Well Tuesday was wet soggy, damp and a rather cool day which almost makes me think twice about putting so much money into an a/c system for the cabin; but I know we will have some unpleasant hot nights for those who join us here over the years. We had to close all of the windows it was that chilly and damp and just last week I had to drag out the window a/c unit as it was too hot for Nancy, oh well.
The day started much the usual with a before 6'ish roll out to my routines that start with a cup of hot green tea laced with turmeric and a slice of ginger root. Yeow what a concoction as the turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory and I love the taste of ginger which is awesome for any digestive issues of which I have none at present. Anyhow I did my quiet time with my Creator lifting up several by name and now I have a new person(s) to add to the list; my old college friend and room mate Richard. Wow, he has been through so much and is still physically handicapped, he must use a walker to get around but his mind is clear and sharp. I will say more about our reunion later in this ramble. All is well with those I lift up by name daily as most are advanced in their ages.
I had two whole chickens cleaned and ready for the smoker at 7 AM and the smoker was loaded with applewood and a touch of hickory wood I harvested from the top of the mountain at Norm's place a couple years ago. The smell of the smoke was awesome as we got ready for our first meeting ever with Susan, Richards lovely wife and a saint to say the least. She has been his life line for the past 7 years and has given him as much of a semblance of real normal living as possible. She is amazing and her enthusiasm of life is awesome. She and Nancy jelled right away as we shared life's stories and experiences. We brought up names from Gardner-Webb long forgotten by both of us and shared stories of me living with Richard's folks before enlisting in the USAF in 1966. It was a grand time and the day went much to quickly as they headed out in the overcast skies, rain and fog. They had a two hours drive back to Gastonia. There was never any silence except when chowing down on Nancy's delicious fare.
She had precooked half runner green beans with bacon made a large fresh salad with homemade dressings, corn on the cob and of course the juicy moist beer in the rear birds from the smoker as well as brownies with ice cream and whipped cream, yeow what feed. They brought us an nice bag of fresh peaches which were beautiful and such aroma as I can smell this minute on the counter. (I will have some for breakfast with cream). We shared stories from the past 50 plus years and while Richard is somewhat hard to understand due to his fall which left him partially paralyzed and slurred speech his mind is alert and functioning. It saddens me to see him after such a long time but according to Susan he is a miracle survivor of the aortic aneurysm which is usually fatal and later from a fall which caused the speech issues.
We will meet them later this summer after their travels as they are gad about's as well, down at the Gardener-Webb campus and have lunch out. We are hoping to make this get together at least a couple times a year although it is difficult for Richard to navigate our porch steps. I wanted to share the mountain top vistas with them on a golf cart ride but the pouring rain kept us inside all afternoon. It was such a delight to reunite with him and to meet his awesome wife, Susan who is I said earlier is a marvelous life line for him. We just stayed in the cabin after they left hoping they would make the right turns on their way out of our 'hood and to find the road down the mountain; they did and let us know they made it home safely. I never ate a thing the rest of the day except for a handful of nuts around 7'ish. I read for the rest of the day and caught up on some social media. It wasn't long after 9, I hit the shower and was soon reading in bed by 10, LATER
