Some Observations

So with the wind chill, it felt like 37 degrees this morning. And the wind is blowing again.  The girls decided 6am was a good time to get up and go out, even though it was dark and I was not happy about it but they were insistent. Something about seeing sunrise at the beach. Totally worthwhile.

Anyhoo, I wanted to give a shout out to my friend, Sue, this morning. Check out her frankenstein foot and these are her guard cats, worried about mommy.

Somebody give this girl a pedicure!

Well, yesterday I made the trek to the big city and, having tried the Publix (blech) and being all done with the local Piggly Wiggly, I tried Winn Dixie. Oh yeeeaaaaahhhh, that what I'm talking about. It is fab-u-lous! Lots of organic fresh produce, whole wheat pastas, chicken that hasn't been tortured, my fave yogurt, you get the picture.  So, as usual I had my green bags with me and as usual I get a comment from the cashier. "You must be from Canada."  I do an interior eye roll and say no but I am trying to swear off plastic, like it's bad for the planet? Get it? I may as well have two heads. So get this: my credit card won't swipe so the cashier grabs a couple of plastic bags, puts my credit card in one and swipes it through and it works.  Then, he stuffs the two plastic bags in the trash can. Yes, you heard me. He totally cancelled out my two green bags. I couldn't help it. I said don't throw those away! He (I gesture to the biker with the scraggly white beard next in line) won't mind if you use those bags. . . unless he brought his own.  Biker dude won't make eye contact and cashier looks at me like what planet did you say you were from? oh well  As my pal Sarah reminds me, Keep Calm and Carry On.

Oh, best billboard spotted on the way home. It was aimed at discouraging drunk driving.
It is a child in the back seat holding a sign that says:

LET'S GET ICE CREAM BEFORE YOU PARALYZE US.

I swear I am not making this up.

So, when I was at Joann's Fabrics the other day getting some odds and ends, I picked up this pink sari fabric from the remnants bin. I couldn't resist the color and feel of it. Boy, was that ever a mistake. This stuff is so hard to work with! It is slippery, it is impossible to cut, what a pain. No wonder the saris you see on women are so voluminous. It's too hard to cut or sew the fabric! I bought a blazer at the Goodwill for it's gold button. So, here is the little bag I made from it and I'm happy enough with it. Not good enough to give away so I'll keep it for myself. Unless one of you could use it?

After days of high winds and pounding surf, here is what sunrise looks like today. Sublime.

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So, first of all, I have to say that the Piggly Wiggly has some pretty gross looking stuff in their meat section. I do not recognize a good half of what's there and I tend to avert my gaze when I walk by.  Ewwww.  Well, the girls haven't had a good marrow bone since we left Maine so I asked the butcher if they had any. She said, "Ah gotta tibia" and did that yay big gesture with her hands that made it about 3 feet long. I said well can you cut it up. She said sure and came out with a HUGE bag. I looked at it when I got home. There are six ginormous slabs of fat and purplish meat surrounding bone. Talk about gross. Sophie, however, is in doggie heaven.

My friend, Sue, goes under the knife this morning at Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine. She'll be non-weight bearing for six weeks! Sending lots and lots of love and positive energy her way!

this and that

Not too much to report today. We started the day with our usual walk and it was light when we were almost back to our door. Another armadillo. Rooting around. The girls and I stopped and watched for a bit. They had no desire to go after this weird armored creature. So prehistoric looking. Suddenly, it looked up right at us and, I swear I am not making this up, CHARGED!  The three of us ran for it. I am not kidding. We ran the rest of the way home, and slammed the door behind us. I never looked back.  (Now, when I say "charged", it's not like it was moving at the speed of light or anything but still . . . )

I went to aerobics in the hood and that was fun as always. Cheryl, who teaches it is great and doesn't charge a dime. Amazing. She's got some good music too.

The wind has been howling for two days now and the surf is enormous but it is a sunny day and warm out of the wind.

I continue to spend way too much time on line trying to find my nephew Josh some decent affordable flights so he can come for a visit on Spring Break and go to Guatemala as well. Not an easy task as no one ever comes here, I guess. I told you the motto: If it feels like you're in the middle of nowhere, it's because you are.  (That just cracks me up every time!)  Hello, though, maybe if they lowered the plane fares, they'd get some visitors and help the economy and not BE in the middle of nowhere anymore. Anyhoo, told you there was not too much to report today. Just letting my Mom know I'm ok.  Almost forgot to say,  I was reading the local paper this morning and dang it if I didn't miss the Annual Hog Butchering at the Pioneer Settlement last Saturday.

One frightening development; I was talking with a woman named Claudia and she said how her mother was going through radiation and she was going to stay the night with her and I said, wait for it, I'm not lying, I said  "Bless her heart."

arrrrrrrghghghghghg

I gotta get back to Maine!

For my buddy, Jasper

So my buddy, Jasper, who is a therapy dog, needed a new bag to take flowers to the old ladies in during his weekly nursing home gig. Here it is, Jazzy. I had to make it more shallow than my usual grocery bag so it wouldn't drag on the floor when he carried it. I'm liking this size. Very cute.

The print is a Heather Ross, a few years old but Jaz won't mind.

Keep up the good work, Buddy!

Here's the big galoot at home in Maine:  

The girls

I thought I would show you what hangs in my living room. I found them in Apalachicola last month. I think this is what Sophie and Lucy look like as humans (and indeed probably what Sophie and Lucy think they actually do look like!)

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OK, so this morning I have heard from two very good sources (Rita and Sarah) that armadillos carry Leprosy.  How bizarre is that? Here is a very succinct (and somewhat amusing) article:

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1306/is-it-true-that-armadillos-carry-leprosy

I just love The Straight Dope.

So, the girls and I are off for a walk, being extra vigilant in case there are any leprous armadillos in our path.  ta ta

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more wildlife

The girls and I went out for our walk early this morning, barely light out. When we were coming back, I had just put them back on their leashes when BAM, Lucy lunged. I barely held on to her, looked up and there was this guy's brother staring back. I don't know if you've seen one before but these suckers are BIG!

Hey, not everybody can say they started their day coming face to face with an armadillo!

A visit to Podunk

So, the girls and I took a ride into town after the rain cleared out and found a cute little park downtown with swings (I love a swing) and a gazebo over the water and at least a dozen HUGE white pelicans with pointy yellow beaks. So cool!

I stopped for gas and spotted a real estate office next door so I popped over and went in. My parents are coming to visit next month and I thought I'd see if there were any vacancies in my complex for them.

Do they have a pay-yut?
What?
Do they have a pay-yut?
 I'm sorry, what?
Do. They. Have. a Paaay-Yut?
A pay-yut? Excuse me, what's a pay-yut?

Yew know, lahk a dawg or a cay-yut.

Oooooohhhhhhhh, a pay-yut!  Yes, they have a dawg.

Ahm sorry, we don't accept pay-yuts.

So, I have to say that I am loving Tai Chi - it is very graceful, slow and meditative. I am learning the soft form of the Yang Style. (There is a hard form as well which means I should be able to kick some serious a$$ by the time I'm through.) This guy actually looks a bit like my instructor . . .

The jury is out on my drawing class. I drew goldfish yesterday and although they are identifiable as such, Nemo was more realistic looking.

So, today is a stormy day with tornadoes in the neighboring counties and radio commentators telling us to remain in our homes unless those homes are trailers or mobile homes.

Here is what I worked on this morning: Sweet little blankies for great-niece Willa in the cute birdie design by Valorie Wells.

So, the weekend with my family flew by way too fast ZOOM!  It started out stormy (I love this picture of Sarah and Lucy gazing out to sea.) 

Sunday was sunny and really windy. The waves were smashing the shore and I have never seen the tide so high. Nat and Sarah brought their bikes with seats for the little ones on the backs and we road over to the State Park and had a fun time - saw a bunch of deer. Still no alligators. Sarah's bike is the biggest piece of crappy junk you could ever wish for. I mean, this bike made unsafe-at-any-speed noises and slipped the chain about a half dozen times. Nat wound up riding it both days and I must say he looked very sweet driving a pink and green girl's bike, clunking along with a smile on his face.

We took a tour of the area and had lunch at a seafood restaurant where Nat was kind enough to split a dozen fabulous oysters with me. Yum! 

But the best part was just hanging out with Sarah and Nat and Genevieve and Seth. Look at these children. Are they not beautiful? And smart; truly a joy to be around. 

I was sad to see them go but so grateful they would drive all that way to see me. I am one lucky Zia!

Smilin' Sophie the Hedonist

Apologies for not writing sooner. I'm sure my legion of fans have been bereft. However, it is difficult to write without talking about my emotions, the big hairy elephant in the room or the D-word. Hence, "Censored."

So, I awoke to a a rainy day today but the temperatures are finally warmer and yesterday I was out in short sleeves - heaven! Here is a picture of daybreak and a picture of my favorite spot - the window seat. I am here for at least an hour every day.

Today might be rainy but it is a happy happy day because my nephew Nat and his family are on their way to visit me as I write this. I am SO EXCITED! But I digress . . .

Here is what I have been up to:  I joined an exercise class with Cheryl - yes, the dog sitter and owner of Jelly, the boxer Sophie mauled. She teaches an aerobics class three times a week (Cheryl, not Jelly) and she does it for free. Amazing lady. There are probably 15 of us in her class. I ride my bike to her house and she has it out back in her driveway. Fun.

The other thing I did was enroll in college.  Now, before you get all excited, yes it is college and yes, I do have an official student i.d. but here is what I am taking:  Drawing, yoga and Tai Chi.  So, there you have it. I start on Wednesday.

Yes, I'm still volunteering for the Humane Society and I go to the gym on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Keeping busy!

Now, here is a picture of Sarah's new beach bag. You are seeing it before she does! Cute, right?

I love this Heather Ross mermaid fabric! I bought it at Alewives, dontcha know!

What two dogs without enough exercise look like while they're trashing your house

check out the butt mohawk on Lucy - means Sophie is in trouble!

I couldn't capture the tail-down run around the couch - was just a blur when they were running.

Can anyone say, "Doggie Daycare?"  Help!

So, this morning when I walked the girls, it was 16 degrees with the wind chill. Not fun. The good news is that it is supposed to warm up in a few days, and it can't be soon enough for me! Yesterday, I went outside and it was raining in my carport. The pipes had frozen and burst. Glad I'm just a renter!

The heater has been working overtime and it is still chilly in the house so I decided to try out my little fireplace. I did take a cursory look for the thingy that opens the flue but didn't see one and thought well maybe there isn't one as this is such a little fireplace and in a climate where it is not used much. Wrong! Anyway, I had some nice dry wood and got quite the little blaze going when the smoke alarms went off. Poor Lucy made a beeline for the bathroom, paws over her ears (well, figuratively anyway.) I had to open the doors and windows, grabbed some hot pads and stuck my hands up the chimney until I found the lever and as soon as I pushed it open, the smoke got sucked right up. I had to leave the house open for a good half hour so ended up even colder than when I started. Geez Louise. I can still smell smoke when I come in from outside but it's fading.

Yesterday is the first day I didn't run the dogs on the beach in the afternoon. It was just too cold. Instead, I drove an hour+ to the nearest city to buy a spool of thread. Yes, you heard me right. Over two hours round trip to buy a spool of turquoise thread. Of course, once I was in the quilt shop, I couldn't only buy a spool of thread. One must support local independent business, mustn't one? So, I bought several spools of thread, a little fabric, some batting AND, this is so exciting even though it may not mean anything to some of you, signed up for a workshop next month with Judy Niemeyer.  This is some of her work. I am a HUGE fan and I am so excited to meet her and learn her techniques. Yeah!

               

My parents will be visiting at the time -Hi Mom and Dad! - and I plan to ask them to watch the girls while I attend.

So, we are in for the day, venturing out only when the temperature reaches the whopping high of 42 today.

So, I got the name of somebody in my condo complex who is a potential dog sitter, comes highly recommended, and I sent her an email this morning asking if she might be interested in taking care of the girls if I have to go out of town. More on that later.

It actually got up to 57 degrees today so I took advantage of it and hopped on my bike for a long ride in the State Park. The park is nearby and after paying my $2.00 at the ranger station, I cruised thru it, all 9.5 miles of it, and back. I never saw another human, just a lot of birds and a deer who stood by the side of the trail and gave me the hairy eyeball. There are signs all over the place warning about alligators and I thought oh great, we finally get a warm day and they'll be out and about sunning but I never saw even one.

I rode home and took the girls to the beach for a good run and a swim. Well, the cutest little boxer came running up to us and did the "I'm definitely not an alpha dog, I am belly crawling and wagging my little stub of a tail please like me" thing. Lucy took to her and they did a little dance and I managed to distract Sophie. Until her owner walked up. Then, Sophie decided to come unglued and attack said cute little boxer (whose name, I kid you not, is actually Jelly Bean!) She sounded like a flippin' bear and looked something like this:
 
as she leapt upon poor little Jelly, threw her down, and pinned her to the ground, all the while snarling and foaming. I kept beating on Sophie's back with the ball chucker and finally managed to grab her by the scruff and put her down on the sand. Lordy.

Thank goodness, the owner was very understanding about it and luckily, no blood was spilled (although I expected to see gaping head wounds after all that drama.) I put the girls on their leashes and the three of us, heads down in shame, walked home.

So have you guessed the ending?  Yup. I got a call tonight from the dog sitter I mentioned earlier. She said, I believe I met you and your er um dogs on the beach today.

Oy Vey

In Honor of Natonio

My nephew, Nat, is giving his first (of many, I'm sure) history paper at a conference in San Diego this afternoon. I am just so proud of him!!  Here is a tie with his school colors that I made for him.  (Don't EVEN look at the back of it-yikes!)

This is for you Nat!

A whole new year, a whole new decade: what could be better?

Well, I certainly have a new lease on life. Look what I received in the mail yesterday from my nieces and nephews. It was hard to photograph but it is a beautiful sterling silver necklace, says Zia on the front (that's me) and has the names of all of my great-nieces and great-nephews (Lucia, Micah, Marin, Willa, Genevieve, and Seth) on the inside. It means the world to me.

So, yesterday I went to downtown Podunk and joined the gym. I have really missed working out and this is my kind of gym. Stinky and loud with lots of free weights and a bunch of muscleheads working out.  Yay!

I also got myself a library card at the county library, which is surprisingly nice and well stocked. I took out the new book by Adriana Trigiani and a murder mystery by one of my faves, John Sandford.

I visited the county building, looking for volunteer opportunities (the library didn't want me) and they looked at me like I had two heads. Spotted a sign for the local humane society and I start there on Thursday. I am also hoping to volunteer at the nearby State park because I can ride my bike there but it has been so freaking cold, I haven't been able to make myself actually go outside and get on my bike. So, maybe next week. This morning, with the wind chill it was 16 degrees and the girls will not be denied. It wasn't this cold in Maine when I left last month and hello? I did not sign on for this! At least the sun is shining and it is a beautiful day - again.

Today, I am making the trek to the health food store, about 25 miles away. Hey, I'm lucky there's a Piggly Wiggly here! (There is also a fabulous Mexican restaurant so really, what more do you need?)

Oh! This is hysterical:  Apparently this is all the local tourist bureau could come up with as  a slogan for the area:  "If it seems like you're in the middle of nowhere, it's because you are!"  I swear, I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP!

Happy New Year everybody! The possibilities are endless, aren't they?

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