a step out of time

We booked our summer/fall camping yesterday morning. We’ll do the same as last year: home during the summer, and away for the fall. I like to spend my birthday at the campground, and thanksgiving in the viletta has been a tradition since we got our first camper in 2007. Beautiful days in autumn are best enjoyed at the parks. Long walks in the crisp air (although sometimes it is wicked hot!) are a balm to the awareness that winter is around the corner.

My shoes arrived Tuesday and I love them… my feet? Not so much. But I think the discomfort is bearable. I’ve walked around the house to get a feel for them and even did two 1/4 mile walks on the treadmill and didn’t rip them off my feet in agony. So they are keepers (I think…).


One (and I include myself in that number), may wonder why I’d suffer so miserably in a pair of shoes. It certainly isn’t logical, but it is fun to dress up like a girl every now and then, and the cruise is the perfect time to do it. No gravel laneways to rip at the heel, and actual places to go. Walking down to supper with some people watching on the way, dressed in something other than shorts and a t-shirt (which aren’t allowed in the dining room anyway), is fun and a very different experience than being home. It’s all about a change in scenery!


I have never been one to dress up unless absolutely necessary (weddings, funerals come to mind), but I did find it fun on the ship. I think it helps that I’m not in a never ending depression that saps the will to go out, let alone put some makeup on. It used to be that getting out the door was a huge accomplishment and if I had to spruce up more than a shower and comb through my hair I might not make it out the door. I hadn’t given it much thought, but I AM feeling much better these days and rarely have more than a week or two of black dog.


Last night we visited with Jo Ellen and Don and since Don has an Irish background I tried out the Irish Cabbage and Potato Soup recipe that I’d found. Vegan and totally delish.


Life is good, even if the shoes pinch a bit ;-)