We’re six more days to corn! That ‘s my prediction anyway. Am I beating Pilgrim Farmer John? We need an Iowa sweet corn report from the man.
It would be good to have the first day of corn sales to be Friday at the start of next weekend. That would be perfect. OK, that’s our plan.
Right now Jennifer and I are fighting our way through our funky weekend, our Pyrenees weekend. It is the low point in the chemo cycle when the side effects have their way with us and every thing seems like a trek uphill. OK, but we will pull through.
Now I am off to water the corn. We had rain last evening but it was a paltry quarter inch so have to add to that. Well, till tomorrow, love, Felipe.
Shakespeare under a Van Gogh sky.Daylight slowly changes to darkness.
Our Sharespeare guru Dr David Allen White believes that old Willie helped on the King James translation of the Bible way back when. I forget the details but both occured at the same time and in the same place so chances are good.
It was a tremendous performance last evening. The play was the comedy “Much Ado About Nothing”. Ado, huh, we don’t use that word nearly enough. Jennifer, Heather, My Rebecca and myself brought our folding chairs and our pizza and drinks and camped out on the grassy knoll along with neighbors and friends. What a lovely evening.
Let’s see if I can get this right, Benedict and Beatrice.
So, off to today’s journey. Going to pick some berries for the stand and change the ice in the cooler. Have to change the corn countdown to 7. One week to eating extreme fresh sweet corn. This is the high point of the year for me!
Yesterday we had some lovely angel leave some money in the cash box with a note saying that they didn’t need anything but liked the way we operated. Life on the Rock. So we will keep on!
Back over to the mainland later this morning to the hospital and a quest for art supplies. Have to pick up some treats for the nurses on the way. It feels like an Animal Cracker kind of day today, don’t you think? Animal Cracker loves, Felipe.
Jennifer in a swoon after tree hugging. Notice chemo pump fanny pack and crown of daisies. What a look!
This blog may come slowly, paragraph by paragraph, as our treatment goes on. Jennifer is here to participate. She is looking especially spiffy with a special headpiece of daisys that My Rebecca wove for her. She is celebrating completion of her set of twelve treatments. Good job!
The day is moving on. Things come and go and those things have more or less weight to them. Some things are totally subjective, totally as seen from this very chair and some stuff is more universal. But we navigate and make our way onward. I realize that is very vague but some things are more confidential than others. But the mission of the Cancer Commandos is to push the fun lever as far forward as possible at any given point and we do a mighty fine job of that.
Here we are the next day. But could finish up our report from Wednesday. Jennifer had a good buddy, Heather, roll in and we did some errands on the mainland and had dinner at a seafood joint on the water. Yum. So then back to the Rock (Vashon) and debriefed and got home. But briefing wise our partying was more low keyed at the hospital. They hardly knew we were there really. Part of that was there was
Mom with two fawns. Enlarge to see better.
some heavy cancer info to sort through. The kind of stuff that is inevitable but tends to throw a wet towel on the good times. And the wine ration seemed to have a certain calming influence and actually helped to lower my blood pressure numbers.
Tonight is Shakespeare in the Park here on the Rock and tomorrow back to Seattle to get our fanny pack chemo pumps off. Anyway, there are some pics from the last few days that you will like:
Felipe’s selfie trying to reach for the top of tallest sunflower.
Oh thanks to my Vashon friends Kim and Dennis got the blog back on the road. I took them some sunflowers and blackberries so a good trade. I get so frustrated when the tech stuff doesn’t work right, feel so helpless. It’s like your plumbing, just want to take it for granted.
Just want to report that the whole Island had some sort of giant collective hangover after Festival weekend. Part of it was the heat too. Remember my prediction about becoming a billionaire from the sales at the roadside stand? Well we took a serious hit Sunday with making only $11 and then Monday zero came in, nada. Yike! That threw a monkey wrench into my whole financial plan. Yea, I was going to take all you guys to Spain but now I don’t know. Have to rethink.
Well it’s off to the big city tomorrow to the hospital with my chemo buddy Jennifer. Perhaps another Commando Caper will happen. We plan on sneaking a bottle of wine into the treatment center to have with our tapa lunch. That sounds like it has potential chemistry.
Well have to run out to the road and check the stand, maybe needs resupply. So, thinking of you Caminoheads around the globe. Alperfect afterall, love, Felipe.
This a blog post that I wrote Sunday and had trouble publishing but here it is for you now: Today , Sunday, was the day that Reverend Bonnie Barnard showed up at our little community church to talk about a big topic. She spoke on forgiveness and we wound up praying for our enemies in the end. This is stuff that we hear about and sometimes talk about by seldom put into practice. But we were gettin it done today!
The pics are a little idea of what went on. It was a hot day and we could have been
Aboard the Lotus.,
Caminoheads Dana y Catherine.Rev Bonnie getting revved up.
been in an old time revival tent but we were in our little community church. The message was big worthy of a bigger crowd. I’m gnawing away at the edges of it in my mind.
After the service Reverand Bonnie took off and a bunch of us walked a short distance to the yacht club to tour a historic boat, the Lotus, that was in the harbor for the weekend. So check out the pics to give you a rough idea of what went on. See you tomorrow, love, Felipe.
The Burton Community Church Signboard. Church built in 1897.
Ah, my little WeeFee machine is going again. Was trying to write this post all morning and the iPad was on strike. Well, there is a pic of My Rebecca with our little roadside stand. Just got that sign done a few moments before.
And the good news is we are selling stuff and making a few bucks. We took in 1 dollar the first day, 8 dollars the second day and yesterday we got 26 dollars! With that kind of trajectory I figure I will be a billionaire in a month, right?
There was some sketchy news in from Spain and the Camino. Apparently Kelly is under doctor’s orders to stop walking because of blisters. He and Mary Margaret are in Santiago checking the wine quality. Details forthcoming.
I’m under doctor’s orders to do what I want. Well I just made that up but maybe, have to check the fine print. That ‘s all I have for you today. Hot here and Our Jennifer is coming over to get her first archery lesson. The venue is in the shade so all good. OK, talk to you soon. Billionaire love, Felipe.
That’s what the lady singer is singing here in the background, “I need some sugar in my bowl.” I don’t know what that means exactly but it sounds like a good plan A. That’s what is going on here as I get my first cup of cafe con leche. Off to pick some berries for the roadside stand. We made eight whole dollars yesterday our second day and one dollar the first. We have a few things out there to prime folks for sweet corn coming in two weeks. At least that is what I am estimating, two weeks.
I made a signboard so folks driving by could see what we have on hand for sale. The paint has been curing so maybe I could put it out today. I put that chalkboard paint on it so it would be easy to change and we will see how that works out. A pic for you would be good.
In Spain I remember we bought produce along the way from local folks. They had cucumbers, tomatoes and berries that we easy to consume. I remember some of those little tiny towns that were sort of piles of stones which were the same stones as those that littered the ground around us. This was in the west where they had the slate roofs. The houses and barns were piles of stones with stone roofs that sort of leaned on each other for support. Just piles of stones with an occasional wooden door and an occasional old lady selling a little basket of berries for a Euro. How could I resist.
Yup, just selling berries as the world turns. Love you immensely, Don Felipe de Viana.
Just got back from my Thursday morning walk. No one came to be with me so I said my rosary for a few individuals and the rock pile. I love saying the rosary on Thursdays because that is the day of the week to ponder the Illuminating Mysteries. These are a set of teachings/gifts that as it says “light the way” for us.
So, just want to say that anyone who would like to contribute to this blog, as in adding their two cents, is welcome. I certainly would like to keep things fresh and you could help me do that. We do have some sort of central theme, I think, so whatever it is, it would be good to stick with it. Yea.
Well, time to get to work. It is so great to have you around me. We are coming up on our 500th post soon. That’s amazing. Maybe we could do something special for that. OK, keep it upbeat, love, Felipe.
Let me do my work each day;
and if the darkened hours
of despair overcome me,
may I not forget the strength
that comforted me in the
desolation of other times.
May I still remember the bright hours
that found me walking over the silent hills of my childhood,
or dreaming on the margin of a quiet river,
when a light glowed within me,
and I promised my early God to have courage
amid the tempests of the changing years.
Spare me from bitterness
and from the sharp passions of unguarded moments.
May I not forget that poverty and riches are of the spirit.
Though the world knows me not,
may my thoughts and actions
be such as shall keep me friendly
with myself.
Lift up my eyes from the earth,
and let me not forget the uses of the stars.
Forbid that I should judge others
lest I condemn myself.
Let me not follow the clamor of the world,
but walk calmly in my path.
Give me a few friends who will love me for what I am;
and keep ever burning
before my vagrant steps
the kindly light of hope.
And though age and infirmity overtake me,
and I come not within sight of the castle of my dreams,
teach me still to be thankful for life,
and for time’s olden memories that are good and sweet;
and may the evening’s twilight find me
gentle still.
Just received this via email and is is fresh to you!
“We’re already more than halfway and it’s flying by as I become sadder each day to see the end approach, even while I know Santiago is only symbolic of the personal Camino that begins there.
Yesterday we took the tour of Samos, went on to Sarria and then took a taxi back for Vespers. Beautiful!
Kelly, my niece and grandniece are in a hurry so I stayed behind for a desperately needed rest day here in Sarria (argh, those stairs at the end if a 24 k day!) and discovered the lovely, small 12th century Convent of Mary Magdalene. ”
Our beloved Kelly on the job in Spain.
“Tomorrow to Portomarin!
Haven’t met any angels yet but I know they are here. It’s alperfect.
