Happy

This face

And this face

And these interactions

Unfortunately,  I've yet to catch Finn and Amidala beak to snout on camera.

One GREAT thing

Another rough week. Ky ate grapes which are incredibly toxic to dogs.  48 ours on IV to flush his kidneys, lots of drugs and time spent running between the emergency vet clinic and his regular vet.  Honestly, it's been a rough four weeks for pets around here.  The great news is that he not only survived but seems fully recovered. He also got over his aversion to being crated. As he typically destroys every crate/cage he's entered, this is a very good thing.  All of the human food has now been hung from the ceiling or cupboards like we're cacheing for bears.Whatever works.

I have a great reason for low word count this week. There wasn't a lot of sleep happening here until Friday.

Today, I printed off the document, settled on the couch with Ky under one hand and Eliot on the other.  With the race on in the background I fleshed out two scenes, about eight pages.  More importantly, I was able to see, and fix, the problem that's been staring me in the face for the last couple of weeks. Let's hope the solution lasts.  As the distraction is gone, I imagine productivity will return.

I've had to cancel my vacation and next week's kayaking tour of the harbor but listening to Ky breathe, feeling his soft fur beneath my fingers, even smelling the clinic smell on him makes it all worth it.  One look at the shaved forearms and I know how blessed I am to still have him in my life.

Grapes bad.
Emergency vet clinics very good.
End of story.

Productive

I've been blog absent for the last few days. Not because there weren't good things happening but more because I couldn't think of them at the end of the day when so much less than appreciated stuff occurred.

Today though was much better. Ky's vet appointment not only cost less than I had budgeted but more importantly the vet suggested we hold off surgery until the Fall. The lumps are growing quickly but they're most likely benign.  We can leave them so that Ky can enjoy the summer. He does like to swim down at the lake.  So we're going to do that.

My mom is doing better now that she's in the hospital and getting IV antibiotics.  It's much less of a worry.

On the writing front, I finished the edits on Casey's story.  Wheee. I also looked at a ridiculous number of photos from five years ago. The more things change the more they stay the same.

I rewrote a scene for the horror story.  There was a good suggestion to flip that scene around so I did while I picked up milk and bananas.  It will be even better once I put it onto paper.

AND - I found the outline for the North Carolina nymph romance.  What a relief.  I'll have no excuse when I'm at the writers retreat next week.  Every day will be filled with good things. I'll be surrounded by amazing women (and a husband or two) who write, support writers, read books.  I anticipate a significant amount of laughter to go with the profound thoughts, brilliant stories and wine.

Tonight it will storm so I don't have to water the garden.  I'm charging all the electronic devices now so we're good to unplug everything.  It's nice to have fairly reliable weather forecasts.

Now if only I could stop stress eating.  At least the cookies and squares are gone.

Gardens, writing and dogs - oh my

It was so hot and humid outside today. The wind is strong so I've got all the windows open.  Eliot has lain on all of the windowsills. Ky and I played ball while the rain barrel filled the watering cans.  We have 7 tomatoes coming!  The gooseberry bush is laden with berries, the strawberries and raspberries are covered in blossoms.  And for the first time in seven years, the peony is going to bloom.

I have one last run through to do on the horror story in the morning before I send it off to be critiqued by a horror writer.  Then I must resize all of Casey's photos so I can format his story while I'm in North Carolina in two weeks. After that, back to writing romance I go. I'm a happier person when I write Happily Ever After. I suspect the lack of romance, hope and the belief in the goodness of humanity are wearing on the global psyche.

Either that or everyone needs to toss a ball for their dog.  Such joy is contagious.

Holiday Monday

One Good Thing about making today my day to stay home(gotta love long weekends) was the fact that I spent some quality time testing the futon mattress. It's under the window by the mulberry tree. A squirrel and Eliot had a tail twitching contest.  That never fails to make me laugh.  I know it's a lot more serious than it appears but there's a screen between them and Eliot always checks my reaction. Just like he still jumps on the bird cage, hangs then then falls back to the floor even if I don't yell his name immediately. He's posturing. I'm still a cat. You can't take that away from me by keeping me safely indoors.  I wouldn't dream of it Eliot.

Fireworks are stressful for Ky. I wasn't home last night but I dosed him with Rescue Remedy and cinched him into his Thundershirt Thanks, Stashaholic for the info.  Apparently, he tried to burrow beneath my mom.  I stayed home tonight and he lay at my feet(doused in Rescue Remedy and the Thundershirt). I think the squeaky cable of the elliptical helped dim the sound of the fireworks.

Lots of writing this afternoon. I struggled through a good portion of the day but once I put on the music I associate with that section of the story words came to me.

Enjoy.

Good Friday things

We went for a walk along a river. There was plenty of wildlife including an otter or beaver(too far away to tell) swimming into its den. On top of the logjam was a goose sitting on her nest. She stretched her neck so that her head was a straight line out from her body. That made her blend in with the nest. It worked.  The only one Ky noticed was the mallard swimming and honking away from us.

Lots of good conversations, a trip to the vet, dogs racing around the yard lime they were qualifying for the 500, excellent chocolate and Mary Poppins. We laughed so hard I thought I was going to pass out.

All in all,  a good day

Ky's vacation 2014

One good thing about all the fresh air we got yesterday exploring the gully then walking down by the river is that I crashed when I went upstairs to bed.

I had every intention of repeating that much activity but forgot and had a shower first thing this morning.  Our play was more traditional,  stick-throwing and ball with the other dogs. Ky was still happy,  we had lots of fresh air and he never dropped the ball. It makes me happy to see him enjoy himself. It's relaxing in its own weird way.

There was some stress today. I stayed home with the dogs while the hospital determined the chest pains were pleurisy. I've had that and it's incredibly painful. And scary to think people died of it in Dickens novels. Good thing we live in modern times.

Leroy hasn't been back since yesterday afternoon. I hope he's been reunited with his family. He has a great personality.

I can't access the pictures I took on the good camera but here's Ky enjoying his vacation as seen through my phone's lens.

                         Playing ball with Rennie and Shadow

Stick!

Leroy and Ky

Indiana is a good thing

Between the pouring rain and construction, it took ten and a half hours to drive to Indiana. One really good thing was Queen. Every hour and a half, we'd drive into the zone where that band haunted the airwaves.

Another good thing was how well Ky got along with Rennie. The two of them did laps around the couches while the humans watched television.  They both sit beside me, one on either side, while I pet them.  As Bryan wanted Rennie because of how great a dog Ky is, it's only fitting the two of them should get along so well.

Despite the rough adjustment to his new life with Bryan's sister and her family, Rennie is really settling in now. When we mentioned Bryan's name though, his whole demeanor changed.  He misses his man.  So do we, Ren. So do we.

Today, a hound came on the property. He's clearly a young guy, a stray.  Right now, he's sleeping in a crate on a heated pad after a meal.  He's not fazed by the other dogs at all. I named him Leroy.  I'll try to get a picture tomorrow before the animal control people come and get him. While I did think not too long ago that I'd like a coonhound, now is most definitely not the time.  And Ky is freaked over the intruder.

It didn't help that I went out for a couple of hours to buy some tops. I packed mostly pajamas. How Freudian?  I plan to relax all week.

Though, Patrick and I did just make plans to take our cameras out to Anderson Falls on Saturday.  That will be lovely. Seven years he's been promising to take me over there.  I will definitely share that excursion.

Book therapy

Lack of quality sleep makes a world of difference in coping and attitude.  The neighbours had a party last night that involved the police and an hour long dispersement. I was actually laughing at one point as I considered the disturbance karma for my youth. 

I could list for my blessings and know the truth of them but it's been hard to juggle things and cope today.  Honestly, the zoo has been a godsend. Ky is so happy to see me when I get home from work. He ate my vitamins which was just ridiculous. Everything has to go into his belly. He's a goof. Yoda's been cheering for the hockey game and making me laugh.  Sometimes, I feel like I'm just a food source to the cats but hey, it's good to be needed.

One Good Thing about reading < ahref="http://textpublishing.com.au/books-and-authors/book/the-rosie-project/">The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
is hearing Sheldon Cooper's voice. I'm not far into the book but am enjoying it immensely. For someone who claims not to be a fan of first-person, I've enjoyed a lot of it recently.
If you're looking for a good Icelandic mystery translated to English, I recommend Last Rituals by Yrsa Sigurdardottir. I stumbled across it at work and have ordered the next. The rhythm of the language enchanted me, as did the descriptions of life in Iceland. The main character was easy to relate to which makes a big difference when reading a novel in a foreign setting. We're not that different when it comes right down to it.