Do you ever find yourself just wanting to escape? A quick escape from your daily routine and stressors, a break from the same faces you see day in and out. I sometimes find myself wanting to be completely alone and working on an outdoor project, sweating all day without saying a single word to another person. That is usually my goal for Tuesday’s – work in silence. And sometimes, I could stand a trip somewhere where absolutely no one knows me or cares what I do for a living. That is this weekend. Megan and I found a little rental in south Knoxville for the weekend, packed up Tucker, and headed out mid afternoon on Thursday to get lost in the crowd.
Although I get the desire to escape, after day 3 or 4 of being away, I’m ready to be back on the farm. We decided to do long weekend trips this year instead of week long vacations.
We did a 4-mile hike up House Mountain on Friday and took in some beautiful views of the countryside turning green. The redbuds, cherry, and dogwoods were in bloom. We saw a few new tent caterpillars nests, new fern sporophytes growing, and birds and butterflies galore. Spring. Not the wild work flavor of Spring, but the life-giving version of Spring that gets overlooked.
No cooking was allowed this weekend, we just revisited some favorite restaurants, and sampled some new. We took naps and wore hiking clothes every where. We did a 5 mile river walk Saturday morning along Knoxville’s Urban Wilderness’ South Loop. We were just another couple out there walking the dog, offering a friendly “hello” or “g’morning”. Total strangers. It’s a good feeling every now and again. We did squeeze in some plant shopping and got massages.
So back we go on Sunday. Our mare is due to foal in the next few weeks. We got the call that our Cleveland select trees are ready at the nursery, so I’ll pick those up on Tuesday we’ll have those planted with our burning bushes along the highway this week. The clinic is getting some landscaping too. I finished smoothing out my little hangout spot at the creek last Tuesday and we’re going to get a few things planted down there. Bonus: a client owns a tree business and is dropping off loads of free chips to use for walkways at the creek. We’re both excited to getting it functional down there and having a place to relax. Pictures soon.
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