I was thrilled two nights ago when Tilla, my favorite dog, joined us on our king-sized bed. My wife had to “nudge” him over so she had enough space. Last night I called him repeatedly after I went to bed and he would not come. Finally my wife joined me and called him and he lay on the cushioned bed that is on the side of the bed, which was originally set up for his sister, Coco. My wife said he was standing on the pillow under the computer looking somewhat conflicted and “guilty” when I was calling him. He likes tight spaces. Anyway, I was happy when he finally came to our bedroom. The week I was gone hardly any animals slept with her. I guess we broke their routine.
Tags: Coco, dog bed, dog routine, dogs, my wife, pets, Tilla
Posted in local, love, pets, relationships, time |
It is a gift we have an activity we both enjoy regularly. We have a fierce Scrabble Rivalry. And sometimes I win. And sometimes she wins. Neither of us get bored for each game is different. We play almost every night. I don’t take that activity for granted. It is a gift to both of us. I am amazed the inventor of Scrabble thought out this game so well. It is always challenging. A lot of our games go down to the last move or two. Lopsided scores happen less frequently.
Tags: activity we both enjoy, each game is different, my wife, Scrabble, scrabble rivalry
Posted in God, local, marriage, time |
In the week I was gone my goldfinch stopped coming to my feeders. That happens every year. The goldfinch come in a steady stream to my feeders in the early spring. Then they stop. I sometimes wonder what they feed on later on but, obviously, it is something other the sunflower seed I put out for them. It is always a mystery to me.
Tags: bird-feeders, bird-watching, birds, God, goldfinch, spring, sunflower seed
Posted in beauty, birds, God, knowledge&learning, local, nature, time |
I appreciated my home better after I was gone a week. All my music at my fingertips. My wife, of course. And all my pets–all seven cats and three dogs. Now I am usually in charge of meals. There is nothing like being gone and back and realizing all your amenities are near by. Now I made my own coffee and drank out of my special cup. My coffee now tasted like I remembered it to. I did not have to listen to too many lectures when I did something wrong. My friend was a bit opinionated and overbearing, which is not to say my wife can’t be–she can. All in all I was glad to be home and grateful I had one to return to.
Tags: appreciated my home, cats, dogs, four dogs, glad to be home, God, grateful, music, my old friend, my own coffee, my wife, pets, seven cats, vacation
Posted in God, life, local, love, marriage, music, pets, time |
Our three dogs must have been really hungry. I only fill the dogs’ bowls once a day in the morning. When I went to the vet with Coco, she had lost over seven pounds. She was getting really chunky so that was a good thing. I went away for a week. My wife was not paying attention and left an open almost full bag of cat food in the kitchen. I usually store cat food in the garage. Then she noticed the dogs had a “picnic” and must have been really hungry. Half of it was gone.
Tags: cat food, cats, Coco, dogs, dogs ate cat food, feed the dogs, my wife, pets, three dogs, vet
Posted in humor, local, pets, time |
Tilla, one of my dogs, will often “nudge” you lightly when he comes in from the yard. He will tap you lightly with his nose as if to say, “I am glad to see you again.” He is the only dog of our three to do that. Coco, his sister, sometimes will “mouth” you in her excitement if she has not seen you for awhile. She does not bite. The two greet me differently. Each dog, each pet, is an individual and has their own personality.
Tags: Coco, dog greetings, dogs, each dog has their own personality, each pet is an individual, pets, three dogs, Tilla
Posted in local, pets, time |
We had a new visitor in our yard last night–an adult cottontail, which we viewed from our living room window. Sometimes we see rabbits from our kitchen window but we have not seen one from there in months. There are raspberry thickets in back, I believe, they hide under. The new visitor was there a few minutes and disappeared into the bush. I have lived here for over ten years and this is the first time I remember seeing a cottontail from my living room window. Once my wife actually saw a turkey in our front yard. I have never seen a turkey in our yard. A few days ago she saw a three foot black snake on our lawn from the bathroom window. You never know exactly what you are going to see from our living window or in our yard.
Tags: black snake, cottontail rabbit, my wife, nature, our yard, rabbits, raspberry plants, visitor in our yard, wild turkey, wildlife
Posted in animals, God, knowledge&learning, local, nature, time |
I was shaking after this close call. I was driving on the road that goes into mine when out of nowhere a pickup appeared in the opposite direction. The only way I avoided an head on collision was by immediately hugging the bank. It was only by inches I avoided an accident. Not only was that driver going too fast but was at least three feet over the center line. I could have been killed. Sometimes your life could change in a split second. It was a reality check.
Tags: avoided a collision, close call, driver going too fast, driving a car, God, reality check
Posted in death, God, life, local, time, wisdom |
In the week I was gone the two tomato plants grew quickly. There were quite a few little green tomatoes while a week ago there was almost none. My wife had splurged and bought quite a few plants while I was on vacation–many still in their original containers and needed to be planted. She bought two beautiful budding fuchsia plants one of which I hung from the white pine tree in view from our large living room window. Every year we put one up there and the plant does well there as long as we keep it watered.
The weather finally became seasonal–sixties and seventies. I thought we went straight from winter into summer for a short time. At least it seemed that way. Today I was thrilled I noticed a flower that had little white snow bells. My wife said it was a perennial. The grass was also cut when I got home. All these things happened in the week I was gone.
Tags: fuchsia, gardening, little green tomatoes, living room window, my wife, perennial, spring, summer, tomato plants, vacation, weather, white pine tree, white snow bells flower, winter
Posted in beauty, flowers, God, knowledge&learning, local, nature, seasons, time |
The snowy egret was perched on top of a nesting box. There was, maybe, half a dozen such boxes on the perimeter of the marsh. Every time I pass this marsh by car I quickly glance up and down the waters top(???) see what I could spot. Sometimes there are deer drinking water on its edge. I have seen an occasional great egret or snowy egret on its perimeter. That was an odd place to see an egret perched on a nesting box.
Tags: bird-watching, birds, deer, great egret, marsh, nesting box, snowy egret
Posted in animals, beauty, birds, knowledge&learning, local, nature, time |
We all live downstream. This was a sign I read on a stream. I thought of several things in, particularly, of global warming and how interrelated the world is. Everything is connected. And countries can’t agree and(???) how to attack this problem.
More locally when some one (or a company) pollutes a stream its(???) effects the body of water downstream. We all have one earth and each person (and each company) has to do its part to preserve it. No one lives in a void.
Tags: body of water, downstream, everything is connected, global warming, one earth, pollution, preserve the earth, streams, world is interrelated
Posted in balance, beauty, God, knowledge&learning, life, nature, relationships, time, wisdom |
I want to give my wife a big “Thank You.” She got me a good piece of luggage made by Samsonite. You have no idea how much easier it was navigating to my proper gate in the airports. In Dulles Airport going to the next terminal was nerve wracking. My shuttle was not even moving and the clock in front said my plane was boarding already. Finally I was in the right terminal and then I found out my gate was all the way on the other end. Being able to easily navigate my luggage made my “quick walk” to the gate easier. Needless to say I made my flight but barely. I even discovered on my return flight I could also put my day bag on top of it making my journey easier. This trip to New Orleans was the first time I used it. My baggage rolled easily. A big thank you.
Tags: airport terminals, airports, luggage, my wife, New Orleans, Samsonite luggage, thank-you, vacation
Posted in marriage, time |
