Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
The man sitting next to me on the plane was a source of
concern. In his early thirties he seemed a little high strung.
Our initial conversation before the airplane took off was about the age of the craft. It appeared to be quite old to him as there were ashtrays in each armrest. To me the seats looked like any other and the plane shook like the rest as we headed up into the sky.
Then there was the tapping of the feet and the unending restlessness. He was cold. Then hot. Put on an extra shirt and then took it off. Kept rubbing his one hand. Then couldn't get comfortable. Constant moving. As he had the seat next to the window and had to get past me to get to the aisle I wasn't too worried that he was going to run screaming out the plane door but something clearly had to be done.
So I started the conversation with the "Are you going to Honolulu for business?" question. No, he was moving there. After more restlessness I suggested that he walk up and down the aisle to get warm. (And work off some energy though I didn't tell him that). He did and then came back to tell me more of the story. He was from a town in Florida where I had lived for many years. His business had failed, he lost his house to foreclosure, His wife had been a teacher who lost her job/s. No maternity leave available and her job was given to someone else each time a child was born. Through the death of a family member they had inherited a house and money in Hawaii. He had job waiting for him. The wife and tiny children were already there.
Took him 6 weeks to sell most of the family belongings. Then came the phone call that his toddler daughter was found walking on the H1 (which is a major freeway in Hawaii). She was being watched by another relative who left her alone with unlocked doors and the child did what other 2 year olds do. Walked out the front door.
He got the first ticket to Hawaii that he could.
Finally he fell asleep leaving me to ponder the purpose of strangers in each others lives. Not to say that the trip was smooth sailing after this. Still a lot of agitation and walking up and down the aisles. But by the end of the trip he was teasing me about would I be able to find my son's apartment via the waiting rental car and pointing out different sights as we were landing.
I wish him well.
Our initial conversation before the airplane took off was about the age of the craft. It appeared to be quite old to him as there were ashtrays in each armrest. To me the seats looked like any other and the plane shook like the rest as we headed up into the sky.
Then there was the tapping of the feet and the unending restlessness. He was cold. Then hot. Put on an extra shirt and then took it off. Kept rubbing his one hand. Then couldn't get comfortable. Constant moving. As he had the seat next to the window and had to get past me to get to the aisle I wasn't too worried that he was going to run screaming out the plane door but something clearly had to be done.
So I started the conversation with the "Are you going to Honolulu for business?" question. No, he was moving there. After more restlessness I suggested that he walk up and down the aisle to get warm. (And work off some energy though I didn't tell him that). He did and then came back to tell me more of the story. He was from a town in Florida where I had lived for many years. His business had failed, he lost his house to foreclosure, His wife had been a teacher who lost her job/s. No maternity leave available and her job was given to someone else each time a child was born. Through the death of a family member they had inherited a house and money in Hawaii. He had job waiting for him. The wife and tiny children were already there.
Took him 6 weeks to sell most of the family belongings. Then came the phone call that his toddler daughter was found walking on the H1 (which is a major freeway in Hawaii). She was being watched by another relative who left her alone with unlocked doors and the child did what other 2 year olds do. Walked out the front door.
He got the first ticket to Hawaii that he could.
Finally he fell asleep leaving me to ponder the purpose of strangers in each others lives. Not to say that the trip was smooth sailing after this. Still a lot of agitation and walking up and down the aisles. But by the end of the trip he was teasing me about would I be able to find my son's apartment via the waiting rental car and pointing out different sights as we were landing.
I wish him well.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
We said our goodbyes at school today.
The goodbye song was sung for the last time today. The room was quiet for a moment until a sweet voice said a little wistfully - "I love everybody."
Could not have said it better myself.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
We picked 15 plus
pounds of berries yesterday morning. The week before (when the photo was taken) I picked over 18 pounds of strawberries. Many have gone into the freezer and into 2 batches of jam.
It's been a busy week. Dental work, violin group practice and gardening took up more time than I thought they would. Graduation came at preschool on Friday even though there are 3 make up days left of classes (due to snow). Then 2 days of room cleanup and prep for summer camp which will be in mid June.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Thank you for
your comments. A. Amelia, I will see if I can put in a larger photo in the header sometime. :-).
The big news here is that S1 has decided to move back to VA this summer. He will go back to Va Tech in the fall to get an Master's in Education. He found that he prefers teaching to researching. At the risk of sounding selfish and self-centered I am pleased.
So, in July we will welcome him back with big smiles.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
I am back.
quicker than expected.
I played around with new titles to the blog, cleaned it up a bit, changed the header writing style and decided on a relevent background.
I am still unsure of the title. Should I keep Life on Two Acres? My other choice is Sliver of Blue. Which goes along with the header photo. Blue skies that show through clouds. A metaphor you could say.
Let me know what you think.
If you don't care let me know that also.
Thanks.
I played around with new titles to the blog, cleaned it up a bit, changed the header writing style and decided on a relevent background.
I am still unsure of the title. Should I keep Life on Two Acres? My other choice is Sliver of Blue. Which goes along with the header photo. Blue skies that show through clouds. A metaphor you could say.
Let me know what you think.
If you don't care let me know that also.
Thanks.
Sunday, May 01, 2011
A pause
is coming to this blog.
As I sat down to write a post last night I realized that it (the post) had no life or passion to it. None whatsoever.
And I realized that I have been writing this blog since April 2005. 6 years. My children have grown up from teenagers into men. We have lost 3 pets. I have traveled more than I had ever imagined.
I'm feeling in need of a bit of a recharge. I want this blog to be a little fresher, to have more of a direction. Though I will continue to check in and comment on your blogs this one will be taking a sabbatical for ?. I hate not to give you a date but lets say I won't let it go past September 1st without an update. Maybe my muse will reappear before then :-).
As I sat down to write a post last night I realized that it (the post) had no life or passion to it. None whatsoever.
And I realized that I have been writing this blog since April 2005. 6 years. My children have grown up from teenagers into men. We have lost 3 pets. I have traveled more than I had ever imagined.
I'm feeling in need of a bit of a recharge. I want this blog to be a little fresher, to have more of a direction. Though I will continue to check in and comment on your blogs this one will be taking a sabbatical for ?. I hate not to give you a date but lets say I won't let it go past September 1st without an update. Maybe my muse will reappear before then :-).
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