March 2023 Island Trip – Day 4

It was cold today. So cold that we spent most of the day hanging out in Stella. We did get around to:

• Replacing the upper barn’s lock set. My DH did this for me, and how wonderful to have the lock simply respond to its key, rather than needing a boost of frustration and cursing.
• We looked at the dryer for our tenants. The exhaust hose and exterior vent cap weren’t playing well, and indeed disconnected as I tried to reposition the exterior cap. Next up was smelling propane in the shed while the drier was running. For reasons that are rather too technical to explain here, I’m actually sure that the drier is OK. The propane connections are solid. I think the disconnected pipe exited the propane whiff that takes places before the drier ignites its fuel source. The exhaust hose and exterior vent pipe are back together, sealed up with duct tape, and I have a call into my appliance guru. Bruce needs to come out and bless this mess…
• My DH, despite horrendous instructions, and the worst app ever, deployed a trail cam. The idea is to enjoy our Island wildlife from our mainland home. Tuning will be necessary, but we’re underway!
• We both took a nap this afternoon.
• We had a lovely dinner with our tenants, and our neighbor to the east, in town at a vegan/wine restaurant. The food was incredible. The last time I was there (2017) was kinda traumatic, and this experience created a new memory.

Yeah, I know… What was the mama trauma drama? When mom was in the skilled nursing community on the Island, after her 2nd car accident, one of her neighbors and I took her to this restaurant for lunch. Mom finished and said she needed some things at the drugstore (next door) and would wait for us there. When I arrived, momentarily, she had a med in her hands the docs said she couldn’t take anymore. Our conversation regarding this ended with her yelling, loudly, that I was abusing her as I tried to take the Benadryl out of her hands. In the end I let her buy it, to avoid a fist fight, and the skilled nursing community staff removing it from her room while she was at dinner. It was the last time she was allowed out on a field trip (My edict) from the skilled nursing community. Fore her safety it was the last time she got to stroll through her little town before I moved her to assisted living. Sure, she was beyond that sort of self-control, yet it still makes me sad for her that she had hit a wall that she had zero control from navigating around.

This evening created a lovely memory around this establishment, and friends. And I’m also able to look back six years (!) with better perspective and far, far less angst