Retreating

As I pack for the quilting retreat in Cumbria next week, I am thinking about what is means to retreat. I'm not thinking in terms of "falling back" in warfare but of withdrawing from the everyday world of things in order to contemplate or refresh. After 6 months of having an ever-increasing encroachment upon our private space by the construction, the contraction for a while there of the rooms we could actually use, and the absolute mess all the way around the house from the start, we actually needed our two-week Stateside visit. Although we never stopped thinking about what was going on in our house while we were away, we were glad for the break from the everydayness of dealing with interruptions, noise, decisions, deliveries, and inconvenience. We also had a break from thinking about meal-planning, grocery shopping, cooking, and cleaning up. Still, the trip brought us very little time on our own--I mean each of us on our own. Then there was the week after we got back when we lived at the Raes' house but came back and forth to this house but could only access one room, the study, and even that had room for only one persosn to sit.

Although I will be spending the bulk of my days next week with 7 other women in the quilting room, at meals, or in smaller groups for outings, I will have my own room in the B&B. I think I need that time on my own to sort of recharge my batteries. Having been an only child, I quite enjoy being all by myself in a quiet space to read or daydream or just potter about. So while I'm going to miss Donald, I will enjoy having the beginnings and endings of my days all to myself in my very own room for just a few days. I will be very ready to come home next Saturday, especially as it is Don's birthday.

I thought perhaps you might like to see what the view is like if I stand near the fireplace and look out of our new French windows toward the terrace. The terrace is still a mess but you get the idea of how nice it will be on a nice summer's day and for entertaining. By the way, that big box in the upper left of the photo is our new fridge/freezer. We're waiting for the pantry to be inserted so we can cut a hole in the side and back of it through which the cord from the fridge (which will live next to the pantry) can be inserted in order to plug it in. Obviously, we're also waiting for a couple of beefy boys to unpack and move the big lunker into place.

Speaking of kitchen appliances, did I tell you that I traded a quilt for a dishwasher? Friends of ours remodeled their kitchen and part of the deal when they bought their new cupboards was that MFI threw in a new cooktop and dishwasher into the bargain. Their dishwasher was only a couple of years old and was the make and model we were interested in, so they offered it to us for a nominal amount of money or one of my quilts. Yesterday I took a handful of quilts over to Molly and Iain's house. They selected "Winter Haiku" which perfectly matches the colours they have in the kitchen. I am happy to see the quilt get a good home.

Today it is rainy but Don and Gordon are on the golf course just the same. They did postpone their date from 9:30 this morning (when it was pouring with rain) to 1:30 this afternoon as it brightened and gradually stopped raining as the day went on. The rest of the week is due to be bright and sunny and I know where Donald will be while I'm away--exactly where he'd be if I were here, on the golf course.

I will be back with the next blog a week from today with some photos of Cumbria down near where the Yorkshire Dales National Park begins. If you have a UK map, I'll be near the village of Sedbergh.