Puppy Pile!

This is a happy story. The mama to these chubsters is named Jasmine. She was in a shelter about to be euthanized when, at the 11th hour, someone saved her. She's being fostered in an excellent home...the one in which she gave birth to 6 puppies. The almost 4 week old pups are all thriving. I went to visit today to help with one of their feedings. Their mama is kinda petite and can't quite keep up with their big appetites so they are receiving supplemental food about 3 times per day. It was so sweet to hold them and try to get them to slurp up some of their food. It's kinda a messy endeavor! And then to watch them pass out one by one in a pile...well you know what that does to a person!!!

"I made some studies, and reality is the leading cause of stress amongst those in touch with it. I can take it in small doses, but as a lifestyle I found it too confining."

"See, the human mind is kind of like . . .

a piñata. When it breaks open, there’s a lot of surprises inside. Once you get the piñata perspective, you see that losing your mind can be a peak experience."*

* From The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe by Jane Wagner. Reprinted with permission.

Normal?

Probably most of us think of our lives as fairly normal, no?
Well, the other evening I was taking a shower and perched just at eye level on the top of the shower stall facing me was a banana slug. As I've written, I have a BS infatuation going on so when I saw it I immediately smiled and started talking to her. Now I may have been making this up but I swear she was responding to me. No joke. Like she was listening or something...I kept up my end of the conversation with words but she kept hers up in BS language which I am new to learning! Anyways, I kept splashing water on her and she seemed to like that and even turned her body as if to say; "this spot...get this spot." I know, I know!
Then today as I was thinking about how normal that seemed to me I started laughing at what a relative term that is.

Cake Recipe!

I'd e-mailed my friend asking him what kind of cake he was making for an event yesterday and this is what he wrote:

"Poppyseed Cake- vegan, non-bacon, non-gluten, non-sugar, non-joy, non-life."

Covered CA, My Booty

I had the great good fortune of going to an enrollment counselor today to help me sign up for health insurance. I'd started the process online but at a certain juncture was SO frustrated I was ready to throw my computer out the flipping window. If ya gotta do shit like that they oughta make it easy. Anyways, this young woman who was helping me was so much fun. Partway through my sister cut in line and joined us and we just laughed our way through the process. We found out that she (the enrollment counselor) really likes Chocolate so I left and came back to give her some I was SOOO grateful.

As we were wrapping up she told us she works full time for Healthcorp (similar to Peacecorps) and doesn't even make enough money to have any kind of insurance but Medicare. How ironic is that?

Snowing Petals

It's hard to capture the effect of this little vignette right outside my door but this will give you some sense...the wind and rain blown blossoms of the weeping cherry tree drizzled all around making it look like pale pink snow! It kinda has an other worldly effect...like the fairies just twinkled through and poofed some magic all about.

Snail mail

Last week I received a hand written letter in the mail! These days that is a welcomed gift and one of my favorite things. I had written an e-mail to a friend and instead of e-mailing me back, he "put pen to paper" as he said. So, this weekend I wrote him back and when I did I was reminded of how much I love to write letters. Not only do I really enjoy the actual activity of writing...the tactile experience of pen to paper, the slow, deliberate activity of my brain but I also enjoy imagining my friend sitting down, likely outside with a cup of tea, and reading his letter. I enjoy the thought because he, too, is a slow moving critter and it will suit him to spend the time reading a hand written letter and reflecting. I am looking forward to writing another letter this weekend to a different friend, another someone I know who will love sitting down with a cup of tea to read a hand written letter.

My dad and I used to write each other letters. It was during a time in our relationship when, without saying so, we were trying to better understand one another. I treasure those letters now and know they will bring me great comfort once he has passed.

Poison Oak Away!

One bad case of human poison oak justifies any number of feline baths to wash it off the furz! He'll forgive me once he's lookin' good again. Plus, now I will let him back under the covers for snuggles...and crack crunchies aside, that may be one of his favorite things snuggle man that he is.

Despite his fervent pawing at the covers to be let under, there have been many nights lately when he resigned himself to laying on the pillow as close as possible to my head!

An Ode To Daydreaming

...Creative types know, despite what their third-grade teachers may have said, that daydreaming is anything but a waste of time. According to Kaufman and psychologist Rebecca L. McMillan, who co-authored a paper titled "Ode To Positive Constructive Daydreaming," mind-wandering can aid in the process of "creative incubation." And of course, many of us know from experience that our best ideas come seemingly out of the blue when our minds are elsewhere. Although daydreaming may seem mindless, a 2012 study suggested it could actually involve a highly engaged brain state -- daydreaming can lead to sudden connections and insights because it's related to our ability to recall information in the face of distractions. Neuroscientists have also found that daydreaming involves the same brain processes associated with imagination and creativity. - See more at: http://m.dailygood.org/story/679/18-things-highly-creative-people-do-differently-carolyn-gregoire/#sthash.q3KDeLJ0.dpuf...

Excerpted from an article on creativity by Carolyn Gregoire

 She was someone who could not be rushed.  That seems like a small thing.  But, it is actually a very ancient one. 

-Alice Walker

Flower Beauty

Double click on this and...wowza, there's a whole world inside the flower. This, a common geranium, becomes a work of art and beauty when one stops to really look. To me it is spectacular.  I'm kinda jealous of the bees and hummers and butterflies that get to hang out with the flower friends like they do.

Liza: The Next Chapter

Yesterday I took my cat, Liza, to be cremated. She had been stored in my sisters freezer for almost exactly 10 months! During that time my sister had an 18 year old woman house sitting for her. She'd forgotten to tell the gal there was a dead cat in the freezer...so, when said cat was discovered by said shocked 18 year old my sister got a phone call! At that point my sister had to fess up that there might also be some dead frozen birds in there as well!!!
Anyways, the decision to take Liza in yesterday afternoon was strictly a logistical one. I was at my sisters and heading in the direction of the vet...a combo that had been hard to orchestrate given where I now live. Liza was covered with a towel inside a plastic tray. I hadn't seen her except once briefly soon after she passed. I put her in the car, began to drive away and while doing so lifted the towel...
Oh my. I put my hand on that little black furry body that I know so well...and miss so much...and just cried. It's amazing how much memory is stored in touch...
I cried a good part of the way to the vet office...even considered taking her home for the night...but that would have been too hard in some way. So, I took her in. The vet tech who had come to my house with the vet to euthanize Liza was there. I felt blessed at the time it happened that they both were so compassionate, kind and heart-full. And the vet tech was all those things again yesterday. We, along with a second tech, had a great conversation about the grieving process...how it's different for each of us and what we need each time, depending on the particular relationship, can change. One spoke of sleeping with her pet's ashes for a few nights after bringing them home. The other joked about how many boxes of ashes she has at home and how she's told her parents that if she dies before them she wants her ashes to be spread together along with her animal companions. I very much get it...the tenderness of losing our Beloveds. My day was absolutely made richer by the exchanges with both women and it softened my experience of grief.
I cut some of Liza's fur yesterday. I brought it home and let Simon smell it. It was very interesting to watch him as he took a long time to be with it. And it didn't occur to me until just this moment of writing that he actually seemed a little "off" today and that possibly he was having his own process regarding Liza? Being the big hearted guy he is it wouldn't surprise me.

Reminding Us All

“There's no question about the reality of evil, of injustice, of suffering, but at the center of this existence is a heart beating with love. You and I and all of us are incredible. I mean, we really are remarkable things. That we are, as a matter of fact, made for goodness."

Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Dahlia Pimp!

Tomorrow I get to go pick up hundreds of dahlia tubers! A local business was thinning theirs out and instead of just throwing them away (fur realz...they were going to) a friend called and asked me if I wanted them. That's pretty much a no brainer as dahlias are my new favorite flower. Unfortunately I don't have a garden my own self but I know lots of friends who are oh so happy to give them a home. I'm sure I'll get visitation privileges which is fun to think about...I can make up my own dahlia garden tour. Oh happy day!

Done Been Sheared!

I went to my regular hair cutter gal last weekend. More often than not I like my cuts from her. But, while she was cutting we got to talking about a really charged topic for she and her family! I noticed the scissors snipping uber fast and hair flying and had a moment of "uh oh" but there wasn't anything I could do at that point. My longer than I had wanted cut hairs were already laying listless on the floor! Well, that's why the good lord made hats, right? And hair grows back, eventually! Directly after my haircut I went to see a couple friends who said in a little too high of a tone: "oh, your hair is really cute!!!" 

Great.

Welcome to My Porch!

So Much Love

As my dad slowly,slowly ooches towards the other side, his essence shines vividly...so beauty-full it makes me weep.

For some reason I googled whether it's legal or not to kill a bobcat. Shit. I shouldn't have done that.
I went to a site where there was a q and a forum with what sounded like a group of hunters and killers...important distinction right there. Anyways, they were talking about baiting bobcats with turkey calls...and all the ways around getting away with killing bobcats...and the tone in which they talk about the animals...I really am not against hunting for food. I'm not sure I could actually do that myself but I'm ok if it's done "humanely." But, the way these folks were talking about killing just because they could...just broke my heart. Sometimes I really dislike being a human.

Bubble Landia

I'm pretty sure I've written about the changes I've witnessed over the last 23 years living where I do. In case not...the closest sizable town to where I live is called Sebastopol. I used to think of it as a mid sized small town, charming in the way that small towns can be. However, like many places all over the world, it got "found" and has become a trendy, quasi up-scale collection of urbanish feeling younger peeps with "alternative" everythings!!! I don't much care for it and anymore kinda feel like a stranger there. So, the other day I was in the drugstore and saw an elderly guy looking at reading glasses. Instantly, without conscious thought, my body softened and my heart gladdened. I watched him for awhile as he figured out what he wanted and then slowly ambled off to find the next thing on his list. The experience stood out to me because anymore it is unusual to see elderly, less "well" people around town...and how being amidst that particular population helps me to feel at home wherever I live.

Nap Time On the Deck!

I was inclined to bring the fox milk and cookies for her nappy. She looked so sweet laying on the blanket. Kinda wish'd I could have curled up next to her!

Snugget=snuggle+nugget=my boy!

The Swami

"If I pull my lip back can you see my new teefs?"

"Though I love my hand maiden dearly, she's not so good at getting all the food actually IN my mouth."

One of the main highlights of my life these days is getting home from work and hanging out with The Swami.

He has just started eating Cheerios (health food ones, of course!) and prefers to shove several in at one time...more go on the floor than in his mouth but it makes it convenient for his hand to already be close to his mouth so he can then give himself gum massages.

Just another beauty-full eve by the big pond. 

Too Fast?

I'm reading a book called:

In Praise of Slowness; Challenging the Cult of Speed that a friend sent me in the mail as a sue-prize. I'm just a few pages into it and already loving it. I wanted to share a few snippets.

"... The electronic media is dominated by what one French sociologist dubbed 'le fast thinker'- a person who can, without skipping a beat, summon up a glib answer  to any question."

"Our impatience is so implacable that, as actress-author Carrie Fisher quipped, even "instant gratification" takes too long."

Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food Movement, says:

"Being slow means that you control the rhythms of your own life. You decide how fast you have to go in any given context. If today I want to go fast, I go fast; if tomorrow I want to go slow, I go slow. What we are fighting for is the right to determine our own tempos."

There are four words you'd hope never to experience in the same sentence:

Poison oak and hot flashes!!!

Love Thy Neighbor?

Holy Smokes...
I live in a quasi remote location in the northern CA hills. It's remoteness lends itself to some version of a wild west mentality. People don't abide by "normal" laws. The property was also once home to a commune back in the 60's. So, that also lends itself to drawing "outlaw" kind of characters. The property itself is mostly still wild with the exception of the maybe 15 dwellings (might be a stretch to call some of them houses!) Anyways, given that the property itself and the surrounding area is still relatively undeveloped,  there are wild critters in close proximity. If you know me or read my blog then you already know how I feel about animals...
A few months ago my land mate told me that our neighbor shot and killed a bobcat. My heart broke upon hearing that news. For me it's one thing to kill an animal if you are going to eat it. But this bobcat got killed because it killed this guys chicken. Again, to my way of thinking if you are going to keep chickens (there are also some sheep) out here where there are wild predators then it is incumbent upon you to secure those chickens or sheep. End of story. Yesterday I ran into this fellow walking down our road with a rifle slung over his shoulder. He, another neighbor and I were having a "conversation" of sorts. He mentioned that he had been out to kill another bobcat but had been foiled when someone drove up and scared it off. I said to him: "doesn't another bobcat just move into the dead bobcat's territory?" He replied: "yeah, but you get about a two month period in between." There isn't too much logic in that thinking process. I think it's not about bobcats and chickens but rather about there always being some sort of "other" that's perceived as an adversary or enemy. And how does that way of thinking ever change? I absolutely do not know. I'm aware of my mind making him the "other" so perhaps it's just a continuum.  That said, my heart still breaks when there is seemingly senseless killing.

No Nudies!

One of the activities the oldster that I care give for and I share is Painting. Yesterday we were looking through possible painting subjects and there were some nudes. She responded to those by saying: "I have nothing against nudes except I'm just not in the mood to paint them."

Cracked me up. Maybe you had to be there.

Ouch

Unfortunately, one of the byproducts of my mom's brain deterioration is that it can cause her to be very harsh and bossy/controlling with others. There's a woman my folks eat breakfast with each morning who, for whatever reason, brings out the worst of my mom's behavior. Apparently, whatever happened this morning between mom and this woman wasn't pretty...and the woman said to my dad:

"I don't know how you stand that woman." My dad replied: "that's my wife."

Wow, what a way to start the day.

Wow'd

Today I saw the mama of a new born baby tuck her cell phone into a pocket so that the phone was actually resting against her child...

I know many people don't believe there are any "bad" effects from our cell phones. However for years we were told there were no ill effects from second hand smoke, either. 

I wish more of us understood the concept that invisible doesn't mean harmless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


On another topic of "exposure"...

I also wish people understood the impact of cologne, perfume, laundry detergent, dryer sheets, body products, etc and the effect that has not only on their own immune system but also on others. I recently re-found this pamphlet:

I made a number of copies and I am leaving them in public spaces. Of course I can't ever know who will find them or if they will even be read. But, even if just one more person on the planet understands it then yay...a little bit less exposure for those of us that experience the harmful impact of such products.

You Need Husband!

After about 10 minutes into a conversation this morning, my Somali shuttle driver decided I needed a husband (him) and kids (his)!!!

When he was dropping me at the airport he said: "you need husband, you call!!"

It was a great way to start my day.