Maybe the best weekend ever

Oh my goodness, I am loving this summer. 
In some ways, it feels like our first real summer here, which just sounds crazy. Patrick has fewer gigs, which is one thing, but also, a real, bona fide social life is finally part of our Gilbertsville landscape. 
It's not that simple really. The whole story is, our little potluck group that I pulled together last fall as a way to help us all survive the winter has turned out to contain fifteen or so of the BEST PEOPLE EVER, and the fact that the group is about itself, and not a bar, say, or necessarily shared interests (though there are plenty of those) is what makes it special. The people in the group are in it for each other, and for the town. And being in a town this small and isolated, and having a close-knit group of friends, getting together is so easy and casual. One little, "Hey, we're headed down to the bar now" posted on the group Facebook page turns into a whole tableful of us materializing at said bar, sitting on the porch listening to the live band and carousing. 
Saturday night, there was an art opening at the one gallery in town. I've been to openings at that gallery before and been the only one there under 50. Suffice it to say this was a bit different, because the WHOLE GROUP of us showed up, like a convoy from Planet of the Young, or something, and I felt so ridiculously delighted to see everyone, but also proud, and also patriotic. Patriotic to the group. 
This is what Wendell Berry talks about when he talks about "membership," (okay, maybe with a LITTLE less wine-drinking) and it's what I've always wanted to have in a place about the size and quality of Gilbertsville, and I'm so thrilled with how it's all shaping up. 
And, because hanging out Friday and Saturday just weren't enough, on Sunday I messaged a few folks to convene a dog hike, and Del got to spend a few hours with his girlfriend Chloe, and we got some much-needed exercise. And later we had a campfire. 
We saw all our favorite people, we spent next to nothing, and this here introverted-writer-type gets to head into her work week feeling full of funny conversation and shared stories. A rarity, it must be said. But so good.
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