summer's end

Last night, we were feeling a little restless. So, we decided to take an evening walk along the Bolin Creek trail that winds all through the woods behind one of our favorite places: Cafe Driade.

Cafe Driade is a tiny coffee shop set back in the woods at the top of a steep hill. They've strung white lights all through the trees, and you might think you have stepped into the pages of Alice in Wonderland at night. It's a lovely little place, and they serve loose leaf tea in old-fashioned french presses. But we didn't stay for the tea this time. We quickly made our way back into the woods for our walk.

The Bolin Creek trail is at the bottom of a ravine, and it winds through the very center of Chapel Hill. If you're looking, you can see the warm living room lights of houses far up in the woods. But mostly all you see are trees and creek. And mostly all you hear - at least at the end of the summer - is the whir of cicadas. We walked along at a fast pace and felt all the better for it - Daisy of course, by our side and very happy to be outdoors, which she much prefers to the apartment.

On our walk, we were both feeling a little dreamy. Because, well, we've found a little house. It's perfect (for us), and we knew we wanted it from the moment we walked in the front door. It has been a very well-loved little house. We could tell right away. And it looks very promising that it will be ours before November.

It's our first house (do you remember your first house?), so it feels very Important and not a little Scary. But more than that, it feels very right. So, we walked along together not quite believing that we might soon have a house, and reminding each other that we should hold it loosely (how can we be sure it's ours until we turn the key in the lock and it clicks just so). But even then, in the very next breath, we were talking about what colors to paint the walls. We couldn't help ourselves.

It was very nearly dark when we heard the university bell tower ring out on our return - very far from us, all the way up the hill, echoing along the ravine. We felt very secret down there on the Bolin Creek Trail at dark on a quiet night. It felt lke the end of summer. Which means, it will be November before we know it (and the little house will be ours before we know it).