I always look forward to the weekend, but then I get to Sunday and wonder what happened. How did Saturday slip by so quickly and turn into “the day before work”? Yesterday I decided that I simply leave too many things on my “to do” list for the weekend. I worked like crazy to get done yesterday and finally quit one of my projects at 10pm. That is a long day for me, even if I did sleep in until 5:30 yesterday!
Friday I stopped by the genealogy library and did a bit of research. Did you know that Caddo’s first “self-serve” grocery store opened in 1927? It was such a novel idea that the paper had to explain how it worked. Before self-serve the grocer took your list, found everything, totaled it for you, then wrapped it in paper and gave it to you, unless of course you wanted it delivered. You might also “put it on your bill” to be paid at the end of the month, after deducting money for the eggs and butter you had traded.
Gary and I enjoyed a quiet evening with pizza and a movie Friday night. We have decided that one pizza a month won’t hurt us too much and is a better tradition than one a week! The big thrill was the movie. We both loved the HBO series, John Adams , and had talked about purchasing a copy, but the $80 price tag was just a bit much for two very frugal old people. So when Gary found a new copy on ebay for $25 we were very happy. It arrived last week, still in its cellophane wrapper, and appears to be in perfect condition. (I see that Amazon has it for $29.99.) We look forward to watching the rest of the seven-part series and then sharing it with a couple of friends.
On the way to WalMart Saturday morning Gary and I discussed some of the things we could remember about our early childhood. We were talking about the self-serve grocery store and Gary’s grandparents not only owned a grocery store, but lived above it. He said he remembered visiting the store and talking to customers and even recalled how the store smelled. He could not have been much over three years old because his mom died the next year and he moved in with his other grandmother. (His dad was in the service.) My earliest memory is of standing in the backseat of a car that smelled like wool and holding on to the leather strap that hung next to the window. I held on tightly because my grandmother was yelling. She told me many years later when I asked about it that I was not quite three and she had been yelling because my dad had swerved and she thought we were going to have a wreck. Not quite three! That should give pause to parents who don’t think their children are paying attention to their actions.
I managed to work in the yard a bit yesterday. I am pulling up weeds, cutting back dead annuals and perennials, and planning next year’s garden. Totally redoing the bed by the front step. I have lots of irises and lilies that need to be moved soon. I’ll plant tulips in another month. I caused the bunnies to delay their dinner last night by making a noise they haven’t heard in nearly a month. I mowed the lawn!! Yes, parts of it have already recovered from the heat and drought.
Got a wonderful surprise yesterday! My friend emailed to tell me that one of the hardware stores had two elephants on the clearance shelf. Not only are they adorable, but they are solar and glow in the dark. I have them in the house, but the sunlight from the window is enough to power the lights! So cute!
I forgot to get the mail yesterday morning so after Gary went to work at 1:30 I decided to drive into town. Of course I did what I always did as a child- stopped by the neighbor’s to see what they were doing! Lol In this case it was the neighbor’s pasture. They have a young foal, but the silly thing was napping under the trees so I just took a couple of photos of the longhorns.
So…Saturday vanished in a fog of little tasks. Fill the bird feeders. Make more sugar water for the hummingbirds. Change the flowers in the dining room. Repot a couple of plants. Clean the pantry. Sort and file the four hundred new photos on the camera. WalMart, errands, garden, laundry, cleaning, organizing, mowing. But I also made time for some relaxing and reminiscing. Even though I was exhausted at 10pm it was worth the effort.
Sunday. Relaxing, reflecting, renewing. Weekends are wonderful!
Love your elephant!
Posted by: Megan | August 30, 2010 at 07:16 AM