An interesting note from my week was pulling into the driveway yesterday and noticing a HUGE clump of several thousands of bees (rather excited bees) attached to last year’s bird nest, which sits in the small tree at the center of the front yard.  I promptly backed out and headed to buy some serious chemical weapons. Totally lost all perspective, imagining killer bees. By the time I returned, the number of bees had greatly decreased before I sprayed.

Having  had a grandfather who raised bees and a friend who researches and loves bees, I know my reaction was excessive. Yet, I also feel like a responsible citizen for saving the neighborhood children and joggers from possible injury when passing by my yard.  It would have been a lot more fun to simply observe the bees, which would have happened if they hadn’t landed in such a public area.

My favorite Punjabi American will be over tomorrow (Saturday), so there’ll be healthy food and a cut-throat Chess game.  I’ll lose, always do.  There’s two movies on tap: The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill and Riding Alone For Thousands of Miles.  All of that and non-stop chatter for hours.

Happy Note: Headed to one of my favorite city towns this weekend: Charleston, SC – Folly Beach this time, to be exact. It’ll be another wonderful visit with a dear friend. Plus, I get first dibs on excess belongings since she is preparing for a major move. (A little pay back for all those odd jobs she got me to do over the years!)

My best running mate during the past twenty years, PJ is packing for Costa Rica. For a short while, she’ll telecommute online as her workplace closes business. It will be exciting to watch her transformation as she develops a new lifestyle.

Her hubby and Mom have newly built homes on a cliff overlooking the ocean in one direction, with a vista down a green valley in the other direction. Can’t wait to visit!

Meanwhile her adult children, who were raised half of their childhoods in Greece, are scattering to Afghanistan and Italy. My adult children are in Seattle; with one planning to move to Austin, TX soon. Our entwined families, nearest / dearest connections, are physically more distant by the moment yet held together with new interactions though online connections.

Still, nothing is better than hugs from the ones you love.