whirlwind summer days

This summer has been a whirlwind! So busy trying to squeeze every moment out of my summer. Days at work fulfilling one side of me - I really love my job, something that I forget when I'm not working. It's funny how I always dread going to work. Every single trip, I dread it in the days leading up to leaving. And without fail, as soon as I show up everything is fine and often a lot of fun! Now that I'm past those first few years working the spareboard where I never knew who I'd be working with and I was bottom of the list in picking my job, work is so much easier. I'm not going to get stuck in the crazy dining car with three full sittings for dinner and not enough staff (or staff that's too new to know what they're doing). I don't need to take the busted out sleeping car with three wheelchairs and a ROMA (Romance by Rail) package which adds ten times to my workload. I can choose where I want to be (generally) and if I feel like taking the super slow takeout job and sitting down all day long reading magazines, I will.

Last trip I ended up working ASC in the coaches at the last minute. Although unprepared having not worked the job in nearly three years, it ended up being so much fun. Loved my passengers including the wise-beyond-his-years five year old who sat across from my desk zooming his cars and playing tic-tac-toe. His dad had dressed him in a Pink Floyd tee. Love it! The only downfall is getting only 4-5 hours of sleep per night and not being able to fall asleep during our day in Toronto. I had a good reason though - my boys returned my phonecall just as I was passing out and then I was just too happy to sleep. 

Days at home are a whirlwind as well. Laundry is hung on the line to dry, the garden needs watering and weeding and attention to the bounty we are getting (this short layover I made pesto and chocolate zucchini bread, picked lettuce and herbs and went distributing the extras to my friends in the area!). We've filled our days with visits to the farmers market, beach days, playing in the yard letting Jude run around to explore every inch and trying to cram in visits with friends although most days it ends up being a quick run-by enroute to something else. This summer has been everything I hoped it would be. I only wish we were doing all this work around the yard in a house we owned... on one hand we are living here and I want to enjoy every bit that we can. On the other hand, there is a limit to the amount of work you want to put into a house you are renting. When we leave we'll abandon our garden and herb garden that we built as well as the fire pit we put in the first year. Now I was scoping out places in the back yard we could dig up and add rows of strawberry plants next year.... it would be SO good and we definitely have the room.

Tomorrow I leave again - the suitcase is mostly packed and only a few things left to do. Took a family walk to the Banana Boat just before bedtime tonight. This life is good. This life is full, but good.