes me insane and sometimes cry. Which is not to say he does not have his own little things that do cause him discomfort that I cannot fathom be bothered by. Luckily, they are few.

I put a pot of red beans to soak last night and have been cooking them all day with an onion, garlic, celery, and peppers. That has taken little to no exertion on my part. I've never cooked red beans before. Frankly, my favorite beans are pintos. Black beans come in a close second. Garbanzos are right up there too. But Glen wanted some and so why not? They are served with rice and I already have some chicken and rice that I made a few nights ago and I will be using that. Definitely not the traditional way to go but so what? Do I look like I'm worried the Traditional Cajun Cooking Police will come and arrest me? 
Oh wait. That joke isn't as funny as it used to be. 

I certainly hope that I am feeling better tomorrow. I am deathly afraid the bamboo is going to be out of control if I don't get out there and kick it. I don't even want to go look right now. I'd also like to get at least a few of my cherry tomato seedlings into the ground and also figure out where I want to plant the horsemint Liz Sparks gave me. I'm having a deep internal dilemma about what to plant in a very large pot that I had Glen move onto the back porch steps for me yesterday. I had thought maybe I'd like herbs there but then I got the notion that it is time and past time to repot the sea grape that I grew from seed. I love that plant as if it were my child. 
Well, almost.

Speaking of my child. 

Gibson is now officially taller than his Uncle Hank. He's taller than me, too, but we needn't discuss that. Hank and Rachel took Gibson out today, just him, for his birthday present. They had lunch and ice cream and went to Target and a comic book place, and Gibson got to choose where they went. I love that my grandchildren have fun aunts and uncles who do things with them and love them and spend time with them. That means everything to a child. 
You know what? It means a lot to all of us to have people in our lives like that. We never outgrow that. 

I see that at least 1200 protests were organized and carried out in the US today and that is a beautiful thing. I am sure many people I know were at the ones in Tallahassee. Every person who showed up at any of these demonstrations is a better person than I am. That's just the truth of it. There was even a demonstration a few miles from Mar-A-Lago where Tangelo In Chief was... hanging out on the golf course at the Seniors' Club Championship. 
Of course. 

I think I'm fading here. 

Love...Ms. Moon

It Was A Good Date, All Things Considered

Some of you may remember how in years past, a cowbird came to my bathroom window in spring, perched on a bamboo twig, and then repeatedly bashed his head into the window. 
REPEATEDLY! 
When I got up this morning and went into my bathroom, he was back, slamming his tiny skull over and over into the window. I think he may have been going after that green crystal. 
"Well, hello, bird!" I told him. He paid me no mind whatsoever but continued his routine: perch, balance, dive into the window, perch, balance... 
And he did not stop doing this for at least two hours. I really should wash that window but that would require a ladder on the outside and I'm not here for that, as the kids say these days. Or maybe they said it last year but whatever. 

It has been a funny day and fortunately, I've been in a good enough mood to take things as they have come and not get upset. First of all, today was supposedly Maggie's school's Grandparents Day Lunch, as I said yesterday. So I made our sandwiches and wrapped them up and got out the Cheetos and chips in the little bags that I'd bought for us, and packed all those up with some pickled green beans and the mini cupcakes and a "fancy drink" for Maggie which is grape juice and ginger ale. I put that in an insulated cup with ice for her and carefully tucked it into the bag with everything else and off we went to her school where we were on-the-dot-on-time but...
There was no one outside at a table to direct the grandparents to where they were supposed go go and there were no other grands in sight with their bags of lunch food and I knew with a sinking heart that Maggie had given me the wrong day when she called a few weeks ago and yes, she had. Which come on- I should have verified. Maggie is just so sure of things that I hadn't even thought of checking to see if today was the right date. She may only be nine but in my mind, she is at least thirty-two, so who am I to question her? 
Sigh. 
God. I even put on mascara. 
"Hope to see you next week!" said the helpful lady in the office. 
I'm sure she will. 

So now- what to do? We had an hour and a half before our appointments to get our vaccines. It was already too hot to consider a picnic with what I'd packed, so we went to the Wharf for lunch where both of us have eaten recently but we never really get tired of the Wharf. 
When we were eating our lunch, I looked around and said, "There are a lot of old people here," and Glen said, "Yes there are."
"We'll probably eat here when we're old too," I said. 
We laughed. 
And that was sort of the theme of the day- just laugh about it. We were on a date! Or at least what two people who have been married for forty years can consider a date. I mean, we were a little bit dressed up and we were together and we ate a meal in a restaurant. That's a date, right? 
So, okay, vaccinations were involved. We drove to Publix which is where we get our vaccines and they were all ready for us. Mr. Moon's appointment was first. The vaccine-giver called him Mr. Glen and she called me "Miss Mary." 
This is how it is done in the south. Some women get upset when they are addressed with a "Miss" in front of their name as this is an indication of older age. I don't mind it at all. I like it. Yes, it does mean I am older and look older but it's also a title of respect for that age. 
At least that's how I choose to see it.
Mr. Glen got his shot with absolutely no outward reaction at all. I carefully studied his face and eyes as the needle entered his arm. So that seemed to bode well for me. I sat down and the pharmacy lady went through all the alcohol and sterilizing rituals on my arm and then she gave me the shot. Now I'm not afraid of needles. When I was a child, I was terrified of them but for some reason, I got over that entirely. So I wasn't expecting to be much affected in any way. I relaxed my arm and waited and the needle went in like silk. The lady had a good hand and a good technique. BUT as the vaccine itself made its journey from syringe to my own personal arm, I got the strangest jolt. Almost like a very mild electric shock. I was not expecting that at all. I even jerked my arm. However, the tech said that all of the medication was indeed delivered so that was fine. 
Still- weird.

And then Glen and I did something we never do together which was to grocery shop. If we ever have to start doing that regularly for some reason, ANY reason, our marriage could be in danger. I do all the food shopping unless I ask him to pick up something on his way home and although yes, I certainly do pay attention to sales and BOGO's and so forth, I refuse to buy three of something like twelve-packs of ginger ale because it's "buy two, get one free." Hell no. We won't use that much ginger ale for the rest of our lives and who wants to clutter up the house with ginger ale that will never get consumed? Not me. On the other hand Mr. Moon is practically incapable of passing up the best deal, no matter what the particulars are. But we were rather lighthearted about it and this was not a serious grocery shopping. I wanted some red beans because he has expressed an interest in having those for dinner soon and I also wanted to get some chicken pot pies in case I feel so bad tomorrow that I can't cook. The brand of coffee we like was on BOGO and he put about twenty bags of that in the cart so at least he felt like he got a great deal on something. 

And for some reason, no more discernible to me than the reasons I have for waking up and crying some days, today I have felt a lightness of being that I wish with all my heart I could feel every day. 

It is martini time and there are crisp, clean sheets on the bed. My zinnias are coming up and so is the squash. The rattlesnake beans are throwing their green hair-like tendrils to lasso the fence they will be growing on. Mr. Moon moved the Roseland mango back out to the yard and I am sure it is as happy as it can be out there. So far my only reaction to the vaccine is a sore arm and as I told my husband- it only hurts when I move it. We shall see what tomorrow brings. 

The world economy may be shot and the world as we know it on the pathway to hell and destruction but for right this second, right here in Lloyd, I am taking a break from despair. 

Happy Friday, y'all. 

Love...Ms. Moon

And Now I know What A Culm Is

I picked the last full camellia in the yard just now and put it in a vase. The shocking pink azaleas blossoms beside the porch have finally lost their joy and color and are turning brown as we speak. They certainly gave me a lot of pleasure, as did the camellias. 
I've seen the father cardinals feeding their young on the feeder which means that at least one whole generation of spring babies have hatched, feathered, and are so very close to living on their own. I love to watch the way the daddies pick up a seed and put it in the waiting beak of their young'un who is almost as big as the adult bird. I like that it is not just the mother who feeds the children but the father too. 
The bamboo still has perhaps two weeks more of showing up unannounced and unasked for. No matter how careful I am to try and find and kick each and every shoot, I always miss some and don't find them until they're too big to take out with a kick. As they grow upwards, they also grow in diameter and become less pliable and harder to kick.
Okay. That sentence is just nature and science so don't accuse me of anything.

But what happens is that I'll inevitably find four or five-foot tall bamboo growing someplace like the camellia bed or right beside the porch where it successfully camouflaged itself as part of the structure which means there's no way I'm taking that thing out without a saw. "How did I miss that?" I'll say to myself, gazing up at an almost mature stem which I just discovered is called a "culm". Now that I did not know. I am trying to prevent culms in the yard. 

I made a very nice discovery just a little while ago which is that the pot of giant begonias I'd left outside during winter's cold, protected only by a sheet, is not dead at all, but coming back beautifully. 

Having seen that, I checked out the pot where the split-leaf philodendron looked suspiciously dead, I dug around and found this.

Hello, my darling green things! 

Now if the banyon and tropical gardenia on the front porch start to show any signs of life, I will be most happy. And if they don't...aw well. 

I was looking for an empty pot when I found those two sweethearts this afternoon. Liz Sparks, whom I met for breakfast, gave me some rootlings of a plant known as horsemint and some other common names but its Latin name is the most fun of all and is Mornarda Punctata. I think it can be a bit invasive and we know where that could lead us so I think I'll try to grow it in a container. Liz says that it is a fabulous pollinator attractor. I'd seen the plant before as it is quite noticeable in bloom but did not know what it was. 

I made two appointments today. One for the kidney stone scan and one to get my shingles vaccine. The scan will be in a couple of weeks and I discovered that the order wasn't sent from my urologist's to the place I thought it had been sent to (and even given a card for by staff at the urology place) but the radiology department of the local hospital. 
Whatever. 
The shingles vaccine I know I need because I have heard that getting shingles is not an experience anyone would ask for and if it can be prevented...

I also made Glen an appointment to get one.
Our shingles vaccines are scheduled for tomorrow after we have had lunch with Ms. Magnolia June at her school as it is lunch with grandparents day there. We bring her lunch and join her in the school cafeteria. She wanted the same thing she wanted last year which is a ham and lettuce and tomato sandwich with mayonnaise, cheetos, and mini cupcakes. She called me herself several weeks ago to give me a heads-up about the date. This is the sort of thing that Maggie thrives on. And what elementary-aged child does not like being the special one every now and then?

I've heard the shingles vaccine can lay a person out for a day or two and I am such an over-reactor to vaccines I am expecting that. The damn thing is, is that I really don't feel that well now. Achy, tired (I took a nap!) and rather unexcited about life in general. And I see that Trump has managed to tank the world economy, starting right here in the good ol' USA by not having the slightest clue how tariffs work or what they are and although some good things are happening, especially as to people being stunned at his administration's stupidity, not one day goes by without a completely new low being hit.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama accidentally photobombed a little family taking family photos in Washington, DC.  

You know what I did when I saw that picture?

I cried. 

You know what I did just now when I looked at it again? 

I cried. I cried for what America was when we elected Barack Obama as our president and what it has become now. 

How in hell did this happen? 

Love...Ms. Moon

How We Learn To Love And A Possible Social Blunder

Those are the roses planted by Lily's front door. Aren't they electric? They greeted me when I went to pick her up to go to pottery class this morning. 

Man. I am getting good at this getting-up-early thing. I'm not saying I want to do it every day but it's not that hard and knowing that I will be doing something with two of my kids that I enjoy makes it all the easier. I have never not had a good time in pottery class except for the time I felt so defeated by my inability to create anything of use or even halfway interesting to look at. And I really still haven't although I do love my wavy bowl. Today I decided that I really wanted to sit back down at the wheel. I was terrible at throwing the first two classes I tried it and so gave it up and went on to slab building and pinch pots. 
But today was the day I wanted to try again. My teacher really did help me and the video I watched a few days ago on how to center the clay helped too. I felt more comfortable today even though my first try collapsed on me and the second try was so very far from perfect. BUT, I did it, I made a vessel (of sorts) and will trim and sand it next week. And I think I will try again. Funny how much I am starting to enjoy this stuff. And it is so very, very special having both Lily and Jessie with me in the class. As always when any of our family gets together, we laugh. 

So. Here's a funny story about something that happened today:
There was a piece that someone had done sitting by the edge of the sink and Lily and I were washing up something and we were a little concerned about how close it was to the edge. It was a cool piece and we both saw the same thing in it- a woman's nether parts. I mean, plain as day. And lovely! Someone else came up to the sink and we shared with the woman our admiration of this piece and Lily pointed out that there was definitely a vagina in there. 
Well. Turns out the woman herself had done that piece but the funny, awkward part was when she said, "I never thought of that as a vagina." 
Ooh boy. 
How could she not have? 
I hope we didn't ruin it for her. I mean, we sort of worship vaginas around here, having our home births and working in the birth field and all that other stuff. So to us, vaginas are as lovely as a flower's beautiful entryway for the bees. But I suppose that not everyone is of that mindset. 

We went to lunch after class which was very good. We ate at a noodle place and I got something called Jjajangmyeon. It looked like this. 

And underneath all that vegetable glory, there were noodles, beef, and mushrooms with a sauce. So, so good. 

And of course I did other things this afternoon, although NOT OUTSIDE. 

And that was in the shade on the porch. 
Here we go. Next thing up- HURRICANE SEASON! 
Why, why, why do we live here? 

But. In a complete segue, Levon got a card from his girlfriend today. It is absolutely and completely beautiful and the the girl asked him if he likes her, told him she loved him, and drew pictures of them together with butterflies and rainbows. There was even another little girl in one of the pictures who was hugging Levon and we are not sure about that one but we think that the girlfriend just loves her too and so why not? 
Oh, my heart. 
I was going to share the pictures but I can't. It is too pure and too much Levon's and not mine to share. I will tell you he made HER a card, declaring that yes, he liked her and that he loves her very much. Rainbows and hearts and a shining yellow sun are part of the accompanying artwork. 
I would never, ever make fun or make light of a romance between seven year-olds. That is plenty old enough for some children to start feeling the specialness of another child their age and the desire to form a bond of sorts with them. I never had a boy who liked me at that age but I can remember how deeply I felt I was in love with a boy at my school. He was two years older than me and I spent hours trying to figure out how we could somehow be in the same grade and classroom. I could skip a grade and he could be held back a grade but I knew he would never be held back. He was a smart boy. 
It was a doomed relationship. 
But all these years later I remember how handsome I thought he was, how kind, how smart. His mother was a teacher at our school and a good friend of my mother's and his father was our pastor so I saw him outside of school too and that only acted to make me think about him, admire him, fall a little in love with him, all the more. I will never forget the year I played Mary in the Christmas nativity play and he played...Joseph. My doll played the role of the Sweet Baby Jesus.

Oh my heart. 

So that's some of the things that have happened here today. As always, nothing earth-shattering, just small and simple things and I have been of a mind and mood to recognize and appreciate them more than I have been for awhile. 

Here's what the buckeye tree is looking like. 

I feel like a proud mama. 

Love...Ms. Moon

Life In Lloyd, Part Gozillion, And Blackdogitis

Oh, how I wish I could get a better picture of this wild azalea. There's a sort of bog around it though and although there is a dryer side, it's on someone's property right by their house and as you probably know by now, I am hyper-sensitive about encroaching on anyone's space. I think this is also a rural thing. Your home and property are yours and there's a certain feeling that if anyone wants to come onto that property by foot or by car, they should be invited. We look upon strangers pulling up into our yards with a certain amount of suspicion. If a politician or a Jehovah's Witness knocks at our door, we are already slightly annoyed. 

So that's why I didn't get a very good picture of the native azalea I passed on my walk. I felt so shit this morning that I knew I had to give walking at least a shot. It is so pretty here right now, even if it is getting hot enough to require the clinical strength deodorant. What does that mean? Clinical strength? I have no idea but it sounds serious, doesn't it? "Oh, regular deodorant isn't strong enough for me. I need clinical strength!"
And please do not tell me that deodorant is going to kill me. I'm too old to worry about that. 
So yes, I walked a couple of miles and it was okay, despite the heat. The humidity is rising as summer approaches and it really is much less enjoyable to walk when the air is saturated with water. We should develop gills around here. I'm surprised we haven't. 

On Main Street, which is hardly what you'd think of as a Main Street, there's an old house that I've been taking pictures of for a long time. I don't know if you'll remember but it was owned by an old couple whom I think were probably hoarders and eventually had to move out into a mobile home on the back of the property. When they died, someone, possibly a relative, cleared out the house and did a lot of work on it. It was sort of a creepy house and honestly, the man of the couple who owned it was also creepy. I do not wish to define that, but just trust me.

It does appear now that the refurbishing/restoration has been completed, up to and including a porch swing and flowers planted. 

It certainly looks better than it did before but I hate the black-shingled roof. The house had a metal roof, as all of the older houses around here do and that just looks absurd to me. 

I don't know if someone is moving in to it or if it's going up for sale, or what but it still feels a little creepy to me, even with the fresh new paint, the blue door, the pots of flowers on the porch. 

Here's another picture taken on Main Street.

I love that tree so much. It is huge and obviously very old. Hundreds of years old, I am sure. It's on property owned by the Methodist Church which the guy at the dump tried to recruit me to last week and if those people had any sense, they'd be worshipping the tree, not White Jesus in their red brick church. 

Well, no one asked me.

When I got home, I took a little look around my front yard and saw to my surprise that my own native azalea, which I planted years ago, is starting to bloom.

When I planted it, I'm not sure I knew it was one of the orange-flowered ones but it is. I rarely ever see those and have never seen one growing on its own in the woods around here. And I just noticed the little anole on the fence post behind and below the not-quite-opened bud in the second picture. Can you see it?

Speaking of critters. I was watering my nursery plants in the laundry room today when suddenly, a little tree frog jumped out of a plant and on to another planter. 

A frog planter! 

Sweet little thing. I suppose I should have tried to catch it and take it outside but it has water and bugs, too, in that little group of plants in there. 

After lunch I walked to the back yard to see what the bamboo shoot situation was like. 
It was like, "Oh shit."

Can you see all the bamboo trying to convert even more of my yard to a jungle? And of course that's just one small part of it. So I kicked a lot of bamboo and then, in my camellia bed, I found these blooming. 

Do I remember planting blue flag irises there? 
No. I do not. In fact, I really don't think I did but there you go and here we are and I am glad to see them. 

Hell, I've probably written about them before. 

And I think that's all the pictures I took today and it would seem that I am feeling better and I suppose I am but it has not been an easy day. I woke up and cried and then cried later on and and then later on again and this is not unusual for me but it does indicate a level of, well, whatever we want to call it that is not comfortable, not really. 
I know that I have things I am not dealing with properly and that's not good. I'm not comfortable confronting problems head on. Whether this is just part of how I'm wired or if it's yet another dysfunctional method of coping that I learned growing up, I do not know. 
Keep your head down and your mouth shut. 
This may sound strange coming from me but you'd be surprised...

And then of course, there's the Current Situation which is ongoing, ever more deeply horrifying and unbelievable, and, well... you don't need Elon's team of accountants to add it all up and figure out that it's just an incredibly depressing and anxious time to be alive. 

But, as we speak, that pink azalea beside the porch is still very pink and very full of blooms, the cardinals are doing their evening routine of lining up in the magnolia tree and the camellia bushes to wait their turns at the feeder, and, uh- that's all good stuff, right? 

Right! 

Carry on. 

Love...Ms. Moon

P.S. Bless Cory Booker. A patriot, a hero, a man of strength, intelligence, and great heart. 

It's All Right

Y'all, I am tired. And for what may be the first time in however many years I've been writing here, I just don't feel like doing it. 
I am not only not inspired, I'm filled with who cares? and what's the point? 

Nothing's wrong in any specific way, and in fact, the entire family except for Rachel who was not feeling well, met up for supper for a Gibson birthday celebration since everyone was sick on his birthday. It was a good time, although overwhelming with noise and stimulation as these things go, but when we all said goodbye and there were so very many hugs (if there are fifteen people and each one of them gives fourteen hugs, how many hugs were given?) I was happy. 

I didn't get a picture of Owen but he has grown another inch, at least. 

And that's it for me tonight. 

Love...Ms. Moon