The plans, they are a changin'

There will be no knitting, running, reaping or terribly interesting eating around the Middle of Nowhere today. There will be cleaning and tidying and decluttering. And a trip to town thrown in, just for good measure.

September is slamming me. And it's only the 1st!

I'm leaving tomorrow for a visit with family in North Carolina. My dad and his wife changed their schedule and will be here Sunday instead of Monday, so I'll be coming back early Sunday to make sure all is ready for their arrival.

They'll be here until Friday, when they will continue meandering south and my husband and I will be heading to Kentucky for a weekend retreat. This is something we've done every year for at least a dozen years, maybe more, and we always look forward to it.

That's two weekends and one week, already scheduled to the hilt. The third weekend is the state convention for the WV Federation of Democratic Women. I'm president of our county club, so I guess I have to be there. The following Saturday is a knitting event in Roanoke, VA and our county's Democratic picnic. And I need to be at both. Good thing the picnic doesn't start until 4 p.m.!

We also have a wedding to go to October 2. But I digress. Heh.

I'd like to think September would be the month to reboot my walking/running program. It's theoretically cooler (although we're still getting up to the 90s during the day), there's not nearly as much to do in the garden or kitchen and I could use some exercise. In 2007 and 2008 I was training for half-marathons in September. I feel like a real slug thinking about that other Debbi, the one who packed her running shoes and Garmin wherever she went.

But, as with most everything, it is what it is, and it'll be sweet memories before I know it. This year has absolutely flown by! Pretty soon we'll be pulling out wooly sweaters and searching for the mitten basket and knitting hats because we can't find one we like. Wonder what the trendy new project will be this fall? (Remember the poncho? I actually love ponchos, they're so forgiving and so-so comfortable. I should just go ahead and wear them and not care if people point and laugh.)

One plan that's not changing is this: We're having an early Thanksgiving dinner this year, on the Thursday my dad will be at my house. I'm so very, very grateful he'll be visiting me. This is something that, two years ago when he was in a coma for eight days, I thought might never happen again. No matter what else is keeping me busy, I'm going to slow down and enjoy the time he and his wife will be here with my husband and me. You can only do things a day at a time, and I plan to make the most of it.