June 3, 2016

Unusual Day

June 3, 2016

A fire two blocks from our office Friday morning.

My plan for this blog was remembering that 3 years ago on this date, I was having elbow surgery on my left elbow that I broke working in the yard.  It is very rare that I have any discomfort from it anymore; the is very little limitation with it.  I can not fully extend it, but that is very minor.

My elbow surgery 3 years ago.

Instead of re-hashing that event, my day was unusual in other ways.  As I got ready to go to the office, I checked my cell phone for messages and missed calls.  I had a message from my husband saying not to hurry since I would not be able to get to the office due to blocked streets.  That seemed strange.  I didn't think we had that much rain overnight.  Then he sent me a photo like the one at the top of this blog posting.

We all know when there is a fire, someone has lost much - maybe everything in their home or business.  This fire was at a business down the street from us (away from downtown).  It was a store called Distinctive Lighting.  They sold beautiful as well as functional light fixtures.  The owner comes in our business a couple of times a year for keys and always stays to talk about the joys and headaches of being a small business owner.  We have driven past this store for what seems like forever.  Neither of us ever noticed there seems to have been a 2 story residence attached to the back of the building.  My guess is the fire started there because the damage seems heavier there.  So sad.

I told Ron to text me when the street opened up.  I texted him at 3:15 to see if everything was OK since I had not heard from him.  He said, oh, yes, the street had just opened up.  I went to the office so he could run some errands.  I had spent the day at home, but accomplished little, thinking he would call any minute.

At the end of the work day, Ron was still out so he texted and asked me to lock up.  After doing that I went to get my mom and we met Ron at a cafeteria for supper before Mom and I went to a Ladies' Night Out at the church.  The event was a painting class.  I have never painted without numbers on the canvas (Paint by Number set).  Our paintings were far from spectacular, but we had a good time.

 Me and Mom and our master pieces!

It was interesting that although we had a sample of the painting we were trying to copy, each one was unique and represented the personality of the painter.  I think everyone had a great time.  We ranged in age from teens to Mom's 93 years young.  There was a good turn out for the evening and I am glad we went.

After taking Mom home, I talked to our daughter-in-law in New Mexico and enjoyed the chat.  She continues to have problems with her knee, but it is slowly getting better.

 This young lady had a great time.

Just before going to bed, I checked for messages and found one from a precious friend from the church.  She needed a locksmith for the next morning for a problem at a home that had just sold.  It is not the type of work Ron does, so I gave her a couple of other options.  This was one of those situations where she always entered the house through the garage and came to realize she did not have a front door key.  It is amazing how often that happens.

 Serious concentration at this table

Our son and daughter-in-law who moved last summer are both so outgoing, making friends easily and I have the joy of getting to know more of the young couples through them.  Earlier in the day, a man with two daughters came in the office to pick up some work he had left to be done.  One of his girls is especially fond of our son's oldest daughter and she was asking about her.  There are so many of these young women that I feel blessed to know and Facebook allows me to enjoy watching their children as they grow.  

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