02:32 - 11.06.07
Sunshine
Number five son called around 11:30 this am. He was already discharged and on his way home with his girlfriend. He sounded quite uncomfortable, but was making an attempt to keep it low key. I asked if he wanted me to come and stay with him for a day or two. No he would stay at his girlfriend's home - at least for the first night. I was worried about the effect of travel so soon after an incision, but apparently the staff at the hospital thought he would be fine. He said he had been given a prescription for a reasonable amount of pain-killer and that is ok too. It was more the cut and the stitches that I was concerned about. He said there were only two stitches and that they weren't bothering him at all. He's in his 20's now, so it is his body and his decision after all.
Next up a call from number four son almost at the same time. There was an extended-family picnic planned for the day. He and his wife were jointly sharing the expenses for our picnic fixin's. He just wanted to confirm the time they would pick up my youngest and I before heading out to the far south of our city where the park that had been chosen for the rendezvous was. My youngest, in the meantime, was trying to get the clothes washer cobbled together enough so that I could run a few loads of clothes before we left to play. As I signed off from number four son, my youngest let me know I could use the washer. Oh happy day! The hose is still leaking quite a bit, but at least I managed to get a couple of critical loads done - you know, skivvies and work clothes. I was just finishing up the preparations for the picnic when number four son walked in the house - about half an hour before they originally had said they would arrive. We slipped off to the pita restaurant to pick up the main course, while my youngest showered and dressed. Amazing how dirty one gets doing home repairs. My youngest grandson was in a happy mood, but a bit sleepy. When he started fussing I pulled out the rice crackers I had found at the store and spent the rest of the journey - about 45 minutes, I think - feeding him piece by tiny piece. He looked just like a robin chick gobbling that down. A two-fisted eater with cracker clutched in each little fist. He was sleeping as we pulled in closer to the park. Watched a jack rabbit sprint across in front of the car just before we got to the parking lot.
It was a warm, but overcast day. Sun came filtering through the clouds and that was fine. I was wearing a white skort - or at least that is what we called them when I was a pre-schooler. Shorts that went mid-thigh, but with a panel that wrapped around the front that gave it the appearance of a skirt. Denim shirt topped it off and my hair was pulled back into a pony tail with a red velvet scrunchie so the grandbabies couldn't gain too great a grip on it. We had all brought bug repellant because the mosquitos where we live basically swarm one if one steps outside for more than a few seconds. There didn't appear to be any in this part of the city though. Guess the city workers must have sprayed a lot of pesticide in the past week or so. A leisurely walk from the car to the regular picnic site our family likes to use revealed that Canada geese were finished nesting - the goslings clustered close to their mommas. My grandson was fascinated by them but his Dad, my son, was worried that the geese might get aggressive if we went too close. Pointed out it was better to teach my grandson how to act around wild animals, since they are a integral part of where we live. As we were watching ducks swam by as well. Later we would see deer - mom and fawn wandering through the brush at the riverside too. No fish though. That lesser of two rivers - the Elbow - running through the city was at flood. High and fast moving with dark murky water. It was overflowing the banks all around the park. There was evidence of beaver building activity visible as well, but we didn't catch a glimpse of those critters today - just their teeth marks on the trees. Probably sitting in their shelters munching fresh poplar branches broken free by that storm last week.
All my siblings, my Dad and my aunt and uncle (my mom's brother) were able to attend today, as well the one sister's sons. Of my sons, three were there with their families. June is THE birthday month to celebrate in our family, followed next in numbers of births by May, July and then December. A birthday cake was produced for my Dad with jokes about candles and burning down the shelter, while curious travellers on the pathway next to the shelter looked on. A lot of the walkers were trundling children or pets along with them. Others zipped by on various forms of roller blades and bicycles too. I got to cuddle both my youngest grandbabies for most of the afternoon as I caught up the news with everyone there. Really pleasant visit all together. Lots of cameras and cell phones were out taking photos and I asked if they could be emailed to me. If that happens I'll share the sights with you, dear diary. In return, different family members asked that I email them with various information based on the topics we covered. News and contact information about the cousin whose hubby was injured in Afghanistan, the cousin in Australia, information about real estate law in Mexico, travels in Africa. Hmmmmmmmmm. My one daughter-in-law who I babysat for for that few months had made a special picnic lunch for me and we sat and chatted about work and her family issues for a while too. Her mom had a stroke a couple of months ago and she is quite concerned over the care she is receiving. I think anti-depressant prescriptions are used way too often to mask other problems that are just too complex to be addressed in a hospital system. My daughter-in-law said the staff were insisting her mom take them, but they are causing her to hallucinate and she is acting in a delusional manner directly as a result of them. Not all drug pushers are working the streets are they? My aunt was talking about arriving back in Calgary by air during the big storm last week. They were kept on their airplane for quite a long time, because of the lightning strikes at 50 per minute at the height of the storm. Their plane seems like one of the last that wasn't diverted to other airports across the prairies. She said she didn't see how sitting in a sealed metal tube was the safest option during a lightning storm. She was returning from seeing her daughter and son-in-law in Ottawa, as well as attending several meetings for the major charity for international settlement issues that she has worked on for decades. She and my uncle are looking at travel as something to enjoy in their retirement - if they can agree on the same destinations. Paris maybe?
At the end of the afternoon my youngest headed off with number four son and his family to have dinner with their Dad. My Dad brought me home after I took him out for dinner at the one Pho house in my community that is so good. We had a good chat about his vacation plans, as well as family matters too. We discussed my job search woes and he asked me if I wanted to do any more election work. Yes, but not under the current circumstances. If I didn't have to deal with the local rep and I was paid on time I would be very content to continue on. I love seeing the democratic process in action. Renews my faith in my fellow citizens. The store that he and my brother run will be closed down by the end of this month for good, so then my Dad and I can spend more time together working on various projects. I'm really looking forward to that.
The cats were quite distressed by the time I walked in the door. Their pillow for naps had been absent for too long, don't you know. did up a couple more loads of essential laundry and dealt with my email. A couple of more people contacting me through facebook - I have more friends! Responding to various other email then a very long nap. All that fresh air and sunshine was just too much of a shock for the body, I guess. Time for bed again though. Good night dear diary.
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