taking care of things

From Thursday to today, Luke was out of town in Atlanta with his bros. I say "bros," because it seems the best word to use for a group of 12 college friends who have spent the entire year planning said weekend around any leisure sport they can come up with. Note the word leisure in that last sentence.

So, I, for the first time, was home taking care of things. And I really enjoyed it. I spent the week prior to his departure concocting surprises for him upon his return. Volunteers came out to the farm to help me pick for the market - and we weeded, hoed, planted, and picked til I didn't think I could move anymore. That night, I found myself asleep at 6 o'clock, drooling (yes, literally) on my pillow. So, I cleaned myself up and went to Proof on Main for a treat (it helps when you work there. They give you special surprises in the form of Pappy Van Winkle 15 year....). I missed Luke's company. Before we dated, I would often go out to bars or restaurants by myself and truly enjoyed it - the freedom of singleness, I suppose. But, as I sat there, drinking my bourbon and watching the bar televisions with no sound (and no captions), I thought, I don't really miss this at all. The conversation that Luke and I have is so good. The way we enjoy food is so mutual. His company is really the best part of going out to fancy places like that.

The next morning I rose early to prepare for the market. It took me several hours and I was very, very tired. This may have been the only part of the weekend that I didn't enjoy. Contrary to what you might think about me, my least favorite part of farming is the farmer's market. I'm not sure if it's because we haven't generated a following yet or if folks' critical comments about our hard-earned produce pricks my anger...but I usually gladly let Luke take this area over. Noel and Tyler and Royal came to the rescue around 11 and brought me some coffee and company.

The last surprise of the weekend was to fix the greenhouse and mow our front and back yard. I wish I had a 'before' picture of this for those of you who aren't familiar with the disaster that was our yard. Every time I looked at the combination of our trash-filled, overgrown yard and our greenhouse-turned-junkyard, I thought about how we're supposed to be combating the ghetto, not contributing to it.

So, two friends from community group came over and, boy, did we do it. Jennifer picked out all the volunteer tomato plants, random bricks and trash, and extension chords from amidst the weeds while Steve and I started to tackle the greenhouse. His mathematical mind and compulsion to finish tasks completely, came in real handy. It was hot. Much hotter than I thought it would be. And we were right in the sun the whole time. When Steve took a break for water, you would wonder how he had time to down a 16oz glass before he was back out in the heat. BUT we got it finished. And I mowed the lawn and weeded after they left, dripping with sweat and sticky with salt and dirt.

Now, Luke is on his way home and I am having coffee on the front porch, resting from the weekend's work. I had a great time taking care of things. I keep saying that; it seems the best way to describe the simplicity and the work of this weekend. I've loved anticipating Luke's reactions to the work, but also I've just enjoyed doing the work: being the farmer, tending to the home, and enjoying the pleasure of seeing it all completed.

Today is Sunday and I am resting (for the first Sunday since May, actually). The only thing I didn't finish on my list of surprises was to learn stick shift (I know, lame that I don't already know). But I'm okay with that. I might see if I can clean out his truck for him before he gets home...

update: I did clean out the truck. I had to bust out the shop-vac to pick up years worth of dirt and debris. Oh, man, I'm so excited for him to see it!