Fine And Dandy

A fine day!  It started off when I got up to find my white kitchen cabinets sparkling clean, thanks to Ellen.  She was up when I got back from our walk and we had a convivial breakfast together.
Incredibly, she then planted some of my new flowers, plus a number of other plants I had set out in pots.  She cut out the rose bush that was encroaching on the Japanese maple and otherwise spruced up the outside. It looks terrific.
My stern daughter then urged me to get serious about clearing out my stuff, or at least taking a stab at it.  After a lot of sighing, moaning, and grumbling, I agreed to at least the attic.  She called my friend and hers, who promised to come down to help after mowing the lawn.
In the meantime, she and I went to B.J.'s for some items and to get a large number of boxes.  My friend was waiting for us at home and after a quick lunch, we three got to work.
Friend pulled down the attic stairs, went up there and systematically handed down--or threw down--the boxes of junk that hadn't been touched for eleven years.  It included lots of stuff that could be thrown away, other things for the flea market area, plus memorabilia: letters to my late husband, dating from the 1940's to shortly before we were married in 1958.
They don't include our letters to each other.  I keep those elsewhere and I told my girls I will burn them before I die.  They're private and I want nobody but him and I to see them.
After we finished the attic, we tackled some of the garage--vases, pots, serving dishes, and the like--for the flea market pile.  Several hours of labor later, we finished up, sat for a bit to relax, made a date to go to Cape May today, and friend said goodbye.
"Let's go to the pool," Ellen and I said practically simultaneously, and we did.  It was almost 5:00 and the lifeguard was about to leave but that was okay, as there were two of us.  The just-cool-enough, sparkling water felt wonderful after our labors and we stayed for forty-five minutes or so.
Decided to go out to dinner and did, but just to poky Dynasty Diner, as I thought other restaurants would be crowded on a Saturday night.  Ellen insisted on treating and dinner was nothing terrific, but okay.
We then went down Green Street to view the water and it was lovely.  A fair number of people were crabbing or fishing and a big orange sun  just going down over the water.  I'll miss this when I move.
Cape May today--yay!