On the theme of doing different things, we went to the chicken barbeque at the Phillipston Congregational Church on Saturday evening. We arrived at the appointed hour and learned that the barbeque was sold out for a couple of weeks. Disappointed, we walked around the town common. The flea market was ending and the leftovers were free for the taking. We found a small basket and a 1940 map of Cape Cod. We met a friend who suggested that we might ask in the church kitchen, that there might be some tickets available. We were able to buy one ticket. So, we shared a dinner. The people serving the meal took pity on us and gave us extra bread and cranberry sauce. We dined under a tent and watched a fine talent show with singers, dancers, musicians, and a hula-hooper. It was a splendid evening. Now we know that the barbeque is held on the second Saturday in June and that we should buy our tickets in May.

Saturday night is sauna night. When I was a kid, we’d have company which meant lots of food, talking, and old Finnish folk songs on the record player. Families would take turns in the sauna and the last guests wouldn’t leave until 11:00 or so. Now it’s a quiet time, most often just the two of us. We sat on the bench at dusk, overlooking the lake and watching the bat swoop along the shore, eating the mosquitoes before the mosquitoes ate us.

We finished putting a float together. It’s about six feet by six feet, made up of half-height cubes similar to the ones that we use on our dock, pictured here. Once the water warms up in a week or two, we’ll paddle the float into place. We’ll anchor it with some cement blocks. It’ll be fun for the kids to swim to the float.

During the week my father slipped on the wet ground and sprained his wrist badly. Fortunately (I guess), it was his left wrist, which is now a gruesome shade of purple. He’s very lucky that he didn’t break the arm or worse.

We returned home mid-afternoon on Sunday. Sandra’s sister, Barbara, her brother, John, and his wife, Suanne, were visiting with her parents. We shared a bit of John’s birthday cake. Later in the afternoon, Mike and the kids came over for a visit. We had pizza for supper, followed by a Whiffle® Ball. game in the back yard. We went to bed tired and happy.

Today I have a couple of job-search phone calls, one in the morning, and the other in the late afternoon. In between, I’ll shop, pay the bills, and tend to other chores around the house. The good stuff of the weekend seems to have lifted me out of last week’s glum mood.