Felines

This is the current staring contest in our house

Milo
vs

Elliot Harry.

He's not that interested in the birds but Ky scares the crap out of him.  Poor kitty. He was headed to the shelter. I suspect an interesting few days. I really didn't want another cat, despite what Stashaholic thought. I do have a backup plan for Elliott if he can't adjust to life indoors with another cat, two birds and a dog. Milo has gone back to sleep. All those years of fostering made him immune to feline drama.

Peachy

There's a flat of peaches sitting on my counter waiting for me to clean peel and dice them into jam and jars.  They smell delicious.  That is all.

Whiney good things

You know what, I'm in a foul mood.  Things have not only failed to go my way, my ego has been smacked around a bit, worrying stuff happened and I'm tired so my ability to cope isn't as good as it normally is so you'll have to accept that my Good Things for the day might seem small.  They're keeping me* from sliding over the brink into despair.

A friend sent me a funny cartoon of two sheep sitting side by side on recliners and watching tv.  The girl sheep was knitting the fleece right off the body of the other sheep. It made me start my day with a laugh.

I have air conditioning at both jobs and work.  On a day when the humidex pushed the temperature into the high nineties that's actually a Big Deal. 

We're all alive. I don't take that for granted any more.  I stopped a couple of years ago.  Those anniversaries are looming and still the grief can reach up and throttle me.  On those days, I try to remember how much those people have not only shaped my past but continue to influence my present. They aren't really gone.

A flat of peaches fresh from the tree are being delivered to me at work tomorrow.  I bought vanilla ice cream to consume with the three peaches that won't be canned, frozen or jammed.  Anticipation is a good thing. I feel all Martha Stewarty.

The world is changing

My day started out with a writer's meeting.  Not only did we brainstorm quite a bit, we met at a restaurant where we all made some healthy lunch choices.  The more we fuel our body efficiently, the better our brains work. It was odd, though, not to have chocolate with my writing buddies. Quinoa, while tasty, doesn't give the same satisfaction.

I went straight from there to a birthday party for my DNi.  She's going to be 12 years old at the end of the week. I spent four hours with six young ladies between the ages of ten and thirteen years old. What a popular culture education!  I was shocked to hear those girls talk amongst themselves. I am now officially old. There is no way I knew half of their subject matter at that age, and even less likelihood I would have discussed it with such frank openness.  It was an eye-opener. It was amazing how they switched back into sweet innocence in the blink of an eye. I was exhausted.

The transformer at the end of our street blew up (I'm fuzzy on the details) but power had been restored by the time I came home. That was great news as I was able to watch Making Stuff: Cleaner on PBS Nova.  I can't put the link in as I'm Canadian but if you're in the States watch it.  Fascinating stuff.  So many people and companies are actively working on cleaner energy and storage in come pretty incredible ways.

Maybe we're not doomed after all.

Stormy days

It's storming outside. The satellite signal is down. It's been a day of upheaval and disappointment for many people.  We don't know what rainbows will be seen after the storms pass.

I've decided to channel some of that negative energy into my story.  It's that or read and nothing captures my attention like my own imagination.  I entertain the hell out of myself. 

A good friend posted this to my FB page with the suggestion that it belonged here.  She's right

Writing rainy days

One good thing about the Internet being down yesterday was how much work I got done reading about ebook formatting as well as some writing.

One good thing about it coming back up today was being able to ask imaginary friends for help with a scene. Those people scare me. It was perfect advice. 

It rained most of the day. I went out for work this morning and Elliott crawled out from a hedge across the street to race towards me. I took him into the garage, dried him off and left him exploring the dry space.  He was over at the neighbour's eating lunch when I got home later.  He's a happy cat.  Food on one porch, shelter on the other.  DNe has changed his name to Harry.  :shrug:

I've done a lot of writing today and that makes me happy. I was stuck on one scene trying to figure out the trigger to my goal.  I just typed a bunch of words to work my way into it. That combined with the help for above imaginary friends really opened it up.  Yay!

Saturday night attitude

I was driving home from work, enjoying the sun on the orchards, the sight of so many people riding their bikes on the country roads and the sound of the radio blasting out a tune.  I actually slowed down, took the time to breathe in the fresh air and really appreciate how gorgeous it was outside. One thing I love about the Niagara library is all the windows.  I rarely feel like I'm missing out on a nice day.

It seemed like that appreciation led to a few pieces of potential good news. The fact that there were some encouraging things after weeks of struggling to find good things was a nice change.

I decided to go to a fundraiser for the SPCA that gave me Ky.  That reason alone earned my undying gratitude. A group of us usually go to the firefighters' dance in town - another fundraiser.  It's the same old people who think it's fun to drink their body weight in beer.  I'd rather hang out with people who value animals and want to help keep them safe.

Man, I've gotten old.  Still, the band will be better at the SPCA fundraiser.

Maturing good things

Finally, a doctor's appointment with relatively good news!  I baked turtle brownies from scratch to celebrate. 

I caught up on several blogs I've abandoned the last few weeks.  It was good to see everyone doing well.

For some reason I find Colin Farrell more attractive now than in his heyday.  Nothing like a little maturity (in years as well as behaviour) to grab my attention. It seems every third movie I've brought home from work lately featured the handsome Irishman.

I had every intention of walking to work this morning but Elliott was sitting by the pond, mousing. Better than fishing in my estimate.  He hopped off the wooden bench, raced across the rocks then hopped down to the patio so that he could twine around my legs. We spent some time in deep conversation. It's too bad I didn't understand a single meow out of his cute little mouth. His youth and enthusiasm make me really appreciate Milo. It's that maturity thing again.

In other good news, Stashaholic and I are going to see Eddie Izzard at Massey Hall in November.  He always makes me laugh. 

"And the irony was writ large upon them"

Lots of wild garlic means I had delicious healing garlic soup for lunch today.

I finished DNi's birthday present. I'll try to remember to post a picture after she receives it.

I've taken the day off from crafts, writing and even reading. My brain is too spacey. Walk away from the joke. It's too easy. Thank you.

Elliott was sleeping beneath the raspberry bushes this morning. He managed to stay under the dogs' radar far longer than I would have expected. Who knows how long that would have lasted if he hadn't come out to greet me. He's quite the social butterfly. All of the neighbours enjoy him. The guys across the street have named him but I haven't heard what they call him. The cat of many names.

It's nice to just sit.

Silver linings

Last night, I was working on DNi's birthday present while watching Oblivion which was much better than I'd expected. I only borrowed it from the library because it was shot primarily in Iceland. 

One Good Thing about today - all of the Scotland photos were not, I repeat, not, lost.  They were in a hidden folder on the external hard drive.  I still can't find the thumb drive on which they are also stored.  Some are on FB and others have been mailed to friends.  It's time to look at cloud storage.  I have an aversion and mistrust of the privacy issues on the cloud but am going to go look at Copy.  A friend with stricter privacy controls than I have is using it.

I may be out of garlic soup (I have a sore throat and fever) but I have lots of wild garlic with which to make more.  I also have lots of seeds still to plant/share if anyone wants them.

There was a private tea party in town with an old friend. We are now older than our parents were when we hung out together as kids, yet I still see her as a teenager.  A teenager with grown children of her own :)

I was deleting old raggedy torn books yesterday. I brought three of them home because really, who doesn't love Far Side and Calvin and Hobbs?

Book therapy

The day started out bad and seesawed from there.  My poor mom is struggling with so many health issues. It's hard on both my parents and the dogs won't leave her side.  We all do the best we can.

I was feeling like a hypocrite about this blog and finding good things every day but a friend pointed out we need that balance.  I consciously seek it out. It might be something as silly as the shape of Ky's nose (almost heart-shaped) or the whiskers on Milo's face but they help me appreciate life is neither all bad or all good. 

Ky's chiropractor appointments are now monthly maintenance. He no longer has the spot on his back that when you press it makes him pee. That's much better for all of us. 

Eliott was waiting for me in the garage this morning and tried to climb into the car. I assured him he wouldn't enjoy it at work.  I lied. He'd love it there. So many people.  But some things are best left alone.  While The Library Lion is a delightful picture book, the reality would be a challenge. A lot of people are allergic to cats, big and small.

It's so nice to lose one's self in a book.  Whole worlds where good triumphs over evil, the girl ends up with the right boy for her, animals are loved, worlds are saved. Those are the kinds of books I most prefer, the ones with happy endings. 

Read a good book lately?

Sunday's goodness

The power went off in the late night/early morning. It was off for about three hours. I know this because the ceiling fan went off and the night air was still. Ky lay on the floor staring at the window. I lay in bed and wondered if a storm was coming.  Nope.

I spent most of the day working on the computer.  Lots and lots of family photos to go through and organize. I took the laptop downstairs and asked my parents about one particular woman.  Neither one of them knew who she was but it sparked an interesting conversation about family friends. They mean so much to us but are rarely recognized through the ages. Shame. 

Ideas are dancing around the edge of my consciousness. I'm working on the horror story and can't quite bring the scenes with this character into focus. I'm not paranoid. I don't really want to hang out with the people I know who are convinced we're all just one click away from destruction.  Depressing.

Where were the good things in my day?  I know I'm on to something. I know that if I keep writing down words the scenes will come into focus.  Instead of staring at them sideways, looking off to the side at the setting and those inhabiting it will reveal the purpose.  Paranoid people do have friends. And jobs. And pets and lots to lose.  So there. It will all come.

Anytime I can engage the family in a conversation about things that make them happy, remind them of people they love, it's a good thing. We're all in the bad habit of waiting for the storm instead of enjoying the change of cloud colour, texture of the air, temperature.  Every moment has its own beauty and weight. 

Sensual goodness

End of the summer reading program means Fun Fair. That means we're busy, kids are running around outside playing games and talking about their favourite books of the year. Inside, parents are discussing their favourite summer reading, and the best places to do it. The community swimming pool received the most votes.  Hearing people talk about books always makes me happy.  I was raised to be a Reader by Readers who were also raised by Readers. I come from a long line of Readers. 

I discovered a new-to-me blog.   Natalia Maks has a photography blog where she shows off her amazing photos.  DNe came across her blog while researching artists.  Every day an incredible image comes to my phone. Those Chinese fire lanterns are beautiful.  She uses doorways so well to draw you and keep you at bay.

I am so appreciative of my senses. I've very aware of all of them.  For some strange reason, when we were kids we'd play a game about which would be worse, to be deaf or blind?  They both suck. Don't kid yourself.  I've experienced both, although deafness was of a much shorter duration and not as complete as blindness.  It's true that other senses kick in but trust me when I say how wonderful it is to have full use of all of them.  Indulge your senses.

Today was a day to do just that.  The plink of metal lids bouncing off nails, the whoosh of a ball being propelled by a breath of air, green scent of creeping charlie, slightly sweet fragrance of dying roses, the hard cyclinder encasing Yoda's pin feathers, the give as I break it with my fingernail, the downy feathers of his neck, the red edging on Kiki's green feathers, the indigo that underlies their wings, slide of Ky's soft fur between my fingers, the velvety smoothness of Milo's ear, the sharp tang of the pineapple, the bitter bite of the hot pepper, the soothing bittersweet chocolate(Icelandic of course which leads to laughter).

And imagination, a portal through which all the senses lead us. To the past of my grandparent's yard full of pear trees, over the hills of the recent past laden with Larch trees golden in the early winter sun, the sharp wind stabbing at my face with icy fingers, to the present white noise of the fan pulling evening scents through the window to the future with its hint of rain and dark clouds and moist taste in the air.

Savour your senses.

end of Augtober

The heat is on its way.  The temperature has gone up twelve degrees since this time yesterday.

Little Eliott trotted over this afternoon. He's wearing a spiffy white flea collar. The neighbours and I don't think he spends much time at home as he spends most of his day on their porch, and nights in our garage.  He is hands-down the friendliest cat I've ever met, and for someone who worked in a pet store and volunteered with the SPCA, that's saying something.  I was going to write a note to attach to the collar asking what they called him but thought he might come back with six answers on the paper.

After a week of doctor's appointments, we didn't get good news at any of them, we came up with some ways to deal with the issues.  We're a good team in this family and really look out for each other. 

Green seedless grapes were on sale today. I bought some. Impulse shopping in the produce aisle.  This is a very good thing when I've been fighting the impulse to buy brownies all day.  Grapes were the better choice.  All I can do is make the best choices possible in the moment I'm choosing. That doesn't always happen but no one's perfect around here.  Fortunately that's not my goal.

Lost in a book

Yesterday, I sat by the pond and read for awhile. Mostly, I watched the fish swim through the water plants.  The breeze was cool, the sun was hot, the book was okay. 

My back was bothering me a bit so I came inside and did some stretches. I finished the book.  I did some chores, had a long phone call with people south of here.  We came up with a game plan for a couple of things. I picked up another book. 

I fell so deep into A light between oceans by M.L.Stedman that I did nothing else. I let others take Ky outside. I ignored the phone. I skipped supper. I read. And read. And read until I finished. Then I cried before I got up and went to bed. 

There was no way to get those characters out of that situation without them being damaged, each and every one of them. Being in the right didn't make the one character a good choice and being wrong didn't make the other character bad.  They were all flawed people who were trapped by situations and choices that created havoc for all. It was excellent. 

Nothing I've done today has touched the single-mindedness of immersing myself in Western Australia in the later 1920s.  I ran errands, had tea with my friend and her young son, then went to work.  Being surrounded by books is a nice way to spend my time.

Little Eliot hasn't been around at all today. Yoda took a chunk out of my hand when I tried to put carrot peels in his bowl. I wonder about his sense of smell. Or perhaps it was the colour of my hand that made him think I still had carrots on me.  All in all, a meh day.

HOWEVER, one good thing is the bills all got paid today. I was depressed a bit when I first paid them, so much money, then I realized how fortunate we are to actually have hot and cold running water, electricity, communication and entertainment as well heat in the winter and a/c in the summer. Not only that, we can afford those wonderful things. So attitude, baby.

For some reason, I've been calling everyone "dude" today. That is not only odd, but slightly amusing. It's not part of my vernacular.

Simple things

One good thing about working in a library that is attached to a cafe - cinnamon hot chocolate. Today we experimented with frozen cinnamon hot chocolate. That recipes needs some work. It was too sweet. But I sat outside in the garden to drink it. Lots of roses and rosy smelling plants.  Despite the cold breeze, it was a delightful way to spend part of my lunch break. 

I walked into the house after 12 hours at work cranky as hell. It wasn't the work that made me irritable so much as the been away from home and am tired that did it.  As soon as I sat on the couch - after cleaning the kitchen I didn't mess (hmm, do you suppose that may have contributed to being irked?) - Milo perched himself on my shoulder.  It was kind of funny.  Ky refused to come upstairs until my mood lifted so the cat decided to help that process along.  He headbutted me repeatedly until I smiled. Then he purred. And some people think they're just dumb creatures. 

Now he's curled up beside me on the couch, Ky is at my feet and I'm torturing my paranoid character.  It's the simple things that set us off, and put us back on track.

a good day

Our wifi password at work this morning(it's changed every day so it won't do you any good now) was "a good day".  I took that as my motto for the day.

After working on family photo albums for a couple of hours, I grabbed the leash and took Ky for a drive. It was a hard concept for him to grasp initially(we just drive around and don't stop?) but he caught on when I rolled the window down and let the smell of the river into the car.  We did stop and have a salad in an orchard

That's our picnic table. I should have taken pictures from in among the trees.  It was so peaceful.

From there we drove along the Niagara Parkway and lost count of how many fruit stands we passed.  Ripe peaches filled the air with their sweet fragrance.  It's a good thing we'd already eaten.  Then I saw it, an incredible tree. And it was at the edge of a park. I turned around at the next fruit stand and went back.

As soon as we got out of the car, Ky started whining. There was a small squirrel eating an apple at the base of the fruit tree.

After that Ky found sticks, I took more photos of gorgeous old trees and we enjoyed the park by the lake.  By the time we headed to our appointments at the chiropractor's we were both fairly relaxed. We were a few minutes early so we stretched out on the front lawn and I rubbed his belly.

Honestly, I really needed that quiet connection with nature and my dog. 

Good smells

Lovely day in the neighbourhood.  Laundry went out on racks (we don't have a line, nor can we put one up) so that it smells fresh.  No dryer sheet in the world can recreate the scent of clothes dried by sunshine and breeze. 

Ky brushed himself today. Okay, what really happened was the brush fell off the table and tangled in his tail. When he jumped up it slid through his fur and fell onto the floor.  It was hilarious.

I made cherry jam and peach crisp. One cooked on the stove while the other baked in the oven. The house smelled great but I should have done them at different times to prolong the aroma of cooking fruit.

Ky and I played ball while I weeded. It takes me a lot longer that way (I throw the ball, yank weeds, he fetches the ball then we repeat until I get tired of the constant up-and-down) but I love how his fur seems to capture the smell of the sunshine and hold it inside.  As his breath always stinks, burying one's face in his neck fur is the best option.

No stars for us tonight. It's overcast and there's a hint of rain in the night's fragrance.

Serendipity

Today was just one of those days where opportunities bred opportunities.  It started with me hacking my way through the honeysuckle out to the pond this morning.  There were several baby fish in there.  Lots of plants need harvesting or cutting back but it was so lovely to see how well that area does without me.  It occasionally needs a machete but it's a healthy ecosystem, created to need very little interference from me.

Then my friend and I finally synched up our schedules and went to the movies.  Turbo was playing a matinee and we loved it.  A snail races in the Indy 500 and my friend says there's no way the driver would be able to pick up his car! It's funny what forces us out of the story.  Still, I'm not ashamed to say I cried a little at the end. It's a great story about brothers as well as racing and honouring your dreams no matter how crazy.

Afterward, we talked to the manager about a light that didn't go off.  They've just installed a new LED lighting system in the theater and they are highly impractical if you ask me.  But at $20,000 per light, they are stuck with them. One of them had stayed on throughout the movie and we just wanted him to know so he could shut it off for the next film.  It was interesting to talk about the lights, dimmers and how it's all timed.  In the end, he gave us free passes.

We toured around the shopping mall and dollar store, finding everything we needed without any problem.  Because we'd both been so efficient earlier in the day, and hey we had free passes, we went back to the theater to see Despicable Me 2. It was so much fun to watch great animation features with kids who weren't ours. We didn't have to explain any of the jokes or worry about little ears. I did have to smother my laughter when one of the kids repeated a punchline with great indignation.

After my friend dropped me off at home, I picked the ripe tomato, made a sandwich with it and shared the rest. Nothing beats a tomato fresh off the vine.  

The day finished up where it had started - beside the pond. I didn't see any meteors from the Perseid shower. And my obnoxious neighbour was running a generator for some bizarre reason but still. It was nice to sit out there for a bit and breathe the fresh air.

It was a good day. Simple and indulgent but that was part of the appeal.  

Cats and garlic

This morning I met our garage cat.  DNe told me earlier in the week that there was a very friendly cat trying to get into the house. When I went out to leave for work, a gorgeous dark grey kitty came up to greet me. Either female or neutered male, it looks healthy and well-cared for. I'm not sure if we still have fish in the pond.  I'm going to encourage it to stay so that the rodents don't return. While the image of a rat popping up out of a toaster only to be chased around the kitchen by the dog is hilarious, the reality is grim.  The toaster didn't survive the experience.

All day long I've been thinking of the poem about the fog and little cat feet. The garage cat is quite dark with swirls of lighter grey.  I was thinking we'd name it TS, which is better than Smoke or Fog, because I thought the poem was by T.S. Eliot, he of J. Alfred Prufrock fame. I was wrong. The poem Fog is by Carl Sandburg

 

THE fog comes

on little cat feet.

It sits looking

over harbor and city

on silent haunches

and then moves on.

Now I think I'll name the cat Eliot. But it still stays outside in the garage. Milo doesn't have it in him to deal with an interloper and I don't have it in me to train felines to leave the birds alone. Besides, I think the cat has a real home and just likes to hang out around here. Overlooking pond and fish on silent haunches.

The birthday card made it to Iceland. It took long enough to have traveled by way of Ireland as I'd feared but the surprise (garlic seeds) actually caused the Icelandic Customs Officials to open it up.  I don't know why the whole thing struck all of us as funny but we giggled at several points throughout the day.  A friend called it subversive garlic and suggested that as a band name.  Why not?  But would they be a Canadian band or an Icelandic one?

And how was your day?

Acceptance

I made some good food choices today. Admittedly, I'd eat a bag of chips right now - or a tin of cookies - if we had any in the house.  Which is why we don't.  I don't tend to buy snack food as often. Most of the time, I don't miss it.

A darling girl became a teenager today.  Hard to believe that much time has passed since she entered the world with confidence and nonchalance.  We don't spend as much time together as I'd like but she remains an important person in my life. 

I spent a significant portion of the day writing. I have enough of an outline that I know where I'm headed but not so much that I know the journey.  That way lies writer's ennui.

At work, we played with ideas for promoting the library on twitter. I like thinking outside the box.  Boxes are cardboard that need to be broken down and recycled once they've served their purpose.  That's as far as I can take the analogy at the moment.  I think my brain has already taken the recycling bin to the curb. I'm tired.

I've still got some disturbing thoughts rolling around inside my head but have come to turns with the realization that I really can't fix things. That's very difficult for a fixer to accept.

Fresh things

One good thing about living around here is all of the fresh fruit.  I've had sugar plums, peaches and cherries today. They make it easier to eat healthy.

I got my errands done early and spent the afternoon sorting through vacation photos.  There are lots of tree photos, but we were practically staying inside a forest.  This one of dog waiting for stick to fall from tree is one of my favourites.

We will definitely go back for another visit.  We played ball in our own yard today and it just wasn't the same.  The fresh air was nice though.

Here's the promised photo of not-quite-Nea as she looks seven years after installation. I think she's matured beautifully.

 

I particularly like the flowers in her skirt

Mind flip

This morning as I was getting ready for my twelve hour work day a flash of blue out the living room window caught my attention.  It was a blue jay playing in the antenna tower on the roof next door.  Once he realized he had an audience he made a bigger spectacle of himself.  It was a good way for me to start the day.

Work was fun. We were so busy all day but everyone was in a good mood about waiting.  The young man at the cafe whipped up a cinnamon hot chocolate for me then pondered how he could make a frozen drink with those flavours next time.  There's always an element of fun at the cafe.

I had a stutter when my dream from last night played out on my newsfeed today but I guess my psychic self just likes to be acknowledged every once in a while. I was feeling frustrated and irritated by the connection until it occurred to me that the other person really needed the reassurance last night when they were in surgery. It doesn't matter how or why, it simply matters.

DNe reminded me today that sometimes you just have to laugh at life. So I did.  It's hard not to be able to fix some things. Fixing is hard-wired into my DNA.  What I can do is bring sunshine (not too bright or too hot) and flowers (ones without thorns or too much pollen, we can leave the latter for the bees) into people's lives. 

A good conversation with a friend who understands my brand of insanity (or eccentricity, if you want to be kinder) really helped me line things back up in the perspective I prefer.  Sometimes it's just "a jump to the left.  Then a step to the right."

Simcoe Day

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. That's how I celebrated the long weekend Monday. I ate cookies and sorted through stuff in the spare room. I put books in a box for a friend.

I've been struggling the last few days to overcome a black mood. Nightmares based on stuff happening in real life are hard to shake. There isn't much I can do to change the outcomes which makes it a vicious cycle.

For all that negativity, there are still moments of pure pleasure in each day.  The zoo was happy to root through all the papers in hope of discovering crumbs or seeds. Kiki and Yoda eyed up the fleece I brought into the living room.  You just know he's figuring out how to open the cabinet.

I did find some story notes and a design sketch for a knitted top. At the same time that I considered tossing them away, I admired rocks from various vacations.  That was cool. They're staying.

There's nothing like a hot shower after moving furniture.  Clean sheets on the bed. Cool breeze through the bedroom window. Simple pleasures.
What do you do to help yourself out of a deep pit of despair?

Computer vacation

One Good Thing about feeling anti-social is the opportunity to catch up on reading. Plus, the horror story is pinging dialogue around in my head. I'm not quite sure where it's going but I've been making notes.

My work schedule has increased considerably. That's a very good thing when it comes to taking care of my bank account.

The strap on my shoe broke Friday afternoon so I glued it back on with book glue.  That held reasonably well but I'm really glad I swung by the house, discovered four pairs of sandals I forgot I owned, and swapped them out. We got caught in a vicious rain and the glue would have been washed away. My jacket is still damp. 

It looks we'll be having fresh tomato sandwiches in the next day or two.  Only one plant has produced anything in this weird summer but we'll take it. The radishes are woody and the cucumbers stalled out.  I'm beginning to wonder if I need to move the garden to a better location. The pond is in great shape this year. The fish have procreated and the new lily has incredible blooms. 

The day has passed in a blur with little to show for it.  No excitement. Little interaction. Lots of quiet reflection. It was a good day.

Back into the routine

Today's good things include food in the fridge, a chiropractic adjustment, belly rubs for Ky, minions from McDonalds and some of my favourite patrons at work.

Tomorrow will be a variation on that theme as well as sweet anticipation. One of my favourite bands is back together for this summer and we're going to go see them tomorrow night at Canal Days.  Saturday's line-up looks like a blast too but I'm not sure I'll be able to handle both nights after full work days. Yikes, I'm getting old.

Oh, I also took some great photos for the Daily Tree Blog.  I'm so glad we started that blog. It gives me an excuse to stop and look at trees from many different angles.