Another Day Full of Sunshine (Weather and People)

We had company today to celebrate our move to Minnesota and my birthday. Jeremy’s sister NaTasha, her partner D, their 8-year-old daughter, Joelle, and Jeremy’s mom, Shellie and her husband, Artie all came to visit.

This beautiful lemon cake (with lemon curd filling and lemon frosting) was courtesy of NaTasha’s mad baking and decorating skills.

We sat out on the back deck and enjoyed getting to know NaTasha, D, Shellie, and Artie. Joelle, Caleb, and Charlotte played indoors and at a nearby park except for mealtime. Jeremy barbecued hotdogs, hamburgers, and bratwurst.

Our conversation turned at one point when NaTasha called her brother a dork. Please take the time to Google dork as it relates to whales. To be fair in the past when I have called Joe a dork it was because he was acting silly. I will use the word dork differently in the future.

D and NaTasha spent time talking with us about the current political climate in their state and nationally. They live in Wisconsin, near the Minnesota border.

NaTasha, Jeremy, Shellie and Artie enjoy banter. It felt like being back with my own family in Ohio. I did not see meanness at all – while a bit ribald at times, nothing hateful. Again, like my own family in the Midwest. I genuinely enjoyed getting to know each of them and look forward to seeing them again.

As a delivery driver for UPS, D surprised me when I asked how they like the other driver’s on the road. They replied, “They don’t bother me. NaTasha would be the one to go crazy with how other driver’s drive.” I was impressed with D’s response. Imagine being on the road long days and being so cool about other drivers! D gives off vibes of peacefulness and calmness.

Yesterday, I posted a meme that read, “Stay close to people who feel like sunshine.” Now there are six more people to add to my sunshine list!

Earlier in the day, Joe and I ran an errand to Buffalo, Minnesota to the Wright County Compost and Recycling Facility to offload an abundance of corrugated cardboard we had collected. It’s about a 22-minute drive each way. It was a pretty drive and reminded me of going to the Yolo Landfill to take items we wanted to donate or discard. Unlike, Yolo County, there is no charge here for recyclables like cardboard.

NaTasha recently bought a new refrigerator and drove her old refrigerator to us today. It looks perfect in our flat!

That is all the news for today.