Friday, April 27, 2012

Melbourne

There was a time that I hated Melbourne. The year was 1969, I can't remember the season exactly but I'll never forget my Father coming home informing the family that he'd bought a house in Melbourne. NO!

Can you imagine he bought a house without consulting my Mother? He did. After commuting from Orlando to Melbourne for 9 years he'd had enough. We, on the other hand, were perfectly content to let him keep doing it forever. After all, we were mostly teenagers with only ourselves to consider.

And so it was that after completing the 10th grade at Boone we moved to a new city and a new high school for me. That was bad enough but as astute mathematicians will have already figured out, I was leaving the love of my life. No one could convince either Bruce or I otherwise. It was a very sad time for the both of us.

There was a time when I was not quite as gregarious as I am today and those last two years of high school were part of that time. I got to know exactly one person that I can recall. One. I hated "Mel High" as they call it over there, especially the name. The school had one thing going for it as far as I was concerned--you got to pick not only your teachers, but the level of class you wanted to take. As an example, because I'm horrible at science, I chose level 3 which would be considered average. The social sciences I chose level 5 and so on. I have no yearbook and almost no memories of that time. In fact, when I applied to Valencia six years ago it was the first time I'd ever seen my senior picture when it arrived with my transcripts.

This weekend I hope to change my mind about Melbourne. Very creative here--we are doing the Melbourne Art Festival, staying in the Melbourne room at the bed and breakfast on Melbourne Avenue. Sounds like I'll have plenty of chances to reconsider! Normally I would never spring for a b&b, opting instead to use Bruce's hotel points, however, I decided this time to splurge a bit. Because I'm already out for nearly $300 in entry fees, what's a few hundred more? Bruce and I have worked so hard these years trying to make a go of my business and it's time we made it a little easier on ourselves. We're not getting a day younger!

Enough about the weekend--let's have a little look around the house at first, my little cherry tomato crop, which I hope is not the end of it!
Aren't they cute and bonus points because they had wonderful flavor. Ate them almost as soon as I took this! After learning of Matt's success with rooting a potato I decided to give a pineapple a go. Consulting the internet I read that it works great if you put it on top of your refrigerator after stripping a bunch of the leaves off. So, I did. And, it's working!
Next week I'm finding an outdoor home for it after I recover from the weekend!

Watering is quite the chore these days which I don't mind one bit. Watering vs. Cleaning? You know which one wins every time! Last week I followed instructions and fertilized lots of the plants and flowers outside. That is an area where I've been lacking. This hibiscus has taken on new life within a week of feeding with beautiful green leaves.
Looks a bit wilted because it's just opening which may describe both Bruce and I tonight after set up finishes. Starting time is 6PM and with a big show it takes us about 2 1/2 hours. We'll be sure to sleep well tonight.

Bruce is packing the car as I finish this with some good news and some bad news. The good news is that when I talked to someone from the festival earlier today about the set up she told me I have a great space on the main drag. Fantastic. The bad news is I woke up with the start of a cold sore which I've been treating liberally with Abreva since I felt the first tingle. Melbourne anxiety perhaps?

Wish me luck!
Gail
p.s. no editing due to hurry up and go!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

As always you did a wonderful job with many customers leaving happier than when they entered your booth.

A Week Ago Tuesday