City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York.

Isn't it pleasant to have golden sunshine and bright blue sky greet you on a day off from work?
I love to wake up without aid of an alarm clock and find early morning light encouraging me to get up quickly and prepare to enjoy the hours ahead.

Today was a day off. I woke without aid of my alarm clock, to find very dim light. Then my ears picked up the sound of several cars passing by on the street outside my bedroom window. The whooshing sound told me that the street was wet. So I was not to have any golden sunshine or bright blue sky.

I got up anyway, and went over to take a better peek through my window, and saw that we had a misty, foggy morning. I love that atmosphere, and think that this city's architecture often looks its best under this filter.

The weather definitely encouraged me to a slower beginning to my day. I am lucky to have the Sunday New York Times newspaper delivered to my doorway. No need to get my feet wet in order to have access to the relaxing treat of reading the news, listening to the radio, and enjoying a simple breakfast of coffee and croissant, with marmalade.

I called one of my brothers and had a long catch up call with him. Also very relaxing.

Several projects were listed on a tiny square of paper that I had left near my keys. I had made the list yesterday, before I knew of the lure of staying indoors today. I began the charming chore of defrosting my aged refrigerator, I balanced my checkbook and bundled up some papers to be re-cycled.

And then I noticed that the light was changing, and that I could venture out without an umbrella.

I took the bus across the Park to return a book at the library, noticing that the very soggy green Park was finally showing brilliant yellow forsythia highlights. From the bus window, I glimpsed a few scattered early daffodils. While on the east side, I popped in to see some dear pals who were working today.

Feeling lazy, I opted for the bus for my return trip to my lovely west side, and then continued walking along to take care of a few errands, including stopping at a neighborhood green market. That is where I treated myself to this primrose.


Primulas always are so sprightly. Who can see one and not smile?

It's just about sundown time here, and once again the city is cloaked by that gentle dim light.

Later tonight, I will definitely need to set my alarm clock, to ensure an early start to Monday. Much has been going on at the shop. We hosted our semi-annual special event last week, donating ten percent of our proceeds to a philanthropy. The turnout was fabulous, particularly in light of the continuing economic uncertainty.

There are some other interesting developments underway at the shop that I hope to write about at a later date. Please forgive me for being a tease. For now I will keep these developments confidential.

Wishing you all sweet dreams.