Circle of life stuff

Twelve years ago last February, we lost my nephew.  He was in his 30's, and he died in his sleep.  His mother never did recover from grieving.  For me, the tears did not come until a month later, when my dog Diamond breathed her last on the vet's table, with me stroking her head at the end.  Then the tears flowed freely.

It seems to be happening in reverse now, as Rubia has again gone missing, and she was failing more before she did.  She's been gone since Monday the 28th of August.  She hadn't been eating, drinking, or using the litter box the last couple of days before that.  Since she came back twice in the most recent yo-yo episodes, I was not quite ready to say she's gone for good, but in my heart I feel that way.  She just slipped away when I was doing a chore and did not return.

Baby Rubia, when I first brought her home (eight years ago).  

Recent snap after she came back the first time, when she seemed to be getting better.

The last photo I took of her, when she was hunkered down on the deck, before she slipped off on Monday morning.  She has not returned.  

There seems to be little logic in how long a pet will live, especially if you rescued them.  Rubia was born in a shed and lost her mother to a speeding car.  The Prisoner is four years older than Rubia was, and began life in a rural home where his pregnant mama was "dropped by the side of a road".  Beyond that, there are many guesses one might make about  everything from whether a cat is indoor/outdoor, to the vaccinations, to sometimes surgeries, to turning your back on them to unload the dishwasher.

If she has, as my mom used to say "crawled off into the bushes to expire," I have to go back to what I said to my sister in law when she lost her son (the nephew mentioned above), "a life does not have to be long to be meaningful".  

Saturday evening, flipping through the TV channels, I came across the movie Steel Magnolias.  Y'all know that's a multi-hanky movie, right?  That's when the tears started to threaten.  Well, I guess it proves the eyes are functioning and connected to the emotions, even the eye that had the cataract removed.

Sunday before Labor Day I shared the news of her departure with the family.  My house has shrunk to a one-cat household again.  The Prisoner seems plaintive with his meows, as though he, too, questions her absence.

I maintain that Rubia lived a good life and that she added to mine, even when I called her a nuisance.  

Life is Good.  Spark on!

Labor Day weekend cookout

We must acknowledge the changing of the seasons, even before the weather confirms it.  I was taking one day at a time over Friday (by-passed the trainer session), then Saturday (by-passed the work-retiree reunion)... but woke Sunday morning clear headed at last!

So I put together the Greek salad (with a side trip to the grocery to get a new red onion because the one I bought last week turned out to have a "problem" when I cut it open).  And went to a late afternoon into the evening gather with the "flock" (birds), "pack" (dog), and family (humans).

Lacey's folks got there before I did for a change, and they kept Carl out in the back yard long enough for me to safely bring the salad in and get up the stairs before the usual enthusiastic canine greeting.  

Carl was ecstatically happy to have all the attention, of course.

The birds came out and we whistled back and forth through their cage bars.  Now, one must understand, that normally the birds under Lacey's and her folks' care have the run (or flight, as the case may be) of the house at least parts of the day.  But being as the doors were opening and closing and the canine was loose, we limited the conversation to birds in their cages, being hung in the kitchen or taken out onto the deck.  In the end, out on the deck, I got a call and response going with Scout or Kiwi (I honestly cannot tell the cockatiels apart).

Ollie, the lineated parrot, is younger and a bit more shy about voicing his songs.  He is besotted with Lacey's mom.

Carl had a grand old time barking at the squirrel that vexes him by eating the fruit on the trees in the yard.

Nobody went home hungry and there was plenty of conversation time. We got stories of childhood mischiefs (from the older generation as well as the younger) and how we scared ourselves into being wiser as we aged, and managed to survive things like night-time adventures on the high school field with flashlights, or bonfires in the woods.  We got imaginations and Google searches related to M&M's and their manufacture, as well as quirky opinions about sorting M&M's by color and the proper order of consumption.  In short, it was a light-hearted and happy family gather.

The M&M's conversation was started by a local craft beer that tastes like Skittles candy, by the way... a single can was split four ways for opinions about the brew.

The grillmaster experimented with a new burger mix, and also the classic Fairbury brand hot dogs, in "go big red".

After an appropriate digestion period, the "pup cups" came out.  Carl got a special one, of course, but we humans got ours... strawberry short cakes with both ice cream and whipped cream, and it was awesome.  Donna (Lacey's mom) had been assigned dessert, and she always does a great job.

To top off the evening, I drove home in the gathering dusk and felt wonderful because I could 👀see  the bicyclists riding on the path beside the road, and I was not blinded by oncoming headlights.

Anybody still waiting to get cataract surgery?  Like all my friends here, I am a definite fan!

Wishing a Happy Labor/Labour Day to all!

Life is good.  Spark on!

September already?

 

Rabbit day already again?  Yep, the first of a new month.  I have a few straggly leftover photos as followup to earlier blogs.

Remember the tree trimmers that came a few blogs back?  Here's what they left in the yard across the street!  Somebody has firewood to burn for the Winter!

The sunflowers continue to be sunny, so another photo of them is kind of repetitive.  But they are so happy faced that I keep taking their picture!

Wednesday seemed a bit on the hazy side to me, probably the wildfires in Canada affecting us all the way down here.

The last of the "seasonably warm" days, before the heat has turned up again were our mid-week.  The air quality showed as "moderate", not "good", and it affected me somewhat.

My friend who paddled under the full moon Tuesday night snapped a couple of photos of me on the water, and I liked this one, paddling toward the rising moon which looks so small in the photo.  But it captures the magic of the evening, I think.

Wednesday afternoon had a warm walk with the kid sis.  When we miss a week, we really do miss it!  My upper body was sore all day Wednesday, but my legs still worked for the walk.  So did the sweat glands.

Thursday morning... YUCK!  Woke with a start realizing I was wanting to rub my eye.  Stopped myself.  Headache and congestion were present and dry mouth.  I took my morning meds plus an Advil, and went back to bed.  Got up about 10, and improved over the course of the day.  Naturally a bit worried about my weekend lineup of activities!

I was feeling enough better by 1:30 p.m. to cook up a pot of chili.  I needed to use up onions, tomatoes and mushrooms, and the grocery store had ground beef on sale this week.  It was nummy!  So, feeling somewhat better, for sure.

Also of note is that the Air Quality warning ended at noonish, so perhaps that was a player in this drama, too.

Friday morning started early, as I woke before 4 a.m. with stuffiness again.  I started to drain and decided to call off the shifted workout (was normally on Thursday, shitted to Friday).  

The lawn guys had put fertilizer and weed killer down on Thursday and left a note to "water ASAP", so guess what I'm doing Friday morning instead of working out?  Yeah, the hose-pulling workout.  Speaking of watering... our town is done with the "voluntary water restrictions", so I don't have to feel guilty about watering.  Even though I still do (feel guilty) because, well, grass and weeds are not crops.

Life is good.  Spark on!

Seasons change so quickly of late.

 

This nest has served its purpose, and the birds have all flown.

One ankle was being stubborn this morning, but it warmed up during my workout with the trainer.

Kayak under the (almost) full moon was Tuesday evening.  

The moon was to rise at 7:46 p.m., and the sun to set at 8:04 p.m.  We paddled West first, and watched the sunset before we even noticed the pale moon rising.

It was warm but not hot, a cooling off of a summer evening.  The lake water was cool but not cold when it dripped on my legs or arms from the paddle.  The black flies were biting.  I had put on bug spray but not under my socks and when I took off my socks and shoes to get out on the water... guess where the flies decided to feast?

There is something so peaceful about getting out in a Summer evening, as the season is nearing its end.  I've always loved the late Summer days.

The ducks were in some cases as precise as the Blue Angels that flew in the air show last weekend.  And in others a little more ragged.  But they didn't make as much noise at the jets!

We paddled back to the East to watch the moon rising.  

I snapped my friend Geri in her kayak. 

It is a blue super moon, and the little phone photos do not do it justice... it looked huge to the naked eye.  

I caught a couple walking over the pedestrian bridge, capturing the reflection of moonlight on the water, too.

Floating under the bridge, this is not the best shot, but I kind of liked the rail spindle splitting the moon.

As it got darker, the moon got more orange, and eventually we paddled back to shore and walked back to our cars and proceeded home.  When I got home, I took one last shot of the moon.  Ahhhhh!

Life is good.

Spark on!

Two cats and interactions

 

The Prisoner, on one of his trips inside Saturday morning, went over and sniffed at Rubia, who was lying prone.  Rubia did not even hiss at him.

Prisoner backed out from that section of the living room floor, and retreated to "his" chair.  I was sitting in it at the time and he came and looked up at me, as if to ask what was going on.

Then he climbed up and took over the chair.

I had decided to wear the eye guard overnight Friday as I've been getting a bit paranoid about the possibility of rubbing the operated on eye in the night.  Friday was one of those "vision was a bit wonky" days.  It's as though my brain decided it didn't WANT to see and was fuzzing things up.

So I taped on the eye guard and went to bed.  When I got up Saturday morning, I was all stuffy and drippy and a bit headachy... so I ticked through the "what did I eat and drink on Friday" list and determined before taking any drugs I should hydrate and have my first mug of coffee.  Naturally, things got better with the headache thing, and the nose proceeded to drain, too.  See?  Weather front comes through... the body reacts this way.

With all the busy-ness coming up in the next fortnight, and the body doing its thing, I decided that Saturday needed to be a quiet day.  I fired up Disney+ and began watching "The Book of Boba Fett", a series I had missed because I had not been subscribed when it came out.  

My son discovered the world of Star Wars beyond the first three movies before I did, in books.  He read many of the novels that were carefully controlled by George Lucas, so as to maintain consistency of the story line.  Boba Fett was once of my son's favorite characters.

Sunday passed quietly, too, with Rubia remaining in her under-couch den all day long.  Monday morning, she came out, enticed by the offer of fresh water.

Fresh water?  Yes, please.  But she only drank a little bit.  

Then she asked to go out on the deck.  The Prisoner kept a watchful eye while she hunkered down.

She was offered more water out on the deck, and again, just took a little.

Canned food was offered, but she only took a bite or two before leaving the rest behind.

I left her out on the deck while I puttered around the house doing minor things (unload the dishwasher, load in a few newly used items, check the litter box, etc.) and next check, she was gone from the deck.  I checked under the deck (which would be a good hiding place/den) but not there, either.  Who knows where in the overgrown yard she might be?  I'm probably in for another stretch of asking her "brother" where she is.

Sigh.

But Life is Good, even in its cycles.  Spark on!

It's FRIDAY!

Kilroy was here, sunflower edition!  This flower is peeking over the privacy fence, and shining in the morning sun.

Our beastly heat streak is supposed to break today, with a predicted high of only 95℉.  After a couple of readings in the 105℉ range earlier in the week, I'll take it!

There's a big old full moon coming up next week, on the 30th.  It's a blue moon (second full moon in a calendar month), and a super moon (a moon within 10% of its closest position to the earth, which makes it seem about 17% bigger than a normal full moon).  I had to go look that "super moon" term up, because while I had the sense of "it looks bigger" I didn't remember the why it does (it's closer).  

Why is that significant, one might ask?  Because I haven't been kayaking lately!  My local kayak rental place is sponsoring a "Full Moon Paddle" the evening of the 29th of August, a day before that Blue Super Moon.  My friend Geri and I agreed this morning that we need to go, so I'm all signed up, and thus begins a couple of busy weeks.

In those couple of weeks I have the usual two trainer sessions a week, plus two financial planning activities, one a breakfast presentation, the other a one on one with my advisor.  Tucked between the two will be my next eye appointment, when it is hoped I get a new prescription for glasses.

Preceding the business appointments, there are social events.  Labor Day weekend is coming up.  A former co-worker who now lives in California is coming to town and they have organized a luncheon of the collective group of retirees so we can all see her (and each other).  And "The kids" are planning to host a cookout so all the grandparents can come spoil Carl.

I predict that by mid-September I'll be ready to collapse in a heap from all that peopling!

Rubia concurs.  Oh, speaking of good news and people, my daughter in law's allergist says she might have outgrown her allergy to cats.  Not that she's going to be nuzzling them in the near future, but she might cautiously start approaching and seeing how safe she is.  She was epi-pen allergic to them in younger years.

Life is good.

Spark on!

Dogs sweat through their tongues...

 

Carl at the dog bar Tuesday evening.  It was still over 100℉, maybe down to 101 from our high of 103 when we got there.  Carl proceeded to decorate all over the outside part of the bar before they closed the garage door to try to keep it at least a little cool with the fans in the big barn-like area.

We settled in at a tall table with drinks, most of the dogs were somewhat lethargic.  They feel the heat, too.  You can see from the floor where Carl's sweat has dropped from his tongue onto the floor.

But it was WAY too hot to be out in the sun at the dog parks, so... alternative.  From time to time the pups would venture out from their people and play for a brief time, but then they would retreat back under their various tables, as Carl has done, here.

Wednesday's sister walk has already been canceled due to the excessive heat, and the people whose jobs are outside?  Are out early today.  A tree service is taking down a tree across the street to the South, and they showed up at 7 a.m. to set up and get done before the heat sets in.

This huge crane held on to the tree that's started to be downed to the ground in the above photo.  Turns out that particular "trunk" is only a small section of the whole.

I was blocked into my home by the various trucks and auxiliary equipment while they worked.  They finished off that one tree, then took out another one, across the street to the West.

We tied the local high temperature record on Tuesday.  

I finished season 3 of The Mandalorian Wednesday afternoon.  What's next, I ask?

After the tree guys left, I went and got groceries.  It's still hot.  You don't have to do anything to sweat, just step out the door!

When I pulled back in the driveway, I noticed the sunflowers are blooming in the back yard.  They are tall enough to see over the 6 foot privacy fence! 

See?  They tower over little 5' 3" me!

Sunflowers are so cheerful in the sunshine, and they kind of "go with" the hot weather, don't they?

Life is good.

Spark on!