It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new.
But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful.
There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.
Alan Cohen
"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend.
Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."
Groucho Marx
The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Sorry !

There was a small hiccup with Blogger, me and my blog. The Friday Foto was lost.
I don't remember which photo it was ... I was just downloading more so if anyone remembers, tell me and I will repost.
Otherwise, I apologize and will post again on Friday ... without the hinderance of this thing I am wearing on my wrist while I am on the computer.
Too boring to discuss ... just nerves, numb fingers and that sort of thing.

Sorry !

Here is a photo to get me out of trouble ..


Sunday, June 28, 2015

It's All About The Cats

What a weekend !
Wow ... I did .... nothing.
I saw no one.
I talked to no one.
I did not go anywhere.

The cats kept me company, when they were not napping, annoying each other and napping.
It is really sweet going to bed at night ... I throw my robe at the foot of the bed, old sweetie Merlin hops on and flops right down on that robe.
Minette waits and when I am actually under the covers, she will jump up and choose a prime spot.
Sometimes I tend to sleep in a strange location on the bed or a strange position because I haven't got the heart to disturb them.

Merlin continues to be the biggest sweetest cat that I think I have ever had.
I am putty in his paws when he blinks those blue eyes at me and tries to focus on me ...
I don't know if he has bad eyesight or the light hurts them because they are so blue .. he squints ..
I think he needs glasses.
He refuses to discuss it.

Minette has gotten over her kitten hissy fit.
She no longer growls when he lies down on what was originally Her bed or Her blanket or just comes into Her room. ( which is actually My room... I'm not hissing at anyone .. )



I started looking at dog websites online.
I have an idea of what I want but it is much easier to adopt a lost or abandoned kitten than it is to get a dog.
Dogs seem to have many more issues.
I am just fooling around at this time, I plan on selling this house, moving and then when I am all settled, a dog will come into our lives.
The cats haven't said anything but I can pretty much guess they would not say, Oh I can't wait !

We will see ...




Thursday, June 25, 2015

Down on the farm ...

She thinks he is her mother. He rescued her when she was a baby ..
I guess the dog is her brother ?
I have been reading a lot of articles about cruelty to animals.
The sort like this, where they take babies barely able to walk . away from their mothers because they use the mothers for milk and hideous things that I couldn't bear to read about.

Funny, I never knew a vegetarian, I grew up in the South .. everyone ate everything.
With gravy.
And biscuits.

Then I met my husband.

We drove through the South one time, about 30 years ago, stopped at a place and my husband ordered something and asked, does it have meat in it ? and the waiter said no.
When it arrived, it had some sort of meat in it.
My husband said something to the waiter and gave it back to him and the waiter said that ain't meat , that's pork.

I always liked the idea that my husband looked at least 20 years younger than he was ... always.
He never looked his age.

The benefit that I never thought of was that I am so healthy and have no weight issues.

Nowadays .. I am surrounded by farms and see the animals all the time. I like them.
I like the dairy that has ten thousand gazillion cows that all look alike and they do nothing all day but eat and give milk.
What a life  ... haha ~

The farm up the hill is populated by animals that the owner has rescued.
He started out with a couple of Highland Cattle, now he has more. and babies.


There are sheep and goats and  one lone horse.
Covered in scars and his mane is a mess and his tail is sort of bad looking too.
But he has nothing to worry about .. he hangs out with sheep all day and eats all the hay and oats he wants.
And no one bothers him .. except me ... I talk to him.
I tell him stories .. he likes that.
The sheep don't like it so much , they wants a quick short story and mine are too long winded.

So I will just tell them what I did this morning and leave it at that.
They come to the fence when they see me walking up the hill.
I have fans.
The horse comes over to me but I rarely have anything to give him so he meanders off after a while .. Remember that, if you visit a horse, bring something !

I want to touch the babies, the lambs are too cute. The mama walks away and the baby suddenly realizes that mama is not so close ... they dash after her, wobbling and stumbling and bleating those little baby maaah maaahs  ... There is one black sheep and her  little baby lamb.
Yes, it goes Baa Baa Baa  ~

So that's about it for today- down on the farm ..






Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Meanwhile in China

A woman spent £630 on 100 dogs to stop them being killed and served up as food at a controversial festival in China.
Retired school teacher Yang Xiaoyun travelled 1,500 miles from her home in Tiankin, China, to a dog meat festival in Yulin in an attempt to save the animals.
Photos from the event show Xiaoyun, 65, walking past cages where the dogs were being kept as she made her purchases to free them.
Animal rights activists have condemned the annual festival, where up to 10,000 dogs are killed each year for consumers.


Sunday, June 21, 2015

It is nice to have a Tree Guy

So my weekend in solitary has been productive, the kitties are thrilled to have me all to themselves and my garden will probably never get over it.

When the weather is good it is nice to be able to go out and appreciate being able to do something productive in one's garden.
It is nice to stand and look out the window at the end of the day and admire ones handiwork.
Those sore muscles show how out of shape a person can get when there is nothing much to do everyday but talk to cats.
Most chores in the garden are left to the wonderful man who rides my lawnmower all over the place at high speeds and cuts things and fixes things for me.

But I happen to love pruning and trimming .. There is .... well ... there was this shrubbery outside my kitchen window.
The same (yew) as the long hedge that grew down the side of my driveway that began to threaten to take over the driveway and then the road and then the world.

M ( the gardener man) spent a whole day with power tools and muscles and got rid of that for me.
I plan on planting variegated ivy along that strip ...
There is the garage, that strip , then a small, tiny stone wall. Ivy will be perfect.

So in the back, outside my Starship Enterprise kitchen windows,  is this yew ... it was growing above the window / counter height .. making it over 6 feet high ..

Yesterday the thought occurred to me ... You Can Do It !! so I went out there and started chopping.
My G*D !! Now when you stand at the counter, it is like you can see forever ... in all directions but behind you. I did not stop telling myself how truly brilliant I am.

So today, I cut some branches off the dogwood which was struggling with the weight  and lightened it up a bit, it is now standing with arms raised ! yay !!
And there are wheelbarrows and piles of branches all over back there.
M the Gardener will have to do that part ... I have run  out of steam.

But it looks frabulous and I love it .

I will call the Tree Guy who will come remove the base/roots and chop everything up that I now have lying in the yard.
( He cut down and removed 7 trees when we moved in .. to give you an idea of what kind of tree filled property this is )
It is nice to have a Tree Guy.





Friday, June 19, 2015

Friday Night ...

Friday Night Date Night  !
That is what my husband would say on Fridays.
When he was working, he would kiss me goodbye and whisper in my ear, Friday Night Date Night ... reminding me that we had a night out planned, a fun weekend ahead .. sometimes it was just staying in and watching favorite movies .. cuddling by the fireplace or in Buenos Aires, taking Tate for a walk to the park just as it was getting dark, watching the stars start to appear.
The skies are so clean and so clear in Buenos Aires, that a starry night was always spectacular .. all year round.

Taking the dog for a walk, making the trip back home through the park where lovers would be strolling, sitting on benches, families buying ice cream for the children, musicians along the Recoleta Cemetery walls, setting up their little space and playing fabulous music.
Tate would stop and listen to the music.
That never failed to crack my husband and I up ... that Pup liked music !
We thought he only liked Classical ... but Tango seemed to please him too .

Now my Fridays are so different, it is as if I left all that behind on Earth and traveled alone to another planet.
No one familiar, no place familiar , no Tango .. no beloved dog or husband ..

I have high hopes for a buyer for the house.
I don't know why, they have not seen the house yet, I might just be deluded by this waiting and hoping for so long.
All my hopes are pinned on a stranger buying my house.
So I can, in turn, buy a little house ... and then maybe Minette and I will get a pup .. and start our new lives ... again.

So let's see what happens today ... Friday ... when the house hunters come.

Minette is sleeping in the Garden Room in her bed.
Next to the bed is a smaller bed, with sweet Merlin snoring away, spilling over the sides.
He isn't that big, it is all that hair .. long soft hair.
He is absolutely the most lovable creature .. he just squints at me with those pale blue eyes and I am putty in his paws.
Even Minette seems to be mellowing .. that could also be because she and I had a love- in this morning .. she got to sleep next to my head on the pillow.
I didn't have the energy to argue with her.
So I fell back to sleep to the sound of purring .. loud purring.

TGIF ... hope your weekend is full of snuggles and love and fun.


Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Be An Angel

he-s-lost-everything-dog-devastated-after-family-dumps-him-at-shelter

I see stories like this and get so frustrated, they are always out in California or somewhere impossible for me to get to .. If anyone in California reads this ... be an Angel .. help him.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Compassion

Sometimes I just hate people. Not people that I actually know or have met but   people   who are mean and cruel and judgemental.

I read about a child who has this horrific syndrome where his skin just blisters and it is very painful. The way to relieve it is to cut the blisters .
Now how would you like to be that mother ? forget about how would anyone want to be like that little kid !

So she wrote about it and it was published online.
How difficult it is to teach your child that it is OK to cry. It hurts. He is 6 years old for god's sake.. he doesn't want to cry because people will call him a crybaby.
God bless him .. a little bitty boy and he is picked on for crying when his skin bubbles up and hurts.
Then his mama has to cut the blisters .. with a very sharp razor like object.
I would cry!
He told his mama that he wasn't brave because he cried. That makes me cry while I write this.

We have to teach our children compassion. We have to show compassion ..   children   learn from example. . good and bad.
Stop being critical of other people in front of your children.
Stop making unpleasant comments about other people in front of your children.
One day your child will say something and you will be astonished ! where did he learn to say something like that ??
Well, he heard you say it. You taught him. Hope that what he said is good and kind.



Saturday, June 13, 2015

I can dream

What a day !
One of those perfect early Summer days .. the air is sparkling clear, the sky is blue with just a few puffy clouds floating by.
Everything is green, dark green , light green, bright green and flowers everywhere ! In  gardens, along the road, in trees and in shrubs.
The air is scented with  flowers.
All except up the hill at the farm, the air has a different scent but not too bad.
There are so many babies !! baby goats, baby lambs, baby Highland Cattle.. adorable, shaggy little babies.
The Horse stands among them, you can think he is oblivious to them all or just so much One of Them that he just hangs out , they all hang out together. No arguments, no bad feelings .. no one complains about the others noisy children and no one moans about the noise.
They are muy contenta.

My little farm animals could learn a lesson .. maybe I will take them up to the farm and let them spend a day with them ... they will see how good their lives are .. they will think twice before starting a jealous fit in the middle of the night ... this morning ... early in the morning .. sweet little old Merlin came to the bed, croaking out a small meow .. uhoh .. what did Minette do ?
Nothing .. she was sitting there waiting for him to ask me to get up now and feed them.

They just might have bonded .. regardless of Minettes hiss last night when I made her sit right next to him for a minute .. God forbid she would get boy cat cooties if she sat next to him for one stinking minute !!!!!

OK .. I am fine now.


Tomorrow house hunters will be here at noon.
Their agent will be with them but my agents will not be attending. They finally figured it out - I can do it myself.
So while they are busy with all the other Sunday real estate shoppers, I will get to handle 2 sets of them !! I am so psyched !! I can do this and really - who better ?

Something tells me that no one will give me a commission though .. hmmmm...

Things will get complicated and exciting and stressful again, I have to get a signed with big deposit deal with my buyers then turn around and do the same thing on the little house for me.

Please Oh Gods of Real Estate- let this all work out ... easily ... perfectly ... fast.

Minette is not interested ... she yawned when I was telling her about it.
Of course, she yawns a lot anyway.
Little insane Merlin just looked at me for a second then tried to bite my nose.
He also stares at my lips when I talk to him, making me jittery ..  I don't want cat bites on my lips.
What will I tell people ? Oh , the cat bit me ( yeah lady , sure ) or .. I have this new kitten, she bites me ( Uh huh ... I have a very nice doctor I want you to call )

They were selling Dahlias at the grocery store .. big pots full for $9.99.
In the most fabulous colors.
I need to be in my new home .. I would plant dahlias everywhere .. I have such plans for that house.
But no ... I can't think that way .. I have to wait and see.
Don't get my hopes up ...
Don't dream .


Morning glories outside the kitchen windows, dahlias all along the side of the house in big pots, at the front, ivy and geraniums .. 










Friday, June 12, 2015

Friday night - Date night

My husband used to come home from work and bring me flowers.
He would say. Friday night, date night :)
We would sometimes go out for dinner but he always made it fun .. I miss that.
There isn't a huge amount of fun in my life these days.

Today was frustrating and I did get something accomplished although I hope I don't get that awful illness you get from breathing in mouse droppings ..
I put a scarf over my face, I looked like a bank robber but I swept and used the leaf blower and cleaned out the garage ... the side with my car in it and the door to the house.

It was not filthy, just dusty. Leaves were dried and lying on the floor .. old paint cans on a work table, dirty tools .. let's face it, I was not raised to worry about how the garage looked.

So I used the leaf blower and mercilessly threw things away and even lined the shovels and rakes up on the hooks on the walls according to size. . . my anal tendencies were going wild for a while there.

I will decorate .. there is a large shelf by the garage/kitchen door .. I have it covered with dark paper and I have 2 empty flower pots .. so I am going to put more empty flower pots there and the little hand trowel , things that are part of gardening chores. And the big green watering can.
It will have a tiny bit of garage charm .

Someone looked at the house the other day - they liked it.
Someone is coming Sunday at noon.

Let's all cross our fingers ... you just don't know how tired I am of this.
Plus I am tired of worrying about where will I live when it sells and all the dozens of things there are to worry about plus a few I probably made up just to be sure I am well stocked on worries.

 I will be so happy when this is over. I want to be decorating and buying flowers for the little house.
I want to be making a garden . I want to find a comfy rocking chair to go on the big porch and I want to sit out there evenings with the cats and listen to music and just relax and stop worrying .
What a treat that will be. I am so tired of worrying.

Minette has been sleeping in the new baby's bed.
The new baby is sleeping in one of her beds.
I guess they are agreeing or just playing tit for tat.
She still gives him dirty looks when he walks into the room.
She sure holds a grudge.
That's my baby.

So what are you doing this weekend ? Do you have a date ??

This is the pool that has not been cleaned.. but there are flowers and it is very green there now.
I may not have to do the cleaning .. the realtor keeps flopping around on that issue but I have someone to do it now so I don't care ..


Thursday, June 11, 2015

Today .. be happy ..

There is nothing more I can do.
The house is perfectly set for house hunters, the grounds have been mowed , trimmed and the neighbors are going to help me with the pool cleaning etc.
I cannot stand my realtor and only hope that the house sells for enough for me to buy the house I want and be rid of her and all of this unpleasant and unsettled feeling.

One day I am told everything is fine, the owners of the little house will move etc and I will get the house.
Now I am being told that she is showing the house every day.
And she only brings one house hunter here every so many weeks.
She is insulting and just not nice. And I am at her mercy.

Minette and the new baby, Merlin .. both sleep on my bed .. all night, good babies.
Except waking at 5 am isn't making me that happy ..


Minette is the instigator if there is any tomfoolery in the morning ... although Merlin woke this am and everyone else was sound asleep ... he is an old man, maybe his bladder woke him.

I can't tell you how sweet he is. A big (heavy ! I am fattening him up) old man who squints at you with these amazing blue eyes and purrs like a Mack truck motor and kneads you with his large hairy paws ( sounds like a blind date lol)

They both enjoy their sunroom chipmunk watching time and napping on one of their many chairs and beds times.. I really lucked out with the kitties.

Today - Let's hope we all have at least one really nice moment .. some small kindness sent our way, some happy moment, a surprise , a hug and a kiss  ... Be happy.






Tuesday, June 9, 2015

I'd Rather Be Pale

I just gave some poor sweet woman a lecture on another blog because she said it was too hot to wear stockings with skirts in summer .. because she hadn't gotten tanned legs yet.

Here is my take on this ... you may call it a rant if you wish ... but it comes from Experience so Listen to what I say !

We were all out in the sun when we were kids, Coppertone babies !
We (teenagers) would lie in the sun at the beach or pool and polish our bodies, our smooth tight skinned bodies with baby oil .. asking our girlfriends lying next to us on the beach towel or the deck chair ... Am I red yet ?

We would check for tan lines .. we would slather on the oil and nap in the sun and go out that night all pink and shiny and healthy feeling and looking.

A few years down the line ...
We look in the mirror and there is another wrinkle !
What are those brown spots on my leg ??
The dermatologist office just called, they say the biopsy came back positive.
Make an appointment for surgery.

When we were kids, our mothers would try to protect us .. when we were teens we did our best to avoid all protection .. when we are adults, we are trying to protect our children and keep from suffering terrible effects of our own sun damage.

A friend of mine died a few years ago .. young beautiful, melanoma.

My husband had a melanoma on his stomach .. a tiny black mole.
His doctor noticed it and sent him to the dermatologist .. within 2 weeks, he was in surgery having a little chunk of his abdomen removed.
Every year, twice a year .. he saw a dermatologist.

I , the blonde beach baby from California .. freckled and healthy looking .. was told I had a squamous cell cancer on my leg. That little dry patch that wouldn't go away.

A couple of years later, that little red mark on the other leg, basel cell cancer .. and on the Other Leg !! squamous cell.

I go to the dermatologist once a year now- down from twice a year and I always know something can just pop up .. and I can't blame anyone else .. I asked for it.

I really did look fabulous with a tan :)

This is what skin cancer looks like ..

http://i.cbc.ca/1.3074733.1431630937!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/skin-cancer-selfie.jpg

I'd rather be pale.

Neighbors





My neighbors Then and Now.

Sunday, June 7, 2015

Lost

How sad is this ? "No questions asked " .... Her name is Sugar !!


                                                       Her dog walker sold her for drugs.

Sunday Morning

Sunday morning, waking up to absolute silence ... if you don't  count the snoring of one very old, very sweet cat .. as I lay there just deciding if I want to go back to sleep or get up and face the day, Minette made the decision.
Sleeping at the foot of the bed, she walked up me, sniffed my face, made sure my eyes were open then she hopped down and stood at the bedroom door .. waiting ... no sign of life from me... back to the bed, hop up, stare at my face ... pat my cheek .. mama .... mamaaaa.
Okay okay ... I am up.

Little old Merlin looked up ... went back to sleep.

Half an hour later:

One cup of coffee enjoyed ... 2 cats full of breakfast and taking sun naps in the garden room.
I want to go back to bed ...

It is one of those sparkling days .. the air looks like it is effervescent .. you can smell how clean it is.
Farm country. One of the perks I guess.

I am no closer to selling my house or buying the one I want.
I am closer to depression and just saying to hell with it all and moving to Florida.

I have more friends in Florida than I do here and the appeal of not dealing with snow for half the year is strong.

We will see what happens with the Little House that I have my heart set on.
 My realtor could give a ****.


She no longer calls, seems like she no longer tries and she certainly no longer speaks to me with the respect that most people deserve. Funny, for someone who works for commissions, you would think they would at least talk to the person they are working for with some respect .. some sort of cordiality.
The house I want to buy when this one sells ... is her listing so I can't get too exuberant in my telling her to get lost ~

So I am fighting off depression by looking at clothes online , deciding if I really want to live in Florida and what kind of shoes should I get for the summer.
I have many pairs of nice shoes from Buenos Aires, but sometimes a pair of shoes will cheer a girl up.
Plus what they wear in the streets of the city of Buenos Aires, is not always what they wear in Upstate New York .. land of  farms , orchards and villages. . cows and sheep.

I want to hear about other people ... what do you do on Sundays ?
( did you see the race yesterday ? I did. I cried. There is something about a magnificent horse running as fast as it can, almost skimming the ground, flying ahead of a pack of horses who are trying their hardest to catch up ... breathtaking ...

I think I hear a kitty calling, tell me about your Sunday ~




Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Life After Death

My husband, the man I married when I was 21 ... died a little over a year ago.
Suddenly .. with no time for Goodbyes, or last I Love You 's .. He was there, and then he wasn't.
I was married to him for longer than I was not.
He was my lover, my best friend, my protector, my everything.
I fumble along and feed my cats and get new kittens and try to pretend that life is normal, but it will never be normal again.

This is something that I posted on another blog.
But it is a look at my life these days.
Always trying to be independent and strong and finding things to be happy about or to laugh over.. but always alone.
It is a very hard transition, going from having a life mate to being alone.
Some people  manage well, others fumble along, trying to adjust.
I think I am a slow adjuster.

Nothing from the realtor who is probably not really my friend after all.
My husband would have said ... told you so.
There is this "vibe" from her .. plus the total lack of any work for my house sale, needless to say, I do not recommend her.

I always end up being disappointed in people. I think I just expect too much.
I think the least would be too much in some cases though.

The sun is shining, I have two kitties who are in warm sun comas in their little beds out in the sun room.
The chipmunks are looking in at the cats ... Look , look ! A sleeping cat ! chortle chortle ...

The flowers are blooming, there are new babies at the farm, it is super green outside ... I think I will go out into the sunlight ..

Monday, June 1, 2015

Spring Showers

It is one of those grey , wet, chilly days with everything that has bloomed glowing in the gloom.
The green of the new leaves on the trees is very intense, the purple Iris pops out at you from the sea of green green grass.
The Dogwoods bloomed, white flowers. There are red berries all over one of the shrubs.
One red  tulip bloomed and died.
A gazillion shades of green, the fields in back were cut, now they are chartreuse, the trees are all dark, some almost black - green.
I like it.

Minette and sweet Merlin are managing to stay in the same room together, although he is the sweetest most quiet darling creature, she snarls, hisses and makes threatening gestures if he is too close.
God bless him, his eyesight is so bad, I don't know if he even sees her before he hears her.
I am making sure she doesn't manage to smack him .. he has enough to deal with.

Tomorrow I am taking him to a groomer   who works at the County Shelter.
She will give poor Merlin a hair cut. His mats are terrible and I don't want him uncomfortable in any way. He can barely see, he doesn't need his skin to hurt too !
I adore this cat.
He sleeps on the bed all night, so of course, Minette does too.
He will stay in the same spot and be quiet, she will get up early and fuss about him being there.
Prima dona.

Time for a cup of tea and a snuggle on the sofa with my magical cat boy. I adore him, did I mention that?


He is all hair.
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