Found Dog!

The doorbell just rang.  It was Amy and her family with KOBE!  That little dog had gotten as far as Chapin Park where a good lady picked her up yesterday.  She took her to the vet and then posted on Craig's List which Amy and Alicia decided to check one more time before they went to bed.  They saw the post, called the lady and went right over to pick her up.  Then they came over here to share the good news.  I am SO grateful that she's been found.  Go hug your own dog again and be sure she's chipped, ID-ed and collared.  Glory BE!!!!!

Lost Dog

Amy and her family left their dog, Kobe, in our care while they spent the first few days of the new year at the Coast.  Around noon on New Year's Eve, she escaped from our backyard and went on a journey of her own making.  We began the search.  The neighbors alerted all the vets in the area and I got into touch with Dog Services of Clackamas County.  Pat and the neighbors spent hours searching for her and talking to everyone they ran into. 

Kobe is a 13 year old Shiba inu.  She looks like a small Akita dog and she resembles a little caramel colored fox.  Even though she's old, she has a cute puppy look about her.  She is skittish around crowds and people and does not obey the "Kobe, come!" command very well.  She is throwing her coat so she looks a little tattered if she isn't brushed often.  She is a beloved pet and has plenty of life left in her.

This story lacks a happy ending.  As of today, there has been not a single sign or clue about her whereabouts. We can only hope that some nice dog lover coaxed her into their care and that she is warm and safe with another family.  And we advise all our friends and relatives to make sure your pet has a chip, a collar and and an ID tag.  Give your pet an extra hug tonight in Kobe's name. 

The Candle War

The Filter Queen man started it.  He visits our house once or twice a year and always causes some kind of uproar.  Last time he was here, he talked Pat into setting our air cleaner on top of the dresser in our bedroom so that it can "circulate better."  Well, could be, but it sure adds nothing to the already questionable decor in that room.  I went along with it until some space opened up in that room and I relegated it to a corner where it can do its thing and not look so odd. That's just a small example of the domestic disturbances caused by this man who services are overly expensive vacuum cleaner.

This visit is what caused the all out war.  He was here just a few days ago when, fortunately, I had an appointment and couldn't be here.  I'm always glad to be gone when he's here because he is a talkative sort who easily engages Pat and they march around the house talking excitedly and waving their arms as if to produce dust and air currents that they can "test" with the vacuum in strange ways that only the two of them understand.

The issue this time concerns candles. Pat smugly reported to me when I got home that we will no longer burn candles in our home.  They create too much pollution.  After all, do you realize what they are made of?  They are made from really gross smudge found only in China and then somehow vanilla-ized and sent to Target where we buy them by the basket loads.
 "Just look above the microwave, Terry.  See all that soot that makes the ceiling look like the Sistine Chapel before they stopped burning incense in there?"
"So what?" I replied.  "It's easy to clean."  He then silently and ever so accusingly ran his forefinger over the Filter Queen filter recently removed from our vacuum cleaner.  "See that? THAT'S FROM CANDLES," he said as he waved his sooty finger in front of my face.

A heated discussion followed with me bringing up such subjects as wood burning fireplaces and frequent drives up and down I-5 and ended with me dramatically throwing my favorite wicker wicked candle into the trash.  (Don't worry; I retrieved it as soon as he left the room.) Each of us turned on our heels and stomped off in opposite directions and so began a nasty little deep freeze between us.

The war began to show promise of ending when I met with my knitting group (the Knitwits) for our annual Christmas potluck and gift exchange.  I shared my domestic disturbance with them after two people opened candles as part of their gifts.  They were as offended as I was and quickly offered to come over for a candlelight vigil.

That didn't happen but I did do some research and found out that it really is far wiser to burn only soy-based candles or the kind that run on batteries but somehow still smell nice.  The war is over and the candles of Christmas are saved in our household.

It's Never Too Early

I love Christmas.  I love all the commercialism from the 20th time I hear "Jingle Bells" to the appearance of even the smallest string of crooked lights that seems just as full of holiday spirit as the biggest display of lights in the neighborhood. I really like Christmas cards and I buy an extra box or two each year just because I can't resist the scene or the sentiment. I get funny about magazines at the grocery store.  I like to pretend the pictures of the elegant holiday tables would be easy to replicate in my own home and that the plates of cleverly frosted and decorated cookies would be artfully sitting on end tables in my house. Our tree (which always goes up the day after Thanksgiving) would look like the fancy ones at Al's Nursery with their themed ornaments and matching colors. Or maybe it could be like the ones done up by the Nordstrom ladies with all the handmade-looking decorations.  The gift packages under it would be wrapped in just the right shade of red or green paper and feature a candy cane tucked into each fluffy bow.  Tasteful Christmas music will float around the room while a warm fire crackles invitingly.

It's a pleasure to listen to people in the mall talk about what they might get for Eugene or Alice. Going past Bath and Body Works with its great sale causes me to stop in and buy a bagful of good smelling foam for the bathroom sinks.  And I never forget to stop by See's for a sample of whatever candy they're handing out that day.  Even if it's chocolate covered cherries which I can't stand, they taste different, better at this time of the year.  Maybe they cut way down on the amount of sugar they use in the syrup for Christmas. The seasonal books at Barnes and Noble are a pleasure to handle and smile over even though I won't buy a one of them since they are nearly unreadable and not suited for reading except for the few holiday weeks in December.  Who wants to read a tale about "Secret Santa Surprises" in January?

I still spend a day or two or even three making Christmas cookies - sugar cookies, gingerbread men and maybe biscotti. Sometimes I even throw a cookie decorating party for my family members who attend somewhat reluctantly except for my grandchildren who are THRILLED to be here licking big wads of frosting off their fingers and yelling about who's going to "win."

Christmas starts around Thanksgiving time for me.  I have my lists ready and the calendar starts to fill up before we eat turkey.  I don't mind one bit how early Christmas shows up in the stores.  It only extends the joy of the season for me.  I confess, however, that it was a little weird to be looking at light displays in Costco wearing shorts and flipflops in August.  I decided to skip those aisles until after Halloween. I won't get tired of them until the 50% off signs disappear in January.

 

Halloween Costume

I've been getting ready for Halloween all year.  I decided in January to "go as" a young person for the October holiday.  First thing I did was join Weight Watchers.  I've lost 26 pounds.  Then I decided to keep exercising so I go to my trainer once a week, do cardio at my little gym once a week, get myself down to Curves two or three times a week and try to get in a bike ride or two.  I'm down a size in jeans and my socks aren't so tight anymore.

Next, I went hardcore and scheduled a facial complete with microderm abrasion.  An hour and a half and a cool hundred dollars later, my face felt clean and tingly and had a youthful shine going.  I liked that look but didn't like spending that much money so I made an appointment with a dermatologist.  He looked over every square inch of my old puckered skin for signs of scary things that might indicate the C word.  All is well in that area, but what about the various tag warts and scratchy patches and dark spots here and there and mostly everywhere?  He got out the magic spray can and applied stingy cold spray to many places on my back and several spots on my face.  He said that these spots would blacken up and then drop off altogether in a week or two. The results would approximate the microderm abrasion treatment but would be paid for by insurance.  He even sprayed some bonus spots on my hand just to see if I'd like the results.  He was a friendly, understanding young man and I plan to see him again.

All through the months I have studied what my pre-teen grand girl wears and looked around in the mall at other younger aged people to see what they wear.  There's a pretty even split between looking like you're about to go berry picking, work out, or sell your body on the street.  I opted for a combination of all three and bought myself some pants that look like leggings but were a lot less expensive because I bought them at K-Mart.  Then I got myself some trick Nike running shoes that look like they were dipped in rainbow paint.  They produced enthusiastic comments at my gym but gave me blisters immediately.  Next, I went to Fred Meyer and got some colorful long sleeved, fairly well made t-shirts and hope to keep them free of those tiny stomach holes at least through fall.  So my attire indicates that I may be on my way to the gym but I don't have time or interest in earning any money on the street corner.

Halloween is tomorrow.  I'm ready to appear as a young person in my fake leggings (my stomach does pooch out a little); my horizontally striped t-shirt (my upper arms, I admit, are still flappy), and my owl socks.  I'll skip the Nikes because I'm too afraid that I might get those painful blisters again.  I'll just shuffle to the door to greet the trick-or-treaters in my slippers that are now too big.

I don't look a day over 65.

And Speaking of Words . . .

there are a few of them that I'm getting mighty tired of.  One is awesome.  It's lost its punch and is used to describe everything from the dog's poop in the park to the new OPI fingernail polish color.  In other words, this descriptor is really totally useless other than to let the listener know that the speaker finds something likeable.

Another lame word is amazing, the other attempt to convey, well, awesomeness.  It's amazing how many people use this word to convey how awesome they think skateboarding is. (See what's happening here?)

And then there's the ubiquitous use of like.  Even people older than 17 are using this word to sort of suggest that they're saying something is kind of real as in: "We were, like, sick of going to the zoo."
So are they just approaching a state of being sick of going to the zoo or are they in fact and in reality sick of going to the zoo?  It's as if people are afraid to describe their own reality.

And how about facebook?  This has become a lifestyle of dubious value.  Why in the world do people post the ugly reality of their lives for all the world to see?  What's more curious is that they don't even use the word like to do so.  facebook lives suddenly become amazingly real and available for anyone to view and judge.  What happened to the reality of pride and privacy?

You get extra credit if you find the most uses of irony in this blog post.

Wildwords

My friend Sarah and I are working on a writing project she calls "Words of Wisdom."  It's a fun writing game in which we send each other a word a week for the other person to respond to in any way she wants.  Our goal is to keep this up for a year's time then Sarah wants to put them together in a book.  She's not sure about the look or format of the book yet. That's okay.  Books have a really long gestation period.

She's figured out that all the words I'm sending to her are somehow related to nature.  And I might have my own book idea growing.  I have a working title:  wildwords. I have a vision to share with my graphic artist. And I'm working on the purpose of the book.  This is a very hazy part of the process for now but I know that given time, I will figure this out if the book is to come to fruition.

Here a couple of wildwords for your enjoyment:

waterfall - natural spilling of water from one level of terrain to another causing hiker bliss.

tree - wooden earth angel with green feathers and wings.

I think I'll continue to share the words once in a while in this space.  They are so much fun to work with and I would be so happy if someone else finds them fun. Can't you just see the artwork that could go with these words?????