Kat and I 'met' online, after I left a comment on one of her blog posts early this year. We discovered that we only live a little over an hour away from each other. Through emails and telephone conversations, I found that I liked her instantly, and we made plans to meet this past spring. I went to her house, dragging my claw foot tub along for her use in her future bathroom renovation, and we spent a wonderful day talking and shopping, and eating, and talking, and getting to know each other better.
I came home from our first day together with this folk art house from The Vintage Source, which now lives on the pie safe in my dining room.
Since then, everything imaginable has conspired to keep us from meeting up again. Everything from food poisoning, to weather, and plagues of locusts has forced us to cancel dates. This time, we kept everything hush hush, trying not to get too excited so we didn't jinx it. I just knew that the phone would ring early Saturday morning, and it would be Kat's husband (again!) calling to cancel and apologize.
Despite our superstitions, Kat's trip here was uneventful, and she appeared on my porch at the appointed hour. This was going to be a good day!! She brought along a bag of blueberries for me, which I've been eating by the handful and my husband used when he made his usual Sunday morning muffins.
One relatively tidy corner of my very messy office.
We hugged and squealed, the dogs insisted on hugs, too, and I showed her around the house, We compared 'whole-house-renovation' stories as we went ... each of us fully understands the stresses and challenges of living in a house under renovation. (Let's just say that it'll be a long time before I show some of the rooms of my house here on the blog.)
The large dead patch is where I sprayed Round-up to clear the area where my next garden is going.
The weather was lovely, so we walked outside and I showed her all the roses. We went all the way back to the barn, and she was snapping photos along the way. (I didn't take a single one all day.)
(Photo from Amy's Cafe web site)
By this time, we were both famished, so we went for lunch at my favorite local restaurant, Amy's Cafe. It's a great little place, in a fantastic historic building next to the Rappahannock River. The food is good, and the atmosphere is perfect for conversation.
Our next stop was the Fredericksburg Big Flea. Neither of us really needs anything, but antique/junk shopping is a disease we both share, and we set off to see what treasures were to be found. I discovered this painting at the first booth we saw. It's perfect to add to my budding collection of primitive rose paintings.
The painting was the only thing I bought. I looked at other stuff, but I didn't love anything else enough to bring it home. I'll let Kat tell you about what she bought.
When we arrived back here, it was time for Kat to get on the road and head for home. We have already made a date for September ... that's the earliest day we can find our schedules.
Is there someone online that you think you'd like to get to know better ... someone you appear to have a lot in common with ... who has the same taste, or sense of humor? Whatever the similarity, take a chance, make the contact, and see what happens. You may come away with a lovely friendship. I did!!