immature harvest, baby boy, Aspen fire, what would you take?

Cool as a too- soon- harvested -cucumber. Today it is raining and the temperature is about 60 degrees. Very pleasant! Dennis got excited about the cucumber growing so well and picked them!  He is new to gardening....

Emmett spent the day here while Flora went with Emily to a book / story reading. Flora's friend was also there. Flora's friend is rather naughty and influenced Flora to be a wild thing. Disappointing , as the author of the story book is amazing and one of Emily's heroes.  So, they spent their time outside on the square where children can be wild and mother's can chat. 

 Emmett and I played, watched a bit of Bluey, had a bath, ate stuff.

Putting Bear to bed.

A bug

That child's eyes are the most remarkable color! 

Glad it is dark and raining today- peaceful! A good day to sort and clean. Put things in boxes, shift things out to the give away pile, Try to sort out the bedrooms downstairs in case Grandson needs his own room until classes start. 

  A bag full of Barbie wigs from thrift store , too small for the orphans so we scissored them to wear as hats. Barbie has a tiny head and tiny feet... not real, the orphans  claim. 

NOT like US!! 

I phoned my sister-in-law, Dawn,  this morning to find out what ever there is to find out. Their house and out cabins are right in the heart of the Aspen fire that has not yet been tamed. So far 98,000 acres have been torched to the ground, 338 mountain homes - gone. Sister's cabin was protected by the fire fighters because it is right on the creek, and had the creek caught fire , the entire town of Beulah would have been destroyed.  

My niece and her husband had just begun a new venture- A chicken farm, free range , named and loved ...plus home made baked goods, Jams, produce- small mom and pop business.  They gathered all but two of the 70 chickens, four dogs  and Dawn and went to Dawn's nephew's place,  in a safer area, camped in the field, bought a huge tent for the chickens, to wait out the fire. Two weeks of that, now returning to find what is left of their homes. 

In the shuffle,  Cinnabear, the giant red bear that calls Dawn's mountain " home" , got hungry for chicken dinner. Made his way to the neighbors coup and got angry that there was no dinner left for him. He charged the human, the Human shot him. Another bigger bear came out of the forest , sniffed the wounded Cinnabear, shook him, and left. Human went back to Cinnabear and shot him some more to be sure that he would not wander around half dead..  The fire - closing in. It took several men  and a front end loader to get  big beautiful Cinnabear into the back of the truck to be taken to wild life folks to do what ever they do with Bear who make poor choices. Sad. To kill a bear a human has to have a damned good reason- the wildlife folks reckoned it was justified.  No hefty fine today.

The entire Flag mountain is burned , scorched to the ground, there is nothing to hold the soil. Rain is in the forecast... Flood predicted. 

Welcome to climate change y'all. Keep your emergency packs updated and ready.

What would you grab on your way out?

 

 

 

 

foot in the door, pup invites itself in, and Satan collects his man.

Front door opened , braced with my boot in case a mighty wind comes up.  With the door open , no screen door-  a wandering dog  finds its way in to get   kibble and a tummy rub. 

I let her roam around the house for a while, I really want to keep her, but I know where she lives.  I know that She has  a family down the street. 

Reluctantly , she is  returned  to her humans but the next time she finds her way in , I will hide her...she will be mine!

Dennis brought a begonia and a card for anniversary. We went out for dinner. We ate Alaska salmon and a piece of anniversary cake , on the house! They also gave us a gift certificate for free appetizer next time we come in.  Again the server woman, named "Now"  ( child of Hippies) , was her usual friendly sweet self. 

It has been a good day, temperate, sunny and perfect. I cleared the deck from dead petals, I cleaned the raccoon lavatory. 

A lovely day for Lindsey Graham  to have died *snap* just like that. Boom, he's out! Bub bye Miss Lindsey. He sold his soul to the devil, devil collects.

Tomorrow bright and early , if I don't  die in my sleep, I will be going in for another red light shine in my eye.  Hoping that these treatments do what they claim.

Tracy Emin ,British artist, has my attention, always. Her heart and understanding - deep ! So glad for my eyes and the half assed job that they do . Seeing is everything, you know. If Lindsey had been an artist instead of a sullied politician, he would  have lived honestly with heart and affection from admirers... Miss Lindsey blew it!  Got sucked into the orange gas. 
 

 

 

A lot of Flora in the hood

  

We walked to the little street library to drop off a couple of books. She came away with one. A "Frozen" sticker book with nearly all of the stickers in tact. I said"Wow, you scored", she said "what does that mean?" Automatic exclamations usually happen without question. Flora will catch it. She will question...everything. 

Inside/outside back and forth through the day. Doing ALL of the things, finding wild animal - full of cherry pits- polka dotted poop. 

Building a camp fire by the castle with stones, pine cones and birthday candles. She couldn't quite strike the match but could light the candles without becoming a crispy kid. I had a large glass of water near by just in case.  I love her little foot, her little hand pulling the plug after a toy filled bath. Precious. Time is a bitch- So lucky to have some to spend with flora especially at age four and three quarters- fuels the soul! I will be dead before you know it! Fuck off , time!

Inventive child, Flora...She removed the flowers from the tube vase, put water in them and water color for a science experiment, I am not clear what science this was but it worked, she painted foam from a padded envelope, put paper on top and made a print.  Shifting effortlessly  from one  thing to another all day. The campfire was the only dodgy activity of the day. I, as her assistant, follow through with the things not quite quite reachable . "May I please have another match?---May I please have another pocky stix----May I please have milk and a pink straw---Would you please take my children out of their beds---would you please go catch a fish for our dinner"

 I have a great old Ravensburger game "Gone fishing" a favorite of all children .  I had one when I was a wee barn. I made one for  Janet's Liam when he was little, which was a much better version.  The new ones, such as in the photo, are wimpy.

Her printing invention and the >

science experiment. Mind you , all of this done on the Big Blue Dog rug!

Who in their right mind??? 

A Grannie, that is who.  

Flora is so trustworthy and cautious that whatever she comes up with is OK.  Big Dog was not torched nor spilled upon.  

The tiny table by the fire was used to cook the fish.  First it was the biggest fish, then the smallest, then everything all at once. The boot, the can, the treasure chest, the starfish- a  grand seafood smorgasbord. 

 

Suddenly she does not like real food. Unusual for her.

Short bread, blueberries and cream as well as tropical juice and a pink straw. It's a  non nutritious day at Grannie's house.  

I gave her my Canon camera to use on one of our many walk abouts, she took two successful photos. Daisies and raccoons. The other photos were mostly the underside of things. 

Not bad for a child with hands that barely reach over the camera to the buttons. I Swear Flora is the second coming! ( a common claim from all grannies about their children everywhere)

 Dennis's pain is less today,  a  better frame of mind and standing a bit straighter. He cut the branch from the cherry tree just now before the disease spreads. There is quite a lot of light let in having that branch fall to the ground.  

59 degrees today with the promise of rain.  

 Tomorrow is our anniversary- we've been married for one thousand years. Longer than any man /woman in history. 

As stated earlier, time is a bitch. Old things fall apart, get cranky, rusty and generally unpleasant, No sugar coating the final stage of life! It is bloody well NOT romantic,  "we want to grow old together" is a big No, hell NO, notion. 

Off I go to deal with the polka dotted poos, I am poo-crastinating. 

 

 

 

formal shopping in the thrift store, finding treasure, eating rubber

 54 degrees this morning. Yesterday after eye treatment I bounced into the thrift store- Senior discount day. I followed this dressed- for -success  lady for a while just to see what interested her. Nothing was in her basket and so it remained , empty. I  hit the toy section, heard a tiny "help me" from a plastic bag on a hook. 

An orphan!

I brought her home to the welcoming committee. ( why is "committee" spelled  in that attention seeking  way?) 

 The orphans gave her clothes and  presented the rules of the house...There are only two, because  you know, Rules are for Fools. 

Success- I have only found two orphans in the thrift store, a little over two dollars each, the others came from the internet for much more cash. 

 I can understand why children abandoned them. They are temperamental ,   challenging to pose. Arms and legs  stiff , curved in the right way, but limited. They have minds of their own, impish ,  love falling over all the time, and have nothing to do with the world of humans.  They have more depth, as you know. In fact, at the moment, they are considering employment @ A I. -  A I looking for philosophers to complete the collection of knowledge,  becoming better than human...heard it on NPR in the car on the way home. new orphan heard the report , carried it home to the others . They are ALL philosophers, you see.  Excited by the prospect!

In the evening we  met Austin  (grandson) at the harbor for dinner and a catch up.  Back from his trip of  visiting all of the national parks in the south west , camping, hiking ,  climbing - he is in between moments  at the moment. Lease on apartment expired, he may come and stay with us until school starts in September. It is a LONG commute from here to his work on Whidbey Island,  is what it is,  not many options in his purgatory state. 

  ^^^little rubber shrimp in a mediocre cocktail. The same old waiter with the mickey mouse voice did his best.Dennis said "what?' about twenty times when offered dessert...ASL would come in handy . His hearing is shot even with aids,  becoming more challenging as the days go by. Mishearing or not hearing at all is frustrating, isolating, conversations are lost on the breeze. WHOOSH. It may come down to a scribble pad and pencil, as no one likes to shout.

 Nothing wrong with his excellent eye sight. From across the room in the dark he spotted a canker on Mrs. Cherry's branch. 

It must be excised or lopped off entirely to save the tree from further infection. It does look sore, doesn't it?  

Dennis will probably remove the entire branch just to prevent any possibility of spread.  Poor old Cherry tree.

 

Today I may just stash things away in boxes and stack them in a corner to make room for Austin. Juggling is a  good skill to have.  The raccoon with the broken tail is showing you how to juggle one corn.

Leaving you with stinky daisies and cool weather! XO,LS
 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Man takes a walk, explosions and bombers, a budgie named Pepper.

Dennis walked down to the bay thinking that a walk  might be helpful. It wasn't but he sat on the beach bench of rock and drift wood , took in the  salt and sea and  thought about making better  choices... He still is suffering extreme pain. 

This is the first butterfly seen in years. On the deck, painted lady.  Dennis's photo.

My ONE poppy struggled to bloom, and then it was gone.

This morning - a pod. Probably frightened into old age by the fireworks over night. 

The loudest and most frequent I ever remember- a steady rolling thunder around the edges, explosions near by. The city fireworks over the bay were predictable. Always the same , but, generally when they end, all fireworks call it a night and everyone goes to bed. Not last night...explosions until 3:00 am. 

 

I had wished that I had a  megaphone to shout at the close by bombers to STFU and go to bed like normal human beings. You know that feeling of finally entering a dream state, all comfy , warm  and drifty and then BOOM , a blast so loud it hurts your ears. Yeah, it was that, several times until three...I truly hate 7/4 holiday.

 Today in the garden, as though nothing happened last night...

"peace, love and understanding"  

A t-towel from the thrift shop- made in the UK . T-towels from England are the best for graphics and quality of cotton.

Who doesn't love a budgie? I've had a few and they never disappoint, although one of mine  flew into the TV screen and never peeped again. When I was little I had one named Pepper. Clever little thing talked and sang for years. He actually put sentences together , like  when My Dad came home from a train trip, Pepper said " Hi Pete, choocachoocachoo. (train sound)  One morning I got up to uncover his cage and say  the usual, "Pretty bird , pretty  Pepper". There was a note attached to his blanket- "Honey,  Pepper was not well last night when I covered him, I am sorry he may have died in his sleep. Do not be too sad, he had a fine life, love , Mom". Yes, he was dead,  belly up, dear little thing. I have had many birds since but none as lovely as he or as smart. He had freedom in the house, flew around and entertained us while we were eating dinner. He marched around sampling everyone's food, like  Helen Keller - in the Miracle Worker. He sat on my shoulder when I was on the  phone and would repeat a partial conversation, which sometimes was not good. Tattle tale! He chuckled and laughed and gave kisses, he flirted- he was loved. 

- and here is our other love- Flora Jane's final T-ball game for the season.

 She carries BalerinaMouse with her everywhere she goes.  Even when Flora  is up at bat, BalerinaMouse helps  her to grip the bat. 

Tomorrow I go in for another eye thing, and then  will meet grandson for dinner. The weather is superb! We will eat outside  and discuss his brilliant future and possibly have a G&T. Summer days demand it! 

 

 

 

Madness in america, a happy tale of good fortune and flowers on the deck

 

This is as red-white&blue as it gets in this house. Fourth of July is not a thing without a rodeo , a barefoot summer night and a tequila sunrise - still cool temperatures here and nary a rodeo for  a couple hundred miles! 

Just another day.

While out and about I dropped in to the thrift store. I bought little Pyrex bowls and a T-towel from the Cotswolds . I nearly bought a red  tin chest to keep the orphan supplies in one location but it was ten dollars and the orphans are really just fine living in their basket. 

 I bumped into my friend Michelle whom I have not seen for too long! She used to work in the thrift store but quit due to changing of the guard. The new owners are assholes. Anyway, she said that one of the worker women there went to the  casino for lunch one day. Not a gambler really,  played with the slots for about ten minutes. Just messing around, eating a chicken sandwich while pulling the one armed bandit to burn calories... She bloody well WON half a mill. Promptly drove back to work to say, "Adios Y'all, eff this effing  job". 

Then I popped into the old lady shop and bought this pretty little piece of cloth, so finely woven, plus this hospital puppet. Remember them? 

Back in the polio days women's organizations made them for  children in hospital. 

When fireworks start their stupidity I will be so glad to not have a dog or cat in the house. NOT a favorite holiday. Even more loathsome in this year of trump, who has taken everything we love, trashed it, and walked away with billions of dollars in his fat pocket. Geez, where did this seriously piece of  crap come from???  

America, you do disappoint!

My one poppy is opening- the deck is flowery...and two more babies showed up!  That makes four babies for  one -eyed -mother girl. That's more like it!

Have a day- find a tequila sunrise maybe, take the edge off.