Paws to Redecorate

Wanda pawsed to redecorate my bathroom again. This is just the sink. She also managed to do the floor and my entire shower. 4 lives???

Landfill

Albany Waterfront... The Bulb

After the storm on Friday, and a busy day red hatting yesterday, it was time to get outdoors for a little exercise and nature. It just so happened my sister was free to spend a couple hours outside today too and she gets the credit for this adventure.

Where is it? I couldn't begin to describe it as well as Persis. Read about it here.

While little sister was busy picking blackberries, I checked out some of the art. It was getting late, shadows were getting long, I stumbled on this little gem... the words on the bed...

"I think the world lies twice:

First by telling us that we are alone,

and second by telling us that we are not."

E. Miller

Bizzy-Kitty

My sister's cat, aka as MiniKitty. Not related to my cats except in the adopted sort of way. Wanda would be envious of the Bizzy-Kitty scratching box. Maybe Santa will bring her one.

Acorn Wars

We have acorns. Acorns everywhere. More than I've seen in the 37 years I've lived in this house. Bouncing off the rooftop, pinging off the cars outside my bedroom window. We have two huge oak trees in our front yard. Yet somehow, the entire yard is covered with acorns. All the way down the steep driveway too. Every morning.

The cleanup is a humbling task at best. Try to rake them and they escape between the tines. Try to sweep them and the scatter in all directions. Bribe Little J to fill a basket for a lovely Halloween display and his interest wanes within three minutes.

Even the squirrels can't keep up and we have fat squirrels. So what do we do with all this fresh ripe oak fruit? Hubby suggested we show Little J how to eat acorns. I went searching for a recipe. This is one of the things I found. Interesting but if you venture down the page a bit, there is a rather ballsy picture of a nutty squirrel. Scary. Enter the site at your own risk.

By the way, I'm skipping the acorn pancakes. Not eating those fat squirrels either. I'd have to be nutz to do that.

My Gift Registry

It all starts sometime in our early twenties. Our friends start getting engaged. They register for engagement presents. The wedding nears and they register for wedding presents. Not many calendar pages later, we get the notices that they have registered for baby shower gifts. The gifts don't automatically stop once the registration process ends because after that we get invites to all sorts of gift giving occasions honoring our friends plus their kids birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, retirement. Heck I even had a friend who threw herself a big divorce party.

Last weekend I enjoyed a stage production wherein my favorite act was the one with the always-a-bridesmaid-never-a-bride young lady decided to register for herself at the local department store. It started me thinking about how I might be able to register for something. I'm getting old. I've got it all figured out. If I register now, I'll be able to stock up for those golden years. If I work it right I'll survive without that retirement fund that my kids have spent. So here it is... the beginning of the list:

1. Cruise tickets to anywhere. Please check with me for available dates. I want to make sure none of the gifts overlap and hope to cover the entire calendar of my existence.
2. Limousine with young driver, one with patience, lots of it (he will only have to work if I'm not cruising)
3. A porter to carry my bags from ship to ship
4. Starbucks coffee cards so I can stay awake
5. Heavy perfume... what was that called? something like April Showers?? Or perhaps talc would be better, as long as it has a strong scent.
6. Blue hair dye, if I have any hair left, otherwise some new red hats
7. One of those canes with the rear view mirror, hidden flask (just in case), and horn
8. A walker - the kind with a basket for all my crafty things, with a seat to sit on, a purple one, so I can block the aisle in style
9. Red or purple reading glasses 2.0 and better
10. An Ipod with extra high volume control and hearing aids with lots of batteries
11. Cases of Ensure and Hershey bars
12. Depends, hopefully I'll still be a size medium. Even more hopeful, I won't need them but will just have them around for the less fortunate old friends.
13. Stretch pants with expandable waistband and gift certificates for Sweet Tomatoes
14. Soft soled shoes so no one will hear me sneaking up on them
15. Cases of Gas X, I don't want to be one of those old farts. Or better yet, a Kazoo so I can make noises from both ends.
16. A super powered scooter with blaring horn to warn people to get out of my way
17. A big totebag full of ziplock bags for buffet meal leftovers
18. A large coin purse filled with pennies so I can annoy the people behind me at the market
19. Scrapbooks and supplies so I can bore everyone with my memory pages
20. A rocking chair, one of those fancy massage ones with speed control
21. Large numbered telephone with your number on speed dial
22. A fill in the blank obituary form
23. Stationary and postage stamps so I can send you thank you notes, if I live long enough

Oh geeze... just make an appointment for me with Dr. Kevorkian, or whatever his name is.

Paw Prints

Paw prints. Black paw prints. First I spotted the ones on the ceramic tile floor. I followed the trail up the painted cupboard doors, across the corian countertop and into the corian bathroom sink. Now who would be the culprit and what did she get into? Here Wanda is, innocently cuddled up to Mr. Rusty on my bed. After close inspection of Wanda's paws, it has been determined that Wanda has done a recent fireplace inspection, and thank goodness she did not use it as a litter box. Why is the countertop on top the kitties? Could it be the end of Wanda? Another life gone... poof... I forget, maybe she has four lives left?

Through the Eyes of Children

During our cruise to Alaska, everytime we walked through the art displays on the Promenade Deck, Little J would stop and pause by this picture. One time we had to reprimand him for touching this 3D piece of art. A few days into the cruise, we were talking about the art auction and wondering if perhaps we should place a bid on this since Little J was so intrigued but somehow we thought it might be a bit inappropriate for a four year old. On the last day of the cruise, Little J stopped by the art for one last look. I pulled him along, well actually dragged him away. His comment... "Grandma, why didn't you buy that mountain picture for me?"

Wanda House Sits

Wanda house sat so I could go visit the glacier named after me. She did leave the house in relatively good condition but my hats seem to be missing a few feathers. There is a slight indication that she might have preferred Little J's racoon cap. I found that in the middle of the living room floor, the tail shredded a wee bit. She seems pleased that we are finally home. I swear she doubled in size in less than 2 weeks.

The cruise to Alaska was quite an adventure. Stormy seas, no stop in Sitka, rain in Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan. Our zipline was cancelled after we did just the first trial zip due to gale force winds. Victoria was chilly and overcast.

So much for the weather report. The highlight of the trip... I actually got up on stage in front of 500 people to check out what it would be like to be hypnotized. So many asked me afterwards if I was really under the spell. Do I remember fishing, kissing the fish, going to the horse races, playing the Munchkin part, being stuck to the chair, discoing off the stage, yelling Wazzup, kissing and hugging that handsome guy in the seat behind me... I'll never tell.

Thursday's the Day We Iron Our Clothes

Wanda decided to help with the ironing. She thought it would be a good idea to practice on Little J's shirts. Only problem is, she didn't know which end was up. Lucky for her that Grandma happened upon this scene and remedied the situation. One quick spray of the steam iron and POOF Wanda makes a quick escape. Hmmmm... works better than the spray bottle.

Meanwhile, Little J just happened to find Wanda's brother yesterday. In spite of pleading, tears, screaming, kicking, dragging and a Texas sized temper tantrum, Grandpa had the sense to not allow Wilbur to come home with Little J. Good thing, or Grandma would have found another use for the iron.