A Birthday, a Bus and a Blackboard.

May 29, 2016

It's bone-warming hot here and I'm loving it.  The pool is open, heated and clean and quiet; I'm usually the only one in there these days.  It's great.

Yesterday I got my hair cut off SHORT, the shortest I've ever had it, it feels so nice.  I had some color put in so I hope my head doesn't turn green from the pool chemicals but really, I don't even care. Ahhh, I'll fit right in.  People here are non-judgy.  And there's plenty of people with hair of all colors. This gal creates wallets and other items from recycled innertubes. Very clever.  And she has blue hair.  Love it.

Doug arrived here yesterday, it was his birthday!  Yesterday we celebrated by going downtown to listen to the Buskers and relaxed with Zuma for a nice Birthday lunch.

Today we celebrated some more (we like to stretch Birthdays out for weeks in our family) and visited a fun, friendly coffee place that is housed in a double decker bus from London.  Old and retired, this faded red remnant of London is a downtown landmark.  When in London, my family and I used to ride on buses like these in the '60s and '70s.  In fact, my Father was a conductor on one of these just after WW II.  Talk about bringing back memories.  As kids, we'd always race up the twisty stairway to the upper deck.  It drove my Mother crazy.  It was worth it.  She laughed about it later ....

                    

There is a cool, shaded courtyard beside the bus where Zuma can lounge and slurp from the fountain while we sip our coffee.

Namaste, ya'll.

Another Busker Poet caught our eye, his typewriter at the ready. He wrote a poem about Zuma for us:

We headed to Hendersonville and found there was a huge event on the main street.  The Garden Jubilee!   We could have purchased this giant-sized dude for $700.00 but we resisted the tempation.

Booths selling everything garden-y lined the street.  It was a feast for the eyes. And the nose!

We had gawked and sniffed about halfway through the Garden Jubilee when we were approached by a friendly Police Officer who informed us that there is a no dog policy at these downtown events. There were a lot of dogs strolling around with their owners so he had his day's work cut out for him!  Zuma had been having a blast meeting people but, rules are rules.  The general opinion of the public was dogs should be allowed. Hear, hear.  
Oh well.  Must be decent dog owners and act obediently.

We promptly hustled out of there, apologized to Zuma as we loaded her into the car and then we whisked around the booths, retrieved Zu and enjoyed a Thai lunch on a sidewalk patio before heading home. 

We meet a lot of people because of Zu. Doug and I have figured out that we are just a sideshow, she is the ever-glowing socialite star.  If we go out without Zuma, nobody even recognizes us, haha!

We often walk by a wall downtown that is covered with a giant-sized blackboard, several yards long.  

A bucket of chalk sticks welcomes people to write down "Things To Do Before I Die".  I love this.  Interactive community spirit at its finest.  The board is expressive and ever-changing; people of all ages and stages line up to write their hopes, dreams and their Bucket List for all to see and share:

Pretty nice, huh?  
Sometimes, it's just the best therapy to stop and smell the roses.
And write your thoughts on a chalkboard.