Poppies, Garden Vista, Heart Monitor and Bounce

 

The view when I was sitting outside on a chair on the cafe patio enjoying a decaf latte at my favorite coffee shop. Surrounded by gardens, now that is mighty fine. See that bench, doesn't that look tempting?

The above are three views taken from the same spot, with the top one the most magnified.

I wore a heart monitor for two weeks, put it in the mail as instructed and today read the results, all tests are normal. My doctor's words. Hurray. Another blessing in answered prayer.

Bounce finds delightful scents in this poppy growing in/near the sidewalk, he is checking his mail or as I call it, his pee-mail.

Above, more golden orange poppies seen on our walk today. Below shows poppy flowers when they are furled up and closed, before the sun warms them each day.

 

 Some say plants don't move, but they do. The poppies close up each evening. Remember the powerful scenes in The Lord of the Rings where the trees are needed to move and to go into battle on the side of good? I love those scenes.

Clematis in February, Surfer Statue, Zoom Friends, Encouraging My Friend

 

This Clematis surprised me with its early blooms the first week of February. The flowers are about 2 inches across and have a light sweet fragrance, and this variety is Apple Blossom. They are a vine and keep their leaves. I planted it in summer of 2017 and it bloomed in February 2018, reaching the top of my six foot tall fence in those six months.

 The surfer statue across the street from my favorite coffee shop. I was at the coffee shop twice this week meeting a  different friend each time. One of them describes herself as a shut in because of her fear of covid, and she rarely leaves her house. So we had a great chat, sitting outside in the sun. It was a big step for her to venture out, and I think this encourages her to get out more. I invited her to meet our two mutual friends for lunch in a restaurant in March where there is outdoor seating and she put it on her calendar. Baby steps.

The front of the church where the coffee shop is; I like the clean architectural detail and line in my photo. This week we had our Zoom meeting, three of us have been friends for about 20 years; we met at work and are now all retired. We chat on Zoom twice a month and spend an hour catching up and meet in person quite often for lunch, next scheduled lunch is for my birthday. How is your February going?

My first coffee shop visit in a year, beautiful gardens there

 I visited a coffee shop for the first time in a year, and picked a new shop run by volunteers, which is surrounded by gardens and located right along the Pacific Ocean. This was my first time here, and I think it will be my go to coffee shop. 

Note the large patio and the wisteria on the left side of the building. The coffee shop opened a year ago, during the pandemic. That is a hopeful act indeed.

The fountain on the patio. There are only four tables on the huge patio so people are widely spaced.

Above are two different sculptures of Joseph; his face in this sculpture is very kind and thoughtful.

This area is dedicated to Joseph as he holds a tiny baby. I understand from reading the plaques that families who lost a baby through miscarriage or abortion visit here for comfort.

I walked and walked and got my steps in, after I enjoyed a large latte at the coffee shop. This is a healthy and beautiful environment, and the outdoor patio offers an ocean breeze and no people squeezed together. I am glad I discovered this shop. I almost went to a national chain store downtown with a tiny patio. In these pandemic days I chose this coffee shop, staffed by volunteers. Anyone else have a favorite coffee shop?