Managing the Rope

This morning, the sweet sounds of Spring had given way to the more strident sounds of approaching Summer--woodpeckers croaked and chattered, gathering crows call the group to order in a nearby treetop--not , however, the one that is being cut down next door.

The farmer across the way began mowing his hilly vineyards at 4am. Ozzie must have heard him, or seen his headlights, because by 5am he was quite sure that it was time to get up. A distant dog barked non-stop--perhaps he felt he should be running behind the tractor.

Dana and OilMan got our Cinco de Mayo roses planted by 10, while I finished pruning the Formium plants. The bank is very steep there and I practically had to rappel myself down from the fence to have semi-solid footing. Good thing I do Yoga. We made very little noise, concentration was required.

Two guys came to mow our steep lawn, one working his way up from the bottom, the other moving down from the top. The rumble of earth moving equipment, punctuated by the piercing beep when it backed up, trickled down from the construction site across the road above us.

We rewarded ourselves (do we need a reason?) with a trip down the road to VJB Cellars' outdoor patio where we had flatbread and deli salads for lunch and refilled our bottle with the house red wine--the Italian equivalent of Nouveau Beaujolais. It is cooler today and it was pleasant in the sun, watching the combination of locals and tourists.

A well enhanced young woman in a tight green dress with a zip from neck to hem in back and stiletto heels sashayed by a number of times., attracting the attention of every man in the place. They had to be thinking about how quick and easy it would be to unzip that zipper The older ladies at one table, and the four young gay men at another don't even look up. The large table full of men, with dozens of glasses on the table, was well into their third round by the time a few young women joined them. Their job seemed to be to fetch and carry, but they didn't seem to mind.

Now the house is very quiet. OilMan and Ozzie are taking a nap. The trees are cut and chipped, and the bulldozers have gone home for the weekend. The crows have adjourned their board meeting, and the woodpeckers have retired to their condos in nearby telephone poles. The weekend has begun.