Taking a Breath

Today I did something I have been dreaming of doing for months. I hung the closed sign up in my brain. I have been filling non stop orders and I finally got to the end of a list. These hats were part of a 62 hat order heading out to Beauchapeau Hat Shop in Niagara on the Lake. This was my fourth large order in a row, with etsy orders coming in between, selling from my shop and doing the Halifax and Lunenburg Farmers Markets. I’d like to say I did it all with Grace, sort of Jacqueline Kennedy style, but I’m afraid I turned into a pretty impressive basket case by the end of it. I put my back out for a week, came down with a cough that sounded like I had the Plague and was generally grumpy. That’s not the word that came to mind, but I’m keeping it family style.

So, as I was making a few of my new Suitcase Sarah travel hats, it occurred to me that for someone who makes a whole lot of packable hats, I don’t actually go anywhere.

I need to show you the folded version before I go on with my tale.

One excuse for not going anywhere is that I really love being at home. Especially on these glorious days of summer where I can just take my sewing out in the yard, but what tends to happen when you stick around the homestead is you notice that pile of laundry that hasn’t been folded in months, or the dog hair on the floor that is turning itself into a second dog, so I resolved to get the heck out of town.

I took the bike out of the shed, pumped air in the tire, (this is significant information) looked at the rain and decided I was tough enough to handle it. I hit the back harbour trail and then onto Second Peninsula. I did get soaked, but I was so damn happy.

It took me about an hour and a quarter to reach my destination of Bachman’s Beach. As you can see by my bicycle, speed is not my priority. One of the most amazing thing about living in Nova Scotia is that you can be all alone at a beautiful beach. I sat down, had a picnic and then …

I collected a bag of seaweed to use as mulch in my garden. Sometimes, I need a sort of fake work goal to justify some time off. Anyways, it did the trick. I got back on my bike and began the ride home.

I’m always struck by what you see when you slow down. We drive this road quite often and I never would have noticed the Lilly pads.

Or this guy. I was at my absolute happiest when, you guessed it, I got a flat tire. It’s been on my mind that I should really learn how to fix a flat, but that’s as far as that thought got. I did bring my cell phone with me, so I called my knight in Shining Armour. His first question was whether I had tried standing on the side of the road and crying. I told him that was plan B. Tony came to the rescue and here I am… relaxed, happy, and ready to tackle the next round of orders. Well, almost.