Alexa told me it would rain between 7 and 8 this morning. It was ten by then, but she was right. It had rained. The driveway inside the fence was still wet.

We have another wonderful morning. It is 75° and sunny. The air is mostly still. Only the leaves at the top of the tallest oak are moving. I can hear the hum of insects and an occasional bird song.

I need to do house chores. My sloth has to ignore me for a while.

I have some mementoes from the town where I grew up. On the window sill in the kitchen is a Weiss Farm milk bottle. I used to bike to the farm and watch the cows. The path from the barn to the field was filled with hoof prints, and it was all muddy when it rained. I remember thinking cows only rambled. They were in no hurry. I think they were Holstein cows. I could see bales of hay in front of the barn. I never saw people.

I have several old post cards of places now only memories. The uptown card has all the stores where I used to window shop rolling my bike on the sidewalk. The police box in the middle of the square is still there. It was destroyed when a car hit it. I remember seeing the policeman inside working the traffic lights. Pullo’s Drug is there. Mr. Pollo was my father’s friend. His store was small compared to Middlesex Drug across the street. The soda fountain had only four stools. The tops were red. I can see Hank’s Bakery and another pharmacy two doors down from Pullo’s. My town seemed to have a plethora of drug stores. One picture of the square has a horse and wagon in the middle. I love the card of my grammar school, St. Pat’s, and of the rectory beside it. It is a wonderful three story building with a wrap-around porch. My school is beside it, the angel statue in front. Out the side door is a walkway with planks. In my day it was paved. I used that door because the crowd went out the other side. The Dairy Queen picture has a full parking lot. The building resembles a barn. In front is an ad for a quart of Mr. Misty.

The library is where I spent so much time. On the card is a picture of the original, small building. A girl is walking on the sidewalk in front. She is wearing a hat, a mid-length dress and what looks like button top shoes. On the back is a message starting with Friend and ending with bushels of hugs and kisses. The postmark is dated 1911. I remember seeing the metal plaque by the front door which said it was a Carnegie library. The building was opened in 1904. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. It is so much bigger now.

I loved growing up in my town.

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