Back From the Beach

     Daisy and I just got home from Malagash. We left yesterday afternoon and drove to Jost Winery, which was having an open house. It was a beautiful day with a nice breeze so not too hot in the car. Daisy seemed excited. I haven't taken her anywhere in awhile and she could sense this was a bigger trip than just going for the mail. 


     We made good time and the traffic over Nutby mountain was light. It was hot at the vinyard, and after attending to Daisy's business, I went in to see what was being offered at the open house. Their patio was packed, but I managed to find a chair and wolfed down a very good sausage dog with lots of hot mustard and saurkraut. I tried a glass of the white wine they were pushing on the patio, but didn't care for it. I was pondering going inside to get a nice glass of chardonnay, but the place was crowded and the live music was geared much more to an older generation (good grief, I'm old but this fiddle stuff was not at all to my liking) so I just picked up a bottle of chardonnay and headed across the road to my friends' cottage. 

     The whole point of the trip was to deliver this needle felted mask to Ida, the cottage owner. She has a collection of masks and I made this one specifically for her, as a thank you gift for the couple of weekends I spent there last summer. She is going to be away for the the next 6 weeks so I had to touch base with her this weekend or wait until later in the summer. She absolutely loved it and said she was going to rearrange the whole collection so it would balance the wall perfectly with the new addition. 


    My timing was perfect, as when I arrived at the cottage, they had just pulled in a few minutes ahead of me. They'd all come up on the bikes so Daisy was the only four legged guest this trip. Ida insisted we stay for supper, and later on, after more alcohol was consumed, she convinced me to stay the night and have a good time with them all. There were 8 of us there so it was a nice gathering. We sat outside most of the evening, on the deck. It was a bit windy and I got windburn on my face, but no real harm done. Ida's son, Sean, took Daisy to the beach and tricked her into swimming ... which she wasn't too happy about but she really had a great time. Sean seems to really like her ... who wouldn't? 

          The wind continued to pick up so we all went to bed around 1 AM. Pam had brought her tent and slept outside. The rest of us were in the cottage. A couple of times last night, the wind was so strong that it shook the cottage. I wondered if Pam was airborne outside. This morning revealed that she had slept well in spite of the gales, which were still going strong even when I left. I declined to stay for brunch because I had some things to attend to at home, so left early. Now we're home safe and sound and I'm back in the studio, to work on the felt for the top of my ottoman. It's beginning to rain now, so the gang might stop in here on the way back for a break as they're all on their Harley Davidsons and driving a bike in wind and rain is very tiring. If they do, I have lots of towels and hot coffee for them. Daisy is sleeping so she's played out from all her fun on the beach. I might have a wee nap myself a bit later on. Those nice gatherings with good friends can wear a girl out.