Crab Pots

These crab pots live down Redart.  I visited them when Middle Sister was here and we were taking in the local sights.

I'm feeling a little crabby myself today.  It's back to the crazy pace of post-Christmas Normal Life.  Although I've had to work the past week, traffic has been light, and the workplace has been quiet and slow. That will all change today.

There are three basketball games this week.  So, after the long, full days of work, we'll be busy cheering in the stands several evenings this week.

Last but not least, this is my final week of being able to say I'm in my forties.  How in the world it is possible for me to be halfway to 100 years old is well beyond my comprehension.

Sigh.

Sailboat

This sailboat was resting on the East River near Williams Wharf Saturday morning when I went down there for a run.

The clouds in the overcast skies blocked the heat of the sun creating almost perfect running conditions.

Friday they let us off work three hours early.  I came home and took a two-hour nap, I was so exhausted. After a good night's sleep Friday night, Saturday morning's run was just what the doctor ordered.

Later that evening, Baby Sis came in to town and we went kayaking--also what the doctor ordered.

Sunday a group of friends and their children came over for boating and a cookout.  Today I am back to being exhausted but grateful for the fun weekend and a break from commuting and work.

Also, even though it feels like it should be June because where did the summer go, September has arrived.

School starts this week.  There's an away cross country  meet on Wednesday.  We're now officially tethered to the school and sports calendar.

Sigh.

Sailboat

Sailboat on Queens Creek

Other boaters enjoy Cow Point, off in the distance to the left.

The Islander and Gwynn's Island are in the background here.

These were taken a couple of weekends ago from my back yard.

(My back yard is also known as the front yard depending on who's doing the talking. Although it's waterfront, I still call it the back yard because we approach the house from the other side. I realize this is technically incorrect, but I am merely conveying things as they are in my world.  And in my world this is my back yard. This superfluous explanation is now over, please pretend you never read it. Thank you.)

Although I was off from work yesterday, I did not make time to get out and take pictures, mostly because I was way too lazy exhausted, plain and simple.

As a result, aside from a very hectic Saturday that entailed assembling two tables and decluttering a guest bedroom to prepare for my little blog gathering later this month, I did a whole lot of nothing this weekend.

And here we are, back at the start of another school year (Son's now officially a senior) and another sports season (Daughter's doing cross country, first meet is this week).

Although I generally dislike being a slave to the calendar, I suppose it will be good getting back into some sort of a routine. *



*This is me trying to put a positive spin on the fact that summer is over, I am very sorry to see it go, and I detest schedules.  The next time I will really have any sort of freedom or extended break from the calendar will be....Christmas break. Despite the fact that Walmutant will have the Christmas decorations out in about two weeks, this does not bring December here any quicker, nor do I really want it to be here that quickly even if it does bring my next break.



Happy September.

Back Home

After a fun filled weekend that took Son, Daughter and me to downtown Washington, D.C., Monday was a very welcome lazy day thanks to the federal holiday.

The trip to DC is worthy of a blog post itself, however I didn't take my camera on any of our outings so there are no pictures to share, only memories of fabulous restaurants within walking distance of our hotel and shopping malls the size of Canada.

(Tyson's Corner has really expanded since I lived up there thirteen years ago. Also, they waited for me to move back to Mathews before incorporating a restaurant that pushes sushi out into the dining area on a conveyor belt.  Endless amounts of sushi. I didn't have any this time, but instead ate at a place where the first thing the hostess asked after we were seated was, "Do you want to switch out your napkin from white to black?"  When I politely inquired as to why I would want to do that, since I'd never been asked before, she explained that it's a personal preference. Some people ask for black linen to avoid white lint on their clothes.  I told her my white napkin was just fine and thanked her for her concern. I then wondered why they don't just do away with white napkins and only use black, but I was too engrossed in the mouth watering menu to worry about it any longer.)

Anyway.

We had a great time and having Monday off allowed us time to transition back into the Mathews way of life, which does not include sushi, Vietnamese restaurants, complimentary Amaretto at the end of a very fine Italian meal, and Trader Joes within walking distance.

It was a rough transition but one we made nevertheless.

Monday afternoon I took Daughter to her first soccer practice. She's trying out for the high school team. I  brought my camera thinking I'd go for a run and snap some photos after dropping her off.

I achieved the photo snapping but failed miserably at the running attempt.  It was just too darn cold.

These are from Williams Wharf.

I don't ordinarily let the cold stop me from running, because after the first mile I'm sweating no matter what.  But I just didn't have it in me and once I started taking these the motivation to do anything other than drive home and curl up in front of the Cooking Channel quickly subsided.

Before I go off on yet another tangent and tell you about my new favorite cooking show (My Grandmother's Ravioli), I'll end this by saying we had a fantastic get away and enjoyed having an extra day to recover and transition back to our reality.

I hope your weekend was great.

Wildlife

The other day, post-Hurricane Irene, I drove down to Aaron's Beach to check on things.  On the way there, I spied this egret standing in someone's swamp yard that was still saturated with water from the storm.

I was so focused on the egret that I almost neglected to see the other two who were hanging out in the background. Luckily I spotted them before they took off and zoomed in a bit for a better glimpse.

I love surprises, and this was quite unexpected.

In other news, although we're in a great deal of denial, today kicks off  back to school week here, so we begrudgingly return to the frenetic pace associated with a new school year, sports practices, soccer games and driving for hours on end cross country meets.

Every single day will be a logistical nightmare challenge.

The Mathews High School Cross Country team has a 4:00 p.m. meet at Beaverdam in Gloucester on Wednesday.  Last year I created a separate blog for the team which I haven't updated since last season and am overdue posting year-end photos which I hope to maintain throughout this season as time permits.

Have a great week.