No Reason for Not Posting

It is unlike me not to post in several days, and I am not sure why I haven't been writing.

So let's have a quick update.

A week ago I had lunch with Di from Blue Ridge Gal; we ran into each other at the Daleville Post Office and then on impulse headed to Bellacino's for a bite. I had my usual 1/4 sandwich while Di went for some kind of nacho thing. I had great fun talking and chatting; it was a like a little party with just the two of us.

Blogging friends are cool, anyway.

Tuesday, my Aunt Jennifer and I headed north. Our destinations were the Green Valley Book Fair in Mount Crawford and The Cheese Shop in Stuarts Draft.

My Aunt Jennifer is my mother's brother's wife. She is a nurse. In July, she began a round of surgeries that included her knees and in November her hands for carpal tunnel or something. She has been rather housebound so I thought an outing might do her good.

Anyway, the Green Valley Book Fair is one of my favorite stops, because, well, there are books! Lots of them. I could have spent all of my Christmas money there but I was good and did not. I did purchase a number of items for presents, however.

The Cheese Shop has great spices at extremely reasonable prices; they offer a lot of candy, too, or things with which to make candy, and many other unusual cooking and baking ingredients that aren't readily found in Roanoke. In particular, they carry McCutcheon's Apple Butter, which is my husband's favorite but which I can't find locally (if anyone knows of a store in Roanoke that carries it, do tell!). I purchased 5 quarts so hopefully he will be stocked up for a little while with his favorite breakfast treat.

Thursday night my friend B. had her annual "soup night," which is a party where she serves soup. Leek soup and chili, to be exact, and it is a big hit with most of Fincastle. This was her last party in her old home; after Christmas she will be moving a few blocks away into a brand-spanking new house that she and her husband are building. I am sure it was a bittersweet event for her. For the rest of us it was finger-lickin' good.

After we returned home from the party and began settling in for the night, we received a phone call. My husband's Aunt Nancy, in from Georgia, was in distress. She has been staying with his Aunt Jenny, whom regular readers will recall has pancreatic cancer and had surgery in November. (As an update, she seems to be doing very well; chemo and radiation therapy in the near future, it seems).

Anyway, as I was in a state of undress the husband raced up the hill to check on his aunt and he made the determination to call the rescue squad. She was having difficulty breathing.

When he came back home, I was ready to go to the hospital with him but he told me to stay home because he wanted someone around in case Aunt Jenny and Uncle Bill needed something. One of the cousins was supposed to come and stay with them but had not yet arrived as I understood it. So I dug in for a long wait.

Anyway, the long and short of it is that the doctors could not determine what had happened to Aunt Nancy and the husband returned home with her around 3:30 a.m. I was up, because of course I was worried. It was a long night.

Friday I treated myself to a much-needed massage; I was pretty useless from that and the lack of sleep.

Saturday B. and I stepped out on the town. We went to IHOP in Roanoke for breakfast (I had eggs and pancakes; yum, yum!) and then hit the stores. We went to Staples, Target, Barnes & Noble, Dicks Sporting Goods, Applebys (for gift certificates), Supershoes, and Gander Mountain. Whew!

Yesterday we rested, except I made two batches of fudge. Somewhere in there I did my Christmas cards and wrapped presents, too.

And while I still don't know why I haven't been posting, maybe this is an indication that the little mini-writing-drought is over.