Long, Long Day

Warning: This is a long one, because it was a long and interesting day.
Out all day. Since I knew I was going over to Ojai to feed Sebastian, I called Nancy to see if she could meet for lunch. She could and we did, at Sea Fresh. Had a delightful time, then she dropped me at the hospital (a very small, local one), as she had to get x-rays of her knee. I started walking to Ellen's when Stella called. Just back from Ireland and Spain, she asked where I was and did I want to walk?
By then, it had gotten very warm--probably over 80--so I begged off.  Stella lives in Oak View, as Nancy does, (it neighbors Ojai), so I suggested she come pick me up, we'd go to Ellen's and have a glass of iced tea. That's what we did. By then, it was about 3:00 and after I fed Sebastian, Stella started showing me pictures of her month-long trip. And showing me. And continuing to show me. And--damn! 
It's seems unbelievable, but we didn't leave until 5:00 and almost all that time, Stella was showing me --very slowly and with long explanatory monologues for each--roughly six trillion pictures on her phone. I consider myself eligible for sainthood because I didn't jam the lousy phone down her throat.
It was finally over, I fed Sebastian again, and we left. Stella had asked if I'd come over to her place and I was curious to see it, so we did.
Now, Nancy lives in a very attractively renovated, but rather modest and very small, building on her son's property, on one side of the highway running through Oak View. Stella? She lives on the other side where I've never been, way, way up in the hills in a large house that's clearly worth plenty. It's includes a lot  of acreage and why in the world a single woman in her seventies would want to continue living there is beyond me. She has only one child--her son, Joshua, who lives in Spain--who is 42, so it seems unlikely she'll have grandchildren.
The house looks historic--or what passes for historic in California--maybe built in the teens or twenties. The outside is rather carelessly maintained; Stella has a gardener, but I'm not sure why she doesn't have him remove some of the bushes and plant new.
As we approached, I was surprised to see Christmas wreaths hanging on the double doors. Odd, but what was odder is when we walked in: There are two Christmas trees, both of which reach to the ceiling (ten feet or so) in the living room. They are both fully decorated, plus all around the room, there are other Christmas decorations; Santas, Madonnas, toy trains, dolls, gingerbread men, candy canes, and all the other trappings of the season.
Okay, whatever gets you through the day.
Stella showed  me around--huge house, but pretty clearly, she doesn't do a lot of tidying up--and we went out to to the deck, which stretches across the house on three different levels. The backyard is very large, as are the side yards, and you can't see any neighbors, but there are lovely views of the mountains and forest everywhere you look. The property is, however, also pretty neglected. Joshua's car sits out there under a tarp (he's lived in Spain for five or so years, so what's up with that?) and the various areas have gone wild.  Stella pulled out cuttings (well, "pullings," I guess) from several plants that I admired and said I could just stick them in the ground and they'd grow.
By the time we had finished the tour, it was after 6:00 and I was hungry. I foolishly suggested we go out for dinner and Stella suggested Lure, one of my favorites, so we drove back to Ventura and went there.
It was jammed, we sat at a high table, which I dislike, I regretted not simply going home, because I didn't need to eat out twice in a day. However, I got a bowl of chowder and we had some fried shrimp, plus an IPA. By the time we left, it was after 8:00 and getting dark.
Stella has a problem driving in the dark (I don't like to myself), so I insisted she go home and I'd take the bus. She agreed, we said goodbye, and I got home with no problem. However, it was 9:30 by the time I walked in and I stayed up until 10. Darn, I wish I hadn't suggested dinner because I now have to back to Ojai twice and I have rehearsal tonight until 9:00. I also want to march with the Ojai peace group tomorrow. Okay, I'll get through it all.