We passed a peaceful memorial day doing projects around the house. It was a beautiful cool day .. perfect for working outside.   Towards evening we wandered over to Jane and George’s for a Mmeorial Day cook out..

I was determined ot wear shorts despite the low 50’s outside.. I

eventually had to give up and go put on jeans.. We all huddled together

and talked about our funny town ploitics. It was good connecting with

everyone.

I’ve been sitting here thinkign about Memorial Day and what it means.. It feels strange  that this start of summer vacation is in honor of all the people who have died in all the wars since this country’s creations. I spent time today thinkng of all those war dead, thanking them for their service..  and sending them peace. You’d think with such a day on the calendar we’d learn that war was an outmoded idea. .. but our country is currently fighting wars in at least two countries. It just doesn’t make sense. It stopped makign sense to me the day that Sam died. Whay would anyone kill for an idea ? Why would anyone kill for any reason ?

This Thursday would have been Sam’s 17th birthday. A day we’ll mark and celibrate and cry about.. I feel Sam’s spirit moving through me powerfuly these days . I feel he’s lifting me up.. I nede it this week..   Be with us Sam, we love you.. Gnite

-me

Ahhh.these  beautiful early summer days.. though I guess it’s technically still spring.   Last night we went to our friends Beth and Scott’s weeding party in Mills river park.. .they had done up the pavilion in the park very elegantly.. it was a great  night. they looked really happy !

On the way home we decided to surprise Hannah and Dave with a visit since we were near their house.  Adah and Senyah were still awake which was cool. Adah borrowed my glasses. Then she dug up her old stuffed bunny that she used to call ‘whiskers’., which is what she now calls me.. !

The girls fell asleep while Dave, Hannah. Diane and I got to catch up.

I always love the artwork in their house.. I especially love this piece which has an expression I remember my grandfather Dave using often.

Today started   earlier than I intended.. Gabe’s alarm accidentally woke us at 4:47 AM.. Ugh.. We managed to get back to sleep anyway. The early morning was rainy but got up into the 60’s and sunny for the afternoon. Perfect !. We spent the day working in the gardens which is wonderful and mindless. II occasionally found my mind wandering back into work.. but closed it off when I noticed it. I tried to keep my mind empty or on the dirt..

During one of our work breaks I happened to notice a small pile of sawdust under the table that we’re table-sitting for Deb and family  ..  I checked out the sawdust and found a small hole in the table.. and.. a big fat white wood worm !  The same thing happened to deb about 10 years ago.. .. I think the table wood is supposed to be 300 years old.. so who knows how long this guy has been blindly chewing around in there.. ?!

Speaking of industrious animals.. Diane called my attention to this busy ant trying to transport a dandelion seed from one place to another. Look at the stamina here !

This evening we went out to eat (single Pebble) with our friends Jen and Tim.. It was a nice night in Burlington.. everyone was out in the streets.. We had a great meal then took our friends on what we always called the ‘Burlington art tour’.. That means looking at the 30 year old marble sculptures along battery street by the lake..

This is such a beautiful town..  !

We just got off a 1.5 hour Skype call with Deb and kids from Buenas Aires.. they’re all doing great. It’s late now so I’ll say goodnight.. talk to you all tomorrow.. G’nite Sam !
-me

Sleepy Saturday afternoon.. I just woke up from a couple of hour nap. This morning Diane and I drove up to Waterville, VT.. about an hour north of here to visit our freinds Marci. Matt and Lili and help them get their garden in. Marci is our wonderful Reiki and massage juju sorceress. It was a beautiful drive up. Waterville is a cute little town up near Johnson. Blevedere (the nations biggest asbestos mine .. eeeek !) and Morrisville.   Marci and Matt bought the place about 2 years ago.. and this is my first time seeing it. It’s a cute 1890’s town builidng that’s been a pig farm , a five and dime..and now a family home. Its been really nicely redone to make it bright and cozy..

Matt and Marci’s house is in the center of town. Waterville is pretty

tinly. Two chiurches.. .. one on either side of their house , a green

and and a country store.

Diane got right to work helping Marci get in onions, tomatoes, flowers, cukes, squash, etc..

My job was to help Matt straighten out the fencing.. which was fun and easy. It was fun workign with Matt.   I’d never met him face to face before.. so it was a good way to get to know him.. If ‘good fences make good neighers.’ as Frost says.. then sagging fences make new freinds..

My second job was to take over the tilling from Marci.. They’re putting in a new pumpkin patch.. so I spent a pleasant hour yankign around their tiller. I love that kind of work.. dirty, noisey and mindless.. It felt great..

We got home around 2:30 and I fell immediately asleep.. Driving always does that to me.. Diane woke me at 4;30 to get ready for Beth and Scott’s wedding tonight. If she hadn’t I’d probably have slept on through the night !

OK.. we’re off to the wedding.. It’s outside at Mills River park.. should be nice more about that tomorrow.   TTYL folks.. Nite Sam
-me

Hot day today.. It was 93 degrees when I got home htis afternoon.. that’s abotu 65 degrees warmer than it was on monday night.. Not many places you can live with that sort of temperature range !

I had a busy day with phone meetings.. still trying to find the best ways to add value at work. I did take my lunch time to go see a talk by Van Jones, Obama’s ‘Green Jobs Czar’.   Jones is the founder of Green for All, an orginization that helps put people back to work helping the country go green.

Jones was in town to speak at the VT Expo… a trade show set up by the

Vermont Chamber of Commerce. I met up with some of my fellow board

members from the Echo Center.  Jones gave a really great talk aboout this administrations intention to  rebuild america by investing in green technology. He talked about a program that puts jobless folks to work weatherproofing homes. He described how doing that takes folks off of public assistance, lowers homeowners heating expenses, increases home value and reducces the amond of electricity generation required… It’s good all around.  His story was really compellign and entertaining.. He talked abotu the need to get more kids interested in engineering and sceince.. a topic very near to my heart. It made me proud to be a geek !  He finshed by sayign that 100 years from now..(if we’re still here.. he added)  that Barack Obama will not be remembered as the first black president.. Jones said he’d be remembered a the frist green president.. cute !

After the talk I got the chance to meet Jones and tlak to him for s short bit. I asked about specific ideas he had for getting kids more interested in engineering and science.. He didn’t have specific ideas.. but he was fun to talk to.

The rest of the day was phoen calls and email… but the inspiration from Jones’s tlak kept me jazzed for the rest of the day..

OK.. gotta run now.. more tomorrow.    Gnite all.. gnite Sam
-me