Romance, not quite what you might think in Everyday Ramblings

This is the most amazing bower of wisteria I have ever seen. The garden it is in was started in 1916 so over 100 years ago. There are some rhododendron bushes that are so big and old they are trees that you walk under. There is a bench inside the bower of wisteria and I took this shot this morning from in there.

We had Frida off leash because we were in the parking lot and she was full of energy and she kept coming in under the draping wisteria to see what we were up to. We ran her in the parking lot, I am an honorary dog in her eyes and she loves horsing around with me.

I love visiting other people’s dogs and other people’s gardens. I have not been to this one in at least 15 years. It is free and open to the public everyday but it is in an exclusive neighborhood south of here on a bluff right over the river. It is a bit of a challenge to find.

We were there for at least an hour if not longer and we saw, umm, four people. Mrs. Sherlock had not ever been there, and didn’t even know about it, which I thought was rather amazing.

She loved it! We both loved it.

It was so so beautiful. I felt a sense of calmness the minute we drove through the gates. The family that owned it left it with an endowment for upkeep to the Episcopalian Diocese. They take care of it but there is also a sense of wildness, with some Oregon grape and a lot of volunteer foxglove around the place.

The sky was overcast so Mt. Hood was not visible but it was dry.

I had remembered loving it when I visited before, which was not in spring and I was a little afraid that I had built it up in my mind but wow it far exceeded my expectations.

When I got home (after the garden we then went off to the local state park and did a proper hike) I realized I was happy.

Simple not fancy easy and comfortable happy. I had enjoyed my early morning and listening to today’s Dear Sugars podcast about aging and sex, I had enjoyed my workout at the gym listening to an old interview with Tom Wolfe, and I ever so much enjoyed aimlessly walking around the garden with Frida and Mrs. Sherlock.

Her husband got his PICC line out Monday and she had a busy active week and enjoyed being with me and not mentioning him at all. After all those weeks of his treatment being the absolute center of her attention.

It is kind of a revelation to me, that like the full moon setting over the water just before dawn the last day we were at the beach and the auspicious rainbow we saw a bit later that day the I can experience the romance of a life well lived without associating it with…well…some guy.

I think this is one of the unsung joys of aging.

Of course I am sad and heartbroken about the shooting in Texas.

Of course I am beyond dismayed at the almost all the news coming out of Washington but I did like the simplicity of the Wedding Dress and how happy the royal couple looked.

Now if we could just get the sun to make an appearance in this ever-present gloom you might even get me to unselfconsciously start dancing around.

Last updated May 20, 2018