Vacation Day

Those of you from Away probably don’t realize this, but people who live in a Summer Vacation Paradise do not get much Summer Vacation, on account of this being the busy season and all.  No, we generally look forward to September, when we can take a little minute to enjoy Paradise on our own terms, secure in the knowledge that we have stored up acorns for the coming winter. 

On the other hand, circumstances warrant playing hooky every now and then.  Louan has been resting up at Joann and Brian’s for the next round in the battle against the Invasive Species, and was feeling pretty good.  Wednesday stretched before her with no tests, no consultations, no decisions to make.  What to do, what to do . . . Playtime!  The sunflower fields gleamed in the early morning sun as I headed to Traverse City to pick her up.  I did not take pictures of the sunflowers, or of the great piles of clouds high in a blue sky, or of a dog named Angel who smiles, or of a bunch of smart, funny, warm people over at Traverse Bay Manufacturing, or of the Cobb Salad at Pearl’s. 

I did, however, see all those things for myself, which is why it was a vacation day for me, and I managed to get some nice pictures for you, too:  

The morning glory and the painted daisy are blooming in Joann’s yard.  The melons and peppers and squash are all growing in her neighbor’s garden, along with the flamingos.  The neighbor did not plant the flamingos, nor does she know who did.  They appear, disappear, rearrange themselves . . . Louan says it’s a Pink Flamingo Preserve, and who am I to doubt her?

The handsome Save the Dam Beach t-shirt modeled by an equally handsome man is a Louan Original, printed at Traverse Bay Manufacturing in Elk Rapids and sold as a fundraiser for the Friends of the Dam Beach campaign.  You can read all about that on the Save the Dam Beach Facebook page, where you can also see many people wearing the shirt, some of them even as handsome as Bob Bachi.  One of these days I will get one of the t-shirts for myself, and maybe even one for the Cowboy, who is pretty handsome himself.  (Miss Sadie will wear a kerchief, but she draws the line at costumes.  Miss Puss–well, you know how she is.)

The other picture is the enormous multi-page We Miss You We Love You Get Well card that has been accumulating messages over at Stuff’n’Such.  Louan enjoyed reading through that.  She pretty much enjoyed the whole day, because everywhere she went she got lots of hugs and joyful greetings and excellent treats.  Best of all, she got that smile from Angel.  Hardly anything makes a person feel so good as a genuinely delighted greeting from a dog.  I don’t know why that is, but it is.  I wish I’d gotten that picture, because I’d pin a print of it to Louan’s cat bag so she’d have it with her on Monday when the Forces of Good will assemble at Munson Medical Center to do battle yet again. 

But that’s Monday, and Monday can take care of itself.  Yesterday was Wednesday all day, and a fine Wednesday it was.  A Vacation Day.