1) Up very early - before 5:30 AM - with the old psalm “Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer.” I just had to look up where it came from; it’s Psalms 19:14. Somehow I always associate this with Mother, and right now, especially with her sense of calm.
1a) And the meditations of my heart. Which are troubled. And it is so important for me to be - how shall I say this? - more considered in how I communicate and respond, because Anger blunts my message and reduces my effectiveness.
2) Before the day got too hot, and because I needed to pick up a couple things at the local market, I left just before 8 AM to walk vigorously through the arboretum. My first time there in quite awhile, now that the cemetery has become my happy place. I paid attention to how many people I saw, and stopped counting after 45 (including six bicyclists). The real drawback to the arboretum is the number of people there at any given time, which really does mean wearing a mask at all times (and they have signs up to make sure you know). But the advantages are more of a workout because of the hills and the beautiful view of the city from atop Peters Hill.
Worth it. Every time. I love this city.
2a) The cemetery’s drawback is the vague undercurrent of surveillance with all the various employee vehicles driving about, as well as its flatter terrain compared to the arboretum. But there are far fewer people there - usually I count less than ten - heaps of historical and artistic interest, and the whole place is beautifully maintained.
3) I am truly entering on the Last Days in the Old Kitchen, as the renovation begins August 12 and both it and the pantry need to be completely empty. Aside from setting up a field kitchen in the dining room and hauling a lot of stuff down to the cellar, it also means tossing out things that won’t have a place in the new kitchen. At the moment it’s this collection of Veuve Clicquot bottles, all souvenirs of a good time. Three of them came from the Margo Channing Memorial in 2004 (one aspect of which was my housewarming), and one of those was brought by my realtor. I always liked how they looked over the sink, but . . . not in the new kitchen. So out they go!