It’s Memorial Day. Last night, I tried to watch the National Memorial Day Concert in Washington, DC, but it was unendurable, becoming more maudlin and histrionic every year, making a day that should be dedicated to inspiration, respect and remembrance an occasion to feed on other people’s grief and suffering.
This time I got smart and recorded the concert, then skipped ahead to the part that has the most meaning for me at least, the splendid “Salute to Services”, in which each branch of the Armed Services is distinctly honored.
Since Thursday, traffic has been reasonable getting off and back on Cape. Emme helped with the transfer station run yesterday and we made a trip to Buzzards Bay to pick up computers and devices for testing.
It was great to have her company; I dragged myself around yesterday, not wanting to do anything but sleep or sit in a chair and read. Having a pleasant companion made it easier to get through what was necessary, including forcing myself to pick up a prescription and to load the latest version of the software on the machines to be shipped to the Midwest.
I’m tired of the project and would like a day or two to do nothing – no shopping, cooking, cleaning or listening to Fluffles complain about his food. It’s been wonderful to have a long weekend, but it hasn’t been a time to rest and rejuvenate. Rather, it’s giving me another day of testing – just work of a different kind.
In lieu of a real back yard, I’d be perfectly happy to put in some raised beds. A day or possibly two of yard work needs to be done at 11 Edgewater. The outdoors is definitely calling, and while it’s some comfort to be able to work in a place with open doors and windows, it’s not the same as actually being outside.
In a couple of hours, I plan to attend for the first time Mashpee’s annual Memorial Day ceremony. It’ll have a special significance this year: our VFW post is one of the very few in the US to have women Iraq war vets among its officers.