When Judy Dench was interviewed recently, she was asked how aging has changed her. "terrible, everything is terrible", she replied, and then went on to list the many things limiting her life and capabilities. Losing her eyesight has been the worst. I agree . Losing vision, having depended on it all of one's life ,is an unpleasant adjustment. I would rather stay home than go out into the world just because I feel more sure of what I am looking at. That is a shite choice and it is a tricky choice. I think that I am doing just fine- but when I go out in the big world and realize that I can not see as well as I see at home. I am fooled.
Amy and David bought a house, three actually, joining them to create one magnificent property in the Italian alps, perfect for skiing and hiking. There is much work to be done. They have a head start. Part of it had been renovated.
Shall we pop in for a sweet treat? My lord! What is this?
I bought a carrier- do you think I may have misjudged dimensions?
I have been putting Temptations in the carrier - uncertainty about it more trustworthy? Will it work. Not at this point. Cat is not yet 100% onboard with the confines of staying in the house. "For your safety, Darling." , I do understand though, I feel same same. What will be her name? Not sure, she feels like a "May Bee" because maybe she is our cat and maybe she isn't.
It is becoming less likely that I will ever go back to London. I do keep in touch. I keep up with the "news". One gigantic stupid expensive venture of turning Oxford street into exclusively pedestrian is so dumb. A soft "opening" of the concept takes place this week end to see if it might work before zillions of pounds are invested in the transformation. . Traffic is going to be insane in Marlebone, which is quiet and narrow. Traffic will be nightmarish. Traveling beneath the Christmas lights on the top of the bus no longer possible. Getting to Selfridges from Regents street out of the rain , on a bus- Nope. Leave it the way it is, I say. Curb traffic somehow on Oxford but do not close it!
Dumb move.
The cat is really beautiful, large too!
ReplyDeleteWhatever are those treats, especially the giant peanut looking one? JanF
I don't know, amy sent the photo of when they went out for a snack. Italy. They look like instant diabetes!
DeleteI wonder if Amy and David's three houses were once one large mansion and now they are putting it back the way it was? It already looks beautiful. I think Cat should go to the vet sooner rather than later, since you know aready she has worms, she could be leaving worm eggs everywhere she sits.
ReplyDeleteThe eye in the teacup is frwaky, I wouldn't want that looking at me from my teacup.
Yes, I think it was a mansion of sorts before being divided. Isn't it gorgeous! Freaky is not for everyone. Some people only like pretty and that is fine. I am not that person.
Delete*freaky*
ReplyDeleteRenovating a large property in the Italian Alps sounds fabulous. The ceilings in the place are spectacular. Buying antiques and furnishing the place will be a fun project too.
ReplyDeleteVision loss is very hard. I saw my Uncle through this journey and know how difficult it is.
I continue to hope for more medical breakthroughs.
Kitty is looking great. You'll need a bigger carrier. I am glad you are keeping her inside. It would be very risky outside. We have both coyotes and fisher cats, and the town advises people to keep their cats inside.
Susan
There have been trial runs of new tech for macular degeneration, I will not live long enough to benefit- the tech is complicated and awkward at the moment .
DeleteAmy has put together many houses, that is her gig as well as Landscape contractor, though she does way too much of the heavy stuff- shifting boulders and huge wooden features. Strong woman.
Kitty will stay indoors forever more if she is ours, A catio will be made for her to get fresh air and watch birds . We have always had a cat door before and the cats were fine going in and out. I am not comfortable with that idea now.
I've never heard of the Lover's Eye fad, so thanks for teaching me something new!
ReplyDeletewell then, there you go- keep your EYE out for them in antique shops!
Delete"You're gonna need a bigger carrier" She's overflowing that one. I think you have a new family member, she (and you) won the cat lottery. Cheers for keeping her an indoor cat, safer for her. I am in awe of Amy tackling that ole Italian house, big job for sure! The road warriors are almost to our desert home, Bullhead City AZ tonite, Tucson tomorrow. Jim on our spare laptop, as you know, mine self destructed.
ReplyDeletesorry about your device, Jim. There are some great options out there but we have never found one as good for travel as our old acer, Antiquated but still dependable in a pinch. Getting to the desert is such a monumental task - seems to me! You two are troopers!
DeleteTaking on the Italian house is also no doubt - monumental. Mental being the operative. Amy is only 61 so she has miles to go, Five more years and she can "retire" to work full time on the house. IF we all live that long, mind you.
Welcome home, to the beautiful desert- the sky , the plant life, the dirt and the air- stay out of direct sunshine if you are able. Skin says "NO".
Mr T came to regard his carrier as his safe place - he used it as his cave bed at home. When we had to switch it out for a backpack model (which I wore on the front) it became his sunbathing cave at the beach. He loved going out and about in that carrier.
ReplyDeleteIf this cat was not mature , and a vagabond, I think a proper carrier would be just the ticket. At the moment I just bought the cheap foldable one because we do not know if we are going to have to surrender her to her family. A backpack model sound intriguing, Take the kitty everywhere!
DeletePS - that dog is definitely a painting🤣
ReplyDeleteIsn't it though? What a darling dog!
DeleteYes indeed. Some of us do love the freaky. We get our freak on. We love a freak show. We often freak out. Sometimes we freak the FUCK out.
ReplyDeleteI love the freaky tall lady.
It makes me incredibly sad that your sight is so limited now. Sight is something we all take for granted each and every moment of our lives until it is threatened and it is one of the greatest, if not THE greatest gift of our lives.
May Bee is a very nice name. I like it. We often call our own May, Maysie. No bee or be about that one. She is ours.
When the first "Miracle Worker" came out, we were little kids, I was so. in love with Helen Keller that I would practice being blind and deaf, going around our house trying to feel the density of air change around objects and walls, trying to "see" objects with my fingers.I will be OK for sure- just that I have wholly depended on eye sight for art, for gardening, for interests of all sorts. Of course- that is how we do. My hearing is still acute and I can still use arms and legs. Lucky that way.
DeleteMay is one of May favorite names of all time, When I take kitty in to be checked -IF whe does not have a human, I think Maybe will be a nice name for her. Though she looks like a SANDRA. "Saundrah"...she is that sort of cat.
Those ceilings are fabulous! Wow. Three houses so close together they could be made one. Ice cream peanut and raspberry? What flavor is the peanut?
ReplyDeleteYour May Bee is definitely not on board with that carrier. Looks a little pissed. We finally named our cat Cat because nothing seemed to fit and she comes to that.
Losing your eyesight is terrible and I wish it wasn't happening to you.
"CAT" , whatever works. I just need to get her in to be checked so this carrier will have to do, It was a cheapo from the Evil Of Bessos. Shame on us! Challenging eye sight or lack of, will be an interesting shitty thing in my old age . I reckon I have about ten to 12 years left if the world doesn't blow up first.
DeleteI am optimistic about the Oxford Street changes. As you know, it's so heavily used by pedestrians, I think making it an entirely pedestrian street might be fabulous. I do wonder where the traffic will go, but supposedly we have less of that now with congestion pricing. We shall see!
ReplyDeleteI hope the cat becomes yours. She seems well on her way!
It would be wise to have a few electric busses allowed on Oxford- it is a long street from Regents to Marble Arch. Traffic continues and seemingly will do so. The streets around Oxford are not built to handle what Oxford can. It will be a mess initially.
DeleteMarlebone, Mayfair, Fitzrovia and Soho will be taking up the increased volume of traffic. You know how narrow those streets are and how the character of those places will be changed, not for the better. UNLESS, of course, the congestion fees increase so much that driving a car is ludicrous, London is so easy to get around using public transport, a car is not needed at all. Electric busses are the thing- the bus system is brilliant.
"Your" cat is a beaut! It seems that someone must be looking for her, but I hope you get to keep [name].
ReplyDeleteThat is quite the project in Italy. You have fancy friends.
We do take our eyesight for granted, I hope yours at least levels off.
MD progressively gets worse, unless there is some science in the works that makes its way to Bellingham and into my face.
DeleteI do have fancy friends- you are one!
It hurts my heart that your sight is going. That has to suck so much. I'd rather be deaf. We're here, we're tired. Apparently the rains this summer made bug populations soar. Some of them made inside and died. Tomorrow will have time spent on cleaning up the little corpses.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful cat, and that dog!!!
losing sight is a big fucking deal but mustn't complain, everything else is still working. You could do art with the bug bodies! Pin them to a board and decorate them with tiny suits. Just a thought- ha ha. It actually could be a thing and you could become famous for it. Someone would buy it for loads of cash and you could take a limo back and forth from Spokane with a driver interested only in your comfort.
DeleteI'm so sorry about London and the eyes. I'm with you -- that would be the worst of the maladies, I think. Non fatal but so frustrating. Amy's space is amazing. And I love your new cat. May Bee is a great name!
ReplyDeleteJust when you think -"finally, I have time to travel!" something breaks and tells you to think again!
DeleteDammmit.
Putting off taking the cat in to see if chipped. I want her to stay with us and be our little girl. She is such a sweetheart.