Boo!

We had a memorable Halloween this year.  Our neighborhood is the Go-To choice for hundreds upon hundreds of children every year.  Last year was our first Halloween here and we ran out of candy early.  So this year, I

bought 22 giant bags of candy to be ready.  That's A LOT OF CANDY!!!!!

But what made Halloween even better was Rudder.  He wore an actual costume this year.

Like it?

Here's another view:

He was so proud and happy.  We had him out on his pillow on the front porch with us, and all the children (hundreds, maybe even a thousand) loved on him and admired his costume and petted him.  At one point I thought he might be getting cold and tried to move him inside, but he gave me THAT look.  

My Bacon Dog!  (maple kind)  PS:  We ran out of candy the first hour.  Next year I guess it'll be 44 bags.  

Oh No!

Every once in a while, I have to kidnap D.  (That's the "Oh No" part of this.)  When he has some free time, which is seldom, I whisk him away.  Yesterday was one of those days.  D loves planning and schedules, so it's a real stretch for him to just go with the flow, not knowing where we're going or how long we'll be gone, etc.  I do tell him what to wear...


Yesterday was so beautiful, I took my water-loving D to

East Fork Lake, to swim.  It was absolutely heavenly.  Nice beach.  Not too crowded.  I went for a walk while he swam, and then sat in the shade of the shelter, listening to some really soft pretty Spanish being spoken by the women at the next table.


Here's D walking back to the shelter.

When we left there we went to Renaissance, a lawn and garden ornament shop he knew about in Oakley.  Got a little bubbly fountain for our deck.  Fun!!!


Although D was still algae-covered, our next stop was  

Cumin, an amazing restaurant on Erie Avenue.  From the 

cool New York lighting, to the

Sous-Vide halibut, to D's

Macaroon dessert, the meal was fantastic.  All together a successful kidnapping.  We felt as if we were on vacation!!!!!

Rudder Budder Peanut Butter

Wednesday last, Rudder got his staples taken out.  2 and a half weeks after having major lung surgery (open chest surgery).  He's 13 1/2.  He had to wear a shirt after surgery to keep the wound clean and to keep him from licking.  Never once did he try to lick the wound; never once did he scratch; never once did he have to wear the hated cone.

We knew he'd be better when several things happened.  


When he could climb the steps without falling down.  That happened.


When he would once again try to get the cake mix out of the pantry.  That happened.


And most recently, we knew he was well, when he finally "brought" again...his beloved

All's well with Rudder!!!!!

Back at it

A year and a half, that's how long it's been since I've made one of my Crazy Pillows.  Just before we moved to Kentucky would have been the last one.  


Whenever I'm working on one, I have the next one in my brain and kind of laid out, so I can be thinking about it too.  So a year and a half ago, I had pulled fabric and drawn a diagram.


Finally--in the last couple of days--I've begun work on it.  And this one is a challenge.  I'm taking a Shaker Tree of Life that I embroidered

and adding some Swedish material that I LOVE, which I also embroidered

And am putting those two together with some costly silk that I'm in my madness trying to pleat.  

This is where you tell me that it's going to be okay...that I should persevere...


The next Crazy Pillow?  It's using some antique French laundry tape that has the initials B H on it, so guess who it's for?!?!?!?!  Yip...Bethie!  It could be for Ben, but I'm not sure he'd appreciate a Crazy Pillow with antique French laundry tape.  (might be wrong).

Positive/Negative

As I returned from running errands this morning, it was a pleasure to walk into a "normal" house!  


I could hear D practicing his bassoon upstairs and knew that M was downstairs in his pastel studio.  The dog was sleeping in the living  room, although his purple shirt was not "normal".  After major open chest surgery, he is wearing D's shirts to protect the wound and keep it clean and free from licking aspirations.  (This dog is amazing.  There was only one day where his spirit flagged, and that was just the pain and panic.  Otherwise, he has day by day, every morning, tackled the fresh day with vigor and a will to be the Rudder we all love.)  


Our house guests are gone.  The partying has stopped and mostly everything has been put away.  Mostly.  


The Choir Games are over for us.  


We still need to get M's car back, but for the most part, things are settling into place again.  Our house looks lovely.  There's a spaciousness to the spirit of it.  Seems funny to talk of a house having a spirit, but ours does.  It's like a big airy hug.  S's house has a spirit too; it feels clean and right (you know, like "renew a right spirit within me").  


That having all been said, Tuesday is my day to clean the kitchen from top to bottom and boy am I all over that!  See ya!


Here are pix of post op Rudder!!!

Happy Father's Day

So, as many of you know, my husband, D, is a psychiatrist.  For various reasons, he spends a day a week in service to a Case Management Agency, working with the mentally ill who are homeless or just plain poor.


He told a neat Father's Day story to me this morning.


A young schizophrenic man came to him several months ago, complaining of voices.  After talking with him, D gave him a shot that lasts a month, that is a really good medication for schizophrenics.  


The other day, the young man came in for a followup.  Doc!  The shot worked! I hadn't told you but I had two voices in my head talking against each other, and the only way I could make it work was to make a deal with them.  If I walked constantly from sunrise to sunset, they would be quiet.  And they were.  


After I took the shot, one voice stopped altogether.  The other one was still there, but after about a week, it stopped too.  I went home and had an amazing sleep.


The next morning I called up my girlfriend.  And now I'm going to be a father.


D's response:  Well!   Happy Father's Day!


(The case managers were all like:  oh no a new little baby schizophrenic!)


The young man was so happy that D congratulated him and was happy for him.


I have some amazing fathers in my life right now:  A and Sc and of course my beloved D.  So Happy Father's day to each of you.

Dah boyz

Yesterday I boy-sat...for Dan and Ben.


We went to

for lunch.


and games:

Then we came home and




Danny showed me his new horn.  Wow!

And Ben got out his horn too:

Then, while Danny played me his Gavotte (very well, I might add), Ben practiced his color guard routine.

My morning...

This was my morning...

Amish brown sugar pie, and working on making my own roman shades for the dining room.


The shades have been in progress for a loooooooooooooooooong time; it's what I think about at 3 a.m. when I wake up and can't sleep.  


But today, I

got the rings sewn on and

stapled the batten in place 


AND

got them hung.  Now all I have to do is adjust the bottoms so they look pretty.  


By the way, the color of a chicken's ears will tell you the color of their eggs.  Amen.

Among others

Things I love:


Watching grandkids play base/softball


Laughing with my daughter


Hearing that AJ is walking

Sushi at Amarin


My new friend

Yarn for D's sweater

and 


ta da da tahhhhhhhhhhh


MATILDA

Look, Ma

It was dead, certainly dead.  Even before coffee, in the dawn light, I could see it was dead.  Cute, though.  The good news is that it was not in my bed.  Whichever cat was the trophy-bringer stopped outside our bedroom door.  


I left it for David to find.  :-)


Came downstairs to brew coffee and put together a lunch for him.


The dog was out.  


Not in his crate.


Which automatically means "check the breakfast room rug."


And sure enough.  That one I didn't leave for David.


Here's a picture of the poop perp... 

Fun and Games with the Pets...

Driving

I'm not quite sure what I'm witnessing, but my driving seems to fit my personality on certain days.


Like today.  I was driving to the Library to return some books and my driving was like the Bobbsey Twins.  I was just driving along, noticing how some folks had planted their gardens, and looking at the newly painted lines on the Holmes football field, and my neighbor's coral bells that are so huge and checking out the color of the Licking river and looking for a J because I'd decided to play the alphabet game on the way home and oh yeah there's a stop sign.  I mean ding.y.


Some days I'm honey badger, not giving a shit about anyone else on the road or what they're doing.  Honey badger don't care.  Honey badger just floors it.


And then there are days when I'm the perfect driver, courteous, but authoritative; obeying all the signals; wearing my seat belt (ahem); signalling lane changes, you know:  teutonic.


The best part of driving in Covington is getting out of my driveway.  It's a kind of harbinger as to how the rest of the drive will go.  There's a tree sticking out in our driveway and about the time you see the front of the house, you gotta hang a left or you hit the tree.  Honey badger days I'm outta there with no problems.  I even do it fast.  Today I was weaving all over the driveway.  My neighbors across the street were rolling on the floor, I'm sure.


I never know which driver personality I'll have on any given day but I think like honey badger best.

Vivaldi and stars

So, there's this piece.

As you can see, it's been around for a while, and played for a while, and had coffee cups resting on it for a .... no wait....


And 


there's a young man in our orchestra who is playing principal second violin.  He's maybe 18.  Out of high school.  Working a job that requires him to wear a special t-shirt (couldn't read it; didn't want to pry).  Plays up a storm, is musical.  


We're working on this piece (see above).  


Only...


There's this part

sciolte...haven't looked it up...only know it's played on three strings and it's fast....so


here's the deal


I have to approach it the way you do when you're looking at the stars and want to see something specific and you have to look to the side to see it?


It's kind of that way...You have to not think about it...just set the flat part of the bow on the strings and feel it....


And that set me to thinking beyond the stars thing and the Vivaldi thing.  There are more things in our lives that are like that.


Relationships that don't bear close scrutiny or they lose their brilliance.


Times with God when we want that larger view and no thinking.


Belief in our country's system of checks and balances.


My bank account.  hahaha.

Amnesia

So, D works one day a week with the homeless and mentally ill who are poor.  


The other day, he met C.  When C was a boy he was beaten up by a gang and suffered amnesia.  Daddy was an alcoholic and Mama was working to support everyone.  No one noticed much when C. didn't make it home at night.  And sometimes on those nights he'd get beaten up again.  The kids on the school bus would make him get off before his stop, knowing that he'd not be able to find his way home.


Here's the good news:  D was the first person to ever ask C about his situation.  C is 57 and had never ever talked to anyone about why he never goes out, and what he does all day and WHY.  No one ever asked him...in all those years. 


C cried and cried with D, he was so grateful to be able to talk about it.


C stays inside and prays all day.  He says he's not lonely because he's always with his Father.  He wants to move away from this city to another where he thinks he'll be treated better.  This too he had never told anyone.


If he doesn't move, he'll be back to talk with D some more.  And that's Good News too.  

My morning with Rudder

Rudder and I spent the morning together.  First I fed him:

This may look just like a baggie with a label.  But, in a household where we all want to take care of Rudder, it avoids his getting fed three times (and getting 3 doses of meds).  He does have that orphan doggie look down pat!!!!!

Then he went for a walk.

After his walk, he gets

These may seem like little things to you, but they are his entire raison d'etre!

Then we practiced...that is, I practiced while Rudder rested from the walk and the eating.

Then we had to go out...

Only we forget a lot why it is we go out....

So we...

come in again.

Then I make lunch, which is his favorite thing because he can do his vacuum cleaner routine on the floor...very motivating!

And then because this was all so exhausting, we

Isn't he the best?!!?!?!?!!

Springtime in the Rockies, ooops, no: in Kentucky

The flowers and the Miso-roasted Salmon with asparagus and (suppposed to be) cippolini onions.  People come to our house and almost always ask:  Do you eat like this every night?

And the answer is YES!!!!

Part of the richness of our lives.


Right now we're enjoying Green Bean Delivery!  So fresh, so healthy.  D has even decided he likes carrots.

My cuz

My cuz Katherine came by last week and brought her friend Pat with her.  They were on their way to an artists' workshop at Kanuga in North Carolina.  I'm surprised the house didn't go up in smoke!  Those girls are live wires and they know how to talk and listen and have a good time!  Maybe it's because of their artwork.


Here's the painting I own of Katherine's:

I had to take this picture at an angle because of the glare from the window behind my desk.  She says she's evolved from this; M owns a more recent painting of hers with a patterned background that is stunningly orange behind foliage.


Pat's work is very different.  I only have some of her note cards and I picked out 4:

I especially love the upper left one.  The colors are more vibrant than here.


So, Pat and Katherine, thank you for stopping by and blowing fresh wind through our place!  Hope your own spirits were refreshed at Kanuga!  


Here's the linkage for both of them:  Sisters of the Brush