A Summer Porch Tourist
All the signs of summer have arrived, the first one being that I’m in a sundress. As soon as the weather hits 90, I wear one all summer when I’m home. It’s got to be loose fitting, rayon or cotton, and ready for wear and tear. Shoes are obsolete. Even my pink flip flops are parked by the dog’s bowl on the porch. This year, since I injured my ankle and can’t walk, a pair of crutches rests there too.
A green hose stretches across the yard like a lifeline to the garden. The dog needs shaving and the corn needs mulching. It’s already too hot to weed. The sweet smell of Valerian floats in the air. Deer flies are big this year and sting when they land on bare skin. The song of the wood thrush is like a note plunking into a clear lake. Just hearing it cools me down.
I woke this morning to the whirring of a distant helicopter. We had been hearing it for days, thinking it was the state police making their yearly summer search for pot growing along the Blue Ridge Parkway. But that wasn’t the case. The helicopter got closer and from our porch swing I watched it lower down a blade for cutting brush along the power lines.
For someone healing from an ankle injury and watching the world from her porch, a helicopter in my yard was the most exciting thing that happened all day. See a Youtube video clip of the helicopter lifting the long blade HERE.
June 6th, 2008 3:11 pm
has the paw stopped hurting then?. Just no pressure?= love the garden view..sandy
June 6th, 2008 3:17 pm
It can still throb with pain from time to time. I had to go on an antibiotic, so I’m getting a little stamina back. But the healing is slow and I still can’t walk. Because of the nature of the deep cut, we should have soaked it or irrigated it more first before closing it up. The wound on the outside looks good but the muscle damage is what seems to be the problem.
June 6th, 2008 3:59 pm
Enjoy your enforced lay-about! Do not feel the least bit guilty; that injury will take ages to completely heal. My smashed ankle from last summer still gives me twinges at times.
Time to read that book you’ve been putting off…
June 6th, 2008 5:27 pm
Sorry to hear that the healing is taking longer – but, at least you have a nice view of your garden…and it looks like a nice swing to relax in…perfect time to read a nice book or write some new poetry.
June 6th, 2008 8:10 pm
I’m sorry to hear about your ankle. I’ve done that – healed the outside while the inside is not ready. Sorry that sucks.
We get a lot of helicopters – in fact they say there’s more helicopters in the sky here in Denver than anywhere else in the country. They have a helicopter school for police and military. We get Black Hawks, Chinooks and police. The ones that drive me batty are the movie ones – oh I could just kill them because they fly really low and do the same thing over and over again. Crazy.
June 6th, 2008 9:44 pm
How are those crutches working for you? I hope I never have to use them because they hurt my armpits when I tried them once. Healing thoughts coming to you…
June 6th, 2008 10:13 pm
Goodness, I hate the smell of valerian.
If I didn’t have horses to take care of, I sure wouldn’t mind resting my ankle on the porch swing!
http://www.GreenerPastures–ACityGirlGoesCountry.blogspot.com
June 7th, 2008 5:50 pm
Hope you’re feeling better soon. Crutches are no fun but better than crawling on the floor.
June 8th, 2008 1:59 am
I would find the helicopter exciting, too. 🙂 I hope your walking is completely back to normal soon. 🙂
Michele sent me.
June 8th, 2008 6:10 pm
I’m with you regarding the sundresses. Love them to bits. That’s weird about the helicopter… never heard of that before; a unique way to get a job done!
Glad your ankle/leg got better!
June 10th, 2008 12:05 am
Your porch vacations are always so interesting… love reading these “postcards” from you!