My deck is now ready for summer. All the candles are in the trees and the furniture uncovered. I just need a warm day or two to get out to my favorite spot under the umbrella with book in hand. Right now it’s 65° which is considerably cooler than yesterday, and the sun which was so bright earlier this morning is popping in and out of the clouds. Gracie has had her morning run and is now in the midst of her morning nap. I have a few house chores to do then a bit of shopping, but I’m in no rush. I have the whole day ahead of me.

I like week days here on my street. The mowers are in the garages, the leaf blowers beside them, kids are in school and most parents are at work. I hear dogs barking, sometimes answering each other, sometimes just barking for the sake of it. Gracie, though, seldom joins the chorus of barkers. She mostly ignores them. They are familiar sounds and Gracie only acknowledges the barks of strangers.

I’m thinking of having my living room repainted. It is red right now, and I figure it will stay red, but there are some chipped spots which are driving me crazy. The bathroom too could use a make-over, and I might change that color. It’s pink now, a bright wear your sunglasses pink. A few years ago all the rooms but this one were repainted. They had been white for 25+ years, and I went with color, bright color, in all the rooms. I don’t even know why. I just know I wanted color and I still do.

My doctor once told me our systems change every seven years, nothing drastic, no extra toes or fingers or limbs but more subtle changes. According to him, that’s why my allergies and asthma developed. I would have preferred an extra toe, but I wasn’t given the choice. I wonder where in those seven-year cycles I might be now. I’d check my feet but that would be futile.