Working to Slow Down
Sometimes it's actually nice to go to work to get relief from my weekend, especially when there's been very little downtime during my days off. Such was the case this past weekend.
I thought about going for a quick ride on Thursday afternoon but that's as close as I've been to getting on my bike since last Tuesday. I don't mind the time off as long as I'm being productive in other areas and I've got no lack of things to keep me from being lazy for very long.
Rachel has several of her art pieces on display at the Lakeville Area Arts Center along with other seniors from her class.
We stopped in for a look at her display and those of others. She used to have much more of an interest in art than she does today but I think that's mostly to do with a lack of time for it. She's taken a few art classes during her high-school years and has some nice works to show for them.
The doodle to the left was something she did as a cover for a small notebook. Click on it and look at it closely as there's a lot going on in there. Some of it has meaning (song notes and a favorite bible verse) but most of it is simple doodling. Her work has progressed nicely from her early years.
We were back at Gertens Thursday night to pick out some trees and shrubs for an area along the side of our house that's been in need of a makeover; not something I've been very motivated to tackle. It's going to take years but we're hoping to once again have a nice habitat for squirrels and other animals to romp around in.
I spent most of my weekend out there first pulling weeds and then bringing in some perennials to eventually create a lush ground cover. Thanks to our next-door neighbor Karen for her generosity as she gave me free rein to take whatever I felt we could use from her landscaping. Her backyard is like having a nursery right next door. Most of what I transplanted is wilted from the shock of being uprooted but I'm hopeful they'll all spring back to life.
Before and after. From another angle, before and after.
This first part of the job is nearly done. All that's left is for me to place some stepping stones within the mulch. Part two of the makeover is to remove what grass is left along the pathway to the backyard then dig in some stepping stones and re-sod the area. That's on my to-do list for next weekend; stay tuned. The area gets a lot more sun than it did before we had the trees removed so I'm hopeful that grass will be able to grow there again as it used to.
We attended Megan and Dan's reception on Friday night in Northfield. Megan is also a controller and was a trainee of mine a few years ago. It was a fun night and a chance for Tammy to finally be able to meet some of my coworkers. It was also an opportunity for me to show the guys some of the moves I've been working on at Tuesday night dance lessons. We nearly closed down the reception but not quite. We planned to stay until maybe 11:00 but didn't leave for the 25-mile drive home until nearly 12:30. We were having too much fun to duck out any sooner.
A few photos from my camera which doesn't do so well in low light...
I thought about going for a quick ride on Thursday afternoon but that's as close as I've been to getting on my bike since last Tuesday. I don't mind the time off as long as I'm being productive in other areas and I've got no lack of things to keep me from being lazy for very long.
Rachel has several of her art pieces on display at the Lakeville Area Arts Center along with other seniors from her class.
We stopped in for a look at her display and those of others. She used to have much more of an interest in art than she does today but I think that's mostly to do with a lack of time for it. She's taken a few art classes during her high-school years and has some nice works to show for them.The doodle to the left was something she did as a cover for a small notebook. Click on it and look at it closely as there's a lot going on in there. Some of it has meaning (song notes and a favorite bible verse) but most of it is simple doodling. Her work has progressed nicely from her early years.
We were back at Gertens Thursday night to pick out some trees and shrubs for an area along the side of our house that's been in need of a makeover; not something I've been very motivated to tackle. It's going to take years but we're hoping to once again have a nice habitat for squirrels and other animals to romp around in.
I spent most of my weekend out there first pulling weeds and then bringing in some perennials to eventually create a lush ground cover. Thanks to our next-door neighbor Karen for her generosity as she gave me free rein to take whatever I felt we could use from her landscaping. Her backyard is like having a nursery right next door. Most of what I transplanted is wilted from the shock of being uprooted but I'm hopeful they'll all spring back to life.
Before and after. From another angle, before and after.
This first part of the job is nearly done. All that's left is for me to place some stepping stones within the mulch. Part two of the makeover is to remove what grass is left along the pathway to the backyard then dig in some stepping stones and re-sod the area. That's on my to-do list for next weekend; stay tuned. The area gets a lot more sun than it did before we had the trees removed so I'm hopeful that grass will be able to grow there again as it used to.
We attended Megan and Dan's reception on Friday night in Northfield. Megan is also a controller and was a trainee of mine a few years ago. It was a fun night and a chance for Tammy to finally be able to meet some of my coworkers. It was also an opportunity for me to show the guys some of the moves I've been working on at Tuesday night dance lessons. We nearly closed down the reception but not quite. We planned to stay until maybe 11:00 but didn't leave for the 25-mile drive home until nearly 12:30. We were having too much fun to duck out any sooner.
A few photos from my camera which doesn't do so well in low light...
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