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| Feijoa/Pineapple Guava Flower |
The feijoa/pineapple guava trees (I have two growing in the garden, currently; a third one died) are flowering. The flowers are edible, but, I am leaving them on the trees to set fruit! The birds like the flowers, too; hummingbirds enjoy the nectar and mockingbirds like to eat the petals.
Yesterday (Monday) was a bit of an odd day for me. Sunday night, I went to sleep around 2:30 a.m. (well, early Monday morning, I suppose), fully expecting to sleep till about 9:00 a.m., which is when my alarm would ring. Imagine my surprise when I woke up at 4:30 a.m., feeling wide awake! I had a drink of water and tried to go back to sleep, but, decided to get up at 5:00 a.m. It was still dark, outside. I turned off the porch lights, brushed my teeth, had a cup of tea, and said my morning devotions. Then, I replied to blog comments, read a few blogs, etc., and watched the sky lighten up. I am unable to view the sunrise from my house even though the family room window and sliding glass door faces east because there is a distant hill, a two-story house, and a huge pine tree that block my view. Eventually, I made myself a scrambled egg for breakfast and put away a load of laundry from the weekend.
Then, around 11:00 a.m., I went back to bed and slept for a couple of hours! After I woke up, I took the kitchen compost to the compost pile and spread two bags of shredded paper (including the bits I had cut by hand, previously) on one of the planting beds at the back, along the back wall. Last year, I spread a bag of shredded paper on one of the rose beds after I had weeded it and it made an excellent mulch/weed barrier! Then, I picked some oranges, broccoli side shoots, and peapods. I also took the trash cans to the curb for pick up on Tuesday morning, as I knew I would be too tired to do so after we return from the funeral in the evening.
Daughter had eaten some leftover pasta with the last sausage for her brunch. I took the rest of the leftover pasta, added some shredded cooked chicken, some of the peapods and broccoli side shoots, plus a few mizuna leaves and a handful of roasted peanuts and made chicken "chow mein" for my lunch! Daughter had some of it as a snack before we went to the funeral.
I drove us to the funeral and daughter drove us back. We got there about 5 minutes before the viewing started. Daughter was able to take plenty of photos and there was someone recording it, as well. Open casket viewing from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., followed by the funeral Mass from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., with refreshments served afterwards in an outdoor patio area. There were about 30 people at the church, some in masks, some with their masks being worn as a chin strap, others without masks! (Indoor mask mandates have been lifted.) My daughter and I wore N95 masks and kept our masks on all the time. Someone did open all the church windows, which could be tilted out about 5 inches, before the viewing began, so there was some ventilation.
Afterwards, when the refreshments were served (appetizers/hors d'oeuvres type of food - known as "short eats" in Sri Lanka - sandwiches, savory pastries, cake, cut up fresh fruit, etc., along with beverages), I served myself a plate and went to the car to eat as no one else was in the parking lot and it was safe to pull down my mask for a few minutes. Afterwards, I went back to the patio where the others were gathered and visited a bit with a few friends as I've not seen them since the first lockdown in March 2019 and checked on friend A, who was looking tired after the day's events. Her brothers will be here until Thursday, she said, and I said I'll call her after they leave to see if she needed anything.
We brought home a plate of food leftover from the event and had some of it for dinner, last night. Later, I called friend R and chatted with her. Eventually, I went to bed around 2:30 a.m., again.
Monday's Decluttering:
3 sample sized shower gel bottles
1 tube sample sized body lotion
1 file folder of papers
On Monday, I was grateful for:
- N95 masks
- Being able to be there for friend A and family at her mother's funeral
- Mid-day naps
- Garden harvests
- A safe drive to and from the funeral
Monday's joyful activity was chatting with friends I haven't seen in a couple of years.
Today (Tuesday), I woke up around 9:00 a.m., as usual. It's a lovely, warm, but, windy day! I had a phone chat with neighbor T and brought the empty trash cans in. Daughter and I had leftovers from yesterday's reception for brunch and there are a couple of items left to enjoy with a cup of tea in the evening. I did two loads of laundry, cleaned Dancer's litter box and swept the bathroom.
Still to do: dust the family room and my bedroom, water the indoor plants, water the front garden, do the dishes/run the dishwasher, cook dinner (might cook salmon, rice, and vegetables, today), and declutter.
Today, I am grateful for:
- The sunny, warm day
- Chats with family and friends
- Leftovers from yesterday's reception
- Working appliances
- Electricity to run the appliances
Today's joyful activity is having the windows open to let in the fresh breeze and warmth.
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| Dancer and his Lovey |
He just loves that old knitted scarf to death! He drags it around the house and sits by it whenever he knows we are about to leave the house! This is him taking a nap, this afternoon, his lovey by his side (no, we didn't put it there)!
How was the start to your week? What are your plans for the rest of the week?
You had an interesting sleep pattern - glad that you were able to get some rest. I'm glad the funeral went well. Lovely photo of Dancer.
ReplyDeleteI was almost hoping that waking up so early meant I was resetting my sleep clock, but, it was not to be! :D The funeral did go well; they called it a celebration of her life and I liked that. Thank you; Dancer spends a lot of his time sleeping, these days. :)
DeleteThe guava flower is gorgeous! Dancer looks quite relaxed with his lovely securely by his side! My cat keeps a little terry cloth sheep nearby. It sounds like the funeral went well, although a sad occasion. It's good of you to be there for your friend once her brothers leave. Best, Celie
ReplyDeleteIt is a very striking flower, isn't it? Oh, I bed your cat looks cute with his little sheep!
DeleteThe funeral went well and they did their best to keep it a celebration of her life. A called me, today, to let me know that they are planning to have a small prayer gathering tomorrow evening and asked me to join. It is when everyone goes back to their own lives and you are alone that you feel the emptiness the most, isn't it?
I'm glad the funeral went well and that you were able to eat in the parking lot. It is quite a performance trying to be safe and out and about as well, isn't it? I welcome the milder temperatures here as we were able to sit outside with friends who came for the maple syrup activities, and drink tea made with boiling sap!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bushlady; yes, the funeral went well and I was happy I could eat by myself in the parking lot! My daughter was not willing to do even that, preferring to wait until we came home!
DeleteI'm glad you had milder temperatures and were able to sit outside. Tea made with boiling sap! That sounds very interesting! :)
The flower is just beautiful! I am slowly going a few places mask free, but they have to be spacious and well ventilated. The infection rates are very low here now (Fingers crossed a new mutation is not just around the corner)
ReplyDeleteI know your friend appreciated your support by attending the funeral, and good for you to eat in the car.
They are pretty flowers, aren't they? I am not ready, yet, to go maskless. Our daily infection rates are relatively low, right now, just around 1,000 for the county, give or take a couple of hundred as it fluctuates from day to day. It's within my comfort level to attend the funeral, but, not without my mask. Friend A has invited me to a prayer gathering at her house, tomorrow, and we will go with our masks on. :)
DeleteThat's such a beautiful flower. I'm glad the funeral went well and you had the chance to catch up with friends again. Our pets do like their favourite toys and comforters, Dancer looks very content there.
ReplyDeleteIt is a pretty flower, isn't it? Yes, the funeral took place without any problems, although, there was a health scare involving one of the family members, over the weekend, but, fortunately, that was dealt with and he was able to be present at the funeral! Our pets do have their favorite playthings, don't they? :D
DeleteIt's been quite cold here this week. The children arrive at Chapel for the Holiday Club all buttoned up in their coats. Your guava flower is stunning. I've never been to an open casket funeral - they're very uncommon here.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry it's so cold there! We are supposed to have a mini heatwave over the next couple of days with temperatures in the 90s. :) The guava tree is full of flowers and I am hoping that there will be a good crop of fruit, this year (last year, we had only a handful of fruits). I think all the funerals I've been to have been open casket ones!
DeleteI am glad the service for A's mother went well and you were able to attend. It seems like you took appropriate precautions so that is good.
ReplyDeleteIt will also be nice to go to the smaller gathering at A's home.
Our numbers had dropped to the 1% positive range which is very good but have now ticked back up to in the 5% range. Plus I keep thinking about all the home tests that are not recorded in those numbers.
We got our second round of tests from the government so we now have 8 at-home tests. And we got the free N95's from the government at CVS. I wore one of those when I had my mammogram screening last week. Quite a difference in fit and I did feel very safe.
I have our 2nd booster shots scheduled for this Saturday.
What a cute thing Dancer does with that scarf. It's so sweet.
Thank you, Debra; I do feel we took all the precautions we could and still attend. We will keep our masks on, tonight, too.
DeleteYes, all reported new case numbers should be adjusted up a bit to take into account those that are not reported! I have to schedule my 2nd booster shot, still. In fact, I was mentioning it to my daughter, this morning. I'd like to have it done before she goes back to Berkeley.
Dancer is too funny with his scarf. :D
Love the picture of Dancer with his lovey. Our current cats don't have anything like that, but we had one once that liked to carry socks around.
ReplyDeleteHe's the first cat we've had who likes to carry something around like that. It's his security blanket, I think! Or, his girlfriend! :D
DeleteI'm glad the funeral went well and you will be able to continue to support A in the coming days when her brothers return to their homes. I've never been to an open casket funeral. I don't think they are that common over here but we can visit and spend time in the Chapel of Rest in the days leading up to the funeral and that is an open coffin.
ReplyDeleteI still wear a mask when I go shopping and I'm in the minority now. Most people don't seem to bother even though our numbers are still high in this area.
How old is Dancer now?
Thank you, Eileen; yes, I'm glad to be able to support A during this time.
DeleteI'm definitely not ready to go maskless, yet!
Dancer is 13; he'll be 14 this summer. We received him as a kitten at the end of August, 2008. He was a rescued feral.
I'm glad you could be there for your friend and I'm sure she would have appreciated it.
ReplyDeleteThe Guava flower is beautiful. X
Thank you, Jules; I am glad I was able to be there for A. This was the first funeral I attended in the past 2+ years because I was being cautious about Covid.
DeleteThat sounds like the sort of day where it's hard to keep a balance. I love the phrase 'short eats' as it really works for the finger food type stuff. I'm really glad that you are taking care. Sending hugs x
ReplyDeleteYes, it was hard to keep a balance, but, it worked out well enough. "Short eats" is a Sri Lankan-English term. :) Very often, they are served at receptions and, sometimes, for afternoon tea.
DeleteI can identify with the joy of having the windows open and the breeze coming in! That's funny about your waking up early the other day and checking blogs. I got two comments around 9am and was so surprised when I opened my email! I was going to ask you about it and then I thought, "oh I suppose she just hasn't gone to bed yet"!
ReplyDeleteHa, ha, my sleep schedule was all turned around, that day! :D You might be interested to know that we were in the mid-90s today and will be for the next couple of days! No jackets or sweaters needed! :)
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