Beach Recluse & Garden Geek
I took Friday & Monday off of work last week.
I thought I had a dance date Saturday night, but when I declined to let him pick me up at the house where I was staying, he bailed. TangoMentor interpreted this as: no pick up = no opportunity for sex = bail. He's probably right. The guy did me a favor. I barely know him. If he can't be patient enough to get to know me better on my terms, I'm quite happy without him. I made other plans.
I spent Friday buying yet more for the garden from Logan's (plants I've been waiting on to be available). Then headed to the beach -- because I can. I made myself a promise to take advantage of the things available to me now that I'm back in NC. I am now going once a month if I don't leave town for other reasons during the month.
I needed to arrive before 5pm so I could meet with my ex-property manager. She changed management companies and I wanted to know why. And what the new fees would be... I'll be changing companies. She manages the rental property I own in Wilmington. When we looked at the contract I signed in 2005, I'd marked it up and changed most of the constraints... I crossed out "60 days notice to terminate" and wrote in "30 days...". She smiled at me and said, "You are clearly your father's daughter". No one in California knew my Dad. A comment like this catches my attention. Being closer to family was a big part of the decision to come back to NC.
After being back for almost 2 years, I'm starting to see that I really do share some traits with my Dad. I drive a hard bargain, when I care to . And I network well. He knows people almost everywhere he goes. I haven't really worked at that in the vanilla business world, but in the dance world & the leather community, I have friends nationwide. My next area of interest is the real estate world (buy & hold rentals). I imagine I'll have good resources by the time I'm ready to buy the next property.
I didn't realize my ex-property manager is single. We compared notes on how much we disliked dating. That gave me a chuckle. And reinforced my decision to focus my energy elsewhere for now.
I went to a tango practice/dance in Wilmington Friday night. There was a dancer from Raleigh I knew and the people who hosted the dance were very welcoming. "Would you like to dance? I'll get my husband to dance with you." Ages spanned from college students to grandparents. I like that variety.
I went out to breakfast at my favorite greasy spoon: Causeway Café. Then I headed for several Thrift Stores. Bought a green straw hat, a pansy vase, and a white linen shirt to wear to the contra dance that night. Total spent $12.
I had dinner with an old friend from California, Katie, on Saturday night. Then went to a contra dance after dinner. The dancing was worth the drive. Seeing Katie was terrific. I dated her roommate briefly when she lived in Redwood City. Then we all became friends. She's made a new life and has a new man who treats her well. I love her enthusiasm.
I received a nice compliment from one of the fellows in the band after the contra dance, "You are a beautiful dancer." He was an amazing string player. Older man doing what he finds joy in doing. I declined an invite from the event organizer to breakfast the next morning so I could sleep in then go for a walk on the beach. I'd had enough social time.
Sunday I walked, read, cleaned, and cooked. Never got in the car till I left town. Brought my laundry down with me and did the sheets & towels in with my weekly loads. Less to do when I got home. I drove back about 8:30pm and talked to my Mom for about an hour of that drive. We mostly talked about garden ideas and plants.
Monday I went to the gym then Lowe's and bought more for the garden (trellises for the Morning glories, stakes, and some white & purple daisies to go in the morning glory container...). Once the rain stopped Monday afternoon, I got dirty putting plants in the ground. For several hours. Seriously dirty… had to hose myself down before going back in the house.
I'm doing vegetables again this year: 1 grape tomato, 4 eggplants, 4 okra, lots of basil, and 2 curly parsley. Geekiest accomplishment: I'm growing the basil from seeds I got from the plants I had last year. Didn't think it would work, but it did!
Easiest to grow: morning glories. Damn things sprouted in less than 2 days.
Still didn't get everything in the ground before I had to go to the home owner's monthly board meeting, but I should be able to finish up planting what I bought next Saturday. Oddly I find that more appealing than going to the TMG Fashion show. I have absolutely no ill feelings toward TMG, I just don't find the thought of a fashion show compelling. That's a clear change of direction for me. I'm curious how I will continue to evolve.
~~~ Thoughts ~~~
Beach Recluse:
Several friends have mentioned they would enjoy a trip to the beach if I want company. I don't. I seem to like the flexibility with my time and mostly, I feel like I have to entertain if I bring folks along. I'm not up for that just now. I'm being very self centered at the moment. And I'm ok with that. I like to visit with friends, just in small doses these days.
Garden Geek:
I've gotten heavy into planting and improving my really small outdoor space. It's a blessing that it is small as I'd be broke if it wasn't (or I would never have gone down this path). Why? Every morning before I leave for work, I walk out on my back deck and just look at my flowers. And smile. It's a good start to the day. When I return home during daylight hours, I am greeted with flowers. I smile. During the summer, I have fresh "free" produce to enjoy. These are all little joys. And I treasure that.
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
baileythorne) wrote,
