What a marathon day yesterday turned out to be. And just coincidentally one of the most beautiful days we've yet enjoyed in November, uncharacteristically mild, wide blue sky (only to cloud over in the evening to obscure that super moon), and little wind to speak of. A perfect weather day. So alluring, in fact, that my husband was inspired to get out on the deck with his tools to take apart the glider for storage in the larger of our two garden sheds.

This was not an enterprise I found pleasing, to say the least, since it represents a physical task that requires physical strength and he has to conserve whatever strength he has post-surgery until he has returned to normalcy. Which for him, as an 80-year-old, normally active, energetic man is, I admit, out of the ordinary itself. He's coming along really well, and I don't want him to suffer any set-backs, yet he assures me he is very aware and isn't pushing himself. So I broke off from cleaning the house temporarily so I could partner with him sliding the more heavy, larger parts down the deck stairs and into the shed, and carried the lighter, small parts over to the shed for him to shift into place where he wanted them. As for the very heavy cast-iron table we normally keep on the deck, we rolled it over to and down the stairs (via its round top) and from there shifted it onto a dolly for storage under the deck.

And then he did a few light things outside, enjoying the weather alongside Jackie and Jillie and I resumed cleaning the house which is comprised of dusting furniture and whatever sits on it, dry-mopping the hardwood floors, vacuuming the rugs, then washing all the floors from bathrooms to laundry room, foyer, kitchen and breakfast room, scrubbing down on my knees, which I find the easiest and quickest way.

Then I changed into street clothing, put light coats on the terrible twins and took them out to the ravine for an hour's ramble in the forest. On our return, my husband and I went out for our now-regular circuit on the streets around the block to ensure that he gets the exercise he needs in his recovery phase. It's often a bit of a social occasion as others, out and about, mostly elderly like us, tend to greet us and to stop and talk. It's surprising, really how many people a street over and behind ours, we're familiar with. Then I stayed outside for as long as it would take to finish raking up the leaves on our lawn from our large magnolia tree, our mulberry and our crab trees.

Rajinder stopped by on her way home from work to ask after my husband, as she does so frequently. First, we hug, then we talk, and she does her utmost to communicate her feelings and support, as someone who the year before went through the very same ordeal with her husband. That family is a source of huge reassurance of the sweetness and decency that people can aspire to. They are our especial and trusted friends and neighbours.

Then into the kitchen to prepare a rock Cornish hen for dinner, roasting it good and crisp, and a noodle pudding to go alongside it comprised of fine egg-noodles, eggs, pepper, olive oil and raisins. French-cutting green beans and cutting up plums, adding grapes and clementines did nicely for a fresh fruit dessert. And I was almost finished for the day.