What a delightful day! It is warm and sunny. A breeze is swaying only the tallest pine tree branches. In my backyard, there are still oak leaves dangling from the ends of branches but already piles of fallen leaves cover the backyard, the front grass and the driveway. I like to kick through the piles.

When I was teen, I didn’t have a whole lot of dressy clothes. I didn’t need them. I wore a uniform to school. I had a few skirts and blouses, church clothes. I remember my stylish skirts were tight and had slits in the back. I couldn’t take big steps. I had a pair of saddle shoes and wore ankle socks with them. Even though I was older, I still called the rest of my wardrobe play clothes. One of my favorite outfits was a gift from Christmas, black ski pants with a loop at the bottom to go across and under my foot and a fuzzy pink sweater. I was stylin’.

Now, I only have a few dresses just taking up space in my closet. I bought the first one for my trip to Ghana. It is blue with flowers. The other dress is red with white flowers as the main motif. I also have a couple of dresses made for me when I was in Ghana. The cloth is beautiful. I can’t remember the last time I wore dress.

I am wearing my winter around the house ensemble, a sweatshirt, a Red Sox sweatshirt, flannel pants and slipper socks. It is a cozy outfit.

Our Sunday dinners were special, always a roast, mashed potatoes, gravy and a couple of veggies. My favorite was roast beef. It was always medium to well done so that is how we all still prefer our beef. I love mashed potatoes and adding gravy raises the potatoes to near perfection. Corn and baby peas top my list of favorite veggies. My mother never served spinach, cauliflower or broccoli so they are not on my list of acceptable vegetables.

Today is dump day. My car is just about filled with recyclables and trash bags. After the trash stop, I need a few groceries, coffee filters and bread are one and two on that list. They are life affirming.

Today is sunny and warm. It is 60°. It is the first weekend in a while that it isn’t raining. I have a couple of household chores I choose to ignore. The sloth in me is holding sway.

When I was a kid, Saturday was the best day of all. The morning was dedicated to sitting in front of the TV watching all the kid shows, munching cereal and slurping milk. The rest of the day was set aside for roaming. Sometimes I even biked to one of the towns around mine. I loved the railroad station one town over and would sit on a bench for a while hoping for a train. Supper on Saturday was always the same, but I never minded. I was and am a fan of hot dogs. The Saturday bath after supper was a ritual. I remember my sisters crying when my mother combed the snarls out of their newly shampooed hair. That too was a Saturday ritual. We got to stay up later. TV back then was filled with westerns like Sugarfoot, for which I can still sing the theme, The Roy Rogers Show with Happy Trails to You as the closing song which I can play on my uke, and my favorites like Maverick and Have Gun, Will Travel. I used to read in bed until my mother yelled up the stairs for me to turn off the light. Saturday was the perfect day.

When I lived in Ghana, Saturday was the day to go to town to pick up essentials in the market. I had my favorite egg man and my favorite vegetable lady from whom I bought onions and tomatoes. I used to roam the market hoping to find surprises like that watermelon, the only one I ever saw. From the kiosks lining the street, I’d buy canned goods like margarine and evaporated milk. From small girls carrying their goods on their heads I’d buy bread and bofrot aka puff puff which looked like donut holes only a little bigger and better tasting.

Saturday night was entertainment night at my school. There was tribal dancing and once in a while a movie. I remember Great Expectations and my students having no idea what was happening with the quick dialogue. My favorite was a cartoon about keeping flies off food. The movies and cartoons came from a USAID guy who occasionally dropped into town but whom I seldom saw.

I have an entirely empty dance card this weekend for which I am grateful. I’m going to loll.