Running into an old friend

 While I'm zooming through the ether to see my son and his wife, I've pre-posted a few things from home. I'm not carting my old laptop with me this time. Trying to keep the weight down in my overhead suitcase!

The other day I finally got to the Trailhead Restaurant and ordered my favorite meal. Fish and Chips. Why I never take a photo of it must have to do with my level of hunger. I'd been craving it for days!

A funny thing happened. I wanted to make sure to mail some cards at the post office before they picked up the last collection at 5 pm. So around 4:45 I pulled into a parking space, and the guy in front of me gets out of his little white pickup. It's none other than an old friend, Tim!

So we hug in the middle of the street, and figure cars can just go around us. (There were lots of really pushy drivers out that evening!)

And we mail our letters and I ask Tim if he wants to go have dinner, and he says yes. He probably wasn't that hungry, which he owned up to, but after we had a refreshing Highland Gaelic Ale each, and talked talked talked, we tried to figure out when we'd last been together.

He helped me move into several of my houses here, he used to fix little things, and was willing for me to give him pottery often. He says he likes my color pallet. I'm not sure what colors that means. 

Tim has moved to a nearby town but still works full time doing bookkeeping for several non-profits in Black Mountain. And the biggest news in his life is that he's left the Unitarian Universalist religion and is happy as an Episcopalian. Apparently they are a liberal bunch of Christians in Marion NC, so he's quite comfortable.

A dogwood tree at Dogwood Apartments.

I told him I've also moved away from the UU church in Black Mountain and am taking a class in Paganism at the Asheville UU church. It uses a book written by Druids, but is interesting to consider how people experience paganism...which isn't a major arm of UU's, but an off-shoot, you might say.

There are UU Buddhists, Jews, humanitarians, atheists, Christians and agnostics. A small group which is all over the US is CUUPS - Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans. So CUPPS is sponsoring this little class, which includes all 13 of us experiencing some of the practices of pagans.

Well Tim and I didn't exactly figure out when we last had connected. He does post on Facebook every once in a while, and said he's really busy with all these different organizations he works for. So we shall stay loosely in touch.

I told him I was just home from a few days in the hospital with pneumonia, and that I was planning to go see my son and wife in Colorado. So that's where I'm headed today!

Dogwood Apartments have some other colorful trees also.  I forgot to capture the pink/red dogwood! Good reason to go back again!

Sitting on he porch of the Trailhead we had a great view of the parking lot...but I spied some more redbuds over behind the dumpster corral!

The Dripolator is one of my favorite coffee houses. But it is often crowded with tourists. I'm glad we're attracting them again, as most of our businesses have reopened after the hurricane 6 months ago.

Though Tim had no difficulty finishing off every edible bite of his dinner, I brought half of mine home, to reheat and have another meal!

Today's quote:

In each of us there is a spark that can reverse the trends of violence and depression spiraling within us and in the world around us. By setting in motion the spiral of gratefulness we begin the journey toward peace and joy. Br. David Steindl-Rast