City noise vs Rural noise

As I was sitting on my daughter's front porch this morning, drinking a wonderful cup of coffee, I came to the realization that I have "categorized noise" issues. For some time, I have figured out that noise bothers me. I thought it was ALL noise - but after my morning on the porch, I realize that it is city noise that bothers me. Not noise in general.

This morning I was enjoying the quietness of the morning when I realized that it really wasn't quiet at all. Someone was working on their house. You could hear sounds of hammers and the sound of a saw now and then. There were sounds of cars driving past and the sound of children playing in the neighborhood. I could also hear birds chirping. I was as content as can be. The noises really were just a part of the morning and if you live in a rural area, you know what I mean. It was all intertwined. Nothing stood out - and nothing was annoying me. (wow, that's an entirely different issue)

If I were in the city, sitting on my deck listening to the same noises - it would be annoying me. Listening to children play on the sidewalk right outside, making noise and bothering me - well, since I used the word "bother", I think you can see my point. The cars in the city are louder and more offensive. When someone pulls into the parking lot with their radio on loud, it annoys me. They seem to have no respect for those people who live in the same area. This morning there was someone working outside and they had their radio on. It didn't bother me one bit.

What am I to deduce from this? I'm not sure - but I know that I am not content in the city and apparently things annoy me a lot quicker in the city. Is it because there is noise overload? Perhaps. Is it because it is never quiet? Perhaps again. I just know that sitting on the porch this morning, all was rigt with the world. The rural noises were comforting to me. The city seemed so far away.

Speeding Ticket

I am just chapped. Annoyed. Ticked. I could go on.....

I was driving along Tuesday morning and there at the corner stood a policeman and he pointed at me. Me! I looked at him and pointed at myself saying "Me?" He pointed POINTEDLY at me. I knew he meant me.

I pulled over.

He clocked me going 44 in a 30. I didn't know it was a 30 but it probably wouldn't have made any difference because nobody and I mean NOBODY drives the speed limit in Fairfax or DC or anywhere in this fast-paced area. I was going with the flow of traffic - which happened to be 44 mph. I admit I was speeding. And he had proof. But seriously. SERIOUSLY! I had just pulled on to this street - and I truly didn't know it was a 30 mph zone. I pulled around a car to pass in another lane and gunned it a little bit and he clocked me. I wasn't even speeding up until that point! I was probably going 44 for about 2 seconds. Does that count??? It must.

I have not had a speeding ticket since 1972! Where's the grace????

I'm just annoyed. This little ticket is going to cost me around $300. Terrific. There's always an extra $300 laying around waiting to be spent. Why not spend it on a stinking traffic ticket. That I shouldn't have got anyway. Or if I should have, then everybody else in this huge fast-paced out-of-control on-your-bumper-if-you're-going-slow city.

I'm having trouble letting go of this. Can you tell?

Sunday Afternoon in the Park

I told Jay this morning on our way home from church that after my nap, I'd like to stop and get an iced coffee and then go to a park or go to a nursery to look at flowers. I'm not going to get any flowers for the deck because we're going to be moving in about a month and a half. I might as well wait until we get settled in instead of moving outside plants.

So - Jay "googled" Fairfax parks and came up with Meadowlark Park. We thought it was just a nice park, but as it turned out, it was Meadowlark Botanical Gardens. It was an absolutely beautiful day with a little breeze and I had a wonderful time taking in all the beauty.



The place was not crowded at all - just a pleasant amount of people. It was quiet as well. There were a good number of flowers out but an even larger number that were not even blooming yet. The peonies had huge buds on them - I'm guessing that in a week, they would be in full bloom.



The grounds were very well cared for. They had little signs stuck in the ground all over the place for identification purposes. They also had several benches along the way so that you could just sit and enjoy the view.



There were a couple of ponds with geese and a very nice fountain. They also had a children's area with a Maypole!



It was just such a pretty afternoon and a surprise treat - we had no idea that it was a botanical garden.



And in case you were wondering, the iced coffee was delicious as well!

Friends

Throughout the years, I've found that friends are one of the most important things you can have. Without them, there is a void that really is hard to fill. I'm not saying that friends are THE most important thing in life - but they are definitely in the top 5.

I have friends from when I grew up. I have a friend that I literally went all through school with and roomed with 2 years in college. When Marsha and I get together, we pick up where we left off. Like we had never been apart. We can still finish each other's sentences.

I have many friends still from college. We may not talk on the phone often, and may only actually write to each other at Christmas, but we are still friends and when we get together, which may only be every 5 years, it is a wonderful thing!

I have friends from Kansas that have stayed beside me through thick and thin. They have supported me even though they may not have understood me at all times. They loved me in spite of things. They stood beside me, cried with me, laughed with me and are still there for me today with a solid hug and a warm smile.

I've made new friends here to some degree. I have people who I am friendly with and people who I can smile with. For some reason though, it's not the same. There has not been a connection here and with only maybe 1-2 people aside, these friends are fleeting. They don't stand beside you. They don't support you - or at least they don't appear to. You shouldn't have to "search" for support. You shouldn't have to wonder what you did wrong to make them have disappeared off the radar screen.




I am so thankful for my forever friends. For those women who are there for me at any turn. And it is to those women I say this: I will be there beside you as well. I support you and love you and cherish the bond that we have. You are such a blessing in my life. After all these years, I can count myself blessed to have been given a sisterhood of friends.