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Showing posts from March, 2016

Abandoned

A is for abandoned. And, that's all this gal shall be writing for the 2016 Blogging from A to Z April Challenge . Life has taken a critical turn that disallows (such a word?) me to participate in this year's blogging challenge. Best wishes to all participants. To see the list of bloggers, click here .

A Big Old Cheer!

Dear Friends, The Mama, the Husband, Molly the cat, and I have rounded the last bend of the Mama's life journey. As we glide through this last leg, please give out a big cheer, throw a kiss, stomp your feet joyously, clap your hands heartily, or do another whooo-hooo of choice.  The Mama sends you big hugs, kisses, smiles, laughs, and much love. She thanks you very much for being part of her life, whether it be directly or indirectly through the Husband, Molly the Cat, or me. Love, Su- sieee! Mac

An Unexpected Hug

This morning I heard the happy sound of a young girl running about outside. The voice was unfamiliar. It turned out the sweetness belonged to the niece of our new neighbor. Sometime later while the Husband and I were talking with the new neighbor's dad, this little girl, who could've been between five and seven, came running up to us. She wore a sweatshirt with the words Crazy Cute . That she certainly was. She zigged behind her grandfather when she didn't recognize us, which I thought was a darling move. The Husband and I eventually met the new neighbor, his mom, his brother, and his brother's son and the Crazy Cute daughter. As we said our good-byes, Crazy Cute daughter came into the center of us taller people, waving to us. I waved back. Then all of a sudden, she ran over and hugged me. Everyone was as surprised as me. Today—two days later—I'm hooking up with the participants at Warm Heart Wednesday , hosted by Jenny Matlock of Off on My Tangent. Cli

Killer Wheels

Molly the Cat and the Mama got a set of killer wheels the other day. Neither responded well to their portable travel wheelchair. Of course, who really wants to use such a chair much else actually own it. "You think the cat will like that?" asked the Mama when she saw what new tool we brought into the house to help her get around safely. The day before it was a bedside commode, and the day before that a walker. Each purchased just in time for its suddenly urgent need. When the Mama was too tired to inch her way forward any further, she sighed and allowed herself to sit in the chair and be glided to the other room. Settling on her couch, she said, "Give the cat a turn." I think Molly the Cat sighed too when she sat on the seat. She allowed herself to ride for a few feet. The killer wheels came into the house only two days ago, but it seems more like weeks. Sigh. In my imagination, I see the Mama, the Husband, and I charging out of the house and down the sidewalks

Surprise: Apple Blossoms!

When Molly the Cat and I opened the curtains in the living room this morning, the first thing we noticed was the puddle of water on the patio. "Look, Molly! It rained during the night." Noticing the white petals in the puddle, I glanced up at the apple tree. "Apple blossoms!" Molly the Cat looked out the window, posed in her So are we going outside to explore further stance. She didn't seem as pleased about the apple blossoms as the Mama and the Husband did when I told them. It may be a good year for apples from that tree, which the Mama planted from seeds 28 years ago. I'm hooking up with Seasons , a new weekly meme hosted by Jeanette at St Germain's Blog. Click here to check out other participants.

An Adventure, Nevertheless

We are on a new adventure—the Mama, Molly the Cat, the Husband, and I. The Mama's body is failing. Thank goodness, her spirit is not. She's stubborn. That's a positive. Yesterday afternoon, she faced reality. She fell! "You need to use the walker," I exclaimed. "No! The dead people used it," she said, referring to the walker gathering dust in the garage. She used it once upon a time when she was healing from a broken hip. Somewhere along the line she let a friend borrowed it, which his wife returned after he died. "We will get you another one," I said. It was 5 o'clock in the afternoon. Fortunately, for us, we found a bare-basic walker, without the sparkles and whistles, at the pharmacy. Thankfully for us,  the Mama allowed herself to use the walker. I loved that at one point, as she slowly made her way down the hallway, she stamped her feet and scolded her legs for not working with her. Last night, Molly the Cat gave the M

Eden Hills Friday's Hunt V 1.12

Ha! I'm actually doing Teresa's meme, Friday's Hunt , on the actual day. This week the photo hunt was 1) The Letter L, 2) Week's Favorite, and 3) Lace. My interpretation of the letter L is also my favorite photo. A lovely landscape of the Southern Diablo Range in my neck of the woods. I clicked the photo (above) as the Husband drove us homeward on Highway 25. A big fat black wire streaked across the scene which I erased in Photoshop. These tree branches reminded me of lace. What do you think? Okay, now it's time for you to check out the other participants in the Eden Hills Friday's Hunt . See you later.

Getting Her Jollies

Tweeeet! Tweeeeeet! Translation:  Hurry, hurry! Get away, get away! Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp! Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp! Chirp, chirp, chirrrrrrrrrrp! Translation: What was that? What does she want? I'm hungry!   Molly the Cat smiles. Lips smack. Tail swishes. Translation: Mmmmmmmmmmmm.  Molly settles in the wet grass, beneath the bird feeder. She watches the feeder swing back and forth and listens to the rustling of leaves as the little birds make their way up the tree. Not to worry little birds. Molly the Cat loves to stalk you, crouch low, and pounce towards the tree. That's it though. She has no idea that she's supposed to catch you.  She's merely getting her jollies for the morning. Tweeet, tweet, chirpppp, chirrp, tweet! Swishhhhhhh! Molly the Cat and I are linking up with ABC Wednesday , hosted by Roger Green and the ABCW team. Click here to check out what other participants are writing about the letter J and/or to participat

My First California Poppy

This is a close-up of the petals of the first California poppy that I saw this year, back in February. Dear friend Jennifer said the lines of the poppy reminded her of a Georgia O'Keefe painting, and suggested that I zoom in on the petals, crop, and play with what I saw. Most definitely! Georgia O'Keefe is one of my favorite artists. I love all of her phases, from her early years in New York to her later, and more familiar, years in New Mexico. Many years ago, I dropped everything to trek down to Los Angeles to see an exhibit of Ms. O'Keefe's works. Wowza! Here's the photo that I took of the poppy. Isn't the poppy gorgeous? Maybe one day, I'll try painting a close-up of its petals with actual brush and paints. I'm linking up with Seasons , hosted by Jeanette of St Germain's Blog, and the Creative Every Day Challenge , hosted by Leah of Creative Every Day.  I hope you'll go visit both memes.

In the Pink

The Mama flanked by the Cousins! Indeed, yes. The Mama, the Husband, and I are in good spirits today. I think Molly the Cat may be, too. She got to eat roast chicken for lunch. The Mama is so in the pink that she did not complain about going to the doctor's this afternoon to get her shot for her anemia. Yaay! We had an impromptu visit from the Cousins on the Mama's side of the family. We don't see them often, but when we do, it's loads of happy conversation and laughter over a meal. That, I think, was the best medicine for the Mama today. It's the letter I on ABC Wednesday , a fun weekly meme started by Denise Nesbitt several years ago, and continued onward by Roger Green and the ABCW team. Check out the other participants, and maybe join in yourself, by clicking here . I'm also sharing at Warm Heart Wednesday , a meme hosted by Jenny Matlock at Off on my Tangent. Click here to visit.

March is Marching Heartily Along

Heartily, I say. Rain. We have been getting lots of heavenly rain since March began and it ought to continue through the whole month. It surely is helping the lessening (such a word?) of our drought. Blue skies. The kind that comes after a rain. Delightful. Fruit trees in bloom. Beautiful! Totally.  That's the Asian pear tree in the Mama's backyard.  If all goes well, we many have another good crop this year.   And, green! It's emerald green all over. We truly are blessed. Today, I'm sharing with Our World Tuesday and a new meme called Seasons , hosted by Jeanette at St. Germain's Blog.  Take a look at both, why don't you?

Eden Hills Friday's Hunt v1.10

It's time to get back into the swing of participating in Teresa's Friday photo hunt meme at her blog, Eden Hills . This week the hunt was for photos interpreting the letter J, week's favorite, and a cuppa. A Cuppa Joe I drank a sweet, amazing cup of mocha this afternoon, the first taste of coffee in more than three weeks. As I sipped my personality quickly changed to big smiles, floating contentment, and yakity-yak. Ahhhhhhh. If some of you are wondering, I'm still on my No-this, No-that food program. After 16 days, I'm  allowing myself a treat now and then. So, while we were doing our Saturday errands, the Husband and I stopped at our favorite cafe, Vertigo Coffee , in San Juan Bautista. The above photo isn't of today's wonderful creations by Ryan, but of the amazing mocha's that we had on my birthday in December. If you're ever in San Juan Bautista or passing through the area, check out Vertigo Coffee. The cafe also serves delicious artis

Smiling Cows in the Air

Last month, while I had Gone Reading, I came across the drawing I made in first grade that started me on my path of fear of drawing, painting, and doing anything in the fine arts. "Make the calves touch the ground," wrote First Grade Teacher. She even drew an example of a calf on the ground on my drawing. Sigh. Many moons later, I realize that First Grade Teacher was merely doing her job to make sure I knew that cows belonged on the ground and not in air. Teacher did give me an A for the assignment after all. But, it would've been nice if she had also written something like "You have a wonderful imagination, Susie." Or, "The cows look happy in the air. How would they look standing on the ground?" If only. Three or four years ago, I began to embrace art. To simply draw, paint, make collages, and whatever I feel like trying. The more I do, the less time I stay in a frozen-in-fear mode at the start of a project. Better late than never, right

With Tilda-Hilda, Day 4 in 2016

I'm feeling productive and accomplished right at the moment. I worked in the garden with the Mama for 90 minutes, as well as took a ride on Tilda-Hilda this morning.  Whooo-weee. My "No-this, No-that Food Program" must be working. I got a lot of energy on this 15th day. It also helped that I fell asleep at 9:30 last night. Zzzzzzzz.  Because I want Tilda-Hilda and me to be able pedal our longer routes, I decided this morning we had to tackle our first hill. Heck, simply pedaling the first block on flat land had me wanting to go home. Puff, puff. We rode 5.77 miles in about 36 minutes. We stopped several times so I could take photos of the gorgeous views this morning. Would you like to see the most amazing sight we saw this morning?  Click here then. Tilda-Hilda says, "See you in a week or so after the rain." Yipppieee!

Huge, Healthy, and Handsome!

Hello Singular Live Oak Tree, So huge, so healthy, and so handsome! Thank you for helping make sweet oxygen for us as we walked through the Elkhorn Slough Reserve National Estuarine Research Reserve . It's the letter H at ABC Wednesday . Thank you, ABCW team!

Tilda-Hilda, Day 3 in 2016

Let's see. The last time time Tilda-Hilda and I went out for a ride was the first week in January. Yup. Pedaling was crazy tough. Puff. Puff.  Incline or flat land. Tough. It felt mighty good though. Big smiles. I don't know when our next ride will be because I need to do some garden stuff over the next few days. Then this weekend is supposed to start the first of several days of rain. Yaaay for the rain! We need a lot of rain. It would be fun to rid in a light rain.

The Dog and the Red Ball

The dog looked so happy fetching a red ball.  Its owner looked quite happy, too, throwing the red ball and getting it back. Ruff ruff! Check out what's going on in other parts of the world at Our World Tuesday .