It is too early in the morning to be sitting on the couch waiting for coffee to finish cooking, but here I am. I woke from a dream of a rather large dust devil powering up, leaves moving slowly along its entire height. As I watched, it sped up and roared down the street filling the house with dust. It was real enough to get my eyes open, and real enough that there was thunder rumbling outside. Or is it the other way round, the thunder was real enough to drive the dream?

This morning I take Barb to the Little Rock airport and say goodbye :(. We have had a wonderful time and I will miss her.

I will write more about the wedding later this week when I am home and a little rested.

Update: I am home, cats petted and fed, plants watered, me fed and showered and feeling a bit rung out. Long weekend!!

This is the fifth day for Barb in Texas. So far she has been having fun. Sunday we toured Denton, Monday we went to Fort Worth and looked at the flowers in the botanical garden, Tuesday we went to a cool park, but it is only open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday so we did not enter. Yesterday we went to Plano (aka Dallas) and visited Whole Foods.

Barb made her tabbouleh last night for supper, and it was excellent.

The weather has been mostly balmy. There was a shower Tuesday night, but the rest of the week the temps have been great for a vacation. Going to hit 90 today. Course she will go home and find the temps this nice all summer probably.

Tomorrow we leave for Arkansas. Saturday I get married. Sunday Barb goes home :( and so do we. Monday I get to rest.

I awoke early this morning thinking about management quizzes. So, I hopped out of bed, fed the cats (always first in this house), put the coffee on, and wrote the final quiz. That course is done, at least the work portion as I sill have to return and read a few responses posted by fellow students. I also did the final edit and submitted my final essay for the cataloging course. All that remains undone for this semester is the final exam for the research course and I have hopes that I will be able to write that soon. I am very relieved to have the majority of the course work completed. Only one more year of school left!!

It is a windy morning. I was hoping to sit outside, but the wind is to wicked to permit comfortable lazing about sipping coffee. I think this would be a great morning to have a nice shelter of some kind that blocked the wind but let me sit outside enjoying the noisy birds. With the final submission of my stuffs for school, I no longer have any excuses to avoid cleaning the house. Barb arrives in two days (can't count today as it is here already, probably shouldn't count Saturday as she will be here, so really only one day!!). There is not much left to do, it just requires doing.

The long range weather forecast looks decent for Barb's visit and my wedding. Highs in the high 70's and low 80's with lots of sun and little rain. I am getting very excited to see her again, it has been a long time.

Three years in fact. I arrived in Chapel Hill three years ago come Friday. So, it has been exactly three years since I said good bye to Barb today! A lot of things have changed in those three years, most of them good things. Those years have went by so fast!

This spring, in a fit of eager gardening, I chopped a rose bush in front of the front window down to about a foot and a half high. This morning it must exceed 6 feet in height. I wonder how it would look if there were a trellis for it to cling to...Because I whacked it down, I doubt there will be any roses this year, and given its growth pattern, probably none next either.

One of these mornings, when the wind is not so fierce, I am going to slip out and take some close up photos of flowers and such in our yard. Now that I am not totally busy with school work I have time to play a bit.

Sometime last night a thunderstorm grumbled its way through town. The remnants still leak a little ensuring the green remains. The rain has been falling often enough to keep everything a brilliant green. It soothes the eyes.

Sitting here in the dark sipping coffee, listening to the rain (windows open to ensure a breeze and the sound passes easily from one side of the house to another), I feel at home and comfortable. The gardens and yards in the area are quite spectacular, but what is really amazing are the fields full of Indian paintbrush and bluebonnets. Masses of red and blue in empty landscapes. Though have not seen one yet, an old abandoned farm stead would look rather nice set down into such a field.

I have one week until sis arrives. One week to finish course work and clean house. I don't have much course work left. One assignment, one essay, and a few small things to clean up. Should have no problem getting them done. Well, except for the cleaning. I hate cleaning.

Have to stay out of the down town today as there is a jazz festival going on. If I had more spare time I would go check out some of the acts. Sounds like some big names will be in town. Live jazz is cool.

I was going to go around fertilizing stuff this morning, but I guess I won't be able to do so. My hydrangea is covered in potential blossoms, and one of those is starting to put out little floweretes. I am keeping my fingers crossed in the hopes that it will be in full blossom next week.

Most of the week was sunny and warm. However, it began to rain yesterday and has not stopped since. So far we have had more than 2 inches!! Our high has been reached at midnight, and it is going to stay gray and cold all day. I would complain, but this moisture has turned everything GREEN!! OK, no more ! this week. :)

Not much has happened this week. One grade was returned for a midterm on one of my courses (100%), and the rest of the course work is still steady but not excessively hard. I spent some time doing some observations in the library for an additional assignment due at the end of the semester. I also picked up a cheap game at Best Buy and wasted a great deal of time with it (Civilization IV). I don't think much of it as a game, but it does help to keep me de-stressed.

I was going to do some work in the garden yesterday,but the rain made that impossible.The cilantro needs cut way back, it will be bolting soon. I think it is getting to warm for some of the veggies. I am thinking about buying some okra and seeing if that survives the coming heat. The tomatoes and peppers are doing great though.

This week is more of the same. School work and cleaning. Only two weeks until a special visitor arrives so not much time to clean the house!

I spent some time taking backyard photos this morning. For those of you watching snow melt, here is something to look forward to: