True Love

My friend Dawn posted this on Facebook:

Find arms that will hold you at your weakest, eyes that would see you at your ugliest, and a heart that will love you at your worst. Then...and only then will you have found your TRUE LOVE.

It made me think about something. The first thought was something like, "Ooouuu, I want a love like that, someone who loves me with an unconditional kind of love." My guess is that some of you had the same thought or one similar. It would be wonderful to have that kind of love, wouldn't it?

Then I had a second thought. (I like this one because I'm excluding myself from the group this applies to, isn't that convenient?) Those of you who are in a relationship (therein, my exclusion!), think about it from this angle .... Put the quote in the hands, lips and heart of the person you're in the relationship with. Could they say that about you? Do you hold them at their weakest, see them at their ugliest and love them at their worst? Do you treat your love in that unconditionally loving way? Do your actions reflect YOUR unconditional love?

Interesting thought, eh?

Getting ready for the weekend

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I'm very excited! I'm going to have company over the weekend! And I love that the company is the kind that invites herself! Seriously, I love that people can be that relaxed with me!

Linda's friend, Sandy, is going to be in town for an art show on Friday and Saturday. Instead of going home, about 2.5 hours away, after the event is done, Sandy wants to stay and spend some time with Linda and me, so she invited herself to my house! Yay!! And Linda will leave her man at home to baby sit the critters, spending the night at my house so we can just hang out and have fun.

We will go to dinner on Saturday evening, followed by a trip to Crème de la Crème for one of those fabulous desserts, yummmmmmm!!! Then to my house for a girls' gab fest. On Sunday we are going to make the rounds of some galleries in the area and and more yakking.

I'm looking forward to it a lot. Linda needs a break from her recently insane schedule, and I really like Sandy a lot. I met her when she was here for another show in April, when she and Linda took me out for my birthday. I had emailed her for quite a while before that, and I just knew I was going to like her. Indeed I did!

So I'm getting the house ready for company. There isn't a lot to do, but I always find that there is something more than I expect, so I don't want to wait till Saturday. I'm psyched! So looking forward to it, and Sandy is, too, per her email last this afternoon. We are going to have fun .... if it kills us! LOL!

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More Rescues

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Today there was a road grader smoothing the roads in my neighborhood today, much needed in some areas. When they do this, they also tip that big blade to clear and define the drainage ditches alongside the roads. I was really glad to see them out here. It occurred to me that I had noticed along the ditches were quite a few of these:

Plant family: Asteraceae
Genus: Ratibida
Species: columnifera
Mexican hats, grey headed coneflower, upright prairie coneflower, Red hats(common name)

I realized that many of them were going to be plowed into oblivion, so when they quite for lunch, I ran down the road about fifty yards to the most plentiful area and rescued several of them from their slated deaths. I planted them among the other recently planted flora. Some were yellow and others are the deep red or combination colors. I hope they all make it. It's raining right now, so they will have a good chance of surviving and producing beauty next year.

Oh, yeah, I'll bet that title got your attention, didn't it? LOL!!

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Joey

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I had an errand this morning, and I took Joey with me. Just Joey. He seemed to be so thankful to have me just to himself for a while, and I was reminded of just what a sweet buddy her really is. Not that I don't know that all the time, but for some reason, today it was just special. Joey warms my heart.

At home, Joey is pretty laid back, and not a lot ruffles him. If he is snuggled next to me and one of the others muscles him aside, he rarely gets miffed, and I try to always give him a pat or two when that happens so he knows he is still remembered.





He really is a special sweetheart. As I said, he warms my heart.

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Tuesday Trivia

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What do we/will we/did we do for beauty? The more trivia I read, the more I realize the answer is "just about anything! Some examples ....

HAIR

The Finger Wave: Curls and waves were all the rage in the 1930s. Women wanted their hair to look like those of beautiful Hollywood actresses Greta Garbo, Katharine Hepburn, and Carole Lombard, who all kept their hair short to mid-length, wavy, and styled for maximum sex appeal.

The Cary Grant: This men's hairstyle of the 1940s was a precise cut with a severe side part and a whole lot of styling wax to make it shine. The result was a look as sauve and debonair as Grant himself.

The Bouffant: Thanks to salon-sized hair dryers being introduced to the world of beauty in the 1950s, the bouffant and the beehive began popping up all over the place. The look was that of a big, round silhouette on the head.

The Mop Top: With the increasing popularity of the Beatles in the 1960s came the increasing popularity of their hairstyle - a longer, over the ears, floppy shag cut. Girls and boys alike copied the style, which was also sported by another huge band of the time, The Rolling Stones.

The Farrah Fawcett: The 1970s saw this iconic hairstyle, made famous by Charlie's Angels star Farrah Fawcett. The style came to a soft point at the top of the head, creating a triangular silhouette with long, feathered flips cascading down the sides and the back.

The Rat-Tail: Popular with young men (and some women) of the '80s, this style was characterized by hair cut short all over except for a long strip of hair (usually 1/2- to 1-inch wide) growing from the nape of the neck and dangling down the back.

PLASTIC SURGERY

The first recorded “nose job” is found in ancient Indian Sanskrit texts (600 B.C.).c Physicians would reconstruct noses by cutting skin from either the cheek or forehead, twisting the skin side out over a leaf of the appropriate size, and sewing the skin into place. Two polished wooden tubes would be inserted into the nostrils to keep the air passage open during healing.

A popular procedure in ancient Rome was scar removal, particularly scars on the back which were marks of shame because they suggested a man had turned his back in battle, or worse, he had been whipped like a slave. Foreigners would also have plastic surgery to fit better into Roman society.

When plastic surgery became popular during the Renaissance, surgeons took skin grafts from various donors, such as a neighbor’s pig, but were confused when the new nose would shrivel up and fall off. They concluded the flesh was “sympathetic,” meaning that the graft died when its original owner died.

Italian Gaspare Tagliacozzi (1546-1599) is widely considered the “father of modern plastic surgery.” His text book De curtorum chirugiau noted the need for plastic surgery due to duels and street fights, as well as a pervasive outbreak of syphilis which destroyed the nose. His “virtual” nose, however, could fall off if the user blew too hard, and young women with reconstructed noses were hardly objects of desire.

World War II ushered in plastic surgery techniques that included rebuilding entire limbs, extensive skin grafts, microsurgery, antibodies, and increased knowledge about tissue health.

The first modern breast augmentation took place on November 24, 1893, in Heidelberg, Germany, by Vincent Czerny. His patient was a 41-year-old singer who had a growth in her breast removed. Luckily, the patient had a growth (lipoma) on her back, which was harvested and transplanted to her breast. She was discharged on December 20, 1893.

SKIN

In the Middle Ages, white complexions were considered divine and people were constantly bleaching their skin with "miraculous" ointments which were often poisonous.

During the Dark Ages, lead was put into creams to help people achieve the desired pale complexion. Lead had been used as a bleaching agent for centuries, despite the fact it is highly toxic.

It was believed in the Middle Ages that dilated pupils were infinitely enchanting. To dilate their pupils people used the juice of the Belladonna plant as eye drops. Belladonna's roots and leaves contain atropine, which is used as an antispasmodic and in pupil-dilating eye drops.

In the Middle Ages, the large forehead was considered a sign of grandeur and wisdom, so folks would pluck the hair above their forehead. When excess hair was mercilessly removed, the skin was treated to a "magic" elixir containing frog blood, which allegedly reduced hair regrowth.

Venetian blonde was the hair color to achieve during medieval times. Women applied animal grease, ashes, sulfur, yeast, mercury, and tons of other substances to their hair and bleached it under the hot sun for hours.

Translucent skin was adored during this time period. To make their skin appear more translucent, people painted blood vessels on their skin. Queen Elizabeth I was a big fan of blue veins showing through the skin on her face.

Amazing, isn't it?

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Monday Movies

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I didn't give a lot of thought to the movies today, so there is no theme. I've picked two that made me smirk .... and grimace, in one. You'll know it when you see it!

Girls know how to get what they want.




Uh .... Talent?

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Monday Miscellaneous

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The diet seems to be working. I can see "waistliness" on Lola and Sammy! Sam seems to be taking it pretty well, but Lola acts, at times, as if I'm starving her to death. Her problem is that she doesn't finish her food when it is available, then she gets hungry in between. I think her attention span is too short to finish a meal! She eats some then wanders around, muscling bites here and there from the others. Little snip! I have to stand in the middle of the pack to make sure everyone gets their own. I think, I hope, she is getting a little bit better about it. Nevertheless, the reduction of rations seems to be doing it's job. The change is minimal, but I can see it, so .... YAY!!

Yesterday afternoon, I decided that I needed to water my fledgling plants since it hadn't rained in several days. Well, technically it had rained several times, but never enough to wet the topsoil, just barely dampening it. The last three days it had clouded up, cooled off, but nothing significant had come of it, then out came the sun and the hear again. The good part of that is the pattern kept the temps from getting too high. So I put the soaker on the new plants, then set the sprinkler up for the postage stamp lawn in back. I got everything done, put the hoses away .... and a few hours later, early evening, it began raining! Wouldn't you know it? it rained very hard off and on till the wee hours of the morning. Now my lawn is absolutely soaked. I guess me watering my plants and lawn is the NM equivalent of washing the car. Whatever works! And look what I got out of the storms .... again!

OK, as of a few minutes ago, the survey came down from the top of the blog. I'm going to remove it to cut confusion, but here are the results. It looks like I will continue all three features, at least for now.

I guess I'd better get the Monday Movies up, eh?

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Flowers

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Some of the wildflowers I dug along the roadside and transplanted to my yard have survived.




A wild cousin of the Aster.











These grow thick over time and I love the delicate little blossoms.












One of my favorites, the Mexican Red Hat. I'm especially delighted that this one survived. It appears that this is one of the two-toned ones. It's the only one that survived, so I need to bring home a few more of these. I brought home two or three, I think.









Not wildflowers, but to my delight, the daisies I planted a few weeks ago are blooming.













Aren't they exquisite? I absolutely love daisies!

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Wild Night at Chéz Lynilu!

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There was some major excitement in my bedroom last night! For real!

OK, OK! It was just the dogs and me, and one of those WTF stories.

As usual I gave the kids their treats and went to brush my teeth and wash my face. When I came back to the bed, Lola and Sammy were playing, wrestling on the bed. I got into bed and Jazi, as usual, climbed onto my lap. Joey was already nestled in by me, and Max was trying to decide about whether he wanted to get into the wrestling match or not. Finally he did for a few seconds, then backed away to watch again. Suddenly, he pounced on Sam, for what reason I have no idea. Lola scampered away, while Max and Sam were locked in battle!

I jumped up and grabbed Max, because I could reach him first, and backed off the bed with him in my arms. Sam was furious and was coming after Max. I had on black and white pajamas, so I blended in with Max, I suppose. Anyway, Sam charged, and before my right leg was quite off the bed, he clamped down on my thigh. Da-yumm! It hurt!


The skin was barely broken, and actually it didn't bleed till I washed it, so it isn't really as bad as it looks. The worst thing is the bruise. I put my fingers near it so you could tell about how long it is, about three inches. That boy got a good mouthful!

But then, I think he realized he had hurt me, 'cause he immediately stopped his attack and cowered on the bed, looking at me soulfully. I actually felt sorry for him. Max seemed to realize, too, that I was hurt. He was still in my arms, but very still and looking up at me with huge eyes. Both of them calmed down immediately after that, and it was quiet for the rest of the evening.

When things were settled I noticed that Jazi wasn't anywhere to be found. After a brief search, I located her under the bed. Sadly, I don't know if she scampered off the bed to hide, or if I dumped her and she retreated after bouncing off the floor! Poor girl!

I'm beginning to think I will never be able to get Max over his possessiveness and being territorial. I thought with time he would understand, but apparently it is instinct and breeding. Sam sometimes starts the growling, but Max is the one that gets physical first. As long as I am in a position to squirt them with the water bottle when they start, it is pretty easy to keep things quiet. But when it happens like it did last night, it is just a melee.

It really isn't a serious wound, but I sure as hell wish those two would get over themselves!

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My 'Mater!

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Remember my mini garden? Well, it has given up the first little tomato! It is small, about three bites, but nice and red. There are two others at various stages of red, both larger than this one, and several more green ones.

I'll bite into it later and let you know how it is. Oh, why wait. Hang on a minute ................

............. YUM!!



BTW, it was four bites! Woo Hooo!

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Important message

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Update on 7/24: Good news!! Kim has adopted out some of the dogs! However, please consider sending her a few bucks. This is a completely donation-run facility. Kim runs on a shoestring most of the time. And she works with people as much as possible; when she finds a good home she will adjust the adoption fee if necessary to get the dogs into a furever home. She is really a good hearted woman, and she does this with a lot of self-sacrifice.


The rescue shelter where I got my Joey and Jazmyn is in Oklahoma, and this woman does an amazing job. She does it all on her own. This morning I was this on her facebook page:

bummer day, no adoptions no donations, no food, no way to pay vet bills, this will not be a good week!Pray for something to happen soon, food will last about 5 days!!

If you can help, even $5, please do so. I am not in a position to send much, but I am going to send a little bit. You can get information about the shelter at http://www.oksaveadog.org. There is a button for Paypal donations at the site as well as an address to mail checks. Please find it in your heart to help Kim rescue, feed, shelter and place these animals. She has a huge heart. The whole State of Oklahoma will shudder if she can't continue.

Thank you from our hearts, Joey, Jazi and Lyn

P.S. Please feel free to pass this along.

A Filler-Inner

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I saw this on Cheryl's blog and lifted it, with her permission. I also changed a couple questions because I thought 3 about tagging were too many, repetative. Like Cheryl, I'm giving permission to swipe this. Just let me know in the comments when you post it.

~ ~ ~ ~

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:00-ish, as always. I’m so predictable.

2. How do you like your steak? Medium rare, please. I remember loooooong ago when my ex and I ordered steaks well done. Now I think of it, and I shudder! What a waste of tender meat!

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? I’m not sure. I rarely go to the “cinema,” because it is horrendously expensive, IMO. I suppose it might have been “Eagle Eye.”

4. What is your favorite TV show? I don’t really have one favorite. I enjoy NCIS, Criminal Minds, Big Bang Theory. Daytime, I hardly miss The View.

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I could possibly live anywhere that the humidity isn’t too high, but it would take a lot for me to leave my NM.

6. What did you have for breakfast? Yogurt and a pecan waffle, followed with a peach.

7. What is your favorite cuisine? Feeding me is easy. I like almost everything, but Mexican is always a fav in my book.

8. What foods do you dislike? Hmmmm. Raw oysters, and I will never even try to eat Rocky Mountain oysters. Shudder.

9. Favorite Place to Eat? There are too many good restaurants in this world to pick just one. Locally I like Casa Blanca (Mexican) and Landlocked (seafood with a southwestern flair). Also, any place that our pot luck group meets is a favorite!

10. Favorite dressing? I used to not like bleu cheese, but a couple years ago I was introduced to one that isn’t the creamy style. It’s an olive oil, herbs & spices, with chunks of feta cheese. It is amazing!

11.What kind of vehicle do you drive? Electric blue Ram Dodge with a hemi.

12. What are your favorite clothes? I’d call it casual trendy. I like (1) comfort combined with (2) style and washable!

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance? I think anywhere! I’d love to visit Greece, South America, Austrailia & New Zealand. IF you’re paying, I’m going!

14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full? Absolutely Half Full.

15. Where would you want to retire? I’m retired and I’m there! New Mexico, of course!

16. Favorite time of day? I enjoy morning. I get up and have a cuppa tea or coffee, relax and catch up on my email, facebook and blog. I like to start slow!

17. Where were you born? Perryton, Texas. However, I lived there only a short time and have no ties. I grew up in New Mexico, so I consider myself a native New Mexican.

18. What is your favorite sport to watch? Football. I wish I could get the KC Chiefs on TV. Despite their lousy record, I enjoyed being in the stadium watching them for about 25 years. I miss that. I also like high school basketball, but can’t stand to watch college or pro.

19. Is there something that you would change about yourself? I’d like my 30 year old strength and endurance back. Please.

20. What event in your life would you change if it didn’t change any other outcomes? loss of babies during pregnancies. My heart still aches.

21. Who are you most curious about their responses to this? Anyone, everyone!!

22. Bird watcher? I love watching and photographing birds, but I’m not good about identifying them. I give it a good whirl, however.

23. Are you a morning person or a night person? Neither. I’m a middle-of-the-day person. I do enjoy evenings if I’m with friends.

24. Do you have any pets? Just ten of them. Five furry buddies and five feathery ones.

25. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? Hmmm. I guess not. My life must be pretty boring!

26. What did you want to be when you were little? A teacher, a nurse, a ballerina. Were there other choices back then???

27. What is your best childhood memory? Gosh, I donno. I have lots of happy memories. Being the youngest (way youngest) of five I was spoiled in many ways, so life was good. From about 4th to 6th grade was a lot of fun. My friends and I all had pogo sticks and “bouncy shoes” (with springs on the bottom), and we bounced everywhere we went. Those were very carefree days and full of a multitude of good memories.

28. Are you a cat or dog person? I like both, but currently have only dogs. I guess I’ll say dogs, because I appreciate that they love me all the time, not just on their own schedule as cats do!

29. Are you married? Nope, widowed.

30. Always wear your seat belt? Absolutely!

31. Been in a car accident? Oh, yes. More than I care to remember and more than you want to hear about. But remember .... I’m ooooooold!

32. Any pet peeves? Intolerance of any kind. I’ve said in the past that I’m intolerant of intolerance.

33. Favorite Pizza Toppings? I like almost anything, even anchovies. Actually I especially like anchovies, but never have them, because no one else likes them. My favorite is pepperoni, mushrooms and Italian sausage.

34. Favorite Flower? Daisies, daffodils, Mexican red hats and most wildflowers.

35. Favorite ice cream? Coffee. Or coconut with chocolate syrup drizzled over it.

36. Favorite fast food restaurant? Lotta Burger. Sonic is a good sub since Lotta Burger is only in NM.

37. How many times did you fail your driver's test? Nevah, dahling!

38. From whom did you get your last email? Hmmm, I guess the most recent was from James.

39. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Easy! Lowe’s!!

40. Do anything spontaneous lately? Nothing notable. Well, I went for an unplanned walk in the woods a few days ago.

41. Like your job? How could I not like my job? I’m retired!!!

42. Broccoli? Sure! Cooked or raw, bring it on!

43. What was your favorite vacation? I’ve had a lot of wonderful vacations, so it is hard to say. I guess it’s a toss up between the Panama Canal cruise (last vacation with my hub, 21 amazing days on the ship with stops in amazing places) and the week we spent in New Orleans and Bayou country back in the early 90s. Both were marvelous.

44. Last person you went out to eat with? Linda, Jeannie and Pearl.

45. What are you listening to right now? Ba, da, ba, da baaa, the Sound of Silence. Well, that and the air conditioner whoosh.

46. What is your favorite color? Purple.

47. How many tattoos do you have? Zero. But I think about it often. It’s just so .... permanent!

48. Coffee Drinker? Absotively, posilutely! Hot, cold, straight or with additives!

49. How many are you tagging for this quiz? Each and every one of you!

50. What time did you finish this quiz? At the sound of the tone, it will be exactly 2:19 PM. Bong!

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Blogger glitch

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All the sudden this morning, I couldn't comment on my own blog. I changed the commenting format and all seems to be well again. I've noticed that when I change to the comment being embedded under the post, something goes wrong every time. This was my third attempt, and I'm gonna stick with the pop-up window from now on.

If you've had difficulty, sorry. I think we are OK again.

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Frustrating Email Service

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I'm so frustrated with my ya*hoo email service. I have two accounts, one connected to this blog, and it is working fine. The other is where I get most of my general email, and I'm having a headache and a half over it.

It began about 2 weeks ago. I got several emails that supposedly had graphics embedded, but I couldn't see them. The first two came from the same person, and I thought it was just a temporary glitch. Then I got another one from a different person, and I realized that something was wrong. I was getting embedded images from professional sources, AARP, Verizon, etc. Since I have two accounts, I compared the settings and they were the same. I followed a few step on the Ya*hoo Help page. But it didn't work.

So I contacted Ya*hoo. I'm now on my 4th correspondence after having cleared and emptied and re-set all the various caches and cubby-holes and control settings with no change in the problem. I found that I can forward an email to someone, and they can see the embedded material. I can forward them to my other account and there I can read them. But it is a royal pain in the buttinski to have to do all that.

I nearly ready to simply conjure up a new email, shift everyone over there and start fresh. I'll wait for one more directive from ya*hoo and see what happens. Grrrrr.

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The Trunks

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The trunks are definitely a hit in my house.





Joey and Sammy on the "old" one.















Lola and Sammy on the newer trunk, and Joey in front of it.






















Lola turned to see what the flash was about and Joey found something interesting on the doggy bed. Sam snoozing through it all!


















Yep, The Kids have told me that they like their new seats.

Musings

I was thinking about the conversations we had during our trip on Monday and some random related thoughts. Most were related to the comparison of our home grounds in the mountains and high mesas to the environment of the city. Wanna hear 'em? If not, click on another web site now, 'cause that's the theme for the day!

First is the difference in the pace of life between Albuquerque and Lincoln County. All of us were struck by the undercurrent in most of the stores that I describe as "get there, find it, pay it, go"! Trader Joe's might have been the worst. None of us encountered rudeness, but the patrons of the store seemed to be focused to the nth degree on getting their shopping done and on with their days. This happens in the city, any city. And I've been part of it in the past, too. Now, however, I see this and I think "what is your rush???" It occurs to me that if you rush through a task, in this case shopping, and you save three minutes by rushing, that's good, right? But tell me this .... how are you going to use those three minutes? Even if you save three minutes five times a day, you now have 15 minutes, but how will you use it? From my own experience, you don't. Or you use it to figure out how to save the next three minutes. I'll bet not one person used that time to relax, to let go of the tension.

We talked about how people behaved in a polite yet impatient nature when they came up against a road block of carts and bodies. A few people said "excuse me" by way of asking people to make room so they could get through. Most people waited without a sound and without clearing of throat or other attention getting acts, but the expressions on their faces were "controlled impatience." No eye rolling, no frowning, but you could sense and almost see the tension in their bodies. In our market at home, if the aisle is blocked people tend to simply stop, take a moment to look around, or, as one of my companions noted, actually have a conversation with someone. Customers in TJ's were scurrying, darting around, having no interaction with others, including eye contact most of the time. Customers locally tend to, well, mosey through the store! Such a different aura!

The next thing we discussed is something I can't quite decide how to categorize. Attitude and friendliness? Desire to assist others? Knowledge? It's all of those. A few times we asked directions. People working in the businesses seemed to have no knowledge of the area. One girl claimed "I've only lived here three months." A couple people said flatly, "I have no idea." There was not an offer to check a phone book, ask another employee, anything that would help our plight. One man on the street did give us good directions. He said "I've never been there myself, but it is ...." I thought this was amazing. People must drive to work, go to the few business on which they rely for their own supplies, then go home without looking from side to side. It seems they don't look outside their own regimen for anything new and interesting. If you stop in almost any business in our area to ask directions or for a particular business or type of business, most people will give you directions. Or they will look it up in the phone book. Or they might say to check with George in the shop next door because he has lived here his whole life. Some people will lead you to the place! One exception might be in Ruidoso where many of the employees are college students spending the summer working and they may not be from here.

I understand that in a big city there is a lot more to know about, but when we asked for a business that turned out to be in the next block, and our informant didn't know about it, I just found that appalling. I've thought back on this, and I believe that if someone had asked direction of me in KC, I could have identified a place, would have looked in the phone book or otherwise tried to help out of towners find their destination. And when I lived in Albuquerque 35-45 years ago, I don't remember people being "big city-ish," in the way of relating to others, especially visitors. It was 1/4 the current size, but 200,000 or 250,000 isn't a small town! Perhaps I have always been more of a small town girl than I thought.

Lastly, the weather. It was unbearably hot there! Perhaps when I lived in Albuquerque before, I was young enough to be more tolerant to temperatures, but I honestly don't think that is it. I simply don't remember very many 95° or more days in the ten years I lived there. One of my friends speculated about global warming. We talked about the addition of XX square miles of asphalt pavement, concrete sidewalks, breeze-inhibiting buildings, etc., which have morphed over the years. Offsetting that you have the planting of trees and patches of grass in what was once a desert with mostly scrub growth, few trees. But can the plants offset the inert additions? I don't know. What I do know is that I am extraordinarily glad that I live on the side on my mountain!

What do you think? How do small towns and cities compare in your thoughts? What are your experiences?


And speaking of weather, it seems that our heat spell has broken. Today's high is slated to be 67°. At 8:30 the temp was 56°, and now nearly noon, it is a crisp 66°. Ahh. So nice! The next 10 days are forecast to be between low 80s and high 78s and with rain possibilities on most of those days. How nice! I'm all for that! I got rain again overnight, haven't checked the rain gauge for the amount, but it was a good hard rain at least for a while. It is so pleasant. I have five dogs asleep on the couch beside me, so you know it is unanimous at Chez Lynilu!

OK, I'll stop for now, because you guys need to get back to work. Shuffle that paper, sweep that floor!! Not me; I'm retired! Later!

The Big Trip

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Yesterday was very fun. Put four women in a big, bright blue truck and send them from the little town on the mountain and into the big city in the desert with plans for shopping and eating, and you've got a good day.

We got everything done that we intended. Except for the one thing I screwed up on. At Trader Joe's I kept looking at my list to convince myself that I had everything on it. I did. Yet I had the feeling I'd forgotten something. Later when we were at our last stop I suddenly realized that what I'd forgotten was something Allan wanted brought back. It was a small thing, but I'd promised, and I felt bad. However, by this time we were quite a long way from TJ, and doubling back would take almost an hour. It was already late and I just couldn't do it. I felt bad about it, but I'll get it for him somehow.

We made it to the first stop at Jo-Ann Fabrics so one of our party could pick out some upholstery fabric. This might have been our longest stop because of the decision making. I didn't time any of them. We didn't want to rush her. That's a huge decision.

We went for lunch next. We had picked the Elephant Bar, and it was a good choice! The dishes all have a Pacific Rim/Oriental flair, and everything we ordered was excellent. We shared some sweet potato fries, and one ordered shrimp and crab cakes, another had sushi, the third had pad thai and I had rock sugar braised beef with pappardelle noodles. Everything was excellent and reasonably priced. I brought some of mine home and had it for dinner tonight. We even had dessert (but of course). I had a crème brulée (but of course), and the other three split a huge cobbler, the biggest dessert I've ever seen!

We made it to Petsmart. I bought some toys that appeared to be fairly indestructible. If Lola were a child, I think she would be one of those kids who would take apart the toaster, the microwave and the coffee maker to see how they work, then walk away leaving all the parts in a pile! Especially if the toy has any kind of noisemaker, she will chew and gnaw and rip and tear until she gets the outer shell open. I brought home several new toys, and in about a half hour, she managed to chew up part of one of them! It was the one I was least convinced would last, but being right doesn't always make a person feel good. After I scolded her she has played with it without destroying it farther.

Next was a Hobby Lobby. We thought it might hold treasures that the one we frequent in Roswell, but to our surprise, it didn't seem to be as well stocked or have as broad a variety as our customary place. However, I did find another little trunk to go under the other window in the living room. I've put the doggy cushion on it, and they are already enjoying having another place to sit and rest or look out the window.








I like the design on it.


Our last stops were Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, for those treasures we especially covet. My big disappointment is that TJ's has discontinued making that wonderful cereal, Chocolate Decadence. I looked and looked, finally asked an employee about it, and she went to check on it. When she returned, she said, "I'm just the messenger," and I knew my worst fear was true. Dang!

At Whole Foods, one of my favorite splurges is from their deli section, and to my chagrin, they have discontinued carrying the caper salad! It might be just that store, the employee told me. We went to a different store than we usually do, as the one we've gone to before was closed since our last trip. I didn't know that, and we spent about 45 minutes trying to find it! There is yet another one that I'll check next time we go up.

By this time it was approaching 6:00, and we'd been in and out of the hot truck all day long. After every stop, we would almost get it cooled off when we would be at the next stop. The outside temp was near 100°. I didn't look every time, but it was at 99° as we backed out of the only shady spot I found all day long. I was really exhausted from the heat and going home was sounding very good. I said to the others that this trip was a good reminder of why we live where we do!

On the way home we snacked on some Havarti cheese with dill and slices of a mini loaf of kalamata olive bread and quenched our thirst with an Italian lemon soda. It rained on us off and on while we drove. We watched the thermometer in the truck, and when we were under the showers, the temp dropped 20°-30°. Then as we exited the rain, it would climb right back up.

At home it was clear that it had rained quiet a bit here. I was worried about Jazi, but she seemed to be pretty good. They were glad to see me. It was a long day to be away from each other. They were delighted with their new toys, and each of them grabbed a new toy and pranced around the house for a few minutes.

I was exhausted. The combination of heat, stress from trying to get everything in and trying to find the defunct store, etc., was just a lot. I slept solidly last night, but was still tired today. I got an haircut, picked up some milk at the store, came home and slept for two hours! I'm feeling good now, but I'm going to bed fairly early tonight.

Despite the disappointments and getting so tired, it was a fun trip with some of my favorite people here where I live. Once again .... I needed a reminder about how wonderful the climate here is in my home. When you see temperatures on the TV screen over 100°, it doesn't have the same impact as living it. I'm appreciatively humbled, and happy to be home!

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A Note from Jazmyn

What do you do when you hear thunder and your mom is busy loading the dishwasher and can't pick you up?



Why, you crawl in the dishwasher, that's what!











And your siblings come and ask you why mom is letting you sit in the dishwasher, but she won't let them lick the stuff in there, so what makes you so special, and Mom always did like you best. And you say, "Yeah? So?" You do this because you really don't care right now.





Then you look at your mom and say "Hurry the heck up! What??? You're taking pictures when you could be holding me and making me feel better?"

I guess it's OK now, though. Mom finished the dishes and we're cuddled on the couch. Well, us and the laptop.


I feel another stressful night coming on. I hope I'm wrong! GAH!

What a night!

Last night I went to bed as usual, around 10:30. Nothing out of the ordinary except that just as we headed toward the bedroom, it began raining. I quickly shooed The Gang out the back door for the bedtime constitutional. No one got very wet, in fact, not enough to even bother with a towel to dry them off. Then they had their bedtime treats and off to bed we went.

Jazi hates thunder, and there was a light bit of it accompanying the rain, so I snuggled her up with me till she calmed down. She climbed onto the pillow next to me, and soon we all drifted off to sleep.

I woke shortly after 1:00 with a start. It was raining pretty hard, but there was no thunder, thank goodness. I looked around for Jazi. She wasn't not on the bed. She was also not in her next two favorite places, a pillow on the cedar chest at the foot of the bed, or a spot under the bed where she retreats when it is hot or she seems to want away from the Thundering Herd of her siblings. She wasn't either place.

Since it was raining, I thought she might have been scared and found a hiding place, so I checked every nook and cranny I could find, including the closet since I'd left the door open a crack. Under dressers, night stands. All this time I was calling her, and she is usually pretty good about coming when I do, but there was no response. I was beginning to panic.

My only alternative seemed to be outside, and I couldn't imagine her being outside in the rain, but I took a flashlight and flipped on the backyard light. A sweep of the left didn't find her, but as soon as I turned to the right I saw her. She was sitting in the grass and perked up, beginning to walk toward me. I went down the steps and picked her up. She was really wet, but not to the skin. I carried her in, with all four others bouncing around my feet, grabbed a towel and wrapped her up.

Her eyes were huge. Something had scared my girl. Bad. After she was fairly dry, I got a second towel and swaddled her, holding her close to my body. I wondered what had scared her so badly. Something woke me up, but I had no idea what, so I wondered about a power failure. All my clocks have back-up batteries, so without going to the kitchen to look at the only appliance without backup, my stove, I didn't know for sure. I didn't want to disturb Jazi. She had finally quit shaking and her eyes drifted shut. We fell asleep like that.

This morning, I found that the clock on the stove was an hour behind. I'm guessing that when the power came back on, the multiple appliances starting back up caused some noise, startling her. If there had been a lightning strike close by, I would have been startled awake, and her fur wasn't wet enough for her to have been outside that whole hour.

Next time there is a thunderstorm at bedtime, maybe I will tie a string to her collar and my wrist so that if she leaves the bed I'll know!



Tomorrow .... road trip to Albuquerque with friends!! Whole Foods! Trader Joe's! Target! YAY!!!!

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Sunday Funnies

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I was torn between cartoons about aging or fashion trends, and as I examined my options, I realized that the two actually go together well! So you're gettin' the whole enchilada















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This group is pertinent to anyone who has been menopausal or lived with someone who was.





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That last one tells me who I've had trouble sleeping lately. Uh-huh.

Bon jour, mes amis!! In fact, bonne semaine!!!

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One of My Hanger-Outters

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I have spotted two of the cats that I am feeding. A few days ago I saw a pretty white and black spotted cat as it tore off the deck when the dogs spotted it. Then just now the dogs were all on the deck barking, so I figured one of the cats was there. I managed to get the four older ones in, but Lola was hanging around the end of the deck. Interestingly, she wasn't barking, just pushing her nose out through the chicken wire. I went to get her, and saw this in the bushes.

I know you can barely see it. A gorgeous Siamese cat is stretched out under the tree, and I couldn't get enough clearance from the tree to focus on the kitty, thus it is very blurry. It was also getting dark, so the lighting was awfully poor. I didn't use the flash for fear of scaring the poor thing away.

The cat seemed to be unafraid of me. I spent around ten minutes trying to get into a position to have a better shot, and he/she did not move away while I walked all over the end of the deck, and then opened the gate and walked down the ramp, too. However, while I called to it over and over, it didn't come to me either. I think this beauty has on a collar, but I'm not sure.

This was the other beautiful sight from the deck this evening ....

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F*aceb**k Frustration

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I just figured out one reason that Facebook will never replace blogs, IMO. People take advantage of the quickness and efficiency of the format, the "one liner," so to speak. That is convenient, for me as well as anyone else. But ....

I'm tired of reading posts that are like half-thoughts. It feels like I've broken into the middle of a conversation, and I have no idea what is going on. A lot of these are from people I know (or thought I did), either IRL or via the Internet, yet many times I don't understand the abbreviated statements.

Gonna get 'er done.
Did it!
Start over.
The answer is in the tea leaves.
That hurt.
Did not, did not, did not!
I hate this.

(I am not using quotes, just similar statements for examples.)

I assume these might mean something to people who directly and personally share much of your daily life. But if people already knew these things, I'm not sure why I would write them on Facebook. If they don't know what I'm talking about, those tidbits aren't going to tell them anything! Often when I ask a person what that is about, there is no answer. These things make me feel like I felt years ago over the "BE" situation!

Maybe I'm missing the whole purpose of Facebook. I hate this. Maybe I need to start over and look for the answer in the tea leaves. Maybe someday I will say gonna get 'er done. And eventually I'll yell did it! Who knows? I certainly don't get it at this time, and I gotta say .... that hurt. Does anyone else see these "shorties" and wonder about them? Maybe I should just let it go and BE.

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The Deck

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I've begun a next step in a home improvement project. Now I'm at a crossroads, and I need to research and ask advisers about some things before I proceed. I've already put in a couple calls. Now to research and wait.

My deck needs to be refinished. When the previous owner wanted to sell this, he "purtied it up." He painted the whole deck (over 800 sq. ft.), steps and ramp in a strange color of green. Not a color I like, but it didn't look too bad when I moved in as it was all uniform and looked neat, at least. The color was one issue, but to make it worse, he also used a latex paint. Not just latex, but an indoor latex. Dang fool. The paint began peeling within the first few months. By the end of a year, I knew I had to start working on it.

My plan is to remove paint from any walking surface, because any paint I put down will walk off, necessitating repainting in order to look good. I want to finish the walking surfaces with a natural sealer, no color. The other parts, hand rails, upright posts, etc., will be painted with a rich adobe, not a flat color, but with enough red to glow and be inviting.

I bought a power washer, and last summer I began using it to remove as much of the paint as possible. A lot of it came off, but after a while, I was damaging the wood, so I quit. I was able to remove almost all of it from the ramp which is exposed to sun and rain and was in the greatest need for help. It has been treated and looks decent, even after almost a year.

Since then I've worked on it whenever weather is conducive with the water hose. This method floats the paint off without eating at the wood underneath, but it is slower. And I've done about as much as I can with this. I need to move to the next method to remove the remainder of the green paint. I know I can't get on my hands and knees to scrape or sand it off. My body just won't take that, even with my hand-held power sander. I could rent a power sander, but I'm not certain I could handle it. I'm considering using a stripper, but I'm checking on this now.


This center board looks almost like it did originally. You can see the areas around it have worn badly.











This is an area I've worked on quite a bit.











Another area that has had a lot of attention.










This shows where I have used water without scraping or smoothing of any kind.











The ramp looks decent. I need to treat it again, but it isn't in bad shape and doesn't show the traffic wear.






I hope I can get this done by winter. I actually don't have much choice, I have to protect the wood from another year of weathering. It will be a much greater task to replace boards that have rotten with neglect!

Gee, don't you wish you had the fun of living at my house??? I know you're jealous! LOL!

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