Bad Blogger!

Hey guys and gals,

Yes, I have been a very bad and derelict blogger. It's been, of course, in part due to mom's death, and also to all the activity going on around here in preparation for Brad's departure for the Appalachian Trail. He got away yesterday very early in the morning and is now somewhere in Georgia on day 2 of his hike! I tracked his flights on the computer and he called a couple of times yesterday to confirm that he had arrived safely and was on his way. Hopefully he'll call (or text!) a few times a week to keep be abreast of his progress. I put an exclaimation mark after text, as I have never sent (or receved) a text message in my life! He gave me a crash course (with notes) before he left and I am now responsible for his Canadian cell phone as he uses his American cell on his hike.

He bought the phone last month when we were in NYC with Don and Marlene and Shaun and Mary. We have a great 5 nights in The City and have vowed to return next Easter! The weather was so-so, cool for the first couple of days, then hot, and then rainy one night, but all and all, we had a terrific time. How can you not on the best city on Earth? It was good to get away and have a change of pace after mom's funeral and the attendant emotional and lifestyle changes.

Sunday was a bit difficult, being my first Mother's Day without one. Plus, it was Brad's last night here until the end of June, when he is coming home for a 4-night furlough. I continue to work at home and it has indeed turned into a permanent arrangement. They've given my window office at the office to someone else! YAY! She's welcome to it!

So for now, it's just me and Jasper minding the fort. I look forward to some quite time alone and to socializing with friends and neighbours as the weather (hopefully) get warmer. I put hopefully in brackets because today it's rainy and barely 5 degrees C. I actually lit a fire in the fireplace and am glad I did!

I'll end this post by saying that I still miss mom a lot and that I still find myself reaching for the phone to call her... This, I suppose, will pass in time. But I still feel her presence very close by. The orchid she had Brad buy me for my last birthday is blooming once again and the daffodils my brother gave her when she was in the hospital several years ago are blossuming in the back yard, where Brad planted them after a number of years of languishing in our basement. I'll post some pics of mom in the days ahead as well. I meant to do so on Sunday, but never got around to it. Stuff, eh. Today will mark the one month anniversary that I last saw her alive.

Be well my friends.