Wednesday, October 14, 2015

...commuting, flowers, and love...

“Love takes off the masks that we fear 
we cannot live without
and know we cannot live within.
I use the word "love" here not merely in the personal sense 
but as a state of being, 
or a state of grace–
not in the infantile American sense 
of being made happy
but in the tough and universal sense 
of quest and daring
                                         and growth.”
~ James Baldwin

This has not been the week for commuters in the area. Yesterday, the interstate was closed for hours after someone jumped to his (her?) death. Fortunately for me, aside from still being alive, it also only cost me an additional 40 minutes to my typical 3 hour commute. Does that sound heartless? Maybe. As I was sitting in traffic, what seemed like a parking lot, I sent a text to my fella that somebody better be dead. Okay, I didn’t *really* mean it.

This morning the train broke down on the way to work. It only set me back 15 minutes but still… I had to scram to my shuttle bus.

Monday was a federal holiday so the commuter rails weren’t operating. I bought an Amtrak ticket from town to work. This is the best commuting experience ever! I would do it daily if it didn’t cost a mortgage to do so. This type of luxury would really put a cramp in my jewelry habit. As I walked home through town near the Randolph-Macon College campus (I know! It’s crazy that I commute 3 hours when I live less than a half mile to another campus), I walked by this beautiful house. My fella and I actually got to go in this house during last year’s holiday tour.

But even though my commute makes me fussy, I get to come home to this!



Okay, my fella has a body but he’s private so this is all you get!




He greets me at the door with flowers and a shot of pumpkin liqueur in a Jack-o-lantern shot glass. 




14 comments:

  1. I love discovering Ashland through your eyes!

    The jumper was a woman. A former deputy colleague of my daughter was on the scene, tried to talk her off the rail, and watched helplessly as she jumped. I wonder what was so terrible that her life ended that way. So sad.

    On a brighter note .... you have a totally awesome fella.

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    1. I'm sorry for your daughter's former colleague who had to watch it happen. One of my best friends shot himself when he was 18 (I was 16) and *I* have lived with it ever since. Suicide is an act that I consider completely self-absorbed but then I'm not wired that way.

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    2. Suicide in the privacy of one's home or in the woods... Their business. Jumping from a public location involving EMT, first responders, etc= self-absorbed! I could go on and on it angers me so....

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  2. 3 hour commute?! On a daily basis? And I thought my two hours a day on trains and buses was too much. Brave girl.
    At least the torture ended with a shot of alcohol - and all the rest:-)

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    1. Three hours... One way. I have a daily 6-hour commute...mostly train but shuttle and car too.

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  3. Replies
    1. Terribly shy and private but he is lovely and kind and thoughtful and Gwee! He's my best friend ever!

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  4. Gorgeous flowers! :D I'm a pretty patient commuter... but I get ticked when traffic or trains get delayed because someone did something stupid. Recently, a guy robbed a bank, was pulled over by police two minutes later, fired at the police, and was shot dead in return. What an idiot! Shortest bank robbing career in history. :P

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    Replies
    1. Bane, thanks for writing that. I figured my earlier comment might come across wrong :-/ Self-centered, careless behavior... I'm not sure what to call it but GRRRR!

      That's a great bank robbing story. There should be a Wiki How NOT to do page featuring that story!

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  5. Your fella is a keeper, that's for sure! It's all those nice little gestures which make a relationship great and full of love...

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