Update

Happy Halloween to those who celebrate it. I love birds - these are so pretty! I have been begging Chuck for a parrot, but poor sport - he says no. Like all I need is something, somebody else to take care of.


I'm not even turning on the porch light tonight - I feel bad about it, I love seeing the kids and their costumes, but company is coming from Wyoming, in fact, I'm about to go out to airport and get them. I think they are bringing shorts - and the temperature suddenly dropped today - ooops. Lots of sales now so it shouldn't be a problem, but I'll hear about it I'm sure.


Sorry, I haven't been visiting blogs as often as I would like, the days are flying by. I can't seem to make it through one either, without a lengthy nap. I don't know what kind of flu hit me, but it has left me exhausted and run down feeling. And, I've been eating sugar which is like poison for me - but it tastes sooooo good - those little super sweet candy corns!

My company wants me to accompany them on their runs around this area looking for houses, but I would fall out - can't do it. I found one area here with low cost housing in a really beautiful place, but I just can't travel much further than that, right now anyway. So anyway, hope we all have a good time while they are here. At least my house is mostly clean!!! Mostly.

So, please everyone, have a safe Halloween - and now we can look forward to turkey day - I think Canada has had Thanksgiving already, hasn't it? Then, Christmas. Wow. Scary soon.

Still working on the shoes - decided they needed an anchor in that space. Also have committed to a drawing for someone, and a painting as a gift. But I'm moving along on the art pretty well, not stagnant like I was.

Ok - time to depart for airport - hope to get to all of you very, very soon.......

Darn, they still haven't fixed the paragraph problem - next post I will see if it will take the

code.

Leopard Skin Shoes

Aren't these chalks pretty? The colors are full of light and vibrant. I think the Leopard Skin Shoes are mostly done. A bit of shading is all that's left and I'm going directly there as soon as I finish this post.

Wyoming friends are coming for sure starting next Sunday and will leave the following Saturday. I hope they find the property that will make them happy so they will have a place to escape the Wyoming winters. My mother tells me that three feet of snow was supposed to start last night and they are also expecting 70 mph winds. I could not live in that. I remember being so cold out there that my toes were blue.

Last night had pitas stuffed with a a vegetable salad mixture - today going to make curried vegetables. I'm the only person I know that can be sick with the flu for a month and gain nine pounds, but I did. Gotta get it off before it becomes 20.

The burn on right hand is healed up, I am able to get a shoe on the foot with the cut up toe, and the large burn on the arm is healing up nicely. Last night I dropped my super sharp serrated knife on my foot - thankfully the handle hit first. I'm thinking I need to go shopping for a pair of steel toed boots and fireproof gloves to cook in.

Going to the easel now, after getting dressed!

BFF

One of my best friends from Wyoming is thinking of getting a place in which to "winter" down here. She'll be coming to look at properties next week. I'm not going to get too excited yet. The story of our friendship is pretty amazing.

While we were driving around looking for a good area for them, I noticed the camellias are blooming. They'll bloom up to January, maybe through January. Red ones, white ones....pink ones.

Other news - grandson is doing very well on the clarinet. I love hearing him play.

Foot is healing - the glue has rolled off about five days early, the burns seem to be healing. Haven't quite regained all of preflu strength. Lots to do before company gets here - and I am on an eating binge that I HAVE to cut off immediately! Ever since the flu, wonder what that is all about. Doesn't matter, just need to get back into control.

Weather is cool - 68 degrees.

Ready for bed.

To Be or Not to Be

Thanksgiving is coming! I want to go to Atmore to the Indian celebration, as does oldest daughter. No one else does. I think it would be fun - could have a traditional dinner anytime. Who says food is Thanksgiving?

Speaking of food: For some time, I've been thinking about going vegetarian, maybe even vegan. Lots of reasons - I love animals, birds, fish - praying mantis (no I don't eat those) - but my conscience bothers me soooo

And I worry about bacteria, hormones that I don't choose with my doctor's input, if growth hormone is illegal for me, (even though proven to cure things like Crohns, to rebuild bones, etc., etc.) why would I eat it vicariously in unmeasured dosages through my beef?

It's a contribution for me to "Go Green." I'm 3/4 of the way there, I don't eat beef, I think I ate it once in the last 8 months, or pork. Just chicken and fish. So I'm 3/4 there.

And I have about 20 more pounds to shed!!!

Problems - "H" is avid meat eater. But then we've always eaten differently from one another anyway. I feel as this would also be a commitment to go organic, or mostly organic because its also for health reasons - and its more expensive. I LOVE turkey. And fish tacos. I can't eat pasta - it converts to fat almost immediately. Well, I can eat it 1/2 cup at a time, but what joy is in only 1/2 cup?

Finding lots of wonderful recipes on line - I added some vegetarian blogs to the food portion on the lists on the left.

So, yeh, off on another tangent. Having a ball though.

The glue is holding the toe together it appears - didn't go to draw the model tonight - worried about charcoal dust in my burns - but next week, I'm on again.

Well, time to watch Cougar Town - its hilarious.

The Season of the Clutz

Americans have a saying - if we keep having accidents, we're "clutzy." My accident log for the last month:

1. After dark, fall down in street by car door. Struggle to get up, leg won't work. Grandson, who is with me - freaking and trying to stand in front of traffic and stop vehicles bearing down in same lane where I lie, struggling to get up. Assign him duty to stand on sidewalk, turn on cell phone and flash light at traffic. Gives him something to do and keeps him from getting run over, better me than him! Finally crawl around car to curb. I don't understand why someone doesn't pull over and help an ol' lady up.

Two days later I read in the paper, an older than me woman, was hit by a car in the same area, and dragged for some time and left in a parking lot to die. She lived, but isn't in very good shape.

2. Grab pan on stove with bare hand. Thumb burned. Is at the point all the skin has peeled off and it's icky. Now I have to wait until healed in order to draw again.

3. Pull cookies out of oven and scrape arm along top rack of 375 degree oven. Wound similar to photo above.

4. Drop heavy can on foot, split big toe open. Drive 3 hours looking for a doctor who will see me. My own physician's chant, "Go to Walk-in Clinic" or "Go to ER." ER costs $150 to cross their threshold. Walk-in Clinic made the lst step in medical mistake that nearly cost me my life, then risk department harrassed me for some time after mistake was discovered, very intimidating (guess they thought I might sue - not, was too busy trying to live), so I definitely will not go there again, EVER.

Then, even with insurance, they want $$$$$ up front before they will see you.

After the third clinic turned me away, I was about to go home and just put foot in plastic bag to catch blood, and hope it stopped eventually, when fourth clinic I walked into said they would take me in. After about 4 hours. They glued my toe shut - this is a new process to me - after insisting that I have xrays. A side note, apparently the man who invented flesh glue, also invented Super Glue. So the nurse tells me.

The reason the other doctors would not take me, they tell me, is that they did not have xray equipment.

Seems like the "new medicine" people will not just sew up a wound - first, must x-ray. If broken bone, then refer to orthopedist for more xray and outpatient surgery. Being conspiracy minded, I suspect it is all a play for money. I have been sewed up many a time, and merrily gone my way to heal up just fine. But this is 2009. This is today. The day of the super germ and massive infections so, they say, these procedures. I have a flash back to when "H" had hand surgery and ended up off work for months as he acquired a hospital staph infection.

"Just sew the thing up, already," I impatiently say.

It's not broken, they "think" after they read the xray. So they glue it shut.

During that time, we have been gone from home for seven hours looking for medical care, and then waiting in the clinic, so we are hungry. "H" has gone out for sushi and brings it back to clinic. Hey, pretty strange as we eat sushi in the doctor's office while people are coughing and hacking over our shoulders. Flu season is in full swing. I see an older couple that is requesting a vaccine, being turned away as the clinic does not have any flu vaccine.

Soooo - Finally, we leave, go to pick up grandson as youngest daughter is at doctor, herself. We go home, I prepare a salad for supper before obeying instructions to stay off foot. After supper, finally fall asleep, wake up at 1:30 a.m., and covering they put on foot is lost in bed, the tape splint has adhered to the wound and directions specifically state, DO NOT PUT TAPE OVER WOUND ADHESIVE. OK, now what.

At least I also got a prescription for the burns as they notice the arm and tell me the arm will soon start sloughing skin, and I should have a prescription for it. Ok, thank you, I tell them.

"H" takes me home, I am apologizing because I know he has little patience with anything to do with medical and we had planned a day of fun, not this. Especially a day that is wearing on into ten hours in traffic and clinics. He swears he's ok, but I notice he is getting grumpier and grumpier. It's his only day off this week. I am mad at myself again for not being perfect. Oi, far from it.

The sore places from the fall have healed. I just began to exercise again today. Now I am down again for three days. I will miss our drawing session tomorrow....

My Maggie (daughter) was rear-ended yesterday at a stop-light and they discovered several bulging discs in her neck. She is discouraged.

I just pray October gets over with soon.

Now, where are we from, REALLY?

My oldest daughter and I have a standing joke about me looking like a Pakistani woman when I was young, albiet a very tall one. She also has a long nose and olive skin. I was also a middle eastern man magnet, so figure. A few years back, I had a 5'4" Egyptian wanting me to meet him at Disneyworld. Go figure. Again. NOT.

Anyway, most recent text from daughter is humorous enough (to me) to post - so here it is - to make a long story short, she is going through some financial difficulties and has done a lot of phone calls for me, which stress me out way too much. I told her, "thank you, thank you sooooo much for taking care of me." "You can come live with me and help me."

Her reply: "My qualifications r running hot baths braiding hair cooking curry and providing redbox horror movies and speciality pushy calls to moronic people or companies."

I reply with a private joke over a recent ad in the paper for a combo nanny and office assistant that spoke two languages for $12.00 an hour: "PERFECT! Skills very much in need except we don't have much hair. " "But I am shooting for modified dreads because I'm tired of washing my hair." "Only I wish you could speak Swahili with a little bit of Urdu thrown in for good measure."

Hopefully you aren't looking at the letters blankly and thinking I'm really nuts this time.

Exhausted all day and in pain, tonight I'm HYPER! Woo hoooo. Popcorn and spooky movies all night!

Finished!

Had to take a break from sorting - oh my gosh - and more sorting and shredding. I even found my cholesterol results from 1999, LOL. I am determined to bring 5 files drawers down to 2.

Sooooo - I am very weary of all that paperwork. I shredded a huge job search file, and wouldn't you know it, the very next day I had need to go back and find some dates that were in it.

As a break, and because I promised to donate a drawing to a "Save the Brilliant Bean" auction, I finished three charcoals. I think I have about 7 paintings to finish, and a pastel painting of a pair of leopard shoes. Well, I'll do it. In process of converting study to studio, hooray.

Can't decide which drawing to donate. I think the apples. I goofed on Nevermore - a composition thing. And if I were to do "House Fire" (the one with the dog) over I would change composition on it too. This was done from a photo in the newspaper of a man whose house had burned down - he lost four of his five dogs, but was able to rescue this one.

Tonight a very small group of artists, including me, went together and hired a model, so we will be doing live drawing! Looking forward to it....

Think the flu is gone - busted, except for tiredness - oh, I am tired after three or four hours. Going to nap now.

Back to the Land of the Living

Have been a bit delinquent posting and commenting. Partially because of frustration with Blogger and partly because of being under the weather with the flu. The last three days, I've been up more and more. I'm the only person I know that would have the flu for three weeks and gain weight.

I know I'm better because instead of sleeping all the time, I am awake at night - the long sleeps felt really good, super good, and I have been leisurely sleeping through the night - and most of the days.

The cat is better and itching to go outside again. I'm trying to keep him in, but he is absolutely crazy when he can't go out.

This video is from the demo at the art party before the sick came back around and hit me second round a bit worse.

Getting excited - I'm going to work with a few other artists once a week - we all pitched in some $ to have a live artist's model contracted for a month or two.

Too much allergy inducing stuff in the air to do any yard work, even if I felt like it - but fall preparations are calling loudly, maybe soon.

Ah - the drowsiness approaches.....

Not much new - the weather has cooled down to between 75 and 85 degree centigrade.

Cleaning out the study to make it into a studio.....hope it isn't dragged out forever!!!!

How much does it cost to play shoot at the moon?

What could the leaders of the country possibly be thinking? Crashing into the moon to see if it has water when many U.S. States have 10% plus unemployment rates, when 42% of the world has decent drinking water, leaving the rest of the world to cope with water borne illnesses that are the major killers of people?

Are they going to ship clean water from the moon to undeveloped nations? Will this water cure sick people? Will we be able once again to put Halliburton to work in building a interspace water pipeline? In the meantime kids go without school books because there is no money to buy any. People here go hungry and go without medical care.

Does NASA employ 12 year old boys who have not had to live out on their own in the real world? Having a grandson this age, I realize bombing things like planets is part of play, but who is working at NASA? Who gives the ultimate ok to spend billions on something like this? I don't understand. I loved this quote from someone on the net, among hundreds of others, from people who are just shaking their heads and wondering how they will pay their tax bills come March 2010.

Well, never mind the quote, blogger won't post paste and copy material anymore - or else I suddenly had a blank place in my brain and can't retrieve how one performs the procedure.

Ah - here's a link - maybe that feature will perform tonight.....let's see...it's very tongue in cheek and funny. Sort of funny. If we weren't going without to pay for NASA's play time.

Update

Not much going on. Feeling a bit better, but have a way to go yet, so much fatigue - (sure now because of that, it is bronchitis) - so have to nap a lot. Lucky I can, yes?

Did start a project in the study - a convert to studio project. Candy Minx, you a worth a million, billion, gazillion dollars and more........

Kitty Kat much better!

I was going to load up a video - but Blogger takes forever even for a 2 minute video and sometimes is unable to complete it. So that's out - just a short update is all this is.

Fuzzy Troubles

Mr. Psycho, poor dear, looked up at me and I noticed an egg sized (large egg) swelling on the side of his face. That was Thursday, he had an appointment Friday and by then was really in bad shape. He was definitely in distress, pain, shaking his head and his leg. He had an abscess of unknown origin and had to have surgery for drainage and a shunt put in as well as a course of antibiotics.

Truthfully, I suspected Big Mama, aka Ms. Meowie of foul play. She is soooo bossy, pushing him around all the time - she could have bopped him. She guards my bedroom and won't let the poor boy in, although its odd, I think she knows he's a walking wounded and she let him in for a nap with me today. She often herds him away from the area where I feed them. I always make sure he gets to eat, he's a nice meaty 12 pound cat...so he's ok there. Multiple cat houses present their problems.

Anyway, he's home from vet and overnight stay, sleeping a lot, but also occasionally begging to go outside - silly boy.....NOT! The brats have been expensive this month - flea meds - and as soon as his infection is gone, they both need their vaccination updates. Silly me, I was just begging "H" to get me another Maine Coon, a rescued one - must have temporarily lost my mind.

"H" has gone up to see if he can give grandson some relief from "chores" and pressures and maybe we can take him to dinner.

I keep sleeping, sleeping, sleeping - I think my lungs are perceptibly better, now if sinuses will heal! I've tried the pot of steaming mustard water.....woo hoo - like inhaling sushi, wasabi fumes that is!

How nice! We can now size photos on blogspot. I just can't find the delete feature. I don't like the most recent "tweaking" of the program. Oh well, they didn't ask me anyway.

Saturday will be week two of this virus/whatever. I've been getting up with the sunrise, and living life in a series of naps. I have all kinds of engagements to be at this weekend, not sure if I'll make it to any, we'll see. Not only am I extremely low on energy, but the sinus infection portion of the illness lingers on. I do not want to make anyone else sick by going to events where there is close contact, food, etc.

This weird lifestyle is kind of fun, but at heart I'm a regular hours kind of person, so I suppose I will be switching back to 10 or 11 bedtime soon and arising around 6 or 7 a.m. in order to get something done in the day time.

The weather has tipped cool enough to go walking in the a.m. "H" is content to sleep until its time to go to work - so the plan is, as soon as I am well, to find some new, safe, walking paths and enjoy the sunrise with or without a companion. I hate exercise, but then when I can't do it, I long to get back to it. At these times I wish I had a dog that was protective. Recently, at any time, a protective dog would have been nice.

The times are gone when I will go to isolated areas by myself. This is not a walking conducive town - many people get run over and killed here - just walking and minding their own business.

I was surprised - even a "backward" state like Wyoming seems to have lots of walking paths placed in pretty areas - there is a new gym around the corner - but expensive. The economical one is across town so have to add gas to a membership. I resist giving someone access to my bank account for "monthly" fees - been there and done that and these deals are just about impossible to get out of. I think I need to invent some ideas that would make the elliptical less boring. It's safe, dry, maximum output for time invested - but yes, boring. And, after the huge, muggy summer, I crave fresh air. Would love to open wide the windows and let fresh air in.

One window is covered in a mass of rotting vegetation. I keep wanting to go pull the vines down but thinking a lot of fungus in the sinus and lungs right now is probably not a good idea.....everything needs its fall fertilization, the lawn, the palms, the trees. I need to do stuff that includes inhaling puffs of "stuff" into my lungs. My 83 year old mother that had the recent hip operation is out digging, pulling, preparing for winter - I can't fathom 35 degree weather yet, but know it happening! I wish I had her constitution. She's rarely ill. She's still convinced that death is imminently close - go figure.

I had better get moving, cleaned up, etc....art lessons, trip to vet, to store for still life materials - make art area presentable.....find cat cage......gallery show tonight. I miss grandson something awful - - perhaps he'll be able to come for short visit tomorrow - will have snacks ready -

I think I will go up to the store and get some pumpkins and maybe corn - have someone coming for art lessons - would make a great still life for charcoal. Probably shouldn't be inhaling that either - don't know whether to call the doctor again for another antibiotic or just let it wear itself out. Its obviously a penicillin resistant bacteria, if indeed its a bacteria. My doctor prescribes through messages sent to his office help. Oh, I forgot - Psycho's baseball growth is back on the side of his face - I will try to get him to vet this today - I have to! I wonder maybe if she would check my sinuses? If he is getting abscesses from Big Mama bopping him, I have a bigger problem.

Notices she's getting even overprotective of my bed - she was trying to butt "H" out last night! Just got rid of a freak who wants to run my house - now a cat? Do I look like a "pansy?" A pushover? Don't answer that.

Explaining the Need for Armor

What is this, you ask? Well, there is a story behind it. I am a walking accident waiting to happen. I fall down, I bruise myself, I cut myself, I burn myself, also sometimes say things that set people off (not meaning too - I crave peace!) - in other words, full blown clutz-ness is my lot. I would rather project an image of timeless, beautiful grace, but.....

"H" does not allow me to have sharp knives. I would be frustrated with all my knives - so dull - except, well, being an independent woman, I purchased a sharp, super sharp serrated knife, AND a super knife sharpener and went to town sharpening all my knives to razor sharp beautiful cutting tools. Yep, did it - a serrated knife cut hurts worse than a regular knife cut I believe. So "H" bought me a coat of armor - for my hand.

Grandson gets upset if I pluck my eyebrows at a stop light - he is sure someone will rear end me and I will put my eye out. Or pluck it out.

This week has been incredibly hard - emotionally and physically. I had an allergic reaction which went to bronchitis and sinus infection. I have been laid up in bed. But first, I fell - big time - went downtown after dark to health food store to get grandson snacks for weekend and parked on a four lane traffic street. Getting back in my car, down I went in the traffic lane. I could not get up. My legs would not work. Somewhat concerned that I might get run over, I told grandson to wave my cell phone around (with the light on in it) but DO NOT get in the traffic. Poor child was petrified. Finally was able to drag self around to front of car and eventually get up. Lesson learned - do not park on the street after dark, especially the busy street. A few days later a 70 year old woman was struck only about 1/2 a block from there, and dragged for a while - they don't know if she's going to make it. I was very depressed about getting old, and thinking oh dear, I need to get THE back surgery, until I remembered that I have fallen for no reason since I've been in my twenties.

And I was scared, that I would be considered unfit to care for grandson if I was the sort of person to be crawling in traffic after dark.

Same weekend, the insane ex-son-in-law got in my face badly, when I told him he only had an hour with grandson (supervised visitation in place and I've been made the family warden). It turned into a HUGE family fight with me being the bad evil person. I have finally reached the end of the rope with this character - he will no longer bring BB guns to play with all the kids in my yard, (there have been three major screaming fights over his "right" to play with tasers, numbchucks, and ninja steel sharp discs with grandson and the neighbor kids). It is not his "right" to bear arms on my property.

I made it clear to my family that my intent has been to protect my grandson. And while he is in my care, I will do that, but weirdo will no longer yell and scream when he doesn't get his way (esp. in front of grandson) on my property or within 100 feet of me, or ever come in my house again. He shoved me over the BB gun argument. I should have called the law - I didn't want grandson to see him hauled off to jail - that is the only thing that held me back. Perhaps that was a bad example and subtly said to grandson that such actions are ok. He really should not be seeing grandson but that is not my decision to make, I am powerless and have often put myself in bad situations to keep him from being alone with this weirdo. Hindsight is always better than forsight. I have feared that if left to someone else the visitation restrictions would not be heeded, but I have been deluded in thinking I have any control over that anyway.

What I could not figure out, is how suddenly, in the family dynamics, I became the perpetrator, ex-son-in-law the victim, and the little boy, the liar. I have been one mad grandma - there is only one thing more scary than a mom protecting her kid, and that is a grandma protecting her grandson. I love all those grandkids sooooo much.

Caused a big frou frou fight with "H" - after five days, we finally began talking. I always want things handled NOW and he, besides, not liking confrontation, is a slower more logical thinker than I - which is probably a good thing. Thing is the confrontation of the weekend happened again in front of grandson with two men standing right there when it happened and no one called wierdo SIL on it, they stood there and let him threaten to kidnap my grandson, in front of my grandson.

Why do I share something so personal? Because chances are I'm not the only one facing such crazy problems in my life. I share partially to make some sense of something senseless. To garner support which always has been a blessing from my blogger friends - not only support, but many speak the truth to me if I'm wrong. Because when these things happen I feel very alone. And because I need to know I'm not crazy. No, really I know I'm not crazy, but affirmation is always helpful. I share because I'm not good at secrets. Damn secrets are killers of the heart.
Anyway, so its been a really really rough week - all that stuff together. It will be better soon. My faith helps.

Well, going to take my coughing self up to the corner, buy a supply of bananas for shakes, try not to fall down, and come back home to lie down and to read some more.

My group of friends is gathering for our quarterly "slumber" paintathon party this next weekend - our theme since all kinds of stuff has been going on (always happens around Halloween - crazy stuff seems to grow out of nowhere) is of battle - that of warrior women. We'll wear fatigues, boots, black t shirts and be fierce of spirit. We're mama lions. We would all die in a moment for family. Our stories bond us together. Hope I'll be well enough to join in. We will have young women, old women, nursing moms with newborns, pregnant moms, ready to birth women, all beautiful, honest, open women, beautiful to the core. Even with our foibles, our mistakes, our eccentricities, our constant striving to do right and take care of our families and our friends.

I purloined the following Battle Cries:

Self Portrait Pieces

Have Tent, will Travel

Certainly the mideast mindset is different from the western mindset. Adminijab (Iran) wants to buy uranium from us. Duh - why don't we just sell him a bunch?

Being down sick in bed with some sort of virus, the TV drones on because I am lonely and I drift into the United Nations Assembly and a 90 some minute ramble from Gaddafi, (Libya) dubbed by the press as "Daffy." Besides wanting to do away with time zones and move the meetings of the UN because where they currently meet could be hit by terrorists, he had personal troubles locating a good spot for his tent. Central Park was out, much to his chagrin - guess America is just not a good host country for tent dwellers. What have we come to? I'm wondering if his tent was too big for an RV ground.

He called Obama his "son" even though Obama and more than half the assembly, including our President left before or during his ramblings.

He blasted the UN and Europe. He asked for a couple of Trillion bucks for reparations for Africa, praising Italy for already paying their share. Like we really have two cents in our coffers to hand over to him.

All in all, I thought he used the podium to list all his grievances down to time zones and his ramblings sort of obscured anything constructive (if anything) that he wanted to get across. But then, humble housewife in the U.S., what do I know?

I do not agree with all of our policies, but I am sure thankful I live here, and not in Libya or anywhere in the middle east! I am not sorry to see him pick up his tent, where ever he was finally able to pitch it and go home. When he said the UN was prime target for terrorists, I wondered what he knew that the rest of us don't?

For some reason, despite playing with paragraphs, Blogspot does not want to delineate them for me....makes a harder read.

"Nevermore" quothe the Raven

Found this little fella at the dollar store - just too droll to resist. When I wake up for a 2:00 a.m. coffee, there he is. I almost expect him to smile with his little beak and mutter, "Nevermore!" I like tucking crazy little things around the house to make myself smile.

This humidity is just about to get to be too much - Saturday's am adventure at Grand Lagoon left me with either the flu, bronchitis or really bad allergies. No fever, thank goodness. Foolishly went on a spree of trying to eliminate dust from book shelves in the bedroom and all I did I think was to stir up the dust something fierce - even my high powered air cleaner that I keep in the room couldn't handle it all.

Hope I'm well for art demo by Sunday - should be. I'm up to 3,000 mg of Vit C a day. Woo hoo!

Have outside vines to handle that have grown up the side of the house and obliterated a window - I'm tired of no light in that room, but saving that for after art gathering in case the mold added to the dust and humidity shuts down the breathing mechanisms.

Weird year here - bugs ate EVERYTHING practically, what they didn't eat - the early hot summer did it in. I haven't seen the armadillo for a while, I'm afraid the neighbor trapped him. I was getting fond of the little fella - he was really after the bugs, slugs, and crawling things.

Psycho was bitten by something and his face swelled on one side quite badly making him look like a freak cat, I hate it when they get sick and their inner eyelids stay shut - they look quite possessed - more than usual that is - I doctored him and bathed him, flea treated him, gave him extra vitamins and special foods and prebiotics and kept him in for several days now he's back out again, and I see skin problems arising again - so I will have to put up with his crazy running and jumping trying to get out so he won't get sick again.

Trying to figure out the contradictory information in regard to Social Security, Medicare, etc., etc. What a maze. I have called "H's" insurance twice and received two different answers on how they handle coordination - I will try to finish that up when offices open up this morning.

So, everyone - have a great Tuesday!

New Bag

A bag I found for my daughter in Wyoming - I kind of like the tattoo with the fringe thing.....

Beloved Gulf Shore

The foreground is white sand - a bit darker than the usual sparkle, but it had been raining off and on.

The dunes were not as spectacular as they were before the 'cane of five years ago (to the day when these photos were shot, I believe) but they are still beautiful

Don't know what was on the minds of these little guys, but they seemed to be in a trance as they stared out into the world of water and sky.

This is a "barrier" island, not an island really, but an attachment to land, land which is mostly separated from the mainland by water. Condo after condo lined the "island" but there was a wonderful wild place that had been left undeveloped.

I so love our beautiful shore down here - the mood is always different. Wednesday, we drove down the beach road to an area I haven't visited since the big 'cane of five years ago. We eventually ran into rain, but after we had enjoyed a laid back period of time. I loved the overcast photos of the beach.

Has anyone been having trouble with blogspot? I am unable to add in Utube, cut or paste is non-functional, it's just quirky lately I think. Hoping it is not my computer.

National Treasure

Yesterday finished up watching the interviews with Whitney Houston by Oprah. The interviews were honest, at times uncomfortable, uplifting, tear jerking, and....I've ran out of words. In my book, completely worth watching.

Oprah several times said that Whitney's voice was/is a "National Treasure." As if it didn't belong only to her. And maybe it didn't. Doesn't. When someone is gifted in that manner, then does a burden or obligation exist to share it with the world? I think it does because that person will never be completely whole if that "creating factor" within them is not producing. And we will never be whole when that magic creative energy is missing from life. Creativity can be a heavy burden, witnessed by the death of so many talented musicians and artists.

Maybe its wishful thinking, I hope not, but I feel an energy, a realization that no part of a person should ever be diminished to make another look larger, a growth, an explosion, a "Big Bang" has happened and a new universe is created for Whitney Houston.

When Whitney quit the music scene, she quit. She explains those years in her interviews. For anyone who has ever been in an abusive relationship or lost in a fog of drugs and for those who haven't, but have wanted to give up, or anyone who has ever liked her music, she is an inspiration and a true Phoenix arising, a gift returned to us. The interviews left me down, but ultimately up. And really happy that she is "back!"

I was never a huge fan of Whitney - she was (is) tremendously talented and I did (and do) think she had one of the most powerful voices I ever heard. Now - well, now, she has a depth added to that beautiful voice that makes her, in my book, a number one "soul sister." Her new CD I think might be part of a spiritual cleansing for her, and a putting away and putting in order of the last seven or eight years of hell and we're going to see a star - and I mean a bright, celestial powerhouse of light back in our musical scene.

Today H" gave me the CD she recently made - and despite a beat I found distracting, reminiscent of a disco beat - please, someone tell me I'm wrong, her singing, the lyrics, her delivery, the power of HER - makes this CD something I will listen to fairly often. And, most of all - Welcome Back to a beautiful strong woman, full of love and magic and beauty!

The French President's Wife

I've become fascinated with Carla Bruni after seeing a special about her on Sundance channel. She is quite a talented singer and seems to be a really well grounded woman. I know her husband, Nicolas Sarkozy, is not too popular for reasons unknown to me. But he has good taste in women. Most of the time Carla is pretty much without makeup and working hard in her studio when she isn't out being "The President's Wife."

She's endured, or perhaps enjoyed all the talk and spin surrounding her. Who knows. But what a woman . . . this one will bear watching.....someone with the class of a Jackie Kennedy with whom she has been compared.