Halfway Through the Year!

 It's already July, which means we're halfway through another year. It's only one more thing my mother was right about! She always said that the older you get, the fast time flies. Of course, as a kid, that meant nothing. As an older adult, now I understand fully!! 😄

June 3: This month has been a hodgepodge of low-key activities, beginning with a morning at the park with Democrats. Summer has not hit us until this week, and the get-together was on a beautiful, clear, comfortable morning. Dems, Dogs, and Donuts was a welcoming event put together by our local Dem. headquarters as a fundraiser. Unfortunately, there was a small turnout. What you see in the photos was about it. I bid on two items up for auction, placing the lowest bid and getting both! One was a nice basket of doggie treats, mostly too big for Rosie, so I bid on them with Felix and Henry across the street in mind. The second was a handmade ceramic bird feeder. Within a few hours of getting home, I received a call that I'd won them both and I could pick them up from a lady in a nearby neighborhood. In the process of fetching them, I learned that she had made the birdfeeder, had recently moved here from Seattle (political culture shock!), belonged to Liberal Ladies, etc. We had a nice chat and I expect to be seeing her around. Well, while I enjoyed the event, it was stressful for Rosie. She is the queen of her neighborhood, but take her anyplace else or socialize with new dogs, she's easily intimidated. I think she was happy to get home.

June 6: Tippy and I had lunch plans on the island, and since it was scheduled later than usual, I went in early to explore the newly opened Shelter Cover Sculpture Trail. It goes right along Broad Creek, which is quite scenic, and all along the way are various sculptures by local artists. While all of them are not to my taste, it is an interesting theme for a nice walk. There were information signs about the creek and related items, as well as QR codes where you could access information about the artists, as well as poems related to the art. I really enjoyed it, though beforehand I found it difficult to find specific info about the trail - how long, where it begins, etc. The info I got said it started at the Veteran's Memorial Park, though you can start anywhere along the way. For my plans that day, it would have been to my advantage to start at Shelter Cove Park, but I had no way of knowing. Anyway, if you're looking for a nice little walk, it's well worth the visit.

June 18: We (Rosie and I) took off to find Whitehall Park, a newly opened park in Beaufort. It was tucked away in a nice neighborhood right on the marsh. It was a spacious park, with lots of trees, Spanish moss, picnic tables, etc. We pretty much stuck to the perimeter as that was the most shaded area. You can see a long walkway in one of the photos, and that led to what looked like a large wooden pier/deck out over the marsh (which you can scarcely see in another photo). It was too unshaded to explore with Rosie in tow, so it might be worth checking out again.

Why am I doing all of these weird and wonderful things? For one reason, since Covid, I've been a homebody far too long and am trying to get motivated to get out more. Secondly, I've been here so long - 25 years - that I've been there, done that - all of the festivals, parades, groups, clubs, etc.! So, I'm looking for things that I have not done or seen. The good news is that they are happening, I just have to be aware of them! So, when I see something, I add it to my list. Also in that effort, Rosie had an afternoon with Miss Ann, a neighbor who dog sits in her home. I arranged this when Maria, Mark, and I were going out to lunch one day, so it would be for only a short time to see how it worked out. My goal is to work it into something that will allow me to get away for a day or two. The photos were sent by Ann to let me know how things were going, and you can see that Rosie seemed to make herself at home! The funny thing is that the following afternoon on her walk, Rosie took me to Ann's! We're standing in her driveway, with Rosie pulling at the leash to rouse Ann. I knew Ann sometimes took an afternoon nap and was not going to interrupt. In the meantime, Sandy across the street calls Ann and says, "Ann, are you at the house? Go to your front door!" As soon as Ann opens the door, we're running up the driveway to say hello. Needless to say, I think it all went well and we have another full day scheduled with Miss Ann later this month!

This rowdy bunch is our quiet, sleepy Drinking Liberally! On this particular afternoon, we had 39 people attend, with no prior warning. You can imagine the calamity that ensured. They were even moving tables from inside out to the porch! It seems that Margaritaville found us and everyone showed up! It was a fun evening and nice to welcome new people. And again, the ladies were surprised and delighted to learn about Liberal Ladies and other such groups. Our next meeting was much more in line with our usual summer attendance, but it did include some Margaritaville people from the previous meeting. Hopefully, that will continue.

I do have another tale of my walking microcosm at the Lowcountry Presbyterian Church. One day a couple of weeks ago as I was doing my three laps through the parking lot, I noticed a man sitting on the bench on the front porch of the church. His was tucked away behind a row of hedges with his bicycle propped up on the wall beside the bench. I didn't pay much attention, but as he just stayed there, I became a bit concerned. So, on my last lap, I said hello and asked if everything was okay. He said yes, that he was just resting his weary bones. I said good and that he had a cool place to do it, and then went on my merry way. Later that afternoon, I took Rosie there for her afternoon walk (because it's shady), and the man was still there! Now I am really concerned, so I text Lynn, who is a member of the church. She contacts the minister, who informs us that he is a homeless man who shows up there once in a while! So, Lynn joins me to pick up a burger, fries, and a drink to take over to him. To see him, there is nothing to make you think he is homeless. He remembered me from the morning and was very appreciative of the food. He said he was starting a job at Dunkin Donuts on Monday, but he has been back at the church two days this past week, in what appears to be the same clothes from our first meeting. Sadly, there is no shelter here for homeless people, and I don't think the church is reaching out to him, though he is literally on their doorstep! I give him credit for finding a protected, out-of-the-way location to rest, I can't imagine spending a day on a bench with only my own thoughts and no food, water, facilities, etc. It's another sad commentary on our society.

One of the two women who were instrumental in rescuing Rosie posted this photo on Facebook as a memory from 8 years ago, saying she wondered how she, Baby Ruth at that time, was doing! You can see the post HERE. First of all, I've never seen Rosie's ears in that position, so I know she was in pain. From reading the post, learned that she suffered from broken legs and pelvis for days before she was rescued and given care, though I think the lady tried to get help for her. I also learned that Mark Robinson, a local radio personality and animal activist, played a part in her story. He was the one to tell Jennifer Smith of Noah's Ark about her, and they are the group that took her on and dealt with all of her issues. Without them, Rosie would not be with us! Needless to say, I am forever grateful to everyone who helped her. I posted my thanks along with a more recent phone of a graying Rosie eight years later. I'm so glad it had a happy follow-up!

As always, there have been the usual get-togethers with Chris, Tippy, Rhonda, Lynn and Tom, and Maria and Mark, with most of these being over food. Chris and I are getting together for dinner today at Okan, a new restaurant with a West African influence. Its chef started with a food truck that received lots of notice and honor, so we're looking forward to checking it out. Maria, Mark, and I have also discovered a new (to us. I don't know how long it's been around) Indian restaurant in Savannah that we really enjoyed. I'll be sharing that news with Chris as she is my other Indian food connoisseur!

I'll leave you with some local wildlife. Deer must be plentiful this year as I've seen them three times on the road out our back gate, and one has wandered into my yard in the afternoon. I spotted the armadillo (butt view!) one afternoon as I was coming home. They're usually nocturnal. And of course, Rosie is still on squirrel patron.

I hope this finds everyone doing well and enjoying the summer. Love to all!💖